The Buckeyes have added a kicker through the transfer portal.
Former North Carolina kicker Noah Ruggles announced on Wednesday afternoon he is transferring to Ohio State, where he’ll have two years of immediate eligibility remaining.
A native of Odessa, Fla., Ruggles went 19-for-27 on field goals and 45-for-45 on extra-point attempts during his redshirt sophomore year with the Tar Heels in 2019. That includes a career-long 49-yard field goal in a loss to Wake Forest that season.
Ruggles played in just one game last fall, though, after he was beat out in camp by graduate transfer Grayson Atkins, who announced he will return for an extra season of eligibility granted to all student-athletes amid the coronavirus pandemic. He appeared in just one game as a result, converting his lone PAT in a win over Western Carolina.
Ruggles will now compete with redshirt freshman Jake Seibert for the starting kicker spot vacated by Blake Haubeil, who signed an undrafted free agent deal with the Tennessee Titans this offseason. Seibert was 1-for-2 on field goals and 16-for-16 on extra-point attempts in place of Haubeil as he dealt with injuries during the 2020 season.
“Jake’s development have been really good,” special teams coach Parker Fleming said in April. “Had a great winter to get stronger and work through tough things. There’s a lot of things that specialists need, physically, mentally, all that, getting with the team and going through drills. That’s been really good.”
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