Ohio State’s red-hot spring on the recruiting trail continued Friday.
The Buckeyes landed their third commitment of the week and second in as many days as in-state linebacker CJ Sanna announced his pledge to the Buckeyes.
Buckeye nation Im staying home! GO BUCKS https://t.co/RpNibnWsxP
— CJ (@Cjsanna07) April 4, 2025
The Sanna File
- Class: 2026
- Size: 6-3/225
- Pos: LB
- School: Olentangy (Lewis Center, Ohio)
- Composite Rating: ★★★
- Composite Rank: #449 (#35 LB)
Sanna, who attends nearby Olentangy High School in Lewis Center, Ohio, is ranked as the No. 449 overall prospect, No. 35 linebacker and No. 20 prospect in Ohio in 247Sports’ composite rankings.
He chose Ohio State from a list of 25 offers that included Cincinnati, Duke, Indiana, Iowa, Iowa State, Kentucky, Maryland, Miami, Michigan State, Minnesota, Missouri, N.C. State, Oklahoma, Pittsburgh, Purdue, Rutgers, Wake Forest, West Virginia and Wisconsin, among others. Wisconsin was viewed as Ohio State’s top competition for Sanna, who had scheduled an official visit to Wisconsin before committing to the Buckeyes.
He becomes the fifth in-state commit in Ohio State’s 2026 class, joining offensive linemen Maxwell Riley and Sam Greer, cornerback Jakob Weatherspoon and wide receiver Jaeden Ricketts. He becomes the 10th overall member of Ohio State’s 2026 class, which is now ranked as the third-best class in the country behind only USC and Clemson.
| Pos | Name | Rating | Rank | Size | School |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WR | CHRIS HENRY JR. | ★★★★★ | #9 NATL | #2 WR | 6-5 | 205 | Mater Dei (Santa Ana, California) |
| S | BLAINE BRADFORD | ★★★★★ | #23 NATL | #1 S | 6-1 | 207 | Catholic (Baton Rouge, Louisiana) |
| S | SIMEON CALDWELL | ★★★★ | #95 NATL | #7 LB | 6-3 | 185 | The Bolles School (Jacksonville, Florida) |
| OT | MAXWELL RILEY | ★★★★ | #114 NATL | #9 OT | 6-5 | 280 | Avon Lake (Avon Lake, Ohio) |
| CB | JAKOB WEATHERSPOON | ★★★★ | #167 NATL | #13 S | 5-10 | 172 | Avon (Avon, Ohio) |
| OT | SAM GREER | ★★★★ | #188 NATL | #17 OT | 6-6 | 310 | Archbishop Hoban (Akron, Ohio) |
| WR | JAEDEN RICKETTS | ★★★★ | #253 NATL | #43 WR | 6-0 | 187 | Watkins Memorial (Pataskala, Ohio) |
| TE | CORBYN FORDHAM | ★★★★ | #379 NATL | #18 TE | 6-3 | 215 | The Bolles School (Jacksonville, Florida) |
| LB | CJ SANNA | ★★★ | #449 NATL| #35 LB | 6-3| 225 | Olentangy (Lewis Center, Ohio) |
| OL | TUCKER SMITH | ★★★ | #806 NATL | #71 IOL | 6-5 | 280 | Sandra Day O'Connor (Phoenix, Arizona) |
| Prospect Rating Data: 247Sports Composite | |||||
Sanna joins safeties Blaine Bradford and Simeon Caldwell as players who have committed to Ohio State this week.
Sanna is the first linebacker in Ohio State’s 2026 recruiting class (Caldwell has been projected as a linebacker by some recruiting services, but is expected to play safety for the Buckeyes). Top targets to potentially join him in the class at linebacker include Georgia five-star Tyler Atkinson, fellow in-state linebacker Cincere Johnson and four-star Missouri linebacker Jacob Eberhart, among others.
Sanna, who was offered by Ohio State in January, is coming off a productive junior season at Olentangy in which he recorded 97 tackles, 11 tackles for loss and seven sacks from his middle linebacker position.
