Ohio State has a claim to having the nation's top freshman recruiting class in 2025, but after several tough weeks of battles, its chances of maintaining that lead on National Freshman Recruiting Day have significantly diminished.
Ohio State missed out on four-star safety Messiah Delhom on Saturday, who committed to Maryland. Delhom, the No. 16 safety and No. 192 player ranked by the 247Sports Composite, chose Maryland from a six-school field that included the Buckeyes, Alabama, Syracuse, Virginia and Virginia Tech.
With Ohio State safety Trey McNutt announcing his commitment to Oregon, Delhomme appeared to be a bigger target for Ohio State, but the Buckeyes don't appear to have made any sort of late push. Instead, position coach Matt Guerrieri plans to stick with a trio at the position that includes Faheem Delane (second safety), Cody Haddad (20th) and DeShawn Stewart (26th).
Meanwhile, Ohio State is likely to receive bad news regarding its top two remaining offensive linemen, the biggest of which, of course, is five-star offensive tackle David Sanders Jr., who is currently committed to Tennessee.
For the longest time, it seemed like a battle between Ohio State and Tennessee for the No. 1 OT and No. 2 overall player in the country, but with just days left until Sanders' Aug. 17 commitment deadline, closer to home, the Volunteers have gained momentum. 247Sports' lone Crystal Ball and all four On3 RPMs favor Tennessee, and while these predictions are not definitive, they do provide a good indication of the final outcome.
Meanwhile, the Buckeyes have recently been focusing on recruiting fellow five-star offensive lineman Josh Petty, but the Georgia native is currently presumably transferring to Georgia Tech.
Petty, ranked No. 2 in OT and No. 14 overall by 247Sports, is expected to announce his decision on Monday with a final five of Florida State, Georgia Tech, Ohio State, Stanford and Tennessee in the mix, and with all four Crystal Balls and three RPMs naming the in-state team the favorite, the Yellow Jackets seem the most likely destination for Petty.
This is a pretty dire outcome for Ohio State. The Buckeyes had virtually all their bets on Sanders except for a final push to acquire Petty, but with just two committed offensive linemen in the 2025 class, they're left with few other options. Other than Sanders and Petty, Ohio State has no uncommitted offensive tackles with offers, and the only interior prospect left is three-star Javon McFadden out of Maryland.
Even if they do manage to land McFadden — a big “if” at this point given the progress being made in recruiting others at the position — a two- or three-man roster with four-star Ohio State player Carter Rowe as the only top prospect is a nightmare scenario for the Buckeyes, who are almost certain to lose at least three, if not four, of this season's starting five to the NFL Draft and graduation.
It's hard to imagine position coach Justin Frye hasn't been in hot water. He came in to try to solve the recruiting troubles caused by Greg Stadlawa, only to end up repeating the same mistakes. Ohio State hasn't cast its net wide when it comes to recruiting offensive linemen, offering just 29 OL players this cycle (19 tackles, 10 IOLs) compared to schools like Alabama (37), Georgia (46) and Michigan (44). Whether it's a poor process or just laziness, that kind of effort won't pay off at the highest level.
