Ohio State head coach Ryan Day completed most of his 2026 recruiting by the time the early signing period came in December. But in the back of his mind, a four-star QB turned wide receiver’s landing spot might have been bugging him. The WR had committed to Tennessee, even when he didn’t want to, and his discontent was public. His heart was set on that Scarlet and Grey, and the move finally happened after a full-blown drama. Now at Ohio State, finally, Ryan Day has only praise for the player.

“Legend Bey’s a guy who is dynamite. I kind of call him maybe the poor man’s Tyreek Hill,” Ryan Day said.  “I mean, he can go. When you watch him last year play quarterback in Texas, just five-touchdown games, six-touchdown games, just running around and making guys miss. He’s lightning in a bottle.”

Legend Bey is the 6th-ranked athlete in the 2026 class and the 126th-ranked recruit nationally. Major recruiting agencies graded him as a four-star recruit, and offers lined up for him from programs like Duke, Oklahoma State, West Virginia, Ohio State, and Tennessee. Though Bey was prolific as a QB in high school, having more than 3,500 passing and 4,000-plus rushing yards. His 5’10.5″ and 175 lbs frame limited his ability to play as a college QB.

Despite that, the North Forney, Texas, native has electric speed and has clocked the 100 meters in just 10.23 seconds. Never mind, he is a Mesquite Horn’s 6A regional 4×200 relay athlete. That gives him a higher upside as a receiver, and his time as QB guides him to know the receiver routes, screens, and passes. Everything is stacked promisingly for Legend Bey at Ohio State, renowned for producing world-class wide receivers.

Bey boasts a 4.33 40-yard dash and has been dubbed to have “Olympic-level athleticism.” That’s more like Tyreek Hill, one of the fastest players in NFL history, clocking 22-23 mph speeds routinely. Subsequently, scouts consistently praise the 4-star WR as a player who can easily create mismatches and play multiple roles just like Tyreek Hill. So, Ryan Day can easily deploy Bey as a slot receiver, a serious deep threat WR, or in jet sweeps whenever required.

“He can do a bunch of different things for us. Excited to see him in the spring. Kind of figure out how he can fit into the offense,” Ryan Day said about Legend Bey. Tyreek Hill’s frame at 5’10” is also quite similar to Legend Bey’s, and he propelled himself in the NFL, despite being a round 5 pick. Legend Bey is also dubbed a seriously “underrated” talent, with many scouts touting him to surpass 5-star potential in just his freshman year.

Gabe Brooks of 247 Sports even graded Bey to have “big-play juice” and predicted the Texas native to provide “immediate return value.” Will Bey’s trajectory be similar to a Jeremiah Smith-esque freshman season at OSU? Maybe! The sky is the limit for him. However, landing Bey wasn’t so straightforward for Ryan Day due to the whirlwind of drama in Bey’s camp.

Bey’s final commitment to Ohio State was riddled with awkward drama

Throughout his recruitment in 2025, Bey was confusingly juggling between both Ohio State and Tennessee. Initially, the 18-year-old gave his commitment to Vols in June but flipped to Ohio State in November. Thereafter, when the early national signing period came in December, Bey flipped again to Tennessee and even signed official paperwork with the Knoxville program. Except that wasn’t what Bey desired.

According to reports, Bey’s brother and his mother wanted him to go to Tennessee, and since he was just 17 at the time, a minor, his mother reportedly met privately and signed him with Tennessee. However, the move quickly became awkward for Josh Heupel’s camp. At the signing day ceremony, Bey’s gym was decorated with Buckeyes’ signage and props. Thereafter, the 175 lbs WR also took the discontent publicly.

“Good Afternoon, I was just recently logged out of my IG (Instagram) and probably will be logged out of this Account as well by my older brother who has access to my account, because I won’t sign to the school him and my mother want—Legend Bey,” the Texas native wrote on his IG account. To make matters worse, even after enrolling with Tennessee, Bey consistently posted doing workouts in Buckeye gear and captioned it “I’mma do my own thing.”

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Quickly, it became clear that Bey’s heart was set for Ohio State, even if his family wanted him to go to Tennessee. Later, upon his request, Tennessee formally released Bey from their roster on December 16, and he landed in Columbus on December 22, two days before he turned 18. The whole saga became probably the weirdest signing day situation in recent years. Now, in hindsight, both the player and OSU have kept all of it behind and started afresh with grand plans for the Tyreek Hill-esque WR.