I’ve been banging this drum since the spring, and two weeks ago I wrote that Ohio State has young talent and it’s time to let them play, with Riley Pettijohn at the top of that list.
Four games into the season, and I’m ready to go a step further. Pettijohn isn’t just a young player who deserves more snaps. He’s Ohio State’s best linebacker, and in my opinion it isn’t even that close.
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The sample size is still small, and I’ll admit that, but look at what he has done with it. Through four games, Pettijohn has 15 tackles, four tackles for loss, two sacks and an interception on 145 defensive snaps, mostly as a rotational piece rather than a starter.
Payton Pierce, the starting Mike, has 20 tackles, half a sack and a forced fumble on 160 snaps. Christian Alliegro has 17 tackles on 141. Those are solid, steady numbers, but Pettijohn’s are the ones that change and end drives.
The plays tell the story better than the totals.
At Texas, he sacked Arch Manning in the first quarter and tied for the team lead with 1.5 tackles for loss in the biggest game of the non-conference slate. Against Kent State, he turned 27 snaps into three tackles and an interception and earned a 91.5 grade from PFF, the highest of any Buckeye that day. Against Illinois, he dropped Katin Houser for a nine-yard sack on third-and-9 to force a punt, added another tackle for loss and led the team with two TFLs.
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The most telling number from Saturday might be 51. That’s how many snaps Pettijohn played against Illinois, a season high and the most of any Ohio State linebacker, despite not starting.
The coaching staff is already telling us who they trust when it matters. The depth chart just hasn’t caught up yet.
Why is this still a conversation?
To be fair to the rest of the room, this is a good group.
Pierce is a tackle machine who was PFF’s highest-graded Ohio State defender at Texas (75.9), even if questions about his speed and coverage haven’t gone away. Alliegro brought 124 career tackles, 14 tackles for loss and eight sacks from Wisconsin, plus the ability to slide outside as an edge rusher. TJ Alford has an interception of his own and entered the Illinois game as the highest-graded player on the defense according to PFF.
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None of those guys are the problem, but there’s a difference between good and different, and Pettijohn is different.
He was a five-star recruit, the No. 2 linebacker in the 2025 class per the 247Sports Composite and a high school Butkus Award finalist at McKinney after piling up 115 tackles, 12 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks as a senior. He ran a 10.7 in the 100 meters.
At 6-foot-2 and 235 pounds, he can play in the box, rush off the edge in Matt Patricia’s hybrid looks and run with backs and tight ends. He’s doing all of this after missing the entire spring with an injury.
That’s why I don’t think this is really a debate anymore. The only real question left is the label next to his name on the depth chart, and that one should be settled before Saturday.
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Ohio State heads to Kinnick Stadium to face No. 14 Iowa, a 4-0 team with a balanced rushing attack and improved quarterback play from Hank Brown. After that comes Maryland and then a trip to No. 6 Indiana. Those are games that will be decided by linebackers who can fill a gap, finish a tackle in space and get home on third down. Pettijohn has already shown he can do all three.
Ohio State has spent four games treating Riley Pettijohn like a luxury. It’s time to treat him like what he is, the best linebacker on this team.
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