RYAN SHAZIER
Linebacker
The Ohio State University Buckeyes
6-1, 237
Pompano Beach, Florida
Plantation High School
1st Round – 15th Overall
CAREER NOTES
Played in 39 games, starting his final 29 contests at weak-side outside linebacker…recorded 315 tackles (208 solos) with 208 solo hits and 107 assists, as he posted 14 sacks for minus 107 yards, 44.5 stops for losses totaling 172 yards and nine quarterback pressures…returned his only interception 17 yards for a touchdown and deflected 15 other tosses…also caused nine fumbles…NCAA Career-Record Results…among active NCAA FBS players, Shazier ranks eighth in forced fumbles, ninth with 40 solo tackles-for-loss and seventh with 208 solo tackles…his average of 5.36 solo tackles per game is third-best among active players…Big Ten Conference Career-Record Results…his nine forced fumbles tied Jammie Kirlew (2006-09) of Indiana for 10th on the league all-time list…School Career-Record Results…Shazier finished 14th in school history with 315 total tackles…became just the sixth Buckeye to record over 200 solo tackles (208) during a career, joining Chris Spielman (283; 1984-87), Tom Cousineau (259; 1975-78), Marcus Marek (256; 1979-82), Steve Tovar (239; 1989-92) and Mike Doss (228; 1999-2002)…his 44.5 tackles-for-loss rank sixth in OSU annals, topped by Mike Vrabel (66.0; 1993-96), Matt Finkes (59.0; 1993-96), Jason Simmons (56.5; 1990-93), Andy Katzenmoyer (50.0; 1996-98) and Will Smith (45.5; 2000-03)…his fourteen sacks tied Quinn Pitcock (2003-06), John Kacherski (1988-91) and Greg Smith (1989-92) for 17th on the school career chart…holds the school record with nine forced fumbles.
2013 SEASON
The undisputed leader of an Ohio State defense that ranked seventh nationally vs. the run (102.6), 21st in scoring (21.3) and 29th in total defense (362.2), Shazier was named first-team All-American by The NFL Draft Report, Associated Press, ESPN, Sports Illustrated and USA Today…the Butkus Award finalist and Bednarik and Lott award semifinalist added All-Big Ten Conference first-team honors and was twice named the Lott IMPACT Trophy national player of the week, along with tying a Big Ten record with three conference defensive player of the week honors this season, giving him five for his career…became the 10th Buckeye to lead the team in tackles in consecutive seasons, as his 143 hits led the league and ranked 10th nationally…his 103 solo tackles are the third-best ever by a Buckeye in a season and ranked third in the FBS while leading the league…also led the Big Ten while finishing sixth in the nation with 22.5 stops for losses of 77 yards, including six sacks for minus 36 yards…credited with six quarterback pressures, four pass deflections and four forced fumbles…registered at least 10 tackles in seven games and had at least one stop-for-loss in all but the Iowa and Clemson contests…had 12 tackles (10 solos) and caused a fumble on a sack vs. California…produced nine hits with 2.5 stops behind the line of scrimmage, including one that caused a fumble vs. Wisconsin, followed by a 10-tackle performance at Northwestern…had a fourth-down sack among his 10 tackles vs. Penn State and added a pair of sacks, three stops-for-loss and seven solo tackles vs. Purdue…in a four-game stretch, he registered 62 tackles, the most in school annals over a similar span…began that march with 16 tackles (11 solos), 1.5 sacks, 3.5 stops-for-loss and a forced fumble vs. Illinois, followed by a career-high 20 tackles (16 solos) and five stops behind the line of scrimmage, including a sack that caused a fumble vs. Indiana…then collected 14 hits (7 solos), as he assisted on a sack vs. Michigan and delivered 12 tackles (10 solos) with two pass break-ups and 1.5 stops-for-loss vs. Michigan State…closed out his career with nine tackles (7 solos) vs. Clemson in the Orange Bowl.
2012 SEASON
Earned second-team All-American accolades from The NFL Draft Report and honorable mention from Sports Illustrated, as the All-Big Ten Conference first-team choice started all 12 games at weak-side linebacker…led the team with 115 tackles (70 solos), ranking second in the league with an average of 9.58 hits per game…made five sacks for minus 47 yards, a team-high 17.0 stops for losses of 78 yards and three quarterback pressures…his average of 1.42 stops-for-loss per game led the Big Ten and ranked 17th nationally…Deflected 11 passes and intercepted another for a 17-yard touchdown return…produced at least 10 tackles in six contests, including 13 hits (10 solos) as he caused a fumble on a sack vs. California…followed with another 13 hits (7 solos) vs. Alabama-Birmingham and delivered 10 tackles with a sack vs. Nebraska…deflected a career-high five passes vs. Indiana and posted 12 stops vs. Purdue…his only career interception was returned for a score vs. Penn State, as he caused a fumble on one of his two sacks and was in on eight tackles…had a season-high 14 tackles (11 solos) with two stops-for-loss vs. Illinois, adding 12 hits (9 solos) and a season-high three stops behind the line of scrimmage at Wisconsin.
2011 SEASON
Played in all 13 games as a true freshman, starting the final three contests at weak-side linebacker…finished sixth on the team with 57 tackles (37 solos), the most by a first-year Buckeye since 1996…had three sacks for minus 14 yards, five stops for losses of 17 yards and two forced fumbles.
HIGH SCHOOL
Attended Plantation (Pompano Beach, Fla.) High School, playing football for head coach Steve Davis…the All-State outside linebacker was rated a four-star prospect and regarded as the 14th-best linebacker in the nation, earning the 42nd spot on the Florida Top 100 list compiled by Rivals.com…Scout.com considered him to be the fifth-best outside linebacker in the prep ranks and also took notice of his skills playing defensive end and tight end during his high school days…as a junior, Shazier recorded 87 tackles that included 19 sacks and 28.5 stops behind the line of scrimmage…also caused two fumbles, recovered two others, including one that he returned for a touchdown and blocked a kick…that performance earned him second-team Class 6A All-State honors, along with being named All-Broward County first-team by the Miami Herald…as a senior, the linebacker again delivered 87 tackles, recording 19.5 sacks with four forced fumbles and four blocked kicks…named Broward County’s Most Outstanding Player that year, he ended his career as the school’s record-holder with 38.5 sacks…the All-State pick ended his prep career by suiting up once more for the Under Armor All-American Game.
PERSONAL
Shazier is majoring in Psychology with a minor in Business Management…son of Vernon and Shawn Shazier…father is the Miami Dolphins’ chaplain…born 9/06/92 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida…resides in Pompano Beach, Florida.