COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Ohio State football’s defensive backs draped a security blanket over the entire back half of the defense in 2019.
With arguably the best cornerback in the country, two other pro prospects at corner and a veteran safety, the Buckeyes’ secondary kept a mix of skill, intelligence and physicality on the field at all times.
With three starters moving on, the next wave of the OSU secondary will be one of the most scrutinized position groups this spring.
For perspective: safety Jordan Fuller and cornerbacks Jeff Okudah and Damon Arnette Jr. combined for 132 tackles last season. The seven returning defensive backs combined for 80 tackles — over 30 percent of them from Shaun Wade.
Ohio State has done this before — push a group of defensive backs up to the NFL and fill in behind with prospects-in-waiting. It is one reason why some of these players came to OSU. Now they have the opportunity, and the urgency, to deliver.
DEFENSIVE BACKS
| POS. | NAME | YR | 2019 statistics |
|---|---|---|---|
| CB | Marcus Williamson | Sr. | 7 tackles, 1 FF |
| CB | Sevyn Banks | Jr. | 11 tackles (1.5 TFL), 1 INT, 3 PBU |
| CB | Cameron Brown | Jr. | 14 tackles (2 TFL), 1 PBU |
| S | Josh Proctor | Jr. | 13 tackles, 1 INT, 3 PBU |
| CB | Shaun Wade | Jr. | 25 tackles (4 TFL), 2 sacks, 1 INT, 8 PBU, 1 FF |
| S | Marcus Hooker | Soph. | 7 tackles, 1 PBU |
| CB | Tyreke Johnson | Soph. | 3 tackles |
| CB | Lejond Cavazos | Fr. | N/A |
| S | Ronnie Hickman | Fr. | N/A |
| S | Lathan Ransom | Fr. | N/A |
| S | Bryson Shaw | Fr. | N/A |
| CB | Ryan Watts | Fr. | N/A |
Safety first: Proctor has been penciled in for this job since he arrived at OSU as a top-100 recruit. He at times flashed near-acrobatic playmaking potential as Fuller’s backup in 2019. He also suffered occasional lapses. There may be a tradeoff here between Fuller’s reliability and Proctor’s highlight-dotted volatility.
Hooker played some reps late last season when Ohio State needed to shift back to a two-deep safety alignment. The Buckeyes project to keep the single-high cover-1 defense that excelled last season, but Hooker seemed to be rounding into a solid backup.
Turning a corner: A crowd of veteran defensive backs get their first real chance to contend for a starting position this spring.
Banks and Brown jump to the front of the line because they occasionally filled in for Arnette and Okudah last season. Wade moves from slot cornerback to the outside. Do Banks and Brown rotate on the outside, or could one of them succeed Wade on the inside?
Johnson arrived at Ohio State with the possibly unfair expectations of a top-25 national recruit. After a redshirt season and another with minimal impact, Johnson now has less obstruction than ever for a prime depth chart spot. He’s another possible option whose spot on the field remains unknown entering the spring.
Williamson has never factored into the defensive reps. That may need to change after veteran reserves Amir Riep and Jahsen Wint were dismissed from the team. Without four obvious answers like Ohio State had in 2019, someone must assume the leadership responsibilities those NFL-bound DBs relinquished.
SPRING PREVIEWS
• Quarterback: Justin Fields leads a group balancing production with promise
• Linebackers: In deep, veteran corps, who makes the next move?
• Tight ends: Providing stability, with the promise of more
• Defensive ends: Who leads the chase for the Buckeyes pass rush?
• Offensive line: Which former reserves step up on potentially elite unit?
• Defensive tackles: Who emerges from the shadows?
• Receivers: Can the Buckeyes keep reloading?
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