What Arvell Reese means to the Ohio State defense

Late in the first quarter of the highly anticipated season opener between No. 1 Texas and No. 2 Ohio State, Arch Manning and the Longhorns faced a 3rd and 10 near midfield. On the other side of the ball Ohio State linebacker Arvell Reese lurked in the A-Gap, right over the left guard.

At the snap Reese flipped his hips, showing Manning as well as the offensive line, that he was going to drop into coverage.

But he was not dropping into coverage.

Instead, Reese then exploded downhill, running through the startled left tackle on his way towards Manning, for a drive-ending sack of the quarterback.

It was the kind of play that has made Ohio State one of the best defenses in the country, has Reese in the discussion as one of the top prospects for the 2026 NFL Draft, and has the Buckeyes on the cusp of another run to a National Championship.

The Buckeyes begin their title defense later tonight in the Cotton Bowl, when No. 2 Ohio State takes on No. 10 Miami. Miami survived their first-round game against Texas A&M behind their own top defensive prospect, pass rusher Rueben Bain Jr., but now Reese and the rest of the talented Ohio State defense get to take the stage.

It is a group that defensive coordinator Matt Patricia considers a “joy” to coach.

“I’m just super appreciative to be around all these guys,” said Patricia in his press conference ahead of the Cotton Bowl. “Like I said before, they’re great. They’re great young men. I just have so much joy when I walk in the room and I see all of them.”

And with good reason. Patricia’s defense is one of the best in the nation, ranking first in total defense (213.5 yards allowed per game), first in scoring defense (8.15 points per game), fifth in rushing defense (84.5 yards per game) and first in passing yards allowed (129.1 yards per game). Reese is one of four players on Patricia’s defense — along with fellow linebacker Sonny Styles, defensive tackle Kayden MacDonald, and safety Caleb Downs — that could be drafted in the first round next spring, with pass rusher Kenyatta Jackson a fringe first-round prospect.

But Reese has become a focal point for opposing offenses to deal with.

After seeing time on the edge in 2023 and serving as a reserve linebacker last year, Reese stepped into a starting role for the 2025 campaign and got off to an incredible start under Patricia, recording nine tackles and a sack in the season-opening win against Texas. Let’s return to that play mentioned at the outset:

Reese sells this delayed blitz to perfection, flipping his hips to mimic a drop into coverage before crashing downhill, running through left tackle Trevor Goosby (himself a potential first-round pick) and getting to Manning to end the drive.

The sack was one of seven Reese recorded this season. Many of those came with him operating either as a blitzer in an off-ball role, or flashing downhill late as a spy, as he does on this sack against Wisconsin:

But his background on the edge makes him a weapon on the outside as well. On this play against Penn State he aligns outside Jackson, uses a chop to beat the left tackle’s arms, and then dips under and around him for the sack:

However, Reese brings more to the table than his experience off the edge, or his ability as a blitzer. He has shown tremendous eyes, awareness, and athleticism in coverage this year, and Patricia has used him all over the field in Ohio State’s coverage schemes. On this play against Wisconsin he aligns over the tight end, carries a vertical route before passing it off to a safety, and contributes to a coverage sack:

As Reese’s production soared in the first half of the season, opposing offensive coordinators took notice. Soon, protection schemes were slid in his direction, and game plans started to account for #8 everywhere he was on teh field.

It is something Patricia spoke about in his press conference ahead of the Cotton Bowl.

“I think his impact has been great,” said Patricia. “I think on the defense, his role, his flexibility, the way that we’ve been able to utilize him has been super special, and I think he’s really kind of showcased what he can do and how he can impact the game, which has been awesome to see.

“We are kind of seeing some of those game plan things that offenses do to try to handle – when you have an impact player like that, offenses have to adjust,” Patricia continued. “They’ve got to do something. So we’re going to try to stay in front of that a little bit.”

That presence might not show up on Reese’s stat sheet, but it does elsewhere for Ohio State. Take this play against Michigan, where Reese is lurking over the left tackle. The Wolverines slide the protection in his direction, but Reese drops into coverage. That creates an opportunity on the other edge, first for Styles who does blitz off the edge and forces Bryce Underwood off the spot. While the freshman quarterback avoids Styles, he cannot avoid Caden Curry:

Another way Patricia likes to use Reese and Styles is by walking them up in the A-Gaps before the snap, similar to the first example. That has also drawn the attention of opposing pass blockers, as it does on this play against Indiana in the Big Ten Championship Game:

Both Styles and Reese walk down over the guards, but drop into zone coverage on this third-down play. When they drop into coverage it leaves the right guard (across from Styles) helping the center while the left guard (over Reese) is left blocking air.

It also creates a one-on-one opportunity for Curry against the right tackle, who gets home for a sack of Fernando Mendoza

It is this “gravity” from Reese that is helping the Ohio State defense, even when his personal production does not show up in the post-game statistical report.

But his coach is well aware of what it means for the Buckeyes.

“A lot of the stuff we attacked early in the season now, I think teams have kind of seen enough film on it,” said Patricia. “So a lot of times they’ll slide to his spot where he is, or they’ll try to make sure they have him accounted for in different ways. So that’s great. That gives opportunity to other players on the field to be able to have opportunities when that happens.”

Tonight, the Buckeyes will take their next step on a journey they hope will end with another title.

And Reese’s gravity could pull them towards that goal.