How Jalen Carter helped Ohio State football’s Luke Wypler decide he is ready for the NFL

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Luke Wypler saw a win-win decision — stay with Ohio State football for a fourth season or head off to the NFL.

New Year’s Eve night in Atlanta provided some clarity.

A major storyline of the Peach Bowl centered on how OSU would contain Georgia’s Jalen Carter. The defensive tackle was already being discussed as the popssible first defensive player selected in the draft. (His involvement in a fatal car crash that killed two members of the Bulldogs program has since clouded his draft analysis.)

In the playoff semifinal, though, Carter was merely a football problem in need of a solution. According to Pro Football Focus, Wypler did allow one sack and a hurry. Overall, though, he matched up against someone widely considered a NFL starting-caliber talent.

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“This game’s all about competition, and when you play some of the best defensive linemen in the country and we held our own and excelled, that definitely factored into my decision,” Wypler said.

Wypler became the one surprise early entrant from OSU’s 2023 NFL Draft class. Coach Ryan Day admitted the coaching staff hoped the center would return for another season. That may have had more to do with the fact the Buckeyes had no clear-cut answer ready to take his place.

Those 70 snaps against Carter and the Bulldogs only capped two seasons of NFL preparations. Wypler jumped into the draft hoping to prove he can be the next starting center to emerge from the Big Ten’s proving ground for interior offensive linemen.

“Coming out was something that really weighed on me,” Wypler said. “Having a great program with Ohio State and the NFL ... I guess you couldn’t really make a bad decision.

“I kept telling myself, whatever I choose, I knew I was going to be all right. And for me the NFL just made more sense at the time.”

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Ohio State alum Corey Linsley made his first Pro Bowl after the 2021 season and joined a growing club. Along with center Travis Frederick (Wisconsin) and guards Brandon Scherff and Marshal Yanda (Iowa), those four players have claimed seven of the interior Pro Bowl spots since 2019.

Recent NFL Draft results suggest more potential stars are on the way.

In the past three years, nine Big Ten interior offensive linemen have been selected on the first two days of the NFL Draft. That includes the last two centers selected in the first round: Iowa’s Tyler Linderbaum (2022) and Michigan’s Cesar Ruiz (2020).

A mini-Big Ten centers reunion took place in Indianapolis earlier this month. Wypler, Minnesota’s John Michael Schmitz and Wisconsin’s Joe Tippmann are all ranked among the top 100 players on PFF’s big board. Michigan’s Olu Oluwatimi — winner of the Remington Trophy as the nation’s best center — and Penn State’s Juice Scruggs give the Big Ten the five highest-ranked centers in the field, per PFF.

Wypler is not necessarily small by NFL center standards at 6-3, 300 pounds, but size is not an asset. to separate from that group, he needed to cash in on his combine drills in Indianapolis.

So he did. His 20-yard shuttle time of 4.53 seconds was third-best among all offensive linemen. His 3-cone drill time of 7.64 ranked eighth. So did his 29 bench press reps.

Wypler could not show up and turn into something he was not. Instead, he emphasized the argument that already existed on his behalf — that he is agile and athletic and tough.

Paris Johnson Jr. met Wypler when both visited Stanford on the same weekend as high school prospects. Johnson rose to become the top offensive line prospect in the nation and was already on a three-year plan to become an NFL left tackle. Wypler, hovering outside the top 100, seemed to have a longer development curve.

Wypler was not even on a starting trajectory as preseason camp began in 2021. When injuries and other issues led Harry Miller to step away from football, Wypler took his place. His timeline quickly accelerated.

“He’s always been super smart,” Johnson said. “He works hard. For me, it’ s no surprise that he come out in three (years), because I know the work he’s put in when he’s not watched.”

Several other Buckeyes straddling the fence of that NFL decision in recent years opted for another year of development. Some projected Chris Olave as a first-round pick in 2020, but he stuck around. Zach Harrison, Wyatt Davis, Josh Myers and others all stuck around for a fourth year. Tommy Eichenberg made second team All-American from every major national list last season and will start OSU’s season opener at middle linebacker.

Wypler saw only upside no matter which choice he made. Ultimately, he bet on his readiness to make the transition and establish himself in the NFL long-term.

Based on what we saw in both Atlanta and Indianapolis, he may have chosen correctly.

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