Ohio State Buckeyes Lose Promising Defender to Transfer Portal

The Ohio State Buckeyes have lost a promising defender to the NCAA transfer portal.

Sep 2, 2023; Bloomington, Indiana, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes linebacker Mitchell Melton (17) lines up during the NCAA football game at Indiana University Memorial Stadium. Ohio State won 23-3. / Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK

Quite a few players have opted to move on from the Ohio State Buckeyes and enter the transfer portal. While Ohio State has been able to bring in a few quality transfer targets of their own, they continue to lose player after player.

Yet another player has decided to leave the Buckeyes.

As reported by Matt Zenitz of CBS Sports, Mitchell Melton has opted to enter the transfer portal. Melton is a linebacker that has shown a ton of promise for Ohio State.

Ohio State linebacker Mitchell Melton is entering the transfer portal, a source tells @CBSSports/@247Sports.

Melton, who is repped by @APSportsAgency, is a former top-185 overall recruit who has 12 tackles and two sacks this year.https://t.co/9Xz4TxxKfX pic.twitter.com/He1Laiy5vp

— Matt Zenitz (@mzenitz) January 6, 2025

Melton is going to be a very intriguing transfer portal target for many different teams. He has shown flashes of being a potential high-impact player during his brief playing time with the Buckeyes.

While he was a senior this season, he has played very sparingly. In that limited time, he has shown major promise.

During the 2024 season, Melton ended up recording 12 tackles and had two sacks as well. With a more extensive role, he could end up being a major pass-rushing threat.

He is clearly looking to find a place where he can compete for a starting job for his final year of college football action. Hopefully, he is able to land in a great position and get on the field to prove his ability.

Standing in at 6-foot-4 and a shade over 260 pounds, Melton is a very strong presence on the edge of the defense. He will have no shortage of interested teams.

As long as he doesn't come back to play against Ohio State, the hope is that he finds a place where he can turn into a star.

Originally, when he committed to the Buckeyes in the 2020 recruiting class, he was ranked as a four-star prospect and was the No. 11 outside linebacker in the country. He was also ranked No. 184 in the entire nation.

That star potential never materialized at Ohio State, but if he finds the right fit, he could finally show why he was ranked so high and why the Buckeyes wanted him so badly to begin with.