Ohio State’s first official visit weekend of the summer is in sight.
Beginning Friday, around 11 official visitors are expected in Columbus for multi-day visits, where they’ll have extended meetings with their position coaches, coordinators and Ryan Day.
There’s mutual interest between Ohio State and each prospect that’s visiting of course (they wouldn’t be making the trip otherwise), but there are a few players that headline the first crop of official visitors.
For years, Ohio State fans have been on pins and needles waiting for the Buckeyes to finally land a premier out-of-state offensive tackle, and five-star Texas prospect Felix Ojo may be their best shot. Though Ojo has visited Colorado, Florida and Ole Miss and will visit Texas, Michigan and Oklahoma this summer, this recruitment is widely viewed as a Longhorns vs. Buckeyes battle. New offensive line coach Tyler Bowen has a chance to do a lot of favors for himself with public goodwill and fortifying his room for next season if he and OSU can land the No. 2 tackle in the 2026 class.
Likewise, Carlos Locklyn will have his hands full recruiting five-star running back Savion Hiter this weekend, the No. 1 running back in the current class. Tennessee and Michigan are strong contenders for Hiter, but I wouldn’t rule out Ohio State in this recruitment yet. The Buckeyes seem set on having two running backs in the 2026 class, and Hiter would be a perfect headliner if Locklyn and company can pull it off. Ohio State visited Hiter twice over the last five weeks, once in late April and once in mid-May if that gives you any indication of where their interest level is in the talented ball carrier.
Appreciate @Locklyn33 and @brianhartline for making the trip #GoBucks pic.twitter.com/dV3FHAyhvX
— Savion Cinco Hiter (High-ter) (@5starsavi) May 14, 2025
Earlier this month, five-star linebacker Xavier Griffin decommitted from USC and reopened his recruitment. The Buckeyes are one of four teams that will get a crack at landing the Georgia product now that he’s back on the market and they’ll be the first team Griffin visits. Other schools include Florida State, Alabama and Texas. Alabama is the perceived favorite entering official visit season, but you can never count out James Laurinaitis.
A pair of highly touted defensive ends will also be on campus: Luke Wafle and Jake Kreul. Both players are rated within the top 55 players in the 2026 class and both would be massive additions to Ohio State’s 2026 recruiting class. Of the two of them, there seems to be a little bit more momentum with Wafle heading into this weekend, but we’ll see what shakes out from the visit.
Ohio State and Keenan Bailey would be content if they close 2026 with Corbyn Fordham as the only tight end in the class, but they’ll certainly add a second tight end if it’s the right caliber of player. Four-star Mack Sutter certainly fits that bill and the Illinois standout will be on campus this weekend. Fordham is expected to be on hand as well to assist with peer recruiting the pass-catching standout.
@OhioStateFB OV this coming weekend!! #OH
— Mack Sutter (@M4ckSutter) May 25, 2025
Defensive lineman Preston Carey and three-star offensive tackle Aaron Thomas are two intriguing visitors this weekend who could have a good chance of becoming Buckeyes if Ohio State pushes hard for either prospect. Four-star safety Donovan Webb is an intriguing defensive back who could bolster the Buckeyes’ back end, but they’ll probably want to see what happens with five-star safety Bralan Womack first.
And in a new development, defensive tackle prospect Khary Wilder is expected to be in Columbus this weekend. The 6-foot-4, 250-pound defensive lineman has been a relative newcomer to the national recruiting scene and he has visits to Ohio State, Notre Dame, Washington and UCLA set up. Larry Johnson and Matt Patricia stopped by California last week to check in on Wilder and the duo will have another prime opportunity to convince the fast-rising prospect to join the Buckeyes.
Great Home Visit with @R2X_Rushmen1 and Matt Patricia !! Grateful to be in the presence of legends!! @alexgleitman @mickdwalker @Dan_Hope @Serra__Football pic.twitter.com/DceN78IvWM
— Khary Wilder (@WilderKhary) May 21, 2025
A full expected visitors list is below. Commits are in bold. Things can always be fluid this time of year, so we’ll update the piece throughout the week if there are any additional visitors or if a recruit cancels their visit.
- Five-star running back Savion Hiter
- Five-star offensive tackle Felix Ojo
- Five-star linebacker Xavier Griffin
- Four-star defensive end Luke Wafle
- Four-star defensive end Jake Kreul
- Four-star tight end Mack Sutter
- Four-star defensive lineman Preston Carey
- Four-star safety Donovan Webb
- Four-star defensive tackle Khary Wilder
- Three-star tight end Corbyn Fordham
- Three-star offensive tackle Aaron Thomas
