CANTON, Ohio — Ohio State will hold a one-day recruiting event on Friday, July 28 ahead of the August recruiting dead period to host some of the top recruits in the country.

Several 2025 prospects have already confirmed they will be on hand for SummerFest at the Shoe, including 3-star defensive tackle Dior Garner out of Canton McKinley.

Garner is a native of Columbus who moved to Canton during the pandemic to play for the historic Bulldogs program, but has yet to make it to Columbus for an Ohio State camp. When the invite came down, Garner said he was excited to learn he would be in the company of other top recruits.

“I was at practice and my coach told me he wanted to talk to me after and then told me, and I was just excited,” Garner told cleveland.com.

“They didn’t invite me down in the spring and I didn’t go to the camp (over summer), and I know other players from other states and all around that are going that are top recruits, and for me to go just feels great.”

While Garner has not received an offer from Ohio State as of yet, he gained a lot of attention from a camp at Michigan in early June where he earned MVP for the defensive linemen.

Garner did receive a camp invite to Ohio State this summer, but could not attend due to a scheduling conflict.

“I really grew up as an Ohio State fan, mind you right now my whole room is Ohio State,” he said.

“So what happened was back in the spring coach (Michigan assistant Steve Clinkscale) came to our school while I was working out and talked to me and a couple other players to come down to a camp. I’m just thinking he’s telling me that and I go out to the camp, I go out and get MVP.

“Coach Mike Elston (Michigan DL coach) he told me he was going to be watching me, loved how I worked out at the camp and hopefully get out to a game this season.”

At 6-foot-4, 285-pounds, Garner is the No. 56-rated defensive lineman in the 2025 class and holds an offer to Bowling Green.

Despite limited game film from his sophomore season, he has excelled at a number of camps this summer including at Kentucky, Pitt, Michigan and at the Under Armour camp series in Columbus, where he got his first introduction to Ohio State defensive line coach Larry Johnson.

While he has had limited interaction with the Buckeyes coaching staff, Garner said he is excited to absorb everything he can from the unofficial visit.

“I’m more looking forward to learning and building a relationship because at that level – at the Big Ten, Ohio State – it’s more about waiting for your turn. But me being there, I’m going to try and do everything I can to be humble, be positive and really just take everything in,” Garner said.

“It’s my first visit to Ohio State, so I’m going to look at the love that they show me first, not just because of who I am. Just seeing how it goes because it’s my first time seeing coaches and worry about myself.”

With his visit to Columbus on the forefront of his mind, Garner said he is still focused on his junior season just over a month away. He will be pulling double duty this fall, playing both offensive tackle and defensive line for the Bulldogs.

“Last year, I really was an O-lineman, I made the switch to D-line last summer about this time when I found out I was going to have an older O-line group, so I switched to D-line for training and I really didn’t play as much last season,” Garner said.

“This season, I’m way stronger, faster, more explosive. I learned how to use my hands better. I feel like it’s going to be hard to stop me for most centers and guards.”

Check out some of Garner’s highlights.

One of the players head coach Ryan Day and quarterbacks coach Corey Dennis are hoping to see at the SummerFest is 2026 quarterback Nathan Bernhard out of Ashland.

The 6-foot-5 Bernhard already has an offer from Penn State, which has successfully recruited Ohio for the past few seasons, as well as an offer to Iowa State.

Bernhard threw for 1,267 yards and 8 touchdowns in just five games as a freshman on varsity.

Dennis will have four-star 2025 quarterback commit Tavien St. Clair out Bellefontaine on hand for the event to further the pair’s relationship since St. Clair’s commitment on June 21.

St. Clair is the No. 13-ranked quarterback in the class after throwing for 2,453 yards with 25 touchdowns to 4 interceptions as a sophomore. He chose the Buckeyes over Michigan, Alabama and LSU to name a few of his choices.

The nation’s No. 2 rated cornerback in the 2025 class, Devin Sanchez, announced he would be in attendance at the camp.

Sanchez is one of the most sought-after defenders in the country after posting 18 pass breakups and four interceptions as a sophomore. The Buckeyes offered Sanchez on Jan. 26.

This will be Sanchez’s third visit to Columbus, with stops back in April and June with his parents making the trip with him as well.

The 6-foot-2, 170-pound defender currently holds 32 offers led by the Buckeyes, Alabama, Michigan, Oklahoma and Georgia to name a few.

In the never-ending battle recruiting between Ohio State and Michigan, Toledo’s Carter Lowe has been in the middle of the action with offers from both schools coming early in the year.

The Buckeyes got the jump on Lowe by a couple of days with an offer back on Jan. 27 followed by the Wolverines on Jan. 29.

Despite being caught between the two programs geographically, Lowe told cleveland.com back in April he grew up a neutral party in the greatest rivalry in college.

“I think a big thing that helps me focus on myself is that I didn’t grow up a fan and my parents didn’t either,” Lowe said. “It’s not like they’re ‘Oh yeah, you grew up as an Ohio State fan, you have to go to Ohio State’

“It keeps my mind open to anywhere I really want to go. Of course my mom wants me to stay close, but she’s just been supporting me the whole way and she’s going to support me wherever I go and I appreciate that a lot from my parents.”

Lowe is the No. 14-ranked offensive lineman in the 2025 class and is also considering West Virginia with other offers to Georgia, Clemson and Tennessee.

The biggest tight end in the 2025 class happens to play about 100 miles away from the Buckeyes, who have pushed hard for 6-foot-8 Luka Gilbert.

A true tight end who can block and catch passes at a high level, Gilbert has picked up offers from Kentucky, Michigan, Pitt and Virginia Tech this offseason. He attended a camp at Ohio State back in June and impressed the coaching staff.

Gilbert is the No. 2-rated player in the state and No. 3-ranked tight end nationally.