COLUMBUS, Ohio –– It’s been a long time coming, but opportunity is finally within grasp for Ohio State’s next wave of linebackers.

No longer patiently biding their time behind long-time position group stalwarts like Tuf Borland, Pete Werner, Baron Browning and Justin Hilliard, the Buckeyes’ new speculative triumvirate at linebacker came into focus on Thursday, if it wasn’t clear already.

“There’s been a blueprint set up with those four guys that just left us, and I just kind of followed the blueprint, just stepped into the role,” senior linebacker Teradja Mitchell said. “I got to be the leader in the room now, being the older guy. Me, Dallas [Gant] and K’Vaughan [Pope].”

Things are far from set in stone of course, as Gant said he suffered a foot injury and will be out for all of spring ball, and linebackers coach Al Washington sounded noncommittal about the direction he might go with the Sam position.

However, Gant said he expects to play middle linebacker when he’s healthy, and Mitchell said he has remained at the Will spot, leaving one to presume that Pope, the other fourth-year linebacker in the group, will replace Browning and Hilliard on the outside.

Third-year linebacker Craig Young, who received the third-most snaps last season among Buckeye LBs not named Borland, Werner, Browning or Hilliard, was revealed to be splitting time as a defensive back in a potential new role as a bullet by head coach Ryan Day last week, which seems to only further the notion that Ohio State’s three seniors will be the starters by Game 1 next season.

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However, securing a starting role will mean overcoming an offseason setback for Gant, who declined to say how he injured his foot on Thursday.

Washington said none of his linebackers are in a position to coast into a starting role, but he said it’s not necessarily “damaging” for Gant to be out at this stage.

“I don’t care if you’re the best of the best, you need reps, you need to participate,” Washington said. “It’s not good that he’s not able to [practice], I wouldn’t put it in the ‘good’ category. And I do think he could’ve benefited from having had these practices.”

Replacing Werner, the 2020 team tackles leader, at the Will position, Mitchell said the transition to a leadership role has been natural for him, and despite a “very difficult” waiting game for the past three seasons, Mitchell knows that patience is beginning to pay off.

“What I think I bring to that role is I’m a very aggressive linebacker, contact-seeker,” Mitchell said. “So I look forward to thumping some guys.”

On the outside, Washington has utilized very different skillets at the Sam position in the past two years, with Werner’s coverage ability taking precedent in his fulfillment of that role in 2018 and ‘19, and Browning’s pass-rushing capabilities being mixed in as he switched to Sam last year.

Whether Washington does or doesn’t know exactly what he’s doing with the position this season, he’s not tipping his hand just yet. However, he said the position will once again be tailored to the talents of whoever fills the role.

“Whatever skillset that guy has, you play to that,” Washington said. “So that’s one that you can kind of mold around the player, and so as things go in spring, we’ll have a better idea of that.”

Entering his third season at Ohio State, Washington will not have the comfort of putting any returning starters on the field at linebacker for the first time. Still, the new starting group could be comprised of all seniors, and despite lacking a wealth of game experience, the trio will have spent plenty of time learning behind a slew of program mainstays.

“We’ve seen what it takes to lead the unit, so just following in their footsteps, the older guys,” Mitchell said.