According to Mike Dyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer, Cincinnati Colerain DT Trae Clark is visiting this weekend.

http://rivals.yahoo.com/ohiostate/football/recruiting/pla...

From what I've read on Rivals, it looks like a lot of schools were waiting for him to get a qualifying test score. Not sure where that stands. 

Please correct me if I'm wrong, but my understanding is that the MAC allows partial qualifiers and/or nonqualifiers in a way that far exceeds most BCS conferences. There was a minor controversy several years ago when Chuck Amato complained about Akron using this to its advantage against N.C. State (ironic now that Amato's at Akron). 

Again, I could be wrong, but it seems to me that Ohio is not "up there in the conversation with Michigan and Arkansas" or "right there with perennial powerhouse schools," signaling "another testament to the quality of the program."

it seems more likely that, instead, the staff is using this loophole to try to bring in academically marginal athletic studs such as Lewis and Clark (not the explorers).

My read on this is the staff divides the recruiting effort into MAC level and "Special" talent. Early in the recruiting period the staff is offering high academic, but MAC top level 3 star type guys in-state to fill its long term needs. Then after that the staff is addressing specific needs by going JUCO, BCS level players that slip through the cracks, or talented partial qualifiers. The numbers I read during the season said we had 54 redshirts on the 2 deep out of 60. That says were keeping the door open for 10 to 12 play right away scholarship guys on the roster. Factoring in injury redshirting down the road that is 4 spots yearly for a talented JUCO to boost the 2 deep (like Leftwich last year) for immediate help. If Ohio is allowed to sign up to 25 why not 4 highly touted partials in the hopes that 1 or 2 of them pan out? Kevin Ashley didn't for the Cats but you miss all the shots that you don't take. Tim Edmonds 2.0 (the linebacker) is becoming a Cat this season after enrolling in a community college. Miami isn't willing to take partials and its showing on playing field having lost 6 straight to both OHIO and UC. Either you want to have a serious football team or you don't.

Good point of the need to balance any strategy with APR. That is why Ohio has placed such an emphasis on academics with its rank and file signings like Watson and Patterson though are also top grade MAC level talent. Temple's program has benefited by the rise of Rutgers in that Rutgers is now taking in the top level guys that had gone in the past to the Big Ten leaving the mid level recruits to Temple. Rutgers hard look at Temple's coach sounds as if they are concerned about local recruiting again with Syracuse and Pittsburgh upgrading to the ACC. Temple has been winning with more local access "meat and potatoes" players than Akron, Kent State and Buffalo. Ohio is winning with superior offensive schemes and more speed on defense, which I would attribute partially by taking in guys like Leftwhich to fill voids and program redshirting to its full extent.