Buckeyes left out of On3 list of top linebacker units
COLUMBUS — Tommy Eichenberg is trying to carve out a role with the Las Vegas Raiders. Steele Chambers is trying to make the Detroit Lions’ roster. And Ohio State is hitting the reset button at linebacker after saying goodbye to both two-plus-year starters.
Well, kind of.
Cody Simon is all but a lock to start at MIKE linebacker after serving as the Buckeyes’ go-to third ‘backer each of the last two seasons. He’s the next “quarterback” of coordinator Jim Knowles’ defense.
As for the WILL spot, that’s where things get really interesting.
And that’s why it’s not surprising On3 national columnist Jesse Simonton didn’t include Ohio State in his top-10 linebacker units ranking Wednesday.
Here are the 10 linebacker units to make Simonton’s cut ahead of the 2024 season:
- Georgia
- Iowa
- Michigan
- Oklahoma
- Oklahoma State
- Clemson
- Alabama
- Kentucky
- Notre Dame
- LSU
Plus, Simonton’s “Best of the Rest” include Arizona, Auburn, Penn State and Oregon.
Ohio State moved Sonny Styles from safety to linebacker this offseason. Styles is competing with classmate C.J. Hicks for starting snaps alongside Simon in Knowles’ 4-2-5 system.
Both Styles and Hicks will play. How their workload will be split up, or occasionally cross over, is yet to be seen. But the former top-15 overall prospects from the 2022 class have potential for stardom.
That potential, however, is relatively unknown. Styles has starting experience but only at safety, and Hicks has piled up just 75 defensive snaps in his Buckeyes career, according to Pro Football Focus.
Now in his third year, Gabe Powers is expected to back up Simon at middle linebacker. Don’t forget about sophomore Arvell Reese, either. He’s on the rise, too.
New linebackers coach James Laurinaitis will play the best players and will evaluate who those are every week — not just during the offseason but during the regular season as well.
Ohio State is entering the 2024 season with an under-the-radar linebacking corps. That’s what happens when a team loses two starters to the pros.
But the Buckeyes have a chance to take a step forward in the second level and, by season’s end, could wind up on top-10 position lists.
Buckeyes offense heavily featured in position group rankings
Ohio State topped Simonton’s defensive end/EDGE rankings earlier this week. The Buckeyes were also heavily featured in his offensive position group rankings.
From Lettermen Row’s Spencer Holbrook:
The Ohio State offensive line unit appeared in Simonton’s “Best of the Rest” category, just missing the Top 10. LSU, Texas, Georgia, Alabama and Oklahoma State were in Simonton’s top five. Oregon, Missouri, Miami, Tennessee and Ole Miss rounded out the Top 10 in the offensive line rankings.
Ohio State could improve to get into the Top 10 as the offseason continues.
That ranking continued the showing that Ohio State should have one of the best — if not the best — offenses in the sport this upcoming fall. Simonton recently ranked the Ohio State quarterback room as the second-best in the country, behind only Texas, and he ranked the Buckeyes tailback room as the No. 1 unit in the country.
He also made sure to rank the Ohio State wide receiver unit as the top group in college football as well. He did not, however, have the Buckeyes tight end room ranked in his list of the best tight end groups in the country.
None of this should come as a surprise. But as the season continues to draw closer, the buzz keeps growing for this Ohio State team that could be the No. 1 team in the country when preseason polls begin leaking out.
