Ohio State's football team secured the nation's top ranked recruit Wednesday. WOSU was at a Columbus sports bar to get the immediate reaction from Buckeye fans on their lunch breaks.
Much of the Champp's lunch crowd paused to listen as Terrell Pryor finally announced he wants scarlet and grey as his collegiate football team colors. And at least a couple of fans let their approval for Pryor be known by shouting, "OH-IO!"
Unlike many other college football recruits, the Pennsylvania teen did not take part in what's known as National Signing Day back in February. He wanted some time to take a closer look at the schools he was considering.
Kevin Kerr from Marysville thinks Pryor made it harder on himself by waiting so long to choose OSU.
"Hopefully he can live up to the hype," Kerr said.
Milton Bradley from Delaware was pleased with Pryor's choice.
"It's not surprising, though, because when you think about Ohio State, the football program is on top," Bradley said.
And the question on some minds is, is Pryor really as good as everyone makes him out to be? Rivals.com national recruiting analyst Michael Farrell said, yes.
"You know, it's hard to compare kids from year to year. Everybody compares him to Vince Young because of the physical characteristics. But he has the highest ceiling which means the most potential of any kid I've covered in eight years," Farrell said.
Ohio State fans may remember Young, the former University of Texas quarterback who almost single handedly beat OSU in 2005. Farrell said Pryor is six foot five inches tall and tips the scales at 235 pounds. And he said Pryor can outrun just about any player on the gridiron.
Back at Champps, Bradley said those stats look good on paper, but he thinks it's still a little soon to tell how good of a player Pryor will be.
"You never can tell how well a recruit is going to turn out. They first have to put on the uniform and go out and perform. So, we know what he's done in high school now it's time to see what he can do on the collegiate level I guess," Bradley said.
Farrell said it's his job to predict an athlete's potential and he said you can get a feel for how well they will play.
"When a kid is as talented and explosive as a player like Terrell is, you know, a lot of factors come in to play: how will he be coached; will he be put into the right offense to make himself or bring out his athletic ability; will he avoid injuries? There's so many factors that could occur between now and when he moves on to college," Farrell said.
Before picking Ohio State, Pryor looked at Michigan, Penn State and Oregon. Also excelling in basketball, Pryor led his high school team to the state championship last weekend. But for now, Pryor said he does not plan to play basketball in college.