Ohio State won’t give up its efforts to steal a 5-star WR from Curt Cignetti

During Brian Hartline’s eight years as Ohio State’s wide receiver coach, the Buckeyes landing one of the top wide receivers, if not the No. 1 overall receiver in the country, almost seemed pre-ordained. Hartline is one of the best recruiters in the country, and his track record for developing WR talent is virtually unblemished, but he’s taken those talents to USF. 

Ohio State has replaced Hartline with Cortez Hankton, a former Georgia and LSU wide receivers coach. Now, it’s Hankton who is tasked with leading the Buckeyes’ pursuit of the top wideout in the 2027 class, Monshun Sales, and he has an uphill battle to pull it off. 

Sales, who grew up in Alabama and played his high school football at Lawrence North High School in Indiana, has been predicted to commit to Curt Cignetti’s reigning national champion Indiana Hoosiers. Hankton is looking to change his mind, and Mick Walker of Letterman Row has reported that those efforts included a trip to Indianapolis to visit the No. 7 overall recruit in the country. 

Cortez Hankton needs to keep Monshun Sales away from Indiana

The Big Ten has won the last three national championships, which was surprising after a run of SEC dominance. No title was more surprising, though, than the Hoosiers’ undefeated run to the title last year. Cignetti has built a powerhouse in Bloomington, and with billionaire boosters like Mark Cuban and the largest living alumni base in the country, Indiana has the makings of a sustainable contender. 

Cignetti’s rise to prominence primarily happened on the backs of elite transfer portal classes, first with a crop of players following him from James Madison ahead of the 2024 campaign, then with Fernando Mendoza, the eventual Heisman Trophy winner, choosing the Hoosiers over, among others, Kirby Smart’s Georgia Bulldogs. 

Once again this offseason, Cignetti dove headfirst into the portal and came out with one of the better classes in the country, headlined by TCU quarterback Josh Hoover and Michigan State wide receiver Nick Marsh. Still, developmental projects and veteran transfers may only be the start for Cignetti, who has begun to recruit high school talent at a much higher level. 

Indiana’s 2026 class ranked 29th in the country, by no means on Ohio State’s level, but certainly the highest level the Hoosiers have ever recruited at. Currently, the 2027 class has just four commits and ranks 56th in the country, but Indiana’s pursuit of Sales is its first foray into the five-star waters, and he could be an immediate game-changing talent in the 2027 season. 

At 6-foot-5, Sales is a legit X-receiver who stretches the field vertically with his long strides and catch-point dominance. He'll need time to refine his route tree at the next level, but as he develops, he can still be a geometry shifting player.

Cortez Hankton could use a win like Sales

Ohio State was able to hold onto Jeremiah Smith, Quincy Porter Jr., and 2026 five-star Chris Henry Jr. after Hartline left to become a first-time head coach. And in the 2027 class, Ohio State already has a commitment from the No. 4 WR in the country, Jamier Brown. So, while Sales would be a massive addition, the Buckeyes aren’t desperate at the wide receiver position. Hankton, though, could use a win like this to boost his stock with the program, along with keeping him out of Cignetti’s hands. 

Alabama seems to still be in the mix, but Sales’ recruitment has quickly become the top story on the recruiting trail in the Big Ten, especially with the quarterback movement seemingly settled.

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