Lathan

Ransom

The Panthers officially bring their X-wide receiver into the fold via a $27.93 million deal. McMillan should immediately compete for the team lead in targets and should produce fantasy-friendly results in year one. The Panthers also signed third-round OLB Princely Umanmielen, fourth-round S Lathan Ransom, fifth-round DT Cam Jackson, fifth-round TE Mitchell Evans and sixth-round WR Jimmy Horn Jr.. Dynasty managers should take note of Horn, who could eventually work his way into three-wide receiver sets.

A three-year starter, Ransom carved out a leadership role on the back end of Ohio State’s national championship-winning defense. At 6’0”, 206 pounds with a solid 8.85 RAS, Ransom brings a physical presence to the safety position, thriving downhill with sharp read-and-trigger ability and a knack for violent collisions. His 93.7 PFF run defense grade in 2024 led all draft-eligible safeties and exemplifies his “bug-meets-windshield” approach in the box. Ransom’s experience across multiple alignments—post, two-high, tight end man coverage—makes him a versatile chess piece, though he’s best deployed near the line where he can key and strike. His game is built on physicality, instincts, and toughness, as seen in 2024’s stat line: 76 tackles, 9 TFLs, 3 forced fumbles. However, he’s not without limitations. Ransom doesn’t possess elite top-end speed or man-cover fluidity, occasionally face-guarding instead of locating the ball. He can be caught flat-footed in deep zone and struggles with vertical threats. Still, he brings the kind of tone-setting demeanor and special teams value (2 blocked punts in 2022) that gets him on the field early. If kept in a defined role, Ransom offers starter-level impact as a strong safety or big nickel defender.

The end of the 2021 season didn’t end the way Ransom (6'1/200) would have liked. He broke his leg covering a kick in the Rose Bowl against Utah and left the field in an air cast. Head coach Ryan Day did warn that Ransom might be limited initially but he should be ready for the start of the season. With the change to Jim Knowles on defense, Ransom will likely compete for the slot safety role during camp.

Ransom (6'1"/200) was part of a rotating cast of OSU defensive players, and ended up with 38 total tackles, a sack, five passes defensed and a forced fumble. He suffered what appeared to be a broken leg while covering a kickoff in the Rose Bowl, as he needed an air cast and had to be carted off the field. Ransom underwent surgery on Monday and took to Twitter to announce the surgery was successful. Ransom will be a big part of an OSU defense that will look to improve on their up-and-down 2021 campaign.

Going on local radio, Fleck said the Big Ten apologized for missing the controversial hit on Minnesota receiver Mike Brown-Stephens. The hit happened late in the fourth quarter, and led to a fumble that OSU recovered. The play was not even reviewed for targeting, despite Brown-Stephens seeming to lose consciousness for a brief moment. Minnesota was down 14 at that point however, and Fleck emphasized it was not the reason for the loss to OSU.

“Ransom could be a star for the Buckeyes down the road,” Farrell wrote. “He has the size, coverage instincts and willingness to be physical that should make him successful in Columbus.” Ransom (6'1/200) is a standout at Salpointe Catholic in Tucson, Arizona, and his commitment could help the Buckeyes when it comes to the recruitment of high school teammate Bijan Robinson. The four-star running back, who will announce his choice on August 2, is considered to be the Buckeyes’ top RB target in the 2020 class.

Ransom (6'1/200) was deciding between Texas, Notre Dame, and Ohio State, but he was chased by most other high-end Power 5 programs. The four-star is the No. 4 safety and No. 76 overall recruit on the 247Sports’ Composite Board. At a regional workout a few months ago, Ransom ran a 4.67 forty with a 30.8-inch vertical, so he’s not necessarily an elite athlete. Certainly not a bad one, however. Expect Ransom to develop into a starting player and he should be in the rotation as a freshman too.

At this point there are only three schools still in the running for Ransom (6'1/200), who’s cut his list down to Texas, Notre Dame and Ohio State. The Salpointe Catholic (Tucson, AZ) rising senior also made it a point to dispel the notion that Ohio State has him locked up. “I think when I went there I said something that made it seem like I like them a lot,” Ransom told Tom Loy of 247Sports.com. “Ohio State, I had a great trip there, but I also had four other great official visits. I guess because it was my last one, most people think that was my most powerful or most moving one. Ohio State was a great visit though and it was cool for my whole family to see it. It was a great experience.”

“Next up for me is to figure out which school I’ll be playing my college football at,” Ransom, who spoke highly of his recent official visit to Ohio State, told 247Sports recruiting analyst Blair Angulo. “I don’t have a date, I’ll probably just do it when I feel good. I was hoping to do it at some point in July, but it might be before that.” The 6-foot-1, 200-pound safety from Tucson, AZ (Salpointe Catholic) has also taken official visits to LSU, Notre Dame, Oklahoma and Texas, and he’s a hard-hitter with the speed needed to cover the entire secondary without much trouble.

Ransom (6'2/183) will be journeying out to Columbus for an official visit this weekend, one which could work to help distance OSU from Texas and Notre Dame, both of whom he earlier this month checked out on official trips. LSU and Oklahoma drew OVs of their own from the Tucson native back in April. A rangy hard-hitting prospect, Ransom slots onto the 247Sports composite board as the No. 76 overall prospect in the 2020 class.