It's entirely possible that no one has had to work harder than Jake Cook to be a part of Ohio State's 2025 recruiting class. </p><div><p>
The Westerville North standout dedicated a year to refining his body, losing more than 40 pounds and refining his technique to make himself an Ohio State-caliber prospect.
It didn't stop there, as Cook had to go through two workouts with the Buckeyes in June to be considered for an offer. After both sessions ended, no offers initially came, which left Cook somewhat disappointed.
But everything changed with a phone call from Justin Fry on the Saturday before Father's Day.
cook file
- Class: 2025
- size: 6-5/295
- Situation: C
- School: Westerville North (Westerville, Ohio)
- overall rating:
- overall rank: #616 (#39 IOL)
"He called me and asked what I was doing," Cook said. <em>eleven warriors</em> In a precommit interview. "I was just relaxing and had just played golf. He asked me what I got my dad for Father's Day. Of course, I told him I still needed to do that. He told me , 'How about you take him for Father's Day to Ohio State on an official visit next week and you announce your commitment while we're all at dinner?' I was like, 'What?' He said 'Yeah, man, now you've got an offer from Ohio State.'
Cook had grown up rooting for the Buckeyes and grew up right down the road from the school, so he needed a full five seconds to fully accept the offer. He had been committed to Louisville since February, but withdrew his pledge to the Cardinals a few days after receiving the offer. Following Fry's suggestion, Cook announced his commitment to OSU on the Friday of his official visit, then made it public two days later.
"It's a huge blessing for me, it's every kid's dream in Ohio to be a part of the Buckeyes," Cook said. “I'm excited to wake up and compete against the best and be trained by the best every day. It's a blessing and I'm ready to get to work. It didn't really affect me until I woke up the next morning (I had the offer). I was like, 'Oh my God, this really happened.'"
staying home! #Committed #gobucks pic.twitter.com/Mjbb62H37z
– Jake Cook (@CookJake52) 23 June 2024
With Cook committing to OSU, the Buckeyes now have two offensive linemen committed in 2025 and 18 total committed in 2025, as he joins fellow in-state lineman Carter Lowe. However, OSU has yet to add to its offensive depth this cycle and is still expected to take three more linemen in 2025. The Buckeyes' top remaining offensive line targets include David Sanders Jr., Josh Petty and Jevon McFadden.
Situation |
Name |
rating |
Post |
size |
School |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
CB |
Devin Sanchez |
#5 NATL , #1 cb |
6-2 , 170 |
North Shore (Houston, Texas) |
|
CB |
Naeem Offord |
#6 NATL , #2 CB |
6-1 , 185 |
Parker (Birmingham, Alabama) |
|
cubby |
Tavian St. claire |
#14 NATL , #3 QB |
6-4 , 210 |
Bellefontaine (Bellefontaine, Ohio) |
|
S |
Faheem Delaney |
#34 NATL , #2 s |
6-2 , 195 |
Good Counsel (Olney, Maryland) |
|
LB |
tarvos alford |
#47 NATL , #5 lb |
6-2 , 210 |
Vero Beach (Vero Beach, Florida) |
|
wr |
quincy porter |
#49 NATL , #8 WR |
6-3 , 190 |
Bergen Catholic (Oradell, New Jersey) |
|
ot |
carter lowe |
#54 NATL , #7 OT |
6-5 , 290 |
Whitmer (Toledo, Ohio) |
|
day |
zaheer mathis |
#60 NATL , #5 edge |
6-6 , 225 |
Imhotep Institute (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) |
|
RB |
bo jackson |
#81 NATL , #5 RB |
6-0 , 205 |
Villa Angela-St. Joseph (Cleveland, Ohio) |
|
day |
london merit |
#116 NATL , #13 DL |
6-2 , 250 |
IMG Academy (Bradenton, Florida) |
|
te |
Nate Roberts |
#132 NATL , #6 TE |
6-4 , 235 |
Washington (Washington, Oklahoma) |
|
S |
deshawn stewart |
#295 NATL , #26 s |
6-2 , 185 |
DePaul Catholic (Wayne, New Jersey) |
|
wr |
Daisy Jones |
#313 NATL , #42 WR |
6-0 , 180 |
DePaul Catholic (Wayne, New Jersey) |
|
S |
cody haddad |
#376 NATL , #18 ATH |
6-1 , 175 |
St. Ignatius (Cleveland, Ohio) |
|
LB |
ellie lee |
#380 NATL , #41 lb |
6-3 , 230 |
Archbishop Hoban (Akron, Ohio) |
|
RB |
isaiah west |
#526 NATL , #45 RB |
5-11 , 208 |
St. Joseph’s Prep School (Philadelphia, PA) |
|
official language |
jake cook |
#617 NATL | #39 IOL |
6-5 , 295 |
Westerville North (Westerville, OH) |
|
wr |
bodpagan miller |
No |
6-4 , 180 |
Ontario (Mansfield, OH) |
|
Prospect ratings data: 247Sports Composite |
Ohio State finds its center in Cook
According to 247Sports' composite rankings, Cook is considered the No. 616 prospect and No. 39 interior offensive lineman in the 2025 class.
Cook has played left tackle for his high school the past two seasons and left guard his freshman year. He will primarily play center in Columbus and says he plans to play all five positions on the offensive line for Westerville North this season.
"The main thing for me at center is that I can snap the ball but it's getting really comfortable in that position," Cook said. "Every day in practice, whether in individual periods or playing second string, I'm on the sidelines trying to take some photos. I try to take about 100 photos per day and practice things like stepping, pulling, Am ."
The 6-foot-5, 295-pound Cook says he will enroll soon and will be in Columbus this January.
"In addition to body composition, I've also improved my explosiveness and running ability," Cook said. "I would say wrestling has helped a lot with that," he said. Wrestling made me very bad. It made me a tough man.”
With offensive line being such a developmental position at the next level, it's reasonable to expect Cook to take a year or two to develop into a game-ready player.
Although Cook wasn't on the Buckeyes' radar until recently, it's worth noting how far he's come in a short time frame. Cook opened some eyes by dominating the Under Armor Next Camp in May, being named positional MVP. He also completely surprised Fry and Ryan Day at OSU's first recruiting camp, leading Day to tell Cook that it made him completely reevaluate his recruiting board.
If he continues that same work ethic during his OSU career, it wouldn't be surprising to see him turn in a very respectable collegiate body of work with the Buckeyes.
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