Ohio State WR Coach Uses Portal to Boost Receiver Room

Cortez Hankton is leveraging the transfer portal to bring talent and experience to the Ohio State wide receiver room.

A New Approach to Wide Receiver Recruiting

Over the past seven transfer portal cycles, Ohio State has added 54 new players, but none were wide receivers. Brian Hartline, who coached the position for eight seasons, never used the transfer portal, relying on strong high school recruiting classes. However, Hartline left Ohio State to become the head coach at South Florida at the end of the 2025 season.

This offseason has seen a change in strategy. Ohio State lost six wide receivers to the transfer portal, including three who likely would have contributed offensively. Hankton, hired from LSU in early January to replace Hartline, has turned to the transfer portal.

Transfer Portal Additions

Among the 17 transfer portal additions this offseason, the Scarlet and Gray added two receivers. Devin McCuin, after three seasons at UTSA, committed to Ohio.