The Ohio State Buckeyes will be losing a key member of their secondary, as cornerback Jordan Hancock has announced that he is declaring for the NFL Draft.

Going into the 2024 college football season, Hancock was certainly not viewed as one of Ohio State’s top draft prospects. In fact, fellow cornerback Denzel Ward got most of the love at the position.

However, Hancock emerged with a very impressive season, registering 48 tackles, an interception, a couple of forced fumbles and eight passes defended.

The 21-year-old also had a very impressive showing in the College Football Playoff, particularly in th Cotton Bowl against Texas when he logged six tackles and one pass defended.

At 6-foot-1, Hancock has great size for the NFL level, and he has the versatility to man multiple different roles. While he is certainly not going to be a Day 1 pick, his draft stock has certainly increased over the last month, so it will be interesting to see where he ends up in April.

In the modern NFL, cornerbacks are becoming more and more important with the advent of the passing game, so tall, physical corners like Hancock are paramount.

Ohio State will be losing a plethora of defenders to the NFL Draft, so it will have to fill a bunch of holes heading into 2025.

Luckily, the Buckeyes have a terrific incoming recruiting class, so they should have no problem recovering.

Ohio State just won its first national title in a decade, and a big reason for that was boasting the No. 1-ranked defense in the country.