MARYSVILLE, Ohio — Gabe Powers was going to sign with Ohio State no matter what. He just wanted all of his friends and family to be there when he did, waiting two days to make what had been two years in the making official.

Really, it’s been even before that.

“That’s always been the goal since the day I was born,” Powers said. “We’ve always been Ohio State fans, our whole family.”

Mike Powers’ role as Gabe’s father was to make sure his son was making the decision for himself and not anyone else.

Early on in the recruiting process, Mike Powers encouraged Gabe to visit the schools that offered him: Clemson, Notre Dame, Penn State. Even since Gabe Powers committed to Ohio State two years ago, his father said programs like Alabama had reached out, asking, “Are you sure? Are you set on Ohio State?”

But as early as his sophomore season, Gabe Powers was done.

“‘I know where I want to go,’” Mike Powers recalled hearing from his son. “‘That’s my dream, that’s been my goal. That’s where I want to go. You know it. I know it.’”

And that was that: the family dream came true.

“It’s a blessing, but it’s surreal almost,” Gabe Powers said. “Hasn’t truly set in, and it won’t until I’m there. I’m very excited to be a Buckeye.”

To Gabe Powers, Ohio State already feels at home.

It’s close to home — with campus only 30 minutes away from his home in Marysville — but it’s an atmosphere, a brotherhood that began ever since he committed. It’s something him and players like five-star linebacker CJ Hicks tried to instill in the Buckeyes’ 2022 class ever since each joined in 2020.

Over the past two years, the 2022 four-star outside linebacker continued to build his relationship with Ohio State linebackers coach Al Washington and head coach Ryan Day, just talking, not even about football, but life. He never received any expectations from them, just encouragement to work as hard as possible.

It’s something that was instilled in Powers when he was at Marysville High School. The process: all about work, dedication and drive.

Powers is ready for the process to start at Ohio State.

“They all say how hard it is and I’m ready for the work and I’m ready to get in it,” Powers said.

To him, the process isn’t dedicated by his surroundings.

Powers has already met and talked with new defensive coordinator Jim Knowles, saying he’s looking forward to being coached by him, but that he’s ready for whatever changes come to the staff, saying he expects it not to be any “huge change.”

Powers said “any position they want me to play is what I’m going to play,” with rumors floating that the four-star outside linebacker could potentially move to defensive end at the next level.

While Mike Powers watched his son answer questions about a potential move, saying that he doesn’t play a position and that he just plays football, all he can do is laugh, remembering his son doing linebacker drills at age four-and-a-half.

“I can tell you that it’s never been a question that he’s a linebacker,” Mike Powers said. “Coach Washington, Coach Day, they laugh. They don’t know where these reporters come up with this stuff. They are like, ‘No, we want you at linebacker’ because he’s so athletic and his size, it’s a rare breed.”

Along with his athleticism and size at linebacker, Mike Powers said Gabe’s best attribute is understanding the game of football cerebrally, understanding everything that’s going on on the field at a given time, having learned the game from an early age.

It’s all part of the process: using everything he’s got to give everything he’s got on the football field, working as hard as he can to make an impact, something Gabe Powers hopes to show when he first arrives at Ohio State Jan. 4 after participating int he Under Armour All-American Game Jan. 2..

“He’s a throwback,” Mike Powers said. “He reminds you of a Chris Spielman type, A.J. Hawk, those type of players. He’s going to die, do whatever it takes to win that game for the Buckeyes. It doesn’t matter what that is.”

To Gabe Powers, it’s working, giving everything to make sure something like what happened in Ann Arbor Nov. 27 doesn’t happen in his time at Ohio State.

Growing up a Buckeye fan, the Michigan game was huge every year, watching it with friends and family, watching Ohio State dominate in recent memory.

This year was different, watching as an upcoming Buckeye.

Powers was mad.

As he works through the process he began to refine with his father, who coached him at linebacker, Powers pictures it paying off against Michigan, fueling him to get back to work.

He never wants it to happen to him.

“Yeah for sure, you picture it every day,” Powers said.