The Ohio State Buckeyes and their 2027 recruiting class have hit another key development at the quarterback position. 

According to Rivals’ Steve Wiltfong, the conversation between Ohio State and Nebraska commit Trae Taylor seems to be cooling off. 

Taylor is the No. 1 quarterback in the 2027 class and the No. 10 overall player per the 247Sports Composite. The 6-foot-3, 192-pound signal caller won the Elite 11 and looks like the best quarterback prospect the 2027 cycle has to offer. Nebraska has poured significant resources into Taylor’s commitment, and he appears solid with the Cornhuskers.

“The newly-minted Rivals300 five-star has maintained dialogue with Ohio State, however Rivals has heard that contact has lessened as of late,” Wiltfong wrote. “Taylor will play his senior season in Omaha and hasn’t missed a big recruiting weekend at Nebraska since committing early to the Huskers.”

Matt Rhule and company have poured a lot into that recruitment and Taylor has invested a lot of time helping recruit this 2027 class. He’ll be a regular in Lincoln this fall. We’ll see if things pick back up with Ohio State and Taylor or with any other quarterback over the coming months.”

Brady Edmunds decision likely played a role

This latest intel on the Taylor front comes shortly after Ohio State received important news of its own. Four-star quarterback commit Brady Edmunds confirmed last week that he would be staying in the Buckeyes’ 2027 class and would not flip to the UCLA Bruins.

That was a big deal for Ohio State. The Buckeyes once wanted two quarterbacks in the 2027 class, and there was a real chance they could have ended up with zero commitments at the position heading into the fall if Edmunds had left. Part of the reason that door opened for Edmunds to explore other options was Ohio State’s pursuit of a second quarterback in the class. When the Buckeyes started looking elsewhere, Edmunds started keeping his options open as well, which is understandable from the recruit’s perspective.

With Edmunds now locked back in, the urgency to land Taylor has likely diminished. The two developments are almost certainly connected.

The Buckeyes have their focus on 2028

Taylor has been firm in his commitment to Nebraska, and it’s going to be a tough sell to get him to sway from the Cornhuskers. If Ohio State doesn’t secure a game day visit from Taylor this fall, the door is as good as closed on that recruitment.

That reality gives the Buckeyes more reason to go all in on the 2028 class, where their top quarterback target is Christopher Vargas, who was on campus this summer. Vargas has the potential to be the No. 1 overall recruit in his class, and landing him would give Ohio State the kind of star quarterback prospect the program has developed before under Ryan Day.

The quarterback position has more often than not been a strength for Ohio State in recruiting, and that should continue to be the case. Whether the answer comes in 2027 with Edmunds or in 2028 with Vargas, the Buckeyes are positioned to keep the pipeline flowing following Julian Sayin and Tavien St. Clair. This fall will be telling for how the rest of the 2027 class shakes out.