Ohio State’s Steele Chambers Officially Moves From Running Back To Linebacker
After spending the the last two seasons at running back, Ohio State head coach Ryan Day announced on Monday that sophomore Steele Chambers has officially moved to linebacker.
The position change shouldn’t come as a surprise, as the 6-foot-1 and 225-pound Chambers spent time with both positional units during offseason workouts as he mulled over his future. He apparently felt comfortable enough through the first five practices of fall camp to make the move permanent, however.
“I think he’s really done a good job,” Day said during his media availability this morning. “He has natural instincts over there. It’s something that we wanted to take a look at and asked his feedback this past week, and he said he’d like to try it full-time.
“The guys on defense have been very, very impressed right from the jump. You can usually tell right away if somebody’s just natural at it. He is and he’s very, very athletic. He’s really upgraded that room and I expect him to make an impact this season.”
A former four-star prospect from Roswell (Ga.) Blessed Trinity Catholic, Chambers was actually listed as an athlete by multiple recruiting services coming out of high school, as some programs viewed him as a running back and others as a linebacker. He obviously preferred the offensive side of the ball, though, which is where he began his career with the Buckeyes in 2019.
That said, Chambers has carried the ball just 28 times for 221 yards and one touchdown in 11 career games since and his playing time would have been sparse again this fall with returning starter Master Teague, sophomore Marcus Crowley, redshirt freshman Miyan Williams and highly touted freshmen TreVeyon Henderson and Evan Pryor all expected to have a role.
Ohio State is in the process of replacing its top four linebackers from last season, meanwhile, which means Chambers – who still has four years of eligibility remaining – could have a quicker path to playing time on defense. He’ll battle seniors Dallas Gant, Teradja Mitchell and K’Vaughan Pope, sophomores Cody Simon and Tommy Eichenberg, redshirt freshman Mitchell Melton, true freshman Reid Carrico and USC transfer Palaie Gaoteote for a spot in the rotation.
“I hope that he can provide depth early in the season and then grow into a more consistent role as the season goes on,” Day said. “As you watch film, it’s all new to him. We have to be fair, he needs a ton of reps. But I think every rep that you invest in him, you’re going to get back because not only is he intelligent, but he has the skill set to do it.
“I know all the guys and I are very, very excited for him to see kind of where this goes over the next couple of weeks, if he can take strides to be able to help us and give us some plays early in the season and then, like I said, a more significant role midway to the end of the fall.”
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