Is the Ohio State Buckeyes' offensive line really that much of a concern for the team in 2026? The answer to that question for every pro and college football team is always yes, but perhaps the worries are a bit excessive.
Two Ohio State offensive linemen, right guard Austin Siereveld and left guard Luke Montgomery, made the third team on the Phil Steele Preseason All-American list. They were joined by all-world receiver Jeremiah Smith (first team), quarterback Julian Sayin (third team), long-snapper Dalton Riggs (fourth team), and defensive back Earl Little Jr. (fourth team).
Do you prefer to see the guards, not the tackles, make the All-American third team when the Buckeyes have a limited-mobility quarterback and an RB1, Bo Jackson, who favors the outside? Obviously, it'd be preferable to be more shored up at the tackle spots.
Who's to say the team isn't set there, too, though? Ian Moore appears to have solidified himself on the blindside this spring, while Phillip Daniels received All-Big Ten third-team honors from the Phil Steele list. Moore is a question mark to some degree, but he's at least matured under Ryan Day for two years and Tyler Bowen for one.
That attribute that Moore brings is what Day feels will propel the rotational linemen, since most of them are upperclassmen. Day celebrated the depth of the group back in February before spring practice. In particular, Day is excited about the incoming 2026 class.
Ryan Day on Ohio State's OL: 'There's versatility there'
"That'll be as deep as we've been in a while in terms of being able to put guys in there. Now we're gonna mix and match and see how it works. Because some of these guys can play multiple positions, which we've talked about before. ... And so, you're seeing guys here that can play both tackle and guard. Josh Padilla can play guard and center. So can Carson," Day said.
"So, there's versatility there, which we know is important. And then some of these young guys are gonna really push. There's some good guys in there. Now, it's hard to get on the field as a freshman. But the class that we signed, these five guys (Sam Greer, Maxwell Riley, Mason Wilhelm, Landry Brede, Tucker Smith), we think are really good. And so, excited to see them get their feet wet here in the spring."
Versatility is good, but is this group's ceiling high enough to win against elite defensive lines from the likes of the Texas Longhorns or Oregon Ducks? Can these athletes stay in front of the pass-rush when the going gets rough?
These are questions that will define the season. Frankly, it may take one or two breaks to answer the question of whether the Buckeyes could bring home the CFP National Championship Trophy next January.
Depth won't matter then. On a team-wide basis, though, over a full season, practically no one in the country is better equipped to protect the QB and open up gaps for the backfield than OSU.
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