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Ohio State elite defender’s admission about his position change shows just the player he is for the Buckeyes
Ohio State’s 2024 team was loaded with returning talent plus the players that they went out and got in the portal.
A transfer portal haul that consisted of Caleb Downs, Quinshon Judkins, Will Howard, and Seth McLaughlin was huge for the Buckeyes and accomplishing their big goal.
Downs coming in and being the team’s top safety paired with great unselfishness from LB Sonny Styles was huge for the defense. Styles made the switch from safety to linebacker and it paid off big time.
“My thing was where on the defense do I fit, where I can help the team win,” Styles said in a recent sitdown interview with The Podcast. “ [It is] where I can be at my best and I felt like it was no question that being a linebacker was going to help me and help the team. So, it was a double win, there was really no convincing.”
Bringing in Downs played a part in the switch, but so is the transformation of Styles himself. The Pickerington native came in as a 6-foot-4, 215-pound safety for the Buckeyes as a five-star player in the class of 2022. Now, Styles is up to 235 pounds and has filled out his frame.
“The season got over, I saw Caleb come in, I seen the defense we had. I was like, ‘Why would I not play WILL?’.”
Styles recorded 100 tackles, six sacks, and a forced fumble in 16 games in 2024. Styles made 53 tackles and two sacks the previous season as a safety.
“I’m excited I made the move. I feel much more comfortable at linebacker than I did at safety,” Styles explained. “It’s like my abilities can flourish more at the position.”
Making the switch to James Laurinaitis’ unit has helped Styles blossom into a terrific player. He is a prime candidate to wear the “Block O” in 2025, as well as being a team captain.
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