Buckeyes More Than Just JT Tuimoloau At Defensive End

The Buckeyes had a pair of First-Team All-Big Ten defensive ends last year in JT Tuimoloau and Zach Harrison, but only one of them returns for the 2023 season.

Harrison is off to the NFL, while Tuimoloau, now a junior, is back with the Buckeyes. As expected, Tuimoloau’s name is appearing on all kinds of preseason All-America lists.

Last season was Tuimoloau’s first full season as a starter at Ohio State, and he finished second on the team with 11.0 tackles for loss, and third with 4.0 sacks. His coming out party came against Penn State where he had one of the most dominating individual defensive performance in OSU history.

Against the Nittany Lions, Tuimoloau tallied two interceptions (one pick six), six tackles, three tackles for loss, two sacks, a forced fumble, and a pass broken up. And nearly all of those plays came when the Buckeyes needed them most.

That game was played on a national stage, and it put Tuimoloau’s name and skill set out there for all to see. He is now a known quantity, but the Ohio State defensive end depth chart this year doesn’t end there. The Buckeyes are expected to rotate as many as five defensive ends this season, provided defensive line coach Larry Johnson can make the numbers work.

Junior Jack Sawyer tied for the team lead with 4.5 sacks last season. More is expected of him this year now that he can focus on just being a defensive end, as opposed to last season when he split his time between the defensive line and the hybrid Jack position.

Second-year players Kenyatta Jackson and Caden Curry have shown in practice that they are ready to contribute. Curry saw action last year and made an impression. Jackson redshirted but really began to pick up steam in bowl practice. Fourth-year junior Mitchell Melton is also in the mix, getting reps at both end and Jack.

Tuimoloau and Sawyer remain linked together because both were five-star prospects in the 2021 recruiting class. Over the first seven games last year, the two played almost the same number of snaps. Beginning with that Penn State game, however, the rotation began shrinking and Tuimoloau began taking on a heavier workload.

Still, Sawyer finished with 24 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, and 4.5 sacks last year. He has responded with a solid camp this year, but has recently picked it up even more.

“Last two days, actually, Jack, just put him as the Silver Bullet of the Day the last two days,” defensive coordinator Jim Knowles said. “I felt like he was at a high level during camp, and then the last two days, he just kind of vaulted himself into being a dominant guy. So a lot of growth. I think that’s been a good move to just have him concentrate on [defensive end].”

With JT Tuimoloau essentially acting as the “free space on the board,” so much of the talk around camp this fall has been about Kenyatta Jackson. What started as a whisper in December is becoming an echoing roar around the OSU football facility. He has impressed everybody with his ability to rush the passer.

When did Knowles see Jackson show his readiness?

“Spring. Spring, really, I mean, Kenyatta showed up,” he said. “He’s got a great first step. I mean, he jumps off the video. You can’t deny that he’s out there making plays and making life difficult for the offense.”

A year ago, it was Caden Curry getting the attention. He was an early enrollee, and when he was on the field, he produced. He got some minutes towards the end of games and he stood out. Curry played in every game last year, seeing time on defense in eight contests, posting 14 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, and 0.5 sacks.

Knowles sees a role for Curry, not just outside, but also possibly on the inside on passing downs.

“Caden’s gonna play a lot. I mean, all along that front, he’s gonna fit I think in different places,” he said. “Maybe not on run downs, but you’ve got to be ready for this guy to do anything on pass downs because he plays hard and he’s hard to handle for the offense. So we can come up with any different way to get him on the field, but you’ll see him at a regular defensive end on a regular basis. You may see him at other places in pass rush situations.”

The fifth guy in the mix — not counting true freshman Arvell Reese (who probably shouldn’t actually be counted out) — is Mitchell Melton. Melton hasn’t played a game for the Buckeyes since the season opener in 2020. That was his true freshman year. Injuries have cost him the past two seasons, but the plans for him have never stopped.

Knowles likes Melton to partner with sophomore linebacker CJ Hicks at Jack this year, but there’s also a lot to like about him as a defensive end.

“Mitch has grown a lot at just the regular defensive end position,” Knowles said. “So taking him into that role, you know, you have to have consideration for what does that take away from him as a Jack. But he’s really smart. Mitch is very smart, very level-headed. But I’ve seen a lot of progress out of him at defensive end.”

The Buckeyes only return one defensive end with any starting experience this year, but the potential should far outweigh any lack of experience. Through three weeks of fall practice, Knowles is happy with where things are.

“Our Rushmen have had a great camp,” he said. “We have four ends there that I think are as good as anyone in the country. I think the depth there is fantastic. I think you have elite players. You have potentially elite players. JT, Jack, Kenyatta, Caden Curry’s just a guy who’s going to show up and make plays. So you’ve got four really good ends. And I feel like the rush has been strong. We’ve felt it. We’ve felt it and seen it during camp.”

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