As Nick noted yesterday, one of the most important things for the 2015 Ohio State Buckeyes to do is to avoid resting on any kind of laurels that they feel that they have earned by winning the first college football playoff.
Okay, so maybe said laurels are a little earned, but the fact remains that more than ever, Urban Meyer and company have a gigantic target on their backs that the rest of the Big Ten would absolutely love to bullseye.
Offensively, Ohio State was a juggernaut last year, and as such much of the press and attention went to quarterbacks and skill players like J.T. Barrett and Ezekiel Elliott. Sure, Joey Bosa got his share of attention, and maybe Michael Bennett to a lesser extent, but for the most part the defensive side of the ball was overlooked, which is a shame because it was one of the most improved groups in the nation of any team.
Thanks in large part to a consistent defensive scheme that co-defensive coordinator Chris Ash brought with him from the Bielema crew, Ohio State was able to tighten up their defense at critical junctures last season, especially in the playoffs.
Still, improvement can be made. Though the Buckeyes jumped from 47th to 19th in total yards allowed last year, they're still a good 80 yards off the pace set by schools like Clemson and (no foolin') Marshall. One school bit Ohio State in the ass in a bowl game a few eternities ago, and the other one almost had an undefeated season last year. All in all, not a bad group to learn from.
CLEMSON
Clemson defensive coordinator Brent Venables runs his defense in a similar way to what is done at Ohio State, but what makes him an interesting potential defensive sensei is that he's also shown a propensity for turning around poor defenses. Clemson has improved defensively every season that he's been with the program, and with a ready-made Urban Meyer attitude...
I want to be somewhere where you can win at the highest level, recruit the best players (to) a place where football's important and expectations are high.
...Venables should be ready to go with some interesting input to the Buckeye defensive staff.
Venables is coming off a bowl win where he and the Clemson Tigers shut down the Oklahoma Sooners, his old employers, using a scheme very similar to what is used at Ohio State. Even more attractive is the ability of his defense to create turnovers (five in the Russell Athletic Bowl).
Maybe most importantly, however, is the potentiality to pick Venables brain about how to keep top-flight assistants on staff for longer than a few years. The answer is most certainly "more money," but maybe there's some kind of magic talisman Urban has to find and make Chris Ash wear or something.
MARSHALL
Marshall may seem like a weird choice at first. I mean, they're a Conference USA team and even an almost undefeated season couldn't get them anywhere close to sniffing the playoffs.
But that might actually work in their favor. Marshall is coached by Urban Meyer bro #1 Doc Holliday, and their defensie coordinator is Urban Meyer bro #2 Chuck Heater. Here's what Meyer had to say on the subject of Mr. Heater:
"He's one of the best teachers. I used to just sit in his meetings and watch him coach," said Urban Meyer, who mentored Heater at Florida and is now the head coach at Ohio State. "Coach Heater has a tendency of making some players out of non-players."
That's not a bad endorsement. And lest you be scared off by the yardage numbers, consider that they ranked 9th in yards per play allowed in the country last season despite facing well over 1000 plays. Also S&P+ loves them for whatever reason, so that's not too shabby either.
Ultimately what will make coaching visits to these colleges beneficial to the Buckeyes are two things: compatability between the coaching staffs, and the ability to integrate ideas from the defenses into what is featured at Ohio State. Both Marshall and Clemson have both of those things in spades, and would do nothing but help the Buckeyes as they enter into the potential minefield that is the 2015 college football season.
