Although Ohio State’s offense returns eight starters from last season, there are still plenty of depth chart questions entering spring practice.
We know that Julian Sayin will be Ohio State’s starting quarterback, Bo Jackson will be Ohio State’s starting running back and Jeremiah Smith’s leading receiver. On the other hand, there will be a battle for at least one starting wide receiver spot, there are four candidates to play major roles at tight end and there could be reshuffling on the offensive line even with four returning starters in the trenches.
In our initial depth chart projection for the 2026 season, I’ve put together a look at how I predict Ohio State’s depth chart could stack up at all 11 positions on offense. (On Wednesday, we’ll look at how Ohio State’s depth chart could stack up at all 11 positions on defense.)
The depth chart projection includes a three-deep for every position except running back and tight end, where I’ve included four players to reflect the possibility that four players could see meaningful playing time at those positions. Each player is listed in only one spot on the depth chart, even if they have the potential to line up at multiple spots, such as along the offensive line. The projection reflects how I believe the depth chart will look when the season begins in September, not how the depth chart will look when spring practices begin in March.
Quarterback
1. Julian Sayin
2. Tavien St. Clair
3. Justyn Martin
Sayin returns for his second year as Ohio State’s starting quarterback after completing a school-record 77% of his passing attempts in 2025. St. Clair, who was Ohio State’s third-string quarterback last season behind Lincoln Kienholz (who’s now at Louisville), is expected to be the Buckeyes’ top backup in 2026 as Ohio State grooms him to potentially succeed Sayin in 2027.
Martin, the most experienced quarterback on the roster outside of Sayin, is likely in line to be Ohio State’s third-string quarterback after transferring in from Maryland. He’ll face competition for that spot from true freshman Luke Fahey.
Running Back
1. Bo Jackson
2. Isaiah West
3. Ja’Kobi Jackson
4. Legend Bey
Bo Jackson returns for his second year as Ohio State’s starting running back after running for 1,090 yards as a freshman. West is the frontrunner to be the Buckeyes’ No. 2 RB after also impressing as a freshman, running for 310 yards and two touchdowns on just 59 carries and becoming the first running back off the bench for a portion of the season.
Ja’Kobi Jackson, the only upperclassman on Ohio State’s roster of scholarship running backs, also figures to be in the three-deep. The seventh-year senior from Florida ran for 509 yards and seven touchdowns in 2024 before an injury-plagued 2025 season, and none of Ohio State’s other running backs have seen collegiate action.
That said, true freshman Legend Bey and redshirt freshman Anthony “Turbo” Rogers could also push for roles in the offense, as both of them have the potential to be dynamic weapons out of the backfield as explosive athletes with pass-catching skills. Based on the way Ryan Day talked about Bey last month, when Day described the freshman as “dynamite” and “lightning in a bottle,” I’m predicting that Bey will see some offensive action in year one, likely starting in a limited capacity but with the potential to push his way up the depth chart if he impresses early.
Wide Receiver (X)
1. Jeremiah Smith
2. Jerquaden Guilford
3. David Adolph
Wide Receiver (Z)
1. Chris Henry Jr.
2. Devin McCuin
3. Phillip Bell
Wide Receiver (Slot)
1. Brandon Inniss
2. Kyle Parker
3. De’zie Jones
With Smith and Inniss returning as starters, Ohio State brought in two transfer candidates to potentially be its starting Z receiver in McCuin and Parker. But Henry is a tremendously gifted five-star prospect who has the skill set to push for an immediate starting job, so I’m predicting he will quickly establish himself as one of Ohio State’s top three receivers and earn his way into the lineup opposite Smith.
Parker and McCuin will likely see at least some action in the rotation regardless, and it’s not out of the question that either of them could challenge Inniss for his starting job in the slot, considering both of them had more production at their previous schools than Inniss did at Ohio State last season. But Inniss is projected to remain a starter given his standing as an incumbent starter and a team captain.
Guilford also has the talent to carve out an early role as a freshman and is the likeliest candidate to round out the two-deep at receiver. He projects to play Z receiver long-term, with Henry in line to be Ohio State’s X receiver after Smith goes to the NFL, but he’s listed at X on this depth chart projection because Henry is projected to start opposite Smith and either McCuin or Parker will likely rotate in that spot.
Adolph was on the two-deep last year, so the former walk-on could also see some playing time in the receiver rotation, largely thanks to his perimeter blocking ability. Bell and Jones could also contend for spots on the two-deep after redshirting last season.
Tight End
1. Nate Roberts
2. Mason Williams
3. Hunter Welcing
4. Bennett Christian
Four players are listed at tight end because it would be a surprise if any of Ohio State’s top four tight ends don’t see at least some playing time in 2026. Christian and Roberts were both part of what was a five-deep tight end rotation for Ohio State last season, while Williams and Welcing were both starters for their previous schools before transferring to Ohio State this offseason.
There’s no clear-cut pecking order in the group entering spring, but Roberts has the highest upside of the group. Ryan Day said last month that Roberts is “as talented a young tight end that we’ve had in awhile,” leading me to believe Roberts could be on the fast track to a starting job if he develops as Ohio State expects this offseason.
Nate Roberts could emerge as Ohio State’s starting tight end as a sophomore after playing 160 snaps as a true freshman.
Williams projects to be the new Will Kacmarek for Ohio State’s offense, bringing a similar skill set as a blocker to OSU from Ohio. Given the emphasis Ohio State places on blocking at tight end, that could push Williams ahead of Welcing on the depth chart, though Welcing is likely to be a bigger factor in the passing game and has the advantage of experience playing in the Big Ten from six years at Northwestern.
Christian, who’s viewed as the veteran leader in the tight ends room, is also likely to have a role in multi-tight end packages as a blocker, as he has for the past two years. He’ll have to show more as a receiver to climb higher on the depth chart after playing the third-most snaps among Ohio State tight ends for each of the past two seasons, but the Buckeyes will look for ways to get him involved.
Left Tackle
1. Austin Siereveld
2. Sam Greer
3. Deontae Armstrong
Left Guard
1. Luke Montgomery
2. Jake Cook
3. Maxwell Riley
Center
1. Carson Hinzman
2. Joshua Padilla
3. Tucker Smith
Right Guard
1. Phillip Daniels
2. Gabe VanSickle
3. Landry Brede
Right Tackle
1. Ian Moore
2. Carter Lowe
3. Vasean Washington
Even though Ohio State has four returning starters on the offensive line, I debated my starting projection for the offensive line more than any other position group. With Moore, Padilla and VanSickle all candidates to compete for a starting job this season alongside the four returning starters, there are numerous possibilities for how the starting offensive line could shake out in 2026.
That said, I believe Moore is on a trajectory to be one of Ohio State’s top two tackles this season after impressing in limited action last year. It’s not out of the question that Siereveld could move back to guard – the position he played before last season – with Moore slotting in at left tackle and Daniels reprising his role at right tackle. But given that Siereveld was Ohio State’s best offensive lineman last season, I expect him to ultimately stay at left tackle while Moore pushes for the starting job at right tackle, where Daniels struggled in pass protection down the stretch of last season. Daniels could be the top candidate to start at right guard if he gets displaced at right tackle, though Padilla and VanSickle will also be in contention for that job.
Padilla and VanSickle will be the first interior offensive linemen off the bench if they aren’t starters while Cook is the top candidate to join them on the two-deep. If Daniels moves to right guard, he’ll still likely be the next man up at tackle, with Moore moving to left tackle if anything happens to Siereveld.
Greer has a college-ready frame and the look of a future starter at left tackle, so I’m betting on him to earn his way onto the two-deep right away, while Lowe is also a strong candidate to earn a second-team tackle spot as a redshirt freshman. Washington could also be the backup right tackle after starting at that position at Dartmouth, but he’ll have ground to make up when he arrives in the summer as he makes the transition from the FCS to the FBS.
Outside of Greer, Riley is the most likely candidate among Ohio State’s true freshman offensive linemen to push for a spot on the two-deep in year one, but he just misses out on a second-string guard spot in this projection. Brede, Smith and Mason Wilhelm will also compete for spots on the interior three-deep, though all of them will likely take redshirts as freshmen.
