July 26, 2024
Recruiting


Recruiting

St. Ignatius’ Justin Scott commits to Ohio State

Illinois’ top 2024 prospect heads to the Buckeyes

St. Ignatius’ Justin Scott prepares for a play in Class 6A football playoff semifinal action at Crystal Lake on Saturday.

St. Ignatius’ Justin Scott made it official Sunday, committing to Ohio State.

Illinois’ top Class of 2024 prospect committed to Ohio State after taking official visits to Columbus, Ohio, as well as Georgia, Miami and Michigan in June. He also considered Notre Dame in his top five.

Scott caught the attention of coaches from across the nation as a sophomore with his 6-foot-4, 310-pound frame and quickly learned the game despite not playing it before high school. He earned All-State honors from the Illinois High School Coaches Association (IHSFCA) his junior season and the CCL/ESCC White named Scott its lineman of the year.

Both Rivals and 247Sports rank Scott as a five-star defensive lineman. Rivals ranks Scott as the eighth-best player in the nation while 247Sports has him at No. 14.

Schools from all over the county offered Scott, including Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Penn State, USC, Texas A&M, Washington, Oklahoma, Wisconsin and Illinois. He narrowed his choices down to Ohio State, Georgia, Notre Dame, Miami and Michigan before ultimately going with the Buckeyes on Sunday.

Sunday’s decision was something that Scott had been looking forward to for a long time.

“Yeah, it’s definitely going to be a great moment,” Scott said during a practice in June. “Just being able to relax, shut down the process and just kind of get ready and prepare for college, just going to college.”

Scott will now get the chance to focus on his senior season and being a leader for the Wolfpack. After back-to-back historic seasons and a Class 6A semifinals appearance last year, Scott is ready to end his high school career on another historic note.

“I’m ready for my senior season,” Scott said. “I want to go out with a bang.”

Michal Dwojak

Michal Dwojak

Michal is a sports enterprise reporter for Shaw Local, covering the CCL/ESCC for Friday Night Drive and other prep sports for the Northwest Herald. He also is a Chicago Bears contributing writer. He previously was the sports editor for the Glenview Lantern, Northbook Tower and Malibu Surfside News.