Ohio State Buckeyes’ transfer portal addition could be forcing the coaching staff to have a tough conversation
An Ohio State football defender who transferred over from the SEC is clearly already fitting right in with the Buckeyes, and could end up starting as a result.
The Ohio State Buckeyes kicked off fall camp on Thursday, and the first practice of the 2026 season delivered an early storyline worth watching.
Georgia transfer cornerback Dominick Kelly lined up with the first-team defense opposite Devin Sanchez, giving fans their first glimpse at a potential new-look Buckeyes secondary that could feature as many as eight new defensive starters under coordinator Matt Patricia.
Kelly’s first-team reps carry weight
The expectation entering camp has been that senior Jermaine Mathews Jr. will be the starting boundary cornerback opposite Sanchez. That remains the expectation. Still, Kelly running with the ones on Day 1 is notable. After practice, Day indicated the Buckeyes were rotating guys through with the first unit, which could point to Mathews taking first-team reps on Friday.
The bigger takeaway is that Kelly earning first-team reps on the opening day of camp signals he could play a significant role for Ohio State this season, whether he wins a starting job or not. Patricia’s defense is replacing a lot from last year’s group, and Kelly looks like he’s in position to contribute right away after transferring to Columbus.
What Kelly brings from Georgia
Kelly is a 6-foot-2, 190-pound cornerback who played in 10 games for Georgia last season as a true freshman. He wasn’t a starter with the Bulldogs and recorded just three tackles and three pass breakups, but he was a player Georgia didn’t want to lose. Playing as a true freshman in the SEC showed a lot of promise for what he can become.
The Florida native was a 4-star recruit out of high school, and it’s easy to see why the Buckeyes pursued him in the transfer portal. He’s already in a good spot at Ohio State, and Thursday’s first-team reps made that clear.
Kelly has three years of eligibility remaining, which adds another layer to his value. If he can assert himself as a key defender for the Buckeyes as early as this season, Ohio State gets a player who could be around for multiple years. That’s a win in the transfer portal because you don’t always get that kind of longevity from portal additions.
Thursday was just the first practice, but Kelly’s placement with the first-team defense was one of the more noteworthy developments for the new-look Buckeyes. This is a storyline worth tracking as fall camp rolls on.
