Ohio State makes the cut for a four-star OT, adds to spring visitor list

On what seems to be a daily occurrence, one of the nation’s top recruits listed the Buckeyes as a top school.

It may not feel like it yet in Columbus, Ohio, but spring is right around the corner. A groundhog may have predicted a late spring, however it will be anything but for the Ohio State football team. Spring practices are just weeks away, and with them will be the start of Ohio State’s quest for a repeat of last season.

The Buckeyes have been working towards that goal already this offseason. Ohio State had to replace a majority of its championship winning roster, including the coaching staff. Ryan Day and Ohio State just recently finalized the coaches for the coming season, something that was of great importance before the start of practices.

With the recruiting dead period almost over, Ohio State will soon be able to host recruits on both official and unofficial visits. As a result, there has been no shortage of recruiting news for the Buckeyes. Recruits have been announcing finalized visit plans during the dead period, as well as announcing newly cut top schools list.

This trend continued Monday as Ohio State made the top schools for a blue-chip offensive tackle and the team also added more names to its spring visitor list.

Four-star OT names Ohio State a top school

Offensive line is a position of great importance for the Buckeyes in the 2026 recruiting cycle. It was the one area the Buckeyes didn’t meet expectations on in its 2025 class, and the team also lost multiple starters from last season to the NFL.

The Buckeyes have targeted many prospects at the position, and on Monday the team learned one of those targets included the team in his newly-cut top schools list. 2026 four-star OT Kelvin Obot (Fruitland, ID / Fruitland) trimmed his list of suitors to just 10 schools and Ohio State made the cut.

The Buckeyes still have stiff competition for him though as Michigan, USC, Nebraska, Michigan State, Oregon, Tennessee, Boise State, Wisconsin and Utah all also made his list.

Ohio State should be excited to be included in Obot’s list, as the Buckeyes did not officially present him with a scholarship offer until late February. Despite this, they have already done enough to stand out from the more than 20 schools that offered him.

It is certainly early in his recruitment, especially for the Buckeyes, so the team will need to get him on campus if it is to stay in his top schools. Look for the Buckeyes to try and get him on campus for a spring practice here soon and hopefully again during the season for an in-game experience. Fortunately for Ohio State, it seems like the feelings are mutual, but there is no visit scheduled as of yet.

Obot is the No. 13 OT in the 247Sports Composite Rankings and he is the No. 143 overall prospect. He is also the No. 1 recruit from Idaho.

Ohio State adds to spring visitor list

As was mentioned above, Ohio State is just weeks away from being able to host recruits on campus for spring practices. During the weeks leading up to this, many of the nation’s top recruits have been scheduling official and unofficial visits with the Buckeyes this spring. On Monday, the Buckeyes learned of even more recruits that will soon be making the trip to Columbus.

Below are just some of those recruits:

Four-star RB Derrek Cooper

Class: 2026
Hometown: Hollywood, FL / Chaminade-Madonna
Size: 6-foot-1 / 205 lbs.
Ohio State visit date: June 20

Four-star Edge Zavion Griffin-Haynes

Class: 2026
Hometown: Rolesville, NC / Rolesville
Size: 6-foot-6 / 235lbs.
Ohio State visit date: TBD

Three-star S Isaac Patterson

Class: 2026
Hometown: Westerville, OH / Westerville South
Size: 6-foot-0 / 185 lbs.
Ohio State visit date: March 17

OT Reed Gerken

Class: 2027
Hometown: Perrysburg, OH / Perrysburg
Size: 6-foot-5 / 290 lbs.
Ohio State visit date: March 24