Ohio State Buckeyes Receive Major Update on Two Incoming Freshmen

The Ohio State Buckeyes are set to welcome in a new crop of freshmen during the 2025 college football season. Once again, Ryan Day was able to lock up an large number of elite recruits.

Among those recruits are five-star defensive back Devin Sanchez and five-star linebacker Riley Pettijohn. Both players are expected to have a chance to make a major impact right off the bat.

Following their national championship win, Ohio State is losing a lot of talent to the NFL. They will need young players to step up in order to fill all of the departures.

With that being said, both Sanchez and Pettijohn are receiving major feedback already.

On3 Sports analysts Steve Wiltfong and Pete Nakos pointed out both players who are already making their presence known.

“[Linebacker] Riley Pettijohn and [cornerback] Devin Sanchez are doing very, very well. The freaks of the crew. [Strength] Coach Mick [Mariotti] has called them dudes’ dudes," they wrote. “Devin has the length, athleticism, and mindset, too. He’s all about it.”

Needless to say, this brings excitement for the Buckeyes. Both Sanchez and Pettijohn were among the top defensive players in the country. The fact that they're already turning heads bodes well for tem.

Ohio State will need both players to play a role. The Buckeyes are losing Cody Simon at linebacker and Denzel Burke is leaving from the cornerback group. Perhaps these two young players can fill those voids.

At this point in time, it's still early to know what the defense will look like in 2025. New defensive coordinator Matt Patricia will have to figure out what he wants to do with the group and who he wants on the field.

It will be interesting to see if either Pettijohn, Sanchez, or both end up seeing legitimate playing time in their freshman seasons.

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