Class of 2021 Defensive End Tunmise Adeleye Decommits from Ohio State

Standout prospect from IMG Academy in Florida has verbally committed to the Buckeyes in April.

The 2021 Ohio State Football recruiting class was dealt a rough blow Tuesday afternoon as SI All-American candidate and standout defensive end Tunsmise Adeleye (Bradenton, Fla./IMG Academy) announced that he is de-committing from the Buckeyes.

Widely regarded as a top-50 player nationally by major recruiting outlets, the 6-foot-3 prospect had verbally committed to Ohio State back in April but has now officially reopened his recruitment.

“First and foremost I would like to thank Coach (Larry) Johnson, and the rest of the Ohio State staff for taking me in as one of their own since the day I committed,” Adeleye began. “The opportunity to play at Ohio State has always been a dream of mine, and I can’t thank the staff enough for believing in my abilities and rewarding me with a scholarship offer. This experience has been nothing but a good one, and I have nothing but love for Coach Johnson on my end…

“With that being said I feel it’s best for me to de-commit from Ohio State at this time,” Adeleye continued. “The decision to attend a university is a life altering one and I believe it’ in my best interest to sit back and carefully re-evaluate all options at hand.”

Johnson and defensive coordinator Greg Mattison had both teamed to play instrumental roles in the recruiting process for Adeleye. He took an unofficial visit to Columbus in the summer of 2019.

Ohio State now has just two defensive linemen secured in the 2021 class with end Jack Sawyer (Pickerington, Ohio) and tackle Mike Hall (Streetsboro, Ohio). The Buckeyes are also currently in the running for standouts J.T. Tuimoloau and Tywone Malone.

The Buckeyes have been maintaining the No. 1 spot in the national team rankings, ahead of Alabama, for quite some time. OSU is still atop the list, but this decision by Adeleye drops the Buckeyes below the 300-point mark and within an arm’s length of the Crimson Tide.

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