Big Ten · Ohio · 2026 roster

Ohio State Buckeyes football roster hometowns

Where are Ohio State players from?

On the 2026 Ohio State football roster, 44.2% of players with a known home state are from Ohio. The median listed hometown is 288 mi from campus (Homecoming Radius).

The 2026 snapshot was collected before the season. Sources and definitions

Players from Ohio with no earlier college roster elsewhere in the data filled 54% of roster spots in 2016 and 38% on the 2026 roster.

In 2016, 64 of 118 roster spots were filled by Ohio players not previously rostered elsewhere in the data. On the 2026 roster, 46 of 120 fit the same definition. The number of players previously rostered elsewhere changed from 2 to 23.

Of the 23 players previously rostered elsewhere, 7 are from Ohio.

The median hometown distance moved from 125 mi in 2016 to 288 mi on the 2026 roster.

Before and during the portal era

2016–18 compared with 2021–25

2016–182021–2551.0%41.0%2.3%8.9%
  • In-state, not rostered elsewhere
  • Previously rostered elsewhere
Measure2016–182021–25
In-state, not rostered elsewhere51.0%41.0%
Previously rostered elsewhere2.3%8.9%

The 2026 roster

  • 482 miAverage hometown distanceAverage hometown distance among 116 located players.
  • 44.2%In-state44.2% of players with a known home state are from Ohio.
  • 27.6%Backyard27.6% of players with a located hometown grew up within 100 miles of campus.
  • 19.2%Previously rostered elsewhere19.2% of the roster appeared on another college roster in an earlier season.

Where Ohio State ranks

Most In-State#3744.2%Most Transfers#9719.2%Closest to Home#74482 miFarthest From Home#65482 miBiggest In-State Shift#9144.2%Most Backyard Players#3627.6%Fewest Transfers#4219.2%Biggest Transfer Shift#9419.2%

Homecoming Radius over time

The median hometown-to-campus distance, by season. The dotted line is the FBS median.

0100200300FBS median (250 mi)200920122016201920232026

Roster composition over time

Where the in-state lens draws the line: home-state players with and without an earlier college roster, out-of-state players with and without one, and players with unknown geography. This chart begins where stable athlete IDs make transfer detection possible; the radius chart above carries the official-archive geography farther back.

In-state, not rostered elsewhereIn-state, rostered elsewhereOut-of-state, not rostered elsewhereOut-of-state, rostered elsewhere200920122016201920232026

Where do Ohio State's players come from?

SeasonRosterIn-stateRostered elsewhereRadius
202612044.2%19.2%288 mi
202512146.3%14.0%153 mi
202412344.7%11.4%165 mi
202312443.4%8.9%192 mi
202212142.9%5.0%192 mi
202113143.1%5.3%204 mi
202012346.3%6.5%167 mi
201912748.8%6.3%145 mi
201811951.3%2.5%134 mi
201711450.9%2.6%139 mi
201611855.1%1.7%125 mi
201511753.8%0.9%127 mi
201412059.2%0.8%125 mi
201311466.7%0.9%125 mi
201210767.3%0.9%124 mi
201111565.2%0.0%121 mi
201012165.0%0.0%124 mi
200911469.9%0.0%104 mi

In-state shares use players with a known home state. Radius uses located hometowns.

Where the roster grew up

Located hometowns on the 2026 roster, with campus marked and the Homecoming Radius circled.

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Homecoming Radius: 288 mi

This slider is exploratory. Rankings use fixed distance lenses.

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