Ohio State Buckeyes football (Columbus, Cincinnati: college, disposal, live)

[ohioaninsc]

Originally Posted by I_am_Father_McKenzie

Yes, Knowles (also coaching LBs), and the new CBs and OL coaches will be huge. The biggest holes on the team have been filled with very high caliber guys.

Michigan is returning 87% of the production from a good offense. Good for 13th in the country. However, they're 124th out of 130 teams in returning defensive production at just 43%. Total returning production is 65%. Good for 67th place.

Meanwhile, Ohio State returns 70% (53rd) of the production from a best in sport offense. We saw how well they performed without Olave and Wilson. There will be no problems on offense. They also return 82% of the defensive production. Good for 13th. Which shows in numbers that Ohio State's youngest team in 20 years last year was no joke. Total returning production is 76% for 24th place.

Also, while Ohio State was proactive in letting go bad performing coaches and replacing them with top tier guys, Michigan is losing both their OC and DC, and have yet to replace them. It's getting really late to get new guys in; let alone ones you want; let alone top tier guys like Ohio State pulled in.

Michigan ducked Ohio State in 2020, and Ryan Day is good at revenge (see: Clemson 2020). There is almost zero chance Michigan beats Ohio State in Columbus this season.

Michigan chickened out in 2020 against OSU...they can't do that again...we will hang 50 on them and totally humiliate them...last year was their 1 lucky year per decade....everything went their way...and they still embarrassed themselves in the bowl game.

[WRnative]

Buckeyes Defensive Coordinator Jim Knowles' schemes are confusing Ohio State's offensive players and coaches, so hopefully will likewise do the same for opponents.


The new "stealth" defense explained.


<<“We want to be able to create indecision for the offense, and particularly for the offensive coordinator. I think in college, offensive coordinators even have more hand on things that happen than in the NFL, so we want to be able to create multiple defenses out of simple looks and to be creative in a way that the players can understand,” Knowles said at his introductory press conference in February. “So we want to create two to three simple pictures, that when you look at it, or the offensive coordinator looks at it, he can't tell what's going to happen from that same picture. And that we have the ability to really do anything out of that same picture or that look.”>>


https://www.elevenwarriors.com/ohio-...es-this-spring



Freshman quarterback Devin Brown is candid about the impact of Knowles still-under-installation defense, and its ability to disrupt the best paid plans of offensive coordinators.


<<But it isn’t just the offensive players that are dealing with concepts they might not have seen before. Knowles’ goal is to confuse the opposing coaches on offense with his scheme, and Brown said he’s seen plenty of that this spring outside of what has thrown him off individually once the ball is snapped.


“Even on the offensive side, like we haven’t ever seen a defense like this, really. So it’s a learning curve for the coaches, too,” Brown said. “So being able to learn from them and adjust really fast, because we never know what the defense is gonna give us, so just being able to react to that.”>>


Last season, Oklahoma State defeated Oklahoma. No wonder head coach Ryan Day is enthusiastic about Knowles' arrival in Columbus. And wunderkind Sonny Styles, potentially the best safety in Buckeyes history, hasn't even yet suited up for Knowles -- put a generational, dynamic athlete in a dynamic defense and the result may be defensive mayhem inflicted on opposing offenses.



<<"Anytime you can challenge each other on both sides of the ball, it's excellent because you get to see what the issues are before you get on the field (in games)," Day said. "I think that he's going to do that. He's got a lot of different ways, and then comes the gamesmanship within the game of trying to get the right call out against the right defense and vice versa. So he's very, very good at that, and that makes us better.">>


https://www.dispatch.com/story/sport...ch/7140196001/


So excited about the coming season IF key players remain healthy and COVID is a non-issue. The last time I remember feeling so optimistic and excited by an upcoming Buckeye football season was in 1968 when the "Super Sophomores," including 11 high school All-Americans, first played for the varsity (freshmen were still ineligible at the time). And on paper, this 2022 team is even more formidable, and more experienced, with key sophomores having played an entire season of varsity football.



The 1968 Super Sophomores featured safety Jack Tatum, arguably the best defensive player in Ohio State football history.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Histor...per_sophomores


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1969_Rose_Bowl


https://www.facebook.com/100YARDSOFF...1375651172658/



https://scarletandgame.com/2019/01/0...s-11-year-old/


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Tatum#College_career


Sonny Styles is six inches taller than Tatum, and likely will have a higher playing weight once fully developed. It's unlikely that he'll be as ferocious as Tatum, but will still be a joy to watch patrolling the field for the Buckeyes, perhaps even in 2022 despite his age and lack of experience (no spring football).

[bjimmy24]

Dwayne Haskins, former Buckeyes QB, died this morning in some type of car accident.

[WRnative]

Originally Posted by bjimmy24

Dwayne Haskins, former Buckeyes QB, died this morning in some type of car accident.

Very, very sad.


https://www.elevenwarriors.com/ohio-...t-24-years-old

[WRnative]

Even before the arrival of heralded safety Sonny Styles this summer, Kye Stokes and Jordan Hancock impressed in the spring game and likely will reinforce last year's freshman standout Denzel Burke in the Buckeye secondary as impactful underclassmen.

https://www.cleveland.com/osu/2022/0...standouts.html

https://www.elevenwarriors.com/ohio-...-at-ohio-state

https://www.elevenwarriors.com/ohio-...-and-teammates

[WRnative]

This is a great article explaining in-depth how the new Jim Knowles' schemes will greatly improve the Buckeye defense.



Of interest is how the defensive line will emphasize controlling the offensive line to leave linebackers, safeties, etc., free to tackle rushers.


<<
It is also worth noting that the biggest issue with the 2021 Buckeye defense was not its ability to cover receivers but to simply stop the run. Given the format of the spring scrimmage, we weren't able to see much in this department as the game was a glorified 7-on-7 contest. On the few occasions that the quarterbacks did handoff, one had to pay close attention to see how Knowles' approach to stopping the run is different than his predecessors.



First and foremost, the OSU defensive line is not simply trying to penetrate gaps and shoot upfield to create plays in the backfield anymore. Rather, the front four are tasked with occupying blockers to keep the linebackers clean and unblocked, often pinching inside to clog up the middle and force the ball carrier to bounce outside. Once the runner changes his course, the safeties are tasked with closing quickly to seal those edges and make tackles. >>

https://www.elevenwarriors.com/ohio-...nowles-defense


While sacrificing the defensive line will benefit of the overall defense, will it reduce the attractiveness of Ohio State for a destination of top-notch defensive line recruits, who may be more interested in their sack and other tackle totals?


After spring training, both Ryan Day and Knowles appear optimistic about the likelihood of a lofty reversal of the Buckeyes defense in 2022.


<<
Knowles said the Buckeyes might even be further along than he expected them to be just over three months into his new post as “head coach of the defense” in Columbus.



“Going into the game I felt great about how far we had come, what we accomplished, how much we got installed, how the players took to it,” Knowles said in his post-spring game press conference appearance. “It was as good or better than I could have wished.”>>



https://www.elevenwarriors.com/ohio-...-state-defense

[WRnative]

Great analysis about recurrent Ohio State football defensive woes. If Jim Knowles is only able to improve last year's defensive debacle by a half, 2022 should be a memorable season.


https://www.elevenwarriors.com/ohio-...kayest-defense


This article reinforces a thought that I've had ever since Ryan Day cleansed out the defensive staff, with the exception of icon defensive line coach Larry Johnson, and brought in Jim Knowles as defensive coordinator. My hunch and hope is that while Ryan Day is the Buckeyes head coach, he'll never trust his defense to an unproven and questionable defensive coordinator.


If this season is a defensive success, Day will understand what works, and barring some offensive revolution, he'll insist on a defense that it is gap sound.


Of course, no defense may prevail against a superstar team, loaded with top-rated recruits lured by NIL money, such as many suspect is being created at Texas A&M. Even Nick Saban is scared.


https://www.si.com/college/2022/04/1...ly-buy-players


https://www.axios.com/texas-am-best-...2cb9a4c0f.html



Can any coach mess up the greatest recruiting class in history?


https://gigemgazette.com/2022/04/19/...tball-new-one/


Unless Ryan Day is the second coming of Knute Rockne, Ohio State's prospects of a national championship might fall greatly after the 2022 season. Or unless, Ohio State's athletic department/alumni somehow manage to compete with oil money in the NIL arena when oil and natural gas prices are surging to high levels.


Ryan Day, with his coaching chomps evident after developing Joe Burrow and C.J. Stroud, may be able to attract QB recruits interested in maximizing their NFL potential when the NIL is "good enough." For C.J. Stroud the NIL rewards may be much more than good enough this season.


https://www.elevenwarriors.com/ohio-...er-bryce-young


I wonder if Ohio State super-alum Les Wexner still owns a sizable chunk of Express shares. Timothy Baxter, the Express CEO, is a Miami of Ohio grad, and likely a Buckeye football fan.



https://saturdaytradition.com/ohio-s...e-ambassadors/


https://www.on3.com/college/ohio-sta...eyes-ryan-day/



https://www.linkedin.com/in/timothy-baxter



At a minimum IMO, there should be total transparency for NIL compensation. We should at least know who is buying players for university athletics teams.

[WRnative]

Recent reports have suggested that Carnell Tate, a top Ohio State wide receiver recruiting target, now is more likely to attend Tennessee than previous top projected destination Ohio State.

https://www.rockytopinsider.com/2022...-carnell-tate/

Allegedly, superior NIL compensation prospects at Tennessee influenced Tate's decision. Increasingly, Power 5 football teams, and likely other sports programs, will see monetary compensation as a key consideration in recruiting. How long before state governments use tax funds to subsidize recruiting?

https://www.outkick.com/tennessee-go...rsity-coaches/

[WRnative]

It sounds as if new Ohio State defensive coordinator Jim Knowles actually is the long-needed mastermind sought by the Buckeyes -- a guy who has perfected his defensive scheme and for the first time will have a high caliber of talent to execute it. If true, the upcoming season may be memorable given the proven offense.


Cade Stover played linebacker for the Buckeyes last season, but is expected to start at tight end this season, so his enthusiastic assessment of Knowles after the team's first scrimmage is especially meaningful.



https://ohiostatebuckeyes.com/roster/cade-stover/



<<Nobody had higher praise for Knowles and Ohio State’s defense on Monday than projected starting tight end Cade Stover, who described Knowles as “the smartest mind on the defensive side of the ball I've ever seen in my life” and said going against Knowles’ defense gives him “all the confidence when we go to game day.”

“That's the top of the line dude right there. I would go to war with that dude any day of the week,” Stover said. “And just the way he's got those guys playing over there, how fast and how confusing; I mean, there's looks and looks and looks and looks and looks. They're unbelievable.”



https://ohiostatebuckeyes.com/roster/cade-stover/


Stubhub ticket prices for the season opener against Notre Dame already reflect fan enthusiasm.


https://www.stubhub.com/ohio-state-b...ent/105107075/

[WRnative]

Warning to Ohio State, don't agree to play a game in Ireland, but if you do so, don't bring Urban Meyer along with the team!


https://www.irishtimes.com/sport/202...-come-to-town/


https://deadspin.com/the-huskers-hav...-re-1849432981


Somehow, "Notorious Cornhuskers" seems laughable, despite the convincing arguments of the Irish sportswriter.