
5 transfers who have fueled Ohio State's run to national title game
Throughout the College Football Playoff, Ohio State has shown it’s the most talented team in the nation.
After their shocking loss to Michigan in the regular-season finale, the Buckeyes have played their best football of the season in the CFP. DraftKings lists the Buckeyes as 8.5-point favorites in Monday’s title game against Notre Dame.
And a lot of that strong play has been fueled by offseason additions made through the transfer portal.
The Buckeyes only added 7 transfers last offseason, but these 5 have been integral in helping Ohio State get back to the national championship game for the first time since falling in the 2020 title game:
QB Will Howard (from Kansas State)
Ryan Day and his coaching staff went out and acquired Howard exactly for 1 reason: To help lead the Buckeyes to the national title. And that’s exactly the position the Buckeyes are in as they are getting ready to play Notre Dame in the national championship game.
Howard and the Buckeyes have defeated Tennessee, Oregon and Texas en route to the clash with ND. In OSU’s 28-14 win over the Longhorns in the Cotton Bowl, the K-State transfer completed 24-of-33 passes for 289 yards with a touchdown and an interception and was named the game’s offensive MVP.
Throughout this Playoff run, Ohio State has looked like anything but the team that put on a paltry offensive display in its loss to Michigan. It appeared Howard suffered an injury on his non-throwing hand during the game against Texas, but he said the hand is fine. Whatever the case may be, he was able to play through it.
Howard arrived in Columbus after putting up 5,786 passing yards and 48 touchdowns over 3 seasons with K-State and has impressed as a passer in Columbus with career numbers. He had 311 passing yards with 2 touchdowns and an interception against Tennessee and followed that up with 319 passing yards and 3 touchdowns against zero interceptions in the win over Oregon before the strong performance against the Longhorns.
In the 3 Playoff games, Howard has thrown 6 TD passes and is averaging 306 yards passing.
The Buckeyes will need another big game from Howard against the Fighting Irish to claim another natty.
S Caleb Downs (from Alabama)
Downs dominated the Cotton Bowl win. He finished with 5 tackles, including 4 solo stops, and an interception off Quinn Ewers late in the 4th quarter. But one of the biggest plays came when Texas was at OSU’s 1-yard line trailing 21-14. On 2nd-and-goal, Downs sprinted past All-American offensive tackle Kelvin Banks and helped teammate Latham Random make a big tackle on Tre Wisner that resulted in a loss of 7 yards. On the next play, Jack Sawyer delivered the strip-sack/scoop-and-score that put the game out of reach.
One can argue Downs was the most important piece Day and his staff acquired in the portal. Last year Downs became the first true freshman in Alabama history to lead the team in tackles. He ranks 3rd on the Buckeyes in tackles and has 2 interceptions this season and was named a first-team All-American. His play has been a big part of why Ohio State has had such a dominant defensive unit, and another strong effort will be needed in the title game against Notre Dame’s potent rushing attack that includes QB Riley Leonard.
Downs is the total package, as he can come up into the box to stop the run and is also solid in pass coverage.
RB Quinshon Judkins (from Ole Miss)
Judkins had just 36 rushing yards in the win over the Longhorns, but he had 2 of OSU’s touchdowns, including the score that gave the Buckeyes a 21-14 lead with 7:02 left. The Ole Miss transfer left Oxford after 2 1,000-yard rushing seasons. While he has split reps with TreVeyon Henderson, which affected his overall numbers, he’s been a key part of this Ohio State offense all season and has 4 touchdowns in the CFP. He is a lethal option for the Buckeyes in the red zone. This season he has rushed 183 times for 960 yards and 12 scores. On 5 occasions, he has registered multiple scores, including against Tennessee and Texas in the Playoff.
TE Will Kacmarek (from Ohio)
So this season didn’t exactly pan out as Kacmarek had hoped. The senior missed about a month after he was injured in the showdown against Oregon in mid-October and logged just 5 catches in the regular season. However, he has 3 catches in the CFP, and he is healthy. Could he be a sneaky X-factor against the Irish? Kacmarek told reporters at Rose Bowl media day that he plans to return to Columbus for his 5th year next season. He will certainly have a lot of competition in the tight ends room, though. Ohio State could return Bennett Christian, Jelani Thurman and Max LeBlanc. The Buckeyes also recently landed a commitment from the transfer portal’s top-ranked tight end Max Klare, who played this past season at Purdue. And 4-star Nate Roberts and 3-star Brody Lennon are in the 2025 recruiting class.
C Seth McLaughlin (from Alabama)
The Buckeyes unfortunately lost McLaughlin, who was 1 of 3 senior starters on the offensive line, when he ruptured his Achilles’ in practice in November and was lost for the season. The 6-4, 305-pounder was a key figure in an offense that at the time was 2nd in the B1G in points per game and 3rd in rushing yards per game. McLaughlin has also been ranked as one of the best center prospects for the 2025 NFL Draft. He was an instant impact upgrade at a key position.