Ohio State trending for multiple key recruits, makes top-five for four-star tight end

Ohio State had a very successful spring when it came to recruiting. Hosting recruits on campus for spring camps and working with the current roster of Buckeyes for the upcoming season kept the coaching staff busy, and that will not be ending anytime soon with summer quickly approaching.

Ohio State is coming off its first official visit weekend, which saw it play host to a handful of the nation’s top talents. Additionally, the Buckeyes begin summer football camps this week, so things are only getting busier around Columbus.

The hard work of the staff is already paying off, as the Buckeyes received multiple predictions for blue-chip recruits Monday from Steve Wiltfong, Vice President of National College Football Recruiting and Transfer Portal for On3.

Ohio State received predictions in its favor for 2025 four-star offensive lineman Jayvon McFacdden (Upper Marlboro, MD / Riverdale Baptist), four-star defensive edge Justin Hill (Cincinnati, OH / Winton Woods) and four-star running back Bo Jackson (Cleveland, OH / Villa Angela-St. Joseph).

All three of the above recruits were on hand for an official visit this past weekend, and the Buckeyes seemingly impressed all of them enough to become the front-runners in their recruitment. These predictions are far from guarantees, but they do provide an excellent insight into how a recruit is currently feeling in their recruitment. McFadden and Jackson have not yet hinted at a commitment date, but Hill is set to commit on July 3.

Hill does have upcoming official visits scheduled with Alabama, Oregon and USC this month so the Buckeyes still have work to do if they wish to solidify his recruitment. He is the No. 7 edge prospect in the 247Sports Composite Rankings and he is the No. 72 overall prospect.

McFadden is the No. 28 IOL prospect in the 247Sports Composite Rankings and is the No. 433 overall prospect. Jackson is the No. 5 RB in the 247Sports Composite Rankings and is the No. 81 overall prospect.

Ohio State makes the cut for four-star TE

Ohio State was not only making recruiting headlines Monday about the recruits it hosted on campus. The Buckeyes also found themselves in the news when they made the cut for a top tight end prospect in the 2026 class.

Four-star TE Carson Sneed (Nashville, TN / Donelson Christian Academy) released his top five schools on Monday, and Ohio State was included among the group.

Alongside Ohio State, Auburn, Ole Miss, Louisville and Tennessee make up Sneed’s top schools.

It is still early in the 2026 recruiting cycle, but the Buckeyes have long been targeting Sneed. Ohio State offered him in late March following a successful recruiting visit and has been in contact with him ever since. This line of communication will need to continue, and the Buckeyes will need to get him back on campus numerous times in the coming year if they are going to pry him from his home state school, Tennessee.

This past weekend Sneed made another visit with the Vols, and the visit went as well as possible. The Buckeyes are still very much contenders in his recruitment, as was shown by their inclusion in his top schools, but they still have much work to do if they want him to be a future Buckeye.

Sneed is the No. 8 TE in the 247Sports Composite Rankings and he is the No. 172 overall prospect.

Quick Hits

• Ohio State is not only making recruiting headlines on the gridiron, as Jake Diebler and the Ohio State men’s basketball team made news of their own on Monday. 2025 four-star shooting guard Kiyan Anthony (Glen Head, NY / Long Island Lutheran) announced upcoming visits planned with Auburn, Ohio State and Indiana. Anthony is the son of NBA legend Carmelo Anthony, and the No. 4 SG in the 247Sports Composite. He is also the No. 39 overall prospect.

Switching back to football, the Buckeyes are not done hosting recruits following this past weekend. The Buckeyes saw multiple more recruits take to social media on Monday to announce upcoming visits with the team:

Four-star DL Elijah Golden

Class: 2026
Hometown: Bradenton, FL / IMG Academy
Size: 6-foot-4 / 260 lbs.

Four-star OT Jackson Lloyd

Class: 2025
Hometown: Carmel, CA / Carmel
Size: 6-foot-7 / 290 lbs.

Four-star OT Felix Ojo

Class: 2026
Hometown: Mansfield, TX / Lake Ridge
Size: 6-foot-6 / 285 lbs.

Three-star IOL Kage Payne

Class: 2025
Hometown: Kings Mills, OH / Kings Mills
Size: 6-foot-3 / 280 lbs.