Nashville Ensworth four-star safety Andre Turrentine officially ended his recruitment when he signed with Ohio State during the first day of the Early Signing Period on Wednesday.
The 6-0, 175-pound Turrentine – who is considered the ninth-best safety and No. 167 prospect overall in the class of 2021 – committed to the Buckeyes on March 17 over finalists Alabama, LSU and Tennessee.
Ohio State running backs coach/area recruiter Tony Alford extended a scholarship offer to Turrentine in August 2019, and he made his first and only trip to Columbus for the Buckeyes’ 28-17 win over Penn State that November. The visit lasted two days, as Turrentine spent time with Alford, head coach Ryan Day, then-co-defensive coordinator/secondary coach Jeff Hafley, director of player personnel Mark Pantoni and several players.
Hafley’s departure for Boston College last December could have halted Ohio State’s momentum, but new defensive coordinator Kerry Coombs picked up right where Hafley left off and visited Turrentine’s school in late January. The two immediately hit it off, so Turrentine set up an unofficial visit to Columbus for April 3.
That was cancelled due to the coronavirus outbreak, so rather than wait for the ongoing recruiting dead period to end, Turrentine simply announced his commitment instead.
Turrentine is joined in the Buckeyes’ 2021 recruiting class by several other defensive backs, including St. Louis De Smet Jesuit four-star Jakailin Johnson; Suwanee (Ga.) North Gwinnett four-star Jordan Hancock; Nashville Ensworth four-star Andre Turrentine; Scottsdale (Ariz.) Saguaro four-star Denzel Burke; Bowling Green (Ky.) South Warren four-star Jantzen Dunn; and Cincinnati La Salle three-star Jaylen Johnson.
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