Ohio State walk-on, TikTok creator Caden Davis dismissed from football team ahead of title game

Ohio State walk-on defensive lineman Caden Davis, known more for his TikTok content than anything he’s done on the field, has been dismissed from the Buckeyes football team, a program spokesman announced Wednesday according to The Lantern.

The news of Davis’ dismissal, which The Lantern confirmed via Ohio State sports information director Jerry Emig, comes just five days before the Buckeyes play Notre Dame in the 2025 College Football Playoff National Championship Game, at 7:30 pm ET Monday from Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

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Davis released a statement confirming his departure Wednesday on Instagram:

“Being a buckeye has always been a dream come true of mine since being a kid. I am so very appreciative to the coaches, staff, and players for welcoming me into the team,” Davis wrote on IG. “I truly cannot thank them enough for allowing me to live my dream for the last 2 years and mentoring me the way they have. With changes in the NCAA and personal career reasons I will not be a PWO at the OSU. I appreciate the support of everyone and your help to respect my privacy about the decision made. Thank you, Go Bucks.”

According to The Lantern, Davis saw his total follower count grow to more than 300,000 users across Instagram, TikTok and X/Twitter while posting mostly behind-the-scenes style videos from inside the Ohio State athletic facilities, campus life and media events. Davis also posted TikTok videos of some of the team-sponsored swag he received as an Ohio State student-athlete.

As a second-year walk-on, Davis never played a snap at Ohio State and Emig was unable to address the reason for his dismissal.

Urban Meyer calls Ohio State fans ‘complete, absolute nut-jobs’ for their passion

Fox Sports analyst Urban Meyer has coached at some of the biggest programs in college football, including Ohio State, Florida and as an assistant at Notre Dame. Meyer feels that the passion Buckeyes fans have is different from any other school in the country.

On The Triple Option podcast he recently went through the most passionate fan bases in every conference and shared that in his opinion, none compare to Ohio State Buckeyes fans.

“I went North, so I went the Wolverines, Penn State and Notre Dame. I went hard South — Florida, Miami and Florida State. I went SEC – Alabama, Auburn, Tennessee, Georgia, I know I’m going to miss a couple. Texas, A&M and Oklahoma from the center of the country. And then you’ve got USC and the newcomers Oregon and Washington.

“The one thing you have to ask yourself is, there’s really one place, and I’m biased because I’m from the great state of Ohio, where football is born in your blood.”

As Urban Meyer pointed out, at some cities in Ohio, literally moments after you are born, you become an Ohio State fan.

“You realize when you’re born in Columbus, Ohio, they give you a ‘Beat the Team Up North’ shirt. The baby has a ‘Beat the Team Up North,’” Meyer explained. “In Canton, Ohio, you’re born, in Massillon, they put a football, if you’re a boy, in your crib when you’re born.”

Matt Connolly contributed to this report.