The top-rated player in the 2026 class has narrowed down his recruitment.
And Ohio State has made the top six for five-star Missouri offensive tackle Jackson Cantwell.
The 6-foot-7, 300-pound prospect released his top schools on Sunday, which also included Mizzou, Georgia, Oregon, Michigan and Miami.
Journey is almost overwheres home?#GoDawgs#ItsAllAboutTheU#GoBlue#MIZ#GoBucks#ScoDucks https://t.co/7GrtMyZCEL
— Jackson Cantwell (@jcantwell2499) February 2, 2025
The Buckeyes cracked Cantwell’s top six despite former Ohio State offensive line coach Justin Frye leaving the school to take an assistant coaching position with the Arizona Cardinals. Cantwell values OSU’s championship pedigree, the development of offensive linemen and the opportunity to play for a contender with the Buckeyes. It probably also didn’t hurt that Ryan Day proved Cantwell was a priority to him by stopping to see him first in what was eventually a slew of recruiting visits by OSU’s head coach last week.
“It’s hard to beat being a national champion,” Cantwell told On3 of his interest in OSU. “A winning culture and a fantastic offensive line group is appealing.”
He has to move to near the front of the priority list for that Waffle House recruiting graphic alone, not to mention the fact he actually ran on the field at one of his high school games last season with a Waffle House flag. Yes, I’m serious.
We’ll probably have more clarity on how strong of a contender OSU is to land Cantwell’s commitment once a new offensive line coach is hired, but in the meantime, it seems to be a good bet Cantwell will take an official visit to Ohio State sometime this summer. Buckeye fans probably have some David Sanders Jr. PTSD from a recruiting cycle ago, along with a few other high-profile offensive tackle misses over the past few seasons, but OSU is still going to take another shot at luring a top out-of-state tackle prospect to Columbus.
Cederian Morgan puts OSU in top 10 schools
One of the top wide receivers in the 2026 class has narrowed down his decision and stop me if you’ve heard this before, but the Buckeyes made the cut for the top-45 national prospect.
Four-star Alabama prospect Cederian Morgan released a top 10 on Sunday consisting of Ohio State, Auburn, Alabama, Florida, Clemson, Colorado, Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia, Oregon and Miami.
Where Is Home??@Madhousefit @JSavvvy @TomLoy247 https://t.co/4pNeSsObT3
— Cederian CM1 Morgan (@cedeian2) February 2, 2025
Morgan is considered the No. 43 prospect and No. 7 wide receiver in the 2026 recruiting class. He earned his offer from OSU in June following an impressive performance at a Buckeyes recruiting camp.
“It’s a very big school and a big name,” Morgan said of his OSU offer in June. “Especially with coach Brian Hartline. It’s wide receiver U. What they’ve done with wide receivers is amazing. I feel like if you want to be a wide receiver and make it to the next level, Ohio State is the place to be.”
Alabama will be a big player in Morgan’s recruitment, ditto to Auburn. But Ohio State has at least a puncher’s chance here, especially with Hartline leading the charge in the recruitment.
The 6-foot-4, 210-pound wideout caught 70 passes for 1,162 yards and 14 touchdowns in his junior season.
“I can move, get out of breaks,” Morgan said. “I feel like that’s what separates me from other big receivers.”
Victor Singleton commits to Illinois
A top-70 prospect nationally and one of the highest-ranked in-state prospects for 2026 is off the board. Four-star cornerback Victor Singleton committed to Illinois on Saturday, giving the Fighting Illini a major boost to their recruiting class.
— Victor singleton (@victorsin__) February 1, 2025
Ohio State offered Singleton last spring, but didn’t pursue him as heavily as other prospects this cycle. The Buckeyes already have in-state cornerback Jakob Weatherspoon committed for the 2026 class, and are in a good position with five-star Ohio standout Elbert Hill as well.
