Spring Recap: Did Buckeyes Find Help For Caleb Downs At Safety?

With spring football now in the rearview mirror for Ohio State, it’s time to look back at what happened with each position group and where things currently stand for the Buckeyes. We start our series with the safeties.

Quick Position Overview

Ohio State returns the best safety in college football in junior Caleb Downs, as well as a pair of backups who have each started a game or two in their respective careers. Redshirt freshman Leroy Roker is making some noise. Three true freshmen will add to the depth chart, while fifth-year senior Lorenzo Styles, Jr. will look to fend off an underclassman or two as the Buckeyes’ nickel back.

Expectations Going In

The expectations going in were that Caleb Downs would have a relaxing spring while everybody else tried to get as much out of these 15 practices as possible. The other expectation was that junior Malik Hartford and sophomore Jaylen McClain would be competing for the open safety spot, but also that they’d be playing alongside each other for much of spring. Redshirt freshman Bryce West was expected to push Lorenzo Styles, Jr. at nickel.

Reality Coming Out

The reality coming out was that the deep safeties worked at both strong and free safety. The goal for the coaches was to see what the players could and couldn’t do and to put them in as many difficult situations as they could so that they could see what they can handle. That position fluidity may not continue this season, but because of the youth and the turnover, the coaches needed as much information as they could get from the players on hand.

Any Surprises?

Malik Hartford spending the bulk of the spring with the ones was kind of a surprise considering the amount of praise Jaylen McClain had been receiving from teammates in the offseason. Seeing Lorenzo Styles, Jr. at corner a few times in the spring game while cornerback Jermaine Mathews played the nickel was interesting. Mathews was at nickel last spring, so that’s not entirely new, but it was interesting to see them mix it up mid-game.

Unanswered Question

What are the Buckeyes going to get out of fourth-year junior Keenan Nelson and true freshmen Deshawn Stewart and Cody Haddad this year? Stewart was banged up this spring. Nelson was also unavailable this spring.

So Now What?

So now Matt Guerrieri and defensive coordinators Matt Patricia and Tim Walton review the film and assess what the safeties did well and where they need work, both schematically and individually. This will better inform the coaches on what the best path forward will be in fall camp. The coaches want to have packages for more than just two starters this season. It is difficult to imagine both Malik Hartford and Jaylen McClain not playing a good number of snaps this season.

One Concern

Fifth-year senior Lorenzo Styles, Jr. had a very good spring as the No. 1 nickel back, but it’s still going to be a tall order replacing the departed Jordan Hancock. Styles was put into a number of different situations to see how comfortable he’d be doing different things. Every time the media saw him this spring, he was up to the challenge.

Tim Walton, Lorenzo Styles Ohio State Buckeyes — Lorenzo Styles, Jr.

Are We Sure?

Are we sure that Caleb Downs is going to play as much strong safety this season as it looked like in the spring? After playing free safety a year ago but also dropping down into the box routinely, Downs’ role this season under a new defensive coordinator is still a little up in the air. He’s going to be around the ball, but when I asked head coach Ryan Day after the first spring practice if we might see Downs more in the boundary, he wasn’t sure. “I don’t know about that,” he said. “I guess there could be a situation for sure. But as you guys can imagine, we want him involved in as many plays as we can.” I say all of that to say that the depth chart listed below is not necessarily to be trusted, mainly because Downs is somewhat positionless in his usage.

Quotable

“Faheem brings a physicality to the game. You saw that if you’ve ever watched his high school film, which I’m sure you have. He brings a physicality to the game. He’s got a ready-made college body. Now the mental side, it’s my job to get him caught up to speed to be able to perform at a high level. But he brings a mentality of seriousness and a physicality to his game.” — Safeties coach Matt Guerrieri on freshman safety Faheem Delane.