The Ohio State Buckeyes are generally one of the top recruiting teams in the country, but recently, they have taken quite a hit on the recruiting trail.
Whether it’s because other schools are offering more lucrative NIL deals or that Ohio State is simply misfiring, the Buckeyes have definitely been on the losing end of recruiting battles more often than not lately, and it might be bound to happen again.
Ohio State is awaiting a decision from four-star offensive lineman Da’Ron Parks who is planning to announce his commitment this Saturday and is set to choose between the Buckeyes, Auburn, Florida State and Kentucky. Ohio State is absolutely the most prestigious program on that list, so surely, Parks will be committing to Columbus, correct?
Well, not so fast. Garrick Hodge of Eleven Warriors actually isn’t expecting Parks to pick the Buckeyes, which would represent yet another crushing blow to Ohio State for the class of 2026.
“One day ahead of the announcement, most of the chatter surrounding this recruitment has centered on the trio of OSU, Auburn, and FSU, and there doesn’t seem to be a clear indicator of him leaning one way or the other yet. Though as of now, we’d predict the field over Ohio State,” Hodge wrote.
Parks is the 25th-ranked interior offensive lineman in the country and the top-ranked prospect in the state of West Virginia, via 247 Sports’ composite rankings.
The Buckeyes have only nailed down one interior offensive line commit for 2026 thus far, which was three-star talent Tucker Smith. Smith committed back in March.
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