Pitt '16 OH ATH - George Hill (Pitt Verbal)

HILL DENIES RUMORS, BUT RUNNING BACK IS HIS GOAL
Multiple times over the last couple months, the rumors surrounding Ohio State's first 2016 commitment – Hubbard's George Hill – have swirled, repeatedly. Hill, "they" say, is looking at other schools, including Michigan State, and it's only a matter of time before he flips from Ohio State. The primary reason behind "their" opinion? Hill believes, apparently, that he was going to be the only running back in the Ohio State class, despite popular opinion being that only Kareem Walker is a "pure" running back for the Buckeyes. Hill, it's been said, will line up in more of a combination/hybrid role, similar to the one occupied currently by Ohio State's Jalin Marshall. If Hill's perceived unhappiness is related to Walker, that could come as a bit of a surprise.
"I haven't really talked to any of the guys (in the recruiting class) much, besides Kareem Walker" Hill told Eleven Warriors. "He's a nice kid. He's got his mind set on the prize, just like me."
Two of country's top prospects at running back, despite knowing they may have different roles in Columbus, means the pair has something to talk about.
"Kareem and I both want to play running back," Hill said of their discussions. "I am bigger and faster now than I used to be, so I want to play there because I think I can be good at it. But, they can use me at running back or slot or whatever they think is best, but right now, I want to be a running back."
What about the rumors surrounding Michigan State and a dissipating relationship with the Buckeyes?
"I don't know why (the Michigan State) stuff comes up," he said. "I'm not looking at them and I haven't been. I talk to (Chris) Ash weekly, and I've been talking a lot more to Coach (Tim) Beck, too. I was at Ohio State on the 28th of March and right now now I have no interest in visiting other schools."
Hill continues to say the right things, but it will be interesting to see how this plays out into the summer and beyond.

 

Hill Always Chasing Improvement - Ohio State - Scout http://t.co/0nnpYlYX3P

— OSUBasketballJunkie (@ScarletBuckeye2) June 7, 2015

 

HILL AT FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS?
One of the more interesting members of Ohio State's 2016 recruiting class is Hubbard, Ohio's George Hill. Interesting because well, George really doesn't have much time or concern for being recruited anymore. He committed last summer – the first in his class – for a reason: he's not into the whole thing.
Still, people want to make the 6-foot-tall, 210-pound running back/athlete into a story because he doesn't come to Ohio State as much as maybe would be preferred. Rest assured, folks, it appears that the country's 98th-ranked prospect will be in Columbus for Friday Night Lights, at least according to Scout.com guru Bill Greene. If Greene speaks on something involving Northeast Ohio, it pays to listen, so if he's saying Hill will be there, Hill is – at the very least – planning on being there. Whether he's working out or not, that's up in the air, as it is with every Ohio State commit that plans on attending.
Because of his desire to stay off the grid, it's hard to really get a clear picture of what Hill's future holds, but he and the Buckeyes don't appear to have any disconnect, despite what is rumored. Michigan State remains in hot pursuit, thanks in part to their 2015 signing of LJ Scott, but as long as Abdul Adams remains committed to the Spartans, I don't think there's any real concern of Hill signing anywhere other than with Ohio State.

 

FNL Preview: George Hill - Ohio State - Scout http://t.co/qqLc05c9aN

— OSUBasketballJunkie (@ScarletBuckeye2) July 22, 2015

 

George Hill out here working out before FNL kicked off pic.twitter.com/jqoXlQX0bh

— Josh Winslow (@jwinslow7) July 24, 2015

 

Hill heading elsewhere?
There has been a lot of speculation on the commitment status of '16 ATH George Hill of Hubbard (OH). The 6'0, 200-pounder has had a relatively quiet recruitment because he doesn't do much talking. That, along with the fact that Hill hadn't set foot on the Buckeye campus in quite some time, began raising some concerns.
However, Hill then made his way to Columbus and participated in Ohio State's Friday Night Lights camp in July, which obviously calmed the nerves of Buckeye fans. But not for very long. Since that FNL camp, Hill has been offered by Pittsburgh, and on Wednesday, Nebraska.
Obviously this is something to keep an eye on. Will George Hill be a part of the 2016 recruiting class for the Scarlet and Gray come February? We will have to see. But for now, it's not looking very likely. Stay tuned.

 

#Pitt and the #Spartans could soon get Top100 ATH and Ohio State commit George Hill back to campus: http://t.co/zNFogW1rf1

— Steve Wiltfong (@SWiltfong_) August 13, 2015

 

HILL MAKING HIS STANCE, WHAT NOW?
Earlier today, Hubbard, Ohio 2016 athlete George Hill told 247Sports.com that he was "100-percent committed" to the Buckeyes. The speedster, who committed to Ohio State last July, is the first member of the 2016 recruiting and recent speculation has been that things may be trending towards a split from Ohio State.
Last week, Hill visited Pittsburgh and was offered a scholarship at the time by new Panthers' head coach Pat Narduzzi. This week, he was also offered by Nebraska, so the sharks out there are smelling blood in the water, it would appear. What does it mean? What's going to happen?
I have said a few times that I am of the mind that changes happen between now and signing day with the Buckeyes and I still believe that Hill ultimately ends up somewhere other than Ohio State. When? I don't know, but I still think that's the most likely result.

 

George Hill: 'I'm 100-percent committed' http://t.co/WF5Tp1zS6P via @247Sports

— OSUBasketballJunkie (@ScarletBuckeye2) August 18, 2015

 

GEORGE HILL SHOWS OFF THE JETS
The Buckeyes have no shortage of talented athletes in their 2016 recruiting class and – despite some questions about where he ends up come February – George Hill is definitely one of them. Yesterday, thanks to Twitter user Scott Killian, we got a chance to see Hill do what Hill does best and that's run; really fast.
There's a substantial amount of scuttlebutt surrounding Hill and his place with the Buckeyes. Is he a running back? Is he a wide receiver/H-back? Is he a defensive back?
These are the questions that Hill is going to have to ask himself, and answer for himself, before ultimately deciding on what opportunity is best for him.

 

George Hill
Northwayne gave Hill and Hubbard everything they had on Friday, but it still wasn't enough to walk away with the upset win. Rallying to pull out the victory, Hubbard's rushing attack was a huge part why the Eagles beat the Bobcats, 22-19.
Rushing for a total of 216 total yards as a team, the future Buckeye Hill racked up over half those yards for the Eagles. In the first game of his senior season, the four-star prospect carried the ball 13 times for 128 yards and a touchdown to help lead Hubbard to the win.

 

Won 55-7 13 carries, 131 yds and 4 total TD

 

Won 33-7
108 yards, 9.0 ypc, TD

 

Two OSU commits checked out other programs over the weekend. Class of 2016 pledge George Hill made the trek to East Lansing to watch Michigan State take on Oregon, while class of 2017 commit Bruce Judson was in the Swamp to see Florida play East Carolina. Both Hill and Judson have been verbally committed to Ohio State for quite some time, but have flirted with other programs.

 

HILL VISITS MICHIGAN STATE AFTERALL

Last week Ohio State commit George Hill told 11W that he would not make a trip to Michigan State for their game against Oregon because of a standardized testing schedule conflict.

I can't go to Michigan State this weekend because I have to take the ACT. I will go watch (LJ Scott) play at some point because that's my brother and he always will be."

Hill's plans changed and he did make the trip to East Lansing and coming out of it, it appears that his recruitment could be trending towards Michigan State again, not Pittsburgh as it had seemed to be.

Hill has had a great start to his senior season and maintains publicly that he's 100-percent committed to Ohio State. That said, I do not expect that he will end up at Ohio State come signing day, as I've said a few times in recent months.

 

George Hill Gives The Latest - Ohio State - Scout http://t.co/VIh1L8CoET

— OSUBasketballJunkie (@ScarletBuckeye2) September 16, 2015

 

Will Michigan State succeed in flipping a top Ohio State commit away from the program? http://t.co/LaNW9NNgHQ pic.twitter.com/LWitCUomcm

— Land-Grant Holy Land (@Landgrant33) September 16, 2015