Five-star OL lists Ohio State among top schools, Buckeyes trending for another WR

The dog days of summer have arrived, but Ohio State recruiting never stops.

Ohio State recruiting hasn’t exactly been on a hot streak as of late. While the Buckeyes landed a commitment earlier this month from quarterback Luke Fahey and flipped defensive tackle Jamir Perez from Florida, they have also missed out on nearly all of their top defensive end targets, as well as their top offensive tackle target when Felix Ojo made his surprise NIL-driven commitment to Texas Tech.

The defensive line recruitment isn’t in a great place, but that is a story for another day. On the flip side, despite missing out on Ojo, Tyler Bowen’s group is in a good spot in this 2026 class. Ohio State has a pair of top-10 offensive tackles in Sam Greer (No. 7) and Maxwell Riley (No. 8), as well as two promising physical standouts in Aaron Thomas and Tucker Smith.

Bowen got most of the heavy lifting done early, with three of the four guys committing back in March. That being said, the Buckeyes would still probably like to add at least one if not two more offensive linemen in this class, especially after we saw how important depth at the position was during the team’s national title run in 2025.

Of the remaining targets on the board, there are none bigger than five-star IOL Darius Gray, who this past weekend included Ohio State among his top five schools.

The nation’s No. 1 IOL and the No. 16 overall prospect per 247Sports, Gray has trimmed his list from a whopping 45 suitors down to a final five, with Ohio State making the cut alongside Clemson, LSU, South Carolina and Tennessee. The 6-foot-3, 285-pound Virginia native made official visits to all five of his finalists, having visited Columbus back on June 10.

Gray’s primary focus is on offense, but he has also been a force on the other side of the ball for St. Christopher’s School, racking up 50 tackles, 17.5 TFLs, eight sacks and two forced fumbles on defense in 2024. A multi-sport athlete, Gray also excels on the basketball court, earning an All-Metro honorable mention after averaging 12 points and eight rebounds per game, routinely scoring in double figures during his junior season.

Ohio State has managed to haul in some big fish from Virginia in the past, including most notably both TreVeyon Henderson and Tyleik Williams in the 2021 class, but has generally struggled to land these five-star offensive linemen from outside the state of Ohio. Bowen has done a great job on the recruiting trail in this his first offseason with the program, but this would be his most impressive coup yet should he manage to land Gray.

Elsewhere, despite the Buckeyes’ wide receiver class previously thought to be wrapped up with four players already in the fold, it seems as though the door is once again open for a fifth.

It wasn’t too long ago that 2026 wideout Jerquaden Guilford seemed to be a lock to end up at Ohio State. The former Penn State commit had clearly caught the eye of position coach Brian Hartline despite his three-star ranking, and following his official visit on June 20 was thought to be nearing a commitment to the Buckeyes.

Then came Ole Miss from the clouds with a reportedly substantial NIL offer, changing the equation for all parties involved. Ohio State, more than happy with their current group of commits — which includes two of the top five players at the position in Chris Henry Jr. and Kayden Dixon-Wyatt — has no reason to over-spend for an additional receiver, and was not going to get in a bidding war with the Rebels in this spot.

Fast forward to today, and after pushing back his original commitment date set for June 27, Guilford is ready to announce his decision this Friday, July 18, and it once again looks like the Buckeyes are the team to beat. Whether the NIL offer from Ole Miss didn’t pan out or he decided he values the development he’d get in Columbus more, it now seems as though Ohio State is the team to beat here.

Nothing is a guarantee in today’s world of college football recruiting, and even some of the most trusted experts in the field like On3’s Steve Wiltfong have seemingly been wrong in their predictions more frequently this offseason. That being said, if Brian Hartline wants a player and that player prioritizes on-field success over making a quick buck, there is little reason to believe that he won’t end up at Ohio State.

Quick Hits

• Ohio State women’s basketball is looking for their first commitment in the 2026 class, and they got one step closer on Sunday when four-star guard Atlee Vanesko listed the Buckeyes among her top four schools. The No. 5 combo guard and No. 57 player nationally per 247Sports, Vanesko is also considering Miami, Stanford and Virginia Tech. The Pennsylvania native is set to take an official visit to Ohio State on Aug. 30.