Jermaine Mathews Now Knows He Belongs In The Buckeye Secondary

Playing time for a young Buckeye generally depends on the depth chart in front of him. For cornerback Jermaine Mathews, Jr., the depth chart in front of him his first two years involved starters Denzel Burke and Davison Igbinosun.

Mathews still saw the field each of his first two years, finishing third among the cornerbacks in snaps each year. This past season, however, his playing time increased greatly, and by the middle of the season, he was a regular part of the cornerback rotation.

In fact, in the playoffs, Mathews averaged 34 snaps per game, compared to 57 for Igbinosun and 43 for Burke. (Burke did miss the second half of the Texas game with an injury, but the overall point remains.)

Where did he grow the most as a player during his true sophomore season?

“Just my confidence on the field,” Mathews told Buckeye Huddle prior to the Cotton Bowl last month. “While I’m out there, I think I’m just more comfortable. I feel more that I belong out there. I feel like I belong out there now.”

Having Jermaine Mathews mention the growth of his confidence is a bit of a surprise because it never seemed like confidence was ever an issue.

“Yeah, I’ve always been confident, but I feel like I belong,” he admitted. “It’s more natural out there now.”

Mathews finished the 2024 season with 22 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, and a sack. After not seeing any time on defense in the loss to Oregon back in October, Mathews began seeing more and more time throughout the rest of the season. The defense was better for it, and so were Denzel Burke and Davison Igbinosun.

Burke started all four years at Ohio State, and Igbinosun started as a true freshman at Ole Miss in 2022 before transferring to OSU and winning the starting job in 2023. Together, the duo has seen just about all there is to see, and now they’ve passed as much of their knowledge as possible down to Jermaine Mathews.

“It’s been great. They’re probably the best two guys you can learn from,” Mathews said. “They have a lot of knowledge. A lot of different wisdom. They see different things a different way than I see it. It’s just great to get that perspective. You also just get to see what it looks like beforehand. They are going to be two NFL corners soon. You get to see what it looks like before it’s your turn. I think those are probably the best two people that can be in front of me.”

What is something he learned from Burke that he still carries with him?

“I think Denzel just teaches me how to be a pro every day,” he said. “He moves like a pro. His routine and everything daily. I think that alone just shows me something.”

It can be difficult for a young player to be stuck behind talented veterans, especially when that player gets a taste of playing time as a true freshman. It isn’t easy to remain patient while also trying to do everything possible to see the field.

How did Mathews balance the desire to play with the need for patience?

“It’s just more of keeping your head down and just working and knowing it’s going to come every day,” he said. “That’s probably the only thing, just keeping the confidence and keeping the faith in yourself. I think that’s probably the most difficult part about it.”

Mathews also got plenty of help from cornerbacks coach Tim Walton along the way. Walton wants his players to be hungry to play, but he also wants them to be hungry to learn.

It was when the desire to learn more and more took over that Walton saw Mathews’ confidence and understanding reach the point where regular playing time was warranted.

“When you start seeing his approach to the game blossom — he’s always been confident, but now the note-taking, the film study, the attention to details, the processing of the game, now he’s not just relying on athletic ability. He’s more detailed, more focused, and has understanding. And now he knows that he can do it,” Walton told Buckeye Huddle.

“He knows that he belongs. And he’s played a lot of meaningful time for us. We treat him like a starter. That’s what he is for us. And that will be very impactful going into next year for a guy who’s had a lot of playing time.”

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