Urban Meyer reveals Ryan Day, Ohio State focused on roster of 'grown ass men'

If there’s one takeaway from the Big Ten’s run of dominance with three consecutive College Football Playoff national champions, it’s that experience wins. That reality was cemented earlier this week after the newly-minted champion Indiana Hoosiers completed a perfect 16-0 season with an average player roster age of 23 years and 17 of 22 starters with at least four collegiate seasons under their belt.

In the day and age of NIL, revenue-sharing and the NCAA Transfer Portal, when most college football players often play for multiple teams’ rosters during their four-year eligibility window — and even that’s expanding to five and six years in certain situations — Power Four teams are learning to adapt. The trend has even spilled over into college basketball after multiple teams have added former NBA G League players to their active rosters in the past year.

Ryan Day and 2024 national champion Ohio State have taken notice. And, according to former OSU head coach-turned-FOX Sports analyst Urban Meyer, the Buckeyes are shifting their recruiting focus away from building a roster through the high school ranks to importing more veteran players through the transfer portal.

“I think the template has all been set now, with the Big Ten winning three years in a row (with the) most mature, veteran teams,” Meyer said during Thursday’s episode of The Triple Option podcast. “Every team average age is what — someone said they were about the same age as NFL teams. … The average experience was almost four years; someone threw that at me yesterday as well. The Wolverines did it, the Buckeyes did it.

After talking with @ryandaytime, @CoachUrbanMeyer says Ohio State wants to be in the business of having a more mature roster. #buckeyes #CollegeFootball pic.twitter.com/HCXAprjUkp

— The Triple Option (@3xOptionShow) January 22, 2026

“I actually talked to Coach Day about that yesterday. We talked about it before the (national title) game and he mentioned that. That everyone’s talking about it – how do we get a locker room of grown ass men that have been through it?” Meyer said of roster contruction. “Coaching that 21-year-old is a much different cry from coaching that 18-year-old. You’ve got a grown ass man with experience that understands the game.”

All but one of Ohio State’s current 15-member 2026 transfer class enter next season’s roster with at least three years of collegiate experience, including six with four or more years under their belt. The most glaring veteran addition is former Florida running back Ja’Kobi Jackson, a member of the 2020 recruiting cycle who will enter his seventh collegiate season in 2026 after spending the past three years in Gainesville following three seasons (2020-22) at Coahoma Community College.

It’s clear Day is betting those veteran additions will mix well on the roster with the Buckeyes’ wealth of key returners such as redshirt sophomore quarterback Julian Sayin and junior receiver Jeremiah Smith.