Will reigning champion Ohio State football land five-star lineman Jackson Cantwell?

Days after winning the College Football Playoff National Championship, Ohio State coach Ryan Day sat in the Nixa High School coaching offices alongside five-star prospect Jackson Cantwell. It was his first recruiting stop after lifting the trophy over his head.

Ohio State is one of four teams hoping the No. 1 recruit in the 2026 class will choose them come April 30. The Buckeyes are the only program that can sell Cantwell on being the reigning champion.

“They’re the best team in the country right now,” Cantwell said. “Ohio State’s a really good situation.”

The 6-foot-8, 300-pound Nixa High offensive tackle will select between the Buckeyes, Georgia, Miami (Florida) and Oregon. He’s made two visits to Columbus in the last five months while trying to gather as much information as possible about the turnover at the offensive line coach position.

Day, who is more hands-on with the quarterbacks, had to hire a new offensive line coach this offseason after Justin Frye left the program to take over the same position for the NFL’s Arizona Cardinals. Frye had been with OSU since 2022 and helped make offensive tackle Paris Johnson Jr. the sixth-overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.

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Frye’s departure led to three Ohio State hires who will impact Cantwell’s decision.

Tyler Bowen, formerly the offensive coordinator at Virginia Tech, was brought on as the new offensive line coach. Bowen hasn’t served as an offensive line coach since 2017, when he was at Maryland. Marcus Johnson, who was Purdue’s offensive line coach last year before the Boilermakers’ staff was fired, is the team’s assistant offensive line coach. Charlie Dickey will also serve as an offensive line assistant, having held main roles at Oklahoma State and Kansas State in recent years.

“They’ve hired a lot of great offensive line coaches,” Cantwell said. “They’re putting a lot of emphasis on it and are trying to make sure they develop those guys.”

What Jackson Cantwell has said about Ohio State football, Ryan Day

Cantwell in February: “Ohio State’s an interesting one for me. They have Ryan Day, who has done a fantastic job and is probably the most underrated coach in college football. He’s one of the best coaches in college football. I still sometimes don’t even think Ohio State likes him, and I couldn’t tell you why. I think they have a great offense year in and year out.

“Their offensive line did incredible last year, but I think the interesting thing is that they’ll have a different offensive line coach because he left to go to the Cardinals, and now they have a guy who hasn’t coached O-line since 2016. It’ll be interesting to see how that works out.”

When Ohio State football offered Jackson Cantwell

Ohio State offered Cantwell in October 2023. When announcing his offer, he said he received it from Buckeyes general manager Mark Pantoni.

When did Jackson Cantwell visit Ohio State football?

Cantwell has visited Ohio State twice in the last five months.

The first came in mid-December ahead of the Buckeyes’ first-round College Football Playoff win over Tennessee. He returned to Columbus for a two-day visit in March, where he was able to meet with Bowen, the new OSU offensive line coach, for the first time.

Ohio State football offensive linemen NFL Draft picks since 2020

Ohio State will likely have multiple offensive linemen selected in this week’s NFL Draft.

ESPN ranks Josh Simmons as the fourth-best offensive tackle, Donovan Jackson as the fourth-best guard and Seth McLaughlin as the second-best center.

• 2023 – Paris Johnson Jr. (Sixth overall pick)
• 2023 – Daward Jones (Fourth round)
• 2023 – Luke Wypler (Sixth round)
• 2022 – Nicholas Petit-Frere (Third round)
• 2022 – Thayer Munford (Seventh round)
• 2021 – Josh Myers (Second round)
• 2021 – Wyatt Davis (Third round)
• 2020 – Jonah Jackson (Third round)

Ohio State football 2025 offensive line roster makeup

• Seniors – 3
• Juniors – 4
• Sophomores – 5
• Freshmen – 4

Ohio State football 2025 offensive line recruiting class

Carter Lowe — Four-star offensive tackle ranked as the No. 72 player in the 2025 class.

Jake Cook — Three-star interior offensive lineman.

Jayvon McFadden — Three-star offensive lineman.

Ethan Onianwa — Offensive tackle transfer from Rice.

Phillip Daniels — Offensive tackle transfer from Minnesota.