No school has produced more first round NFL draft picks than Ohio State. The Buckeyes reached 99 in April 2026, the first program to get there, and have led the entire country in total selections in each of the last two drafts.
| First round picks all time | 99, most of any school |
| Total draft picks all time | 514, third behind USC and Notre Dame |
| Most picks in one draft | 14, in both 2004 and 2025 |
| Most picks over two drafts | 25, in 2025 and 2026, tied for the NFL record |
| First round streak | Every draft since 2016, longest in the Big Ten |
| Ryan Day era, 2019 to 2026 | 69 picks, 20 in the first round |
The 2026 Draft
Ohio State led all schools with 11 players selected, one more than Alabama and Texas A&M. Four went in the first round, all inside the top 11 picks, which had not happened to any school since Michigan State in 1967.
| Pick | Player | Team |
|---|---|---|
| 1st round, No. 4 | WR Carnell Tate | Tennessee Titans |
| 1st round, No. 5 | LB Arvell Reese | New York Giants |
| 1st round, No. 7 | LB Sonny Styles | Washington Commanders |
| 1st round, No. 11 | S Caleb Downs | Dallas Cowboys |
| 2nd round, No. 36 | DT Kayden McDonald | Houston Texans |
| 2nd round, No. 61 | TE Max Klare | Los Angeles Rams |
| 2nd round, No. 62 | CB Davison Igbinosun | Buffalo Bills |
| Day 2 | TE Will Kacmarek | Miami Dolphins |
| 5th round, No. 172 | CB Lorenzo Styles Jr. | New Orleans Saints |
| 6th round, No. 214 | EDGE Caden Curry | Indianapolis Colts |
| 7th round, No. 231 | OT Ethan Onianwa | Atlanta Falcons |
Tate was the sixth Ohio State receiver taken in the first round since 2022. Seven of the eight defensive starters who entered the draft were selected.
The 2025 Draft
Fourteen Buckeyes were drafted, tying the school record set in 2004 and leading all schools. Four went in the first round and three in the second. All eight starters from the 2024 national championship defence who entered the draft were selected, every one of them inside the first five rounds.
The two drafts together produced 25 picks, matching the record Georgia set in 2022 and 2023, and 15 defensive players, tying Alabama’s two year record. Ohio State’s previous two year best was 24, set in 1975 and 1976.
The Ryan Day Era
Since Day was named head coach in December 2018, Ohio State has had 69 players drafted across eight drafts, 20 of them in the first round. The Buckeyes had exactly 10 players taken in both 2020 and 2021, then 14 and 11 in the last two years.
Every one of the 23 players who declared early under Day has been drafted, 14 of them in the first round. That is the recruiting pitch in a single sentence.
The First Round Record
Ohio State passed USC for the most first round picks in NFL history and has been extending the lead since. The 2026 first round took the total to 99. Alabama, whose surge under Nick Saban made this a three way race, is third.
The Buckeyes have had at least one first round pick in every draft since 2016, the longest active streak in the Big Ten and second nationally behind Alabama’s run since 2009.
The Year With None
The 2015 draft is the odd one. Ohio State had just won the national championship and did not have a single first round pick, because no eligible underclassman declared. It was the first time a champion had gone without a first rounder since the 2003 draft, when the 2002 title winning Buckeyes did the same.
The Bottom Line
Ohio State has produced 99 first round picks, the most of any school, and 514 total selections. The Buckeyes led all programs with 14 picks in 2025 and 11 in 2026, four of them inside the top 11 this year. In eight drafts under Ryan Day, 69 Buckeyes have been selected and every early entrant has been drafted. Our Ohio State Heisman winners page covers the program’s other individual honours.