Ohio State continues to impress big-time offensive lineman Micah Smith

Much has been made about the loaded offensive line class in the state of Ohio for the 2026 recruiting class. But Ohio State has another early priority O-Line target that doesn’t reside in Ohio and that is Vero Beach (FL) star Micah ‘Champ’ Smith.

The 6-foot-6, 295-pound prospect was one of the first class of 2026 players to receive an offer from the Buckeyes and things continue to move in a positive direction between the two parties.

“Ohio State is one of the top contenders,” Smith told BuckeyeHuddle.com on Sunday at the Orlando Under Armour camp. “UCF is up there, Miami (FL), Florida State, basically all of the in-state schools.”

Smith has already made two trips to Ohio State, one for a camp back in June and another in October when the Buckeyes hosted Penn State. The atmosphere in Ohio Stadium for the big win over PSU left a lasting impression on Smith.

“When I went to the game (against Penn State), I walked through the tunnel and there was a lot of people screaming and it was just like, ‘wow’,” Smith recalled. “I could see myself playing in this environment. It just shocked me. I really love Ohio State.”

Smith had a chance to work closely with Ohio State offensive line coach Justin Frye last summer at camp and will likely return to do so again this summer.

“I really like coach Frye and the way he coaches,” Smith said. “He’s very calm, he can get up there if he has to though. He’s just a cool guy.”

Another takeaway from the summer camp was meeting a now Buckeye commit and a friendship that has been built from that.

“The main guy I talk to is Carter Lowe,” Smith said. “He’s an Ohio State commit so he’s trying to get me up there. We camped up there together and got to experience getting coached by coach Frye together. We just really like Ohio State.”

Hear more from Smith in our one-on-one interview with the Top 100 prospect from Sunday’s camp.