It’s always a Sisyphean task to quantify an offensive lineman’s play, but anyone paying close attention to it could see that Josh Simmons took strides in the second half of last season – line-wide struggles in the Cotton Bowl aside.
If one buys into Pro Football Focus grades, Simmons had his highest-marked game against Minnesota (87.4) in Week 12. He only allowed three combined pressures in Ohio State’s final five regular season games.
“I think it was just awareness,” Simmons said of the jump he took. “The other thing is chemistry, knowing how (left guard Donovan Jackson) plays and the communications and how everything works. And really just understanding football, how defensive linemen work. You’re going against the best of the best, (defensive line coach Larry Johnson) and his Rushmen (in practice). I think that’s where it grew for me.”
Entering year two as the Buckeyes’ starting left tackle, Simmons is eager to take the next step in his development now that he’s had his feet on the ground in Columbus for a year. Ditto Ohio State’s entire front five.
“I think the game’s slowing down for him,” offensive line coach Justin Frye said. “Those mistakes that may have shown up or questions that he had through the fall and as we got going through the season, those are starting to erase a little bit, which is good.”
There were certainly rough patches for Simmons in his first season.
Not only was his first handful of games stacked with several lapses on the blocking front, but the penalty issues that plagued him at San Diego State – the school he transferred to Ohio State from in the summer of 2023 – continued their pestilence with his new team.
After being flagged 17 times in 2022 with the Aztecs, the most among the country’s offensive linemen, Simmons got hit with seven penalties in his first eight games as a Buckeye.
In a great sign of development, however, he only drew one flag in his final five contests of 2023, including none in November.
“Physically, obviously, you’ve gotta be ready, but mentally, that’s where you’ve gotta start tightening up a little bit,” Simmons said. “You start playing in those Notre Dame games, those Penn State games, you realize a penalty like that can destroy the whole game. Once you look at it through that lens, you know that those are a no-no, it can’t happen.”
“You start playing in those Notre Dame games, those Penn State games, you realize a penalty like that can destroy the whole game.”– Josh Simmons on how he corrected his penalty issues
Simmons had to switch from right to left tackle, a transition he stated was more difficult than he first realized. He also had to adjust to the pressure and expectations that come with being a Buckeye.
“This is Ohio State, a lot of people take this seriously,” Simmons said. “This is the best program in the country, so I knew I was gonna get that. And it was up to me. I took it as a, ‘Josh, you’ve gotta lock in and figure it out.’ That’s what I tried to do throughout the season because I really started to realize that, these are brothers. These aren’t teammates. That’s where I started to dial in, really hone in on my craft a little bit.”
The biggest difference Frye has seen from Simmons this winter and spring is his ability to vocalize before and during plays.
“His communication level, just talking more, is probably the best thing he’s done so far,” Frye said. “He’s a highly, highly talented guy. We’re just developing the skills and discipline, and those just go into communication. So as he communicates and talks, that’s probably the biggest thing I’ve seen from him. I think volume and communication equals confidence.”
That’s been one of the main things Simmons said he’s trying to work on, in addition to adding more play strength and fine-tuning the technical components of playing tackle.
“Just about everything,” Simmons said of what he’s working on. “In terms of physical attributes, I can move really strong and stuff like that. But there’s a lot more to work on to even come close to what I can (be), for me being able to help the team. Technique, awareness, just everything. Communication, I think that’s the biggest thing. When you’re in those games you’ve gotta be able to call it out, a pressure might come.”
He’s wrapping up his first spring at Ohio State with a newfound confidence, especially with Jackson by his side for another year.
With the competition still ongoing to see who will flank that duo on the right side, Simmons is feeling his and Jackson’s play grow to anchor the Buckeyes’ offensive line on the left side.
“There will be things sometimes we don’t even have to communicate because we just know,” Simmons said. “We’ve been through a year of ball together and it was great. You can tell we’re just tight. I’m tight with Donnie.”
