Six Ohio State players named Phil Steele Preseason All-Americans
· Yahoo Sports
You know the 2026 college football season is just around the corner when the preseason magazines begin to hit the shelves and online platforms, and one of the most popular ones is the Phil Steele preseason preview magazine.
If you are a college football stats junkie, there aren't many preseason magazines better than the one Steele puts out because it's loaded with information and unique statistics you can't really find anywhere else. We like to follow it too, and one of the things we take note of is the magazine's preseason All-American team, and if you are an Ohio State fan, you're going to love how many Buckeyes received notoriety in the 2026 edition.
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All told, six Ohio State players were named as Phil Steele preseason All-Americans. Some you won't be surprised about, but maybe a couple of players that you would think are on the fringe made the cut. Here's a look at all six players that were named to Steele's 2026 preseason All-American squad.
Phil Steele First-Team Preseason All-American
Jeremiah Smith, Wide Receiver
This is no surprise. Not only did Smith make the first team, but Steele named him the Offensive Player of the Year as well. He might go down as the best wide receiver to ever suit up in the Scarlet and Gray and could be in the team picture of the best to ever do it in the college game. He's about to break a bunch of Ohio State receiving records, and let's hope, for once, voters put aside the fact that he's not a quarterback and give him some love in the Heisman race if he has the type of year we all expect.
Phil Steele Third-Team Preseason All-American
Julian Sayin, Quarterback
There's no doubt that Sayin will benefit from having one whale of a receiving corps led by Smith, but he's more than that. The Carlsbad, California native showed he can process information rapidly, has a quick release, and uncanny accuracy. Many have him at the top of the preseason Heisman odds entering the season, and he should be even better than the season he put up last year that landed him a spot in New York. A case could be made for him landing on the first or second team, but we'll see how the season plays out.
Luke Montgomery, Offensive Guard
Ohio State stayed out of the transfer portal when it came to upgrading an offensive line that struggled in the postseason, banking more on development of a line that has all of its pieces back. If the buffet eaters are going to be one of the best units in college football, it'll need Montgomery to be one of the anchors of the line. To be fair, it wasn't his left side of the line that was the issue last season, but he'll need to boost his play even more in 2026 if Ohio State is going to have the year the Buckeyes hope.
Austin Siereveld, Offensive Tackle
Siereveld was arguably Ohio State's best offensive lineman last season, anchoring the left side. He should be even better this year and might move over to the right side, where things got leaky at the end of last season. Time will tell where the coaching staff plugs him in so that the best five are out there, but we can probably expect him to be one of the best offensive tackles in the game for 2026.
Phil Steele Fourth-Team Preseason All-American
Earl Little Jr., Safety
It's great to see Little getting some preseason love because it sure feels like he's going to be a breakout star for the Ohio State defense. He's drawn rave reviews from the coaching staff and fellow players since arriving in Columbus, and if he can stay healthy, he's going to be a key piece of the defensive game plans coordinator Matt Patricia puts together. He's not Caleb Downs, but if he stays healthy, he's going to be a good alternative to move around as a chess piece this fall.
Dalton Riggs, Longsnapper
You probably didn't see this one coming, but the Ohio State coaching staff went out and lured Riggs to the banks of the Olentangy for a reason. Longsnapper is a position best gone unnoticed, but it's an extremely important one. Riggs will fill an important need to get the ball to the kickers on time and in good location so that the kicking game can take a leap forward in 2026. Let's hope he's as good as advertised.
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This article originally appeared on Buckeyes Wire: Ohio State with 6 players named Phil Steele preseason All-Americans