Coogee, Western Australia, three-star punter Jesse Mirco officially ended his recruitment when he signed with Ohio State during the first day of the Early Signing Period on Wednesday.
The 6-3, 200-pound Mirco is considered the fifth-best punter and No. 1,968 prospect overall in the class of 2021, even though he took up punting earlier this year. That said, he comes from a program (Prokick Australia) that has produced numerous college and NFL prospects since 2006, most notably Former Ohio State and current Philadelphia Eagles punter Cameron Johnston, Pittsburgh Steelers punter Jordan Berry, San Francisco 49ers punter Mitch Wishnowski and Seattle Seahawks punter Michael Dickson.
Secondary/special teams coach Matt Barnes reached out to Prokick founder Nathan Chapman to see if they had any prospects coming through the pipeline. That — combined with a few chats with head coach Ryan Day, director of player personnel Mark Pantoni and strength and conditioning coach Mickey Marotti — quickly led to Mirco’s commitment on May 6.
Micro is the only specialist in the class after the Buckeyes added Cincinnati La Salle three-star kicker Jake Seibert last cycle. He’ll compete with walk-on Michael O’Shaughnessy for the starting spot as a true freshman, as current starting punter Drue Chrisman is expected to head to the NFL after this season.
For four free issues of the now-weekly print edition of Buckeye Sports Bulletin, sign up at the link below. No credit card required: https://www.buckeyesports.com/subscribe-4issue-trial/
