Brian Hartline steals four-star wideout from Buckeyes amid move to USF

The Ohio State Buckeyes are on a downward spiral.

After suffering a defeat in the Cotton Bowl Classic at the hands of the University of Miami (Fla.), the Buckeyes have lost countless players to the NCAA Transfer Portal. As of Friday, Jan. 9, that count is up over 20 athletes who have decided to take their talents to a new program across the country.

While the loss in the College Football Playoffs does play a part in it, a loss in other areas has played an even bigger role in why some athletes have decided to leave.

On Dec. 3, 2025, it was announced that Buckeye offensive coordinator Brian Hartline would be leaving Columbus and taking a head coaching job as the next face of the University of South Florida. Following that decision, a few recruits ended up flipping from Ohio State and pledging to take their talents to join Hartline.

And after the loss in the CFP, current players decided to do the same.

One name that stands out a bit further than the rest, though, is four-star wideout Bryson Rodgers, who was set to play a bigger role for the team in 2026 due to the departure of wideout Carnell Tate to the 2026 NFL Draft. In 2025, he still made his impact known in little spurts, hauling in six receptions for 79 yards and one touchdown.

In total, he's recorded 11 catches for 125 yards and one touchdown across three seasons of play in Columbus.

Has he been overlooked at times? Yes. But it has been warranted due to the immense talent the program has had ahead of him.

Some of the best players to come out of Ohio State have had to wait their turn, eventually breaking out in their junior or senior seasons once the top-dogs ended up leaving the program for graduation or the NFL Draft. Rodgers was just another simple case of that type of situation.

The Bigger Issue

This isn't the first, nor the last player that Hartline will be able to pick away from the Buckeye state.

When leaving the program in early December, he left with an immense amount of favoritism from recruits and current players alike. He's known as a wide receiver guru who can turn good players into great ones and great ones into amazing ones.

Throughout his time with the program, he was consistently churning out NFL-ready talent in each draft class, with the most notable recent one being Tampa Bay Buccaneers wideout Emeka Egbuka. This year, Tate will join those elite ranks, projected to be a first-round pick in the upcoming draft.

Just a few weeks ago, that track record was causing issues for Ohio State to retain one of its top-ranked recruits in the Class of 2026, Chris Henry Jr. The five-star prospect was hesitant on holding on to his commitment to Ohio State after Hartline left, with plenty of conversations needing to be had and convincing to be done in an attempt to secure him.

If players that Hartline played a major part in recruiting don't enter the portal this offseason, they could next year if 2026 doesn't go as they wanted it to.

It seems that in today's world of college football, two things are at the top of every player's need list: 1. money, or 2. the chance to play at the next level.

Ohio State has the first option, but with the loss of Hartline, they'll have to prove they can still churn out future NFL stars.