'Leave a Legacy!' Ohio State Buckeyes Land Commitment From Four-Star LB Tarvos Alford II

The Ohio State Buckeyes are on a roll on the recruiting trail.

Just one day after landing a commitment from four-star IMG Academy (Bradenton, FL) defensive end London Merritt, the Buckeyes were back at it on Saturday, snagging the pledge of four-star Vero Beach (Port Saint Lucie, FL) linebacker Tarvos Alford II.

“You come to Ohio State to leave a legacy," Alford told On3's Hayes Fawcett.

Alford picked the Buckeyes over heavy pursuit from the Miami Hurricanes and Florida Gators, becoming the ninth commitment of the 2025 class.

As of Saturday, Alford currently ranks as the No. 72 player nationally, No. 8 linebacker and No. 9 player in Flordia, per the On3 Industry raning. He is also ranked as the No. 9 linebacker in the nation by Rivals.com, with On3, 247Sports and ESPN all ranking him as their No. 7 linebacker.

Last season for Vero Beach, Alford had 114 tackles, 12 tackles for loss, four sacks, six pass breakups and one interception, and finished the year as the TC Palm's Defensive Player of the Year.

Alford now joins a class that already holds a bevy of stars on defense, including the two top-ranked corners in the 2024 class in five-stars Na'eem Offord and Devin Sanchez. The Bucks also hold commitments from four-star corner Blake Woodby, the aforementioned Merritt, four-star edge Zahir Mathis, and three-star linebacker Eli Lee.

The Buckeyes already held the No. 1 ranked class in the nation, per On3. And with Alford now in tow, that lead only continues to grow over the rest of the field.