Day seems pleased at spring practice
When offensive line depth is the first concern a coach mentions as spring practice enters its final stretch, it’s safe to assume he’s pleased with his team’s progress.
At this time last year, Ohio State coach Ryan Day hadn’t settled on a quarterback, running back, offensive line or back seven on defense.
“(Athletic director) Gene Smith and I talked about this a year ago at this point,” Day said Monday. “We knew we had some young guys we had to get on the field and that we’re going to live with growing pains.”
The Buckeyes endured those in 2021, losing to Oregon and Michigan. Now there is a different vibe as the Buckeyes finished their ninth spring practice Monday. The spring game is April 16.
Third-year sophomore C.J. Stroud is an established star at quarterback, as is true sophomore Treveyon Henderson at running back. The offensive line is mostly set.
The defense appears to have plenty of depth at all positions, and Day clearly has faith in his revamped defensive coaching staff.
On Saturday, the Buckeyes had their student appreciation practice, which gave observers their first glimpse of fullteam drills. The defensive line got the better of the offensive line, particularly when backups were in.
“I think the depth that we’ve created on the defensive line is going to be a huge advantage for us,” Day said. “I think our twos and threes are further along on the
defensive side of the ball than they are an offense right now, so you’re seeing a lot of pressure on the quarterback, especially with twos and threes.”
Depth on the offensive line has been a strength the past couple of years, but that’s a concern now. Paris Johnson Jr. and Dawand Jones are the left and right tackles, with Donovan Jackson and Matt Jones at guard and Luke Wypler at center. Enokk Vimahi has made a push as well.
“We do need to get more in more depth on the offensive line, that’s for sure,” Day said. “I feel pretty good about five or six guys, but we need to get to seven, eight, nine.”
Day said he also wants to see more depth at wide receiver, but with Jaxon Smith-njigba, Marvin Harrison Jr., Julian Fleming and Emeka Egbuka, the situation is hardly dire.
For the rest of spring, most of the jostling for depth-chart positioning is for backup roles.
Day listed several positions on defense at which players have shown substantial growth, including freshmen C.J. Hicks and Gabe Powers and Arizona State transfer Chip Trayanum at linebacker, and Jakailin Johnson and Jordan Hancock at cornerback.
Ohio State’s offense is again expected to be elite. The defense is a bigger question after last year’s struggles, but Day likes what he has seen.
“We’re off to a good start, and we’ve got a good group over there,” Day said.
Bill Rabinowitz covers Ohio State football for The Columbus Dispatch. Contact him at brabinowitz@dispatch.com or on Twitter @brdispatch.