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MD CB Dominic Clarke - Ohio State

6/8/2008 5:25 PM

srpatterson

Joined: 2/6/2007

Posts: 747

MD CB Dominic Clarke - Ohio State (United States)

Dominic Clarke
5-10/168/4.41
Tuscarora Frederick, MD
Cornerback
Committed to Ohio State Sunday 6-8-08 at Senior Camp.

6/8/2008 5:26 PM

srpatterson

Joined: 2/6/2007

Posts: 747

Re: MD CB Dominic Clarke - Ohio State (United States)

Maryland's Clarke Becomes OSU's 16th Verbal

By Bill Kurelic

Posted Jun 8, 2008

Dominic Clarke

Ohio State hosted one of its two senior advanced camps on Sunday. But there was big news even before the camp as the OSU staff got a verbal from visiting cornerback Dominic Clarke of Frederick (Md.) Tuscarora. The 5-11, 180-pound Clarke becomes OSU's 16th commitment for 2009. Click here for more.

Ohio State had some recruiting fireworks even before Sunday's senior advanced camp got under way.

Frederick (Md.) Tuscarora cornerback Dominic Clarke spent the weekend in Columbus on an unofficial visit. Before leaving town on Sunday, Clarke told the OSU coaches he was ready to commit to the Buckeyes.

"I did it because of the tradition," Clarke said. "It can help me to elevate my game. To be the best, you have to play against the best. I don't see playing time as a problem there. I am confident in my abilities."

Clarke picked the Buckeyes over Virginia and at least seven other schools that had offered, including Stanford, Vanderbilt, Navy, Boston College and nearby Maryland.

"I love Ohio State's tradition," he said. "I want to win and Ohio State wins."

OSU had just extended Clarke an offer in mid-May. He and his family members drove out from Maryland on Friday to check out the school.

"We took an academic tour yesterday," Clarke said. "The academic tour was amazing. I also met the strength and conditioning coach (Eric Lichter) and I liked him a lot.

"They were having the camp there today, but I did not participate in the camp. I committed this morning before leaving to come home. I plan on coming back for (the second senior camp) on June 20."

As a junior, Clarke played at running back (837 yards, five touchdowns) and also at corner on defense (38 tackles, three interceptions).

He qualified for the Maryland Class 3A state track meet in three events. He finished seventh in the 400-meter state finals in 50.0 seconds. His 4x200 relay team finished 10th. He also qualified for the state meet in the 200, but missed the finals after finishing in 22.36 seconds in the prelims.

He has a listed 40-yard dash time of 4.41 seconds and boasts a 36-inch vertical leap. Clarke also said he has a 4.0 core GPA.

He joins Clayton (Ohio) Northmont's C.J. Barnett as corners in this 2009 class. In some respects, he replaces Maryland standout Darrell Givens, a corner prospect who originally committed to OSU before switching his verbal to Penn State last month.

6/10/2008 10:18 AM

srpatterson

Joined: 2/6/2007

Posts: 747

Re: MD CB Dominic Clarke - Ohio State (United States)

Second Time a Charm? Buckeyes land commitment from Maryland’s Dominic Clarke

Posted in June 8th, 2008

by Alex in Football Recruiting

After Indian Head (Lackey), Maryland corner back, Darrell Givens, switched his verbal commitment from Ohio State to Penn State, Jim Tressel and staff spent a lot of time trying to lure another defensive back into the class of 2009 to take Givens’ place. One of those targets was another corner back from the state of Maryland in Fredrick Tuscarora’s Dominic Clarke. After an unofficial visit this weekend to Columbus, Clarke ended his recruitment and gave a verbal commitment to the Buckeyes earlier this morning.

This commitment by the 5′11″ 180-pound defensive back is a big pick up for the Buckeye staff, who have offered a multitude of players at the position since Givens’ switch to Happy Valley last month. Clarke tallied 38 tackles to go along with 3 interceptions in his junior year and had 837 yards and 5 touch downs as a running back on the offensive side of the ball. He was being recruited by various other schools, such as Virginia, Maryland, Stanford, Vanderbilt, Navy, Boston College, and others before the Buckeyes won out for his services.

The impact of Clarke’s verbal commitment reaches much further than in Columbus and Fredrick, as he becomes the 16th member of the class of 2009. Ohio State is looking to take about 25 members in this class and spots are filling up quickly. With offers out to other defensive backs Brandon McGee (FL), Vlad Emilien (FL), DJ Hunter (OH), Roderick Sweeting (GA), Bradley McDougald (OH), Frankie Telfort (FL), Travis Hawkins (MD), Corey Brown (PA), EJ Banks (PA), and two way players Justin Green (KY), Andre DeBose (FL) and Stephon Gilmore (SC), the Buckeyes may be running out of defensive back spots in this class with Clarke, Jamie Wood, and CJ Barnett already committed. Look for the Buckeyes to take 3 more DBs in the class at most and maybe take another player or two out of this pool as an athlete. Spots will certainly be saved for Brandon McGee and Vlad Emilien, but the other players on this list may want to jump on their offers to quickly or they could find out that there may not be room for them in Columbus for the 2009 season.

6/10/2008 10:18 AM

srpatterson

Joined: 2/6/2007

Posts: 747

Re: MD CB Dominic Clarke - Ohio State (United States)

Lose a Marylander, Gain a Marylander

Posted by Vico in Recruiting | Jun.08.08

Dominic Clarke

The Buckeyes lost Darrell Givens, a previous commit from the state of Maryland, to Penn State not long ago. To compensate, the Buckeyes have just picked up the commitment of Dominic Clarke, a 5′10 cornerback from Frederick, MD. Clarke, for those unaware, is a speed demon at the corner position, clocking in at 4.41 on the 40yd dash and 4.06 on the shuttles, complimented with a 36 inch vertical. Even more intriguing for me is Clarke’s credentials as an honors student. He carries a 3.75 GPA and insists that he made academics integral to his recruitment. The questions he asked during his visit to the spring game all centered on academics, he earned a 4.0 in his most recent semester, is an honor roll student and plans to study criminology in college. His HS coach corroborates for Clarke’s case what I think is truism for college football players everywhere: his diligence in the classroom makes him a smarter, more coachable, player on the football field.

The difference for Clarke was the coaching staff. Clarke took a recent visit and got the red carpet treatment from the staff. He had kind words to say about Eric Lichter and the general youth trend on the coaching staff. Indeed, many important players on the coaching staff are in their mid-30s to early-40s and can effectively relate to incoming recruits. Further, he even remarked that Jim Tressel was the ultimate “player’s coach” and has the same energy as the younger guys on the staff. The visit informed Clarke that Ohio State just felt right. In his words, he knew he would be in good hands.

The commitment caught me by surprise since I didn’t expect anything to come of the May 14 offer to Clarke. He did go out of his way to attend the spring game, which should be as much of an indicator of interest as anything else. Further, he even put them as a preliminary leader based off the Spring Game experience. Still, I was expecting the Buckeyes to continue looking to Florida for its secondary, specifically Emilien and McGee (though there is still room for them).

That said, additions to the family are always welcome. I hope he feels he’s seen everything he needs to see.

Junior year highlights:

A lot of the clips here are of him playing tailback, but I think you’ll like what you do see of him as a cornerback. He has good speed and he hits well. He wangs a tackle at the 4:47 mark, but recovers very nicely. He saves a touchdown with a great tackle at the 5:40 mark.

6/10/2008 10:19 AM

srpatterson

Joined: 2/6/2007

Posts: 747

Re: MD CB Dominic Clarke - Ohio State (United States)

Sunday, June 8, 2008

OSU picked up #16

Maryland defensive back Dominic Clarke announced his intention to play for the Ohio State Buckeyes and became the newest member of the class of 2009 today. The 5-10, 178lbs corner recently got offers from the likes of Stanford, Vanderbilt, Virginia, Navy, Boston College, and Maryland. What really impressed Clarke was Ohio State's academic facilities and the relationship he built with strength and conditioning coach Eric Lichter. Currently Clarke has a GPA of 3.75.

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MD CB Dominic Clarke - Ohio State