UCLA Alum Carson Schwesinger Steps Into Important NFL Role

The Cleveland Browns find themselves in a difficult position heading into the 2025 season. Longtime starter and Pro Bowl linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah has been ruled out for the year, with a season-ending neck injury, and there’s growing concern his NFL career may be in jeopardy.

Perhaps the Browns saw this coming.

With the first pick of the second round in the 2025 NFL Draft, Cleveland selected UCLA linebacker Carson Schwesinger—an instinctive, high-motor defender whose path to the NFL was anything but conventional.

Most rookies ease into rotational roles, especially in a defense as established as Cleveland’s. Schwesinger, however, is cut from a different cloth. From the moment he stepped onto the field at Westwood, he operated with the mindset of someone with something to prove.

He walked on at UCLA and began his career as a special teams contributor, quickly earning trust as a relentless playmaker. By the end of his three-year college career, Schwesinger led the nation in solo tackles and ranked third in total tackles. On a Bruins team navigating a coaching transition after Chip Kelly’s departure, Schwesinger became the emotional and strategic anchor of the defense.

Now, he steps into a Browns linebacker room that suddenly needs leadership—and reps.

The fit with defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz’s scheme couldn’t be cleaner. Schwartz thrives on aggression, gap penetration, and downhill speed. Schwesinger delivers all of that, with a relentless motor and the ability to read plays before they unfold. He doesn’t just make tackles—he anticipates the moment they become necessary.

At rookie camp, Schwesinger turned heads. Lance Reisland of Cleveland.com observed the same edge that helped him rise at UCLA.

"What I like most on film is the 'walk-on mentality’ as he runs to the football to try and make every single tackle," Reisland wrote. "Having to prove themselves often creates a chip on their shoulder; a hard-nosed mentality where they are willing to fight for everything they get."

It’s a mentality that sets the tone, especially in a locker room that suddenly needs both toughness and identity at linebacker.

After being drafted, Schwesinger sat down with Andrew Siciliano and shared a memory that speaks volumes about his confidence and clarity—even as a college walk-on.

“For me, it was showing up after the first few practices at UCLA. Still a walk-on, still undersized... I remember calling my mom and telling her that I'm going to be able to play in the NFL, just after watching the first couple of practices. And I knew I had to put in a lot of work to get there.”

That conversation with his mom was more than just optimism—it was a promise. And now, Schwesinger isn’t just in the NFL. He’s preparing to start from Day 1 and anchor a defense that still has postseason expectations.

From a walk-on in Westwood to the middle of the Browns defense, Schwesinger’s story is already remarkable. The next chapter? It starts in Week 1.