When asked about the top-rated recruit in his first group of freshmen at Ohio State, a member of his position room no less, Jim Knowles began with a caveat.
Archbishop Alter alum C.J. Hicks, the No. 1 linebacker in the class of 2022 and the lone five-star prospect among Ohio State’s early enrollees, was a name that headlined the Buckeyes’ fourth-ranked national haul when the group signed on with the program. However, Hicks’ name was rarely the first to come up in discussions about standout scarlet and gray performers this spring.
Nor should it have been, given Hicks’ age and the complex nature of Knowles’ new defense, which may both be speed bumps for some time in front of the No.