Saturday’s scrimmage officially wrapped up Ohio State’s spring as the Buckeyes provided a first look at their 2022 roster to the scarlet and gray faithful in attendance at Ohio Stadium.
The offense vs. defense format saw Ohio State go live and tackle to the ground, outside of the quarterbacks, and Team Scarlet (offense) finished the afternoon with a 34-26 edge on Team Gray (defense) before festivities came to a close at the Shoe.
The tone was set on the very first drive, as C.J. Stroud and company marched down the field to score a touchdown in 10 plays with Jaxon Smith-Njigba picking up where he left off in the Rose Bowl with a 29-yard scoring grab in the first quarter. But also notable about that drive was that Stroud donned late Buckeye quarterback Dwayne Haskins’ jersey, paying homage to a player that helped pave the way for him to come to Ohio State in the first place.
Stroud talked about his decision to tribute Haskins in that manner after the game, and said Haskins “changed the culture” at the quarterback position in Columbus.
“I just wanted to honor his – maybe his last moment in the Shoe,” Stroud said. “I feel like that’s a big brother of mine, and I just wanted to honor him. It wasn’t nothing crazy to me, I just thought it would’ve been important for him to go out the right way, so I’m glad his last play at the Shoe was a touchdown. So I’m excited for that.”
But even if Stroud had a little extra help from Haskins during his 14-for-22, 120-yard day, the Buckeye defense made plenty of big plays as well in what could only be considered a promising performance from Jim Knowles’ group.
Knowles kept his true cards close to the vest in terms of the looks he eventually plans to unveil once the season begins, but the new Buckeye defensive coordinator said even before the spring game he was already thrilled with how the Buckeyes had adjusted to his system.
“Going into the game I felt great about how far we had come, what we accomplished, how much we got installed, how the players took to it,” Knowles said. “It was as good or better than I could have wished.”
“The biggest revelation of the spring was that regardless of talent, these players that we have, they want to learn. They soaked up everything I did. They’re just into it; into football, into us, into culture change and the way we run meetings. They picked it up. I mean, they picked it up at a high speed.”
One player in particular that earned praise from Knowles and those that had their eyes fixed on the Buckeye defense Saturday was first-year safety Kye Stokes, who was the first true freshman to shed his black stripe this spring. Stokes finished with nine tackles, tied for second-most on the team, and two pass breakups before all was said and done. Stokes was all over the field, making plays in pass coverage and in the run game, and appears to be on the right track early on in his Buckeye career, to say the least.
After seeing his performance in the scrimmage, Knowles did not disagree.
“Without watching film, I thought he had a great game, just because he showed up and flashed and looked like he rose to the occasion. What you worry about with a young guy is the bright lights, and he looked like it was no problem for him. He really stepped up. I’m looking at good things for him. I liked him all along, but I was impressed today.”
The Buckeye defensive line is sure to steal some headlines as well, as the front four finished with six sacks by game’s end. J.T. Tuimoloau had two of those on his own, and Jack Sawyer added another as both fueled the notion that their second year of college football could yield a breakout campaign.
“I think J.T. and Jack both have had very good offseasons. They’ve gotten stronger, they’ve gotten faster, technique’s been better – and you saw that today,” Ryan Day said. “If they continue to build this summer, then they’re gonna be a force in the fall. I think that they’ve really taken to Coach Johnson and his system, too.”
When asked what has changed about the Buckeye defense since the end of the 2021 season, Tuimoloau simply said there’s been a shift in mentality that has coincided with the regime change on the defensive coaching staff.
“I just think with the whole change and stuff, I think we just came together and a lot of the older dudes stepped up and took a lot of the younger boys under their wing. After that we just continued to come with a different energy and continue to push each other,” Tuimoloau said. “Holding each other accountable was a big thing for us too.”
The start of the 2022 slate is still plenty far off, but both sides of the ball gave Ohio State fans something to be excited about when the fall approaches in a few months.
