Quick Hits: Ohio State Seniors Striving to Win Another National Championship, Carson Hinzman Won’t Participate in Senior Day

Six of those players will participate in Senior Day festivities before playing in 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.

Carson Hinzman, who is listed as a senior on Ohio State’s roster but still has another year of eligibility, won’t go through Senior Day festivities, though he has not yet made a final decision on whether he will stay at Ohio State for 2026 or enter the 2026 NFL draft.

Playing in Ohio Stadium for the final time will make Saturday a bittersweet day for the Buckeyes’ Senior Day participants, and they plan to take in the moment before Ohio State plays Rutgers. But they also don’t view Saturday as anything close to the end of their story, as all of Ohio State’s primary goals for the season – beat Michigan, win the Big Ten and win the national championship – are still in front of them.

“It’s great that we have a national championship, but we’re also a team that doesn’t have Gold Pants, we’re also a team that doesn’t have a Big Ten championship,” Curry said. “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’s gotten everything they needed to get done here.”

We’ve 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.

LB Sonny Styles

“It means a lot to me. I think the past four years flew by, so just trying to take in each and every moment.”– Sonny Styles on Senior Day

• Styles’ response when asked about the notion that Ohio State hasn’t faced much adversity this season: “I 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.”
• Styles wants his senior class to be remembered as more than just football players. “Good 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.”
• On his brother’s kickoff return touchdown vs. UCLA: “I 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.”
• Styles said Matt Patricia is “a wonderful teacher of the game … 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.”
• On Rutgers: “They'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.”
• Styles said he’s “super happy” looking back on it that he made the decision to move to linebacker after starting his Ohio State career at safety.

DB Lorenzo Styles Jr.

“It was hard. There was ups and downs. But everything is starting to pay off. We’ve 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.”– Lorenzo Styles Jr. on transferring to Ohio State

• Styles looks forward to participating in Senior Day alongside his brother Sonny. “I’m excited. Reflecting on my college career, everything we’ve got here, I’m excited. All the guys are playing for the older guys this weekend.” Styles said he has 17 family members and friends coming to the game.
• Styles said Ohio State’s coaches have done a great job keeping the team focused on Rutgers and not looking ahead to Michigan. “This is a real team coming in. We’re taking them serious. We’re prepping and getting ready to go. Put it all on the line this weekend.”
• “My 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’m on track to do that, but I’ve got to do it every single day. You can’t just do something one time. You’ve to do it every single day of the week.” Styles said he has things to clean up in every area of his game.

DE Caden Curry

“It’s been a lot faster than anticipated. I mean, it’s been short but awesome. I’ve loved every second here of being a Buckeye, and I wouldn’t change a thing about it.”– Caden Curry on his Ohio State career

• Curry with more on his Ohio State career: “It’s definitely a whole book. It’s crazy. Definitely with Coach Mick (Marotti), he truly turned me into the person I am today — just like leadership, mentality. It’s 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.” Curry said there are several others he could mention that shaped him throughout his career.
• Curry said the toughest lesson he’s learned in his four years at Ohio State is “never be late to a workout.” The second toughest lesson he’s learned is “going as hard as you can in every single thing you do.”
• When asked how he wants Ohio State’s senior class to be remembered, Curry said, “It’s great that we have a national championship, but we’re also a team that doesn’t have Gold Pants, we’re also a team that doesn’t 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’s gotten everything they needed to get done here.”

C Carson Hinzman

“The mentality we had last year going into the playoffs where it's kind of like, ‘Man, I want to spend one more game with these guys,’ 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.”– Carson Hinzman on how his fellow upperclassmen motivate him this time of year

• As a redshirt junior, Hinzman confirmed that he will not be participating in Senior Day festivities in the Shoe this weekend.
• Hinzman is still weighing whether he’ll enter the NFL draft after this season. “Obviously, 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.”
• On fighting for a Big Ten Championship Game appearance: “I'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.”
• Ohio State’s motivation to keep improving remains the same, regardless of the dominant victories it’s continued stacking in the back half of the regular season. “We'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.”

K Jayden Fielding

“It's what you play ball for … 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.”– Jayden Fielding on what it would mean to make a big kick against Michigan

• Fielding said his recent performance, as he’s made his last six straight field goals including three from longer than 40 yards, has boosted his confidence. “It'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.”
• Fielding believes he’s had the best form that he’s had in his Ohio State career over the last couple of games.
• Asked if this year has gone as well as he could have expected, Fielding – who’s 13-of-15 on the season – said no. “You 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.”
• Fielding said the Buckeyes are “extremely focused” for this week’s game against Rutgers. “We 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.”
• On his emotions entering Senior Day: “Kind 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.”
• Fielding said he feels like he’s had a bigger leadership role this year as a senior. “I 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, ‘Hey, we can all do this together. This is a team game and we're gonna go win.’”

DT Tywone Malone Jr.

“Historical. Coming back from a national championship with a whole bunch of new guys, we striving to do the same thing. It’s something that I feel like we could do if we just keep being focused and disciplined, we’re going to get there.”– Tywone Malone Jr. on the story of his senior class

• A New Jersey native, Malone said it will be a “special moment” to participate in Senior Day and play a game against Rutgers. “Last guaranteed game in the Shoe, you know, with the packed house, playing my home team in the Shoe. It’s gonna be an exciting moment for me and my family.”
• On if his decision to transfer to Ohio State has paid off: “It’s everything I expected it to be. When I first came in, I had high hopes for myself playing right away, but obviously it didn’t play out how I thought it would. To me, it was God’s 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.”
• Malone called Kayden McDonald “a special talent.” He said that so long as McDonald remains focused and continues to grind, he will be “an outstanding player” for the rest of his football career.
• Malone said “it feels different” to be a key contributor on an Ohio State team striving to win a national championship. He’s loved building chemistry with his teammates on and off the field this season and hopes to continue contributing to the Buckeyes’ title efforts down the stretch.

TE Will Kacmarek

“The first team to go back-to-back (for national championships), I think, is the ultimate goal.”– Will Kacmarek on how he wants his senior class to be remembered

• On how it feels to go through Senior Day at Ohio State after transferring from Ohio two years ago: “I'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.”
• Kacmarek said he will take an extra moment to soak everything in on Saturday. “Our fans, our crowd, our stadium is unreal. Obviously, I'm going to miss that, but we've just got to keep doing our thing.”
• On how he knows the gains in the run game are real: “In 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.”
• On the toughest lesson he’s learned during his college football career: “Don't take practices or workouts for granted. They all add up, and I think they come out in the roughest times.”