Omari Abor is headed home to The Lone Star State.
On Tuesday, the former Ohio State defensive end committed to SMU, where he will continue his college football career a few minutes from his hometown of Duncanville, Texas.
Coming Home @SMUFB @CoachThibbs #Committed pic.twitter.com/eWppHexDIB
— Omari Abor (@LilBarr_23) December 19, 2023
The No. 6 defensive end and No. 63 overall prospect in the class of 2022, according to the 247Sports composite, Abor was the first Ohio State player to announce he would enter the transfer portal after the regular season ended.
In two seasons with the Buckeyes, Abor dealt with a couple of ailments that kept him on the sidelines. In 2022, he received a few snaps in the second game of the season against Arkansas State before sitting out the rest of the regular season due to a knee injury. In 2023, Abor suffered an undisclosed injury during preseason camp that required surgery.
Abor ended up making six appearances for Ohio State this season in the Buckeyes’ wins over Youngstown State, Western Kentucky, Purdue, Rutgers, Michigan State and Minnesota. He recorded two tackles in 29 snaps, all of which came late in games that were already decided.
Abor is the seventh Buckeye to transfer to a new school this month, along with quarterback Kyle McCord (Syracuse), running backs Evan Pryor (Cincinnati) and Chip Trayanum (Kentucky), center Victor Cutler Jr. (Louisville) and defensive backs Ryan Turner (Boston College) and Kye Stokes (Cincinnati).
Former Buckeyes who remain in the portal include wide receiver Julian Fleming, tight end Joe Royer, center Jakob James, linebacker Reid Carrico, cornerback Jyaire Brown, safety Cameron Martinez and kicker Parker Lewis.
