It is clear that Ohio State has the top defense in the country, along with simply being the top team in the country. Ryan Day and Matt Patricia have the Buckeyes' defense firing on all cylinders, suffocating their opponents, making it impossible for any team to be in competition with the Buckeyes.
For one player on the Ohio State defense, he has gotten his chance this season to show out as a new starter, and boy, has he. Linebacker Arvell Reese has had a stellar season and has even raised his 2026 NL Draft stock already. According to Pro Football Focus, Reese has raised his stock so much, he is being looked at as a first-round pick, maybe even a Top 10 selection.
Reese has always been a great player, but being a starter this season is a big reason he has risen so much on the 2026 draft board.
Arvell Reese is One of the Top Risers in the 2026 NFL Draft📈 pic.twitter.com/lPl5AnfDX9
— PFF College (@PFF_College) October 23, 2025
The former four-star high school recruit is in his third season with the Buckeyes, but he has gotten ample playing time since stepping on campus in Columbus. In his first season, Reese saw action in six games, but a concussion kept him out of most of the 2023 season. In 2024, Reese played in a rotation and played well anytime he got the chance.
In 2025, Reese was named a full-time starter with Sonny Stiles, and the two have become one of the best linebacker duos in the country. Reese's PFF grades so far this season with a 71.3 overall defense grade, a 73.9 run-defense grade, and a 75.2 pass-rush defense.
Those grades have made Reese a Top 20 prospect on the PFF big board. So far this season, Reese has 42 total tackles, which is one less than what he had in all of 2024, 23 solo tackles, which is five more than he had in all of 2024, two passes defended, and 5.5 sacks.