Brett Ludwiczak
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Player of the Year: Arvell Reese has the tools to be the breakout star on Ohio State’s defense
Brett Ludwiczak via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK
After playing over 300 snaps as a sophomore in 2024, Reese will get even more run at linebacker this season.
From now until preseason camp starts on July 31, Land-Grant Holy Land will be writing articles around a different theme every week. This week is all about the players who will shine this season. Whether they are superstars, diamonds in the rough, or journeymen, these are the Buckeyes who will define the 2025-26 season. You can catch up on all of the Theme Week content here and all of our ”Player of the Year” articles here.
Lately, there has been a return to greatness for Ohio State’s linebackers. After the group saw some down years while Billy Davis was given the role of linebackers coach only because he was the best man at Urban Meyer’s wedding, there has been upward momentum for the unit over the past five years. After Tommy Eichenberg recorded over 100 tackles in 2022 on his way to earning First Team All-Big Ten honors in back-to-back years, Cody Simon took over last year and finished with 112 tackles.
With Simon now in the NFL, the leader of Ohio State’s linebackers this year will be Sonny Styles, who surprised a lot of people when he announced he would be returning to Columbus for another season. While Styles will look to impress NFL teams even further ahead of next year’s draft, the real breakout candidate at linebacker this season for the Buckeyes is shaping up to be Arvell Reese, who will step into the MIKE linebacker spot that Simon occupied last season.
Last year, Buckeye Nation got a taste of what Reese brings to the table. Despite Simon and Styles seeing most of the playing time at linebacker, the athletic gifts that Reese possesses allowed him to earn time on the field throughout the season. When all was said and done, the Cleveland Glenville product played over 300 snaps, registering 43 tackles. As the season went on, Reese became more comfortable on the field, registering a career-high seven tackles against Northwestern and Michigan. Along with his growth throughout the season, there were a number of hits Reese made that took the breath of fans away because of how vicious they were.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/26068453/2169390138.jpg "COLLEGE FOOTBALL: AUG 31 Akron at Ohio State")
Photo by Ian Johnson/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
The contrast of how the careers of C.J. Hicks and Reese have gone since they arrived at Ohio State has been incredible to see. Hicks came to Columbus as a highly-touted recruit, while Reese wasn’t even in the top-20 when it came to linebacker recruits in the country. Hicks has barely been able to make it onto the field at linebacker, and now will be utilized as more of an edge-rusher, while Reese is looking like he’ll be the next in a line of impactful Buckeye linebackers.
It doesn’t hurt that Reese has been able to learn from one of the best linebackers to ever sport the scarlet and gray. Linebackers coach James Laurinaitis has been invaluable since returning to his alma mater a few years ago to take a graduate assistant spot on Ryan Day’s staff. The difference from what we saw from the linebackers under Billy Davis and Al Washington, compared to the level Laurinaitis has the group playing at is night and day.
What makes Reese such an intriguing prospect is his size and speed. At 6-foot-4 and nearly 240 pounds, the junior is a freight train when he gets moving downhill. Along with having incredible size and speed, Reese is also a versatile linebacker. Even though he’ll be playing a lot of MIKE linebacker this season as he replaces Simon, he has also shown that he can be a tremendous rusher off the edge. Last year, Reese was willing to play wherever they needed him at linebacker since he was often spelling Simon and Styles. Since he is able to excel at multiple linebacker spots, he’ll be even more attractive to NFL teams when he decides it is his time to hit the professional ranks.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/26068454/2183604687.jpg "COLLEGE FOOTBALL: NOV 09 Purdue at Ohio State")
Photo by Ian Johnson/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Not only will Reese be a starter when Ohio State opens up the season on August 30th against Texas, he’ll also be celebrating his 20th birthday on that day. Even though Styles and Texas linebacker Anthony Hill will receive most of the attention at that position in the College Football Playoff semifinal rematch from January, it could be Reese who comes out of the game with the brightest-looking future.
With an offseason full of work with Laurinaitis to ready Reese to be a full-time starter this season, the Cleveland native could be one of the biggest breakout stars on defense this year, not only in the Big Ten, but in all of college football. Buckeye fans have seen glimpses of what Reese can do on the field; now it is time for him to do it on a weekly basis.
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Brett Ludwiczak via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK
After playing over 300 snaps as a sophomore in 2024, Reese will get even more run at linebacker this season.
From now until preseason camp starts on July 31, Land-Grant Holy Land will be writing articles around a different theme every week. This week is all about the players who will shine this season. Whether they are superstars, diamonds in the rough, or journeymen, these are the Buckeyes who will define the 2025-26 season. You can catch up on all of the Theme Week content here and all of our ”Player of the Year” articles here.
Lately, there has been a return to greatness for Ohio State’s linebackers. After the group saw some down years while Billy Davis was given the role of linebackers coach only because he was the best man at Urban Meyer’s wedding, there has been upward momentum for the unit over the past five years. After Tommy Eichenberg recorded over 100 tackles in 2022 on his way to earning First Team All-Big Ten honors in back-to-back years, Cody Simon took over last year and finished with 112 tackles.
With Simon now in the NFL, the leader of Ohio State’s linebackers this year will be Sonny Styles, who surprised a lot of people when he announced he would be returning to Columbus for another season. While Styles will look to impress NFL teams even further ahead of next year’s draft, the real breakout candidate at linebacker this season for the Buckeyes is shaping up to be Arvell Reese, who will step into the MIKE linebacker spot that Simon occupied last season.
Last year, Buckeye Nation got a taste of what Reese brings to the table. Despite Simon and Styles seeing most of the playing time at linebacker, the athletic gifts that Reese possesses allowed him to earn time on the field throughout the season. When all was said and done, the Cleveland Glenville product played over 300 snaps, registering 43 tackles. As the season went on, Reese became more comfortable on the field, registering a career-high seven tackles against Northwestern and Michigan. Along with his growth throughout the season, there were a number of hits Reese made that took the breath of fans away because of how vicious they were.
The contrast of how the careers of C.J. Hicks and Reese have gone since they arrived at Ohio State has been incredible to see. Hicks came to Columbus as a highly-touted recruit, while Reese wasn’t even in the top-20 when it came to linebacker recruits in the country. Hicks has barely been able to make it onto the field at linebacker, and now will be utilized as more of an edge-rusher, while Reese is looking like he’ll be the next in a line of impactful Buckeye linebackers.
It doesn’t hurt that Reese has been able to learn from one of the best linebackers to ever sport the scarlet and gray. Linebackers coach James Laurinaitis has been invaluable since returning to his alma mater a few years ago to take a graduate assistant spot on Ryan Day’s staff. The difference from what we saw from the linebackers under Billy Davis and Al Washington, compared to the level Laurinaitis has the group playing at is night and day.
What makes Reese such an intriguing prospect is his size and speed. At 6-foot-4 and nearly 240 pounds, the junior is a freight train when he gets moving downhill. Along with having incredible size and speed, Reese is also a versatile linebacker. Even though he’ll be playing a lot of MIKE linebacker this season as he replaces Simon, he has also shown that he can be a tremendous rusher off the edge. Last year, Reese was willing to play wherever they needed him at linebacker since he was often spelling Simon and Styles. Since he is able to excel at multiple linebacker spots, he’ll be even more attractive to NFL teams when he decides it is his time to hit the professional ranks.
Not only will Reese be a starter when Ohio State opens up the season on August 30th against Texas, he’ll also be celebrating his 20th birthday on that day. Even though Styles and Texas linebacker Anthony Hill will receive most of the attention at that position in the College Football Playoff semifinal rematch from January, it could be Reese who comes out of the game with the brightest-looking future.
With an offseason full of work with Laurinaitis to ready Reese to be a full-time starter this season, the Cleveland native could be one of the biggest breakout stars on defense this year, not only in the Big Ten, but in all of college football. Buckeye fans have seen glimpses of what Reese can do on the field; now it is time for him to do it on a weekly basis.
Continue reading...