Ty Hamilton is staying at Ohio State for his fifth-year senior season.
The Ohio State defensive tackle announced Monday that he has decided to remain with the Buckeyes for his fifth year of eligibility rather than enter the 2024 NFL draft.
Run it back #reloadtheclip pic.twitter.com/4QtbU3CLaY
— Ty Hamilton (@tyhamilton__) January 8, 2024
While Hamilton is a senior academically at Ohio State, he still has two more years of eligibility since he redshirted as a true freshman in 2020, when all players also received an additional year of eligibility due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
His decision to use at least one of those seasons is a boon to Ohio State’s interior defensive line, which will now return two of its top three defensive tackles from this past season as Tyleik Williams has also decided to stay for another year. Mike Hall opted to enter the 2024 NFL draft after three years as a Buckeye.
Hamilton started six games at nose tackle for the Buckeyes this season, splitting starts with Hall over the course of the year. He played the third-most snaps among Ohio State defensive tackles (343) and turned those snaps into 38 tackles with 4.5 tackles for loss and two sacks. He had his most productive game of his career in the season-ending Cotton Bowl, tallying six tackles with two tackles for loss and a sack.
The Pickerington Central native’s career has taken a similar trajectory to that of his older brother DaVon, who gradually made a bigger impact each year as his role increased before breaking out with a standout season as a fifth-year senior in 2019. That year he earned third-team All-Big Ten honors after recording 28 tackles with 10.5 tackles for loss and six sacks, which made him a third-round pick in the 2020 NFL draft.
Ty Hamilton will look to follow in his older brother’s footsteps by saving his best season for last and making a big impact as one of Ohio State’s top DTs in 2024.
Hamilton becomes the third member of Ohio State’s 2020 class to publicly commit to staying with the Buckeyes for a fifth year, joining linebacker Cody Simon and safety Lathan Ransom. Juniors who have confirmed they will return to Ohio State for a fourth year include Williams and defensive end Jack Sawyer.
Draft-eligible Buckeyes who have not yet announced their NFL draft decisions with one week to go until the declaration deadline include running back TreVeyon Henderson, wide receiver Emeka Egbuka, left guard Donovan Jackson, defensive end JT Tuimoloau and cornerbacks Denzel Burke and Jordan Hancock.
