A five-year Northwestern tight end who entered the transfer portal this offseason has officially found a new home. Yesterday, the 'Cats' most productive TE in the 2025 season, Hunter Welcing, committed to Ohio State to finish out his college career. Rivals reporter Hayes Fawcett reported the news via X.
Welcing joins the Buckeyes with one season of eligibility remaining, coming off an All-Big Ten selection. He's a quality blocker in the running game, and he made a modest impact in the passing game as well.
In 2025 with NU, Welcing finished with 28 receptions for 296 yards, both career highs. He had 20 receiving yards in 2024 and zero in his three seasons before that when he had minimal playing time and was in a different role when he touched the field.
At Ohio State, Welcing will surely face tougher competition for reps than he did in Evanston, but his reasoning for transferring there makes sense. He probably just wants to take a real stab at winning a National Championship, and playing for OSU affords you that chance any given season.
Because he's capable of impacting the game in different ways without getting targets, Welcing will probably have a decent chance to at least get some playing time and help contribute to a really good team. After a long career in Evanston, and likely a small chance to make it in the NFL, this move makes sense to close out a solid career.
Make no mistake, though, the Buckeyes are getting a capable pass catcher should they need him to occupy that role. Throughout 2025, Welcing was a sturdy safety blanket for Northwestern quarterback Preston Stone. If the Wildcats needed a completion over the field, or Stone needed to hit a check down, Welcing was there to do the job.
His numbers aren't crazy, but there's a reason Northwestern hired a new offensive coordinator this offseason -- nobody in the passing game was producing elite, elite numbers (outside of Griffin Wilde).
Welcing made the most of the opportunities given to him this season, and he was perhaps an underrated piece for the 'Cats.
From a Northwestern perspective, losing him was an expected outcome, so this shouldn't change any 2026 projections or drastically alter any expectations. But it will be a situation where fans will have to watch a former Wildcat play for a rival Big Ten team.
Welcing will not return home in 2026, but Northwestern will travel to Columbus at some point during the season. The exact schedule has not yet been released.