Hoo boy. What a difference the passage of a few months makes. Since my last outpouring of editorial vigor, the Ohio State men’s lacrosse team has changed. Drastically. And for the better. I, for one, couldn’t be more excited about it. Be honest. How many times have any of you seen THAT from me at the start of one of these posts?

Let’s start with the good news. Ohio State upgraded its offensive coordinator position after an assistant coach joined the surprising horde of coaches exiting college lacrosse coaching altogether. James Purpura, the sitting coach at Virginia Military Institute, resigned his post to enter | the Big Ten fray as Ohio State’s newest assistant coach. Yes, this is the 4% offensive coordinator that Ohio State has had since 2020. Purpura, however, is a master at building a program. VMI is, for lack of a better term, an athletic backwater. Athletics are, quite literally, an afterthought for one of America’s many non-academy military colleges. And yet,

Purpura got the Keydets playing really, really good lacrosse, culminating in a 10-win season in 2025.

Purpura was easily the most qualified and appealing of the candidates that applied for the open offensive coordinator position. The most direct comparison, which I’ve made before, is the Dylan Sheridan hire in the disastrous 2020 campaign. Not because of results, the Buckeyes were absolutely sensational that year, but because the world completely imploded thanks to COVID. Ali the hallmarks are there, however, that this could be an utterly gamechanging hire.

Purpura, like Sheridan, was a sitting head coach at a lower tier of lacrosse from the Big Ten. Like Sheridan, Purpura did an absolutely sensational job taking a completely below the radar program to some lofty heights. Hopefully, that’s where the off the field similarities end, otherwise we’re looking at a new OC hire in 2026.

Still, I am going to argue here that, for the first time since Sheridan, Ohio State has hired a coach with unquestionably elite development credentials in terms of both the individual and the unit. It’s been a few years since the Buckeyes have really had steady, noticeable improvement across the board.

James Purpura should, if things go as history has demonstrated, actively improve the offensive personnel and scheme from the jump. Given my assessment that the offense has largely
been responsible for Ohio State’s losing to upper tier programs year in and year, out, this is absolutely awesome. I can’t wait to see how things shake out. Especially since perhaps the biggest personnel news in the country came out this summer, too.

For those who may not have heard, Alex Marinier is returning for his graduate season in 2026. As a 50-goal player in 2025, Marinier’s loss left a massive hole in the production for next season with his potential graduation. Now that he is back, Ohio State will be one of the best offensive units in terms of returning talent in the country. That’s even acknowledging that nearly every offensive midfielder has moved on. The Buckeyes brought in a few veterans to bolster their ranks, and has perhaps the most talented group of freshmen they’ve had in a while coming in on offense. Including a 5-star freshman who will be recovering from an ACL tear.

It's been a long, long time since I’ve seen this level of offensive recruiting. I’m not going to predict that the Buckeyes have some sort of sweeping improvement in results right away, but the foundation is certainly there. Getting Khalif Hocker, a Cincinnatti-area private school 5-star, was massive. Usually those players go to Notre Dame or Denver. Hocker’s injury is really unfortunate, but the talent remains.

Ohio State has a 4-star freshman from one of the country’s best prep schools in Christian Hogan. Hogan was a scoring machine for Culver Military Academy, an excellent lacrosse factory in Indiana. Winter Rivera is a box lacrosse wizard, who will be stepping up from an extremely small public school in upstate New York. Jack Deliberti is another underrated public school prospect from New York, who put up insane numbers on Long Island. Jack Bichelmeyer is a gigantic (6’5”) shooter who took a prep year at Western Reserve Academy and looks like he could be an easy understudy for Marinier as a righty shooter, earning his stripes in midfield for 2026.

All that to say, the Buckeyes should be pretty set at attack. Hogan likely slots in as the lefty shooter, while Haas will dodge and Marinier returns to light up opposing defenses once again. In a flight of fancy, Marinier could be Ohio State’s new goals leader if he nearly doubles up his total again like he did between 2024 and 2025. The midfield, while unknown in Scarlet and Gray, has more than enough pieces to get a good offensive system figured out.

That’s even if Hocker isn’t ready to go, or up to his usual standard, due to the injury’s effect on his preparation. If Hocker is recovered and good to go, the Buckeyes look extremely scary. Something along the lines of Final Four scary. Liam White returns after a very solid year, Brad Sharp and Jackson Birtwistle will likely be in the mix for starts, there will be 3 Magee brothers to choose from, and many of the aforementioned freshmen will look to make their mark.

Ohio State has addressed every need that contributed to the untimely end of last season’s magical run. The faceoff position was bad, and the Buckeyes managed to flip an elite FOGO back from Brown. Coaching was upgraded on offense, and likely goalies/faceoffs. Offensive firepower (not depth) was lacking, and the Buckeyes brought in its best offensive class ever, as ranked by Inside Lacrosse. There's a tremendous amount of uncertainty, to be sure, but I can’t remember an offseason since I’ve been writing about Ohio State lacrosse that has had more positive momentum.

If you want a year to get excited, 2026 will be perfect for you. Once games start, it could change, but I really think that things are improving in a way that will be unstoppable in years to come. Ohio State is getting itself in a good position with the arms race that is college lacrosse, especially from a player perspective. I'll have another post on the fall and its roller coaster of events soonish.

Recruiting and fallball are things I get to cover. We're back in the swing of things.