A top offensive lineman in the 2026 class has scheduled an official visit to Ohio State.
Five-star Virginia standout Darius Gray confirmed this week he’ll visit Columbus June 11-12. Gray visited OSU earlier this month, which was a productive experience for Gray to hear Tyler Bowen’s vision for him in Columbus. Gray plans to also take official visits to South Carolina, Penn State, LSU, Auburn, Tennessee and Clemson.
Gray, arguably the top interior offensive lineman target remaining for Ohio State, is considered the No. 29 prospect and No. 2 interior lineman in the 2026 cycle per 247Sports’ composite rankings. The Buckeyes showed Gray how much of a priority he is to them Wednesday as running backs coach Carlos Locklyn stopped by Gray’s high school to check in with the 6-foot-3, 285-pound prospect. Gray’s official visit with OSU will be his seventh trip to campus.
@Locklyn33 pic.twitter.com/sGWxkNCuqM
— DG (@dariusgrayy_) April 23, 2025
Jaden Ball visiting campus on Friday
Ohio State was already in for a busy Friday hosting transfer portal prospects between former Sam Houston State offensive tackle Orion Irving and former Georgia Southern defensive tackle Troy Pikes. The Buckeyes will also host former Purdue offensive tackle Jaden Ball on a visit Friday according to multiple reports.
Ball, a Carroll, Ohio native, spent one season with Boilermakers and was a three-star prospect in the 2024 recruiting class. He played in two games for Purdue last season and played 21 snaps at right guard. The 6-foot-6, 310-pound prospect was contending for the Boilermakers’ starting right tackle position this spring.
Ball also has an official visit scheduled with Minnesota this week and has also been offered by Syracuse. It’s clear that Ohio State wants to beef up its offensive tackle depth with a few portal additions from the offers to Ball and Irving, and we’ll see how the visits go this weekend.
Elbert Hill schedules an official visit to Ohio State
While five-star Ohio cornerback Elbert Hill has seemingly been trending away from the Buckeyes within the past couple of months, OSU hasn’t given up in this recruitment quite yet. Per 247Sports, Hill has scheduled an official visit with the Buckeyes for May 30-June 1, giving the Buckeyes another crack at convincing the talented in-state product to stay home.
Hill has been a frequent visitor to Columbus throughout his recruitment, though he didn’t visit the Buckeyes in the spring. As of now, USC is a heavy favorite in the recruiting industry to land Hill.
Kalel Johnson, Caden Moss earn OSU offers
Tyler Bowen hasn’t wasted his early few visits on the recruiting trail. This week, Bowen offered Ohio four-star 2027 offensive lineman Kalel Johnson and Mississippi four-star 2027 offensive lineman Caden Moss.
Blessed to receive an offer from Ohio State University #GoBuckeyes@TylerBowen @CoachDDuggan @shayhodge3 @H3_Performance @MacCorleone74 @ChadSimmons_ @SWiltfong_ @adamgorney @TomLoy247 @Rebels247 @samspiegs @Zach_Berry @DukestheScoop pic.twitter.com/egVknN1QQh
— Caden Moss (@Caden__moss) April 23, 2025
After a great conversation with @TylerBowen I'm blessed to receive an offer from the National Champions! The Ohio State University @CoachTy_1 @TaftNationFB @TaftNation @AllenTrieu @MacCorleone74 @OhioStateFB pic.twitter.com/Os2tHYvQvu
— Kaleljohnson (@KJ_Johnson27) April 23, 2025
Per 247Sports’ composite rankings, the 6-foot-7, 281-pound Johnson is considered the No. 186 prospect and No. 17 offensive tackle in 2027. He plays his high school football at Taft in Cincinnati. Johnson has earned 12 Division I offers thus far, including Boston College, Cincinnati, Indiana, Kentucky and Maryland.
Meanwhile, Moss is ranked the No. 37 prospect and No. 3 offensive tackle in 2027. The 6-foot-5, 275-pound standout holds 17 Division I offers, including Ole Miss, Alabama, Auburn, Baylor, Duke, LSU, Mississippi State, Mizzou, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Oregon State, Tennessee and Texas A&M.
