The busiest recruiting month of the summer might be over, but the Buckeyes have still been making progress with their future rosters, now up to 21 commitments in the 2026 class.
Ohio State is hoping that number will be increasing soon, with two players set to commit on July 11.
Four-star offensive tackle J.B. Shabazz and four-star defensive end K.J. Ford both announcing their commitments on Friday, and both of them have Ohio State in their top three schools.
Shabazz is down to OSU, South Carolina and Tennessee while Ford will decide between the Buckeyes, Florida and Texas A&M. Shabazz is from North Carolina and the Gamecocks seem to be the favorite to land him, but Ohio State offensive line coach Tyler Bowen has been successful on the recruiting trail to this point.
Shabazz would join four-star offensive tackles Maxwell Riley and Sam Greer as well as three-star offensive tackle Aaron Thomas and three-star interior offensive lineman Tucker Smith.
Ford goes to high school in Duncanville, Texas, so the Buckeyes would need to pull him away from his home-state Aggies. Defensive line coach Larry Johnson has had a successful month, adding four commitments in the 2026 class to this point, although Ford, as the No. 116 player in the country, would be the highest rated of them if he does choose the Buckeyes.
He would be joining four-star defensive tackle Damari Simeon, four-star defensive end Khary Wilder, and three-star defensive tackles Cameron Brickle and Jamir Perez.
Johnson has also made an impression on the top defensive lineman in the 2027 class, five-star Jalen Brewster, who attended a one-day recruiting camp at Ohio State in June.
Brewster has since told 247Sports that he plans to be back in Columbus soon and will be attending the highly anticipated season opener against Texas on Aug. 30.
Brewster already has 29 Division I offers, and that list will only grow larger, with offers from Alabama, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, Indiana, LSU, Michigan, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Oregon, Penn State, SMU and Texas offers, among many others.
He will be one of likely very many recruits who will be on campus to catch the likely top-five matchup to open the season.
