Caleb Downs’ prolific performance as a safety and punt returner was often the subject of discussion with Ohio State fans throughout the 2024 season.
But it’s often forgotten that Ryan Day mentioned the Buckeyes were toying with the idea of using Downs at running back dating back to last spring. Of course, considering Downs was a focal point of the defense and the Buckeyes had two eventual 1,000-yard rushers, that idea never really got off the ground.
On Monday, Day held a press conference on Monday and was asked if that idea might be revisited for this year’s team. In short, maybe in fall camp, but definitely not this spring. But his comments also revealed Downs is dealing with a minor injury in spring practice and has been limited in some circumstances.
“It could be up for discussion in the preseason, but not right now,” Day said of the idea of putting Downs at running back. “He’s still coming back from a nagging injury. We wanna make sure he’s good to go, and he will be.”
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Downs downplayed the injury, and while he didn’t reveal specifics, he said he’s “good for the most part” and that his limited reps in spring football are mainly because he played the highest snap count of any Ohio State defensive player on the 2024 roster a season ago with 910 snaps.
Downs said he’s participated in some of Ohio State’s team drills across multiple days, but he’s been held out of some.
“It’s been good for a learning aspect of it,” Downs said of what he’s taken away from sitting out some drills. “Just learning from coach Matt Patricia, learning about his defense, how I might fit into that and how we’re going to play. With limited reps it’s good to see myself in the positions I have been in and be able to watch people play and coach my teammates.”
Safeties coach Matt Guerrieri says he's appreciated Downs stepping up and assisting his teammates when he's not participating in drills, but also lauded his performance when he's been on the field.
"He's done a good amount of things, so it's not like he hasn't done a good amount of stuff, he has," Guerrieri said. "It makes a difference when he's on the field for us, for sure. But when he's not been out there, it's been great to be able to put the other guys out there, right? And then they have to communicate and direct traffic. So part of that is, certain things we want to see out of Caleb, certain things we say, hey, let's hold Caleb in these situations, let's put the other guys out there, so it's been a mixed bag."
Downs said he only felt the wear and tear of playing 910 snaps “a little” after the season was over but is fine with heeding his coaches’ instructions and participating on a limited basis. He started all 16 games for Ohio State last season, making 81 total tackles, intercepting two passes, knocking down six passes and recording half of a sack.
“You never really think about that,” Downs said of the big workload. “I mean, I didn't really know I had the most plays until after the season when they told me. But, you don't think about that in the season or during games or anything like that.”
Although Downs’ first season at Ohio State resulted in a national championship, he and the rest of Ohio State’s defensive players haven’t lost any of their drive to win. As four championship banners have been hung up at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center, Downs often reminds himself and his teammates that they haven’t won anything yet in 2025.
“The lesson learned is you have to continue to work,” Downs said. “Last year we continued to stack bricks and get better every day. I think that’s why we came out to be where we were … You have to push to be exceptional every day. It’s not really helping if you’re just looking at stuff from last year. This spring has been good for that because we are turning a new leaf and we have new faces in here. We’ve got to make plays with who we are.”
