Buckeyes Meet With Media Following Spring Practice #10
4/8/2026 12:17:00 PM | Football
On the biggest thing he worked on this off-season
Being more vocal. Losing Caleb and Sonny, they’re communicators on this team and on this defense. I’m working on making myself be heard on and off the field. It’s been something I’ve had to work on, but all of the coaches and the staff are challenging me to work on it and get better.
On what he think he does best on the field
I play with a high motor, I have a quick trigger. I just play fast. It comes from internal motivation. I want the ball and I want to be around the ball and I wan’t to make plays.
On his family’s charitable foundation
We always spoke about it over the years. I’m happy to see it start coming together, to start seeing events popping up. I’m happy to see a lot of donations and the community grow around it as well. I’m trying to serve as a role model for my community, not just in New Jersey, but Ohio and around the country.
On being an Iron Buckeye multiple times now
When you see other guys who reach that, like Brandon and Garrett, it just shows that’s the standard they need to hold themselves to. They know what it’s like and they know what it comes with being an Iron Buckeye and it’s going to make people who haven’t won it want to reach that goal and chase it.
On Devin Sanchez growing as a freshman
He took stride with it, it’s different from high school. When you get a chance and now you need to go out and play at the conference level, he gives me immediate snaps. He’s taking that next step with growing, learning, understanding, discipline, the responsibility to come with it and the competitive nature you need to have. He’s taking that next step and he’s having a good spring so far. He has to be the guy that keeps stepping up for us.
On Dominick Kelly
Consistency, discipline, consistency, that’s what you’ve got to have in this game. He’s been levelheaded. He’s a smooth operator with things and being able to know that everyday when they go out there, we know what we’re getting out of him. When you be consistent all the time, then the plays happen for you because you’re always in the right spot. He’s smart and he understands the game.
On what traits he looks for with incoming freshman
They’re very mature. They love to compete and have attention to detail. They’re very coachable and can process the game and they have a lot of great qualities and football is important to them. Those things are great qualities, and they don’t get flustered by situations or hard culture.
When asked about how different this year feels compared to last year
It feels a lot different. I feel more confident and more comfortable out there. I just feel like this is going to be the year for me. Like, I said, I feel more confident than I did last year. Coming in the door I was a little nervous a little timid, but I feel like this year I’m taking that next step in the road.
When asked about what's going to be different about this defense
I feel like we are coming together as a team. We got a lot of guys out there that talk. We got Earl Little, he talks a lot, Jermaine obviously, as he is one of the sparks of the defense and then Payton Pierce as he is taking that next step too. I feel like a new group of guys, we can all learn from each other and it’ll help us come together.
When asked about the expectations of him
Last year, I felt like it was heavy. It was on me a lot to produce, and I feel like I failed myself and I didn’t produce. So, I feel like this year it’s just taking that next step and realizing what I could have done last year towards the end of season. After that Miami game, I realized if I would’ve just did this all season, it could have been a whole different outcome. So, we went into off-season and I told Coach Walt, I’m not stepping back and I’m coming in full head. It doesn’t matter who’s in front of me, I’m going to win.
On how do you replace Caleb Downs
So those are big shoes to fill, and no one guy has taken on that role, and they know that. They have heard that from me. What we do have is we have depth and experience, we have smart players, we have guys who can make plays in a bunch of different ways. Our job is to design to put those guys in position, and split those roles amongst those guys, so it’s been fun to be able to have that type of depth and experiences to be able to work with, and they’ve been competing together, but they’ve been pushing each other in a positive way as well.
On what they are looking for to fill roles
Overall, like when you take a bigger picture of your team you look at okay what do guys do well? How do we put them into these positions. It’s okay Matt P, myself, Walt we’re all looking at it saying okay who do we have back here and how do we sit those guys into these spots but actually filling the ability to be able to fill the spots. That is for sure something that were working on right now and I’m pleased with guys that have been able to do multiple things for us, but I don’t have like a hard concrete this is exactly what it looks like.
On the depth of the safeties after losing Caleb Downs and Lorenzo Styles
I do think there is depth there, yes. I think guys have joined us, guys that are returning, I do feel like there is a little bit of a deeper group right now compared to where maybe in years past you saw a lot of snaps from a few familiar faces so obviously you’ve lost impact players but I do think there’s some depth there and it’s our job if the guys earn the right to be on the field to put them on the field from a personal decision.
On what is it like learning from Caleb Downs in your first two years
It was good, Caleb is a very smart player you know he’s a game recruiter, drafted very high, so being able to just lean on him and learn a bunch of things is just very inspirational
On moving around playing all three safety spots
Yes. I have been moving around and playing in different spots, its honestly good to be able to learn different spots and be able to help my team out whenever they need me to.
On what is his favorite part about playing all three safety spots
Like I said I am good at playing different positions, I can be in the post, but I could also come downhill and make tackles.
When asked about if playing under Coach Patrica is what he expected
It has definitely been exactly what I expected it to be. I’ve only been here a couple of months, and I love playing for Coach P already. I haven’t even stepped out there in The Shoe' yet and I’m ready to go to war for all my brothers and the whole coaching staff.
When asked about what made him want to be a Buckeye
The excellence, the numbers, the production they put out there on the field, and we see what the guys do that come through here to get to the next level. They’re all successful and that’s something I want to be a part of.
When asked about being the son of an NFL player
My father gave me tips and tricks day in and day out. I know how to be a great man, let alone a great football player. That’s something I don’t take for granted, and I am very appreciative of that. I was younger, probably five when I started really working out with him, and stuff like that, but I was definitely young. But he’s been giving me tip and tricks my whole life and I am grateful for it.
