The Ohio State football program has been turning up the heat on the recruiting trail in the last couple of weeks. Now that the Spring Game is right around the corner, they have been getting kids on campus for visits, which has resulted in gaining some commitments.
Ohio State is trying to reload after winning the national championship. Despite hiring two new coordinators, that hasn't seemed to slow them down on the recruiting trail this Spring. In fact, Brian Hartline and Matt Patricia seem to be aiding the recruiting efforts well.
The Ohio State Buckeyes have now landed their second five-star prospect of the 2026 recruiting class. They have now landed Blaine Bradford, the best safety in the class of 2026. He's from Baton Rouge, so to steal him from LSU is a massive coup.
The Ohio State football team lands five-star safety recruit
Bradford is 6'1 and 207 pounds. He is someone that the Buckeyes have been working very hard to get, and Matt Guerrieri was able to bring him to Columbus. Bradford gives the Buckeyes someone they can put at safety once Caleb Downs leaves for the NFL after this year.
Bradford has a lot of Downs in him as a player. He's also someone who likes to get downhill quickly and can really affect the running game. He has ball skills, though, and can still cover a lot of ground in the secondary. There's a reason he's the best safety in this class.
The Buckeyes are starting to stack up a pretty solid 2026 class, even though it's still early. They now have eight recruits in this class. There's still plenty of room to add some of the top prospects in the country this summer. They are still in the mix for several other five-star prospects.
Getting Bradford is huge for Ohio State. He's the perfect safety for how this team has played defense for the last few years, and Matt Patricia is going to love him, too. Bradford joins Chris Henry Jr. as the second five-star recruit to commit to the Buckeyes in this class.