Ryan Day’s Ohio State secures major weapon by 6’4, 260 4-star DL Khary Wilder’s commitment

Ryan Day and the Ohio State Buckeyes landed a major weapon in the Class of 2026.

According to college football insider Hayes Fawcett, the Buckeyes landed four-star defensive lineman Khary Wilder. Wilder is a 6-foot-4, 260-pound defensive lineman from California who picked Ohio State over Notre Dame, Washington, and UCLA.

Wilder is ranked as the 26th EDGE rusher in the Class of 2026 and is the 246th-ranked overall prospect.

247Sports’ national recruiting analyst Greg Biggin praised Wilder for his motor and his ability to get after the quarterback.

“He shows off natural pass rush skill and can beat an opposing guard or tackle with quickness and power,” Biggins said, via Yahoo. “He plays with grown man strength and can toss an opposing lineman aside and gets a solid push even against a double team. He has a relentless motor as well and one of those players that just keeps coming.”

In 2024 at high school, Wilder recorded 86 tackles, 11 for loss, 4.5 sacks, 40 hurries, and 6 passes batted down. He is also a multi-sport athlete, as he played basketball in high school.

By landing Wilder, the Buckeyes now have the second-ranked class. Ohio State and Ryan Day have landed two five-stars and 11 four-stars to have the second-best recruiting class.

Ohio State's Ryan Day calls for the Big Ten to get automatic CFP berths

Ryan Day is coming off leading the Ohio State Buckeyes to the national championship and now enters 2025 with expectations of being a top team again.

However, one of the big questions in college football is how the playoff format will work in 2026 and beyond, as the playoff could expand. However, for Day, he believes the Big Ten needs some automatic playoff berths.

"We're in the Big Ten, and we have 18 teams and some of the best programs in the country," Day told ESPN. "I feel like we deserve at least four automatic qualifiers...

"You would have had at least a team or two [in the CFP] from out there," Day said, referring to the original Pac-12. "So it only makes sense when you have 18 teams, especially the quality of teams that you would have [in] that many teams representing the Big Ten."

Day and Ohio State will open their 2025 college football season on Aug. 30 against the Texas Longhorns. The Buckeyes have notable games against Wisconsin, Penn State, and Michigan.