Ohio State's "dude of the week" could be next up for the Ohio State defense.
Ohio State's "Dude of the Week" has the opportunity next year to be one of the next Buckeyes up as Ohio State retools its defense.
Buckeye freshman TJ Alford is heading into his second year as a Buckeye, but his responsibilities might grow significantly in 2026. Last year, he appeared in 11 games, and from a statistical standpoint, he registered just six tackles on the year.
However, for as competitive as Ohio State's roster is across the board, its linebacker room might be one of the most competitive.
Going into next year, there are at least five guys in that room who are competing for two vacated spots.
The standard that they will have to meet is sky high. It has been nearly two flawless years from the second level of the Buckeyes' defense. Two years ago, it was Cody Simon and Sonny Styles manning that linebacker room, and last year it was Styles, along with Arvell Reese, terrorizing opposing offenses.
That unit was pretty decent. Reese was the fifth overall pick in the entire NFL Draft, while Styles was just behind him at pick No. 7.
Now, as those two leave the program, it is a player like TJ Alford who is going to have the opportunity to take over one of the spots and occupy it for at least a couple of consecutive seasons.
Alford will absolutely have his work cut out for him. The other guys in the room competing for those spots are Payton Pierce, Riley Pettijon, Garrett Stover, transfer Christian Allegro, and Cincere Johnson, all legitimate contenders for the linebacker spot.
For Alford, the fastest way to see meaningful snaps is by winning the week each and every week.
He did that this past week, as on Wednesday it was announced that he, along with safety Kaden Gebhardt and center Carson Hinzman, were named the Buckeyes' "Dude of the Week."
Winning the weekly award is a major step in earning the respect of his peers, teammates, and coaching staff. It is going to be a major and intense competition this fall for those two vacated linebacker spots.
Alford is going to get his fair chance at it, and he had better bring it from day one. If he wins the job, he is going to set himself up to be one of the next great Ohio State linebackers.
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