Ohio State Football Top Remaining Recruits and 2026 Recruiting Class Predictions

It's been a rough couple of months for the Ohio State Buckeyes, who lost the Big Ten Championship to Indiana, bowed out of the College Football Playoff in the quarterfinals, and then watched the Hoosiers claim the national championship.

The disappointment hasn't been contained to the playing field, either. The Buckeyes lost respected offensive coordinator Brian Hartline, who left to become the South Florida head coach, and have lost a couple of notable recruits in the wake of the coaching carousel.

Heading into national signing day, though, Ohio State still has the fifth-ranked recruiting class, according to 247Sports' rankings.

Could the Buckeyes better their position in the coming days? Let's take a look at where things stand before the regular signing period opens on Wednesday.

Top 2026 Recruiting Classes

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1. USC

2. Alabama

3. Oregon

4. Notre Dame

5. Ohio State

6. Georgia

7. Tennessee

8. Texas

9. Miami

10. Texas A&M

11. LSU

12. Michigan

13. Washington

14. Florida State

15. Oklahoma

16. Florida

17. North Carolina

18. Texas Tech

19. South Carolina

20. Clemson

21. BYU

22. Mississippi

23. Illinois

24. West Virginia

25. Mississippi State

*Rankings from 247Sports

Ohio State's Signed 2026 Recruits

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5-star WR Chris Henry Jr., Mater Dei (Santa Ana, CA)

4-star LB Cincere Johnson, Glenville (Cleveland, OH)

4-star CB Jay Timmons, Pine-Richland (Gibsonia, PA)

4-star OT Sam Greer, Archbishop Hoban (Akron, OH)

4-star Edge Khary Wilder, Junipero Serra (Gardena, CA)

4-star S Blaine Bradford, Baton Rouge Catholic (Baton Rouge, LA)

4-star DL Emanuel Ruffin, Bessemer City (Bessemer, AL)

4-star ATH Legend Bey, North Forney (Forney, TX)

4-star WR Jerquaden Guilford, Northrop (Fort Wayne, IN)

4-star IOL Maxwell Riley, Avon Lake (Avon Lake, OH)

4-star CB Jordan Thomas, Bergen Catholic (Oradell, NJ)

4-star CB Khmari Bing, St. Frances Academy (Baltimore, MD)

4-star S Simeon Caldwell, The Bolles School (Jacksonville, FL)

4-star Edge Dre Quinn, Buford (Buford, GA)

4-star S Kaden Gebhardt, Olentangy (Lewis Center, OH)

4-star DL Damari Simeon, St. Augustine Prep (Richland, NJ)

4-star LB CJ Sanna, Olentangy (Lewis Center, OH)

4-star Edge Braxton Rembert, Mill Creek (Hoschton, GA)

3-star RB Favour Akih, Rutherford B. Hayes (Delaware, OH)

3-star TE Nick Lauter, Lebanon (Lebanon, OH)

3-star WR Jaeden Ricketts, Watkins Memorial (Pataskala, OH)

3-star QB Luke Fahey, Mission Viejo (Mission Viejo, CA)

3-star IOL Mason Wilhelm, St. Edward (Lakewood, OH)

3-star DL Jamir Perez, Glenville (Cleveland, OH)

3-star WR Brock Boyd, Southlake Carroll (Southlake, TX

3-star IOL Tucker Smith, Sandra Day O'Connor (Glendale, AZ)

3-star DL Darryus McKinley, Acadiana (Lafayette, LA)

3-star OT Landry Brede, Mentor (Mentor, OH)

*Recruit statuses per 247Sports.

Top Remaining Recruits

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If the Buckeyes hope to land another top recruit during the regular signing period, they'll likely need someone to successfully cancel their letter of intent. Of the top 200 prospects on 247Sports' composite rankings, 4-star defensive lineman Dylan Beerymon of Ouachita Parish High School (Monroe, LA) is the only unsigned player.

Berymon, the 197th-ranked prospect on 247Sports' board, has already publicly stated that his two finalists are Kentucky and Nebraska.

A few top prospects are committed but not signed, including cornerback Andre Clarke Jr. of Hermitage (Richmond, VA), the 210th-ranked prospect on 247Sports' rankings. Clarke recently decommitted from Michigan and committed to Kentucky.

As the Buckeyes know too well, nothing is official until paperwork is signed. Receiver Kayden Dixon-Wyatt recently flipped from Ohio State to USC, while offensive tackle Cameron Brickle flipped from Ohio State to Maryland.

The Buckeyes will hope to sign kicker Cooper Peterson of Corvian Community (Charlotte, NC), who only just committed on January 23.

Class Predictions

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Fans should expect the Buckeyes' 2026 class to be what it is at this point. While head coach Ryan Day and assistants like new receivers coach Cortez Hankton are out on the recruiting trail, they're largely busy trying to land members of the 2027 cycle.

Ohio State recently offered 4-star Argyle (Argyle, TX) receiver Julian Campbell.

While Buckeyes fans would love to land a late flip, with so much of the 2026 class already signed, it probably isn't going to happen. The good news is that Ohio State is probably done losing recruits, too.

The prediction here is that the Buckeyes sign Peterson and lock up a top-five recruiting class in 2026.