A BUCKEYE BASHING
Ohio State conquers Chicago with a 31-7 beatdown of Northwestern at Wrigley Field.
Hired away from Oklahoma State in the winter of 2022 after his defense keyed a surprising run to the Big 12 title game, Jim Knowles headed north for a $2 million contract and a level of pressure the veteran coach had never before experienced.
After an embarrassing defensive performance in the 2020 CFP title game, an early season letdown against Oregon, and a devastating loss in Ann Arbor, Ryan Day and Gene Smith spared no expense when they hired the best defensive coordinator on the market. But after Donovan Edwards ripped off back-to-back touchdown runs against aggressive blitzes 10 months later, the honeymoon was officially over.
While few were familiar with Knowles' past work before the Cowboys' unexpected ascension, many later learned that his best efforts had often been the product of time. But Knowles seemed to realize that he wouldn't be given such a long leash in Columbus, and adjusted his approach before last season.
After numerous explosive plays throughout the season foretold the Buckeyes' ill-timed failures against their hated rivals from up north, the defense looked different from the one its coordinator had led in Stillwater.
Though the Ohio State defense improved mightily during his first season, allowing 51 fewer yards per game than the year before and ranking 14th nationally, the surrender of so many big gains led to a more conservative approach in year two. While the unit would improve yet again in 2023, allowing the third-fewest yards of any team in the nation, it yet again failed to get off the field in the most critical moments.
Knowles' defense allowed the opposition to score on every real possession of the second half against Michigan. Many in the Mitten State still marvel at the 13-play, 56-yard drive that ended with a fourth-quarter field goal, bleeding seven critical minutes off the clock. Meanwhile, OSU fans wonder how such a possession is even mathematically possible.
But a quick look at the play-by-play reveals one critical point about Knowles' approach to slowing the opposition last fall. While his defense allowed just 338 total yards and gave up just one gain of 30+ yards in Ann Arbor, J.J. McCarthy's kneel-down before the final whistle was the only negative play registered by the home team.
This performance was no aberration, either. It was the continuation of a trend that had played out all season long. With a focus on keeping his opponent from generating any big plays, Knowles' defense generated few of their own.
While this strategy of containment was certainly a less embarrassing way to coach a game, it's far from the most effective. Although the most ardent Jim Tressel supporters still preach field position and winning a battle of attrition, simple math shows the importance of creating negative plays and turnovers on defense.
According to an oft-source study conducted in 2020, FBS offenses that surrender a negative play see that drive end with points just 25% of the time, and score a touchdown 16% of the time, compared to the averages of 43% and 36%, respectively. In short, a defense is roughly 20% more likely to succeed in its most important job if it can create a negative play.
Additionally, a team simply can't score points - the objective of the game - if it doesn't possess the football, so creating turnovers on defense is another element that shouldn't be overlooked.
Luckily for us, there is a metric to measure such drive-killing outcomes, known as the Havoc Rate. This metric accounts for how often a defense generates a tackle-for-loss, turnover, or breaks up a pass.
While the Buckeyes were among the nation's elite in many other categories, they were remarkably average in this stat, ranking fifth in the Big Ten at a rate of 16.8% - the lowest rate for an OSU defense in over a decade.
| Category | Tackles-For-Loss | Forced Fumbles | Interceptions | Passes Broken-Up |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number (Rank) | 72 (65th) | 8 (78th) | 7 (112th) | 49 (38th) |
While forced fumbles tend to be more random, a lack of interceptions can often be attributed to the style of coverage employed, especially when featuring the talent advantage possessed by the Buckeyes in nearly every game they play.
After relying heavily on man coverage during his first season, much as his predecessors on the OSU sideline had, Knowles mixed in far more zone coverages in 2023. In 2022, the Buckeyes' most common zone scheme was Cover 3, which used pattern-matching techniques that made it play out similarly to man-coverage.
Occasionally in that first season, however, Knowles mixed in a Tampa 2 scheme that took advantage of his signature, three-safety alignment:
A 'Tampa 2' coverage from Ohio State's 3-deep safety pre-snap alignment
While he played a higher proportion of Tampa 2 variations in '23, Knowles also expanded the playbook to include more Cover 4 (Quarters) schemes which effectively kept an umbrella over opposing route concepts.
That also led to split-field coverage systems that could blanket the opposition on passing downs, making up for a pass rush that was largely dormant in November. As the secondary grew more comfortable employing the many variants of Quarters, Knowles slowly began dipping his toe into the pressure game, occasionally sending linebackers on 'Green Dog' blitzes that first ensured the running back didn't release on a pass route and, instead, stayed in to block.
Ohio State plays QQH Match Coverages behind a 5-man pressure
The irony of this approach was its vast departure from Knowles' past.
“I think for (Knowles) it was, a lot of times in his career, he’s been a really aggressive guy to dictate on defense and force an offense’s hand," OSU safeties coach Matt Guerreri said of his longtime mentor earlier this month. "Maybe he saw that, ‘OK, what’s the prevention of explosives and the tradeoff for creating a negative versus keeping the ball in front and inside?’ I’m sure that will continue to adapt over time.”
It's not as if Ohio State never blitzed in 2023. Very often, Knowles would call for a run blitz on early downs, sending a linebacker through an inside gap in the hopes of occupying blockers, rather than knifing into the backfield. By incorporating this late blitz into the front, the Buckeyes could create a five-man wall that disrupted blocking schemes and allowed the other linebacker and a closing safety to remain free to tackle the ball carrier:
Because he did send linebackers on such blitz paths, he could then use their threat to confuse opposing quarterbacks when they dropped back to pass. Though he didn't call them as often as his peers in places like Athens, State College, or Tuscaloosa, Knowles would dial up the occasional simulated pressure, showing additional blitzers before dropping some out and only sending four actual pass rushers.
For example, this double-mugged, six-man front sees both inside 'backers blitz through the A gaps while both defensive ends drop into shallow zones known as 'Rats' - looking to take away any quick passes underneath.
While, again, this approach was largely effective, allowing the fifth-lowest conversion rate on third downs among all FBS defenses a year ago, it failed to get off the field and hand the ball back to Ryan Day's offense at the most important moments. Luckily for Buckeye fans, Knowles is keenly aware of this fact, just as he was of the previous season's shortcomings.
"We want to emphasize those things that we can get better at. Being a Silver Bullet defense means being a top-five defense. We were top five in a lot of things – but not all of them," he told reporters shortly after training camp began. "We need to be more aggressive in terms of the calls."
It's not as though he doesn't have those blitzes readily available. His unit, which will be one of the most experienced in the country, displayed an ability to execute on the relatively rare occasions he sent pressure last fall.
Though likely expecting a third consecutive handoff to Braelon Allen in the first down example below, the five-man pressure that sent nickel safety Jordan Hancock and linebacker Tommy Eichenberg on parallel blitz paths ended with Hancock dropping the QB for a 9-yard loss.
The versatility of players like Hancock should give Knowles the confidence to take more chances in coverage, trusting perhaps the most talented secondary in America to live up to its self-proclaimed 'BIA' moniker. With Sonny Styles' move to WILL linebacker, the return of Lathan Ransom from a foot injury, and the addition of Caleb Downs, Knowles should be able to present a never-ending variety of looks to opposing quarterbacks.
| Player - Position | In The Box | In The Slot | Out Wide at Corner | Deep Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jordan Hancock - Nickel | 74 | 401 | 90 | 48 |
| Lathan Ransom - Bandit | 148 | 75 | 4 | 259 |
| Sonny Styles - Nickel & Bandit | 221 | 150 | 9 | 162 |
| Josh Proctor - Adjuster | 161 | 160 | 6 | 298 |
| Caleb Downs (Free Safety At Alabama) | 306 | 268 | 28 | 287 |
"Multiple," Knowles said when asked about what to expect from this season's defense. "A lot of that happens with disguise, but more calls out of the base look, more attack defenses out of the base look. ... Year one, gave up some big plays. Year two, we were top five in explosive plays, but not as high in sacks and negative plays."
Though fans will surely delight in seeing the Buckeyes in more opposing backfields this fall, Knowles must still balance that aggression with the need to keep opponents from breaking off big gains. But Knowles has adopted the proper mindset for finding such a delicate balance.
"Vince Lombardi said it, you have to chase perfection. It's not possible, but you catch excellence in the process."
