Ohio State football: Hartford ‘officially’ becomes member of team

That is a rite of passage that indicates a player becomes a full-fledged member of the Buckeyes, a practice started by Urban Meyer and maintained by current head coach Ryan Day.

In a video shared on Twitter by the official OSU team account, Hartford thanked God, his family, the coaching staff and strength and nutrition staff for helping him progress to the point he could officially be considered part of the “BIA,” the name the secondary has given itself.

That stands for “Best in America.”

Ohio State director of player development and Northmont grad C.J. Barnett can be seen in the video as well introducing Hartford.

“This guy has a chance to be really good if he keeps going,” said Barnett, who was a standout safety for the Buckeyes. “He’s had a pretty good spring so far. The newest member of BIA , Malik Hartford!”

The 6-foot-2, 183-pound Hartford was a four-star recruit and the No. 3 prospect in Ohio for the class of 2023.

Jelani Thurman, a four-star freshman tight end from Georgia also going through his first spring at Ohio State, also had his black stripe removed Friday. He is the son of former Bengals linebacker Odell Thurman.

Ohio State has one week of spring practices left and will conclude them with the spring game April 15 at Ohio Stadium.