Tyler Bowen Building Depth, Flexibility On Ohio State Offensive Line

Ohio State offensive line coach Tyler Bowen met with reporters following Thursday morning practice. He discussed the depth the Buckeyes have, the need to find a top five and beyond, and provided updates on a number of individual linemen. The highlights of everything he had to say can be found below.

On the depth of the line: “There’s a lot of guys that have played football.” “We’re still a work in progress to figure out who the five are.” They have experienced a lot of game play, a lot of fronts, a lot of different looks.
On Ethan Onianwa: He’s done a great job. He has worked his tail off. He’s got impressive size, but his smarts and work ethic have been the most impressive thing for Bowen.
Is having Carson Hinzman back a nice head start for the OL: 100% He is great at communication, which helps everybody. The depth on the interior shows up in practice.
They are cross-training guys and moving them around to find their strengths and weaknesses. Austin Siereveld has played every position but center this spring. It’s a luxury to have somebody like him.
Bowen has always had a philosophy of cross-training. You always want to be able to put your best five offensive linemen on the field. The freshmen don’t really do it because they need to get comfortable at one spot first. But the tackles need to be able to play both sides. Same as guards, and then maybe have a couple of guards who can snap as well.
Austin Siereveld has very few missed assignments at all four of the positions he plays.
Bowen has three assistants who work with him, so they have their own meetings to get on the same page on exactly how they teach everything, that way every OL coach is giving the same message to players during practice. They do not have big egos. Their job is to serve the players. They can provide real-time coaching and critique and make corrections at practice. “That part’s been fun and I think it’s been better than we expected it to be.”
In the spring, you try to install your core, your base. The things you’re going to come back to in fall camp. Re-teach the foundation. Once the foundation is in, then your put the drywall in and the crown molding.
Care to name any starters right now? “I’d rather not get into it right now. We’re in spring ball. Guys are doing a great job. I think we’ve got multiple guys that can play and help us.”
“It gets physical at times, which is a good thing. We want to play with an edge. We want to dominate the line of scrimmage. We want to control the game.” You have to play with the right mentality.
Have never rotated offensive linemen as an offensive line coach, but he’s rotated positions as a coordinator. “It certainly can be done…if you’ve got a room that can handle it.”
Phillip Daniels comes out and works hard every day. Any time you’ve played in games, you see it in practice. He can draw back on his four starts last year. He’s a consistent worker and he keeps his head down.
Luke Montgomery continues to work on his physicality. It’s noticeable. He’s also emerging as a leader. “I’ve been impressed with his approach.”
How much of physicality is technique vs. mentality: It’s certainly part of technique. You have to biomechanically create force. But there is also a sense of urgency. “Pass protection is not passive.”
It is easier to sell versatility and cross-training when the guys saw what happened last year. The goal for each player is to be in the best five and to put themselves in a position to be in that grouping. Having flexibility can get them in that grouping at some point.
Austin Siereveld has good quicks and twitch. He plays with power. His brainpower matters a lot too. He has a good mentality.
Josh Padilla has done a great job of developing into a consistent player. You can see his wrestling background on the field. He has leverage and anchors into the ground. He’s improved his knowledge of the game.
Ian Moore is one of the guys in the mix to be in the top five. There have been some inconsistencies at times — with all of the guys, but he’s also shown flashes. This week he’s started to show some of that needed consistency.