The Ohio State football program arguably has a better defense than it did last season, when it had the number-one defense in the country. They can thank Matt Patricia for that, as his scheme has yet to yield a red zone touchdown or an opponent scoring in double-digits.
One of the rising stars in that defense has been Arvell Reese. Reese flashed in the very first game against Texas and has played really well in every game since. Now that he's a starter, he's showing everyone just how good he can be, especially in this style of defense.
Former Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer is very impressed with what Reese has been able to do for the Buckeyes so far. He gave a nice film breakdown of what Reese did against Washington and called him a "freak" for what he was able to do in that game.
Ohio State head coach gushes over Arvell Reese's freakish play
While appearing on The Big Ten Network, Meyer broke down what makes Reese so special for the Ohio State Buckeyes, starting with a play in which Caden Curry records a sack.
Arvell Reese is a freak 🤩@CoachUrbanMeyer hits the film room to take a look at one of @OhioStateFB LB's Week 5 highlights 👇 pic.twitter.com/ZLeXsG0PJs
— Big Ten Football (@B1Gfootball) October 3, 2025
"You know who caused the sack? Number eight. The freak, Arvell Reese...When you feel offensive linemen leave the line of scrimmage, guess what's coming? Screen. He runs down the screen, and as a result, Ohio State gets a sack."
That play underscores part of what makes Reese so special. He's fast enough to spy someone like Demond Williams Jr., but he's also big enough to get through those offensive linemen to blow up that screen. His rare blend of size and speed is what makes him so tough to deal with.
More than that, Reese is incredibly smart. He saw all of the indicators of that play being a screen and made sure to blow it up before it even happened. Not many linebackers around the country can do that. He had all kinds of excellent plays against the Huskies last weekend.
Reese already looks like someone who could be a first-round pick in next year's draft, despite only being a one-year starter. He has just played too well for him to stay and develop his skills any further. He's just a really good player, and he's a big reason why Ohio State's defense is so good.
Reese is only going to get better as the season goes along and he gets more reps.