Larry Johnson Sees Jarquez Carter Competing For A Job Early On

The Buckeyes are losing senior defensive tackles Tyleik Williams and Ty Hamilton to the NFL, which is one of the reasons defensive line coach Larry Johnson went out and signed a trio of defensive tackles in Ohio State’s 2025 recruiting class.

One of those three is Jarquez Carter, a 6-foot-3, 285-pound prospect out of Newberry High School in Newberry, Florida. Carter was ranked the No. 84 prospect in the class and the No. 5 defensive tackle nationally. He signed with the Buckeyes over offers from the likes of Alabama, Georgia, Michigan, Miami, Penn State, Texas, and others.

As a junior, Carter tallied 67 tackles and 37 tackles for loss. He then kicked things up a notch as a senior, posting 84 tackles and 17 sacks. Four of those sacks came in a 21-7 playoff win over Bradford to earn a district title for Newberry.

“I think he’s got a chance to be special,” Ohio State defensive line coach Larry Johnson told Buckeye Huddle recently. “I saw him play high school football live in a playoff game, and I walked away like, ‘Wow.'”

Johnson and everybody else.

Jarquez Carter is a tenacious defender who marries power and quickness, and then honeymoons in the opposing backfield.

As a true freshman at Newberry, he posted 83 tackles and seven sacks. Carter has made plays all four years of his high school career, and now he’s enrolled at Ohio State and getting ready to do the same thing for the Buckeyes.

Ohio State returns just six defensive tackles from the 2024 squad, and only Eddrick Houston and Kayden McDonald played more than 100 snaps this past season. Tywone Malone, Jason Moore, Will Smith, and Eric Mensah round out the returners, and Carter’s classmates Maxwell Roy and Trajen Odom complete the room.

There is an opportunity for a freshman to contribute in 2025.

“He can play three technique,” Larry Johnson said of Carter. “He’s a great pass rusher. Really strong, very physical, can run. I mean, he has all the skill sets. He’s a Mike Hall kind of guy.”

The three technique defensive tackle aligns opposite the opposing guard’s outside shoulder, which puts him between the guard and tackle. It can lead to double teams, but can also put a defender in a one-on-one situation with a guard.

Larry Johnson likes to have a pass-rushing three technique, which he’s had in the past from the likes of Tyleik Williams and Dre’Mont Jones. The comparison to former Buckeye nose tackle Mike Hall is also interesting. The two players are about the same size, but Hall’s quickness made him a nightmare for opposing offensive lines.

Hall was selected in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft by the Cleveland Browns.

Jarquez Carter is a few years away from having to worry about the NFL Draft, but the process of getting there has already started.

“But really just the early stage of his career, what he’s done thus far, I think he’ll have a chance to walk in and at least compete for a job,” Johnson said. “I like him a lot.”