Ohio State Buckeyes lose offensive target to transfer portal ahead of CFP

Here's everything to know about the Ohio State player who just entered the transfer portal ahead of the College Football Playoffs.

Ohio State Buckeyes wide receiver Bryson Rodgers (13) runs around Grambling State Tigers punter Johnny Schifano (16) during the NCAA football game at Ohio Stadium on Sept. 6, 2025. | Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

As the Ohio State Buckeyes prepare to compete in the College Football Playoffs, the program opened up practice for 20 minutes on Friday, Dec. 26, for media to attend.

Coming out of the practice, news started to circulate that wide receiver Bryson Rodgers was not in attendance. The junior entered the transfer portal just last week, on Thursday, Dec. 18, for the second time in his career.

Prior to his playing days in Columbus, he was a four-star recruit in high school. The 6-foot-3, 190-pounder grew up in Zephyrhills, Fla., where he caught 42 passes for 645 yards and 17 TDs in 10 games his junior season.

While Rodgers hasn't been utilized much during his time in Columbus, he did take on a bigger role for the offense after injuries were suffered by wideouts Carnell Tate and Jeremiah Smith. Against the Purdue Boilermakers back on Nov. 8, he caught two passes for 30 yards, followed by two catches for 27 yards and a touchdown on Nov. 15 against the UCLA Bruins.

The touchdown against the Bruins was the first of his college career.

Patience and precision gets Bryson Rodgers his FIRST TD. 🙌 pic.twitter.com/Khzm5p7msO

— NBC Sports (@NBCSports) November 16, 2025

This season, he's played a total of 129 snaps off the bench for the team, behind Smith, Tate, Brandon Inniss and Mylan Graham.

However, after both stars, Tate and Smith, returned to the gridiron full-time, he once again was pushed back to the bench.

His only other game where he hauled in catches came back against Grambling State earlier in the season. He caught two passes for 22 yards.

Rodgers can make chunk plays happen and is a good target in open space, but with the Buckeyes' abundance of wide receiver depth, he hasn't been able to get much action on the field. This isn't the first time he's entered the portal, as back in 2024, he did before withdrawing his name and returning to Ohio State.

This time though, a reunion seems unlikely.

BREAKING: Ohio State wide receiver Bryson Rodgers is entering the Transfer Portal

He entered the Transfer Portal in 2024 then later decided to return to Ohio State pic.twitter.com/Y247Yk6Bmo

— Owen Tyler (@OwenTylerCFB) December 18, 2025

Rodgers will probably receive looks from other Big Ten programs that'll lose wide receivers to graduation, and more than likely, from head coach Brian Hartline at the University of South Florida, as he looks to build up the program he took over just weeks ago.

Rodgers grew up within an hour of USF's campus.

It is uncomfirmed on whether or not Rodgers will participate with the team moving forward, but it seems incredibly unlikely.

As the Buckeyes practice without Rodgers, they are currently preparing for the quarterfinal round of the CFP, where they'll take on the Miami (Fla.) Hurricanes.

The two sides will go toe to toe in the Cotton Bowl Classic from AT&T Stadium, the home of the NFL's Dallas Cowboys, in Arlington, Texas, on Wednesday, Dec. 31. Kickoff is slated for a 7:30 p.m. EST start.