Ohio State Football loses five-star recruit to South Carolina

The Ohio State football team has done very well in recruiting this cycle. They currently sit at number two in the recruiting rankings, have the most five-star recruits in the country, and have stolen a couple of valued recruits in the secondary from Michigan.

Even so, the Buckeyes were dealt a blow on Tuesday when they lost a five-star recruit to South Carolina. Dylan Stewart, a five-star defensive end from Washington D.C., picked the Gamecocks over the Buckeyes. He’s one of the few high-profile recruits Ohio State has missed on from the DC area.

Larry Johnson usually cleans up in the DMV recruiting space. He has a lot of connections in that area of the country and has brought in some big names from high schools in that area. It’s disappointing to see him miss out on a recruit as good as Stewart.

Some people are pointing to the Buckeyes losing him as a sign that Johnson’s age is starting to catch up with him and other teams are negatively recruiting about that. He is 70 and is definitely approaching retirement in the not-so-distant future.

I tend to think that this is just a blip on the radar. They still have a really good shot to land Eddrick Houston, another five-star recruit on the defensive line. If they land him, all will be forgiven for not being able to land Stewart. I still think he’s one of the best defensive line coaches in the country.

There are other five-star recruits the Ohio State football program has their eye on that will be committing soon. They will shift their full attention to those prospects so they can continue to improve what is already a very impressive 2024 recruiting class.

As nice as it would have been to get Stewart, the Buckeyes will move on to the next guy.