Arvell Reese might be the best defensive player in college football, and while he's not on NFL radars just yet, he will be soon.
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Ohio State’s overlooked defensive superstar should be shooting up NFL Draft boards
Arvell Reese might be the best defensive player in college football, and while he's not on NFL radars just yet, he will be soon.
Ohio State lost four NFL draft picks off its defensive line, a starting linebacker, a starting safety, and two starting cornerbacks from its national championship-winning roster, along with the defensive coordinator who led the unit, and may have gotten better.
It’s been smooth sailing so far on Matt Patricia’s maiden voyage in Columbus. The Buckeyes have yet to allow double-digit points this season, are allowing the fewest points per game in the country. They rank inside the top 10 in total defense and top 20 in the FBS in both EPA/play and success rate. Simply put, they’ve been dominant, and they’ve done it, largely, with fresh faces.
One of those fresh(er) faces isn’t a newcomer, but he was an overlooked contributor a year ago who has blossomed into a superstar: junior linebacker Arvell Reese.
Reese leads the team with 25 tackles, as any good linebacker should, but it’s his versatility that has made him so special. He’s instinctive about getting into passing lanes as a zone dropper, sheds blockers like a much bigger player than the 6-foot-4, 243 pounds he’s listed at, and is disruptive in the backfield with 2.0 tackles for loss and 2.0 sacks.
He still isn’t quite on the NFL draftnik communities radar, and won’t be found in the first round of many 2026 mock drafts, but he will be. His tape from Ohio State’s Week 5 win over Washington has been circulating on social media, and if you don’t believe me, see for yourself why he’s a surefire 2026 first-rounder and the best linebacker in college football.
Another week, another Arvell Reese cutup. The 6-4, 245-pound freak is wreaking havoc every week and rising into a tier of one of the very best players in the draft class.
Arvell Reese is the hybrid linebacker every NFL team wants
This is an image that many people have in their head about who Micah Parsons is in the NFL, an oversized hybrid linebacker who can run in coverage, but is a monster as a pass-rusher, and for Parsons, that hasn’t been true in years. He still can do all of those things, but he’s a full-time edge rusher and has been since his second year in the NFL. He’s played just four snaps off the line of scrimmage for the Packers this year.
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