The Hurry-Up: Ohio State Offers Four-star 2026 LB Jacob Eberhart and 2027 Five-star LB Cooper Witten, the Son of Former NFL TE Jason Witten

By Garrick Hodge on March 24, 2025 at 5:30 pm
Jacob Eberhart
Twitter/@jacobhart505
6 Comments

Ohio State offered a versatile two-way player on Monday.

Four-star 2026 Missouri prospect Jacob Eberhart visited OSU for a spring practice and left Columbus with an offer in hand following a conversation with Ryan Day. He’s played wide receiver, safety and linebacker for his high school, with his best fit with the Buckeyes probably being at linebacker.

Per the 247Sports composite, Eberhart is considered the 397th-best prospect in the 2026 cycle. He’s earned more than 35 Division I offers, including Mizzou, Illinois, Arkansas, Arizona, Boston College, Florida State, Indiana, Iowa, Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State, LSU, Miami, Minnesota, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Oregon, Penn State, Purdue, Tennessee, Texas A&M, Tennessee, Texas A&M, UNLV, USC, West Virginia and Wisconsin.

At 6-foot-3, 200 pounds, Eberhart has the build of your prototypical outside wide receiver if he goes that route, but also has the frame to be an intimidating linebacker.

Cooper Witten picks up an OSU offer

The son of a former star NFL tight end has appeared on Ohio State’s radar. Five-star 2027 Texas linebacker Cooper Witten picked up an OSU offer on Friday following a visit to Columbus. Witten is the son of former Dallas Cowboys tight end Jason Witten. 

Per 247Sports’ composite rankings, Witten is considered the No. 24 prospect and No. 1 safety in the 2027 cycle (though OSU is recruiting him as a Mike or Will linebacker). He’s picked up 22 offers, including Arkansas, Auburn, Baylor, Duke, Kansas State, LSU, Memphis, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Oregon, SMU, TCU, Tennessee, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, USC and West Virginia.

In his sophomore year, the 6-foot-2, 210-pound prospect recorded 45 tackles, a sack, five interceptions, eight pass deflections, a fumble recovery and a blocked punt.

Buckeyes offer Tucker Smith

Stop me if you’ve heard this before, but new offensive line coach Tyler Bowen has offered another offensive lineman who visited Ohio State this spring. Arizona prospect Tucker Smith was the latest recipient of the offer following a conversation with Day on his visit on Friday. 

The 6-foot-5, 280-pound prospect is considered a three-star prospect, but does not hold a composite ranking yet. He’s earned 12 offers in his recruitment, most of them coming within the past few months, so Smith seems to be a late bloomer in the 2026 class.

Schools that have offered Smith include Arizona, Arizona State, Arkansas, Iowa State, Kansas State, Minnesota, Oklahoma State, Oregon State, Purdue, USC and Washington. 

At this point, Smith is probably a better bet to play inside at the collegiate level rather than tackle.

Liufau Loumoli and Cincere Johnson visiting Tuesday

James Laurinaitis has a busy day ahead of him on Tuesday. Two key linebacker targets for Ohio State class are expected to be in Columbus for the Buckeyes’ spring practice in 2026 four-star Ohio prospect Cincere Johnson and 2027 four-star Washington athlete Liufau Loumoli. 

Johnson, a top-105 prospect nationally, has been a frequent visitor to Ohio State’s campus over the past year. Laurinaitis is hoping the Glenville pipeline to OSU continues with Johnson, who will take an official visit to Columbus on June 13.

Meanwhile, Loumoli is one of the biggest linebacker standouts in the 2027 cycle. He’s considered the 85th-best player and the No. 7 linebacker recruit in the class at 6-foot-1, 210 pounds. Of note, Loumoli is from the same high school as former Buckeyes Gee Scott Jr. and JT Tuimoloau. This trip will be a great opportunity for Laurinaitis to establish a strong connection with him and give Loumoli a chance to evaluate his potential fit playing in Matt Patricia’s defense. 

6 Comments

Four-star Offensive Tackle Sam Greer Commits to Ohio State

Sam Greer

Evan Mahaffey Enters Transfer Portal After Two Years With Buckeyes

Evan Mahaffey
View 6 Comments