The Ohio State football team storms the field before the Ohio State-Akron game Sept. 25. Ohio State won 59-7. Credit: Christian Harsa | Special Projects Director
The Buckeyes have taken notes, practice tests and quizzes all offseason.
Their first test is Sept. 3.
When No. 2 Ohio State takes the field against No. 5 Notre Dame at Ohio Stadium, the focus on the Buckeyes will be of two different extremes.
On one hand, Ohio State’s offense was at the top of the class in college football and averaged 45.7 points and 561.5 yards per game last season. On the other, the Buckeyes defense seeks to bring up its grades after ranking No. 9 in the Big Ten Conference and giving up 372.9 yards per game last season.
Head coach Ryan Day enters his fourth season as Buckeyes head coach this fall. During the offseason, he sought change and looked for a new defensive coordinator, which he found in Jim Knowles from Oklahoma State.
“During our conversations, the idea was for him to be the head coach of the defense,” Day said. “These guys are working really hard to put their best foot forward week in and week out in terms of the preseason camp. I think our guys feel that. I think when they show up to meetings, they feel preparation. They see how well the scheme’s put together, but still the emphasis on fundamentals. That’s all been good.”
Coaching the Cowboys to a top-three finish in total defense behind an average of 297.9 yards allowed per game last year, Knowles is now part of a program expecting a turnaround defensively, already installing “75 percent” of the new defensive scheme after the 15th preseason practice Monday.
Knowles’ defensive scheme will likely see the Buckeyes in what he’s called a “safety-driven defense,” primarily trotting five defensive backs onto the field alongside four defensive linemen and two linebackers.
Last season, Ronnie Hickman led Ohio State in his third season in the program with 100 tackles and played the “bullet” position, a hybrid linebacker that defended both in the pass and run games.
Hickman said during Big Ten Media Days July 27 that injuries and other factors played a part in some of the learning experiences the Buckeyes saw a season ago, but those challenges only prepared them for what’s to come.
“We had guys that had to step up and fill their shoes last year, but this year we have young guys who are playing tremendous and then we have the older guys who are helping them out, but also playing tremendous as well,” Hickman said. “I’m excited for our defense. The sky’s the limit for them.”
C.J. Stroud enters his third season at Ohio State, this time with assurance that he’s the Buckeyes’ starting quarterback. He played in all but one game last season, overcoming early-season challenges and a shoulder injury while having a record-breaking year that earned him a spot as a Heisman Trophy finalist.
Now a seasoned starter and bonafide captain, which saw him garner the most votes among his Buckeye teammates, Stroud said July 27 that his experience will help him know what to expect in 2022.
“Understanding that just being myself is good enough. Not doing too much. Not being extra. Not trying to make crazy plays. Just doing the right things the right way, and then when it’s time to make a play, make a play,” Stroud said. “I definitely feel like that’s the mindset that I have now.”
Ohio State’s roster going into the new season is full of players from a variety of different backgrounds and journeys. Some arrived in 2018, others this summer and many who were part of the pandemic-impacted season in 2020.
Fourth-year offensive lineman Dawand Jones joined Ohio State in 2019, developing a greater love for football after performing as a two-sport standout also on the basketball court in his native Indianapolis. He earned his way into the starting rotation last season and received Second Team All-Big Ten honors at left tackle.
Jones said he’s “matured a lot” since first stepping onto campus as a student-athlete in 2019.
“It’s a long process. It’s going to be a long run and you may not like it. Some people don’t like it here. Some people do,” Jones said. “But at the end of the day, you’re probably going to end up liking it. You’re going to be in a good place.”
Ohio State used its loss at rival Michigan and absence from the College Football Playoff as motivation for the preseason. Day said the expectation for the 2022 campaign remains the same as any other year: competing for a national championship.
But like any other team or an exam, Day said it’s important to focus on the overall goal by taking it one game at a time.
“You hope that every year you’re in that position at Ohio State. I think that’s what makes Ohio State unique,” Day said. “But you can’t start getting too far down the road with that stuff. It just doesn’t work. You got to keep grinding every day and stay hungry.”
