Most of Ohio State's 2027 recruiting class is taken care of. They have had most of their guys committed for a while. It's a light class, as the Buckeyes only have 20 commits for the class. Right now, it's ranked as the sixth-best class in the country and the second-best in the Big Ten.
One player the Ohio State Buckeyes were expected to land late in the class is three-star running back Jordan Hall. Hall was originally committed to Miami (OH), but decommitted once larger schools started offering him. After being in the lead to land him, Ohio State lost out on him.
Ohio State loses out on three-star running back Jordan Hall
Instead of picking the Buckeyes, Hall decided to commit to Penn State. Hall was widely expected to pick Ohio State until Matt Campbell visited his game on Friday night. That clearly made a difference to him. Hall is from Cincinnati, so losing an in-state back to the Nittany Lions is disappointing.
Hall stands at 5'10.5 and 205 pounds. He is someone that Ohio State started targeting in the summer. However, it looks like they didn't recruit him hard enough for Hall to want to come to Columbus. Hall would have been the only true running back in the 2027 class.
The fact that Ryan Day can't land in-state three-star backs over Big Ten rivals is concerning. The running back position has been a big problem this season, as they have had a back run for 100+ yards just once this season. They tried to get David Gabriel Georges, but Tennessee overpaid for him.
At this point, Ohio State might have to look in the Transfer Portal in order to get a high-impact back. Ja'Kobi Jackson has been the most consistent running back this season, but he will be out for most of the regular season, if not all of it. That means leaning more on Bo Jackson and Isaiah West.
Ryan Day needs great running backs to have an elite offense
Day's best teams have all had dominant running backs. J.K. Dobbins is by far the best back he has had. He ran for 2000+ yards in his final season with the Buckeyes, which was Day's first as the head coach. TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins were elite in 2024 when they won it all, too.
No matter who the quarterback is in 2027, the Buckeyes need better running back play. Losing recruiting battles for low-rated recruits doesn't exactly inspire confidence that things will get better. Hall looks like a late-riser and someone who will continue to get better.
Perhaps Day decided that there were going to be better options in the portal, and that's why he didn't recruit Hall as hard. No matter what the reason is, it wasn't the best finish to a recruitment. Losing a player to a Big Ten rival is never good, no matter who the recruit is.
Ohio State is a great team when they have a running back that scares teams. Right now, they need to get a guy who can do just that. Winning recruiting battles would help them do that.
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