Zion Grady commits to Ohio State; Buckeyes land coveted edge-rusher

Andrew Nemec | Jun 24, 2024

Zion Grady poses during his official visit to Ohio State / Courtesy of Zion Grady

For some time, Enterprise (Alabama) four-star edge-rusher Zion Grady has been among the nation's most difficult prospects to project.

Not as a talent - he's unquestionably one of the top edge-rushers in America - but in regards to where he'd play his college football.

The 6-foot-4, 235-pound defender has visited several of the nation's top programs, and been projected to be leaning toward a few schools, including Alabama, Georgia and Ohio State.

On Monday, Grady finally put an end to all of that speculation, announcing his commitment to the Ohio State Buckeyes over contenders Florida State, Tennessee and others.

For the bluechip defensive lineman, one of the biggest factors in his recruitment was Ohio State associate head coach/defensive line coach Larry Johnson.

"Coach Johnson really made me a priority over the last few months," Grady said. "The guys is as advertised."

Rated as a consensus four-star prospect, Grady tops out on Rivals as the nation's No. 3 weakside defensive end and the No. 45 overall prospect by ESPN.

As a junior, the Alabama product racked up an impressive 87 tackles, 24 tackles-for-loss and 11 sacks, following up on a stellar sophomore campaign in which he accumulated 108 tackles and 22 sacks.

Here's what 247Sports had to say about Grady as a prospect:

"Position versatile pass rusher capable of playing multiple roles in an odd front that shows the ability to win consistently with first step explosiveness and initial quickness off the line of scrimmage. Verified at 6-foot-4 and 225-pounds this February, Grady possesses a long lower half in addition to excellent arm length at 34-inches plus that allows him to utilize his length and athleticism effectively off the edge and on the interior. A quick twitch mover, the Alabama native relies heavily on his first step and foot and body quickness to gain leverage on opposing offensive linemen while flashing the speed to power ability to illustrate his physical pass rushing potential at the next level. Although very productive at the high school level, Grady will more than likely need a year to develop physically in a collegiate weight room before seeing a considerable amount of snaps on Saturdays. A high floor prospect that does a lot of things well, Grady projects as a Power Four multi-year starter in a 34 OLB role with the ability to develop into a Day-2 or Day-3 NFL Draft choice."

Overall, Ohio State's 2025 recruiting class is currently ranked No. 1 nationally and consists of 18 pledges, led by a trio of five-star prospects - Bellefontaine (Ohio) quarterback Tavien St. Clair, North Shore (Texas) cornerback Devin Sanchez and Parker (Alabama) cornerback Na'eem Offord.