One day after securing a Rose Bowl victory, Tim Walton is on the board for 2026.
BREAKING: Four-Star ATH Jakob Weatherspoon (2026) has Committed to Ohio State, he tells me for @on3recruits
— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) January 2, 2025
The 60 180 ATH from Avon, OH chose the Buckeyes over Penn State, Oregon, & Notre Dame
BI here I comehttps://t.co/POttaayfvy pic.twitter.com/Qb6PP6AFj3
And he's keeping the best in Ohio in Ohio. Four-star in-state cornerback prospect Jakob Weatherspoon committed to Ohio State on Thursday, giving the Buckeyes four commits total and their first cornerback commit in the 2026 cycle.
The Weatherspoon File
- Class: 2026
- Size: 5-10/172
- Pos: Cornerback
- School: Avon (Avon, Ohio)
- Composite Rating: ★★★★
- Composite Rank: #164 (#9 ATH)
Weatherspoon is the first defensive commit in the 2026 class, joining wide receivers Chris Henry Jr. and Jaeden Ricketts and tight end Corbyn Fordham.
Weatherspoon grew up rooting for the Buckeyes and the Avon product picked up his OSU offer following an impressive recruiting camp performance in June.
“It meant a lot to me being from Ohio and getting an Ohio State offer,” Weatherspoon told Eleven Warriors of his offer. “Honestly, I worked hard for it. They told me I’d have to come to camp and earn an offer, they weren’t just going to hand it to me, so basically all I did this offseason was work to get that offer. When I got it, I was really excited.”
| Pos | Name | Rating | Rank | Size | School |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WR | CHRIS HENRY JR. | ★★★★★ | #3 NATL | #1 WR | 6-5 | 205 | Mater Dei (Santa Ana, California) |
| CB | JAKOB WEATHERSPOON | ★★★★ | #164 NATL | #9 ATH | 5-10 | 172 | Avon (Avon, Ohio) |
| TE | CORBYN FORDHAM | ★★★★ | #321 NATL | #15 TE | 6-3 | 215 | The Bolles School (Jacksonville, Florida) |
| WR | JAEDEN RICKETTS | ★★★ | #425 NATL | #66 WR | 6-0 | 187 | Watkins Memorial (Pataskala, Ohio) |
| Prospect Rating Data: 247Sports Composite | |||||
Tim Walton and other OSU staff members were in contact with Weatherspoon nearly every day since then trying to secure his commitment.
“A whole lot of it is what he just does for people and how he puts others before himself,” Weatherspoon said this summer of his conversations with Walton. “It was about him telling us what he actually does instead of what people think, and he was showing us his history and how he’s been connected with Ohio State since 1989, so he knows the school well. He showed us some video calls with former players, a few former players sent some over, so we watched those and got some good chatting in.”
Per 247Sports' composite rankings, Weatherspoon is the No. 164 overall prospect in the 2026 class. He had a terrific junior season for Avon, helping lead his team to a 16-0 season and a state title.
“I think I’m very dynamic, I have a lot of patience at cornerback,” Weatherspoon said describing his on-field game. “I’ve been working on my footwork all offseason.”
