As of Tuesday afternoon, the Buckeyes had added three transfers for the 2026 season: former UCF defensive tackle John Walker, former Ohio tight end Mason Williams and former UCF long snapper Dalton Riggs. Some of Ohio State’s biggest holes remain unfilled, however, and there isn’t any position where the Buckeyes couldn’t benefit from adding some more depth.

Ohio State will remain selective in its transfer additions, given that the Buckeyes signed 28 high school prospects in the 2026 recruiting class. Even after losing 17 scholarship players to the portal, the Buckeyes are currently set to add more players than they’ve lost, though several starters from last season still have NFL draft decisions to make while more players could still enter the portal until Jan. 16.

That said, Ohio State still needs to make numerous transfer additions to build a championship-caliber roster for 2026. There are several positions where Ohio State must add talent due to departures from its 2025 roster, and several others where the Buckeyes shouldn’t be afraid to bring in competition for their projected starters. Even at the couple of positions where Ohio State is likely set in terms of who will lead its depth chart next season, the Buckeyes should still be looking at veteran depth options to offset attrition from players who transferred out or exhausted their eligibility.

Based on who we know Ohio State is losing due to expired eligibility or entering the transfer portal, who Ohio State could lose to the NFL draft and where the Buckeyes need better play than what they had this past season, we assess Ohio State’s remaining portal needs from the most glaring holes to where the Buckeyes should be looking for potential upgrades or depth additions.

Pressing Needs

Kicker

Putting this at the top isn’t merely a reaction to Jayden Fielding’s costly misses in Ohio State’s last two games. With Fielding out of eligibility and Jackson Courville entering the transfer portal, Ohio State doesn’t currently have a single kicker on its roster for 2026. Adding a transfer kicker is non-negotiable, and landing one of the top kickers in the portal should be a priority, though no clear target has emerged for the Buckeyes yet.

Cornerback/Nickel

Ohio State already had reason to add a cornerback or nickelback with Davison Igbinosun and Lorenzo Styles Jr. exhausting their eligibility, but Aaron Scott Jr. and Bryce West entering the transfer portal made it the Buckeyes’ biggest non-specialist position of need. Ohio State is now losing four of its top six corners and nickels from 2025, leaving the depth chart thin and unproven behind Jermaine Mathews Jr. and Devin Sanchez.

With only two other returning cornerbacks (Miles Lockhart and Jordyn Woods) from this past season, plus two incoming freshmen (Jay Timmons and Jordan Thomas), the Buckeyes need to add someone who can start alongside Mathews and Sanchez and ideally another starting-caliber cornerback to bolster their depth behind the starters.

Ohio State has hosted two potential candidates to fill those holes in former Auburn cornerback Kayin Lee and former Maryland cornerback La’Khi Roland, both of whom were starters at their previous schools.

Priority Positions

Defensive End

This will become a pressing need if Kenyatta Jackson Jr. leaves for the NFL draft alongside Caden Curry, who’s out of eligibility. Even if Jackson stays for his fifth-year senior season, adding an immediate contributor at defensive end for 2026 should still be a priority. While Zion Grady looks like a future starter and Beau Atkinson gives the Buckeyes veteran depth, Larry Johnson didn’t trust either of them enough to rotate in regularly in big games this past season – and ideally, Ohio State should have multiple rotational defensive ends to keep the starters fresh.

Ohio State could fill this need if it’s able to beat out LSU and Tennessee for coveted Penn State transfer defensive end Chaz Coleman, the Buckeyes’ top target in the transfer portal. Should the Buckeyes land Coleman and retain Jackson, they’d likely be set at defensive end, barring any further attrition; if they miss out on Coleman or lose Jackson, other potential options could include Florida transfer Jayden Woods and Missouri transfer Damon Wilson.

Wide Receiver

Ohio State never added a scholarship transfer at wide receiver during Brian Hartline’s tenure coaching the position, but it needs to this year.

With Carnell Tate expected to enter the NFL draft and top backups Bryson Rodgers and Mylan Graham entering the transfer portal, Ohio State has minimal experience at the position outside of returning starters Jeremiah Smith and Brandon Inniss. While Quincy Porter is a candidate to play a bigger role in year two and Chris Henry Jr. should contend for playing time right away as a freshman, the Buckeyes are looking for a veteran who can step in and play the Z position opposite Smith, which Tate occupied for the past two seasons.

Ohio State’s top target to fill that need right now appears to be former Texas wide receiver DeAndre Moore Jr., who visited OSU over the weekend in between visits to Kentucky, Louisville and Colorado. Moore caught 77 passes for 988 yards and 11 touchdowns over the past two seasons.

RELATED Ohio State Transfer Portal Tracker: John Walker and Mason Williams Among Ohio State’s First Transfer Additions of 2026

Shouldn’t Be Afraid to Upgrade

Offensive Line

Ohio State could get by without adding any transfer offensive linemen. Even with Tegra Tshabola’s departure, the Buckeyes are set to return seven of their top eight offensive linemen from 2025, barring any surprise draft entries or portal exits. They have plenty of promising young talent to fill out their depth chart behind them and are currently slated to have 16 scholarship offensive linemen in 2026.

But considering the offensive line was Ohio State’s biggest weakness that led to its losses in its final two games of the season, the Buckeyes shouldn’t be content to stand pat with what they have. Offensive line coach Tyler Bowen said after the Cotton Bowl that he had to “look at everything” to figure out how to get the offensive line’s performance up to standard, and that should include adding talent if the right fit emerges in the portal.

Right guard is the most obvious position where Ohio State could add a plug-and-play starter to replace Tshabola, but adding a tackle to compete with Phillip Daniels on the right side or potentially moving Austin Siereveld back inside could also be in play as the Buckeyes look to build their best five for 2026.

Punter

Joe McGuire got better as the 2025 season progressed after a rough start to the year, but Ohio State still ranked just 79th nationally in average yards per punt. At the very least, the Buckeyes should be looking to add competition for McGuire through the transfer portal, especially considering they need another punter anyway following Nick McLarty’s departure for Arizona State.

Linebacker

While Ohio State has a promising pair of up-and-coming linebackers in Payton Pierce and Riley Pettijohn, who could prove to be an excellent starting tandem if they take over for Arvell Reese and Sonny Styles, the Buckeyes don’t have a single linebacker on their 2026 roster – assuming Reese enters the NFL draft as expected – who has started a game at the FBS level. As such, the Buckeyes should be looking for a starting-caliber veteran to add a proven commodity to their linebacker corps next season.

A potential candidate to fill that need could be Wisconsin transfer Christian Alliegro, a two-year starter for the Badgers, who visited Ohio State on Tuesday, according to Lettermen Row. Another possible candidate is former Pittsburgh linebacker and Columbus native Rasheem Biles, who was expected to visit Ohio State this week, though Biles hadn’t made a confirmed trip to campus as of Tuesday.

Defensive Tackle

Defensive tackle was in the pressing need category until Tuesday morning, when Ohio State landed John Walker. That commitment addressed the Buckeyes’ need for a starting-caliber nose tackle to replace Kayden McDonald if he enters the 2026 NFL draft – but that doesn’t necessarily mean Ohio State should be done pursuing transfer DTs yet.

From a numbers standpoint, Ohio State has what it needs now at defensive tackle. But with Tywone Malone Jr. exhausting his eligibility, Ohio State will have only two returning defensive tackles with significant experience (Eddrick Houston and Will Smith Jr.) if McDonald goes pro. The Buckeyes could be content to stick with what they have if they believe Jason Moore or Jarquez Carter is ready to be a consistent factor in the rotation next season, but adding another experienced, starting-caliber defensive tackle would be a smart move.

Safety

Assuming Caleb Downs enters the NFL draft, Ohio State will have to replace the best safety in college football. The Buckeyes have plenty of depth at safety, and a few potential options to pair with Jaylen McClain in the 2026 starting lineup in Malik Hartford, Leroy Roker III and Faheem Delane, but as with linebacker, they’d be relying on an inexperienced group to fill a major role if they don’t add anyone.

The obvious candidate in the portal to replace Downs would be former Minnesota safety Koi Perich, a two-time All-Big Ten honoree (first team in 2024, second team in 2025) in two seasons with the Gophers. Perich would give the Buckeyes a plug-and-play free safety to replace Downs, and Ohio State was the runner-up in his high school recruitment. But Miami, where he’d reunite with former Minnesota defensive coordinator Corey Heatherman, is viewed as the frontrunner to land him.

Duke safety Terry Moore, a second-team All-ACC honoree in 2024 with one remaining season of eligibility who was recruited to Duke by current Ohio State safeties coach Matt Guerrieri, could be another candidate to join the Buckeyes as a potential starting safety for 2026.

Tight End

If Max Klare stays at Ohio State for his fifth-year senior season, the Buckeyes would be set at tight end for 2026 with the addition of Mason Williams. If Klare enters the NFL draft, however, Ohio State would have reason to consider adding a second transfer tight end, particularly one who can be a weapon in the passing game.

Nate Roberts, Williams and Bennett Christian would give Ohio State a solid top trio of tight ends, but the Buckeyes would be relying on a big jump in production from Roberts and/or Williams to replace Klare’s pass-catching at the position. 

Depth Wanted

Running Back

Bo Jackson will remain Ohio State’s starting running back in 2026 after topping 1,000 yards in his freshman season, while Isaiah West showed the capability as a freshman to be a quality No. 2 running back. The departures of CJ Donaldson, James Peoples and Sam Dixon, however, leave Ohio State without any other running backs who have played a collegiate snap.

As such, the Buckeyes are in the market for a veteran running back to bolster their depth for 2026. They hosted one potential candidate to fill that role last weekend when Florida seventh-year senior Ja’Kobi Jackson visited Ohio State.

Quarterback

Ohio State has its starting quarterback for 2026 with Julian Sayin returning for at least one more year, and Tavien St. Clair is likely in line to be his top backup. But Ryan Day likes to have four scholarship quarterbacks on his roster, so Ohio State will look to bring in a veteran to provide depth at the position, much like it did with Eli Brickhandler this past season and with Tristan Gebbia, Gunnar Hoak and Chris Chugunov in past years.

One potential candidate to fill that role as Ohio State’s No. 3 or 4 quarterback in 2026 could be former Washington State QB Jaxon Potter, who announced Monday that he had received an offer from the Buckeyes.