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Former Wisconsin Linebacker Christian Alliegro Commits to Ohio State
By Andy Anders on January 8, 2026 at 9:35 am @andyanders55
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Ohio State just added a lot of experience to its 2026 linebacker corps.
Former Wisconsin linebacker Christian Alliegro committed to the Buckeyes on Thursday, as the senior elected to spend his final year of eligibility in Columbus.
Alliegro played a rotational role for the Badgers in 2024, playing in all 12 games but starting just three. He played 10 snaps or fewer in Wisconsin's first two games that year, per Pro Football Focus, 32 snaps or fewer in the next five before surging to the top of the depth chart with at least 67 snaps in UW's final four contests. He finished his sophomore campaign with 66 tackles, five tackles for loss and three sacks.
The Alliegro File
- Year: Senior
- Size: 6-4/247
- Pos: LB
- Previous School: Wisconsin (2023-25)
- 2025 Stats: 53 tackles, 8 TFL, 4 sacks
All told, Alliegro finished 2025 with 53 tackles, eight tackles for loss and four sacks. A savvy, physical player with a nose for the football, he could fill in at either Mike or Will linebacker next season for Ohio State.
Former Wisconsin Linebacker Christian Alliegro Commits to Ohio State
Ohio State bolsters its 2026 linebacker corps with the commitment of former Wisconsin linebacker Christian Alliegro.
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ScriptOhio
Everybody is somebody else's weirdo.
Former Wisconsin Linebacker Christian Alliegro Commits to Ohio State
By Andy Anders on January 8, 2026 at 9:35 am @andyanders55
Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images
Email this ArticleShare on RedditShare on TwitterShare on Facebook
7 Comments
Ohio State just added a lot of experience to its 2026 linebacker corps.
Former Wisconsin linebacker Christian Alliegro committed to the Buckeyes on Thursday, as the senior elected to spend his final year of eligibility in Columbus.
Alliegro played a rotational role for the Badgers in 2024, playing in all 12 games but starting just three. He played 10 snaps or fewer in Wisconsin's first two games that year, per Pro Football Focus, 32 snaps or fewer in the next five before surging to the top of the depth chart with at least 67 snaps in UW's final four contests. He finished his sophomore campaign with 66 tackles, five tackles for loss and three sacks.
The Alliegro File
The start of Alliegro's junior season showed the true depths of his potential. In his first seven games, he racked up 48 tackles, six TFL and two sacks. Then, in that seventh game against Ohio State, he broke his arm. Despite playing through the injury the rest of the contest, he missed Wisconsin's next two games with the injury and wasn't the same while wearing a club upon his return. He never recorded more than two tackles in his final three games.
- Year: Senior
- Size: 6-4/247
- Pos: LB
- Previous School: Wisconsin (2023-25)
- 2025 Stats: 53 tackles, 8 TFL, 4 sacks
All told, Alliegro finished 2025 with 53 tackles, eight tackles for loss and four sacks. A savvy, physical player with a nose for the football, he could fill in at either Mike or Will linebacker next season for Ohio State.
Former Wisconsin Linebacker Christian Alliegro Commits to Ohio State
Ohio State bolsters its 2026 linebacker corps with the commitment of former Wisconsin linebacker Christian Alliegro.www.elevenwarriors.com
There will be some competition for Alliegro when he arrives at Ohio State. The Buckeyes' No. 3 linebacker, Payton Pierce, returns after a 43-tackle season coming off the bench in 2025. Sophomore Riley Pettijohn is a five-star prospect who showed flashes during his brief appearances as a freshman.
Regardless, adding a player with Alliegro's experience strengthens Ohio State at the linebacker position in 2026 after it had the nation's best tandem, All-Americans Sonny Styles and Arvell Reese, in 2025.
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1926Buckeyes
Head Coach
Looks like a good edge rusher that can throw off OL and run through RBs on the way to the QB.
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OregonBuckeye
Semper Fi Buckeyes
Seems to be a solid replacement for Reese. Hoping this doesn't push some of our promising young LBs out tho
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Captain Buckeye
Assistant Coach
Yeah no kidding.. but the way MP works I won’t be surprised to see more 3-4 LB looks if that’s where our strength is
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RugbyBuck
Our church has no bells.
I don't think you leave JL's room and MP's defense even if you have to wait/continue to rotate (and if you do, well...). Reese was a one year starter and will be a top 5 pick. Yes, much of that is athletic ability, but it's also development with JL and MP.
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Excellent pickup, he really stood out against us and in every game I watched him. He's a really talented player with a hard nose for the football. This is about as sure of a thing as it gets, I'm stoked on this one.
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ScriptOhio
Everybody is somebody else's weirdo.
Ohio State football newcomer who starred at another Big Ten program confirmed suspicion about his decision to become a Buckeye
Ohio State went out and got a stud linebacker from Wisconsin from the transfer portal, and now former Badger Christian Alliegro is opening up about the decision.
atozsports.com
Ohio State football newcomer who starred at another Big Ten program confirmed suspicion about his decision to become a Buckeye
Ohio State went out and got a stud linebacker from Wisconsin from the transfer portal, and now former Badger Christian Alliegro is opening up about the decision.
The transfer portal was very active for the Ohio State Buckeyes and one of their moves was adding a key Big Ten defender.
With Arvell Reese and Sonny Styles heading to the NFL, Ohio State needed to add experience at the linebacker position. They did just that by adding former Wisconsin standout Christian Alliegro into the mix.
Ohio State’s Christian Alliegro gets honest about his transfer decision across the Big Ten
“I think ultimately I just wanted to come somewhere that can help me get to the next level,” Alliegro said on his decision to transfer to Columbus. “Obviously, Ohio State has the best players and the best coaches to do that [with], so it’s kind of a no-brainer.”“Obviously, it was tough because I had such a great time in Wisconsin,” Alliegro admitted. “But I think I understood ultimately what was best for me and my career for the future. It was tough to leave, but ultimately I had to do what’s best for me.”
Playing under former Ohio State coach Luke Fickell at Wisconsin, Alliegro made 53 tackles, eight tackles for loss, and four sacks in 10 games last season. A year before as a sophomore, the 6-foot-4, 241-pound linebacker made 66 tackles and three sacks.
Aliegro is going to give Ohio State some pass-rush help from the linebacker position in a similar way Reese did last season. The Buckeyes will have Payton Pierce, Riley Pettijohn, Garrett Stover, and TJ Alford in the rotation at linebacker in some order along with Alliegro.
In what will be a one-year run in Columbus, Alliegro has a great chance to have a special season in Matt Patricia’s disguising defense.
Just sayin': Click on the link to see the entire interview.
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ScriptOhio
Everybody is somebody else's weirdo.
Christian Alliegro Lining Up Mostly on the Edge This Spring As He Prepares to Play Similar Role to Arvell Reese in Ohio State’s Defense
Christian Alliegro has lined up mostly on the edge in his first seven practices as a Buckeye as he prepares to play a similar role to that which Arvell Reese played for Ohio State in 2025.
Christian Alliegro Lining Up Mostly on the Edge This Spring As He Prepares to Play Similar Role to Arvell Reese in Ohio State’s Defense
Christian Alliegro’s usage in practice through the first half of his first spring as a Buckeye suggests he could be the Arvell Reese of Ohio State’s 2026 defense – at least in terms of the role he’ll play.
Viewed as a presumptive starter at linebacker alongside Payton Pierce since he transferred to Ohio State from Wisconsin in January, Alliegro said he’s lined up primarily as an edge rusher and Sam linebacker in his first seven practices as a Buckeye.
“We've been doing a lot of edge stuff right now, so I'm kind of playing like that Sam position to the field,” Alliegro told reporters in his first interview session as a Buckeye following Ohio State’s seventh practice of the spring on Thursday. “I think next week we'll go more down to like a (four down linemen, two linebacker scheme), but right now we're kind of like a one-backer Sam, so I've been working a lot on the edge right now.”
As one of Ohio State’s top two linebackers last season alongside Sonny Styles, Reese lined up on the edge for just over half of his snaps (327 of 651), according to Pro Football Focus. Now expected to primarily play edge rusher in the NFL as a projected top-five draft pick, Reese was a dynamic force for Ohio State’s defense in his hybrid linebacker/edge role last season, earning consensus All-American honors as he recorded 69 total tackles with 10 tackles for loss, 6.5 sacks and two pass breakups.
Alliegro said Ohio State defensive coordinator Matt Patricia and linebackers coach James Laurinaitis have talked to him about playing a similar role as Reese since they were recruiting him out of the transfer portal. Alliegro didn’t line up on the edge frequently at Wisconsin, playing just 32 snaps there last season according to PFF, but he believes it’s a role that fits his game well.
“My length, my ability to set the edge, my ability to pass rush in different ways,” Alliegro said when asked why he thinks playing on the edge suits him well.
That said, Patricia has been intentional about having him focus on playing on the edge first before taking on other roles, recognizing that Alliegro is still acclimating to playing in Ohio State’s defense.
“If they're just getting into the program where maybe they're an older player and things are going to go fast, what you try to really do is like, ‘Hey, let me just teach you this one thing first. Let me see how you handle that. Let you get a little bit of confidence with that first.’ Then ‘Let me teach you this next thing,’ and then you build it that way,” Patricia said last week when asked about Alliegro. “I think if you throw all of it at them at once, sometimes you're kind of like just doing a bunch of different things, but you're not real confident in one thing. I think the key is to get them confident in one thing first, so they know that like, ‘Hey, I know I can do this.’ And then build from there. And certainly the linebacker position, you have to do that because there is so much that kind of goes on there.”
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