The 2026 NFL Draft was a historic one for Ohio State, with four Buckeyes — wide receiver Carnell Tate, linebackers Arvell Reese and Sonny Styles and safety Caleb Downs — all going off the board within the first 11 picks. Now, as those players prepare for their rookie seasons, each has received their NFL jersey number.
Ohio State's 2026 NFL Draft haul didn't stop after the first round. Seven more Buckeyes heard their names called across Day 2 and Day 3, giving the program 11 total selections — the most of any school in the country.
Carnell Tate, No. 14 — Tennessee Titans
Tate, taken fourth overall by Tennessee, will wear No. 14 for a deeply personal reason: to honor his late mother, Ashley Griggs, whose birthday fell on Nov. 14. The number also doubles as a nod to his draft slot — Round 1, Pick 4. The Chicago native arrived at Ohio State as a five-star recruit and wasted no time making an impact, contributing as a true freshman before stepping into a full-time starting role during the Buckeyes' 2024 national championship run. He saved his best for last, hauling in 51 catches for 875 yards and nine touchdowns in just 11 games during his junior season. He finished his collegiate career with 121 receptions, 1,872 yards, and 14 touchdowns.
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Arvell Reese, No. 52 — New York Giants
Selected fifth overall by New York, Reese will wear No. 52 for the Giants. The 6-foot-4 linebacker was one of the draft's biggest risers, breaking out in his junior season under defensive coordinator Matt Patricia with 69 tackles, 10 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks. He was named a consensus All-American and won the Big Ten's Butkus-Fitzgerald Linebacker of the Year award. Over three seasons in Columbus, Reese totaled 112 tackles, 13.5 tackles for loss and seven sacks, finishing his career with 14 starts across 38 games.
Sonny Styles, No. 52 — Washington Commanders
Coincidentally, Reese's fellow Buckeye linebacker will also wear No. 52, just across the NFC East divide. Styles, the son of former Ohio State linebacker Lorenzo Styles Sr., was taken seventh overall by Washington. He began his Ohio State career at safety before transitioning to linebacker, where he blossomed into a team captain and the Block O jersey recipient in 2025. Styles finished his collegiate career with 244 tackles, nine sacks, 22.5 tackles for loss and an interception, earning All-American and All-Big Ten recognition in his final season.
Caleb Downs, No. 13 — Dallas Cowboys
The Cowboys traded up to grab Downs at No. 11, and their newest safety will start his NFL career wearing No. 13 — at least for now. Downs has his sights set on No. 2, the number he wore at Ohio State, but is content to wait until it becomes available rather than asking a teammate to give it up. After a standout freshman year at Alabama, Downs transferred to Ohio State, where he was a central figure in the 2024 national championship and a two-time unanimous All-American. He won both the Jim Thorpe Award and the Lott Trophy in 2025, finishing his college career with 257 tackles and six interceptions across three seasons.
****Kayden McDonald, No. 93 — Houston Texans
Selected No. 36 overall, McDonald was a unanimous 2025 All-American and Big Ten Defensive Lineman of the Year who recorded 65 tackles, nine tackles for loss, three sacks and two forced fumbles while anchoring a Buckeyes defense that ranked among the nation's best against the run. The Georgia native spent his first two seasons at Ohio State developing behind veterans, including Tyleik Williams, a first-round selection in the 2025 NFL Draft, before logging 19 tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss as a sophomore during the Scarlet and Gray's 2024 national championship run. His senior breakout made him one of the most productive interior defensive linemen in the country.
****Max Klare, No. 86 — Los Angeles Rams
Klare transferred from Purdue to Ohio State after three seasons to become a more complete tight end and better prepare for the NFL. He had a breakout redshirt sophomore season with the Boilermakers, when he caught 51 passes for 685 yards and four touchdowns. For the Buckeyes, Klare caught 43 passes for 448 yards and two touchdowns in a crowded offense. After getting picked in the second round by the Rams, Klare is the only Scarlet and Gray pick to keep the same number he wore in college, carrying No. 86 to Los Angeles.
****Davison Igbinosun, No. 21 — Buffalo Bills
Igbinosun spent three seasons at Ohio State after transferring from Ole Miss in 2023, starting for all three seasons he was a Buckeye and becoming a member of back-to-back No. 1 defenses in 2024 and 2025. In 2025, Igbinosun cut back on the penalties that had marred his previous seasons — dropping from 16 to just five — and collected 53 tackles, two interceptions and eight pass breakups, earning first-team All-Big Ten honors. He was the highest-drafted Scarlet and Gray cornerback since 2020.
****Will Kacmarek, No. 82 — Miami Dolphins
Kacmarek transferred to Ohio State from Ohio, where he had racked up 42 catches for 507 yards and two touchdowns across two seasons. His two seasons with the Buckeyes might have gone better if not for an injury against Oregon in 2024 that cost him multiple games; he was healthy throughout 2025, catching 15 passes for 168 yards and two touchdowns. Valued primarily as a run blocker, he joined Klare to make the Scarlet and Gray one of the few programs to have two tight ends drafted in the same year. He came off the board in the third round to the Dolphins.
****Lorenzo Styles Jr., No. 36 — New Orleans Saints
Styles began his collegiate career at Notre Dame as a wide receiver, playing in 26 games over two seasons and catching 54 passes for 684 yards and two touchdowns, before transferring to Ohio State in 2023 and switching to the defensive side of the ball, believing it would give him a better chance of playing in the NFL. After a redshirt year learning his new position, he became a starter at nickel, recording 30 total tackles and three pass breakups in 2025 despite a shoulder injury limiting him for much of the season. He was the fastest defensive player at this year's NFL Combine, running a 4.27-second 40-yard dash before being picked up by the Saints in the fifth round.
****Caden Curry, No. 55 — Indianapolis Colts
Curry played four seasons at Ohio State, starting only in his senior year after sitting behind J.T. Tuimoloau and Jack Sawyer, before leading the Buckeyes with 16.5 tackles for loss and 11 sacks in 2025. The Colts' selection of Curry was a homecoming of sorts, as Curry grew up a handful of minutes from Indianapolis, and head coach Ryan Day revealed that Colts general manager Chris Ballard had called him to rave about Curry when he was a recruit coming out of nearby Center Grove High School.
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****Ethan Onianwa, No. 75 — Atlanta Falcons
Onianwa's path to the NFL was the most unlikely of the Scarlet and Gray's draft class. When he committed to Ohio State from the transfer portal in December 2024, the assumption was that the former Rice standout would be Ohio State's starting left tackle job for the 2025 season — but Onianwa didn't win a starting spot and played fewer than 100 offensive snaps for the Buckeyes. The Falcons took a developmental flyer on him in the seventh round, betting on the raw talent that made him one of the most coveted offensive linemen in the transfer portal a year earlier.