The Ohio State Buckeyes and DC Matt Patricia have an underrated secret weapon that quietly dominated the Texas Longhorn offense
An underrated Ohio State defender put the nation on notice with his performance against the Texas Longhorns
The Ohio State Buckeyes put together a dominant defensive performance over the weekend against the Texas Longhorns, leaving with a 14 to 7 victory. It may have been defensive coordinator Matt Patricia’s first game, but he had the defense firing on all cylinders. Aside from a few fourth quarter throws, they had Texas quarterback Arch Manning extremely confused, and very frustrated.
Leaving the contest, everyone was buzzing about linebacker Arvell Reese, and for good reason. At 6-4 and 243 pounds, Reese is another freaky athlete on the second level, creating one of the more dynamic linebacker groups in all of college football along with Sonny Styles.
Outside of Reese, several secondary members such as Caleb Downs, Jermaine Matthews, Davison Igbinosun, and Jaylen McClain all had notable performances. The overall defense looked fast, diverse, and extremely physical. That group also made a strong statement on the biggest stage of this past weekend’s games.
With so much talent on the back end of the defense, that caused several Ohio State defensive linemen to go underappreciated during the contest. That includes junior nose tackle Kayden McDonald, who was quietly dominant during the contest. At 6-3 and 326 pounds, the Georgia native is an imposing presence in the middle of the defense. He also showcased his ability to make plays on the run game, collecting eight total tackles during the game, a great number for a nose tackle.
While most fans are mesmerized while watching players like Reese and Styles running all over the field, we sometimes underrate the importance of the big boys up front. McDonald did a lot of the dirty work, which allowed those linebackers to be untouched quite a bit. It’s easier to make a lot of plays when you have clear eyes and easy reads.
After Tyleik Williams and Ty Hamilton left for the NFL this offseason, there was a big void left inside. Defensive tackle was one of the biggest areas of concern for the Buckeyes entering the 2025 college football season. McDonald did a ton to silence those concerns over the weekend. If he is able to put together more performances like that one against the Longhorns, we could be looking at the next great Ohio State defensive tackle.
Whether you are a college football or NFL Draft fan, do yourself a favor and start talking about McDonald. He has the chance to be a really good one. Saturday was just a taste of his overall talent and impact that he can have.
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