Ohio State football and the recruiting battle for 5-star QB Dante Moore

On May 2, 2022

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Breaking down the 35 highest-rated Ohio State football targets in the 2023 recruiting class heading into the summer:

Dante Moore

WHO: 5-star quarterback who plays for Martin Luther King High School in Detroit, Michigan.

SIZE: 6-foot-2, 195 pounds.

RANKING: The No. 3 quarterback in the class of 2023, No. 5 player.

THE BATTLE: Moore hasn’t publicly narrowed down his list yet, but there are schools that have risen to the top. He’s visited OSU twice over the last six months, first attending the Michigan State game, then returning in the spring for Student Appreciation Day.

Other schools still in this fight include LSU, Michigan, Notre Dame and Oregon.

THE HOMESTATE FACTOR: It will be interesting to see if the Wolverines can keep him from leaving the state, in so doing landing the third five-star quarterback of the Jim Harbaugh era. Michigan State is interested, but isn’t considered a major contender. But this homestate factor comes with a caveat.

Ohio State is prone to finding national targets with strong Buckeye State ties. Moore fits that criteria. He’s originally from Cleveland and still has strong ties to the city. He’s every bit from Ohio as he is Michigan.

Should he end up in Ann Arbor, he’d be Michigan’s first five-star recruit for a 2023 class currently holding six players and ranked 18th nationally. Choosing the Spartans would make him the seventh member of a class ranked 16th.

THE GEOGRAPHY: Detroit is 199 miles from Ohio State’s campus, a three-hour drive.

THE OTHER CONTENDERS: Moore has already taken official visits to LSU (April 22) and Oregon (April 29) this spring.

THE OSU NEED: Ohio State doesn’t necessarily need to land a big-time QB in this cycle. C.J. Stroud is probably entering his final season before heading off to the NFL, setting up a battle between Kyle McCord and Devin Brown to replace him in 2023.

McCord has the leg up in that fight. If that holds, Brown would likely remain as his backup. If McCord turns out to be a one-and-done, the Buckeyes are left with Brown in 2023 and they’re more than comfortable with that.

Would they take Moore if he wanted to commit today? Yes. But will they be fine if he and three other undecided QBs holding offers end up elsewhere? Also, yes.

The need isn’t high, but the want for one in every cycle is why OSU still finds itself in the thick of things.

WHAT THIS GUY DOES: Moore fits what Ryan Day wants in a prospect standing 6-foot-2. Strength coach Mickey Marotti would spend Moore’s freshman year putting 20 pounds on him.

His makeup is very similar to Stroud’s — a smart, accurate quarterback capable of making all the throws while not being much of a runner. But scrambling ability will always be seen as more of a bonus than a requirement by Day.

WILL THE BUCKEYES GET HIM?

I’d lean no. I wouldn’t be all that surprised if Moore doesn’t stay in the Big Ten footprint, getting swept up in the allure of the SEC. LSU coach Brian Kelly was at Notre Dame when the Irish started recruiting Moore, so it makes sense why the Tigers have quickly made up ground. Coming off an official visit to close out April, that program is one to watch.

To see Ohio State’s full 2023 recruiting class, click here.

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