Ohio State Football: The two players OSU must target in transfer portal

The Ohio State football team might be in search of a few starters in the transfer portal this offseason. Here are two names to watch.

Head coach Ryan Day and the Ohio State football team has been reluctant to use the transfer portal in the past. They believe that unless necessary, it’s unfair to players who have paid their dues to get passed up by someone coming in from the outside.

When pressed, Ohio State has used the portal in very limited situations. Noah Ruggles at kicker, Trey Sermon at running back, and Jonah Jackson on the offensive line.

But this offseason, Ryan Day has some difficult decisions to make. And because of misses in recruiting at a few key spots, I believe it’s finally time for Day to take full advantage of the transfer portal so that Ohio State can compete for a national title next season.

Here are two names that Ohio State needs to contact:

1. Fentrell Cypress, Cornerback, Virginia

It seems that this is a name already in the works as 247Sports reported Tuesday morning that the Buckeyes have contacted Cypress. Cypress wasn’t a hot commodity coming out of high school, barely cracking the top 1,000 national recruits in 2019. But his play on the field this past season is what counts here.

Cypress actually made the No. 1 spot in 247Sports top players in the transfer portal list. And at the position of corner, he directly fits a huge need for Ohio State. If the Buckeyes can get Cypress and slide him into a starting corner role opposite Denzel Burke, the Buckeyes might have the best one-two corner tandem in all of college football next season.

2. LaDarius Henderson, Offensive Tackle, Arizona State

Another major area of concern entering 2023 is offensive tackle. Former Buckeye offensive line coach Greg Studrawa swung and missed badly at tackle recruiting in 2021 and now Ohio State will have to pay the price.

With Paris Johnson Jr. and Dawand Jones both expected to leave for the NFL, Ohio State currently has one tackle on its roster even worth considering for a starting role in Josh Fryar. The need for a tackle is massive in the portal.

LaDarius Henderson is definitely someone worth considering for Ohio State. He was an All-Pac-12 team pick by PFF and has two years of remaining eligibility left. That hopefully would be enough time for Justin Frye to fix the recruiting woes at this position as Henderson should be someone who helps bridge that gap.

There are some other names to consider in the portal too. Indiana linebacker Dasan McCullough, who once was an Ohio State commit. Texas A&M defensive end Tunmise Adeleye, who also was once an Ohio State commit. Alabama offensive tackle Amari Knight, who was a top-100 recruit in 2019 and has played sparingly for the Crimson Tide.  And finally, linebacker Mason Cobb, whom defensive coordinator Jim Knowles knows very well from their time together at Oklahoma State.