The Ohio State Buckeyes addressed their second biggest need in the transfer portal on Wednesday.
Outside of tougher and more veteran offensive linemen, the Ohio State Buckeyes needed to solve their kicker situation.
Jayden Fielding was granted an extra year of eligibility, but he was coming off a season that began as a promising one, but finished in complete and total disaster. On Wednesday night, Ohio State addressed its need in a major way.
Fielding's final two kicks on the season, and what he will ultimately be remembered for was his miss against the Indiana Hoosiers from just 27 yards away and his 49-yard miss against the Miami Hurricanes in the Cotton Bowl.
Those two kicks stand out amongst the rest in a year where he went 16-20 and had just one miss from every section of the field. One miss in the 20s, one miss from the 30s, one miss from the 40s, and one miss from 50.
Those days for Fielding are unfortunately over.
Ohio State signed former Baylor kicker Connor Hawkins, who put together a solid resume last year for the Bears.
He finished the year 37-37 on extra points and was 18-22 on field goals, including going 3-4 from 50 yards or more.
Hawkins is hopefully the answer that the Buckeyes need at the kicker position.
Ohio State's transfer portal window has been a mixed bag of sorts. I, personally, have been confused by their overall approach to building this roster.
It is very clear the direction that college football is headed in. The value is not in the players out of high school, it is in the transfer portal recruits and these super seniors who are floating around the sport. Colleges can't afford to waste funds on their bench waiting to develop.
Now, for Ohio State, its very clear and obvious weakness in its roster was on the offensive side of the football. They lacked the toughness and physicality up front to compete with the teams at the top of the sport, yet they hardly addressed it.
What they did do was beef up their defense pretty significantly. They added to each level of the defense with veteran talent that will come in and hopefully start on day one in Columbus.
The cherry on top, at least for Buckeye nation is the signing of Hawkins. Missed kicks have haunted this Ohio State program for years, and if they can find a solution to the issue, they will be in great shape moving forward.
The kicker position cost them a chance to make a long playoff run in 2025. Here's to hoping the problem is fixed in 2026.