The thought first crept into Sonny Styles’ mind halfway through the 2021 football season.
What if he could actually get to college a year earlier than expected?
The 6-foot-4, 215-pound five-star safety/linebacker and eventual Ohio State signee was certainly in good enough standing in the classroom to pull off a reclassification from the class of 2023 to 2022. Then he began to think. Would it be worth passing up a senior year of high school to get a head start on becoming a collegiate athlete?
He brought the idea up to both of his parents, Lorenzo Styles Sr. and Laverna Styles. Lorenzo, a former Ohio State linebacker standout in the 1990s, was admittedly hesitant at first.
Then, he began to think. Sonny, or Alex, as he's referred to by his parents, has always competed against older athletes dating back to his youth football days.
Sonny and his older brother Lorenzo Styles Jr. have had countless basketball and football showdowns at the Styles household their entire lives, often enlisting Lorenzo Sr. as a referee to make things didn't get too out of hand. The graduating seniors at Pickerington Central High School have been going toe-to-toe with Sonny since he first started learning the game. Sonny always held his own against older athletes. And he never backed down from a challenge.
“I had to warm up to it a little bit,” Lorenzo told Eleven Warriors Wednesday of his son’s decision to reclassify. “But really, it’s almost like what he’s doing isn’t anything new. He’s always played against his older brother and the seniors that are graduating right now. He’s been doing that since he was in third grade. It’s kind of like he felt like it was his graduation year anyway. So (reclassifying) wasn’t a hard adjustment to really get into.”
Sonny’s growing desire to reclassify as the fall dragged on factored into his collegiate decision. It would be much easier to make the move if he was going to play for Ohio State, conveniently located about 30 minutes away from his hometown of Pickerington. The Ohio resident said he was seriously considering reclassification several weeks before he committed to the Buckeyes on Nov. 13 – just hours before OSU played Purdue.
On that chilly November day, the younger Styles and his family met with OSU coach Ryan Day several hours before kickoff, and had two bits of news to share. Sonny told Day he was going to play for him at OSU, welcome news which would be made public shortly after their meeting, but also told him his arrival on campus may happen sooner than expected.
“(He told us) right after he committed,” Day said Wednesday. “He kind of shared he was going to commit and then quickly said we’re thinking about reclassifying and then went about the business of finding out that information.”
Styles applied for reclassification with the Pickerington Central School Board in December, a request that was quickly approved. He made the announcement public the week of the early signing period. On Wednesday, Sonny officially signed his National Letter of Intent to play for Ohio State.
“I think the main reason (I reclassified) was I felt it was a unique opportunity for me to reclassify, for me to get ahead, get there early and get adjusted,” the younger Styles said Wednesday at a signing day ceremony at Pickerington Central. “Once me and my family sat down and talked about it, we realized it was a great opportunity for us. We think it was the right decision.”
Styles, who said he plans to enroll at Ohio State in June of 2022, knows the competition is only going to increase at the next level. He knows playing time at a program like Ohio State is earned, regardless of how highly-touted a recruit you are. Styles is entering the next stage of his life with an open mind.
“I think my mindset coming into the first year is just to come in ready to work,” Styles said. “Don’t expect anything to be given to you … I think obviously when I come somewhere, I want to make a big impact. That’s part of it. I think the first year I don’t want to come in like I deserve something. I just want to come in and work really hard and see what happens.”
The No. 13 prospect nationwide per 247Sports’ composite rankings, Styles also isn’t lacking any confidence about taking the next step.
“I think I’m prepared," Styles said. "I mean, obviously there’s going to be some adjustment being a younger guy. But I think I’m going into this with the right mindset. I think it’s not really the age it’s more of your mental aspect of it and how mature you are with it. I think my mom and dad raised me that way. I’ll be prepared.”
While fans will understandably salivate at getting a prospect of Styles’ caliber on campus for the 2022 season, it would be a good bet to not count on him seeing the field Week 1 of next year when Ohio State faces Notre Dame and Sonny’s brother Lorenzo, a current wide receiver for the team. But you never know, right?
“It would be a unique opportunity for the first game I play in college football to be against my brother,” Styles said. “It would be pretty crazy.”
That game would certainly make for an interesting time in the Styles household.
“Well it’s like Week 20 in that front yard with them playing basketball,” Lorenzo said of next year’s Week 1 matchup with a wry smile. “I just had to referee and keep them from fighting. When it comes to that game there, I just want them both to do well. I’m not going to cheer for one or the other, I’m going to be a neutral dad, just like I was when they played basketball together. I’m not sure if Alex is going to play that year or not, so there’s still a lot of things up in the air.”
