Devin Sanchez is now in Ohio State's 2025 recruiting class. Here's what it means

Ohio State landed a major 2025 prospect Saturday.

2025 five-star cornerback Devin Sanchez committed to the Buckeyes over Alabama and Texas A&M at the All American Bowl. He is the highest-rated cornerback to commit to Ohio State since Jeff Okudah.

Along with being the No. 2 cornerback in the country, Sanchez is the No. 6 player overall in the class according to 247Sports' composite rankings.

Here's what Sanchez's commitment means to Ohio State.

What does Devin Sanchez's commitment mean for the 2025 class?

In Sanchez, Ohio State has a pillar for what the Buckeyes are hoping to be their sixth-straight top-five recruiting class.

But Sanchez is a different kind of building block for Ohio State.

Of the 18 five-star commitments that have signed with Ohio State in the past five classes, 12 have been on offense: six wide receivers, two offensive linemen, three quarterbacks and one running back.

Defensive end J.T. Tuimoloau, defensive end Jack Sawyer, linebacker C.J. Hicks, safety Sonny Styles, defensive lineman Eddrick Houston and cornerback Aaron Scott were all five-star defensive players between 2021-24.

But of those defensive five-star signees, Tumoloau and Sawyer are the only ones that were ranked higher than Sanchez per 247Sports' composite rankings.

Sanchez arrives as the No. 6 overall player in the 2025 class — Ohio State's highest-ranked defensive commit since Tuimoloau — and the No. 2 cornerback recruit in the country.

After a 2024 defensive class that saw one decommitment in defensive lineman Justin Scott and nearly another near signing day in Houston, Sanchez could be the spark Ohio State needs to land a high-profile and nationally renowned defensive class in 2025, and could be a difference between a top-five class and the top recruiting class in the country.

What does Devin Sanchez's commitment mean for Tim Walton?

Sanchez gives Tim Walton another big win on the recruiting trail.

After returning to his alma mater after 11 seasons as an NFL assistant, Walton has found immediate success in recruiting cornerbacks for Ohio State, landing Jermaine Mathews Jr. and Calvin Simpson-Hunt in 2023 before signing each of Ohio's top two cornerbacks in 2024: Bryce West and Scott.

While Sanchez is different as a top-10 player nationally, Walton used his same approach: pitching the track record of former Ohio State cornerbacks, or ones that have developed under Walton and Perry Eliano such as Jalen Ramsey, Coby Bryant and Sauce Gardner.

And with Walton, Sanchez sees that potential for the same development.

But for Sanchez, his chance for development is not only about Walton's teaching.

“You are going against guys that are NFL ready,” Sanchez said. “Their receivers, I feel like every receiver they got is NFL ready. Going against them every day in practice and then you get to the league, it’s kind of like you’re already here because you went against it every day in practice.”

Sanchez sees himself as Ohio State's next success story, one that Walton has the potential to use on the recruiting trail for years to come.

Could Devin Sanchez start for Ohio State in 2025?

Ohio State has a track record for freshmen finding significant roles at cornerback upon arrival.

In 2021, freshman cornerback Denzel Burke played 734 snaps for the Buckeyes per Pro Football Focus, recording 35 tackles, one interception and 12 pass deflections.

But while Ohio State's 2025 roster is not set in stone, Sanchez will be joining a cornerbacks room that has a lot of talent in front of him, whether it be both members of the Buckeyes' 2024 class in Scott and West, or Mathews, who played nearly 200 snaps in 2023.

Ohio State would likely be without players such as Burke, Jordan Hancock and potentially Davison Igbinosun heading into the 2025 season, leaving spots open at both starting cornerback spots and the nickel.

Could Sanchez start right away? Ohio State has done it before. But he would have to pass a lot of players to get there.

Get more Ohio State football news by listening to our podcasts

 cgay@dispatch.com 

@_ColinGay

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Devin Sanchez commits to Ohio State football 2025 class. What it means