"This is final," he said. "No more."

The defensive end from Garfield Heights orally committed to Illinois in December but switched to Ohio State yesterday. The Buckeyes were among many who offered him a scholarship after his original commitment, and the lure of his in-state school proved too much to resist.

"It was just the right time," Fellows said of announcing his switch. "That's where I wanted to be, so I just think it would be pointless to be making other visits somewhere else."

It is a significant addition for Ohio State, as Fellows is ranked the No. 29 overall prospect in the nation by Rivals.com. Of the 12 players committed to the Buckeyes' class of 2009, seven are ranked in the nation's top 100, according to the recruiting service.

Fellows is 6 feet 5, 245 pounds. He had 92 tackles and seven sacks last season.

He said Ohio State coach Jim Tressel was excited when he called to tell him the news.

"He told me the (NFL) draft was this weekend, and that was a special day for everybody," Fellows said, "and he said maybe someday, it will be a special day for me, too. That meant something to hear that."

Meanwhile, a disappointed Illinois coach Ron Zook told Fellows he would stay in touch. After all, he already has changed his mind once, and signing day is more than nine months away.

"They weren't really mad," he said of the Illini coaches. "But they said they weren't going to stop recruiting me."