Ohio State coach Ryan Day’s No. 2 Buckeyes relinquished their national championship crown when they were beaten 24-14 by the No. 10 Miami Hurricanes in the Cotton Bowl on Dec. 31, 2025. Since then, the Buckeyes have seen a flurry of activity in the transfer portal, which opened on January 2, 2026.
There has been a mass exodus from Columbus, as 28 players have entered the transfer portal from Ohio State, including starting guard Tegra Tshabola and several former five-star recruits, such as Mylan Graham, Aaron Scott Jr., C.J. Hicks, and Quincy Porter.
Analyst Addresses Ryan Day’s Portal Woes
During Sunday’s segment of the “Aaron Torres” podcast, analyst Aaron Torres broke down the biggest issues Day was confronting in the transfer portal.
“The bigger issue is this, though, it’s not even that you’re losing a lot of players,” Torres said. “It’s not that you’re losing good players. It’s not replacing them with high-end players. Chaz Coleman, No. 1 defensive player in the transfer portal, long believed to be an Ohio State lean, from the state of Ohio commits to Tennessee.”
He added, “There’s a lot of dudes who won’t be back next year, and the question is, ‘What the heck is going on at Ohio State? In this NIL world of rev-share, it appears to me that Ross Bjork either isn’t giving Ryan Day everything that he needs to succeed or he’s not doing his job. This is not how Ohio State is meant to be doing things in the portal.”
According to Ohio State-affiliated insiders, “Eleven Warriors“ reports that the Buckeyes have responded to the mass exodus from Columbus by signing seven players from the transfer portal, despite the portal’s closure looming on Jan. 16.
Ohio State Snags Transfer Portal Standout
On Sunday, Day’s Buckeyes finally flexed their muscle in the transfer portal and landed the commitment of former Duke Blue Devils defensive back Terry Moore, who has one year of eligibility remaining. Moore missed the whole of last season due to a torn ACL sustained during the Blue Devils’ 2024 bowl game.
In three seasons at Duke, Moore made 33 appearances and tallied 116 tackles, 3.5 sacks, 12 passes defended, four interceptions, and two forced fumbles.
MORE: Urban Meyer Sends Strong Career Advice to Dante Moore As NFL Decision Looms
After an impressive 2024 season, he was named an All-ACC Second-Team selection, making his acquisition by Ohio State an intriguing one ahead of next season.
Despite the doom and gloom surrounding the Buckeyes’ season and slow transfer portal activity, Day has led them to an 82-12 record in seven years at the helm, including a dominant national championship last season.
