Sophomore RB drives from Buffalo to Columbus, goes home with Ohio State football offer: Buckeyes recruiting roundup

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Elijah Kimble drove 4 1/2 hours from Buffalo, N.Y., to Columbus last weekend to catch the Ohio State Buckeyes taking on Purdue.

A 5-foot-10, 180-pound sophomore running back out of Buffalo's Canisius High School, Kimble made it back to OSU nearly a year after his first visit – for Ohio State's 38-3 victory over Michigan State last November.

He's now seen two blowout wins from the Buckeyes, and he's enjoyed every second.

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"They did exactly what they said they were going to do," Kimble told cleveland.com . "They came out, played fast and aggressive. The running backs had a really good game, especially TreVeyon Henderson."

He credited the pregame performance of the OSU marching band as well as the fans in the stands for creating an "incredible" atmosphere. After the game, just before he was getting ready to make the trip back to Buffalo, he got a message from his coach back home.

"My coach texted me asking if I left [Columbus] yet, but I told him no," Kimble said. "We were about to be on our way out and then he told me Coach [Carlos] Locklyn wanted to speak to me at the Woody Hayes Center. I went up and we talked for a couple minutes, and he said he had an offer for me."

Locklyn, OSU's running backs coach, presented Kimble with his Buckeyes offer, which Kimble announced on Twitter/X .

"That was the one I was waiting for," he said.

Kimble now holds offers from schools across the Big Ten including Michigan, Oregon, Penn State and Purdue, as well as programs such as Pitt, West Virginia and Syracuse. He visited Michigan earlier in the season for its matchup with USC.

He's a versatile, fast running back who finds pockets and exploits with his speed. His Hudl.com highlight reel also features some impressive defensive plays and kickoff returns.

Kimble has been invited to his second consecutive All-American Bowl. He received a nomination his freshman year, and on Oct. 30 received his second invitation in the mail.

Kimble carries a pride for his hometown and his family and wants to take those values to whatever school he chooses. That school should "feel like home," he said.

"What makes me, me? I'd say the desire to do good for me and my family, that's just what it is," Kimble said. "And also my city. My city – if you know you know. It's not many that make it out of Buffalo."

Ben Nichols, a three-star interior offensive lineman out of Davison, Mich., recently announced that he has narrowed his choices down to nine, including Ohio State. The others are Alabama, Notre Dame, Penn State, Michigan State, Wisconsin, Kentucky, Iowa and Tennessee.

Nichols is Michigan's third-ranked OL in the class of 2026, and is 18th nationally according to 247Sports . The platform's composite ranking slots him as the No. 246 overall player in the class.

He measures in at 6-foot-5, 315 pounds, and most recently took a visit to Happy Valley to watch Penn State's win over Washington.

Ohio State offers 2026 4-star OT Gabriel Osenda, a four-star offensive tackle out of Baylor School in Chattanooga, Tenn., received an offer from the Buckeyes on Nov. 8, he announced on X, formerly Twitter .

Osenda stands at a towering 6-foot-7 and weighs in at 320 pounds. He's a major in-state target for Tennessee, but is an attractive recruit to schools around the country. Osenda will be at Georgia this weekend for its game against the Volunteers. He's already taken gameday visits to South Carolina and Tennessee this season.