Ohio State football: Linebacker rotation is deepest it’s been in years

Ohio State will have to replace a lot on the defensive side of the football this season. One area they don’t have to worry about though is at linebacker.

Ohio State will have to replace a lot on the front end and back end of their defense. They lose the most dynamic player I’ve ever seen suit up for the Scarlet and Gray in Chase Young. They also lose two first-round corners in Jeff Okudah and Damon Arnette.

One area they don’t have to be too concerned with is the linebacker corp. In fact, that will be the strength of their defense this year. Pete Werner and Tuf Borland return as starters, and Baron Browning has played a lot of snaps too. He will be that third starter on the outside.

Those three guys have played a lot of football over the last few years, but some other guys will likely get snaps too. Teradja Mitchell will likely see a fair amount of snaps as well. Dallas Gant will likely see the field in some capacity too. Both are juniors who are looking to put their stamp on their time at Ohio State.

Linebacker might be the deepest position on Ohio State’s roster on either side of the ball. They have so many junior linebackers who want their shot at playing time. Linebacker could be the position group to watch when it comes to practice time.

It’s very likely all of these guys and a host of others will see the field at some point. The Buckeyes are likely to be in a lot of blowouts this season so the backups will get plenty of snaps throughout the year. It’ll be tough to dethrone Borland, Werner, and Browning for snaps in meaningful games.

Ohio State always preaches building depth at all positions. They clearly have done that will all three linebacker spots. That group will be fun to watch this season.