Ohio State has a reputation of pumping out premier defensive backs into the NFL, and Jeffrey Okudah came to Columbus last season looking like he could be the next great young Buckeye.
As a freshman, Okudah earned a significant amount of playing time, playing in all 14 games and collecting 17 tackles as he was Ohio State's fourth cornerback in a room that rotated on nearly every possession.
Now a sophomore, Okudah is competing for a starting job with veterans Damon Arnette and Kendall Sheffield. He is confident in his ability to earn more playing time, especially since he should be close to if not 100 percent healthy come September. The Texas native played through a labrum injury not only during his rookie year at OSU, but also his final two years of high school.
"This is my first time ever having a major injury," Okudah, who underwent surgery in the offseason, said. "But at the same time, I played with this injury senior year of high school, junior year of high school, freshman year at Ohio State so I’m kind of interested to see if there will be a change in performance now that I’m getting back to being fully healthy.
"I think it’ll definitely give (me) a lot of confidence," he added. "You can kind of go out there and play, knowing that your body feels good, and like I said, I’m really interested to see how everything will pan out, now that I’m getting back to being fully healthy."
With Denzel Ward sitting out the Cotton Bowl, Okudah saw his most extended playing time against USC and collected a season-high four tackles against the Trojans in a 24-7 victory.
Now that Ward is gone and preparing for the NFL draft, Okudah figures to be one of Ohio State's top corners, as soon as he returns from shoulder surgery.
“I’m really interested to see how everything will pan out, now that I’m getting back to being fully healthy.”– Jeffrey Okudah
"We're excited and ready for Jeff to come back," cornerbacks coach Taver Johnson said Wednesday. "I am excited watching (film) on him from last year and things that he did. He is such a smart young man. He is tough, a guy who has some game experience and he is long and can do a lot of good things."
While he hasn't been able to be on the field during the spring as he continues to rehab, Okudah has remained active both in the film and weight rooms. He said Wednesday that working extensively with strength and conditioning coach Mickey Marotti has been one of the more "interesting" parts of his offseason.
"I’ve been doing a lot of conditioning, lifting weights," he said. "Coach Mick, working out with Coach Mick has been one of the interesting points of this rehab process, and just doing individual, as well as sitting down with the coaches and watching film, just trying to get my technique up to date with the new stuff that they implemented."
When he does come back, Okudah expects he will join a cornerback rotation that has benefitted Ohio State's defense during the last two years. In 2016, the Buckeyes rotated three corners between Gareon Conley, Denzel Ward and Marshon Lattimore and last season, rotated Ward, Sheffield and Arnette. Come September, the rotation could very well feature Okudah, something he feels will help improve the entire defense.
"With all the press-man (coverage) that we play, I feel like with the rotation of corners, it is something that has become a part of Ohio State," Okudah said. "Even though Coach (Kerry) Coombs is gone, I feel like that is part of the culture now. Corners that can play and be effective on the field."
Even though he has been sidelined during the spring, Okudah has been actively participating in other ways as he looks to make a splash in 2018. He, along with the other teammates in his unit, are striving to continue to the success that the cornerback room has had at OSU over the recent years, despite the heavy competition within Johnson's room.
"We sit down and talk about it a lot, we want everyone to succeed," he said. "Collectively, we want to be the best unit on this football team."
