Luke Wafle immediately reminds Ohio State the 5-star loss to USC will hurt for a while

Freshmen aren't supposed to look this big/good in late August. That's unfortunately the case with pass-rusher Luke Wafle, who didn't need much time in USC's season-opener to remind everyone that he's the real deal. On top of that, though, it must have Ohio State and Ryan Day wondering what could have been.

If you follow Ohio State recruiting closely enough, you surely recall that Ohio State and Larry Johnson were all-in in trying to land the New Jersey product. In the end, he was down to Ohio State, USC, and Penn State. It was close, but it was Lincoln Riley who won the recruiting battle, and he now has a front-row seat to see exactly what this kid is made of, and he's got a future superstar on his roster:

Luke Wafle is wasting no time looking like a superstar pass-rusher for USC and Lincoln Riley

Some people might be quick to point out that this is Wafle going up against the San Jose State offensive line, but don't forget that Wafle is making his college debut. He's a baby-faced teenager just battling his way through the trenches and giving opposing linemen issues. It doesn't matter who the opponent is - this is impressive.

It's no shocker, either. Wafle was ranked five stars and the No. 1 EDGE in the country coming out of high school. He picked up 30 offers throughout his recruitment, but again, USC got things over the line over Ohio State and so many others.

Could OSU supporters look back at this recruiting loss as a major bummer for Day and the Buckeyes? Right now you can, but let's not forget that Ohio State is built for serious success up front on defense for the next few years. For 2026, EDGEs Khary Wilder and Dre Quinn were viewed as big-time gets for Day and Johnson.

Meanwhile, for the 2027 class, 5-star playmaker David 'DJ' Jacobs is Ohio State-bound, though Tennessee appears to be going all-in to get him to flip. There's some worry there that Josh Heupel might be able to pull a fast one on Day, which would sting extra after the Vols landed 5-star running back David Gabriel Georges over the Buckeyes, but Jacobs remains locked in with the Big Ten side for now.

Jacobs alone would help get people over losing out on Wafle, but we won't know until December as to whether or not he'll sign with the Buckeyes or not. Regardless of whether that happens or not, not having Wafle on the roster this year hurts, and there's no way to spin things. He's likely going to post some big-time performances for the Trojans and Riley, but countless Ohio State fans will always be wishing he could have been doing the same for Day.

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