Few programs in the nation, let alone the Big Ten, have produced wide receiver talent quite like Ohio State. In the history of college football, no school has produced more first-round receivers than Ohio State. With the 2026 draft in the books, the Buckeyes have sent 13 first-round receivers to the league, two more than the next (Tennessee). There’s very little reason to think that won’t continue in 2026 as Ohio State fall camp is around the corner.
Led by arguably the best player in college football, the favorite to take home his third Richter-Howard Receiver of the Year award (and be Ohio State’s fifth consecutive), the Ohio State wide receiver room underwent plenty of change this offseason.
2026 Ohio State Fall Camp Primer: The Wide Receivers
What Was Lost
This offseason, the wide receiver room was picked apart by the NFL and the portal. In total, six receivers from 2025 are no longer on the roster. However, even with that, the most impactful loss has to be Brian Hartline. After eight seasons of leading the Buckeye wide receivers and a few offensive coordinator (ish) seasons, Hartline got his first gig as the head coach at South Florida. Hartline has brought in six five-star receivers and 19 four-stars (including the 2025 class), and produced six first-round picks (nine overall).
One of those first-round picks was Carnell Tate, the fourth-overall pick from this year’s draft. In his three seasons in Columbus, Tate developed into a dynamic deep threat, hauling in 121 passes for 1,872 yards and 14 touchdowns.
The receiver room tied with the offensive line as the group poached the most by the portal. Five depth pieces and potential future stars looked for greener pastures. In reality, none of the outgoing receivers had made an impact, but in the case of at least two, 2026 was supposed to be their breakout.
Mylan Graham and Quincy Porter had lofty expectations. Graham was a composite five-star receiver in the 2024 class and looked to be the next man up. In his two seasons with the Buckeyes, Graham amassed 93 yards on six receptions. Porter was a five-star recruit in the 2025 class and hauled in four passes for 59 yards last year. While neither really cracked the rotation, it was expected that they were both going to get significant playing time. Instead of sticking around to likely be WR2 and WR3, both transferred to Notre Dame.
Looking back. Ohio State was without Tate and Smith against Rutgers, and many (including myself) thought it was going to be a Porter/Graham breakout.
Inniss had 53 snaps
David Adolph, 48
Bryson Rodgers, 23
Graham, 12
Porter, 0Wild lol. Now Porter and Graham are Gold Domers https://t.co/pQTCZdNGwS pic.twitter.com/oh0obr1KX2
— Drew (@DrewCrabtree12) July 27, 2026
Bryson Rodgers, Damarion Witten, and Bodpegn Miller joined Graham and Porter in the portal. Rodgers dipped his toe in the portal waters last year before ultimately returning. This time, he jumped in. In his three seasons, Rodgers totaled 125 yards and one touchdown on 11 receptions. Finally, neither Witten nor Miller logged any offensive snaps last year. Both were expected to be more of projects as a converted tight end and quarterback, respectively.
As for their landing spots, Rodgers followed Hartline to USF, while Witten transferred to Miami (OH) and Miller joined Washington.
The New Guys
To start, Cortez Hankton brought in a pair of transfers, marking the first time Ohio State brought in any transfers at the position. Kyle Parker followed Hankton from LSU to Ohio State. Parker took a step forward last year with the Tigers by amassing 330 yards and four touchdowns. As a fourth-year player, the Buckeyes are likely going to see what they have in him this year. Devin McCuin is the other transfer, but he’s coming from UTSA. Also a fourth-year player, McCuin was a regular contributor to the Roadrunner offense. In total, he heads to Ohio State with 1,696 yards and 16 touchdowns.
Now, turning to the recruits, the Buckeyes got a solid haul. Despite losing one receiver to a flip due to the Hartline news, Ohio State brought in one five-star recruit, one four-star recruit, and two three-star recruits.
Leading the way is the most likely member of the class to make an impact this year, Chris Henry Jr. While expecting him to make an impact like another first-year receiver in recent memory (more on him later) would be unfair, Henry looks like a day-one player. If you buy stock in Spring Game performances, he’s going to be a star.
Jerquaden Guilford came to Ohio State from Indiana and can be a rotational piece as well. He has that twitch you like from receivers and also has that six-foot-three “go up and get it” frame. An underrated receiver in this class could be Brock Boyd. The Buckeyes had the fourth-best class in the country…Boyd was the first to lose his Black Stripe this Spring. Keep an eye on him. Finally, Jaeden Rickets is a home-grown Ohioan and could make an impact in the future with a bit more development.
How High Is The Ceiling?
Ohio State returns a guy by the name of Jeremiah Smith; perhaps you’ve heard of him. The two-time reigning Big Ten Receiver of the Year, 2025 unanimous All-American, and sixth-place finisher in last year’s Heisman voting, Smith has more high expectations this year. Heading into his third season, Smith is 43 catches, 341 yards, and nine touchdowns away from owning every career receiving record at Ohio State. At the same time, the single-season records are legitimately within his reach.
We all know how good Smith is. It could be argued that he’s the best receiver we’ve seen at the college level in a long time. It’s expected that he will be the first non-quarterback taken in next year’s draft (unless fans can pony up the NIL to keep him around…).
If Smith just plays his average, he will finish the 12-game regular season with 67 receptions, 1,058 yards, and 11 touchdowns. That would be a disappointing season, so if he can continue his trajectory, he’s set for another elite season.
However, behind him, what do the Buckeyes have?
WR2 And Beyond
In terms of snaps, Brandon Inniss should be next up. He earned 444 offensive snaps last year behind Smith and Tate, and amassed 36 receptions, 271 yards, and three touchdowns. For reference, in 2024, as WR3, Tate totaled 733 yards and four touchdowns on 52 catches. Can Inniss step up as the second option in his fourth season with the program?
Any of the newcomers are great bets. Henry, despite being a first-year player, showed flashes in the Spring Game. He led all players with four catches for 96 yards and one touchdown. Henry gashed the second-team defense for four chunk plays and was able to get open despite requiring most of the attention.
McCuin has already been a productive player in college, but it was at the Group of 6 level. Parker flashed when given the chance, but he didn’t have nearly as many opportunities at LSU.
Those five are likely the ones who will earn the most snaps this fall, but don’t count out players like Boyd or one of the two second-year players, Phillip Bell and De’Zie Jones.
Ohio State is going to need a few players to step up this year. Smith may be good enough to carry an offense, but ideally, the Buckeyes have a player or two worth the defense’s attention. Smith was phenomenal in 2024 thanks to playing alongside two first-round picks (in addition to his own natural ability). This year is the first year that there is serious uncertainty…at least, as of now.
