The Ohio State football program has 51 new players on the roster. A good chunk of those new players are transfers brought in from the portal. The Buckeyes are hoping these players from the Transfer Portal can give them a chance to win a national championship.
Ohio State utilized the portal more this offseason than any other year under Ryan Day. As more and more players start hopping into the portal, the Ohio State Buckeyes have started using it more. Older players win titles. That's how Ohio State won it all back in 2024.
Day and his program are more than halfway through spring practice now. With that being the case, Day has gotten a pretty good look at the new players on the roster. He specifically named a few who have stood out to him at this point in spring practice.
Ryan Day names three key Ohio State football transfers
Day talked about which transfers have stood out to him the most. On offense, Day mentioned Mason Williams and Hunter Welcing, both of whom play the tight end position.
“They're not perfect at all, but they're grinding at it, and they're working at it. Those guys at tight end have shown up, especially in the pass game. ... That has been a bright spot.”
Defensively, Day singled out Earl Little Jr., who is going to play nickel corner this year after playing safety at Florida State. He had this to say about Little Jr.
“How do you replace Caleb Downs? You can't. But Earl (Little Jr.) has been doing a great job of really communicating back there. Jaylen McClain has been doing a good job back there. That's been exciting to watch.”
Little Jr. has been tagged as someone who can be physical, just as Downs was for two years with the Buckeyes. He can play multiple positions in the secondary, and he is smart, as well. Ohio State really believes that he help the secondary not lose a beat from what they were in 2025.
Ohio State's defense sheds a lot of talent. The tight end position is bare without Max Klare out there, so it's encouraging to see Welcing and Williams doing well.