Ohio State makes top schools for elite edge rusher, gaining momentum with in-state OL target

The Buckeyes continue to see positive traction on the recruiting trail.

Always a fertile recruiting ground, Texas continues to be a priority location for Ohio State when it comes to the current cycle — and rightfully so. With offers extended all over the Lone Star State, the Buckeyes have fared well in their efforts and hope to continue the trend of success when it comes to landing players from a region that churns out talent as well as anywhere else.

Making another step towards keeping that pattern of success in Texas, on Thursday good news for the Buckeyes came about when four-star edge rusher Kevin Ford Jr. cut down his offer list of nearly 40 schools to just a final 12, which saw Ohio State make the cut.

A 6-foot-3, 245 pound athlete, Ford is the No. 105 player nationally and the 13th best edge rusher in the 2026 class per the 247Sports Composite. In addition to the Buckeyes, Ford is still considering Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Georgia, LSU, Missouri, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Penn State, USC, and Texas A&M before making a final call. Perhaps most interesting from this list, however, is not including Texas — the home state team with plenty going for themselves.

At any rate, what bodes well for the Buckeyes is leaving a pretty solid impression considering the offer to Ford was extended just a week ago by the staff. If Ohio State can continue to stay in the running after this short of time, the goal of course is to get him to campus sooner rather than later, but as of now Ohio State is in the mix and will look to keep that pace until the end.

Momentum increasing with in-state lineman target

On Monday of this week, in-state offensive tackle target Sam Greer was back on campus at Ohio State for another unofficial visit. Making his way to see the Buckeyes multiple times now, the staff knows how important he is to a 2026 class that really needs a haul of top talent on the offensive line. Fortunately, newly named position coach Tyler Bowen is making sure he spends his fair share of time with Greer.

Taking to his social media to share the positive feedback from his latest trip to the Woody, the positive momentum for Ohio State looks to be increasing as the Crystal Balls are now being submitted in favor of the Buckeyes keeping one of their prized in-state natives home for their college career, with the latest coming on Thursday via Alex Gleitman of On3.

The No. 188 player nationally and the 17th best offensive tackle per the 247Sports Composite, the work is not yet finished with Greer for Ohio State. Continuing to make sure he feels like a top priority will be the main job for Bowen and the rest of the coaching staff, but these latest trends really do lead to the belief that the Buckeyes will in fact be the landing spot for another top offensive line target from right within their state lines.

Quick Hits

• A rather important guest on campus, Georgia native running back target Jae Lamar started his multi-day stay on Thursday and looks to be busy keeping up with seeing all things Ohio State. The No. 94 player nationally and seventh best running back per the 247Sports Composite for the 2026 class, Lamar has a summer commitment planned for July 4, and the Buckeyes are very much in consideration.

A class that will look to take two at the position, Carlos Locklyn is putting in the work to make sure he lands the best talent available. He will have spent plenty of time with Lamar during his stay.