A whirlwind of change is inevitable for a college football player when he transfers from one school to another, but the gusts were particularly strong on the field for Davison Igbinosun.
Jim Knowles’ defense is an intricate one. With a litany of different coverages, disguises, pre-snap adjustments and reads to absorb, there was a lot for the second-year player to soak up after he migrated from Ole Miss to Ohio State.
“You have to learn the scheme all over again,” Igbinosun said Aug. 10. “When I got here in the spring, when I was on the field, I was asking Sonny (Styles), ‘Tell me everything I need to know about this play’ because I was confused. Now I have an understanding of the defense as a whole.”
As Igbinosun has assimilated to the defense through spring practice and fall camp, he’s prepared himself to be in the Buckeyes’ main rotation of corners with Denzel Burke and Jordan Hancock.
“He’s more comfortable right now,” Ohio State cornerbacks coach Tim Walton said. “He was a competitor when he got here, he competes. But he has (a better) understanding of where to be, alignment, splits, formations. Now he knows the job description, so he’s able to process it and utilize it.”
Igbinosun noted that the biggest difference between Ohio State’s plan of attack and Ole Miss’ is that there’s a lot more pre-snap “checks,” or adjustments made based on what the offense is doing after the initial defensive play call.
That’s really been the core of the learning curve for Igbinosun – play calls and pre-snap keys – as many of the techniques and strategies of playing corner remain the same regardless of which defense a team is running.
Walton feels that much of Igbinosun’s post-snap ability has already been cultivated during his freshman season starting with the Rebels, in which he recorded five pass breakups and 37 tackles across 13 games.
“He has some football IQ, he has some instincts,” Walton said. “He’s played the game, so he understands what it is to play high-level football. So he can process it. It was just learning the terminology, learning the verbiage, learning where he fits on certain plays.”
Igbinosun also feels like he’s accelerated his development under Walton, who he referred to as an “OG.” His above-mentioned post-snap cognitive skills have been honed.
“He says this all the time, ‘The best aspect of a player’s game is his eyes,’” Igbinosun said. “Just being more disciplined and seeing formations in offenses.”
“He can process it. It was just learning the terminology, learning the verbiage, learning where he fits on certain plays.”– Tim Walton on Davison Igbinosun
Burke, Hancock and Igbinosun all figure to be contributors for Ohio State in 2023, but questions remain as to how much each will play. That’s not something Igbinosun is shying away from, however.
“Competition breeds greatness,” Igbinosun said. “I know that the best player is going to be on the field and I’m ready to compete. I’m just embracing the competition.”
“We all some dogs,” Burke said. “We’re going to go out there, play man, play off, do whatever we need to do to win the game. We’ve played a lot of ball, Davison back at Ole Miss, Jordan played a couple games last year.”
Another thing that has helped Igbinosun settle in and grow is the depth of talent within Ohio State’s wide receiver room, arguably the best in college football.
Star wideout Marvin Harrison Jr., one of the nation’s best players regardless of position, challenges the New Jersey native and the team’s other defensive backs on a daily basis. Igbinosun feels he and Harrison split who wins each rep “50/50.”
“I can check Marvin,” Igbinosun said. “I mean, he’s the best player in the country, but me and him go at it.”
If that is truly the case, it bodes well for the team’s defensive backfield in 2023. For now, Igbinosun and the rest of the Scarlet and Gray’s corners are focused on taking strides with each training session.
“It’s a grind every day. We have the best group of receivers in the country, so (we’re) just challenging those boys every day,” Igbinosun said.
