- He is excited for the coaches clinic, which will include presentations from his entire staff as well as appearances by Eddie George, Zac Taylor and Bob Stoops. Keith Byars and Dick LeBeau will be among those recognized as greats of Ohio football as well.
- The spring game will be offense vs. defense, not two teams put together via a draft. It will start out with a “thud” period which means they will hit but not tackle, but that will be brief. Most of the time they will tackle.
- Of course the new defense will only be on display in the most basic form. Saturday will be about fundamentals and effort. The team got to see all the different things Jim Knowles can do in 13 days of practice leading up to it. It will be good for the players to get out and play within the scheme in front of a crowd.
- He is good with how much of the defense Knowles has installed already. Getting lots of film to be able to teach off all summer was important. (Knowles mentioned this earlier, saying he did not want to just have to keep showing Oklahoma State film.)
Ohio State football: Oklahoma State transfer @McCalister_Dos2 says @CoachJimKnowles is installing his defense faster this spring than he did in Stillwater https://t.co/uvfZ48QHgH
— Marcus Hartman (@marcushartman) April 12, 2022
- Caden Curry and Kye Stokes are two freshmen who had their black stripes removed recently, meaning they are officially part of the team. Curry, a defensive lineman, has a high motor and is a very good player. He plays bigger than he is, and he’s intelligent. Stokes has a great energy and personality, and his athletic ceiling is very high.
- There isn’t anyone he’s looking to see something from in the spring game. They have seen what they need to in practice. Some might have some nerves when they first get out there, but they will settle down. You rarely see something different in these situations. More reps equal more confidence, though.
- Tackling in the spring game “is the right thing to do.” It will be good to just get out there and play. They are building depth this spring. They lost some important guys on the perimeter plus two starting offensive linemen and their top tight end, but the new guys in the starting lineup have looked good this spring. Who will be second on the depth chart is more of a mystery.
- C.J. Stroud will play, but it sounds like the young guys will get the bulk of the time.
- As he said previously, depth on the offensive line and at safety is still a concerned. He is pleased with the starters at those positions. He later clarified they have plenty of bodies — too many, really — at safety but no idea if most of those guys can actually play in a game. Offensive line the numbers are down this spring with a couple of guys hurt, but they will get them back this summer and add three true freshmen recruits.
- Offensive lineman Josh Fryar and safety Lathan Ransom will be back with the team this summer after being out with injuries this spring. He’s not sure about running back Marcus Crowley, who has dealt with multiple major leg injuries.
- Part of the reason they are doing offensive vs. defense in the spring game is they are light on offensive linemen and they want to be able to roll them through rather than having to split them up. They are thin there both because of some recruiting misses and development failures. Injuries are also a factor. Some younger linemen need to step up to look ready to be in the two-deep by the start of the season.
- They are going to tackle in the spring game because that is what they need this year. They need to be ready to tackle and be physical so they will be ready for Notre Dame in September. Of course they don’t want to have any major injuries, but they need to be physical and tough.
- This spring he has seen some good battle between the offensive tackles and edge rushers as well as the interior guys and the defensive tackles. The cornerbacks have also held their own against the receivers, which is good because they know how good the receivers are.
- He doesn’t need to see anything spectacular from the quarterbacks, just wants them to make the routine plays.
- Ronnie Hickman is an excellent tackler who has a good feel for the game. You can really feel his presence in practice.
- He reiterated the quarterback situation is pretty healthy. He has a stud starter and two backups who are more worried about developing than competing for playing time.
- They have a strong two-deep on the defensive line. There is good depth, and they play faster in this defense.
- He would be open to discussing having a scrimmage or something against another team in the spring. That could be good for some of the younger guys to go against someone else in a different environment.
- With more experienced guys on defense, they play more confident. Players are more decisive and able to anticipate rather than just react.
- He respects walk-on receiver Sam Wiglusz a lot. He is a good receiver with an excellent attitude and leadership skills.
- He confirmed kicker Noah Ruggles is not with the team this spring, but he will be back this summer.
- Sophomore Jayden Ballard has high potential. The Massillon Washington product is a big receiver who needs to learn to play big. He has to keep building his skillset and growing into the position.
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