Ohio State wide receiver De'zie Jones sheds black stripe

COLUMBUS — Ohio State freshman wide receiver De’Zie Jones was never the most talked-about wide receiver in his recruiting class.

But it’s clear that he’s already beginning to make a splash on the Buckeyes roster early in his freshman season.

Jones shed his black stripe after practice Wednesday, a sign that he’s doing the right things in his first campaign with the Buckeyes.

Jones is the ninth Ohio State freshman to lose the black stripe from the 2025 recruiting class. He joins wide receiver Quincy Porter, linebacker Riley Pettijohn, tight end Nate Roberts, cornerback Devin Sanchez, safety Faheem Delane, wide receiver Phillip Bell and offensive lineman Jake Cook. Porter lost his during spring practice, while Pettijohn, Roberts and Sanchez shed theirs during the first week of training camp.

Delane and Cook lost their black stripe after the team’s second scrimmage of training camp last month. And Bell lost his a week and a half before the opener.

Now Jones is the latest ahead of the game against Grambling State.

He’s also the third Buckeyes freshman wide receiver to shed the stripe this offseason, joining Quincy Porter, who lost his in the spring, and Bell. Bodpegn Miller is the other wide receiver from the 2025 recruiting class; he has not lost his black stripe yet.

Jones was ranked as the No. 375 overall prospect in the 2025 recruiting class, according to the Rivals Industry Rankings. He was the No. 56 wide receiver and No. 9 player in the state of New Jersey for his class.

Now he’s in the Buckeyes loaded wide receiver room that’ll be tough to find playing time in. But Jones is developing nicely and coming along in his first year at Ohio State.

He took a big step in that developmental path on Wednesday, losing his black stripe to officially become a member of the football program.