Sometimes it’s a struggle to find new synonyms for the word "good" to describe Ohio State’s defensive arsenal in 2024.
A quick recap for any Buckeye fans who decided to hibernate from the final week of December until the second week of August: Jack Sawyer, JT Tuimoloau, Tyleik Williams, Ty Hamilton, Denzel Burke, Jordan Hancock and Lathan Ransom all decided to return for one more year in Columbus this offseason despite varying degrees of NFL draft stock. As a result, Ohio State returns nine starters from the nation’s No. 3 total, No. 2 scoring and No. 1 passing defense in 2024.
One of the starters lost from that unit, free safety Josh Proctor, was replaced by the No. 1 transfer portal prospect in the country, former Alabama ballhawk Caleb Downs.
The Buckeyes should possess a truly elite defense with all the chess pieces at the disposal of defensive grandmaster Jim Knowles. In three years he’s transformed the unit from the subject of ridicule to the driving force behind an Ohio State squad with its loftiest expectations since at least 2019.
Ohio State’s defense is experienced. Ohio State’s defense is talented. Ohio State’s defense is good. Let’s break it down.
The Stars
Caleb Downs
There was a brief window of time after the Buckeyes lost last year’s Cotton Bowl when folks felt the only concern on their 2024 defense would be at free safety, or “adjuster” as it is called in Knowles’ scheme. Downs turned that concern into one of the team’s greatest strengths with his transfer. He racked up an incredible 107 tackles as a freshman at Alabama, with two interceptions and four pass breakups, and was named a freshman All-American.
Denzel Burke
Burke is the lockdown anchor to a three-man starting group at cornerback that returns from last season, and as noted above, that group spearheaded the nation’s No. 1 passing defense in 2023. Alongside Hancock and Davison Igbinosun, Burke collected nine PBUs and one interception last year.
“I want to be recognized as the best corner to ever come through here and put my name on the wall (of the Woody Hayes Athletic Center), get a tree (in Buckeye Grove for being an All-American),” Burke said at Big Ten Media Days. “That's my ambition.”
Jack Sawyer
Choosing between Sawyer, Williams and Tuimoloau here as the star of Ohio State’s defensive line is a difficult call, but Sawyer might have been the Buckeyes’ best defensive player in the second half of last season. In OSU’s final three games, he collected a combined total of 16 tackles with 7.5 tackles for loss, five sacks and a forced fumble. Perhaps more important than that, however, he had a big hand in the return of so many of his 2021 recruiting classmates.
“I was throwing stuff in guys' ears, trying to talk to them about coming back and why we should come back and how much it would mean to the city if we came back and to Ohio State and being able to etch our names and a legacy here if we won a national championship and beat those guys up north,” Sawyer said at Big Ten Media Days. “So it was kind of a collective group effort, and a lot of decision went into it. But everybody made their own decision, what was best for them. And ultimately, I'm glad that a lot of them decided to come back.”
The X-Factors
The second wave of defensive linemen
Outside of Sonny Styles – who is moving down from safety and seems to be emerging as Ohio State’s starting Will linebacker – the Buckeyes’ projected starters on defense have a background of production at their positions. But the calls to play more depth for a potential 16- or even 17-game playoff run have been frequent from the team’s coaching staff, and that’s where other pieces can emerge as X-factors.
There might not be another position on the roster where Ohio State flexes more depth than along the defensive line, and that’s saying something given the number of quality players across the Buckeyes’ roster. Hero Kanu, Kayden McDonald, Jason Moore and perhaps even Tywone Malone will be names to watch at defensive tackle while Kenyatta Jackson Jr., Caden Curry and Mitchell Melton provide more-than-capable relief options off the edge.
C.J. Hicks
While it seems that Styles is pulling away from Hicks in the battle to start at Will based on the Ohio State practices open to the media, Hicks is still expected to be involved in 4-3 packages and as a blitzer off the edge. He has the athleticism to match up with tight ends and running backs in pass coverage too, meaning there are scenarios where he and Styles could play in Ohio State's 4-2-5 base package together.
“I feel like when we need a play, when it’s 3rd-and-long and we need somebody to get to the quarterback, I’m that guy,” Hicks said on Wednesday. “No matter who the D-ends are. I love our D-linemen, but I feel like I’m the best one at getting to the quarterback.”
Jermaine Mathews Jr.
The luxury of having Mathews as a backup has been written about on multiple occasions here at Eleven Warriors, but it bears repeating that the Buckeyes’ sophomore cornerback would start for 95% of college teams this year, if not all but the one he’s on. After proving himself on a huge stage against Penn State as a freshman, he’ll be the team’s top backup at outside corner and is probably too good to keep out of rotational work. He’s also in an under-the-radar competition with Lorenzo Styles Jr. to be the team’s next nickel after Hancock.
The Unknowns
How much will Knowles ramp up the aggression?
Last year the biggest non-positional question pertaining to Ohio State’s defense was how Knowles and company would address the big plays that cost the team against Michigan and Georgia at the end of 2022. The answer was more base defenses, hanging back and making offenses earn what they gained, though the team did show some more blitzes as the season wore on and the secondary proved its mettle.
This year Knowles wants to mix in more of such rushes, and with the defensive backs he has to cover for vacated zones in pass coverage, one can hardly blame him. It also doesn’t hurt to have gifted blitzers like Sonny Styles and Hicks. And, given enough time, offensive coordinators are smart and can figure out how to hit on base plays even when outmatched in personnel.
“You look at our last game (against Missouri), we had a shutout pretty close to the fourth quarter,” Knowles said on Aug. 2. “Sometimes you reach those points here where you just, I don't want to be the one to mess them up. I want them to be able to face it. It's not about what I know or being creative. When we're going good, I think that's the balance. We're going good, hey, we're going good, let's just keep it going.
“But when you stay in anything too long, when you become predictable, it really doesn't matter who you're playing. They're going to take some kind of, like Missouri did, run this guy all the way across to the other hash (for a long touchdown).”
Safety depth
When the biggest personnel question mark for a defense is how good the backup strong safety will be, you know that unit is in a good spot. Beyond sophomore Malik Hartford there’s not a lot of certainty behind Caleb Downs and Lathan Ransom on the safety depth chart, and Hartford is more a free safety than a strong one. Redshirt sophomore South Carolina transfer Keenan Nelson Jr. and redshirt freshman Jayden Bonsu are working on getting ready should they be needed, but the young safety who’s probably made the most noise this offseason is freshman Jaylen McClain. He gained momentum with an interception in the Buckeyes’ spring game and rolled that into a strong start to fall camp, becoming the third freshman to shed his black stripe on Aug. 7.
Knowles has also highlighted nickel as a spot that worries him depth-wise, but between Lorenzo Styles, Mathews and the collection of corners crosstraining at the position, Ohio State should be fine if Hancock were unavailable.
Freshman to watch
Eddrick Houston
With Melton, Jackson and Curry backing up Sawyer and Tuimoloau at defensive end, Houston likely isn’t going to be called upon to provide an impact when it matters this year. In a defense this veteran, however, that’s true for every freshman. Houston’s five-star talent has flashed in fall camp and he should get a chance to shine when games are already in hand this season.
Overall Outlook
What more is there to be said? Anything short of the best defense in college football will feel like a disappointment for Ohio State with the doomsday-prepper-style arsenal the team possesses on that end. The Buckeyes were a defense-driven team in 2023 and the hope is that it will drive them to a national championship in 2024.
