Ohio State tight end Mason Williams loses black stripe

COLUMBUS — Ohio State tight end Mason Williams was part of a two-man transfer portal class at his position. He’s now the first of the two to officially become a member of the program.

Williams lost his black stripe after practice Wednesday, a mark that he’s doing the right things for the Buckeyes.

This comes just a couple of days after he was praised by Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day.

“There’s a consistent level right now, and it’s not perfect at all, but bringing in Mason Williams and Hunter [Welcing] at tight end with Nate [Roberts], they’re not perfect at all, but they’re grinding at it,” Day said. “And they’re working at it. And I think those guys at tight end have shown up especially in the pass game. Just seeing them make a lot more plays maybe than we’ve seen in the past. So that has been a bright spot.”

A Mogadore native and former Ohio Bobcats star, Williams played in four games during his freshman season in 2023 before becoming the Bobcats’ starting tight end in 2024 — replacing Will Kacmarek, who transferred to Ohio State after the 2023 season and started for two years with the Buckeyes.

While starting as a redshirt freshman during the 2024 season, Williams was named an FWAA Freshman All-American for his performance; he caught 19 passes for 211 yards and two touchdowns.

And then he became a star in the Ohio offense this past season, catching 26 passes for 276 yards and three touchdowns while also registering a 62.2 run-blocking grade and a 73.6 pass-blocking grade from his tight end position.

Mason Williams joins growing list of Ohio State players to lose black stripe

He now joins a growing list of Ohio State players to lose their black stripes so far this spring.

As for transfers, the Buckeyes have shed the black stripes from helmets from former LSU wide receiver Kyle Parker, former Florida State defensive back Earl Little Jr., former Wisconsin linebacker Christian Alliegro, former Alabama defensive end Qua Russaw, former Alabama defensive tackle James Smith and former UTSA wide receiver Devin McCuin.

And so far, just one freshman has lost his black stripe so far this spring. After just six practices in his Buckeyes career, Texas native Brock Boyd seems to be on the fast track to being a first-year impact player. The latest example of that: Boyd shed his black stripe on Tuesday after practice, a mark that he’s officially a member of the program. Boyd is the first freshman from the class of 2026 to shed his stripe, a major milestone for the former three-star recruit from Southlake Carroll (Texas) High School.

Now Mason Williams is the latest to join them.

Here’s the Buckeyes to lose their black stripe this spring:

Player	Previous school/year	Black stripe removal date	Story link
WR Kyle Parker	LSU	March 28, 2026	READ MORE
DB Earl Little Jr.	Florida State	March 29, 2026	READ MORE
WR Brock Boyd	HS (freshman)	March 31, 2026	READ MORE
LB Christian Alliegro	Wisconsin	March 31, 2026	READ MORE
DE Qua Russaw	Alabama	April 2, 2026	READ MORE
DT James Smith	Alabama	April 4, 2026	READ MORE
WR Devin McCuin	UTSA	April 4, 2026	READ MORE
DL John Walker	UCF	April 8, 2026
TE Mason Williams	Ohio	April 8, 2026