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Ohio State makes top schools for elite 2026 safety
Gene Ross via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
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The Buckeyes must continue to balance College Football Playoff preparation with both traditional recruiting and the transfer portal.
There is a lot going on in the world of Ohio State football right now.
The Buckeyes just thoroughly dismantled Tennessee in the first round of the College Football Playoff, and must now prep for a rematch against Oregon in the Rose Bowl. On top of that, this first transfer portal window closes on Saturday, and the team has only added one player thus far. Additionally, Ryan Day and his staff have to continue to work the traditional recruiting trail, with the 2026 class currently sitting at just three members.
Needless to say... there is work to be done on all fronts.
While recruiting has taken a bit of a back seat with the early signing period having passed only a few short weeks ago and the CFP currently underway, Ohio State still continues to battle for the nation’s top talent in the current cycle. The Buckeyes got one small step closer to adding a big name in the secondary on Sunday, when 2026 defensive back Davon Benjamin included Ohio State among his top eight schools.
Benjamin is listed as the No. 3 safety and No. 29 player overall per the 247Sports Composite, whereas On3 has him listed as a cornerback with the same positional and overall rankings. Either way, it is clear that the California native is among the most talented prospects in the defensive secondary in the class. Holding around two dozen offers to his name, Benjamin has now shortened his list down to just eight schools, with Ohio State making the cut alongside Georgia, Oregon, Texas, and others.
Here is some of what 247Sports’ Greg Biggins had to say of Benjamin’s abilities:
Ohio State only offered Benjamin earlier this month, but the Oaks Christian product clearly thinks highly enough of the Buckeyes to still include them on his short list. Benjamin is one of a handful of premier defensive backs on Tim Walton and Matt Guerrieri’s radar in this cycle, which includes a pair of top-100 in-state cornerbacks in Victor Singleton and Elbert Hill. It is unclear whether Ohio State is recruiting Benjamin as a corner or a safety, but the Buckeyes would obviously be ecstatic if they can haul in all three of those guys in 2026.
Switching gears over to the hardwood, the men’s basketball Buckeyes pulled off their own dominant victory over an SEC team on Saturday, as Ohio State upset No. 4 Kentucky in a 85-65 blowout at Madison Square Garden. It hasn’t been all sunshine and rainbows for Jake Diebler’s team this season, but maybe this latest win over the Wildcats can propel them to a new level with one non-conference game remaining.
Diebler and his staff are also hoping this impressive victory will lead to some positive momentum on the recruiting trail as well, where the Buckeyes are getting out to an early start with 2028 shooting guard, Kam Mercer. It can’t hurt Ohio State’s chances either that the in-state prospect models some of his game after a former OSU guard.
“I watch a lot of Dylan Harper, and I would say that I want to take a little bit from D’Angelo Russell because of his pace,” Mercer told On3. “I would so those are the main two that I’m watching right now, they’re both left-handed bigger guards who play at their own pace and never really get sped up.”
Listed at 6-foot-5, 190 pounds, Mercer does not yet have a ranking as a result of his class status, but has the potential to be one of the top overall players in the cycle when the time comes. Ohio State is one of four teams to extend an offer this far in advance, joined by two other in-state schools in Cincinnati and Xavier in addition to Missouri. The Buckeyes officially offered Mercer on July 9, making him one of a very small handful of guys to earn an offer from Ohio State before even playing in a high school game.
Expected Diebler to continue to build a stronger relationship with Mercer moving forward, and the staff will definitely look to get him on campus once he is allowed to make official visits.
Continue reading...
Gene Ross via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Adam Cairns-Imagn Images
The Buckeyes must continue to balance College Football Playoff preparation with both traditional recruiting and the transfer portal.
There is a lot going on in the world of Ohio State football right now.
The Buckeyes just thoroughly dismantled Tennessee in the first round of the College Football Playoff, and must now prep for a rematch against Oregon in the Rose Bowl. On top of that, this first transfer portal window closes on Saturday, and the team has only added one player thus far. Additionally, Ryan Day and his staff have to continue to work the traditional recruiting trail, with the 2026 class currently sitting at just three members.
Needless to say... there is work to be done on all fronts.
Ohio State makes top eight for elite safety
While recruiting has taken a bit of a back seat with the early signing period having passed only a few short weeks ago and the CFP currently underway, Ohio State still continues to battle for the nation’s top talent in the current cycle. The Buckeyes got one small step closer to adding a big name in the secondary on Sunday, when 2026 defensive back Davon Benjamin included Ohio State among his top eight schools.
Benjamin is listed as the No. 3 safety and No. 29 player overall per the 247Sports Composite, whereas On3 has him listed as a cornerback with the same positional and overall rankings. Either way, it is clear that the California native is among the most talented prospects in the defensive secondary in the class. Holding around two dozen offers to his name, Benjamin has now shortened his list down to just eight schools, with Ohio State making the cut alongside Georgia, Oregon, Texas, and others.
Here is some of what 247Sports’ Greg Biggins had to say of Benjamin’s abilities:
Ohio State only offered Benjamin earlier this month, but the Oaks Christian product clearly thinks highly enough of the Buckeyes to still include them on his short list. Benjamin is one of a handful of premier defensive backs on Tim Walton and Matt Guerrieri’s radar in this cycle, which includes a pair of top-100 in-state cornerbacks in Victor Singleton and Elbert Hill. It is unclear whether Ohio State is recruiting Benjamin as a corner or a safety, but the Buckeyes would obviously be ecstatic if they can haul in all three of those guys in 2026.
Men’s hoops scouting ahead
Switching gears over to the hardwood, the men’s basketball Buckeyes pulled off their own dominant victory over an SEC team on Saturday, as Ohio State upset No. 4 Kentucky in a 85-65 blowout at Madison Square Garden. It hasn’t been all sunshine and rainbows for Jake Diebler’s team this season, but maybe this latest win over the Wildcats can propel them to a new level with one non-conference game remaining.
Diebler and his staff are also hoping this impressive victory will lead to some positive momentum on the recruiting trail as well, where the Buckeyes are getting out to an early start with 2028 shooting guard, Kam Mercer. It can’t hurt Ohio State’s chances either that the in-state prospect models some of his game after a former OSU guard.
“I watch a lot of Dylan Harper, and I would say that I want to take a little bit from D’Angelo Russell because of his pace,” Mercer told On3. “I would so those are the main two that I’m watching right now, they’re both left-handed bigger guards who play at their own pace and never really get sped up.”
Listed at 6-foot-5, 190 pounds, Mercer does not yet have a ranking as a result of his class status, but has the potential to be one of the top overall players in the cycle when the time comes. Ohio State is one of four teams to extend an offer this far in advance, joined by two other in-state schools in Cincinnati and Xavier in addition to Missouri. The Buckeyes officially offered Mercer on July 9, making him one of a very small handful of guys to earn an offer from Ohio State before even playing in a high school game.
Expected Diebler to continue to build a stronger relationship with Mercer moving forward, and the staff will definitely look to get him on campus once he is allowed to make official visits.
Quick Hits
- Ohio State needs to address its kicking situation via the transfer portal. One name to watch out for is Gianni Spetic, who spent his first two collegiate seasons with the Ohio Bobcats before entering the portal on Saturday. A native of Ohio, Spetic was the No. 15 kicker in the 2023 class. This past season, Spetic made all four of his attempts under 30 yards, was 4-of-5 on kicks of 40-49 yards and went 1-for-2 on 50-plus yarders with a long of 52 yards.
- Speaking of the transfer portal, Ohio State’s lone transfer commitment thus far — offensive lineman Phillip Daniels — was in attendance this past weekend to cheer on his new team and take in the beatdown of Tennessee in-person.
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