Ohio State has a strong contingent of prospects expected to be early selections in the 2026 NFL Draft, and many will be looking to impress NFL talent evaluators at the school’s March 25 pro day.
The good news for a handful of these Buckeyes? They have already managed to impress a couple of their future peers.
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That would be Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. and New Orleans Saints edge rusher Chase Young. Each spoke glowingly of their alma mater’s top prospects in interviews with USA TODAY Sports at the 2026 New Balance Kickoff, where the company unveiled its new Rev X and Rev iQ football cleats.
Harrison and Young – who are two of New Balance’s five sponsored NFL athletes – detailed the hands-on experience they had working with Arvell Reese, Sonny Styles and Carnell Tate, who are all presently expected to be top 10 selections in the 2026 NFL Draft.
The universal theme of their analyses? All have the tools needed to be impact players at the NFL level.
Arvell Reese
Young never overlapped with any of the players at Ohio State, but he has been training with Reese in Florida as the 20-year-old prepares for the 2026 NFL Draft. His takeaway from seeing the versatile defender in action?
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“I look at him like a young Chase Young,” the veteran pass rusher said.
Young elaborated on the similarities the two share. He noted that both he and Reese entered the NFL as younger prospects – Young had just turned 21 when the Washington Commanders selected him with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, while Reese will still be 20 on draft day in 2026 – and that the two shared similar builds and hyper-athletic profiles.
Young said Reese is the superior athlete after clocking a 4.46-second 40-yard dash at the 2026 NFL Combine.
“He’s a freak of nature,” Young said of Reese. “He’s freakier than me. I wouldn’t have ran a 4.4.”
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Harrison – who overlapped with Reese for one season at Ohio State – echoed Young’s assessment about Reese being “a freak of nature” verbatim. The 23-year-old receiver also credited the young pass rusher for the significant strides he made from his freshman season to his breakout junior campaign.
“Just seeing how he’s really progressed over the past couple years, you could tell he was really just a raw prospect, a raw athlete at the time,” Harrison said. “Now, you see him developing a skill set.”
That skill set should allow Reese to be one of the top defensive players off the board in 2026. And Young believes the versatile edge defender will find success regardless of which team scoops him up during the draft.
“I think Arvell’s going to do great,” Young said.
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Sonny Styles
Reese wasn’t the only player to be dubbed a “freak” by Harrison. He said the same of Styles, with whom he played two seasons at Ohio State.
“You’re not going to find someone else like Sonny,” Harrison said.
Harrison explained that during his time playing with Styles, he learned just how good an athlete the 6-5, 244-pound was. That’s why he wasn’t surprised to see Styles put together an all-time performance at the 2026 NFL Scouting Combine.
“The combine – obviously, I knew he was going to do that, but nobody else did,” Harrison said. “He’s really just a freak athlete.”
Harrison also praised Styles for his versatility, highlighting the 21-year-old’s excellent high school basketball performance and his successful position switch as reasons for NFL teams to be bullish about the star athlete’s future.
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“He’s done a great job of continuing to hone his skills, making the transition from safety to linebacker,” Harrison said of Styles. “It’s really just impressive to see. He’s going to have a bright future.”
2026 NFL DRAFT: Sonny Styles, LB class looks to spark ailing position
Carnell Tate
Harrison saved his “guy” – Tate – for last when describing the trio of stars with whom he played collegiately.
Harrison and Tate spent one season together in Ohio State’s lauded wide receiver room. Harrison said he became a mentor to the then-freshman Tate and quickly saw the younger receiver’s talent shine through.
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“I knew he’d always be special,” Harrison said.
Harrison acknowledged that he has relished watching Tate’s progress from afar and that the 21-year-old wide-out improved greatly across his three seasons at Ohio State.
“Just watching him grow these past few years has been amazing, because he’s kinda my first freshman I got to see grow up throughout my whole time,” Harrison said.
Harrison said he’ll be rooting for Tate to have the “best success” possible wherever he lands and is confident that will happen quickly as the Chicago native prepares to join the fraternity of Ohio State receivers currently playing in the NFL.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Analyzing Ohio State’s top 2026 NFL Draft prospects
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