Why Oklahoma State Linebackers Have High Tackle Numbers Past Two Games

The numbers that Oklahoma State linebackers Ethan Wesloski and Tate Romney had put up the past two games are crazy.

Wesloski, who was named the Big 12 co-defensive player of the week for the third time this year on Monday, finished the UCF game with 17 tackles. It was the second straight week that he finished a game with 17 tackles. He did the same thing in the Big 12 opener against West Virginia.

As for Romney, he’s high double-digits each of the past two weeks. He had 12 tackles against West Virginia and 14 against UCF. Combined the pair have 60 tackles in two games — and that doesn’t even get into what Isaiah Chisom has done, who is considered a starter when the Cowboys use three linebackers. He’s had 16 tackles in the last two games and he’s not playing starter’s reps.

Why the massive production? Cowboys head coach Eric Morris explained it on Tuesday.

Why Linebackers are Tackling So Much

The Cowboys run a 4-2-5 defensive scheme, which means the linebackers are busy to begin with. In a more traditional 4-3 scheme, linebackers can patrol a third of the field. In the 4-2-5, the linebackers can get further stretched out side-to-side.

Each of the Cowboys’ last two opponents, Morris said, have used a lot of misdirection offensively, especially in the pre snap. UCF was especially difficult to diagnose because the Knights were limited at quarterback and went run and short-pass heavy, using misdirection to move the defense and create chaos that Oklahoma State had difficulty diagnosing early in the game.

For Wesloski, Romney and Chisom to put up those kinds of numbers, the defensive line must do its job, too, Morris said. That’s part of the reason for the production.

“Our interior D-line has played really good at just stopping the interior runs,” Morris said. “So, these last two weeks there's been a bunch of perimeter plays to be made, and they've done a nice job staying at home on some different misdirection stuff and getting some tackles for losses and making some plays in space.”

Experience is a factor, too. Weslowski is a fifth-year player who played in the system last year at North Texas under the same defensive coordinator, Skyler Cassidy. He was an all-conference performer and had more than 100 tackles in 2025. He's used to the scheme, how it works against different offensive formations.

Romney is also in his fifth collegiate season after stops at BYU and Arizona State. He's proven to be one of the unit's better tacklers behind the line of scrimmage and has made a couple of significant tackles for loss the past two games. The same goes for Chisom, who was a high producer at UCLA last season.

Wesloski and Romney are getting the big numbers. But they know, as does Morris, that part of the reason the defense has played well the past four games is because the unit has done a good job of working together.

“I think those guys feed off one another and they’ve bene really good,” Morris said. “They’re two really smart players. Chisom is doing a phenomenal job as well.”