For the second year in a row, Ohio State had the most players selected in the NFL Draft of any school, with 11 total players drafted this year. Among that group, the Buckeyes boast two of the top five picks and four first-rounders (all in the top 11), along with three second-round picks and one player in each of the third, sixth, and seventh rounds.
Much is already being written about who will be the next man up for each of the drafted players, but before we turn our sights to next season, I wanted
to take the opportunity to celebrate some of the best moments this year’s class brought us in 2025.
Looking back on the season that was, I found it harder to select top plays than you might imagine. For starters, each player offered up a whole buffet of options, from scoring plays to forced turnovers to big stops at critical moments. There was no formal rubric for my assessment. The only real constraint was that the selected plays all came from the 2025 season. Beyond that, the plays I’ve deemed “the best” are entirely subjective, whether they’re the showiest, the ones I found most memorable, or the ones that made the biggest impact in a game.
With that in mind, let’s revisit some of the top plays from each of the Buckeyes’ 2026 first-round picks:
Carnell Tate (No. 4 overall pick, Tennessee Titans)
In 2025, The Game felt like it carried even more weight than in other years. It was the only flaw in the Buckeyes’ 2024 season, and the losing streak had gone on so long that there was even a contingent (one I was a member of at times) that felt Ryan Day’s job should be on the line if Ohio State didn’t beat their rivals up North in 2025, despite the fact that he coached the team to a National Championship in the 2024 season.
Luckily, the team was even hungrier for blood than the fans, with the Buckeyes ultimately defeating TTUN, 27-9.
The Game marked a return for Tate, who had missed three games with an unspecified injury. With 82 receiving yards on five catches, Tate led the team on the road in Ann Arbor, proving he was back in full form from the injury and putting the exclamation point on a regular season worthy of a top-five draft pick.
His shining moment was, of course, a 50-yard touchdown in the third quarter. On 2nd and 3 from midfield, Sayin laid out the pass that became Tate’s eighth score of the season and the final nail in the Wolverines’ coffin, extending the Buckeyes’ lead to break open the game and secure the win.
Arvell Reese (No. 5 overall pick, New York Giants)
Before he faced Ohio State in Week 7 of the 2025 season, Illinois quarterback Luke Altmyer had been the poster child for consistency. The Illini were ranked No. 17, and through the first six games of the season, Altmyer had not thrown a single interception. Despite getting routed by Indiana, the eventual national champions, this was an Illinois team that many folks thought could pose a threat to Ohio State.
The Buckeyes had other plans. In what could have been one of the first real tests of Ohio State’s defense, the Silver Bullets made it look easy. Linebacker Arvell Reese had a particularly standout game, recording nine tackles (eight of them solo), along with 1.5 sacks.
His sack was one of his most memorable of the season, dropping Altmyer for a 10-yard loss and stalling a last-hope drive for the Illini late in the fourth to secure the 34-16 win for the Buckeyes.
Sonny Styles (No. 7 overall pick, Washington Commanders)
If Reese’s sack was the cherry on top in the Illini victory, Sonny Styles’ goal-line stop was the bowl of ice cream.
Styles led the team with 10 sacks against the Illini, eight of them solo. Most notably, he kept the Illini out of the end zone, thanks to a spectacular effort on the one-yard line. On the first drive of the second half, the Illini were looking to close the deficit in the Buckeyes’ 20-3 first-half lead.
On second and goal, Altmyer completed a six-yard pass to Hank Beatty that should have—and would have—been a touchdown against any other defense.
Styles said “No,” downing Beatty at the one-inch line. Though the Illini did eventually score on the drive, Styles’ effort was indicative of how seriously this defense protected their endzone all season long.
Caleb Downs (No. 11 overall pick, Dallas Cowboys)
I’d need a whole separate column to get into the accolades of Caleb Downs, whose No. 11 draft pick is tied for the highest a safety has been drafted since 2017, when Jamal Adams went at No. 6 (Alabama’s Minkah Fitzpatrick was taken at No. 11 the following year).
Downs was regarded by many as the best defensive player in the country in 2025, earning him a unanimous All-American spot, along with the Paycom Jim Thorpe Award given to college’s top defensive back and a whole host of Big Ten accolades.
Downs’ consistency as a tackler and playmaker is part of what makes him great. Every play isn’t flashy, but the threat he poses is enough to throw opponents off their game. Still, Downs has this air about him that almost makes the flashy plays seem staged, like a Hollywood director had choreographed the whole play for maximum cinematic effect. It’s that effortless and breathtaking.
This was certainly the case against Penn State, when the Nittany Lions went for it on 4th and Goal, with about four and a half minutes left in the game. Penn State was down 38-14 and needed a touchdown to keep any hope alive at a comeback.
Instead, Downs was there, ready to steal their thunder and clinch it for the Buckeyes.
