Junior safety Sonny Stiles, 6, participates in Ohio State University's final spring practice session at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center.Credit: Courtesy of Ohio State Athletics
“i'm back.”
This comes as senior cornerback Denzel Burke, the last major player on the 2023 Ohio State defense who was expected to dominate and enter the NFL Draft, has decided to return for his final year. That was the message college football fans received when
On Saturday at the annual spring game at Ohio Stadium, fans will get their first look at a largely unchanged Ohio State defense, including the addition of transfer safety Caleb Downs from Alabama. A few key moves could drastically change things for the Buckeyes.
Downs won the Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Year Award in his only season as a true freshman with the Crimson Tide and led the conference in tackles with 70 alone.
“[Ohio State] We played great defense last year,” Downs said. “Watching the film and seeing how they go forward definitely helped me make better decisions about what to do here.”
Downs will move to the free safety position this year, while senior Lathan Ransom will remain in his natural position of strong safety.
The dual safeties will see senior Jahad Carter and sophomore Malik Hartford fill backup roles and stand behind sure-fire starters Downs and Ransom.
Another notable change is junior Sonny Styles moving from safety to linebacker.
Late last season, Stiles said there were talks about moving to the linebacker position. This year, that change has paid off as he is one of the team's top pass rushers.
“We're trying to get the best 11 on the field,” Stiles said. “So where can we help the defense the most?”
As it turns out, we're getting closer to the line of scrimmage.
Ohio State defensive coordinator Jim Knowles said the move to linebacker will be a change for Stiles, and instead of dropping from deep, he'll play from low in the box, where things happen much faster. He said this is because he will be playing in the
“He's a guy with football intelligence,” Knowles said. “I think he's going to be a great player because one of the biggest parts is knowing all the elements around him to be able to play fast. Sonny showed us a lot of that.”
Graduate linebacker Cody Simon will likely move into the field general inside linebacker role after impressing last year in the position occupied by NFL Draft prospect Tommy Eichenberg. . In Eichenberg's absence, he led the team in tackles in the Buckeyes' loss to Missouri State in the Cotton Bowl.
Junior linebackers CJ Hicks and Gabe Powers could also see more playing time this year as the loss of college graduate and NFL prospect Steele Chambers creates space at outside linebacker.
Freshman linebacker Garrett Stover, the younger brother of former Buckeye tight end Cade Stover, may have limited action this year, but he is another addition to Ohio State's linebacker core. He is a player worth paying attention to.
At cornerback, the veteran trio of senior Denzel Burke, senior Jordan Hancock and junior Davison Igbinosun will return as starters in the secondary, with sophomore Jermaine Matthews Jr. behind them. A young group of cornerbacks, including Calvin Simpson, should follow. hunt. This young duo will likely get strong reps on Saturday.
Matthews stepped up multiple times last season in place of the injured Burke, including one start in a defensive slugfest against Penn State, recording three tackles and a pass breakup.
“The more reps I get on the field, the more confident I get,” Matthews said. “[I’m] He's a guy who can play anywhere on the back end, he can help on special teams, and he's going to go wherever he's needed this year and give it his all. ”
Freshman cornerbacks Aaron Scott Jr., Bryce West and Myles Lockhart will play backup roles this year, but could receive playing time late in games or midway through the season.
The defensive line retains all but one starter from last year, with senior defensive ends JT Tuimorow and Jack Sawyer once again reinforcing the Buckeyes' dominance.
Junior defensive ends Kenyatta Jackson Jr. and Kayden Curry, who each had 1.5 sacks at Ohio State last year, will back up the dominant duo of Sawyer and Tuimoloau on the outside. Meanwhile, freshman defensive end Edrick Houston, a four-star recruit from Buford, Georgia, will be a key piece up front for the Buckeyes going forward.
On the inside, senior defensive tackles Tyreke Williams and Ty Hamilton return for their final year after very productive junior seasons in which they each appeared in all 13 games.
Williams tied for the team lead in tackles for loss with 10, while Hamilton was less statistically efficient but still finished with 4.5 tackles for loss, which was third on the team.
Williams said there is a common understanding among the upperclassman defenders to return to the Buckeyes for another year and finish his career on a good note.
“I called some seniors to see where their heads were at,” Williams said. “They said to me, 'Why don't you come back? We have a good team back and you know we can do good things.'
Junior Herro Kanu and sophomore Kayden McDonald also saw playing time at the inside tackle positions last season, but this offseason Williams and Hamilton have already taken the majority of the snaps at inside lineman. and will likely find himself as a backup.
At first glance at these changes, the Buckeyes will officially return to action at noon Saturday. Fox will broadcast the event.
