Ohio State’s defense built momentum all spring and finished strong with its performance in Saturday’s spring game, giving Ryan Day “reason for optimism for sure” about the defense.
On 21 total possessions for the scarlet-clad offense, the defense allowed just four touchdowns and one field goal – and one of those touchdowns came on a non-competitive play as the Buckeyesto run for a 25-yard score. The offense was held to just 5.1 yards per play, fewer than the Buckeyes’ defense allowed in more than half of their games last season, as the Gray squad was credited with 10 pass breakups and five sacks.
“You try to look at it through the whole 15 practices of what you see. If you're starting to see the secondary getting their hands on some balls, then all of a sudden, it doesn't happen for a few days, it's probably not real. We've seen that for almost 15 practices, what you saw today. So that was really good,” Day said. “I think the challenge will be increased in the preseason, when we're at full strength . But you can just see the discernment. Everything's faster.
But there are reasons to believe the defense’s good performance this spring isn’t simply a result of taking advantage of an offense that remains a work in progress. For one, the Buckeyes are now entering their second year under defensive coordinator Jim Knowles, which has them feeling more confident about their ability to play fast in the defensive scheme than they did a year ago.
“I think the first thing was the back-end explosives. You saw today, we didn't really give up a lot of explosives, maybe just a couple in the second half. And that's important for us. We expect to score a lot of points on offense, and if we can avoid explosive plays, then that's a recipe for winning. That was the idea in 2019, and we need to continue to do that.”
Malaysia Latest News, Malaysia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Spring Game Central: Scoring Format, Storylines, Sights and Sounds From Ohio State's 2023 Spring GameYour one-stop shop for Ohio State spring game coverage, including the scrimmage scoring format, storylines, and sights and sounds from the Shoe.
Read more »
Last Call: Final Thoughts, Questions and Players to Watch Entering Ohio State's 2023 Spring GameIn our last chance to watch the Buckeyes for a few months, Carnell Tate, Jack Sawyer, Kenyatta Jackson and of course Kyle McCord are among the players we’ll be watching closely.
Read more »
Live with Kelly and Ryan says goodbye to Ryan Seacrest this morningIt's a bittersweet moment for fans of the show, who have watched Ryan and Kelly form a special bond and share unforgettable moments with their viewers over the years.
Read more »
'Live with Kelly and Ryan' says goodbye to Ryan Seacrest this morningIt's a bittersweet moment for fans of the show, who have watched Ryan and Kelly form a special bond and share unforgettable moments with their viewers over the years.
Read more »
'Live with Kelly and Ryan' says goodbye to Ryan Seacrest this morningIt's a bittersweet moment for fans of the show, who have watched Ryan and Kelly form a special bond and share unforgettable moments with their viewers over the years.
Read more »
'Live with Kelly and Ryan' says goodbye to Ryan Seacrest this morningIt's a bittersweet moment for fans of the show, who have watched Ryan and Kelly form a special bond and share unforgettable moments with their viewers over the years.
Read more »