Former Ohio State linebacker Steele Chambers is now preparing for the NFL, participating in the NFL Scouting Combine In Indianapolis that runs through Sunday, but that influence from Ohio State has yet to leave him – even when it comes to who he’s rooming with.
“It’s pretty cool,” Chambers said of the combine experience on Wednesday. “It’s great just being around all these cools guys. I’m rooming with Tommy (Eichenberg) again, so it feels like I’m getting ready for a game or something, but it’s been awesome.”
Chambers rooming with Eichenberg is a fun Buckeye connection, but Chambers’ experience in Columbus had a much broader impact. After arriving at Ohio State as a running back in 2019, he switched to linebacker for the past three seasons, and spent the last two as a starter under defensive coordinator Jim Knowles.
Rough around the edges at first after switching to a new position, Chambers turned into a valuable member of Ohio State’s defense and a leader for the entire team. And after putting so much into the program, he’s now pulling that experience and using it as he builds toward the NFL Scouting Combine and the NFL Draft in April.
“(Ohio State has) prepared me for everything,” he said. “It’s prepared me for life. What Coach (Ryan) Day, Coach Knowles, Coach Mick (Marotti), everything they do, they just work to make you a better man, a better person, on and off the field. I’ve got so much gratitude for that place, I can’t really explain it.
Chambers and Eichenberg are among the eight Buckeyes that received an invite, along with defensive lineman Mike Hall Jr., wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr., offensive lineman Matthew Jones, safety Josh Proctor, tight end Cade Stover and running back Miyan Williams.
The list could have been much more extensive, with several Buckeyes – including cornerback Denzel Burke, defensive linemen Jack Sawyer and J.T. Tuimoloau and running back TreVeyon Henderson, among others – electing to return for another season at Ohio State.
But even so, eight representatives at this year’s combine is among the most by any one school, something Chambers said is a sign of the culture in Columbus that helped him and others get to this point, and in considering for the NFL Draft.
“It just shows the culture,” he said. “It’s crazy thinking there were still 11 other guys that could have been here, but at the same time, we’ve still got plenty of guys who showed out all four, five, six years here, and now the work’s starting to benefit them.”
