Matt Patricia’s hot start at Ohio State is swinging a 4-star recruit in the Buckeyes direction

It was fair to be dubious when Ryan Day hired Matt Patricia to replace Jim Knowles as his defensive coordinator after Knowles was hired away by Penn State this past offseason. Patricia had a history of success with Bill Belichick, but not much outside of New England, and a disastrous tenure as an NFL head coach in Detroit. 

However, Patricia unfurled a flawless game plan in Week 1 to down Arch Manning and top-ranked Texas, and has Ohio State’s defense, which lost a boatload of talent from last season and its entire starting defensive line to the NFL, playing like a championship-caliber unit as the Buckeyes head into conference play. 

His coaching hasn’t just help lead the program back to the No. 1 spot in the AP Poll, it seems to be attracting top talent as 2027 four-star linebacker Roman Igwebuike has been impressed with the first-year coordinator’s usage of Ohio State’s veteran linebackers. 

Uncommitted 4-star Roman Igwebuike impressed by Matt Patricia’s linebacker usage

The 6-foot-3, 220-pound linebacker from Chicago is the No. 8-ranked linebacker in the 2027 recruiting class and 117th-ranked player in the country according to 247Sports Composite. Primarily an off-ball linebacker, his film reveals an instinctual downhill player who, when kept free, can blow up plays in the backfield. 

A player like Igwebuike wants to play fast and free, and that’s largely what Patricia has done with the Buckeyes, but he’s also tapped back into his Bill Belichick background to mold the defense into his image. 

Ohio State has traditionally played with a four-down defensive front, and while Belichick toggled between 3-4 and 4-3 throughout his career, he tended to rely on a multiple 3-4 under front with an outside linebacker on the line of scrimmage. He has mixed that in this season with Sonny Styles playing 26 snaps on the edge and Arvell Reese playing 57 edge snaps so far. 

With Reese’s deployment along the defensive front, he’s been disruptive, leading the team with 20 total tackles while also registering two sacks, seven quarterback pressures, and two pass breakups. He’s been one of Ohio State’s best defensive players, and Igwebuike, who is clearly watching the Buckeyes closely this year, may want to fit into that role for Patricia in a few years. 

Ohio State has been pushing hard to flip multiple players in the 2026 class, so that cycle is far from over, but Day has already landed three commits in 2027, and would certainly welcome another if Igwebuike is ready to make a decision during his junior campaign.