Many of Ohio’s top class of 2026 prospects were in Columbus yesterday as the Buckeyes hosted a tremendous group of prospects for its first big recruiting day of the winter. Among the attendees was Cleveland Glenville linebacker Cincere Johnson. The 6-foot-3, 225-pound prospect is the next major prospect in the long line of them at Glenville and the Buckeyes are taking early interest.
“I loved it, it was a great time,” Johnson told BuckeyeHuddle.com. “My favorite part was meeting and chatting with the coaches, honestly just being able to talk football with them. It showed me the brotherhood and made me feel welcome.”
Johnson was able to speak with many of the key defensive coaches on the Ohio State staff including Jim Knowles, James Laurinaitis and Tim Walton. The message was simple, they want to keep building a relationship with the talented linebacker/edge prospect.
Johnson reminds many of current Buckeye Arvell Reese, a big-time linebacker coming out of high school with the frame to potentially transition to the defensive front as a pass rusher.
“I always get that comparison and I have no problem with it,” Johnson said. “But yeah, me and Arvell always talk. We were actually just working out together, that’s my guy.”
Because of the re-emergence of the Glenville/Ohio State pipeline in recent years, Johnson has been able to get a lot of inside feedback on what being part of the Ohio State football program is really like from his former teammates.
“They tell me all the time, like, OSU is the spot but that things are different (than high school),” he explained. “It’s hard work and dedication for real but they want me down there with them.”
Johnson has also been able to build a solid connection so far with Laurinaitis who has made a good impression.
“My relationship with him is great,” he started. “He’s someone I can relate to and laugh with and just the fact he played there and played linebacker and now he’s coaching it, that’s great.”
Johnson comes in at No. 7 on the early Buckeye Huddle list of top 2026 prospects in the state of Ohio.
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