Bruins lose out on four-star OL Demetrius Knox

UCLA can take some solace in Signing Day being months away, in the fact that there is still time to mend and build. For now, the Bruins’ recruiting class has little momentum.

On Sunday, four-star offensive lineman Demetrius Knox committed to Ohio State just weeks after naming UCLA his leader. Ranked the No. 1 guard in the country by Rivals.com, the 6-foot-4, 287-pound Knox would have been a coup for a program that already landed seven lineman in 2013.

The Bruins recently lost verbal commitments in Jermaine Eluemunor and Dominick Jackson, both highly regarded JUCO linemen. The former also committed to Arkansas, and the latter to Alabama.

That UCLA offensive line coach Adrian Klemm, Scout.com’s Pac-12 Recruiter of the Year, led Knox’s recruitment couldn’t sway the U.S. Army All-American to head west. Knox is playing at All Saints Episcopal High in Fort Worth, Texas, but grew up in Springfield, Ohio — less than an hour’s drive east of Columbus. He is the 15th name in the Buckeyes’ 2014 class, now ranked ninth nationally on Rivals.com. The Bruins currently have four commitments.

“This was 100-percent the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do,” Knox told Eleven Warriors, an Ohio State recruiting site. “I really love the UCLA coaching staff and the environment there is so special, so it was extremely hard for me to tell their coaches that I wouldn’t be going to school there.”

Oddly, Knox also decided he was “too laid back” and didn’t need all the attractions Los Angeles offers: “All I need is five friends max at my house playing a game and just chilling is a good night for me. I can always vacation in L.A.”