Training Day – Ohio State Buckeyes
9/2/2006 12:00:00 AM | Football
Sept. 2, 2006
by Tim Stried Ohio State Athletics Communications
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If there was any chance August, and its signaling of the start of another football season, might have a lethargic entrance this year, the local and national media put an end to that thought before the last firework was lit on the Fourth of July. With their pens and lenses focused keenly on the Ohio State football program seemingly since the Buckeyes walked off the field with their 34-20 win over Notre Dame in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl last January, the headlines – albeit noble – have kept the program under the microscope even more than ever this past offseason.
A No. 1 preseason ranking in the Associated Press and USA Today/ESPN coaches polls added fuel to the fire. So, as the team assembled for the start of preseason camp, head coach Jim Tressel and his coaching staff understandably reminded the team not to focus too much on the headlines.
However, those conversations had nothing to do with the No.1 ranking. In fact, the team embraced it and took it as a sign of respect. After all, expectations always are high in Columbus for a program that has won 30 Big Ten titles.
What OSU coaches do not want their students-athletes to dwell on is the fact nearly every praising headline carried with it a subheading pointing out the Buckeyes will have growing pains on defense, where they must replace a boat-load of talent and experience. Do not dwell, the coaches preached, because it is not entirely true. Make no mistake about it, the Buckeyes have those among them who, in fact, have been there, done that. Sure the preseason team capsule lists only two returning defensive starters, but take a closer look and talent and experience are everywhere.
For a program that prides itself in the ability to reload, not rebuild, defensive coordinator Jim Heacock has a talented group of Buckeyes in his arsenal. Though he might not have the household names returning, the strength of the defense, he said, is in its depth.
“We have good numbers who give each position good competition,” Heacock said. “Guys are anxious to get out there and prove themselves. Not too many of them have played a bunch, which you can see in practice with their enthusiasm. You can see it when they come to work everyday and do all the extra things.”
A total of 20 returning lettermen are hungry to crack the starting lineup.
Within the defensive line are Ohio State’s two “official” returning starters in senior tackles Quinn Pitcock and David Patterson. But do not forget defensive end Jay Richardson, safety Brandon Mitchell, cornerback Malcolm Jenkins and linebacker James Laurinaitis all have started more than just a couple games in their careers.
Looking for a few good men to fill out the rest of the defensive lineup? Try the talented likes of defensive linemen Joel Penton, Vernon Gholston, Lawrence Wilson and Todd Denlinger, linebackers John Kerr, Marcus Freeman, Ross Homan and Curtis Terry, and defensive backs Nick Patterson, Jamario O’Neal and Antonio Smith.
Pitcock and Patterson combined for 52 tackles last season, including 10.5 tackles-for-loss and five sacks, so the Buckeyes are unquestionably solid up the middle. Look around them, though, and the stage is set for more than a two-man show. Richardson, a fifth-year senior, is a veteran of 26 games, including six starts. At the other end, Gholston is in his third year in the program and played as a freshman in 2004, while Wilson played in every game but one last season as a true freshman and was perhaps the defense’s most talked about up-and-comer during the offseason.
At linebacker, the way Laurinaitis stepped in during the Michigan and Notre Dame games has been well documented, as has the speed and tenacity of Freeman and Homan. Kerr is a true veteran in the middle.
In the secondary, Jenkins became a starter midway through the season last year and Mitchell has been a starter off and on since 2003. Patterson, O’Neal and Smith were all special teams regulars last season and saw time in a back-up role.
That said, however, not many college football programs can replace the kind of talent Ohio State had last season when they led the nation in run defense and ranked fifth in both total defense and scoring defense. The NFL took three Buckeye defenders in the first round – A.J. Hawk, Donte Whitner and Bobby Carpenter – and three more in third and fourth rounds, including Ashton Youboty, Anthony Schlegel and Nate Salley. Also gone are end Mike Kudla and tackle Marcus Green.
Though Heacock and the Buckeyes said goodbye to those nine comrades, the names and faces who will dominate the tackle charts in 2006 are not exactly newcomers.
“We have quite a few guys back, especially up front and at linebacker,” Heacock said. “And even a guy who hasn’t been out there a whole lot like Marcus Freeman has been around for awhile and we know him pretty well. We might not have the number of returning starters like we’ve had in the past, but the biggest thing is finding 11 guys who play together and execute.”
In addition to Pitcock and Patterson, it is veterans like Freeman, Mitchell and Antonio Smith who will keep the Ohio State defense among the best in the nation. With their experience, along with spring practice and a summer of working out together, they have helped form the latest edition of the Silver Bullets.
Tressel pointed out another intangible that will help the OSU defense become a force in the mold of his defenses of the past. But at the same time, it all comes down to how they improve and execute under pressure.
“We are extremely deep,” Tressel said. “We did not have many guys injured during spring practice. Our height, weight and speed are more than adequate. We will have to see how they perform day to day and week to week. That evolution is key.”
That evolution is a work in progress, but already the Buckeyes are taking the attitude of being reliable and becoming one of the strengths of the team.
“Whether or not a guy has been a starter before, we all need to act like starters out there,” Jenkins said. “We’re not all freshmen or backups anymore. We’re the starters and we need to play like it. Our goal is to be the best in the nation – as usual.”
Like those before them, these Buckeyes want to earn the respect of their coaches, teammates, opponents and fans. They saw first-hand how guys like Hawk, Salley and Whitner carried themselves, both on and off the field. When they get to that point, it will show in more ways than one.
“As a defense, we want to have a swagger,” O’Neal said. “We don’t want to be cocky, just confident. Our goal is to make our offense as comfortable as possible and let the entire team know they can depend on us.”
Like O’Neal, Wilson is one of the young Buckeyes who are being counted on to deliver. He is being compared to former OSU great Will Smith, the 2003 Big Ten Defensive Player of the year. While that is lofty praise (OSU coaches do not want to commit to that comparison quite yet), it is interesting to note Heacock’s analysis of the two. He points out the budding talent Wilson is in a different mold from Smith, in a good way.
“Will wasn’t as thick,” Heacock said, noting Wilson currently weighs 270 pounds. “Will came in at 235 and was more of an edge guy. Lawrence is a more physical guy and might have more explosion. He’s more physical with blockers. Lawrence is ready. He was ready last year. It takes a talented and special kid to play as a freshman. It’s pretty unique to be able to handle all that, but last year you would never have known he was a freshman.”
Wilson is ready thanks in part to watching and learning from the veterans who helped take the Buckeyes to a Top 5 finish three of the last four years.
“Those were great guys and I learned a lot last year,” Wilson said. “I, and the other young guys, are definitely familiar with what we’re doing and know how to handle things. We even put in new things in camp and are perfecting what we do.”
For Wilson and the rest of the defense, preparations for this fall began back in the spring and continued throughout the summer.
“We’ve been busy and we do a lot together,” Wilson said. “All through the summer we did senior drills and just got familiar with each other and got ready for camp. We know each other pretty well and can’t wait to get the season going.”
Mixed in with young talent like Wilson are Buckeyes with quite a bit of experience, like Mitchell. For the veterans, their role is not only to provide leadership and make plays, but to be mentors for the younger players.
“We have a situation where we have a lot of young guys,” Mitchell said. “So I’m working and learning, but at the same time it’s my job to help the coaches with the young guys, too.”
For the veterans and newcomers alike, perhaps what could be the biggest aid to the evolution of the defense is the fact they go up against the talented Ohio State offense everyday in practice. On that side of the football, the Buckeyes return eight starters and are a big reason for the preseason No. 1 ranking.
“Our guys are being thrown right into the fire,” Mitchell said during camp. “With our offense, we’re getting experience going up against big-time talent. We might not be playing in front of 105,000 fans yet, but we’re playing against similar talent that we’ll see in a game. If we mess up against our offense, it’s a touchdown. You learn real fast you can’t do that.”
Day by day, another step is taken in the evolution of the defense. Hope, anticipation and expectations, like the beginning of the season itself, are a part of the defense. It started on a good note in the spring – remember it has been twice in a row the defense won the coveted scarlet jerseys for practice this fall.
Today against Northern Illinois, those same scarlet jerseys, this time in unison with the entire team, will be put to the test. Call it the first of 12 training days leading up to what the Buckeyes hope will be a berth in the Bowl Championship Series in January. Either way, the playmakers in 2006, though perhaps untested, will meet the challenge head on.
“If these guys couldn’t play, they wouldn’t be at Ohio State,” Mitchell said. “They’re very capable and it’s fun to see them run and hit. We are hoping to get a little better everyday so that when the season comes, we’ll be ready.”
