Ohio State’s bye week wasn’t just about healing up. It also sent the Buckeyes back onto the recruiting trail, where the results were mixed but still gave Ryan Day’s staff a reason to keep swinging.
On the field, Ohio State sits at 6-1 and is using the extra time to sort through a battered roster. The pause came at a good moment for the coaching staff, with injuries piling up and reps being spread around.
That has meant more work for both Luke Fahey and Tavien St. Clair with the first unit, as Ohio State tries to figure out who can step up the rest of the way.
Fahey looks like he has the cleaner path so far after taking over when Julian Sayin left the Indiana game, but Day still hasn’t named a starter. Whoever gets the nod will have a serious test waiting, with Ohio State heading to USC this weekend.
The bye also gave the Buckeyes a chance to get in front of recruits across the country, especially in the 2027 class and beyond. Not everything broke their way. On Sunday, Ohio native and four-star RB Jordan Hall picked Penn State over Ohio State, leaving the Buckeyes back at square one at running back in this cycle.
But Ohio State did land on a promising receiver target. Four-star wideout Bennett Konkey, an Illinois commit from Geneva, took to social media last weekend to show off his new Ohio State offer. Konkey committed to Illinois in June, but the Buckeyes are now trying to pull him away from a Big Ten rival.
He has the numbers to justify the attention. Konkey has piled up 70 catches, 1,397 yards and 20 total touchdowns this season. MaxPreps lists his receiving yardage as the seventh-best mark in the nation.
Konkey hasn’t said anything publicly about backing off his Illinois pledge, but Ohio State’s track record at receiver gives this recruitment real traction. The Buckeyes keep producing elite wideouts, and they look positioned to send another one to the NFL Draft in Jeremiah Smith. Illinois, though, can point to a quicker path to playing time, and that same pitch likely played into Ohio State’s miss on Hall.
If the Buckeyes can get Konkey on campus for a game day visit this season, especially for the Oregon game on Nov. 7 or Northwestern on Nov. 14, their chances would improve sharply.
Konkey is ranked as the No. 55 wide receiver in the 247Sports Composite, the No. 407 overall recruit, and the No. 16 prospect in Illinois.
Ohio State also came up short on another 2027 running back target. Three-star RB Tranard Roberts of The Villages, Florida, chose North Carolina on Monday night over Ohio State, Georgia and Miami. The Tar Heels won out in a crowded race for Roberts.
In Other News...
Ohio State Could Revisit A Familiar Ole Miss Transfer Path
The transfer pipeline from Oxford to Columbus has already worked once for Ohio State, and it could be a path worth watching again if Ole Miss running back Kewan Lacy decides his future is elsewhere. Quinshon Judkins made the jump from Ole Miss to Ohio State in 2023 and quickly became part of the Buckeyes productive backfield rotation, giving the program a clear example of how a proven SEC runner can fit into its system.
Lacys shoulder injury has only added more uncertainty around his next move, with speculation swirling about whether he could eventually enter the transfer portal or even look toward the NFL Draft. For Ohio State, the interest is obvious if he becomes available, but for now it remains just that, a possibility rather than a pursuit, with the Buckeyes and everyone else waiting to see how his situation unfolds. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio State Just Got A New Warning About USC Trip
USCs offense hit an unusual wall against Wisconsin, and that should at least sharpen Ohio States attention ahead of its trip west. In a loss that doubled as the lowest-scoring outing of the Lincoln Riley era, the Trojans were held to seven points and 241 total yards, with Wisconsin making a clear point of attacking the run game first and then getting after quarterback Jayden Maiava.
For Ohio State, the lesson is less about copying Wisconsin and more about seeing a workable blueprint. USC still has the pieces to stress a defense in a hurry, but when the running game gets bogged down and Maiava feels pressure, the whole operation can stall. That gives the Buckeyes a useful warning before they walk into the matchup, because stopping the early rhythm may matter just as much as dealing with the explosive plays everyone expects. [Read more 🡒]
Ohio State Heads To USC With Two Defensive Questions Lingering
Ohio States trip to USC is arriving with a familiar kind of October tension: a big road test, a short turnaround and a growing injury list after the Buckeyes win over Indiana. The latest concern on offense is Julian Sayin, whose injury appears likely to end his season, but the defensive side is carrying its own uncertainty as Ryan Day tries to sort out who will be available in Los Angeles.
Jay Timmons and Kenyatta Jackson are the names that now hang over the matchup, with Day offering only an update that leaves their status up in the air. For a Buckeyes team that is still trying to keep its focus on the next opponent, the timing matters because USC is the kind of game where every available body on defense matters, and Ohio State may not know its full plan until later in the week. [Read more 🡒]