Ohio State Buckeyes RB Dallan Hayden to Enter NCAA Transfer Portal

The Ohio State Buckeyes running back room to a big hit to its depth on Monday.

Mar 5, 2024; Columbus, OH, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes running back Dallan Hayden (5) runs during the / Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA

Following the return of TreVeyon Henderson and incoming trasfer of Quinshon Judkins, the Ohio State Buckeyes were set to have one of the deepest and most talented running back rooms in the country in 2024.

However, that depth took a big hit on Monday, with backup running back Dallan Hayden reportedly planning to enter the NCAA Transfer Portal, per On3's Pete Nakos.

Hayden was entering his third year with the program.

Nov 18, 2023; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes running back Dallan Hayden (5) attempts to / Clare Grant/The Columbus Dispatch / USA

The decision from Hayden comes as a bit of a surprise, with the third-year back expressing confidence that, despite the two-headed monster ahead of him, he would be able to carve out a valuable role in the offense.

“I'm very confident,” Hayden said last week. “I know what I had to work on and I focused on that the whole offseason. And I feel like I'm doing better in those areas. So I'm very confident.”

Whether or not Hayden saw the writing on the wall or not, snaps were going to be hard to come by this season with the two All-American caliber backs ahead of him.

Which, in turn, would have led to a second-straight low-usage year with the Buckeyes after playing just three games last season, and ultimately redshirting - a decision that Hayden fully understood.

“I mean, I understood. It was a mutual agreement, for sure,” Hayden said. “Obviously, I wanted to be on the field, because freshman year I played and then got redshirted. So it was tough. But everything happens for a reason.”

Now, however, Hayden heads elsewhere hoping to earn a bigger role and perhaps even become a feature back for a Power 5 program.