Ohio State just landed the best available player in the transfer portal and added him to a defense that was already trending toward being historical.
The fight for Caleb once he left Alabama following Nick Saban's retirement came down to the Buckeyes and Georgia and heading into the end of the week it felt like the Bulldogs were in the lead. But then a few OSU coaches took a trip down to his home in Georgia to see the former five-star safety and did just enough to keep that from happening. Now a player it once finished second for on the recruiting trail, is finally calling Columbus his home.
On this emergency episode of Buckeye Talk, Stephen Means, Nathan Baird and Andrew Gillis discuss the impact of Caleb Downs' decision.
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Buckeye Talk emergency pod: What landing Caleb Downs in the transfer portal means to Ohio State football

The latest analysis on Ohio State football, basketball and recruiting from cleveland.com's Stephen Means and Andrew Gillis. Usually, quite a good time.

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Football

It’s officially official visit season and Ohio State is set to host its first group of 2025 targets.
This first weekend features 10 players with four-star recruits TJ Alford and DeShawn Stewart headlining as the lone commits. On this episode of Buckeye Talk, Stephen Means and Andrew Gillis discuss them all.
The two discuss the importance of the visit, what they could potentially bring to the class and how many of the eight undecided they would need to land to make this a successful first weekend eventually.
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Previewing Ohio State football’s first weekend of official visitors for the 2025 recruiting class

On this episode of Buckeye Talk, Stephen Means and Andrew Gillis discuss Ohio State's transfer portal activity, focusing on the players brought in, their impact on the team, and the decision-making process behind the transfers. 
It also delves into evaluating the offensive line and the significance of not adding more transfers. The discussion provides insights into the team's strategy, player development, and overall confidence in the offensive line for the upcoming season. The conversation covers an in-depth analysis of Ohio State's offensive line and its performance against top teams. It also delves into the impact of the transfer portal on Ohio State's roster, including the addition of key players and the overall grade for the transfer portal activity
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Ohio State's 7 transfer portal additions and what it says about its 2024 offensive line

On this latest episode of Buckeye Talk, Stephen Means and Andrew Gillis catch up on what’s been happening on the recruiting trail for Ohio State.
It’s been about three weeks since the last deep dive into the 2025 class which ranks second nationally. Since then, the Buckeyes suffered a third commitment and a second from a cornerback. It’s also seen another highly-rated wide receiver target reopen his recruitment just as he's set to take his official visit to Columbus.
Stephen and Andrew discuss at all the latest recruiting news and it impacts OSU heading into the summer as it hopes to continue putting together yet another elite class.
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A decommitment, two 5-star targets and where Ohio State's recruiting stands heading into the summer

This Tuesday episode of Buckeye Talk is a bittersweet one as we take a break from discussing Ohio State football.
After five years, Nathan Baird is leaving us to head back to Indiana to cover Purdue. So he and Stephen Means spend the next hour reflecting on the past five seasons covering the early stages of the Ryan Day era. They look at the high moments, the low moments and take questions from the Subtext subscribers. 
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A final goodbye and reflecting on Ohio State football’s first five years of the Ryan Day era

The Game has fundamentally changed forever.
No longer does the Ohio State-Michigan game hold so much weight regarding either team's football future. But that doesn't change the fact that it's still the biggest rivalry in sports. But does it change how fans will view the consequences of any potential loss?
On this episode of Buckeye Talk, Stephen Means, Nathan Baird and Andrew Gillis explore that idea alongside the Subtext subscribers.
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Buckeye Talk emergency pod: What landing Caleb Downs in the transfer portal means to Ohio State football

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