Ohio State has just lost one of its best talents in its 2021 class.
Four-star strongside defensive end Tunmise Adeleye has decommitted from Ohio State, he announced on Twitter on Tuesday.
— (@TunmiseAdeleye) August 11, 2020
Adeleye, ranked No. 30 overall, No. 4 at SDE and No. 8 in the state of Florida, had been recruited hard by the Buckeyes since the spring of his sophomore year. The presence of former defensive line graduate assistant Kenny Anunike and co-defensive coordinator Greg Mattison were major factors in his decision to commit to the Buckeyes on April 15, as was a very impactful unofficial visit in June 2019 – his only visit to Columbus thus far.
Adeleye was expected to team up with five-star defensive end Jack Sawyer and four-star defensive tackle Mike Hall to give the Buckeyes one of the best defensive line recruiting classes with three players ranked in the top 55 nationally.
“Oh, I’m pumped. I’m 100 percent confident there’s gonna be a long three years for quarterbacks in the Big Ten,” Adeleye told Eleven Warriors following his April commitment. “They’re already kind of used to it just because of how Coach Johnson developed everyone else, so I don’t think anyone’s gonna be surprised at what’s gonna happen. It’s gonna be complete domination like you’ve never seen. It’s gonna be complete domination. I can tell you that much. You guys are gonna be in for a show these next couple of years.
“Just knowing how Jack approaches football and how he approaches life, I can really see myself playing alongside him and playing on the opposite side of him. It’s gonna be a lot of fun. A lot of fun.”
However, despite Adeleye's enthusiastic commitment and excitement about joining the program he said he had been cheering for since he was in sixth grade, the IMG (Fla.) Academy defensive end was open about the fact that he was still speaking with coaches from other college programs – such as Alabama and Texas A&M – and that he was keeping his options open until the day that he signed.
So now, it looks like that show must go on without Adeleye.
Here is a look at Ohio State's 2021 recruiting class, which now has 18 commitments following Adeleye's decommitment:
| NAME | POSITION | OVERALL RANKING | POSITION RANKING | DATE OF COMMITMENT |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| JACK SAWYER | DE | No. 3 | No. 3 | FEBRUARY 3, 2019 |
| KYLE MCCORD | QB | No. 21 | No. 3 (PRO-STYLE) | APRIL 30, 2019 |
| JAYDEN BALLARD | WR | No. 49 | No. 5 | JUNE 21, 2019 |
| BEN CHRISTMAN | OG | No. 113 | No. 6 | JUNE 26, 2019 |
| REID CARRICO | LB | No. 69 | No. 2 (ILB) | SEPTEMBER 10, 2019 |
| MARVIN HARRISON JR. | WR | No. 88 | No. 14 | OCTOBER 31, 2019 |
| SAM HART | TE | No. 378 | No. 16 | DECEMBER. 30, 2019 |
| JAYLEN JOHNSON | S | No. 350 | No. 23 | JANUARY 7, 2020 |
| DONOVAN JACKSON | OG | No. 20 | No. 1 | JANUARY 8, 2020 |
| MIKE HALL | DT | No. 54 | No. 5 | FEBRUARY 1, 2020 |
| JAKAILIN JOHNSON | CB | No. 40 | No. 3 | MARCH 15, 2020 |
| EVAN PRYOR | APB | No. 85 | No. 2 | MARCH 16, 2020 |
| ANDRE TURRENTINE | S | No. 137 | No. 4 | MARCH 17, 2020 |
| TREVEYON HENDERSON | RB | No. 15 | No. 1 | MARCH 27, 2020 |
| JANTZEN DUNN | S | No. 201 | No. 11 | APRIL 20, 2020 |
| JESSE MIRCO | P | No. 1,927 | No. 3 | MAY 6, 2020 |
| DENZEL BURKE | ATH | No. 177 | No. 7 (ATH) | MAY 24, 2020 |
| JORDAN HANCOCK | CB | No. 76 | No. 5 | JULY 19, 2020 |
The Buckeyes' 18-man class is now ranked No. 2 in the country with 298.52 points, ahead of Alabama's 16-man class that has 280.75 points.
Alabama is one of three schools, in addition to Florida and Texas A&M, that Adeleye told 247Sports' Brian Perroni that are still continuing to recruit him hard:
"Right now, I'm happy with my commitment to Ohio State," Adeleye told Perroni. "But, you know how recruiting can go one way or it can go another way. But I'm happy with Ohio State, for sure."
