Last week, we did a report on the 2023 Texas Longhorns recruiting class, an outstanding group that features the likes of Arch Manning and Anthony Hill. The Longhorns likely have the best class in the nation from that year, but they also feature multiple opponents in the 2025 season who brought in top-tier groups from that recruiting cycle. Texas is strongly set up to have an elite group of third-year contributors thanks to an elite 2023 class, but how do their top opponents line up?
Last week, we did a report on the 2023 Texas Longhorns recruiting class, an outstanding group that features the likes of Arch Manning and Anthony Hill.
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The Longhorns likely have the best class in the nation from that year, but they also feature multiple opponents in the 2025 season who brought in top-tier groups from that recruiting cycle.
Texas is strongly set up to have an elite group of third-year contributors thanks to an elite 2023 class, but how do their top opponents line up?
With just under a week left before Texas’ first game of the year, let’s take a look at Ohio State’s 2023 class, which ranked fourth in the nation with 20 total players:
Brandon Inniss: No. 5 WR, No. 35 player
Inniss hasn’t quite lived up to his high rating, getting lapped by players like Carnell Tate and Jeremiah Smith in the receiver room. He was the WR4 last year and is expected to start in the slot in 2025. He’ll be fourth or fifth on the team in targets in 2025 as a big slot with capable blocking skills.
Carnell Tate: No. 8 WR, No. 41 player
Another elite WR prospect, Tate has been an instant-impact player in Columbus. He went for 52/733/4 as the starting Z last year opposite of Jeremiah Smith and should see an expanded role with Emeka Egbuka out of the picture. He’s a top-50 draft prospect according to PFF, and will be one of the biggest problems Texas defense must scheme against.
Jermaine Matthews: No. 4 CB, No. 48 player
Last year’s OSU team had a pretty strict 11-man starting lineup on defense, but Matthews was the first reserve and played the 12th most snaps. He’ll be the left cornerback in 2025, unless Devin Sanchez is so good they move him inside, and has one of the highest breakout potentials of any player we list. He may be the best CB on the team of the past two years.
Noah Rogers: No. 9 WR, No. 52 player
A third top-ten receiver, Rogers transferred to NC State after just one season in Columbus.
Calvin Simpson-Hunt: No. 7 CB, No. 52 player
OSU’s top-five recruits were all outside players, with Simpson-Hunt rounding out their top-60 recruits. Simpson-Hunt played just 29 snaps in two years at Ohio State before transferring to Baylor this offseason.
Jason Moore: No. 9 DL, No. 61 player
Moore redshirted in 2023 before playing 58 snaps as the seventh rotation DT in 2024. Due to injury and lack of depth in the Ohio State DT room, he could start, but Letterman Row had this to say about the former top-ten DL recruit.
“The Buckeyes would love for Jason Moore to become a more dependable contributor, but he appeared to be with the second- and third-string defensive units early in camp.”
Luke Montgomery: No. 5 IOL, No. 89 player
Montgomery was the No. 8 offensive lineman in 2024 but played over 250 snaps thanks to injuries across the room. He was their second-highest graded player of that group and is the expected LG for 2025. Versatile guard who can play anywhere on the line and move well. Should be good.
Joshua Mickens: No. 14 ED, No. 101 player
Mickens has played just 26 snaps in Columbus so far in his career and there’s very little on him from this offseason. He likely won’t play a factor.
Jelani Thurman: No. 5 TE, No. 117 player
Thurman was fourth in the TE depth chart in 2024 but saw over 165 snaps, receiving nine targets on 68 routes and a touchdown against mostly cupcakes. Thurman will be the TE2 or 3 in 2025 and is expected to start in 2026. Has NFL-level talent thanks to his insane size.
Malik Hartford: No. 11 S, No. 132 player
Hartford was the No. 5 safety in snaps in 2024 but played a bit in the slot as well, similar to the departing Jordan Hancock. He’s already behind true sophomore and former three-star Jaylen McClain for the starting spot but he will make a difference. 6’3 Box safety who will play a lot thanks to a fairly thin room behind Caleb Downs.
Arvell Reese: No. 21 LB, No. 188 player
Similar to Matthews, Reese wasn’t a starter but was one of the first three off the bench. He had an excellent 76 PFF grade with 19 stops in the run game. He’s grown to 6’4, 240 pounds and is a freakishly good athlete. He plays sideline to sideline and rushes the passer, is Ohio State’s dumbed-down version of Anthony Hill. He’s a locked in starter for the 2025 side.
Lincoln Kienholz: No. 15 QB, No. 205 player
Kienholz played heavily in the 2023 Bowl Game against Missouri before falling to fourth in the QB depth chart last year. He’s engaged in a heavy quarterback battle with second-year Julian Sayin, but the youngster seems to be a bit ahead of Kienholz. Kienholz is a better athlete, but a worse passer.
“Sources have given Julian Sayin the slight edge to this point in fall camp, but the separation between the former five-star recruit and Lincoln Kienholz is not wide enough to this point for Day to name a starting quarterback.”- Pete Nakos
Will Smith Jr: No. 30 DL, No. 243 player
The DT8 in 2024, Smith, like Moore, has a chance to start in 2025 despite not playing much in years prior. He’s seen as a bit ahead of his fellow classmate but we don’t know a whole lot about whose going to start at defensive tackle. An extremely important riser for OSU this offseason.
Josh Padilla: No. 15 IOL, No. 259 player
Third-choice center in 2024 who will likely follow the Connor Robertson career path. Is the backup in 2025 and will probably start in 2026 as a fourth-year.
Kayden McDonald: No. 37 DL, No. 276 player
McDonald may be the most important player in this entire class for Ohio State. He is the only defensive tackle with any sort of proven ability in the tackle room, as he was the first-choice backup to two NFL players last season. McDonald is easily DT1 at the moment and is a strong run defender at 6’3, 326 pounds. He may make or break OSU’s defense against Texas on August 30.
Jayden Bonsu: No. 23 S, No. 285 player
Bonsu never played for Ohio State and transferred to Pitt this offseason
Austin Siereveld: No. 17 IOL, No. 292 player
Siereveld is maybe the most intersting player on this roster. He wasn’t a true starter in 2024, but played nearly 500 snaps because of injuries across the line. He is 100% locked in to be a starter at Ohio State, the question is where? He’s been a guard his whole career but is expected to take over the RT spot, kicking inside in case of injury. But there are reports of him pushing for the LT spot?
“He was an Iron Buckeye this winter and a star on the field during spring practice. Ryan Day even went out of his way to make sure everyone knew Austin Siereveld will be a starter for this offensive line for the upcoming season following spring ball. All that’s left for the Buckeyes to do is figure out where he best fits in the starting lineup. Lettermen Row’s prediction: he’ll be the starting right tackle”
He is an extremely athletic lineman at 6’5, 325 and is the kind of player every team dreams of having. An easy breakout pick.
Cedrick Hawkins: No. 31 S, No. 357 player
Hawkins is now on his second Florida directional school after transferring from OSU after his freshman year.
Bryson Rodgers: No. 55 WR, No. 367 player
Rodgers was the No. 5 WR last season behind Inniss and got a lot of run time against the likes of Michigan State and Iowa. His 5 catches and .6 Yards Per Route Run were not great, bob. Is battling to be the No. 4 this season with younger five-star talent in the room.
Miles Walker: No. 29 OT, No. 529 player
Never played at OSU, transferred to Boise State this offseason
That does it for the class. Literally and figuratively. There’s a reason Ohio State is expected to take a step back in 2025. This group really isn’t all that special. We’ll be grouping every team’s class into five different groups: Off the team, minimal impact, role player, starter for 2025, multi-year starter. Here’s where OSU’s class ranks in that respect
Off the team: 5/20
Minimal Impact: 4/20
Role Player: 4/20
Starting in 2025: 5/20
Started in 2024: 2/20
Ohio State has a few obvious breakout players in this group. Reese, Matthews, Sierevald and McDonald should all be great in Week One, and Tate is already seen as a top receiver prospect. But nearly 50% of this class isn’t going to play a factor against Texas. Ohio State probably only feels confident about six or so of these players heading into 2025. Compare that to a Texas group that features Anthony Hill, Arch Manning and Malik Muhammad and you can see the Longhorns have the advantage.
It should also be mentioned that Ohio State brought in two DB transfers in the 2023 offseason that are still on the team in 2025: Davison Igbonuson and Lorenzo Styles Jr. While both will start for the Buckeyes, they were easily the two worst parts of the secondary in 2025. Igbonuson was the Cam Williams of DBs, and Styles is a former WR who’s still figuring out the nickel position in Year 5.
With a roster that didn’t add much in the portal, a ton of lost talent and an unimpressive group of third-year players on the roster, Ohio State is in a weird spot talent-wise heading into the year. Sure, transfer Caleb Downs is in year three of his college career and is elite, and Jeremiah Smith is the best player in the country, but there’s a large drop-off after those two, and not every starting spot is filled with the usual talent an OSU team has. They are a tricky team to predict in 2025.
Category: General Sports
