'We're just authentic': How Tim Walton is finding success for Ohio State recruiting
Tim Walton’s recruiting pitch for Ohio State football is not anything elaborate. It’s authentic, he said. It’s honest. He doesn’t shy away from the reality of his room − the talent that’s there, the competitive nature that runs rampant among his players.
And for Walton, that pitch has been enough.
That pitch turned into two top-100 cornerbacks in the 2023 class in Jermaine Mathews Jr. and Calvin Simpson-Hunt. It turned into a three-man 2024 class that included two Ohio “bookends” in Aaron Scott and Bryce West, along with Miles Lockhart.
But early in the 2025 recruiting cycle, that pitch has vaulted Walton into the conversation as one of the top recruiters in the country.
Walton has helped secure commitments from five-stars Devin Sanchez and Na’eem Offord — the top two cornerbacks in the 2025 class according to the 247Sports’ composite rankings — along with top-100 four-star Blake Woodby.
“One thing I love about coach Walton is he’s not going to kiss your butt because you’re the No. 1 recruit, No. 2 recruit,” Kaorie Offord, Na’eem Offord’s father, said shortly after his son committed. “No. He knows what he’s bringing to the table. That’s one thing I love about him, and I feel like I trust him with him making (Na’eem) a better man off the field. That’s the most important thing.”
'Real relationships' bring Tim Walton success in Ohio State recruiting
Returning to Ohio State after an 11-year stint as an NFL assistant coach for the Detroit Lions, St. Louis Rams, New York Giants and Jacksonville Jaguars, Walton, a former Buckeye defensive back, said relationships were always going to be how his room was built.
“If you develop real relationships and you’re authentic in your communication and you have honest feedback and you have direct teaching, the guys that value character and appreciate that stuff, they embrace that,” Walton said. “But they have to know you care. They have to know that it’s real and they have to know you are really concerned about their well being as a young man.”
Kaorie Offord loves Walton's ability to “get his hands on the younger guys” and mold them into the player and person he wants them to be both on and off the field.
“Just like a family thing,” Kaorie Offord said. “That’s the main thing that’s important is building a bond with those kids.”
That doesn’t mean each player Walton recruits will see the field immediately.
Walton said he wants a room filled with players who embrace competitiveness and cherish each competitive opportunity.
“Sometimes you may be behind a guy that’s a really good player,” Walton said. “There’s nothing wrong with developing and growing and playing when the time is right. And if the time is right as a freshman, like what Jermaine (Mathews) did, you play early”
Ohio State’s recruiting efforts are feeding off the “DBU” track record the Buckeyes began to develop well before Walton’s arrival. Since 2014, Ohio State has produced seven cornerbacks who were first-round picks in the NFL draft.
“If you want to go to the league, if you have big dreams or want to get a good degree,” West said. “Ohio State is definitely a good place.”
Shortly after his commitment as the first of two five-star cornerbacks in the Buckeyes’ 2025 class, Sanchez said he’s excited to join the room Ohio State has built where “everybody should be getting drafted.”
Ohio State wide receivers play role in 2025 cornerback recruiting
Walton’s recruiting success is not only about his cornerbacks room. It’s also about the room his cornerbacks face every day.
In the past two recruiting classes, Ohio State has landed five top-100 receivers, including five-stars Brandon Inniss, Jeremiah Smith and Mylan Graham, who will enroll in the summer. Combined with players such as Emeka Egbuka and Carnell Tate, assistant coach Brian Hartline called spring practice between his receivers and Walton’s cornerbacks “a heavyweight” fight.
“When guys do come visit as recruits, they see it,” Hartline said. “That’s one of the first things they say is the chippiness, the competitiveness is really different.”
Hartline said he and Walton talk about recruiting in both the wide receiver and cornerback rooms and that they “feed off each other” in practice and while they build their position groups.
For Walton, Ohio State’s receivers play a role in his recruiting pitch to cornerback recruits.
“That’s where you get better,” Walton said. “Iron sharpens iron, so you get to see it every day in practice. That helps you grow.”
Walton’s 2025 cornerback class is getting full with Sanchez, Woodby and Na’eem Offord committed. Dorian Brew, a five-star cornerback, remains on the Buckeyes’ radar and has developed a close relationship with Walton, saying he has confidence that Ohio State would “have me drafted in the first round.”
That’s Walton’s pitch. It’s one that players continue to buy into.
“(Walton is) the guy that can get (Na’eem Offord) to the next level,” Kaorie Offord said.
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State football: Tim Walton finds success for OSU 2025 recruiting
