Report: Ben Schmiesing Enters Transfer Portal
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Ohio State junior linebacker Ben Schmiesing has entered the transfer portal, according to a report on Bucknuts.
Schmiesing walked-on at Ohio State for the 2018 season. He was a two-star recruit out of Piqua High School, north of Dayton. Schmiesing was an OSU Scholar-Athlete his first two seasons in Columbus and was Academic All-Big Ten as a sophomore. In 2020, he was named a Big Ten Distinguished Scholar. He appeared in two games last fall and made one tackle.
The NCAA first introduced the portal on October 15, 2018. It gives players a chance to explore all of their potential options without needing permission from their current school. All they need to do is request that their name be placed in the portal and other schools are free to contact them without restrictions. A player isn't obligated to leave their current institution just because they put their name in the portal. They may withdraw their name at any time. But in fairness to their current program, schools are not obligated to keep a player on scholarship once they enter the portal.
Schmiesing is believed to be the first Buckeye to enter the portal since the Big Ten postponed the fall season.
There was thought to be a mass exodus of players from the Big Ten and the Pac-12 after the seasons were postponed, but that hasn't happened yet (and may not ever). The NCAA announced it would not be granting a blanket waiver for immediate eligibility for players leaving those two leagues.
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