Closer Look: Turbo Rogers Brings Every-Down Versatility To Buckeyes

Turbo Rogers was one of three running backs signed by the Buckeyes in the 2025 recruiting class, and the only one who did not enroll early. As a recruit, he was the No. 5 running back in the nation and the No. 97 prospect overall per the 247Sports Composite. He signed with the Buckeyes after decommitting from Alabama. He also held offers from Georgia, Florida State, Auburn, Michigan, Texas, Miami, Oregon, and others.

In his high school career, Turbo Rogers rushed for 3,302 yards on 378 attempts, caught 70 passes for 1,130 yards, had over 1,000 yards in kickoff return yards, and scored over 60 touchdowns. He spent his first two years at Pike Road High School in Pike Road, Alabama. He transferred to IMG Academy as a junior, then Carver High School in Montgomery, Alabama as a senior.

What To Like

Turbo Rogers (5-8 190) split the last two years of his high school career between running back and slot receiver, so he’s got more experience catching the ball than most tailback prospects. As a runner, however, he can be difficult for a defense to find, and once they do, he has the ability to either make them miss or fight them off. Despite his size, he is a tough runner.

In the passing game, Rogers can line up out wide or in the slot and run routes, or be an outlet for a quarterback from the backfield. Wherever he gets the ball, he has the ability to make the first man miss. He gets upfield quickly and is comfortable in traffic.

Whether it's running the ball or catching it, Turbo Rogers makes plays. pic.twitter.com/l2CQmN5Bw4
— Tony Gerdeman (@TonyGerdeman) June 2, 2025

The Potential

Some people may look at Turbo Rogers’ size and dismiss him as a three-down back, but that wouldn’t be an accurate assessment of his overall potential. The jittery, undersized running back as a slot receiver has yet to work at Ohio State, and Rogers isn’t the next attempt at making it happen.

Rather, Ohio State running backs coach Carlos Locklyn is all in on getting Rogers back to his backfield roots, and then going from there. Rogers carried the ball just 41 times as a junior at IMG and 36 times last year as a senior at Carver, but Locklyn isn’t worried about any kind of rust.

“I was the first guy to offer the kid when he was in eighth grade back there in Montgomery in my home town, so I know what he is as a runner,” Locklyn told Buckeye Huddle in the lead-up to January’s Rose Bowl last year. “Actually, I think it helped him that he was able to play in the slot, but he’s still going to run the ball. Trust me.”

Carlos Locklyn tells his RBs they have to do more than just run the ball. Turbo Rogers' experience catching the ball will suit him well at Ohio State. pic.twitter.com/SOnPJJUhta
— Tony Gerdeman (@TonyGerdeman) June 2, 2025

The Expectations

The Buckeyes enter 2025 with a fraction of the running back experience that they had a year ago. As such, there are opportunities for a freshman to emerge as a possible contributor this season. Turbo Rogers did not enroll early, so he’ll be behind everybody when camp begins, but Carlos Locklyn isn’t going to hold him back should he begin to make a move.

However, with sophomore James Peoples appearing to be the next in line, and senior CJ Donaldson transferring in from West Virginia, the top of the lineup seems fairly set. Redshirt freshman Sam Williams-Dixon and true freshman Bo Jackson both got a ton of work this spring, while true freshman Isaiah West was still banged up.

There are a lot of names ahead of Rogers, but none of them have rushed for more than 29 yards against a Big Ten opponent while wearing a Buckeye uniform, so there are plenty of questions yet to be answered.

Turbo Rogers split his time between running back and receiver his last two years of high school, but job No. 1 at Ohio State will be running the ball. pic.twitter.com/iwcYXhgqlI
— Tony Gerdeman (@TonyGerdeman) June 2, 2025

The Bottom Line

The bottom line is that Turbo Rogers is likely going to redshirt this year. That’s generally just a safe assumption for a June enrollee at Ohio State. There is plenty of reason to like the Buckeyes’ top three at running back this season. Beyond the top three, however, carries get pretty hard to find. And also difficult to justify, especially if it burns somebody’s redshirt.

Rogers should get to see time in four regular season games this year. Unfortunately, because he will likely just be running out the clock in those games, we may not truly get an idea of what he can bring to this offense until next season and beyond.