Ohio State is absolutely crushing it on the recruiting trail right now, holding a top-7 class for 2027. Earlier today, On3’s Steve Wiltfong just dropped some big-time updates showing that the Buckeyes are leading the race for 6 of the nation’s absolute best high school players. Things are really starting to heat up because the summer official visit season is right around the corner, and Ryan Day and staffs are ready to host a couple of talents on campus in the next couple of weeks or so.

1) David Gabriel Georges (5-star RB)

Tennessee’s No. 1 in the state, David Gabriel Georges has to be their biggest target right now for the Buckeyes. According to Wiltfong, Ohio State is in a very strong position for him right now.

The reasons are simple: Ohio State has a strong history of developing running backs, and they also offer strong NIL opportunities. Another big point is that Georges could get playing time early in his college career. However, the Tennessee Volunteers are still serious competitors and are trying hard to change his mind. Running backs coach Carlos Locklyn has a secret weapon here. This two long ways back, as he has been building a tight personal relationship with Georges since his previous coaching stint at Oregon days.

Georges’s scheduled to take an official visit to Ohio State on the weekend of May 29. His apparent final commitment announcement would be on or around July 22.

2) Marcus Fakatou (5-star DL)

Ohio State is also doing very well with elite defensive lineman Marcus Fakatou. Wiltfong and other recruiting experts now believe Ohio State is the favorite to land him, all thanks to the legendary reputation of defensive line coach Larry Johnson.

Still, his recruitment is not finished. The nation’s No. 2 ranked defensive lineman will take official visits to schools like the Georgia Bulldogs, Texas Longhorns, Oregon Ducks, and Notre Dame Fighting Irish. Ohio State is a strong choice for him because they are pioneers when it comes to developing defensive linemen and sending them to the big leagues.

3) Prince Goldsby (4-star LB)

Prince Goldsby is a one heck of a four-star linebacker out of Blue Springs South High School in Kansas City, Missouri. Ohio State’s defensive staff jumped into this recruitment with an official offer back in February. Since then, they have earned multiple expert predictions to land his commitment.

The Kansas City native stands about 6’4, and right now ranked as the No. 1 overall prospect in the state of Missouri and the No. 8 linebacker in the country. But the Buckeyes cannot afford to take their foot off the gas, not even for a second. Nada. The biggest threat on the radar for them is Alabama. The Roll Tide are rolling out the red carpet to host Goldsby for a high-profile official visit on the weekend of May 29–31.

4) Deontay Malone (4-star CB)

Hailing from the legendary football powerhouse Massillon Washington High School in Ohio, the 4-star CB is a freak of nature in many ways. The in-state target can reportedly squat 550 pounds and run a 4.49-ish forty-yard dash.

The Ohio State defensive backs coach, Tim Walton, officially extended a Buckeye offer to him in late January. It kept the Buckeyes as the front-runner for his recruitment. Other schools like Pittsburgh and LSU are also trying to get him, but Ohio State is in a strong position, especially with Malone scheduled to take an official visit to Columbus on May 29. Perhaps they could even lock him in by then.

5) Reinaldo Perez (4-star DL)

Steve Wiltfong is confidently sticking with his rock-solid prediction in favor of Ohio State landing Reinaldo Perez, and for very good reason. The elite four-star defensive lineman from Columbus Academy, and he’s living some couple of minutes away from the Ohio State Stadium.

Perez has used this close-to-home advantage to build a very strong relationship with Larry Johnson himself. Just last month, he caught a lot of attention and side-eyes from his recruiters after attending three different spring practice sessions in one week just to learn more about defensive line techniques.

Other programs like Indiana and Stanford have rolled out the red carpet to host him on recent campus visits. End of the day: that overwhelming allure of staying home to play for his childhood dream team is too good to pass up like that.

6) Kaylon Bailey (4-star edge/linebacker)

Wiltfong really likes where Ohio State stands with talented in-state edge rusher Kaylon Bailey. Still, schools like Louisville, Maryland, and Pittsburgh are doing everything in their power to pull him away from the Buckeyes.

Not only that, Ryan Day and the Buckeyes are taking insurance for Brady Edmunds’s uncertainty.

Contingency plan for the Buckeyes in the Edmund case

Ohio State is making sure they are covered at the quarterback position especially with a bit of drama that they got going on around their star 2027 commit, Brady Edmunds.

Even though Edmunds is publicly saying all the right things about his pledge to the Buckeyes, big-time West Coast programs like UCLA are pushing incredibly in the recent weeks. He recently told reporters that while he loves OSU, he “has to protect himself”. That means they already got in his ears. The Bruins have hosted the Huntington Beach, California star multiple times this offseason to try to flip him.

Because the transfer portal and early NFL departures can completely ruin a depth chart overnight, head coach Ryan Day refuses to sit around and play a passive waiting game if his future quarterback decides to move elsewhere.

To protect themselves, the coaching staff has been aggressively hunting for a rock-solid contingency plan just in case things go south. They initially went all-in trying to flip four-star quarterback Trae Taylor away from his Nebraska commitment. QB coach Billy Fessler even personally visited Taylor’s high school. However, Trae’s camp said no more visits from the outsiders.

That had turned their eyes straight to Dane Weber of Temecula Chaparral High School in California. According to Rivals national recruiting director Adam Gorney, Fessler took a flight to Cali on Tuesday night to evaluate the 4-star. Weber has put 6,300 passing yards and 68 touchdowns over the last two seasons. However, he already got official visit lined up with the Bruins for June 19. Since the UCLA can’t sign two of them, it’s either Dane Weber or Brady Edmunds for the Buckeyes.