It's often an overused term in sports, particularly football. Teams want to "play fast" and "don't think, just play." Nearly everybody says it at some point; you don't exactly want to broadcast how you intend to go move slow when trying to win games.
But ever since Urban Meyer became the head football coach at Ohio State, his intentions to bring quicker players into the program has been clear. Especially defensively, where the Buckeyes believe they are set to take another massive leap forward this fall despite having to replace nine starters.
"I think it's a different kind of speed. When I first got here, we had a lot of big guys who could run," defensive line coach Larry Johnson said Wednesday. "Now we have a lot of quick 280, 295 guys who can run."
In Johnson's unit especially, he shifted ends like Dre'Mont Jones and Jashon Cornell inside to play defensive tackle because their frames allowed them to add the necessary weight but still play quick. They caused discomfort for their teammates on the offensive line during training camp because they can pop through holes with a rapid first step. Johnson's famed Rushmen package is set to feature Jalyn Holmes in 2016, and he hopes to use as many as 12 players in his group's rotation.
And they're all fast, at least according to the players they battle each and every day in practice.
"They got a lot of energy and they're always flying around. I think the D-line's stepped up a lot," center Pat Elflein said. "Rashod Berry's stepped up, Davon (Hamilton) and Dre'Mont. Sam (Hubbard)'s playing good. Those guys are flying around, running to the ball and they're very talented group of guys."
“We recruited for speed. We've got a lot of guys and they play fast and they know the defense.”– Kerry Coombs
Added guard Billy Price: "I can just tell you the guys that I came in with I’ve got to give a lot of props to. Tracy Sprinkle, Mike Hill, Jalyn Holmes, Sam Hubbard and even the two guys — Dre’Mont Jones, (Robert) Landers — those guys are really working their tails off right now. Coach Meyer talks about it all the time: Those guys make us better."
Talk about using a wide range of bodies in the trenches in order to keep them fresh for the fourth quarter is constant, though we are still a week away from seeing if it in fact comes to fruition. Ohio State lost two draft picks — Joey Bosa and Adolphus Washington — from that group, plus a pair of linebackers and three members of its secondary to the NFL. All of those guys can run and fly around to the ball but the Buckeyes feel like the defense could even see an uptick in its speed this season.
"We recruited for speed," cornerbacks coach Kerry Coombs said this week. "We've got a lot of guys and they play fast and they know the defense. The young guys gotta know the defense so they can play fast. That's probably the greatest emphasis is to make sure that all these young guys know what they're doing so they can go."
Coombs' group specifically still has yet to announce who will start opposite of Gareon Conley. Denzel Ward, Marshon Lattimore and Damon Arnette are locked in a three-way battle for the job and all are speedy guys in their own right. That is why Coombs plans to play each one of them this season.
"We're not playing anybody because we feel sorry for them or because we're trying to share reps. We're not doing that," Coombs said. "We're playing to have fast, fresh corners every rep of every game. That's why we're doing it. And we're doing it because we can."
Johnson feels the same way with his defensive line and Luke Fickell with his linebackers. College football's spread offenses try to get their quickest players in space, make one guy miss and then wreak havoc. The Buckeyes try to avoid that by shifting their recruiting strategies to bring in more speed like Coombs said.
Ohio State's defense finished near the top of college football in points per game allowed (15.1) and yards per game allowed (311.3 yards per game) in 2015. It seems unfair to expect that kind of production from a horde of new faces on that side of the ball, but the Buckeyes plan to let their young guys loose and use their speed in the hope of masking some early errors. To play fast, as the old adage goes.
"Like our coach always says, effort always overcomes mistakes," Sprinkle said. "Can't be perfect, nobody's perfect. But if you go out there and play your hardest, you might end up making a good play."
Added Johnson: "We can run. They are very twitchy guys, and that's what you want. You got a couple guys that play D-end that are playing on the inside so you're a little bit quicker on the inside. But they all can run. That's the cool thing about it."
