Henry Jr., No. 7 recruit for '26, picks Ohio State

Five-star wide receiver Chris Henry Jr. affirmed his commitment to Ohio State on Friday and will sign with the Buckeyes during the early signing period, concluding a dramatic early signing period recruiting saga for the No. 7 overall prospect in the SC Next ESPN 300.

Henry, a 6-foot-5, 205-pound receiver from California power Mater Dei High School, is ESPN's No. 1 wide receiver in 2026. Per sources, Henry's camp held talks with multiple programs this week, including Ohio State, Oregon, Texas and LSU, before he announced his intention to sign with the Buckeyes during an appearance on "The Pat McAfee Show" on Friday.

"For me, it was really just being at a place where I feel comfortable [sic]," Henry told McAfee. "It was never really about the money. I was getting tons of offers [from] other places ... but ultimately for me, it was just a place I feel comfortable being developed and ultimately reaching my goal, which is to be a first-round draft pick."

Henry is the son of the late Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Chris Henry, who played at West Virginia from 2002-04. He'll sign with Ohio State as the top-ranked member of a Buckeyes class that began Friday at No. 9 in ESPN's class rankings for the cycle.

Committed to Ohio State since July 29, 2023, Henry entered this week's early signing period as the longest-tenured verbal pledge in the ESPN 300, holding on despite flip efforts from Miami, Oregon, USC and West Virginia, among others, across his junior and senior high school seasons.

Oregon remained the most persistent non-Ohio State program in Henry's process, sources told ESPN, with the Ducks applying pressure all the way into the early signing period week. However, Henry consistently affirmed his pledge to the Buckeyes over the past two-plus years, during which he developed a close relationship with wide receivers coach and offensive coordinator Brian Hartline, who was named head coach at South Florida earlier this week.

Sources told ESPN that Henry was unsettled Wednesday morning upon learning of Hartline's impending departure from the Buckeyes. Henry still stated his intention to sign with Ohio State during a ceremony at Mater Dei on Wednesday, but he never submitted official paperwork to the program.

In a social media post Wednesday afternoon, Henry said he had not yet signed his letter of intent and was "still trying to weigh" his options "due to coaching changes."

While LSU and Texas also presented significant financial offers, sources told ESPN that Ohio State and Oregon were the two programs most prominently involved in the late stages of Henry's decision this week.