Ohio State will reportedly host a pair of Alabama defenders, including the top-ranked interior defensive lineman in the portal, on a transfer visit together.
247Sports’ Matt Zenitz reported Wednesday that former Alabama defensive tackle James Smith and linebacker Qua Russaw plan to visit Ohio State along with Georgia, LSU, Missouri and Tennessee, with other teams also working to get involved.
Former Alabama defensive lineman James Smith and ex-Bama edge rusher Qua Russaw, two of the top ranked defensive players in the transfer portal, plan to visit Ohio State, Missouri, Georgia, Tennessee and LSU, sources tell @CBSSports.
— Matt Zenitz (@mzenitz) January 7, 2026
Other teams working to get involved as well. pic.twitter.com/Fdkp4QJC9H
247Sports ranks Smith as the No. 1 interior defensive lineman and No. 8 overall prospect to enter the transfer portal for 2026. A five-star defensive lineman in the 2023 recruiting class, Smith is coming off a junior season at Alabama in which he made 28 tackles with 6.5 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks and a pass breakup.
Russaw, who 247Sports ranks as the No. 9 edge rusher and No. 47 overall prospect in the portal, was a starting outside linebacker for Alabama to begin the 2025 season before missing time with an injury. He recorded 14 tackles with one sack in nine games after making 30 tackles with two interceptions, 2.5 tackles for loss, one sack and one forced fumble in 2024.
Smith has one more year of eligibility while Russaw has two.
If Russaw and Smith collectively decide to transfer to the same school, it will mirror their recruitments out of Carver High School (Montgomery, Alabama). Both players signed with Alabama as prospects in the recruiting class of 2023 and told reporters at the time that their recruitments were always a package deal.
“He is my brother,” Russaw said of Smith in an interview with Touchdown Alabama in 2022. “We are always together. We are around each other at the house, we do everything together, and we have been on all of our visits together. We are just brothers.”
Ohio State has added one transfer defensive lineman so far, former UCF defensive tackle John Walker. The Buckeyes are also in heavy pursuit of former Penn State defensive end Chaz Coleman. At linebacker, Ohio State is pursuing Wisconsin transfer Christian Alliegro, who visited OSU on Tuesday.
