Before signing with UNC, Caleb Wilson was recruited by Ohio State
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Seven men’s basketball recruits were on campus watching Ohio State football beat Nebraska 21-17 on Oct. 26, 2024. Six of those seven recruits were there on their own dime as part of unofficial visits.
The lone exception towered over them all.
Caleb Wilson, a 6-foot-10, 215-pound power forward from Atlanta, was on an official visit. He was accompanied by his family as he toured Columbus. Ohio State had been a late entry into the five-star prospect’s recruitment, but heading into his first year as coach, Jake Diebler was able to make up some late ground and emerge as a legitimate contender to land Wilson as part of the 2025 recruiting class.
That ultimately didn’t happen. Wilson signed with North Carolina, where he is having a monster freshman season, and he will face Ohio State in his hometown as part of the CBS Sports Classic on Dec. 20. When asked if he’d pictured seeing Wilson on the other side of the matchup, Diebler smiled.
“Caleb’s a great player and he’s an even better young man,” Diebler said. “At least, that was our experience with him. It was a hard-fought recruiting battle. Lot goes into recruiting nowadays, but he was a great young man when he was here on the visit. Really enjoyed recruiting him and his family.”
As they say in recruiting, if you’re not first, you’re last. Ohio State and Kentucky finished in Wilson’s top three but behind North Carolina, where he has blossomed for the Tar Heels. Wilson is averaging a double-double, leading No. 12 North Carolina in both scoring (19.5) and rebounding (10.4) averages this season.
He will enter the Ohio State game having scored exactly 20 points in each of his last three games. He is drawing 7.8 fouls per 40 minutes, the 14th-best rate in the nation according to KenPom.com, and shooting 73.1% (68 for 93) from the line and 57.8% (67 for 116) from inside the 3-point line.
With a lineup that also features 7-foot center Henri Veesaar and 6-10 small forward Jarin Stevenson, North Carolina’s roster is No. 1 nationally in average height according to KenPom.
“I’m not surprised he’s playing at the level he’s playing at because when you have a talented young player, which he’s certainly really talented, who works extremely hard and has high character, those type of guys thrive really, really early on,” Diebler said. “Nothing but great things to say about Caleb and his family. It’s a tall task certainly for some of our guys individually guarding him but collectively for us because he’s playing at a really high level and a big part of what they’re doing.”
Ohio State senior Bruce Thornton, also a native of the Atlanta area, described Wilson as a “great player” but said he has confidence in his team.
“We’re capable of playing against anybody,” he said. “I have no doubt with my guys against anybody else. I’m confident we’re going to win, and coach has a great gameplan to set us so we can get the win on Saturday.”
Ohio State men’s basketball beat writer Adam Jardy can be reached at ajardy@dispatch.com, on Bluesky at @cdadamjardy.bsky.social or on Twitter at @AdamJardy.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Caleb Wilson was recruited by Ohio State before picking North Carolina
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