2021 Ohio State Offseason Thread

[Brutus Buckeye]

Mattison retires

[Mdot21]

Mattison retires

He's one of the best DL coaches/recruiters ever. Still can't believe he left Michigan for Ohio State. Bastage.

[MaximumSam]

Defensive Backs

This is a pretty tough position to project, both based on numbers and on an unknown on what OSU looks like.  Ryan Day wanted a Cover 1/Cover 3 system, and hired Greg Mattison for that.  Mattison is gone, and Kerry Coombs isn't committed to that system, and we don't know who Ryan Day will hire.  So, who knows.  But we endeavor.

Corners:

Sevyn Banks is the surest thing, as he started opposite the departing Shaun Wade and while he had ups and downs is a good guy to have coming back.  Opposite him is a mystery.  Cam Brown gets penciled in as he would have been the guy, but did suffer an Achilles injury and is a question mark until he is healthy.  Marcus Williamson played the second most snaps of returning guys, but wasn't particularly great in slot coverage.  Tyreke Johnson was a five star prospect but really hasn't shown that on the field and has barely played. 

Young guys might get a shot.  Lejond Cavanos and Ryan Watts were four star types who got some snaps as true freshmen.  They also have a couple top 100 types coming in Jakailin Johnson and Jordan Hancock.  While typically I wouldn't predict those kinds of guys to play right away, this position is a bit of a mess, and young guys can play.  They simply don't have guys who have shown they can cover in press man, which is important if you system revolves around having guys who can play press man. 

Safeties

Part of this is pretty easy.  While Marcus Hooker started the season as the single high safety, he didn't look much like his brother and Josh Proctor eventually became the guy.  However, I don't know that they like either guy as the main center fielder of the defense, so keep an eye on second year guy Lathan Ransom, who was getting snaps by the end of the season.  Also in the mix are Ronnie Hickman and Bryson Shaw.

Finally, Kourt Williams is a guy everyone thinks will play somewhere next year, though he could move up to a Pete Werner type coverage linebacker or he could be in the mix on the back end.  Once we figure out what kind of defense we will play, I suppose it will be a bit easier.

[MrNubbz]

Good Post,I'd shove Coombs back to DB coach - he's no DC.Didn't even attempt to adapt when Bama was loading up on speed.He always came across as  a motivator and not an Xs & Os guy

[MaximumSam]

Good Post,I'd shove Coombs back to DB coach - he's no DC.Didn't even attempt to adapt when Bama was loading up on speed.He always came across as  a motivator and not an Xs & Os guy

I felt the same during the game, though reading about it after the fact I'm cutting him some slack.  The back end sucked for reasons that had nothing to do with him, and I heard somewhere they had like one padded practice between Clemson and Bama has COVID threw them out of whack.  

[MrNubbz]

I get that the DBs was an empty shell for the most part.Still would have like to see some creative adjustments.Grab every DB off the bench and sit some LBs but seemingly didn't shuffle the deck at all

[Brutus Buckeye]

The LBs were the only healthy position group on D. Sitting them would have made their situation worse, not better. 

[Brutus Buckeye]

Though I do agree that Coombs isn't DC material. 

Honestly a bit of a red flag that Day thought that would be a good idea. 

[TyphonInc]

I get that the DBs was an empty shell for the most part.Still would have like to see some creative adjustments. Grab every DB off the bench and sit some LBs but seemingly didn't shuffle the deck at all

What are you talking about? OSU made multiple adjustments on D during that game. Alabama, just had speed/talent everywhere, and was able to continue to score even with the adjustments made. I remember Herbie showing OSU in a Bear Defense (?!?!), and saying they might was well try it, VT used it well against OSU. Herbie commented on the 3-5 OSU switched to in the 2nd half; saying OSU was trying to get more speed on the field. I saw numerous zones, and different fronts offered most of the game. Literally 'bama baited OSU's defense into playing a reaction game instead of imposing their will. Simple motion pre-snap showed if OSU was playing man on Smith, or zone, then they would either flood a side to force a mismatch, or plop him into the zones hole. It was a thing of beauty to watch Alabama exert their will in that game. Yes OSU could have done better; It could have been the missing starters on the line, outmatched secondary, or out coached Coombs; there were lots of reasons OSU started the game in a hole. 

Really 'bama was just that good. I read someone where that their 2 deep is projected to have 42 (of 44) players drafted in the next three years. OSU had 65 guys suited up for the game 'bama had 102. OSU has a really good coaching staff, Alabama is a better one. OSU is top 3 in recruiting. Alabama is #1. The best team won.

[Honestbuckeye]

I felt the same during the game, though reading about it after the fact I'm cutting him some slack.  The back end sucked for reasons that had nothing to do with him, and I heard somewhere they had like one padded practice between Clemson and Bama has COVID threw them out of whack. 

Bingo.  Did everyone see the various film study breakdown of the Bama game?  It explains much of this.

not only did they not have a chance to practice and install the needed nuances to their standard single high safety-cover 3 look, they had no chance in the spring either- let alone OOC games to test them.  Losing Cam Brown was a killer, as well as the two idiots (Riep and Wint) in the spring.

you don’t lose 3 NFL starters (Fuller, Okudah and Arnette), lose spring practice, lose 2 expierienced contributors(Riep and Wint) lose a presumed starter to injury in game 1 ( Cam Brown), play half a schedule with interruptions - and then expect the coach to produce NC caliber outcomes ( maybe playoff wins against the best QB is being ignored). 

The criticism of Coombs is premature at best. 

[MaximumSam]

The spring game was today. I was at my parents and kind of half watching. 

- All three QBs rotated in and out. Stroud and McCord looked pretty good, Miller was ok.
- Receivers all looked great, including the freshmen
- Freshman DE Jack Sawyer was the truth - had four sacks
- Bucks defense spent most of the day in the nickel. Probably not a lot of 4-4-3 this year

[Brutus Buckeye]

Tressel had by far the best Spring Game format of all the HCs from John Cooper to the present. 

Day is a distant last, in that particular category. That was pretty lame. 

[NorthernOhioBuckeye]

I kind of like the way Day ran the game. He has 3 QB's that have never thrown a pass in a college football game and therefore need to see different looks. Also, you need to give all three the benefit of working with the players most likely to see the field this year.

We need to remember that the Spring game is nothing but a glorified practice. It is a chance for the coaches to evaluate players in a game simulation. It also allows the players to get a sense of an actual game experience with no chance of getting a mark in the loss column. 

[Brutus Buckeye]

Game situation? They didn't even keep score or run the clock in the second half. 

We got to watch them practice. There was no spring game.