Football
The Ohio State Buckeyes are fresh off one of the best seasons in program history after becoming the first national champion of the 12-team College Football Playoff era.
The 2024 Buckeyes roster was loaded with talent. While some of that talent has left for the NFL or graduated, there are several freshmen who could make an instant impact for the program in 2025.
Football RJ Young Highlights Three Ohio State Freshmen To Watch in 2025
On his “Adapt and Respond” podcast, FOX Sports analyst RJ Young recently highlighted three freshmen who he thinks will be starters for Ohio State next season.
He started with Devin Sanchez, a consensus five-star recruit who was also 247Sports’ number one overall cornerback and fifth-best player in the country.
Young believes that due to Sanchez’s prowess as a recruit and the talent he’s going against in practice, he could start for the Buckeyes’ defense right away.
“The guy at the top of the list for me is probably Devin Sanchez because he’s playing cornerback, and while it’s cornerback, we’re also talking about one of the most talented cornerbacks in the 2025 class and one of the most talented players in that class as well,” Young said. “You’re also getting a lot of work from what I think is the best wide receiving corps in football today.”
Young also spotlighted Quincy Porter, another consensus five-star recruit in the 2025 class. 247Sports ranked Porter as the fourth-best receiver and 31st-best player in the country.
“Quincy Porter is 6-foot-4. That’s an enormous dude by anyone’s measure playing football, and one of the most talented wide receivers in his class,” Young said.
Finally, Young talked about freshman quarterback Tavien St. Clair. The five-star recruit was 247Sports’ third-ranked quarterback and fourth-ranked player in the country.
While Young acknowledged that St. Clair is likely out of the race in terms of being the starter for Ohio State next season (Julian Sayin and Lincoln Kienholz are the favorites), he says it’s not out of the question for the young quarterback to potentially see playing time.
“I think that he has an opportunity if something happens,” Young said. “Lincoln Kienholz wins the job or loses the job. Julian Sayin wins the job or loses the job. If someone gets hurt, things happen.”
Regardless of whether any of these three play next season, the Buckeyes’ future is in good hands with so much fresh talent coming in thanks to head coach Ryan Day’s successful recruiting cycle. As consensus five-stars, they have the talent and skills to make an immediate impact whenever they get the chance and establish themselves as top collegiate players.
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