Two senior Buckeyes are on the watch list for the Lott Impact Trophy.
Defensive end Kenyatta Jackson Jr. and cornerback Jermaine Mathews Jr. were both included on the 42-player list that consists of 17 defensive backs, 16 defensive linemen and nine linebackers.
The award honors a player each year who “has had the biggest impact on his team both on and off the field,” named after NFL Hall of Famer Ronnie Lott.
Jackson decided to return for his fifth season with the Buckeyes after earning the starting job for the 2025 season for the first time in his career. Last year, he finished with 28 total tackles (16 solo), 11 tackles for loss, 6.5 sacks and two passes broken up.
He also played a fairly large role as a backup for the 2024 national championship team while Jack Sawyer and JT Tuimoloau started. That season, Jackson had 16 total tackles, three tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks.
Mathews also started for the first time in his career last season as a junior, finishing the year with 26 total tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, one sack, three passes broken up and two interceptions.
Mathews, who is entering his fourth season with the Buckeyes, also served an important role for the 2024 team as a backup to Denzel Burke, recording 22 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss and one sack. He broke onto the scene as a true freshman, earning enough time to record 13 tackles and a 58-yard pick-six against Western Kentucky in the 2023 season.
Sixteen players from the Big Ten conference are on the Lott Impact trophy watch list, the most of any conference. The SEC has 13 players while the ACC has six and the Big 12 has five.
Last year, Ohio State safety Caleb Downs won the Lott Impact trophy with a unanimous All-America season, recording 68 tackles, five tackles for loss, two passes broken up and two interceptions. Downs and current Buckeye linebackers coach James Laurinaitis (won the award in 2008) are the only two Ohio State players to be named the Lott Impact Player of the Year.
The winner of the award will be announced On Dec. 9, 2026.
