\n Seven members of Ohio State\u2019s senior class met with the media on Wednesday ahead of the Buckeyes\u2019 final home game of the season. <\/p>\n
\n\tSix of those players will participate in Senior Day festivities before playing\u00a0in their final home game at Ohio Stadium on Saturday: Linebacker Sonny Styles, defensive back Lorenzo Styles Jr., defensive end Caden Curry, kicker Jayden Fielding, defensive tackle Tywone Malone Jr. and tight end Will Kacmarek.\n<\/p>\n
\n\tCarson Hinzman, who is listed as a senior on Ohio State\u2019s roster but still has another year of eligibility, won\u2019t go through Senior Day festivities, though\u00a0he has not yet made a final decision on whether he will stay at Ohio State for 2026 or enter the 2026 NFL draft.\n<\/p>\n
\n\tPlaying in Ohio Stadium for the final time will make Saturday a bittersweet day for the Buckeyes\u2019 Senior Day participants, and they plan to take in the moment before Ohio State plays Rutgers. But they also don\u2019t view Saturday as anything close to the end of their story, as all of Ohio State\u2019s primary goals for the season \u2013 beat Michigan, win the Big Ten and win the national championship \u2013 are still in front of them.\n<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cIt\u2019s great that we have a national championship, but we\u2019re also a team that doesn\u2019t have Gold Pants, we\u2019re also a team that doesn\u2019t have a Big Ten championship,\u201d Curry said. \u201cI feel like we definitely have things that we still need to get done, and I feel like I want to be known as somebody that\u2019s gotten everything they needed to get done here.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
\n\tWe\u2019ve pulled the most notable things that each of those seven Buckeyes said Wednesday for you to read below. You can also watch the videos of each of their interviews to hear everything all seven of them had to say.\n<\/p>\n
\tLB Sonny Styles<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cIt means a lot to me. I think the past four years flew by, so just trying to take in each and every moment.\u201d\u2013 Sonny Styles on Senior Day\n<\/p>\n
\t\tStyles\u2019 response when asked about the notion that Ohio State hasn\u2019t faced much adversity this season: \u201cI think we’ve played some good teams. I think we’ve been in some hard moments. I think at times we might make it look easy because I think we’re doing what we’re supposed to do.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\tStyles wants his senior class to be remembered as more than just football players. \u201cGood men, good teammates. I think a lot of guys on this team are going to end up being great fathers, great husbands and stuff like that. Obviously, you’re going to be remembered as national champions. Hopefully, we can achieve all of our goals this year and be the first team in Ohio State history to be back-to-back. But yeah, I think it’s bigger than football.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\tOn his brother\u2019s kickoff return touchdown vs. UCLA: \u201cI was super excited for him, because I know he’s been waiting on that moment. He’s kind of been in and out of the lineup at returner. So he’s been waiting for his chance, and he got it, he made the most of it, and I was super excited for him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\tStyles said Matt Patricia is \u201ca wonderful teacher of the game \u2026 He’s able to help us understand football in general, and the way he’s teaching the scheme and understanding concepts and stuff like that, we’re able to adapt it and do a lot of different variations because we understand all the different concepts.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\tOn Rutgers: \u201cThey’re a very physical team. I think their running back’s really good, he runs the ball really hard. I think they’ve got some very talented receivers on the outside. You see them throw the ball up, make some pretty crazy plays down the field. So they’re an impressive team.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\tStyles said he\u2019s \u201csuper happy\u201d looking back on it that he made the decision to move to linebacker after starting his Ohio State career at safety.<\/p>\n
\tDB Lorenzo Styles Jr.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cIt was hard. There was ups and downs. But everything is starting to pay off. We\u2019ve got a lot more games to play. A lot more opportunities to become the play I want to be and the player I set out to be when I came here.\u201d\u2013 Lorenzo Styles Jr. on transferring to Ohio State\n<\/p>\n
\t\tStyles looks forward to participating in Senior Day alongside his brother Sonny. \u201cI\u2019m excited. Reflecting on my college career, everything we\u2019ve got here, I\u2019m excited. All the guys are playing for the older guys this weekend.\u201d Styles said he has 17 family members and friends coming to the game.<\/p>\n
\t\tStyles said Ohio State\u2019s coaches have done a great job keeping the team focused on Rutgers and not looking ahead to Michigan. \u201cThis is a real team coming in. We\u2019re taking them serious. We\u2019re prepping and getting ready to go. Put it all on the line this weekend.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\t\u201cMy first opportunity when I came here, I said I wanted to be the best player in the country. I feel like I have the opportunity to do that, just being versatile to the defense, kickoff returns, special teams. I feel like I\u2019m on track to do that, but I\u2019ve got to do it every single day. You can\u2019t just do something one time. You\u2019ve to do it every single day of the week.\u201d Styles said he has things to clean up in every area of his game.<\/p>\n
\tDE Caden Curry<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cIt\u2019s been a lot faster than anticipated. I mean, it\u2019s been short but awesome. I\u2019ve loved every second here of being a Buckeye, and I wouldn\u2019t change a thing about it.\u201d\u2013 Caden Curry on his Ohio State career\n<\/p>\n
\t\tCurry with more on his Ohio State career: \u201cIt\u2019s definitely a whole book. It\u2019s crazy. Definitely with Coach Mick (Marotti), he truly turned me into the person I am today \u2014 just like leadership, mentality. It\u2019s everything I would have never thought I would have turned into. I mean, Coach Day, pushing me every day. Coach Johnson, kind of just making sure I take every little detail into account.\u201d Curry said there are several others he could mention that shaped him throughout his career.<\/p>\n
\t\tCurry said the toughest lesson he\u2019s learned in his four years at Ohio State is \u201cnever be late to a workout.\u201d The second toughest lesson he\u2019s learned is \u201cgoing as hard as you can in every single thing you do.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\tWhen asked how he wants Ohio State\u2019s senior class to be remembered, Curry said, \u201cIt\u2019s great that we have a national championship, but we\u2019re also a team that doesn\u2019t have Gold Pants, we\u2019re also a team that doesn\u2019t have a Big Ten championship. I mean, I feel like we definitely have things that we still need to get done, and I feel like I want to be known as somebody that\u2019s gotten everything they needed to get done here.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tC Carson Hinzman<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cThe mentality we had last year going into the playoffs where it’s kind of like, \u2018Man, I want to spend one more game with these guys,\u2019 it starts to become a lot more real when you actually think about the guys that will be gone next year. So, just to be able to go there and lay it all on the line for each other is important.\u201d\u2013 Carson Hinzman on how his fellow upperclassmen motivate him this time of year\n<\/p>\n
\t\tAs a redshirt junior, Hinzman confirmed that he will not be participating in Senior Day festivities in the Shoe this weekend.<\/p>\n
\t\tHinzman is still weighing whether he\u2019ll enter the NFL draft after this season. \u201cObviously, there’s a lot of great talent that is going to be going to the league this year in my position, so that’s something to take into consideration. But yeah, we’ll see.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\tOn fighting for a Big Ten Championship Game appearance: \u201cI’ve never been to Indianapolis, so it’ll be cool to have a chance to possibly be able to go down there. But like I said, we have a lot of game and a lot of football ahead of us yet to be able to even think about that, so focusing on what’s next first.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\tOhio State\u2019s motivation to keep improving remains the same, regardless of the dominant victories it\u2019s continued stacking in the back half of the regular season. \u201cWe’ve never really done anything with this team yet in any aspect. We don’t have any hardware. We haven’t done anything besides the turtle (Illibuck). But just having that edge about us, wanting to go and prove something for ourselves, is big for us.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tK Jayden Fielding<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cIt’s what you play ball for \u2026 Every kicker dreams of that moment, and to have a game like I did last year, to be able to come back this year and turn the tables and flip the script would be a dream come true.\u201d\u2013 Jayden Fielding on what it would mean to make a big kick against Michigan\n<\/p>\n
\t\tFielding said his recent performance, as he\u2019s made his last six straight field goals including three from longer than 40 yards, has boosted his confidence. \u201cIt’s good to see the ball go in. It’s kind of like a shooter in basketball; when you start seeing the threes fall, they all seem to go in at some point.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\tFielding believes he\u2019s had the best form that he\u2019s had in his Ohio State career over the last couple of games.<\/p>\n
\t\tAsked if this year has gone as well as he could have expected, Fielding \u2013 who\u2019s 13-of-15 on the season \u2013 said no. \u201cYou want to make all your kicks, obviously. That’s the expectation playing here. And it seems funny, but it’s real. Everybody expects you, you’re at Ohio State, you should be the best kicker in the country, you should make every kick. So I live with that personal expectation for myself as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\tFielding said the Buckeyes are \u201cextremely focused\u201d for this week\u2019s game against Rutgers. \u201cWe know that it’s another game that we have to play, and it’s somebody in our way to get to Indy. We wanna get to Indy, we haven’t been to Indy since I’ve been here. And that’s a huge part of our goals, right? That’s one of our main goals is to get to Indy and win. So I wouldn’t say we’re overlooking them at all.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\tOn his emotions entering Senior Day: \u201cKind of sweet, but kind of sad at the same time. Playing at the Shoe is a really special place to play, playing in front of all those fans is really special to me. And built quite the connection with it. So it’ll be a cool, but sad day.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\tFielding said he feels like he\u2019s had a bigger leadership role this year as a senior. \u201cI feel like guys look to me more because there’s not as many of those vet guys. Big moments, they’re looking at me. I need to go out there and do my job and show them that, \u2018Hey, we can all do this together. This is a team game and we’re gonna go win.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
\tDT Tywone Malone Jr.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cHistorical. Coming back from a national championship with a whole bunch of new guys, we striving to do the same thing. It\u2019s something that I feel like we could do if we just keep being focused and disciplined, we\u2019re going to get there.\u201d\u2013 Tywone Malone Jr. on the story of his senior class\n<\/p>\n
\t\tA New Jersey native, Malone said it will be a \u201cspecial moment\u201d to participate in Senior Day and play a game against Rutgers. \u201cLast guaranteed game in the Shoe, you know, with the packed house, playing my home team in the Shoe. It\u2019s gonna be an exciting moment for me and my family.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\tOn if his decision to transfer to Ohio State has paid off: \u201cIt\u2019s everything I expected it to be. When I first came in, I had high hopes for myself playing right away, but obviously it didn\u2019t play out how I thought it would. To me, it was God\u2019s timing and just keep running, keep grinding from the people that was before me and just taking from their game for what I need to improve in my own game and everything else is history.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\tMalone called Kayden McDonald \u201ca special talent.\u201d He said that so long as McDonald remains focused and continues to grind, he will be \u201can outstanding player\u201d for the rest of his football career.<\/p>\n
\t\tMalone said \u201cit feels different\u201d to be a key contributor on an Ohio State team striving to win a national championship. He\u2019s loved building chemistry with his teammates on and off the field this season and hopes to continue contributing to the Buckeyes\u2019 title efforts down the stretch.<\/p>\n
\tTE Will Kacmarek<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cThe first team to go back-to-back (for national championships), I think, is the ultimate goal.\u201d\u2013 Will Kacmarek on how he wants his senior class to be remembered\n<\/p>\n
\t\tOn how it feels to go through Senior Day at Ohio State after transferring from Ohio two years ago: \u201cI’m just treating it like any other senior year. It’s not what school I’m more proud of or whatever. But I think it’s just where I’m ending up. … I got nothing but respect for Ohio, but I just ended up here. It’s cool to experience it here as well, with the vast fan base and all the work we put in here as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\tKacmarek said he will take an extra moment to soak everything in on Saturday. \u201cOur fans, our crowd, our stadium is unreal. Obviously, I’m going to miss that, but we’ve just got to keep doing our thing.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\tOn how he knows the gains in the run game are real: \u201cIn practice, you can just tell. We’re operating as a unit now, and I think we just have a lot more confidence. We all believe in each other and just know that we’re going to get the jobs done. So I think just the confidence overall.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\tOn the toughest lesson he\u2019s learned during his college football career: \u201cDon’t take practices or workouts for granted. They all add up, and I think they come out in the roughest times.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Seven members of Ohio State\u2019s senior class met with the media on Wednesday ahead of the Buckeyes\u2019 final…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":302336,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[67],"tags":[399,398,396,397,99],"class_list":{"0":"post-302335","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-ncaa-football","8":"tag-football","9":"tag-ncaa","10":"tag-ncaa-football","11":"tag-ncaafootball","12":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/302335","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=302335"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/302335\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/302336"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=302335"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=302335"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=302335"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}