Good luck trying to find any holes in Ohio State’s offense.
In actuality, the biggest question mark on that side of the ball this offseason might be whether the nation’s best offensive line recruit in 2018 or the nation’s best offensive line recruit in 2020 gets to start at right tackle. Or maybe it’s whether or not any of the four top-100 overall wide receiver prospects will be ready to start or factor into rotations as freshmen. Or, quite possibly, it’s whether Trey Sermon – who averaged 6.1 yards per carry at Oklahoma – can carry the load in the backfield.
Either way, both you and Don Brown get the point. With Justin Fields and Ryan Day running the show behind what has a chance to be the country’s most dominant offensive line, it would take significant nitpicking to find reasons to doubt whether the Buckeyes will be able to put up points.
Defensively? It’s a bit different.
Unlike on offense, where the superstar – Fields – remains in place, Chase Young and Jeff Okudah are off to the NFL. Among the others gone are Damon Arnette and Jordan Fuller, emptying a dominant defensive backfield. The only remaining starter in the secondary is potential All-American candidate Shaun Wade, who’ll move from the slot to outside cornerback. Elsewhere, three starting spots are open.
“The back end there we're losing some really good players there with Jordan, Damon and Jeff leaving,” Day said in January. “So some corners will have to step up. But that's college football.”
Enter, Cameron Brown and Sevyn Banks.
The third-year duo of cornerbacks appeared primed to take aim at starting jobs alongside Wade, at least until the coronavirus led to the cancellation of spring camp.
Neither of them had eye-popping stats as backups in 2019; Banks picked off a pass to go along with 11 tackles, and Brown wrapped up 14 tackles. But because the Buckeyes spent the majority of the regular season blowing the doors off of most opponents, they each played career-high snap totals, with Brown getting on the field for 254 snaps and Banks playing 170 snaps. Often in those moments, they impressed – both are physically gifted athletes with high ceilings, even if they weren’t five-star recruits like Okudah and Wade. But they’ve each played more than 30 snaps just twice.
The degree to which they remain relatively unknown commodities makes cornerback one of Ohio State’s biggest concerns of the 2020 offseason. By turning the corner, if they’re able to do so ahead of the fall, Brown and Banks have a chance to shore up the area hardest hit by NFL draft entrances.
“Shaun coming back was huge. I think Shaun, in my opinion, should be considered the top corner in the country coming back in all of football,” Day said in March. “But when you look at that and then Cam's coming back and Sevyn's coming back. And you've got some decent depth there in terms of reps. Now, some of the younger guys will have to step up. I think that's the next thing.”
Banks, the No. 221 overall recruit in 2018, started earning recognition during the 2018 Rose Bowl lead-up. Greg Schiano went as far as to praise him by saying he “could be the next big-time corner here if he keeps developing” due to how impressive he had been throughout bowl practices.
Well, he’s not there yet. Okudah, Arnette, Denzel Ward, Marshon Lattimore, Gareon Conley, Eli Apple and Bradley Roby set the bar mighty high. But the 6-foot-1, 200-pound has made ample progress, and on the first day of spring camp he stood out to a number of reporters who got to watch the opening practice in its entirety.
“He's got to step up,” Day said on March 2. “It's only two months since we played our last game. And we'll see once we get through the spring if he's willing to take that next step. But certainly, he's had a good couple of weeks of winter workouts or couple months of winter workouts. And he's a guy we’re counting on to step up.”
If that next step happens, and the Buckeyes could really use it, then it has to come away from the Woody Hayes Athletic Department. Or it must wait until at least August thanks to COVID-19.
For Kerry Coombs, who’s gearing up for his first year as defensive coordinator, the quicker the better. That applies, too, for Brown.
Before Jeff Hafley left for Boston College, Brown was amid a rapid, year-long rise up the depth chart. The St. Louis native who originally picked Ohio State with dreams of catching touchdowns as a wideout was a bit of an afterthought in the cornerback room. But once healthy he just kept rising and rising, clicking with Hafley and eventually playing the most snaps among non-starting cornerbacks. The standout year as a backup naturally made him a starting candidate in 2020.
Because Brown and Banks have only been backups in past years, there’s certainly reason to hold off on deeming them as no-doubt-about-it starters. Marcus Williamson – a senior who has battled injuries and played sparingly through three years – will do whatever he can to get the nod, and he opened spring practice starting in the slot. A few freshmen, including Ryan Watts and Lejond Cavazos, could make pushes to start, too.
Day, though, appears willing to play whomever the coaches believe are the “best three guys,” provided at least one of them takes well to the slot.
“If Sevyn, Cam or Shaun can – one of those three guys can do a good job inside, then we'll do that,” Day said in March. “But the good thing for Kerry, when you come in here fresh, you get a fresh look at it and you get a chance to see it. And, I think, again as time goes on through here in March and April he'll get a good feel for their skill sets and try to figure out the best guys to put on the field, especially for third down.”
Based on career trajectory alone, since the lack of a spring camp makes it downright impossible to evaluate how much each cornerback developed in January, February, March and April, Brown and Banks should enter the preseason with plenty of momentum.
But beyond just capturing starting spots under a new defensive coordinator, Ohio State needs the two juniors to elevate their game to ensure the secondary maintains the Best In America status that Okudah, Wade, Arnette and Fuller restored in 2019.
