THE GREAT UNRAVELING: WHY OHIO STATE IS BECOMING A TALENT WAYSTATION
Look at this mess. Just look at it. Jeremiah Smith deciding to jump into the portal after being promised the world in Columbus—it’s not just a slight inconvenience for Ryan Day; it’s a flashing neon sign reading: ‘SYSTEM BROKEN.’ Are we supposed to sit here and pretend this is just the normal ebb and flow of college football? Give me a break. This transfer portal isn’t a tide; it’s a tsunami washing away the false idols built on recruiting rankings and manufactured hype.
The Illusion of Stability Shattered by a Few Catches
They got smacked around by Miami—a team that, historically speaking, OSU should be absolutely dominating, not getting bounced out by. And what happens immediately following that embarrassing CFP exit? The house starts burning down. Mylan Graham, a former five-star, collects six catches for 93 yards—ninety-three yards!—over two seasons, and decides, ‘Nah, this ain’t it.’ Is that the fault of the player, or is it the fault of an offensive scheme that can’t develop high-end talent when the pressure cooker turns on? When you recruit guys who are supposed to be plug-and-play difference-makers, and they end up riding the pine gathering dust, you have a coaching problem, plain and simple. It’s lazy coaching, frankly.
This is the modern game, isn’t it? NIL money talks, but player comfort talks louder. And if Columbus, Ohio, isn’t delivering immediate gratification—a guaranteed starting spot, immediate Heisman hype, or just a team that knows how to win when it matters most—these five-star investments walk out the door faster than a politician dodging a tough question. Why stay in purgatory?
Ryan Day’s Empire Built on Sand?
We keep hearing the gospel about the ‘Ohio State Way,’ the machine that churns out NFL first-rounders regardless of who is wearing the headset. But what happens when the engine stalls? When do we stop praising the parts (the recruits) and start indicting the mechanic (the head coach)? Day’s record against Michigan is an asterisk. His playoff record is becoming a punchline. And now, the very players he promised stardom to are bailing ship. Doesn’t that tell you something fundamental is rotten in the state of Ohio?
The transfer portal acts as a harsh, unforgiving auditor. It doesn’t care about recruiting banners or national rankings from three years ago. It cares about the present reality. And the present reality is that top-tier athletes look at that depth chart, look at the recent playoff results, and calculate their best path to the league. If that path leads away from the Horseshoe, then the Horseshoe has lost its luster, hasn’t it?
This isn’t just losing a receiver. This is hemorrhaging confidence. Every player who leaves signals to the next potential transfer—the one Day is desperately trying to court—that the grass is greener elsewhere. Who wants to sign up for a high-pressure system where the ceiling seems capped at ‘elite regular season,’ only to get humiliated when it counts?
Is it all about the quarterback situation? Maybe. But great coaches overcome personnel hiccups. Great coaches keep their high-value assets happy and utilized. When you have blue-chip talent idling on the sidelines, you’ve created a powder keg. And now, Graham—and likely others we haven’t even heard about yet because the movement is so fast—is lighting the match.
It’s a complete lack of vision. Do you understand how demoralizing this is for the coaches who spent months on the recruiting trail selling the dream, only to watch their prize defect before his eligibility clock really starts ticking? It makes the whole operation look amateurish. It makes the brand look desperate. Are we witnessing the start of a serious slide? I think we are.
The Scramble for Replacement: A Sign of Panic
Now, the tracker lights up again. Ohio State has to scramble. They have to plug this massive hole with someone else’s cast-off or another kid they convince to take a chance on their tarnished pipeline. It’s reactive, not proactive. It’s the hallmark of a program that’s lost control of its own narrative.
What does this mean for the recruiting cycle they just finished? Does that 2024 class suddenly look shaky? Absolutely. Every time a highly-touted player walks out the door, it sends shockwaves back down the chain to the high school juniors who are currently being wined and dined. They see this and they whisper, ‘Wait a minute, if he can’t make it work, what are my chances?’
The whole structure relies on unquestioning belief in the hierarchy. When that belief erodes because top prospects are opting out for greener pastures—maybe Oregon, maybe somewhere completely unexpected—the entire edifice wobbles. This isn’t just about football talent; it’s about the currency of belief in the Buckeye brand right now. And that currency is devaluing rapidly.
Why is this happening now? Because the guardrails are gone. The NCAA essentially handed over the keys to the kingdom to the highest bidder and the most restless teenager. And Day’s operation, which relied heavily on the ‘OSU shield’ protecting them from outside chaos, is suddenly vulnerable. They were supposed to be insulated by history and prestige. Clearly, they are not.
We’re talking about a former five-star receiver getting six catches. Six! That’s not bad luck; that’s mismanagement of elite resources. It’s like having a Ferrari and only driving it to the grocery store once a week. Why recruit him if you have no genuine, immediate role for him in the most crucial parts of the season? You didn’t want him to sit; you needed him to contribute.
The blow isn’t just losing the player; the blow is the statement that leaving Ohio State for another program is now seen as a superior career move for a player of that caliber. Think about that deeply. A five-star talent looks at Columbus, a historical powerhouse, and says, ‘I can do better elsewhere.’ That is a crisis of confidence that recruiting rankings can’t fix overnight.
This transfer portal situation is less about the players being disloyal and more about the programs failing to maintain an environment where loyalty is earned through opportunity and success. Day needs to look in the mirror, not at the NCAA rulebook. He needs to figure out why his elite roster is becoming a revolving door.
The whole thing smells fishy. The excuses will start flying soon—’It was a personal decision,’ ‘He needed more sunshine.’ Nonsense. It’s about opportunity, and right now, Ohio State isn’t providing the clearest path to the lucrative NFL contract they are all chasing. When the money stops feeling guaranteed, the commitment vanishes. It’s purely transactional now, and OSU is losing the transaction.
This isn’t the 90s anymore. The dynasty model is dead. It’s been replaced by the ‘free agency of college football,’ and if you can’t manage the roster churn, you become a high-profile minor league system for actual contenders. Is that what Ohio State wants to be known as? A glorified holding cell for future NFL talent who couldn’t hack it in the real offense?
The pressure mounts. Every media cycle, every analyst pointing out the roster leakage, every former player in the portal—it all chips away at the monolithic image of Ohio State dominance. They are facing serious internal erosion. Can they patch this before the next big signing day arrives and the skepticism turns into outright rejection from the next wave of top prospects? It’s a long shot, my friends. A very long shot.
This exodus proves that the culture preached isn’t matching the reality delivered on Saturdays, especially when the scoreboard dips against their chief rival. It’s time for accountability, not just excuses about a ‘new era.’ The era is here, and it’s messy, transactional, and currently kicking Ohio State right in the teeth. They need to wake up before they become the annual cautionary tale of the transfer portal.
