If any position provided an exception, it would be safety, where lots has already been learned but much work needs to be done.
That is an area under the microscope for multiple reasons:
1. The play in the back end of the defense has been lacking the last two seasons.
2. Multiple players with experience are out this spring or have been limited early on.
3. Defensive coordinator Jim Knowles has described his scheme as being built around the safeties.
And, 4: There should be more snaps to go around this fall than in the past.
“There’s three safeties out there a lot of times so there’s another guy on the field doing where a few years ago there were three linebackers in the game and two safeties,” Ohio State head coach Ryan Day said. “So there’s one more position in that personnel grouping that guys can get on the field. And so they’re just competing.”
The safeties are also under new management, not only from Knowles but new secondary coaches Perry Eliano and Tim Walton.
Those three are spending the spring evaluating who can do what so they can craft a better unit this fall.
“They’re still trying to figure out how guys fit exactly because each one of those three safeties have a different skill set and are asked to do different jobs,” Day said.
Senior Josh Proctor might be the leading candidate to start at free safety, which Knowles said will be called the “Adjuster”, but he is physically limited while working his way back from a broken leg suffered early last season.
The same injury is also sidelining Lathan Ransom, who went down in the Rose Bowl after playing both free safety and nickel back in the old defense.
So two of the most experienced players are out or limited, and a third is in a new spot.
That would be junior-to-be Ronnie Hickman, who is trying his hand at free safety after playing mostly weak/boundary safety last year and leading Ohio State in tackles.
That move likely is designed to test his versatility and let the coaches take a longer look at Kourt Williams.
The 6-foot, 220-pound Williams played about 175 snaps on defense last season. He didn’t seem to find a home in the old scheme but in Knowles’ defense looks well-suited to play the boundary safety, which is known as the “Bandit” and will be more involved in run support than other schemes.
With no incumbent at nickel — which is was called “slot safety” last season and will now be more of a pure cover position with little run-stopping responsibility — the player getting the first look there this spring is Tanner McAlister. He played that role for Knowles at Oklahoma State last season and is seen as someone who can act as a coach on the field for the Buckeyes if he earns the spot.
“The depth looks a little bit different, but those guys who have been out there have a lot of reps under their belt,” Day said. “Certainly Tanner comes in with a bunch of reps. Bryson Shaw played a bunch last year. Ronnie Hickman played and Kourt got some work down the stretch, so it is good.
“Again, we were not anywhere near this last this point last year with the amount of experience that we have. We’ve still got a long way to go, but at least these guys have played in games.”
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