Brian Hartline was the wide receiver whisperer at Ohio State.
But he left the Buckeyes this offseason to take the head-coaching position at South Florida, and some WRs are following his lead, if not his destination.
As of Wednesday, Ohio State now has lost three wide receivers to the transfer portal. Five-star freshman Quincy Porter is the latest, joining Mylan Graham and Bryson Rodgers in saying goodbye.
Add to that Carnell Tate going to the NFL Draft, and it's an offseason of departures so far for the Buckeyes.
Jeremiah Smith and Brandon Inniss will both be back, and they'll be joined by No. 1 recruit Chris Henry, so the cupboard isn't bare. But the depth could use some work.
"Ohio State likely needed at least one starting-caliber receiver from the portal, plus some possible depth," The Athletic's Cameron Teague Robinson wrote before Porter's news. "Among others, the Buckeyes have been linked to Texas’ DeAndre Moore Jr., a slot receiver who has 11 touchdowns in the past two seasons."
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With the Hartline void in place, it's up to new faces to keep Ohio State's WR prominence in place.
"With Hartline off to USF, it’ll be up to new receivers coach Cortez Hankton to not just close the deal in the portal, but get the most out of the players during the offseason," Robinson wrote.
Of course, the portal works both ways. Ohio State could land a couple big names in the next few days and feel just fine.
It still stings a bit to lose promising players before they ever really had a chance to break out.
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