It’s no secret that the Ohio State defense was the Achilles heel of the team last year, a reason the Buckeyes got sunburned near South Beach in the College Football Playoff national championship game vs. Alabama.
Afterward, head coach Ryan Day said the coaching staff would be emphasizing improvement on that side of the ball, and rightfully so. The porous and charitable defense was simply not up to Buckeye standards.
So, what about that future? Believe it or not, ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg has been rolling out projections of programs’ expected production over the next three years, and the latest is a top 25 ranking of defenses (subscription required) over that time in college football. It takes things into account like recruiting, returning production, historical numbers, etc.
So where does Ohio State land? Well, we can tell you it made the top 25, and it isn’t nearly as bad as what we saw last season, but OSU did drop from the same projections last season according to ESPN.
NEXT … Ohio State’s defensive ranking for the next three years
No. 5 – Ohio State
What Rittenberg Says
2020 future defense ranking: 3
“Scouting the Buckeyes: After an undeniably bad season on defense (2018) followed by an excellent one (2019), Ohio State backslid last year. The Buckeyes struggled against Indiana and Alabama and finished 122nd nationally in pass yards allowed, 43rd in points allowed and 107th in red zone touchdown percentage allowed. The recruiting seems too strong for the unit to slip back to 2018, but Ohio State needs clear upgrades under coordinator Kerry Coombs. Who will be the next elite lineman in Columbus? Perhaps ends Tyreke Smith or Zach Harrison, ESPN’s No. 10 overall recruit in 2019, break out this season. Ohio State will miss Tommy Togiai, the Buckeyes lineman Big Ten coaches feared most in 2020, but Haskell Garrett returns for a fifth year. The arrival of end Jack Sawyer, ESPN’s No. 1 overall 2021 recruit, elevates excitement for the future, but Ohio State will need other young linemen to emerge this fall.
“Ohio State seeks more athleticism at linebacker, where playing time opens up for seniors Dallas Gant and Teradja Mitchell, but also younger players like Tommy Eichenberg, Kourt Williams, Mitchell Melton and Cody Simon. The secondary is another area with enough experienced players — safeties Josh Proctor and Marcus Hooker and cornerbacks Sevyn Banks, Cameron Brown and Marcus Williamson — but no guaranteed stars. Like linebacker, Ohio State could go younger with Lathan Ransom, Ryan Watts and others. The Buckeyes signed two of ESPN’s top five cornerback recruits for 2021 (Jakailin Johnson and Jordan Hancock), and will add Jaheim Singletary, ESPN’s No. 34 overall recruit for 2022.”
We hear there could be help on the way in regards to athletic linebackers. If the rumors and predictions are true, Tennessee linebacker Henry To’o To’o could be headed to Columbus.
Recruit the best raw talent, develop it, then put it in a scheme to be successful. That’s the ingredients to having a top-notch defense in American college football — or so they say. Ohio State plays pretty good American football so we like its chances.
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