Where the Ohio State Buckeyes Turn after Losing Out on Savion Hiter

The Ohio State Buckeyes were one of the finalists for Savion Hiter, and without him coming to Columbus, here's where they should turn.

Ohio State Football offensive coordinator Brian Hartline talks during an April 7, 2025 news conference at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center. | Doral Chenoweth/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Ohio State Buckeyes lost out on Savion Hiter. That's not even the worst part.

The worst part is that he's headed to Michigan. Hiter is widely seen as the best running back in the Class of 2026 and had the Buckeyes among his final four. Tennessee and Georgia were among those finalists as well, and the Volunteers and Wolverines reportedly had the best NIL packages. That likely played a major factor for Hiter. Nonetheless, he was recruited by Tony Alford and opted to go north. Originally from Mineral, VA, and playing his high school football at Louisa County, Hiter is ranked as the 9th-best player nationally in 247Sports Composite scoring system.

The top five running backs in the class have all committed, with two of them (Jonathan Hatton Jr. and KJ Edwards) both landing with the Texas A&M Aggies.

That said, here's ESPN breaking news reporter Adam Schefter's X post on it.

Breaking: Savion Hiter (@5starsavi), regarded by many as the No. 1-rated RB in the Class of 2026, has committed to the University of Michigan, per his advisor @coachmccannert. pic.twitter.com/WoGn8Xx3Ab

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) August 19, 2025

Where do the Ohio State Buckeyes turn now?

All of that on Hiter to say, where do the Buckeyes head now? There are a few options. Ohio State does have a commit from a talented back, Favour Akih. He ranks as the 16th-best back in the class and comes in at 6-foot, 190 pounds. He should develop into a strong, sizable back. They could look more of a lightning to complement him, or they could target the transfer portal as well.

Unless they flip a commit, there's not much other talent left in the Class of 2026, with Terry Hodges from Bryant, AR, as the only top-20 back yet to commit. He isn't even considering Ohio State.

James People, who went for 49 carries and 197 yards, is a sophomore, so keeping him around would buy the Buckeyes a year, taking them into the Class of 2027. There really isn't much in-state talent, but they have potential to get aggressive with Noah Roberts and Tranard Roberts, the former of which is from Arizona and might not have any in-state loyalty.

People is the current top weapon, and then hopefully seeing Bo Jackson, the No. 11-ranked player in the Class of 2025 who is a true freshman, turn into the future would be an ideal outcome.