Coming off a National Championship-winning season in 2024, Ryan Day and the Ohio State Buckeyes are losing plenty of stars. The list includes fantastic pass-rusher Jack Sawyer, who will always be remembered for his strip-sack and TD against Texas.
In some major news, however, Day and Co. were able to pull off quite the recruiting win, as North Carolina transfer Beau Atkinson committed to the Buckeyes on Wednesday night. Atkinson is coming off a strong '24 too and he's now poised to make plenty of noise in the Big Ten.
While Ohio State fans are pretty dang fired up about this, you better believe that the guys inside of the locker room are thrilled too. This includes Atkinson's new pass-rush mate Kenyatta Jackson Jr., who let everyone know what he was thinking after the breaking news dropped:
Let's go!!!! https://t.co/kEh0xvSNMu
— Kenyatta Jackson Jr (@kjacksonjr_) April 24, 2025
Kenyatta Jackson Jr. is fired up that Beau Atkinson has committed to Ohio State
Can you blame Jackson for feeling this way? Him and Atkinson working together on the gridiron is going to be a lot of fun to watch for so many people. At the same time, though, you've got to feel bad for quarterbacks in the Big Ten. Wait, nope, we don't feel bad at all.
This was a two-team battle, as Ohio State was going head-to-head with Georgia for Atkinson's services. Following his visit to Columbus, the UNC transfer was all set to travel to Athens this week to meet with Kirby Smart and his staff to see how he'd fit with the UGA defense.
We now know that trip isn't going to take place, though, as Atkinson is locked in with the Buckeyes. He was widely considered one of the top defensive targets available in the portal. Come next fall, he'll be ready to be a difference-maker for Ohio State and Jackson can't wait to make plays with him.