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What’s next for Ohio State recruiting after missing on safety KJ Bolden

michael chen
·4 min read

Ohio State Football must once again reset its recruiting board after missing out on 2024 5-star safety KJ Bolden, who surprised many and chose Florida State over the field.

Not many people expected Bolden to select the Seminoles, in fact, the majority of insiders believed that his top choices were Georgia and Auburn. Regardless of where the 6-foot, 1-inch, 185-pound safety is going, he still didn’t pick the Buckeyes.

Bolden was one of the biggest remaining targets on Ohio State’s board, especially considering that he is ranked as the No. 1 safety and 7th overall player according to the 247Sports Composite Rankings. Find out below which targets the Buckeyes will recruit harder now that the Georgian has made his verbal commitment.

The portal

Why it Makes Sense

At first, I wasn’t too high on players being able to transfer with no consequences, but it is now a mainstay of college football. The Buckeyes needed a season to make adjustments to figure out the best way to find talent in the portal, and it paid off last cycle.

The addition of Ja’Had Carter, who is expected to be a starter, among other big-time transfers showed that even though a miss on the recruiting trail hurts, it can be fixed through the portal even if we don’t know who that player will be at this moment.

Texas athlete Hunter Moddon

Why it Makes Sense

The Texas native recently decommitted from the Longhorns and although the Buckeyes have yet to offer, one could be coming soon. If safety doesn’t work out, Moddon could also be a slot receiver, so it could be a two-birds, one-stone situation. It’s wait and see what happens here for the Buckeyes.

California safety Peyton Woodyard

Why it Makes Sense

Woodyard flirted with the Buckeyes while being verbally committed to Georgia, officially visiting in June. He made four total visits and you have to believe that each of those schools is still under consideration until signing day. Hopefully, Ohio State did not give up on Woodyard and continues to recruit him until the end.

Florida safety Zaquan Patterson

Why it Makes Sense

Patterson has included Ohio State in his final five schools and has yet to make any official visits. As the highest-ranked uncommitted target on this list, the No. 3 safety and 71st overall player in the 247Sports Composite Rankings, now becomes a must-get. The coaching staff needs to shift a good amount of its focus to Patterson.

KJ Bolden

Why it Makes Sense

Honestly, I really do not think this recruitment is over and the Buckeye coaching staff shouldn’t either. The rumors were that Bolden was offered a substantial package of name, image and likeness money from FSU. It’s the name of the new college game, but that doesn’t always work out like that.

There have been recruitments where players were promised a certain amount, and the school didn’t produce, so they looked elsewhere. I’m not saying that is what happens with Bolden, it’s just an example.

Regardless of the situation, Ohio State needs to recruit the star safety until he signs on the dotted line.

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Story originally appeared on Buckeye Wire