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305Buck 1 hour ago
https://247sports.com/player/hayden-koo-46160228/
Visiting for The Game.

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305Buck 4 hours ago
Asher Ghioto will visit for the Oregon or Michigan game he says. Wiltfong has Ohio State way more in this one than people are giving us credit for.
I’d be pleasantly surprised if he’s a real option due to the money it would take to land him, but I’ve always said he’s absolutely an Ohio State type kid. He talks a lot about wanting to play for a faith based program and for a coach who will develop him not only into a future NFL player, but develop him as a man and prepare him for life after football.

305Buck 4 hours ago
Ghioto said Ohio State is absolutely a priority and at the top of his list, one of the schools he’s heavy on. Said he talks to LJ every day, Ryan Day as well and they’re doing an excellent job recruiting him. Said he can’t wait to get back to Ohio State for a game and chop it up with the GOAT.

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305Buck 3 Aug 2026, 3:46 pm
https://247sports.com/player/grayson-williams-46153497/
Top 50 recruit in 2028 added for The Game.

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305Buck 3 Aug 2026, 4:13 pm
https://247sports.com/player/shamar-evans-46162197/
Visiting for the Oregon game.

Maybe so, but what's his arm length?

To me, doesn't look like he's carrying 290. If so, that would put the coach at around 325 or so.

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305Buck 4 Aug 2026, 7:54 pm
https://247sports.com/player/james-allen-46158808/
Visiting for the Oregon game.

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305Buck 18 hours ago
https://247sports.com/player/anthony-howard-jr-46150828/
Visiting for the Oregon game.

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KYBuck4858 16 hours ago
https://247sports.com/player/aedyn-havili-46150276/
Visiting for the Maryland game.

BaltimoreBuck 16 hours ago
Want, Want, Want. NG/1-tech extraordinaire.

Txsbuckeye 16 hours ago
Same HS as Tuimoloau

bump

Besides the group listed above, Cincere Johnson has done positive things at middle linebacker, safety Simeon Caldwell briefly got some run with the ones on Saturday and the 6-foot-7, 320-pound frame of Sam Greer was certainly accurate.

Besides the group listed above, Cincere Johnson has done positive things at middle linebacker, safety Simeon Caldwell briefly got some run with the ones on Saturday and the 6-foot-7, 320-pound frame of Sam Greer was certainly accurate.

Besides the group listed above, Cincere Johnson has done positive things at middle linebacker, safety Simeon Caldwell briefly got some run with the ones on Saturday and the 6-foot-7, 320-pound frame of Sam Greer was certainly accurate.

Baylor transfer Connor Hawkins, Notre Dame transfer Marcello Diomede and walk-on freshman Cooper Peterson struggled during live action on Saturday. The trio was perfect from within 35 yards, but when called upon for distance greater than that, all attempts were no good.

Hawkins projects to be the starter after going 18-for-22 field goals, including 3-of-4 from 50-plus yards, for the Bears in 2025. Diomede was 0-for-1 through three years with the Fighting Irish. Both kickers showed distance during warmups, with Diomede finding more success on 50-plus-yard tries, but Hawkins remains the favorite to get the nod in Week 1.

“What we'll try to do is we'll try to create situations like put a certain time on the clock, ball’s around midfield, okay, we're gonna play this out. Offense needs a field goal. And then put him in that situation where he doesn't have a bunch of field goals to warm up,” Day said. “It's like being at the driving range; you don't get to go to the driving range when you're on the back nine. So that's what we'll try to do, and see how he responds to the different environments. We'll look to see how the wind, the weather, hopefully we get different variations of that during the preseason to get a feel for his range and how we can handle it.”

When Ohio State has rolled out its 4-3-3 looks on defense, it's been Payton Pierce at middle linebacker, where he projects as the starter and has been wearing the green dot. The favorite to start alongside him at either the Sam or the Will is going to be Wisconsin transfer Christian Alliegro, with TJ Alford and Riley Pettijohn in the mix for the third spot.

If it's a 4-2-5, it'll be Pierce and Alliegro who will be on the gridiron. In both packages, it'll be Devin Sanchez and Jeremaine Matthews Jr. on the outside, though Matthews did split reps with Kelly during the first practice. As for safeties, Jaylen McClain and Florida State transfer Earl Little Jr. seem to have those spots on lock.

But the biggest news regarding the 4-2-5 package is at the nickel, as five-star freshman Jay Timmons has commanded the majority of the work at the spot.

Different personnel looks​

Ryan Day said after practice Thursday that his team would "try a couple different" combinations on the offensive line.

The unit that was ushered out as the first team that day was Ian Moore at left tackle, Luke Montgomery at left guard, Carson Hinzman at center, Austin Siereveld at right guard and Philip Daniels at right tackle.

On Friday, it was Siereveld at left tackle, which is where he started in 2025, and Joshua Padilla at right guard. Moore split reps with Daniels at right tackle, while Montgomery and Hinzman remained at their spots.

For Saturday, both of these looks were on display. As Dan Hope wrote in his Friday practice observations, below are the following looks that Ohio State could roll out on the offensive line — as it stands right now, the first option looks like the favorite.

• LT Ian Moore, LG Luke Montgomery, C Carson Hinzman, RG Austin Siereveld, RT Phillip Daniels
• LT Austin Siereveld, LG Luke Montgomery, C Carson Hinzman, RG Joshua Padilla, RT Phillip Daniels
• LT Austin Siereveld, LG Luke Montgomery, C Carson Hinzman, RG Joshua Padilla, RT Ian Moore

"It's gonna be really good competition. Good news is we have some different options, but we gotta find the best five," Day said.

The RB conversation​

After a freshman year where he ran for 1,090 yards, Bo Jackson returned to Columbus hoping to improve on a strong first campaign as a Buckeye.

But it hasn't been smooth sailing for the tailback early, as he spent most of the first three practice sessions working with twos. Isaiah West, whom Day said had a "tremendous offseason," has been working with the starters and taking the first reps.

“He's very explosive. He'll be in the gap, then he'll pop out, and he's there, and then he's gone. He's super twitchy, and he had a heck of an offseason.”– Payton Pierce on Isaiah West

West has looked like the top tailback through three practices, and all the feedback has been positive. It'll be interesting to see if Jackson's role takes a step back with him seeing the majority of time with the twos, but given his role last year, it'd be hard to see that happening.

Jackson does already have a rapport fielding handoffs with Sayin, so this can give West more of an opportunity to do that. I think West will certainly see an uptick in snaps after playing third fiddle to Jackson and CJ Donaldson a year ago, but he was coming off a knee injury in high school. Though he ended up surpassing James Peoples in the depth chart by the end of the year.

The pair enter their second fall camp after being banged up in the spring, but the tandem appears healthy coming off shoulder injuries.


As far as guys behind them on the depth chart, Florida transfer Ja'Kobi Jackson saw steady work across all three practices with the top unit. He started his collegiate career at Coahoma Community College and Mississippi, playing three seasons there before spending three at Florida and then transferring to Ohio State in the winter for his seventh and final year of eligibility.

He worked primarily as a pass-catching back, fielding screen passes and then hauling in receptions in the flat as a check-down option, finding holes at times.

The other player who worked with the ones only did so for one day, as freshman Legend Bey did so after missing the first two days of fall camp due to a violation of team rules. It wasn't a full day for him with the starters, as he spent time between both the ones and twos.

There were highs ands lows for Bey in his return. He was told to do push-ups by running backs coach Carlos Locklyn after missing a pass block, and later in practice had to run a lap after losing a fumble. He did show flashes, though, as it's evident he has a burst with the ball in his hands. The offense had him lined up out wide at times while also having him motion into the backfield.

“Legend did some good things today. He's obviously a dangerous player with the ball in his hands.”– Julian Sayin on Legend Bey

Regardless of what we've seen, Bo and West will likely see a split role, regardless of who is trotted out there for the first snap in Week 1. Ja'Kobi Jackson could be thrust into a pass-catching role, but if Bey catches up to the college game quickly, it'll be hard to keep his explosiveness off of the field.

Bruce Feldman’s Freaks List: Ohio State Wide Receiver Jeremiah Smith, Walk-On Cornerback Brenten “Inky” Jones Ranked As Two of College Football’s Best Athletes​

By Dan Hope on August 10, 2026 at 9:38 am @dan_hope

• OSU Football

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Ohio State has two of the freakiest athletes in college football.
Two Buckeyes made the top 30 of Bruce Feldman’s annual “Freaks” list for The Athletic, released Monday, which ranks the 101 most athletic players across college football.
As you might expect, one of those players is Jeremiah Smith. The superstar Buckeye wideout, who was ranked No. 1 on the list a year ago, dropped one spot to No. 2 this year behind South Carolina wide receiver Nyck Harbor, though Feldman noted that Smith is “the best player on this list and in the country.” Harbor has ranked No. 1 in three of the past four years of Feldman's Freaks List.
What you might not expect is just how absurd Smith’s offseason workout numbers were. According to Feldman, Smith ran a 6.84-second 3-cone drill – a drill that usually favors smaller players – which would have been the second-fastest time at this year’s NFL Scouting Combine. The 6-foot-4, 224-pound wideout also led all Buckeyes this offseason with a 1.44-second 10-yard sprint. Additionally, he posted an 11-foot broad jump, 38.5-inch vertical jump and was clocked running 23.5 miles per hour on GPS.

Please let him be a YAC receiver!

The 51 freshmen poised to make an impact on the 2026 college football season​

Legend Bey, RB, Ohio State: Bo Jackson cracked the 1,000-yard plateau a year ago for Ohio State and emerged as the unquestioned lead back. Bey lacks the every-down qualities of Jackson but has better speed, posting a blazing wind-aided 10.23 100-meter dash in 2025. Expect Bey to take some of the load off Jackson this year in Arthur Smith's offense. A former high school quarterback, Bey is a dynamic athlete who could plug in all over the offense, from the backfield to the slot, and give the Buckeyes a versatile chess piece to move around the board.

Get this kid outta AZ and let him prosper…..