Ohio State lost five players to early NFL draft entries, but it appears the Buckeyes will retain seven draft-eligible starters.
There weren’t any big surprises among the Ohio State players who announced they would enter the 2026 NFL draft. While Ohio State would have loved to have Caleb Downs, Arvell Reese, Carnell Tate or Kayden McDonald back for another season, it would have come as a big surprise if any of them had stayed in school, given that all of them are projected first-round picks. Max Klare would have had more reason to play another season at Ohio State, as he isn’t projected to be a first-round pick, but there was always a thought that his transfer to OSU could be for just one year.
Ohio State appears to have been successful in convincing all of its other draft-eligible starters from last season to remain Buckeyes for another year. Wide receiver Brandon Inniss, offensive linemen Austin Siereveld, Luke Montgomery and Carson Hinzman and defensive end Kenyatta Jackson Jr. have all confirmed they are returning to Ohio State for the 2026 season. Cornerback Jermaine Mathews Jr. and right tackle Phillip Daniels have not publicly announced their plans for 2026, but the expectation is that they will be back for another season in Columbus, especially now that the deadline for players with remaining eligibility to enter the NFL draft has passed.
With that, we’re taking a look at where things stand in terms of which Buckeyes chose to forgo their remaining eligibility to enter the 2026 NFL draft, which Buckeyes that could have entered the draft are staying in college for another year, and which Buckeyes were already in the draft after exhausting their eligibility last season.
Entered Draft Early (5)
S Caleb Downs
DT Kayden McDonald
LB Arvell Reese
WR Carnell Tate
TE Max Klare
Downs, Reese and Tate are all first-round locks; Reese and Downs are both widely projected to be top-10 overall picks, and Tate could be, too. Most early mock drafts have McDonald being selected in the second half of the first round after his unanimous All-American season in 2025.
From an NFL draft stock perspective, the only Buckeye who’s entered the draft with another year of eligibility that had reason to stay at Ohio State was Klare. Currently projected as a likely third-round draft pick, Klare could have potentially improved his draft stock in 2026 by putting up bigger numbers as a pass-catcher and continuing to improve as a blocker. Unlike Downs, McDonald, Reese and Tate, however, Klare has already played four years of college football; he had a fifth year of eligibility because he redshirted his first season at Purdue in 2022, but ultimately decided not to use it.
Draft-Eligible Confirmed Returners (5)
WR Brandon Inniss
LT Austin Siereveld
LG Luke Montgomery
C Carson Hinzman
DE Kenyatta Jackson Jr.
Siereveld, Montgomery and Hinzman all would have had a shot at being drafted if they had entered the draft, with Siereveld likely drafted first among them, but all of them made a smart decision to stay at Ohio State for another year. Siereveld and Montgomery have only been full-time starters for one season, so another year at Ohio State should help them continue to develop and elevate their draft stock. Hinzman has more experience but was projected to be a late-round pick, so he’ll look to boost his stock with a big final season as a Buckeye.
Inniss likely would have gone undrafted after catching just 36 passes for 271 yards and three touchdowns in his first season as a starter, so it would have come as a surprise if he had entered the draft early.
Jackson was seen as the biggest threat to leave from this group – in part because, like Klare, he’s already been in college for four years. But Jackson entered last season with expectations of being a first-round draft pick, and he would have more likely been a third- or fourth-round pick if he entered the draft this year. By staying at Ohio State, he has a chance to maximize his draft stock as the leader of the Buckeyes’ defensive line in his second year as a starter.
Expected to Return (2)
CB Jermaine Mathews Jr.
RT Phillip Daniels
There’s no requirement for players to publicly announce their NFL draft decisions, and the transfer portal remains open until the end of the day Friday, so the fact that Mathews and Daniels haven’t announced they’re leaving doesn’t guarantee that they’re staying. That said, the expectation all along has been that they would most likely stay at Ohio State.
Mathews was also a potential middle-round pick if he declared for the NFL draft, but he has plenty of room to improve his draft stock as he’s only been a full-time starter at Ohio State for one year. Daniels was never seen as a likely candidate to enter the NFL draft, especially considering he still has two more years of eligibility, but is listed here since he was a starter for the Buckeyes in 2025 and could have entered the draft as a redshirt sophomore.
Outgoing Seniors (11)
LB Sonny Styles
DE Caden Curry
CB Davison Igbinosun
TE Will Kacmarek
CB Lorenzo Styles Jr.
DT Tywone Malone Jr.
RB CJ Donaldson
OL Ethan Onianwa
K Jayden Fielding
LS John Ferlmann
QB Eli Brickhandler
All of these players became NFL draft prospects as soon as Ohio State’s season ended, as each of them exhausted their collegiate eligibility in 2025.
Sonny Styles is the top draft prospect among Ohio State’s outgoing seniors as a projected first-round pick. If Styles, Downs, McDonald, Reese and Tate are all selected in Round 1, Ohio State would tie its school record with five first-round picks, a mark it previously hit 20 years ago in 2006 and again 10 years ago in 2016.
Curry and Igbinosun both project as likely middle-round draft picks while Kacmarek will be a prospect to watch on Day 3. The rest of Ohio State’s seniors currently appear likely to go undrafted, though Lorenzo Styles, Malone, Donaldson, Onianwa and Ferlmann should at least get opportunities to compete for roster spots as undrafted free agents.
Note: This article was updated after Kenyatta Jackson Jr.’s Thursday afternoon announcement that he is staying at Ohio State for his fifth-year senior season.
