Buckeyes Planning For Larger 2025 Recruiting Class, More Attrition As Move To 105 Scholarships Looms

It was reported last month that the NCAA is expected to make sweeping changes to the scholarship allotments throughout its sports next year, eliminating scholarship limits altogether, and instead putting the cap on roster sizes.

The number for football programs like Ohio State is 105. That’s 20 more scholarships available than the current limit of 85, but 15 fewer roster spots than the Buckeyes are working with right now in fall camp.

The issue still needs to be completely finalized, but OSU head coach Ryan Day and his recruiting staff can’t afford to wait for that to happen before taking action. The opening of 20 additional scholarship spots means that the Buckeyes are going to be in line for what could be Ohio State’s largest recruiting class since scholarship restrictions were put in place 51 years ago.

In 1973, the limit was reduced from unlimited to 105. That was moved to 95 in 1978, then to the current 85 in 1992. This also included a limit on signing classes, putting the number at 25 signees per year in the Big Ten. That limit has also been malleable because letters of intent can be backdated and applied to a previous class that was short of the 25 limit or frontdated to the next class in the form of a “grayshirt.”

Ohio State’s 2025 recruiting class already stands at 24 commitments, which is two more than they signed in 2024. It’s also eight more commitments than they had at this time last year.

Speaking with reporters after the Buckeyes’ first practice at the beginning of August, Day was asked if the 2025 recruiting class could reach a number as large as 40.

“I mean, that’s a pretty high number, but higher than maybe we’re used to? Yeah, I think so,” he said. “We are planning accordingly. I don’t think any decisions have been made exactly how that is all going to shake out. But I do believe we need 120 guys going into camp, and how that shakes out during the season, I think needs to be decided.”

The idea of a roster limit of 105 players is currently an unhappy medium for coaches, especially in the middle of practice when their 120+ players are all putting in work and creating results for the 50 or 60 players who need it most.

During the first couple of weeks of practice, the Buckeyes have been practicing on two fields at once. Splitting both their offense and defense into two complete units, each side being two or three players deep at every position. It allows for more reps for more players, which the players and coaches need since extra long practice or multiple practices in a day are a thing of the past.

“That 120 number has been around for a long time,” Day said. “Even just being out there at practice today, you saw us go to two fields. So every team period of 12 to 15 minutes, we were getting 48 plays in. And that matters, getting young guys reps in the first four days, that’s the way we’re going to do it. The only way to do that is if you have 120 guys, so I think that’s important.”

If coaches get their way, the roster limit won’t actually kick in until the games are played, allowing them to practice with the numbers that they’ve become accustomed to having. And if that happens, there won’t be much of a change in that part of the operation.

On the recruiting side of things, however, there are already changes being implemented for the Buckeyes.

“In terms of planning, you’re seeing us add some guys in that maybe in the past we wouldn’t have signed this early,” he said. “I think that there’s different, almost, tiers now, you know? You have certain guys that are recruited at a certain level and some other guys — the best way I can kind of look at is you have the guys who in three years are probably ready to go look at the NFL and make a decision. Guys that can make early impacts. Other guys, a little bit more developmental. It may take a couple of years into the program. Some of those by the way have been our best players at Ohio State.”

Day and his head coach counterparts around the country are also going to have to balance the ability to sign more players with the fact that each player is going to require a certain Name, Image, and Likeness price tag. The idea that 20 more scholarships means 20 more five-star recruits isn’t realistic.

And with 20 more scholarships available, that means 20 more players that believe they should be playing who aren’t. The “developmental” recruits theoretically will have more patience. Plus, the program itself can be more patient with them as well.

It’s a bit of a new world for coaches, though it is also a throw back to 50 years ago.

“Everyone’s a little bit different in their journey for whatever reason,” Day said. “We want to bring in a mix of those guys into the program. But our number will be higher and then there’ll be a little bit more attrition than certainly in the past, so you have to be able to make up for that.”