The country’s top-rated defensive tackle made his first visit to Ohio State on Wednesday.
Five-star 2027 Texas lineman Jalen Brewster was impressed by what the Buckeyes showcased over his two-day trip and it instantly vaulted them into a contender in his recruitment.
“The visit was great, I ain’t going to lie,” Brewster told Eleven Warriors. “I love how the culture is based off brotherhood and how you can’t do anything without your brothers. That’s how you win football games, is with your brothers. The culture and the family stand out, the players are all really tight with each other. Everyone feels like family.”
On his first day of the trip, Brewster met with Ohio State defensive line coach Larry Johnson, Ryan Day and other members of the Buckeyes’ football staff and toured the team’s facilities and Columbus.
“The campus was great,” Brewster said. “The facilities had a lot of images of legends in it.”
#GoBucks pic.twitter.com/NW59BkR9Su
— Jalen Brewster (@j8ylen_) June 4, 2025
Considering he was offered in April, Brewster didn’t need to camp with the Buckeyes to earn a potential future spot in Columbus.
“It was great, it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity because I know a lot of people don’t have that offer but a lot of people want that offer,” Brewster said of getting his OSU offer. “It was great that I was one that was able to get an offer from them.”
But, the 6-foot-3, 302-pound standout wanted the opportunity to work with Johnson, so he laced on his cleats and strapped up his helmet anyway. He immediately stood out as the most impressive defensive lineman in attendance at camp.
“He’s a really good coach, he knows how to coach up what you’re doing wrong and give you motivation to keep you going,” Brewster said of working with Johnson. “Coach Larry Johnson was saying my first step was amazing. I also play running back so that translates to playing defensive line with the getoff. It’s unstoppable for the offensive linemen.”
In case you’re wondering, yes, you read that right, a 300-pound defensive lineman is a successful goal line running back for his high school team in competitive Texas football. That gives you an indication of just how twitchy Brewster is, and he showcased every ounce of that athleticism in individual drills at the camp on Thursday. He’ll have all the usual suspects that you’d figure would be in the running for a lineman of his caliber gunning for him over the next year and a half or so, but the Buckeyes have positioned themselves well here.
Following the visit, Brewster confidently said Ohio State is in the top two schools of his recruitment, though he said he doesn’t have a commitment timeline in mind as of yet. He already has his next visit to OSU lined up, though, as Brewster said he’ll return for the Buckeyes’ season opener against Texas on Aug. 30.
