Keenan Bailey has his man.
Ohio State has long made four-star Oklahoma prospect Nate Roberts its top priority at tight end in the 2025 class. On Saturday, the Buckeyes emerged as the victor in that recruitment as Roberts gave his verbal commitment to OSU.
The Roberts File
- Class: 2025
- Size: 6-4/235
- Pos: Tight End
- School: Washington (Washington, Oklahoma)
- Composite Rating: ★★★★
- Composite Rank: #118 (#5 TE)
Bailey offered Roberts on May 16, 2023, which meant everything to Roberts.
“He offered me when he came and saw me," Roberts told Eleven Warriors of the offer last year. "Having an offer from Ohio State is awesome and means a lot to me. It’s a blessing and really exciting for me and my family. The culture that has been at Ohio State has been amazing in past years, they’re the most winning culture right now. I feel like they’ve been using the heck out of the tight ends lately. I feel like Ohio State can be a place where I can get both the best culture and best playing experience.”
Later that summer, Roberts committed to Notre Dame, but eventually decommitted from the Fighting Irish in August. Over the next few months, OSU battled Oklahoma and Oregon intensely for Roberts' commitment and eventually won out because of Ryan Day's vision for him in the offense and his relationship with Bailey.
“Just when we first met each other, I felt something between us and felt we could really do something together," Roberts said of he and Bailey. "I feel like he really wants me to get better and he can really coach me. He showed a lot of interest in me and I have a lot of interest in him."
BREAKING: Four-Star TE Nate Roberts has Committed to Ohio State, he tells me for @on3recruits
— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) April 13, 2024
The 64 235 TE from Washington, OK chose the Buckeyes over Oregon and Oklahoma
This is the place to be, #GoBucks https://t.co/S7Wz1JJxj4 pic.twitter.com/jopVAMkEqb
Roberts visited OSU many times throughout his recruitment, including twice in the past few months. He also took a gameday visit to Columbus last fall, where he and quarterback commit Tavien St. Clair bonded for a lengthy period before the Buckeyes' eventual win over Western Kentucky in September.
With Roberts in the fold, Ohio State now has 12 total commitments in the 2025 cycle and its first tight end commitment. The Buckeyes are content to only take one tight end for the current class since they've converted on Roberts. But they'd be willing to take another high-priority target if possible, such as Indiana four-star prospect Brock Schott. Landing him may be an uphill battle, though, as Miami currently has all the momentum in Schott's recruitment.
| Pos | Name | Rating | Rank | Size | School |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CB | DEVIN SANCHEZ | ★★★★★ | #5 NATL | #1 CB | 6-2 | 170 | North Shore (Houston, Texas) |
| CB | NA'EEM OFFORD | ★★★★★ | #6 NATL | #2 CB | 6-1 | 185 | Parker (Birmingham, Alabama) |
| QB | TAVIEN ST. CLAIR | ★★★★ | #48 NATL | #4 QB | 6-4 | 210 | Bellefontaine (Bellefontaine, Ohio) |
| OT | CARTER LOWE | ★★★★ | #55 NATL | #7 OT | 6-5 | 290 | Whitmer (Toledo, Ohio) |
| DE | ZAHIR MATHIS | ★★★★ | #57 NATL | #5 Edge | 6-6 | 225 | Imhotep Institute (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) |
| LB | TARVOS ALFORD | ★★★★ | #63 NATL | #8 LB | 6-2 | 210 | Vero Beach (Vero Beach, Florida) |
| CB | BLAKE WOODBY | ★★★★ | #72 NATL | #8 CB | 5-11 | 180 | St. Frances Academy (Baltimore, Maryland) |
| DE | LONDON MERRITT | ★★★★ | #101 NATL | #10 LB | 6-2 | 250 | IMG Academy (Bradenton, Florida) |
| TE | NATE ROBERTS | ★★★★ | #118 NATL | #5 TE | 6-4 | 235 | Washington (Washington, Oklahoma) |
| S | DESHAWN STEWART | ★★★★ | #284 NATL | #24 S | 6-2 | 185 | DePaul Catholic (Wayne, New Jersey) |
| WR | DE'ZIE JONES | ★★★★ | #367 NATL | #49 WR | 6-0 | 180 | DePaul Catholic (Wayne, New Jersey) |
| LB | ELI LEE | ★★★ | #557 NATL | #63 LB | 6-3 | 215 | Archbishop Hoban (Akron, Ohio) |
| Prospect Rating Data: 247Sports Composite | |||||
Roberts gives Buckeyes legit pass-catching tight end that doubles as stout blocker
Per 247Sports' composite rankings, Roberts is considered the 118th-best prospect and the No. 5 tight end in the 2025 class.
Last season at Washington High School (Washington, Oklahoma), Roberts caught 38 passes for 816 yards with eight touchdowns, totaling 479 yards after catch. As a sophomore, he caught 33 passes for 705 yards with 11 receiving touchdowns while splitting his time 50-50 between lining up in-line and out wide. In both his junior and sophomore seasons, his team went undefeated and won a state championship.
Roberts is coming to Ohio State with a clear vision of being a multi-purpose tight end and has a clear skillset as both a pass-catcher and a blocker.
“I don’t want to be known as only a pass-catching or blocking tight end, I want to be known as both,” Roberts said. “If you watch my film, you’ll see that I block just as much as I catch. I can do both. Ohio State uses the tight ends in both positions, they don’t just use them on the line or in the H-back position. I think with me being able to do both, I can learn both positions at Ohio State and I can learn so much more and get more playing time if I work hard enough.”
The 6-foot-4, 235-pound Roberts will arrive in Columbus with a good starting frame, but considering his position is one of the more developmental in college football, it may take a season or two before Roberts is a mainstay on the field. But like Cade Stover and Jeremy Ruckert the past few seasons, Roberts has all the tools to become a deadly weapon for Ohio State's offense.
