The Ohio State Buckeyes will be after the Penn State Nittany Lions' 2026 and 2027 recruiting class in the wake of James Franklin's firing. Also, water is wet.
Cleveland.com's Andrew Gillis shared the likeliest targets in the aftermath of PSU dismissing their long-time headman: 4-star Pine-Richland (Pittsburgh, PA) receiver Khalil Taylor and 4-star Appoquinimink (Middleton, Delaware) LT Layton Von Brandt.
Gillis wrote off 5-star McKeesport RB Kemon Spell, given the competition from the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Georgia Bulldogs, USC Trojans, Florida State Seminoles, Miami Hurricanes, Michigan Wolverines, and Tennessee Volunteers.
"Before things went haywire for Penn State, ahead of the loss to Northwestern, four-star wide 2027 receiver Khalil Taylor de-committed from the program on Friday. The No. 56 overall prospect and No. 11 receiver in the class, per the 247Sports composite rankings, is from Pittsburgh and had been committed to Penn State since March," Gillis wrote.
"After his decision, he quickly scheduled a visit to Ohio State on Nov. 1, ironically for the matchup against Penn State.
"Ohio State already has a five-star receiver committed (Jamier Brown) in the 2027 class, and Taylor would certainly fit the mold for the Buckeyes.
"Five-star 2027 offensive tackle Layton Von Brandt decommitted from Penn State on Sunday, too, and considering he currently holds an Ohio State offer, he’s certainly another name to monitor. The Buckeyes don’t have an offensive lineman committed in the class yet."
Brian Hartline's future makes Ohio State's recruiting 2026, 2027 classes a question mark
Ryan Day and Brian Hartline are an unstoppable WR recruiting duo. Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate are showing what it means to be in a Hartline-coached offense.
But will Hartline remain in Columbus, given the likely interest he'll fetch during the upcoming hiring cycle? The UCLA Bruins were a potential destination before Tim Skipper and Jerry Neuheisel became overnight sensations in Westwood with consecutive wins over the Nittany Lions and Michigan State Spartans. Perhaps Penn State could even have interest in Hartline, not that Jim Knowles has been doing wonders for the OSU-to-PSU pipeline this season.
Either way, committing to Buckeyes OL coach Tyler Bowen is a much different commitment from signing with Ohio State to play for Hartline.