As the lone returning starter in the secondary, Ohio State redshirt junior cornerback Gareon Conley knows he’ll be one of the four manning the back end of the Buckeyes’ defense in 2016. After an impressive spring, redshirt sophomore safety Malik Hooker is likely to be the second starter.
The rest of the starting secondary, though, is to be determined.
“That’s a street fight right now,” Urban Meyer said recently at Big Ten Media Days. “There are about five guys there and it’s a free-for-all.”
With Conley and Hooker pegged as starters, two spots are still up for grabs in Ohio State’s secondary: the cornerback spot opposite Conley and the safety position alongside Hooker.
Redshirt sophomore Marshon Lattimore and true sophomore Denzel Ward are the leading candidates to battle for that second cornerback spot, and Meyer said the two are currently “locked up” heading into fall camp for that position. The next three or so weeks will determine a winner.
“That’s a street fight right now. There are about five guys there and it’s a free-for-all.”– Urban Meyer on Ohio State's secondary
Ward turned heads last season as one of four true freshmen who did not redshirt. He made an impact on special teams and cornerbacks coach Kerry Coombs says he is the Buckeyes’ fastest player. Lattimore is a guy the Ohio State coaching staff has raved about since Day 1, but his inability to stay healthy limited his production the first two years. Meyer perked up a bit when he was asked about Lattimore at Big Ten Media Days and said the Cleveland native is “ready to go.”
At safety, junior Damon Webb seems to have the lead going into fall camp, but both Erick Smith and Cam Burrows — Meyer said each is healthy after season-ending injuries last year — are strong contenders, as well. Meyer additionally mentioned redshirt freshman Damon Arnette as a guy the Buckeyes are playing around with the idea of moving to safety “because he may be one of our best 11.”
“It’s going to be interesting,” Meyer said.
Revamping the secondary is certainly a tall task. Ohio State’s pass defense over the last two seasons ranked 29th (201.1 yards per game) and 16th (184.5 ypg.) nationally and a large part of that was Chris Ash’s new scheme. Ash obviously departed in the offseason to become head coach at Rutgers and Greg Schiano was hired to take his place. Schiano’s defensive scheme won’t be that much different, but the personnel certainly will be.
With Tyvis Powell, Vonn Bell and Eli Apple now all in the NFL, the Buckeyes have a lot of holes to plug in the back four. Conley gives them one proven member of the secondary; there are high expectations for Hooker, as well, and by all accounts, he figures to be a key piece to Ohio State’s defense.
But the other two positions remain big question marks as the Buckeyes look to solidify the back end of their defense. And while safety and cornerback are just two out of plenty of position battles for Ohio State heading into fall camp, Meyer is looking forward to the competition that’s about to get going.
“I hope it’s a free-for-all for positions,” he said. “They want playing time.”
