Ohio State sees shakeup to their 2026 class on signing day, continues battling to keep two of their top players

Ohio State is never not in the headlines, and during the early signing period the Buckeyes had several instances where they were the talk of the town. The biggest news coming by way of Brian Hartline taking the USF head coaching gig, that was the shot heard around the world, and Ohio State’s 2026 class was certainly impacted by it.

Still a very solid day for the program signing 25 players, the staff is waiting on two players to make it official, and it is not a coincidence that both are wide receivers. Currently the sixth-best class in the country per 247Sports, here’s a rundown of Wednesday’s happenings and where things stand going into today.

You win some and you lose some, but OSU always has a plan

Early on Wednesday Ohio State lost receiver commit Kayden Dixon-Wyatt to USC when he chose to stay closer to home. Rumored as a possibility all week, seeing Dixon-Wyatt choose to stay on the West Coast isn’t a total surprise considering how hard USC had been after his services, but now it’s official.

While Dixon-Wyatt himself shut down any talk of him leaving his Ohio State pledge just weeks ago, the late push by the Trojans was enough, and NIL was likely a factor here as it tends to be in the 11th hour. The No. 135 player nationally and 21st best receiver in the class per the 247Sports Composite, Ohio State would have liked to hang on to this one, but that’s recruiting in 2025.

Not all bad news though, the Buckeyes did have an addition to their class by way of in-state safety, Kaden Gebhardt. Flipping him away from Clemson, Ohio State keeps a talented 6-foot-2, 200 pound defensive back home that has over 30 offers to his name.

Committed to the Tigers since March of this year, seeing the crystal ball predictions in favor of the Buckeyes this week was out of nowhere in many cases, but is a development that adds great depth to the back end. The No. 546 player nationally and 44th best safety per the 247Sports Composite, the ranking may not be as high as some, but offers from Auburn, Clemson, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Penn State, Tennessee, USC, and several others shows the caliber of player Gebhardt is.

One final name worth mentioning, Ohio State did also lose the commitment of Texas native athlete, Legend Bey. A wild recruitment to follow, Bey was committed to Tennessee originally, but Nov. 10 saw him flip to the Buckeyes, and now he’s back to heading to Knoxville after the signing day flip.

An impressive athlete the Buckeyes were thrilled to have for the short time they did, Bey’s highlight reel and speed are all you need to know regarding why Ohio State was so interested. A threat every time he touched the ball during his high school career, the No. 179 player nationally and ninth best athlete per the 247Sports Composite ranking makes sense.

Several rumors swirled on Wednesday that this late change back to the Vols was due to his family’s desires and likely not his own. While that would be unfortunate for his own personal decision making, the Buckeyes are now on the outside looking in on this recruitment.

The latest with Chris Henry Jr. and his Ohio State status

No real surprise here, Chris Henry Jr. is the crown jewel of this Ohio State class and his status is still very much in question which causes some serious unrest.

The No. 10 player nationally and top receiver per the 2026 247Sports Composite, Henry Jr. has been committed to the Buckeyes since July of 2023, and down the stretch the typical saga with any top player unfortunately started to take shape when every major recruiting network used his name simply to garner clicks for their outlets.

Whether it be Oregon, USC, West Virginia, and last night the development of Texas entering the mix, Ohio State is doing their best to hang on here, but the news of Hartline leaving to take his own program has not helped one bit. In so many cases Henry made it clear that Ohio State was the pick as long as Hartline was involved, and with that now no longer the case, the buzz hasn’t been super positive for the Buckeyes holding on.

Just when Ohio State fans thought they were in the clear, CHJ took to his social media to explain why he had yet to sign, and the reasoning behind the decision was just as expected. Making every effort here, Jeremiah Smith took to Twitter to make his pitch to Henry, as did other future teammates including parents of current players.

A recruitment like this is worth every effort, and Ohio State is hoping and praying they can reel him back in. While this program’s natural inclination is to use NIL money to retain players, the better idea in this case is increasing the offer.

Letting a program such as Oregon or USC steal yet another recruit can’t happen anymore. Period.

Quick Hits

A list of the 25 signees Ohio State has in the fold:

• Cincere Johnson – Linebacker
• Jay Timmons – Cornerback
• Sam Greer – Offensive Tackle
• Khary Wilder – Edge Rusher
• Blaine Bradford – Safety
• Emanuel Ruffin – Defensive Tackle
• Maxwell Riley – Interior Offensive Line
• Jordan Thomas – Cornerback
• Khmari Bing – Cornerback
• Simeon Caldwell – Safety
• Dre Quinn – Edge Rusher
• Kaden Gebhardt – Safety
• Damari Simeon – Defensive Line
• CJ Sanna – Linebacker
• Braxton Rembert – Linebacker
• Favour Akih – Running Back
• Nick Lautar – Tight End
• Jaeden Ricketts – Wide Receiver
• Luke Fahey – Quarterback
• Mason Wilhelm – Interior Offensive Line
• Jamir Perez – Defensive Line
• Brock Boyd – Wide Receiver
• Tucker Smith – Interior Offensive Line
• Darryus McKinley – Defensive Line
• Landry Brede – Offensive Tackle

And the two remaining unsigned prospects:

• Chris Henry Jr. – Wide Receiver
• Jerquaden Guilford – Wide Receiver

Source: Sports Yahoo