Ryan Day, Ohio State Dealt Unfortunate News on Tuesday

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Ryan Day, Ohio State Dealt Unfortunate News on Tuesday

Ryan Day and the Ohio State Buckeyes did not have the ending to the 2025 college football season they were hoping for. After a perfect 12-0 record in the regular season, Ohio State fell to Fernando Mendoza and the Indiana Hoosiers in the SEC Championship Game, losing out on the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff.

Still, the Buckeyes entered the CFP as the No. 2 seed, receiving a bye in the opening round. But they couldn’t get it done in the quarterfinals, falling to Carson Beck and the No. 10 seed Miami Hurricanes 24-14 in the Cotton Bowl, who went on to secure a spot in the national championship.

Now, Day and Ohio State will look to build on a disappointing 2025 season, one where they failed to defend their national championship win from last year. And Day has had a lot of work to do, losing 32 players to the NCAA transfer portal, along with numerous stars, such as safety Caleb Downs, to the NFL draft. But on Tuesday, he lost another.

Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day leads his team onto the field© Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Trajen Odom, a 6-foot-3 defensive tackle out of Weddington High School (Matthews, North Carolina), was a three-star prospect in the class of 2025 (247Sports). He ranked as the 524th-best player in his class (247Sports Composite), along with the 61st-best defensive lineman and the 13th-best out of the state of North Carolina.

Odom received plenty of offers from numerous major programs, including the Oregon Ducks, Alabama Crimson Tide and Florida Gators, before ultimately committing to the Buckeyes. However, he didn’t receive any playing time during his first season in Columbus, ultimately electing to take a redshirt year.

On Tuesday, Odom decided to continue his career elsewhere, entering the transfer portal and becoming the 33rd player Day and Ohio State have lost to the portal. The defensive lineman will have four years of college eligibility remaining.

“Ohio State freshman defensive lineman Trajen Odom has entered the transfer portal, @chris_hummer and I have learned,” CBS Sports’ Matt Zenitz wrote on X.

While Day and the Buckeyes have lost many players to the transfer portal, including eight defensive linemen, they have been able to add 11. This includes four-star defensive tackle James Smith, who recorded 28 tackles and 2.5 sacks in 2025 with Alabama.

Related: Ohio State’s Caleb Downs Shares Off-Field Update After College Football Season

This story was originally published by Athlon Sports on Jan 14, 2026, where it first appeared in the College Football section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

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