Dayton-area junior quarterback Braxton Miller is expected to announce his oral commitment to Ohio State today, giving the Buckeyes the perfect recruit to follow in the footsteps of Terrelle Pryor.
Braxton Miller has impressed all scouting services as a true dual-threat quarterback and is expected to announce plans to attend Ohio State in 2011. “It would probably be one of the bigger recruiting upsets if he ended up anywhere other than Ohio State,” Rivals.com national recruiting analyst Jeremy Crabtree said.
THE BRAXTON MILLER FILE
• High school: Huber Heights Wayne, just outside Dayton.
• Position: Quarterback.
• Ht./wt.: 6-3, 195 pounds.
• Career stats: 225 of 408 passing (55.2 percent) for 2,628 yards; 938 rushing yards.
Recruiting rankings
Rivals: No. 56 player, No. 2 QB.
Scout: No. 4 player, No. 1 QB.
ESPN: No. 16 player, No. 2 QB.
MaxPreps: No. 8 player, No. 1 QB.
Scholarship offers: More than 40, including Ohio State, Alabama, Florida, USC, Notre Dame and Michigan.
-- Doug LesmerisesCOLUMBUS, Ohio -- The last time Ohio State secured its quarterback of the future, the Buckeyes were forced to wait, earning the commitment of Terrelle Pryor in March of 2008, only six months before Pryor took over as a starter as a freshman.
If things go as expected at Huber Heights Wayne High School in the Dayton suburbs today, Ohio State coach Jim Tressel's latest QB plan will fall into place much earlier in the recruiting cycle.
Braxton Miller, a junior ranked as either the No. 1 or No. 2 quarterback in the Class of 2011 by every major recruiting service, is expected to announce his oral commitment to Ohio State in a noon news conference after narrowing his offers from almost every major football program to the Buckeyes and Florida.
Then he should fall into the already established Pryor Plan as a dual-threat quarterback ready to run Ohio State's multiple offense early in his career.
"It would probably be one of the bigger recruiting upsets if he ended up anywhere other than Ohio State," Rivals.com national recruiting analyst Jeremy Crabtree said. "I think with what we've seen with Ohio State's offense, a dual-threat quarterback can be successful if you have the right guy to run it, and there's no better dual-threat quarterback in the country than Braxton."
At 6-foot-3 and about 195 pounds, Miller is three inches shorter and 35 pounds lighter than Pryor was in high school. But in terms of what his commitment would mean to Ohio State and the skills he brings to the quarterback position, the Buckeyes weren't going to find a much better Pryor successor than the cousin of former OSU receiver Dee Miller.
"He makes all the throws," CBS College Sports recruiting analyst Tom Lemming said. "He's similar to Terrelle Pryor and he may be a little bit better passer. Terrelle's a much better all-around athlete, one of the best we've seen for somebody that size, but Braxton can put the ball on the money. So Ohio State is getting the perfect answer to Terrelle Pryor."
Since snagging Pryor, the Buckeyes haven't landed another highly-rated QB recruit, forced to reach for Kenny Guiton to fill out the Class of 2009, then getting Taylor Graham, who was listed as the No. 14 pro-style quarterback, and the No. 236 overall player, in the Class of 2010. Guiton has shown good progress, and Graham certainly has potential as a different style of quarterback, but Miller has been a Tressel target since his sophomore season.
"He talked about me taking over after Pryor in a couple years," Miller said as a sophomore after receiving Tressel's offer of a scholarship. "I've got a similar style to him, but I usually pass more than I run."
Regardless of the comparison, the point is that Miller possesses game-changing skills, and he's just 65 miles from Ohio State's campus, as important a recruit for the Buckeyes as when they won the national battle to pull Pryor out of Western Pennsylvania.
"The term dual-threat quarterback too many times references a player that typically is a better athlete than passer," Scout.com national recruiting analyst Scott Kennedy said. "A true dual-threat quarterback can beat a team without moving his feet. Braxton Miller is a true dual-threat.
"Miller has the skill set to be a dropback passer in a pro-style offense, and he has the athleticism to run a wishbone. Players like him don't come around very often."