Ohio State football linebacker declares for 2024 NFL Draft, forgoing extra year of eligibility

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Steele Chambers rose from a backup in Ohio State football’s running back room to a three-year starter at linebacker.

Now he will attempt to take that athleticism to the NFL. Chambers announced Tuesday via Instagram he is entering the 2024 NFL Draft and forgoing the extra year of eligibility the NCAA granted all players in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Chambers made the opposite declaration a year ago, saying he was returning to Ohio State to gain another year of experience at linebacker. He used that year to lead the Buckeyes with 83 tackles while also collecting one interception, one pass breakup and one quarterback hurry.

He also graduated last spring with a degree in finance.

Chambers spent his first two seasons in the program as a running back. Yet with playing time potentially blocked there, he moved to linebacker in preseason camp prior to the 2021 season. By midseason, he had worked his way into the starting lineup as a potential solution for some of the run-stopping problems the defense experienced.

For the next two seasons, he and Tommy Eichenberg formed a linebacker tandem in the middle of what eventually became one of the best defenses in the country.

“Steele has gotten better ever day since I have been here,” defensive coordinator and linebackers coach Jim Knowles said last week during interviews for the Cotton Bowl. “When I came here, he had just moved from running back. And he’s got great athleticism.

“He’s learned the game. He’s learned the defense. He’s playing fast. He’s become more physical. I think he’s just grown a lot in two years.”

Eichenberg has not yet announced his 2024 intentions, however, he is also expected to forgo that extra season and move on to the NFL.