While the Ohio State defense seems to recover from its disappointing performance in 2020 and return to playing at the championship level in 2021, there will be a new assistant coach helping to lead this effort.
A vacancy on the Ohio State defensive technical team officially opens later this month, when Greg Mattison – the Buckeyes’ defensive co-coordinator for the past two seasons – will retire from the coach.
Mattison’s replacement has yet to be chosen and, on Friday morning, it was unclear who the state of Ohio wanted to take his place. Ohio State coach Ryan Day said on Friday that he will consider a variety of options for the new hire.
Since Mattison was neither the primary defensive coordinator nor the primary coach of the linebackers, Ohio State has the flexibility to hire its replacement. While Day could hire another co-defensive coordinator to lead the game plan for race defense and train Sam’s linebackers like Mattison did, he could also transfer some of the defensive assistant coaches to new roles if he believed a new assistant coach would help. the Buckeyes more in a different area.
“I think we have a very good group of guys there now who are versatile, so let’s look at all the options,” said Day. “Is there someone else out there who can take Greg’s place in the same role he did, or are we just going to change some things and reassign some of the job descriptions? It’s all on the table and we’re working on it now, and looking at all the different options.
“I’m not really determined to ‘This is exactly what the role needs to be.’ I just want to get the best group together to give our defenders the best chance of success. ”
While defensive coordinator and secondary coach Kerry Coombs, defensive line coach Larry Johnson, lineback coach Al Washington and safetie coach Matt Barnes are ready to return in 2021, Ohio State has reason to consider changing things.
The Buckeyes finished last season in 43rd place in the Football Bowl subdivision with 25.8 points allowed per game, 59th with 401.6 yards allowed per game and 122nd with 304 passing yards allowed per game. The Ohio State defense fought especially in the national championship game against Alabama, in which the Crimson Tide scored 52 points in 621 yards, and Day acknowledged on Friday that the defense’s performance in 2020 was not up to standards from the program.
“We didn’t play very well against Indiana, and there were times at the beginning of the season when things just didn’t look as they should,” said Day. “And then it all kind of culminated in the end against Alabama.”
At the same time, that defense was good enough – particularly in the Big Ten Championship Game against Northwestern and in the Sugar Bowl against Clemson – to bring the State of Ohio into the national championship game. And the Buckeyes had to deal with the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic throughout the year – they played only eight games in total, and Day revealed on Friday that the Buckeyes were able to perform just one padded workout before the championship game. national – which should not be overlooked when evaluating the fights he had in defense last season.
“I thought we did a good job against Clemson. I thought our guys played well, we created turnovers and they played really well there. I thought we played well most of the time against Northwestern, “said Day.” We had some interruptions just in terms of practice and things like that. We only practiced one day on cushions before the national championship game. Not that this is an excuse, it’s just that I think that when you look at the number of games we’ve had, you find out a little bit more about your defense, you can try some things a little bit more when you have five or six more games than that we.
“I think it was the culmination of things at the end. But, certainly, things that we have to look at as we go through the season and all the big discussions that we have to settle next fall. ”
Given the struggles that the state of Ohio had to defend the pass in 2020, these discussions will include conversations about whether the Buckeyes should stick with Cover 3, a defense inspired by Pete Carroll that they used in the past two seasons, or if they should reshape their scheme in this off-season. And that is one factor that Day needs to consider when hiring Mattison’s replacement and determining how the defense team should be structured for 2021.
“Anyone with defense experience down four and a single high would certainly fit in faster,” said Day. “But also bringing in someone who has a slightly more diverse background can give us a different perspective and areas where we can maximize who we have. And I think this is what is important, because we try to do this all the time in the attack, and I think this will be important for what we do in defense, it is based on who we have that year, which gives us the best chance. successful?
“If it is to continue in single-high, Cover 3? Lets do this. But if not, what are the things? So, do we want to have some continuity and keep going, or do we want to bring someone with a different perspective? All the discussions that are taking place now. ”