Landing the Natty caps off a killer season, no doubt. But ask Ryan Day’s Buckeyes—that trophy doesn’t unlock any future shortcuts. After all, few players felt something was missing even after bringing home a National Championship. The Buckeyes failed to lock the doors tight, and 26 players slipped away in the winter window of the transfer portal. Now that the spring window is drawing near, Day might have expected spring to be all easy breezy. Thanks to their 5-star target, Bralan Womack, who saw Ohio State as one of the top frontrunners to land him. But poor Day! As his players swapped wagons, Womack replaced Day on his priority list with an SEC powerhouse school.    

The Buckeyes have been keen to land the Hartfield Academy (Brandon, MS) safety star, Womack. Day did not want to take any chance of being late for the party. He and his management reached out to him in June 2024, and since then, he has been their hot target. Now, what’s the craze about Womack? He ranks No. 1 in the safety category and No. 14 overall in the class of 2026, per On3. Not only this. Womack was officially honored as a 2025 Navy All-American during a virtual jersey presentation as part of the Road to the Dome tour. When it came to his junior season, it was a phenomenal one.

Ryan Day’s favorite picked off eight passes (seven the year prior) while turning 54 receptions into 1,045 yards and 13 touchdowns, averaging nearly 20 yards per catch. Womack topped it up, coming up with pick-sixes out of his four interceptions. He also ran back a kick and punt for scores. So, it’s obvious that landing him is going to be a tug-of-war kind of situation.

Back in February, he came up with a final list of his top pursuers. It featured Day’s Buckeyes and Billy Napier’s Florida, followed by Auburn and Texas A&M. But the day is here when the safety has made up his mind. He visited Napier’s Florida, and the Gators gave him a lot to think about regarding his college future. The primary reason? “I like the culture over there,” the 5-star confessed. Womack believes good days are ahead for Florida.

The safety continued, “They know they’re young but they will continue to compete and do it at a high level this upcoming season!” Napier’s Florida had a disastrous season, wrapping up 2024 with an 8-5 overall record. But so what? In the hot target’s radar, they have scored brownie points for their intensity. “Just how they know where they should be and they feel like the fell way short of that last year, so you kinda see a difference type of competitiveness and expectations for the players and coaches now. They are aware they were young last year, but they feel they have enough experience now to make a playoff run this year.” Napier’s Florida is holding a No.14 rank as per their 2026 recruiting class. So, landing the 5-star will be a big boost. Now, did this come as a shock for Day? 

It shouldn’t. In an interview with On3, back in March, he did drop a hint about how Ohio State will be in the backseat. “Ohio State and A&M have been on me harder and with me longer, but Auburn and Florida have a great pitch. I like the changes at each school, they have great resources, and all four schools have a great chance at landing me.” That’s how the woes are not going to end for Day anytime soon. 

Can the youth taking wheels in Ryan Day’s squad steer to victory?

Now, this is something that Day has definitely not signed up for. Already things are tough with their star quarterback, Will Howard, flying off to the NFL. Plus, after losing over two dozen players, everything is new in the Buckeyes roster, as they are home to a lot more young guys. Well, this enhances the pressure 100x. After all, the ceiling has been quite high in Columbus. Thanks to their successful 2024 season, where Ohio State had the top-ranked defense in the country. They scored 12.9 points per game and 1.11 points per drive, topped off with a total defense of 254.6 yards per game. 

Losing DC Jim Knowles is a big deal, and so is seeing a whole bunch of defensive stars—think Jack Sawyer, Ty Hamilton, JT Tuimoloau, and Tyleik Williams—all those guys with over 500 snaps headed to the pros. So the young, competing players have a lot on their plate to write the next chapter. It’s not all doom and gloom though, with Davison Igbinosun, Jermaine Mathews Jr., Lorenzo Styles, plus former five-star Aaron Scott and incoming five-star Devin Sanchez giving them cornerback options. Defensive ends Caden Curry and Kenyatta Jackson Jr. are still around, but let’s be real, the depth there wasn’t exactly massive. Did Day ignore this? Nope, definitely not.

On the Big Ten Football podcast, the head coach’s voice lacked that confidence. “I mean there’s a lot of inexperience there. Guys have played before, so it’s not like we don’t know if they can do it or not. They can. The question is, can they sustain it, and can they consistently produce? And that’s where the challenge is right now.” Plus, no matter how well Ryan Day tries to show everything through a colorful lens, they just lost a gem in their coaching roster to Penn State: Knowles. Now the failure to secure Bralan Womack may have just cracked open the door to a wave of recruiting losses.