Carson Hinzman has already done plenty in an Ohio State uniform, but his final run in Columbus could be the one that defines how Buckeye fans remember him.
The redshirt senior enters 2026 with a chance to add another title to his résumé - and maybe something even rarer. After helping Ohio State win a national championship, Hinzman is now chasing a second ring, a feat none of the program’s celebrated centers named Nick Mangold, Mike Brewster, Corey Linsley, Jacoby Boren, Pat Elflein, Billy Price, or Seth McLaughlin can claim.
His road to this point was anything but smooth. Hinzman lost a starting job to a transfer when McLaughlin arrived from Alabama, but he fought his way back into the lineup in 2025 and reclaimed his place in the middle.
Once there, he never left the field, starting all 14 games and logging 841 total snaps on offense and special teams. The production earned him first-team All-American recognition from the American Football Coaches Association.
Oddly enough, that same season brought a third-team All-Big Ten nod. He also stacked up the academic honors, collecting Academic All-Big Ten recognition and being named an OSU Scholar-Athlete.
Now he’s back in the middle of a reshaped Ohio State offensive line. Early in camp, Hinzman was the center flanked by tackle Ian Moore and guard Luke Montgomery on one side, with tackle Phillip Daniels and guard Austin Siereveld on the other.
That setup looks like the cleanest fit for Ryan Day’s offense and Tyler Bowen’s line group, especially with Hinzman handling the calls and the traffic inside. His experience should matter even more in Arthur Smith’s new offense.
The 6-foot-5, 301-pound lineman from Saint Croix Central came to Ohio State as part of the 2022 class, and the Buckeyes fought hard to land him. He was the No. 3 player in Wisconsin regardless of position, a four-star recruit, and the No. 9 interior offensive lineman in the country out of Spring Valley, Wisconsin.
Hinzman redshirted in 2022, then jumped into a much bigger role the next year. As a redshirt freshman in 2023, he played in 13 games and started 12, including 69 snaps at Notre Dame and a season-high 79 against Penn State. In 2024, he split time between guard and center on Ohio State’s national championship team, appearing in 14 games and starting nine for an offense that ranked seventh nationally and allowed the fewest tackles for loss per game in the country at 3.75.
That line also held up when it mattered most. During Ohio State’s four-game College Football Playoff run that ended with a win over Notre Dame for the trophy, Hinzman and the rest of the group gave up just four sacks.
At this point, there isn’t much left for him to check off at the college level. A Rimington Trophy would be the big one still out there, and 2026 may give him a real shot at it.
He’ll have chances in a run-heavy system, and he’ll also be asked to keep Julian Sayin upright long enough for Jeremiah Smith to get loose downfield. For an Ohio State offense looking for steadying force in the middle, Hinzman stands out as the veteran who could quietly make a loud impact.
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Jalen McCuin Is Giving Ohio State Fans A New Reason To Watch
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Ohio State Freshman Is Suddenly Changing The Buckeyes Secondary Battle
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Timmons rise matters because nickel is one of those spots where trust can matter as much as talent, and a freshman suddenly pushing for meaningful snaps changes the shape of the depth chart. If his camp momentum keeps building, Ohio State may have to make some difficult decisions about how it wants to divide playing time among the rest of its defensive backs. [Read more 🡒]