After two years of prioritizing David Gabriel Georges, Ohio State’s pitch came up short. On Wednesday, the five-star running back from Tennessee put all doubts to rest and elected to stay home. It was always down to Ohio State and Tennessee, and all of the experts and “experts” out there have weighed in on what happened. Did Tennessee just offer more NIL? Were there weird Adidas backroom deals? A private jet? Who knows at this point, but the one certain thing is that Ohio State is without a running back in the 2027 class.
The Buckeyes put the full-court press on for Gabriel Georges for well over a year now, and it was all for naught. So, now what?
Ohio State Misses Out On David Gabriel Georges; Now What?
Want or Need?
When it comes to the recruitment of five-star players, it looks like each and every one is a need. You need that special playmaker, and you need to stockpile talent as much as you can. For Tennessee, Gabriel Georges will be the first and likely only five-star player in the class, and the second top-100 talent. For a program in Tennessee’s position in the pecking order – one that has made one CFP and hasn’t won a conference title since the end of the Clinton administration – he was a need.
For Ohio State, no matter how good Gabriel Georges or any one prospect is, it was always a want.
If there is a consolation to missing out here, it’s that Ohio State’s 2027 recruiting class is one of the best in the nation, led by the trenches. You could put this author behind the offensive linemen Tyler Bowen has earned commits from, and you could run an offense. Well, maybe not, but the point remains. In the 2027 class, Ohio State currently has six offensive linemen poised to sign. Of those six, five are four-star and above, and four are in the top-16 at their respective positions (three tackles, one guard).
With how well Bowen has recruited the offensive line, the Buckeyes should be confident in who they currently have in Carlos Locklyn’s running back room.
The Running Back Room
Looking ahead to 2027, Gabriel Georges’ first at Tennessee, Ohio State’s running back room should be solid. Barring anything happening with the portal – and, yes, anything can happen – the depth chart looks almost identical to what it will be this year. Bo Jackson, Isaiah West, and Turbo Rogers will be in their third years, while Legend Bey and Favour Akih will be second-year players.
Assuming linear development, those five players could make up an incredibly deep room. Jackson will likely be going into his second straight season as the unquestioned lead back. In his breakout first season, Jackson started off the season buried on the depth chart over the first few weeks. Despite that, it was obvious that he was the best in the room, and he went off for 1,090 yards (the fifth-most from a freshman in program history) and six touchdowns.
As of now, there are plenty of question marks behind Jackson, of course. Those questions will likely be answered this year, with all indications that West and Bey will be integral parts of the offense in one way or another.
Of course, the elephant in the room is the portal. Will a player like West be tempted after flashing this year? Will Rogers, who was a one-time Alabama commit, try to find a program where he can be the lead back (ala Evan Pryor)?
Ohio State will target a transfer running back regardless of whether or not all five players will return, if not just to fill out the room. There are currently no running backs pledged to the 2027 class for Ohio State, so it will have to just get more bodies in the room one way or another.
Flip Watch?
If Ohio State finishes the 2027 class without a single running back, it would be surprising. Despite lighting just about every bridge on fire in pursuit of Gabriel Georges, there are some recruits out there who could flip to become a Buckeye. In terms of the current group, West flipped from Kentucky, Rogers flipped from Alabama, and Bey flipped from Tennessee (technically). This coaching staff is not above poaching a player or two.
As of now, according to 247Sports, Ohio State has offered 27 running backs in the cycle. Save for Gabriel Georges, five have yet to commit, and none are considered “warm” for the Buckeyes. Could Ohio State jump back in for Landen Williams-Callis? He would need to be pried away from Texas and Texas A&M.
BuckeyeInsiders had this same discussion earlier this week. Juck Miletti, the outlet’s recruiting expert, had a few names to keep an eye on. The top running back in the class is Kemon Spell, a current Georgia commit. Ohio State looked like it was in a good spot, but he ultimately committed to the Dawgs. Jayden Miles is another name. He committed to Florida State the day after visiting Columbus, so the Buckeyes could try to repair that relationship.
Alabama commit Nigel Newkirk is another name Miletti brought up. He’s an underrated back and could be a future bellcow in the P4. He shut his recruitment down, but could Ohio State pry him away?
Locklyn has built relationships with plenty of recruits, so he has likely been reaching out to try and get his guys with this news.
The sky isn’t falling, Ohio State isn’t going to fade into obscurity, nor will this one commitment bring Tennessee back to its glory days. There are 135 days until December 4, the beginning of the Early Signing Period. That’s plenty of time to either pivot or try to sweeten the deal to get Gabriel Georges to flip.
Who knows, with how college football is today, he could be a portal target in 2028.
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