Ohio State WR shuts down transfer rumors with blunt reply

Ohio State wide receiver Carnell Tate has no intentions of transferring from the program. He just wrapped up his sophomore season with the Buckeyes.

With the Buckeyes nearly two months removed from winning the national championship, there have been a lot of changes that the program has had to face. Both offensive coordinator Chip Kelly and defensive coordinator Jim Knowles are no longer with the program.

Both positions have since been filled. However, there have also been concerns about the personnel that Ohio will be having on the field as well. Senior quarterback Will Howard is departing for the NFL, leaving questions as to whether the Buckeyes will be able to come close to replicating their success from last season.

All eyes have been on freshman wide receiver sensation Jeremiah Smith heading into the offseason, with questions on whether or not he'll opt to hit the transfer portal. Now that it has been confirmed that Smith intends to remain with Ohio, Tate faced similar speculation shortly thereafter.

Speaking to 10TV sports' Adam King in a tweet posted on Monday, Tate expressed his excitement for wide receivers coach Brian Hartline stepping into the role of offensive coordinator and said he "never" had plans to leave Ohio.

"The plan was never for me to leave," Tate said. "I don't know where that came from or where it started. I bleed Ohio State."

Carnell Tate hopes to shine again with Ohio State in 2025

Carnell Tate made up one of the greatest wide receiver trios in college football in 2024 alongside Smith and Emeka Egbuka, with Egbuka heading into the 2025 NFL draft. While his numbers weren't as high as Smith's or Egbuka's, Tate still produced impressive stats during his sophomore campaign.

Syndication: The Columbus Dispatch - Source: Imagn

The 6-foot-3 Tate hauled in 52 catches for 733 yards and four touchdowns. With Egbuka freeing up some targets now that he's NFL-bound, that gives Tate the opportunity to be fed the ball a lot more in Ryan Day's offense in 2025. Of course, there's still some uncertainty for the offense at the quarterback position.

With Howard on his way out, the Buckeyes will look to freshman Julian Sayin to take the helm of the offense. Sayin is a highly touted prospect out of California who many believe has a bright future ahead of him on the gridiron. He'll likely open up the regular season with the Buckeyes as Ohio State's starting quarterback against Arch Manning and the Texas Longhorns later this year.