Sonny Styles

Ohio State’s 2025 season continues to stand as one of the most decorated in program history, as the Buckeyes have tied their all-time record with seven first-team All-Americans in a single year. The latest honor came Thursday when linebacker Sonny Styles was named a first-team All-American by Sporting News, further cementing Ohio State’s place at the center of the national college football conversation.

Styles joined an elite group that already included wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, defensive tackle Kayden McDonald and safety Caleb Downs, all of whom were also named first-team All-Americans by Sporting News. Linebacker Arvell Reese, center Carson Hinzman and defensive end Caden Curry round out the Buckeyes who have earned first-team recognition this season from at least one nationally recognized selector. With additional All-America teams still being announced, Ohio State remains positioned to potentially stand alone atop its own record book.

Smith, McDonald, Reese and Downs officially became consensus All-Americans earlier in the week when they were named to the first team by the American Football Coaches Association, joining their previous first-team selections from the Walter Camp Football Foundation and the Associated Press. That distinction makes them the 94th, 95th, 96th and 97th consensus All-Americans in Ohio State history, with Downs achieving consensus status for the second consecutive season after also being a unanimous All-American in 2024. Carson Hinzman also earned a first-team nod from the AFCA, giving him his first career All-America honor and securing his place in Buckeye Grove.

The significance of this season’s honors is amplified by history. Ohio State last had seven first-team All-Americans in a single season back in 1974, a year highlighted by Heisman Trophy winner Archie Griffin and a collection of Buckeye legends across the roster. That the current team has matched that mark speaks to both its depth and star power, especially considering the list does not yet include quarterback Julian Sayin, a Heisman Trophy finalist, or wide receiver Carnell Tate, both of whom have collected multiple second-team All-America honors and remain candidates for future first-team recognition.

Styles’ emergence as a first-team All-American is particularly emblematic of Ohio State’s defensive dominance. He led the Buckeyes with 80 tackles through the first 13 games without missing a single tackle, according to Pro Football Focus, which graded him as the best tackler in all of college football with a 92.7 tackling grade. His consistency and physicality anchored a defense that set the tone all season.

While the Buckeyes will have to wait at least another year to add an eighth Heisman Trophy to the program’s storied history, Ohio State was again well represented on college football’s biggest individual stage. Sayin finished fourth in the 2025 Heisman Trophy voting, becoming the seventh Buckeye since 2018 to travel to New York and place third or fourth in the voting. He was joined in the top 10 by Smith, who finished sixth, and Downs, who placed ninth, making Ohio State the only school with multiple players in the top 10.

Sayin’s Heisman run was fueled by one of the most efficient seasons ever by a college quarterback. The redshirt freshman completed 78.4 percent of his passes, putting him on pace to break the NCAA completion percentage record, while leading the nation with a 182.2 passer rating. He threw for 3,323 yards and 31 touchdowns against just six interceptions and guided Ohio State to a perfect 12-0 regular season, highlighted by the Buckeyes’ first win over Michigan since 2019 and a No. 2 seed in the College Football Playoff. As the only underclassman among the finalists and the only one returning in 2026, Sayin already enters next season as a leading Heisman contender.

Head coach Ryan Day emphasized that perspective during the ceremony, expressing pride in Sayin’s poise and growth in his first year as a starter. Sayin himself called the experience a dream come true, crediting Ohio State’s coaches, teammates and overall environment for putting him in position to reach college football’s grandest stage.

Taken together, the All-America honors, Heisman recognition and historic benchmarks tell the same story. The 2025 Buckeyes were not just successful by Ohio State standards; they were among the most accomplished teams in the nation, adding another chapter to a tradition defined by excellence and expectation.