Ohio State defensive line coach Larry Johnson celebrates after a Buckeye touchdown in the second half of the game against Michigan State on Nov. 10, 2018. Ohio State won 26-6. Credit: Casey Cascaldo | Lantern File Photo
Ohio State is losing Tommy Togiai and Jonathon Cooper on the defensive line, but coaches expect returning veterans and up-and-coming players to fill the void in the 2021 season.
No defensive lineman’s stats last season featured the star-studded numbers Chase Young put up in 2019, but it was enough of a collective effort to produce one of the most stout run defenses in the country. Ohio State’s defensive line coach Larry Johnson said he is fine with his unit not putting up stellar sack numbers if they are doing their job well.
“I still believe pressure’s sometimes better than a sack because you force the quarterback to throw an erratic throw,” Johnson said. “I’m not a guy chasing numbers, I’m just chasing production.”
The Buckeyes are retaining nine defensive linemen who played in at least five games last season, headlined by juniors Taron Vincent and Zach Harrison, senior Tyreke Smith and graduate Haskell Garrett.
Of those returning, Garrett was the leading tackler with 20 in eight games. Garrett was tied with Smith and Harrison for the season high in sacks with a mere two apiece.
The five returning defensive tackles — sophomore Cormontae Hamilton, senior Jerron Cage, graduate Antwuan Jackson, Garrett and Vincent — and the four returning defensive ends — junior Javontae Jean-Baptiste, senior Tyler Friday, Harrison and Smith — accounted for 17 of the team’s 46 tackles for loss.
Smith said as an edge rusher, there is a lot that goes into getting a sack, and the slightest deviation from the proper pass-rushing technique can make all the difference whether or not the quarterback is brought down.
“It could have been last second I didn’t burst enough, balance, staying up; it’s just a lot of factors that play into it,” Smith said. “Maybe I didn’t reach out for the ball to get the strip sack, something like that. I’m trying to make sure I stay on myself to make sure I do those things right, do the little things so in the game it can amount to a big turnover.”
Vincent said the job of the interior defensive linemen is simple.
“I feel like both D-tackles just cause havoc. That’s our job, just to mess the offense up, go get the ball,” Vincent said.
The defense went and got the ball a lot in 2020, allowing only 97.6 rushing yards per game as a unit — the sixth-lowest total in the Football Bowl Subdivision.
The defensive line will be getting some additional help this year, adding a big pass rush piece in freshman defensive end Jack Sawyer, who stands 6-foot-4 weighing 240 pounds. Sawyer was the No. 4-ranked recruit in the class of 2021 according to 247Sports.
The Pickerington, Ohio, native did not play his senior season, but he racked up 37 tackles, 19 tackles for loss and 13.5 sacks in his junior year.
Johnson said Sawyer’s intensity in spring camp could earn him some valuable playing time in the fall.
“The thing I like about Jack, he’s a fierce competitor. He hates to lose. He wants to win every rep, and I love that about him,” Johnson said. “We’re going to find a role for him. If he continues to work hard and do the things we’re asking him to, we’ll find a place to play him. I’ve never been afraid to play freshmen players.”
Johnson said he’s really excited about what his defensive line will be able to do in the 2021 season after refining their skills this offseason.
“When you sit down and watch all the pressure from last year, I think we were so close so many times from making a big play, but we didn’t get there,” Johnson said. “That’s what we’re working on right now, just kind of reading it faster, reading the quick game faster and try to make a difference. Bending the edge and bursting to the finish, all those little things, technique things we can do to make a difference.”
