Five-star 2026 Cornerback Elbert Hill, In-state 2026 Wide Receiver Jaeden Ricketts Among Key Recruiting Visitors for Ohio State's Season Opener

By Garrick Hodge on August 30, 2024 at 11:35 am
Elbert Hill
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We’re nearly 24 hours away from kicking off the 2024 season.

Ohio State is preparing for its season opener against Akron at Ohio Stadium on Saturday, which means the Buckeyes will have their first opportunity of the year to host recruits and their families on gameday visits. While the opening opponent isn’t the most exciting on the Buckeyes’ home schedule, several highly touted visitors are still expected to make their way to Columbus on Saturday.

Five-star 2026 cornerback Elbert Hill has been no stranger to Ohio State’s campus in the past year and the Akron product is expected to be in Ohio Stadium once again on Saturday. Hill is the No. 1-ranked cornerback in the 2026 cycle and has built a strong relationship with OSU secondary coach Tim Walton and safeties coach Matt Guerrieri. He's certainly one of the top priorities for the Buckeyes in the 2026 class.

“My relationship with them is great,” Hill said of Walton and Guerrieri in June. “Every time I see them, it’s something new. (The relationship) just goes higher and higher every time I talk to those guys.

As we discussed earlier in the week, another key visitor heading to Columbus is five-star wide receiver commit Chris Henry Jr. It’s important for the Buckeyes to get Henry back on campus whenever possible with Oregon and other teams in hot pursuit of the No. 1 overall prospect in the 2026 class. Henry, who is expected to return to OSU for the Nov. 30 game against Michigan, is visiting Columbus with his high school teammate and fellow Ohio State wide receiver target Kayden Dixon-Wyatt. 

They’ll be joined in Columbus on Saturday by two other 2026 wide receivers of note in four-star prospect Donovan Murph and three-star in-state athlete Jaeden Ricketts. Ricketts picked up an OSU offer earlier this summer after impressing Brian Hartline at a recruiting camp. Murph hasn't picked up an offer from OSU as of yet, but he's certainly on offer watch this weekend. 

Another Mater Dei standout, four-star 2026 defensive end Shaun Scott, also confirmed he'll be at Ohio Stadium on Saturday.

Four-star 2026 safety Nassir McCoy joins Hill as another highly touted defensive back prospect who will be at the Buckeyes’ season opener. McCoy picked up his offer from OSU in May and came back to campus in June for a recruiting camp. 

Ohio State running back commit Bo Jackson will be among several commits in attendance and joining him will be his high school teammate, 2027 tight end D’Angelo White. White earned an offer from Ohio State in June and will likely be a top priority for the Buckeyes in that cycle. 

Five-star 2025 quarterback commit Tavien St. Clair plans on attending every home game for the Buckeyes this season, so it’s no surprise he’s expected to be in Ohio Stadium Saturday as well. 

“I’ll be at every single one,” St. Clair said last week of his OSU home game visit plans. “I love being in The Shoe, there’s nothing like it.” 

Four-star 2026 defensive lineman Aiden Harris, a top-50 prospect in that class who has said Ohio State is his top school, was thought to be a potential visitor earlier this week, but his visit had not been confirmed as of Friday morning.

A list of prospects who are expected on campus this weekend can be found below. Commits are in bold.

Class of 2025

Class of 2026

Class of 2027

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