The Ohio State Buckeyes started June 2026 with one notable recruiting scare. Four-star quarterback Brady Edmunds helped reveal he’s visiting UCLA during the summer month. Edmunds remains on board with OSU, and now looks ready to be joined by a fellow prized west coast talent.
Head coach Ryan Day and his Buckeyes staff remain proactive in hitting the opposite coast hard. Especially after plucking five-star wide receiver Chris Henry Jr. during the last cycle.
Now OSU looks ready to land a prominent blue chip recruit armed with his own five-star ranking. One recruiting insider predicts Ohio State will beat out SEC powerhouse Georgia for this defensive talent.
Who Ohio State is Predicted to Land
Longtime recruiting insider Adam Gorney dropped his latest intel and predictions out on the trail. Gorney remains dialed in with the happenings out in Southern California when it comes to recruits.
He shared some big news involving five-star edge rusher Marcus Fakatou of Sierra Canyon High in Chatsworth. Gorney believes Ohio State is trending as the one that’ll be hard to beat for Fakatou’s services.
“Fakatouâs heart might be at Ohio State. His connection with position coach Larry Johnson, the NFL development emanating from that building and the chance to play for defensive coordinator Matt Patricia and that elite staff could be too much to pass up,” Gorney wrote on Tuesday.
Ohio State Pulled Out This Aggressive Tactic Already
Gorney unveiled one aggressive recruiting move Ohio State employed on Fakatou. Which won over a future NFL talent Day and company landed years earlier.
“Ohio State really poured it on during his official visit where they met him at the airport â ala JT Tuimoloauâs experience a few years ago when the same tactic was used â and everything else the Buckeyes have going for them, it might just be too much to pass up,” Gorney said.
Tuimoloau turned into a dominating edge rusher for the Buckeyes from 2021 to 2024. He piled 12.5 sacks in his final campaign before jumping to the league. The Indianapolis Colts grabbed him during the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft.
Fakatou brings similar tenacity and strengths that mirror the Buckeyes star. He’ll boost OSU’s team recruiting ranking by coming over.
The Other Powers Ohio State will Beat for Marcus Fakatou
Georgia rolled out its sales pitches to win over the 6-foot-6 behemoth rusher. Gorney reported the Bulldogs “blew him away” on his visit. Same with Texas, one more SEC heavyweight ramping up its efforts to land him.
“Oregon and Notre Dame remain high on the list as well,” Gorney adds.
The Buckeyes stand as the frontrunner, though. Fakatou boosts the nation’s No. 7 recruiting class if he makes Columbus his college home. But the historic college football powerhouse lands the nation’s No. 2 overall defensive lineman too once Fakatou decides.
Five-star DJ Jacobs out of Blessed Trinity Classic in Roswell, Georgia sits as the team’s top-ranked recruit. Fakatou forms an intimidating and relentless edge rush tandem by choosing the Buckeyes later in June. He’s a west coast talent to monitor closely for Buckeye fans.
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