Ohio State’s Linebackers Put On Historic Display at Combine

Ohio State’s pair of linebacker prospects lit up the NFL Combine on Feb. 25.

Sonny Styles and Arvell Reese were the leaders in the middle of the Buckeyes defense. Styles set the Combine on fire with a historic workout, and while Reese did not test in all the events, he matched Styles’ time in the 40-yard dash. Their combined performances and stuffed stat sheets make both players enticing prospects and potential top-10 draft picks.

Styles put up historic numbers in his workout. His 11-foot, 2-inch broad jump was the 4th-best all-time for a linebacker at the Combine. His 43 1/2 inch vertical was the best performance for a linebacker ever. He did all this while standing at a full 6’5″ and weighing in at 244 pounds. According to NFL senior researcher Tony Holzman-Escareno, he was the only player since 2003 who put up a 40+ inch vertical, an 11-foot broad jump, and a sub-4.5 40 at 240+ pounds.

Styles scored an almost perfect unofficial Relative Athletic Score, but was dragged by a 4.26 second short shuttle—a good but not great performance—and a 7.09 3-cone drill, somewhat middling for a linebacker. He ranked 4th out of 3,216 prospects given RAS scores since 1987. And his physical traits were so unheard of that the NFL Network broadcast of the Combine compared him to legendary NFL wide receiver Calvin Johnson, among other players.

A native of Pickerington, Ohio, Styles spent four seasons with the Buckeyes. He was recruited to play safety and spent his first two seasons there before converting to linebacker in 2024. It was his best season statistically: he racked up 100 total tackles, including 10.5 tackles for loss, 6 sacks, 5 passes defended, a forced fumble, and a recovery.

He helped the Buckeyes to a National Championship that season. In 2025, he totaled 82 tackles with 6.5 TFLs, 1 sack, an interception, 4 pass defenses, and a forced fumble. In total, he finished his college career with 244 total tackles, 22.5 TFLs, 9 sacks, his lone interception, 10 passes defended, 3 forced fumbles, and his one recovery.

At his media availability on Feb. 25, Styles touted his ability to play everywhere in the middle of the defense.

“I think it starts with being a versatile linebacker,” he said. “I think I can play the Mike [true middle], Will [weak side], Sam [strong side]. I think I can do all three at a high level. I’m very athletic player, and I think that that shows up in my game. I think I showed this last year that I was able to be a true Mike. I think I showed I can stop the run, showed some physicality this year.”

In critiquing himself, he said he needs to work on his zone coverage. He believes he did not do enough this season to disrupt around the ball. He also criticized himself for playing too high, especially considering his height.

Styles was asked by a reporter if he thought he and Reese were the best duo in college football.

“I’m not really sure,” he said. “I think we’re a really good duo. I’m not really going to … try and rank it or anything like that, because there’s a lot of great duos that played in college football, but I definitely think you could probably call us one of the best.”

Reese only ran the 40, but he and Styles tied for the best performance of the day with a 4.46 official time. He measured in at 6’4″ and 241 pounds.

Reese only saw the field in two seasons with the Buckeyes, but he still put up impressive numbers. He totaled 112 tackles, including 13.5 TFLs, 7 sacks, and 2 passes defended. Just this season, he accounted for 69 of those tackles, 10 TFLs, 6.5 sacks, and both of his passes defended.

While he played with Styles in the middle of Ohio State’s base nickel defense, Reese said at the podium Wednesday that his true talents lie elsewhere.

“I think I’m [an] outside linebacker, edge, potentially,” he said.

He noted that he played on the edge in Ohio State’s five-man fronts and off the ball in its four-man fronts.