Ohio State Eichenberg Named Nagurski Defensive Player of the Week

Photo by Brian Rothmuller

COLUMBUS, Ohio 

Ohio State Football Official Press Release:

Ohio State linebacker Tommy Eichenberg is this week’s Bronko Nagurski National Defensive Player of the Week, the Football Writers Association of America announced Wednesday.

The Team captain had nine tackles, three TFLs and two sacks Saturday night vs. Notre Dame

Eichenberg, a Cleveland native, graduate of St. Ignatius High School and one of six captains for the 2022 Buckeyes, spearheaded a superb defensive effort for Ohio State on Saturday in its 21-10 win over No. 5 Notre Dame. The fourth-year junior finished with a team-high nine tackles while adding three tackles-for-loss and a pair of sacks.

His play was a big reason why Ohio State held the Irish scoreless in the second half and allowed just 72 total yards after halftime. Additionally, the Buckeyes’ defense forced punts on each of Notre Dame’s final six possessions. The 10 points that Ohio State allowed were the lowest against a top-five ranked opponent in 26 years, since a 38-7 win over No. 4 Penn State in 1996.

The defensive MVP of the Rose Bowl last January, Eichenberg was second on the team with 64 tackles in 2021. He’s played in 15 career games with totals of 75 tackles, 9.5 tackles for loss and two sacks.

Ranked No. 3 in this week’s Associated Press poll, Ohio State returns to action on Saturday when it hosts Arkansas State at noon. Tickets to the game are available online at http://go.osu.edu/fbtix. The game will be broadcast by BTN.