Ohio RB Spencer Ware Commits To LSU

Ohio Running Back Spencer Ware committed to LSU on Wednesday, bringing LSU's number of commitments to a staggering 21. He is 5'11" 220 pounds and certainly qualifies as a "big back." Ware is highly thought of by both the recruiting services and college head coaches. Ware is rated four stars by Scout.com and is ranked the #11 running back in the nation. Rivals.com also rates Ware four stars and is ranked as the #12 "athlete" nationally. They also rate him as the #118 overall player in the nation. Ware chose LSU over offers from Ohio State, Michigan, Purdue, North Carolina, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Michigan State.

Ware plays quarterback for his high school team, so it's tough to properly evaluate him as a running back. ESPN gives their evaluation here. Ware is also an outstanding baseball player and could very well play both sports for LSU.

A good video of Ware can be seen here.

Below is some more video of Ware. Keep in mind that Ware is playing QB in most of these highlights. You can see some clips of Ware running with the ball towards the end of the video:

So where does this leave LSU in their recruitment of running backs this season?

We all know that Lache Seastrunk is the #1 target, and he will have a spot reserved as long as he wants.

But the rest of LSU's recruitment of running backs has been puzzling. We first saw Georgia running back Storm Johnson receive an offer from LSU. After several visits to LSU, Storm visited LSU once more...seemingly for the purpose of committing to LSU. However, the commitment never took place and nobody knows exactly why. Johnson's father claims that Storm IS committed but was instructed to keep it quiet for now.

We then saw Hahnville running back Alfred Blue impress LSU's coaches at camp last week an earn an offer. Most then assumed that Blue may be taken instead of Johnson, but that was just speculation.

Then today, Spencer Ware commits to LSU. What does that mean for Blue? For Johnson? I really don't think anyone knows, but I can take a guess. I think LSU would ideally take Ware and Seastrunk and that's it, but they'll continue to recruit Johnson and Blue in case Seastrunk goes elsewhere.

Since I last updated the site, LSU also received Commitment #20, defensive lineman Dexter Blackmon of Selma, Alabama. Blackmon's commitment came from way out of left field, as he wasn't even on LSU's radar until he attended the camp last week. He apparently impressed the coaches a great deal at camp and earned an offer, which he accepted just a few days later.

Blackmon is 6'2" 265 pounds and can play either defensive end or defensive tackle, though he'll likely play tackle at LSU. His only offer other than LSU's is from Troy. He also attended camps at Alabama and Auburn and both schools decided to pass on offering Blackmon. Blackmon joins recent commitments and signees such as Sam Gibson, Cameron Fordham, and Josh Williford as guys that LSU offered based solely on their evaluations of them at camp. None of those players had any other major offers. Reaches? Or diamonds in the rough? Time will tell...