A new recruiting rumor suggests the Ohio State football program is far from a lock to land a four-star running back from a nearby high school.
The Buckeyes spent months celebrating their National Championship win in January. However, with spring now here, it is back to business for the roster and coaching staff. Expectations will be as high as ever after bringing the program its ninth natty. Bolstering the roster through the transfer portal and in recruiting will be the program’s focus for the next few months.
This year, that process should be a bit easier. What football player wouldn’t want to play for Ryan Day and Ohio State? The lure of playing for an elite program is especially a major draw for teenagers looking to make the jump to the college ranks in 2025 and 2026. That attraction is even stronger for Ohio high school football stars.
Heading into the spring, it seemed like Hayes High School star running back Favour Akih would stay close to home and play for the Buckeyes in 2026. However, a new rumor claims the program could be in for a serious recruiting fight with one of the ACC’s biggest brands.
Miami Hurricanes are giving Ohio State serious competition for Favour Akih
Last week, Akih made his first official visit to meet Miami Hurricanes coaches and their facility. The Delaware County product called the experience “incredible” and thanked the staff for a “memorable” visit on X. The next day, he visited the Buckeyes facility and called the trip “amazing” in an X post.
Maybe incredible and amazing are pretty much the same thing to a high school kid. But it just seems like the Miami visit went much better than expected. Well, Rivals recruiting insider Adam Gorney added more fuel to the speculation that the Hurricanes could poach the stud running back.
“Ohio State, Miami and USC are the three front-runners for Akih and even if Ohio State is going to be tough to beat, the Hurricanes definitely look like No. 2 on the list. If not higher. The Delaware (Ohio) Rutherford B. Hayes four-star running back absolutely loved his trip there last week from the massive offensive line, to the weather, to how coach Mario Cristobal runs the program.”
Adam Gorney
Losing Akih would be a major blow to Ohio State’s class of 2026. Especially coming off a championship season and being a recruit that lives close to the legendary “horseshoe.”
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