2010 tOSU Defensive Line Discussion

[BB73]

The best news for this group was the return of Cameron Heyward.

 

[Civic06]

I've been saying this since the win from the Rose Bowl. We'll be saying Keith Wells name a lot this season! He and fellow Georgia-ian Heyward will be unstoppable.

 

[Buckeye1]

2010 DL

I hope Keith Wells has a great year. He semed to be a fine young man from reading his recruiting thread.

 

[Buckeye86]

Way Too Early Look: 2010 Defensive Line from The Buckeye Battle Cry.

 

[MililaniBuckeye]

Way Too Early Look: 2010 Defensive Line from The Buckeye Battle Cry.

Pretty decent article. I think the starting four has the potential to be, by the end of the season, better overall than last year's starting four. The backup depth obviously won't be as experienced, but they'll get enough playing time to make serious improvement. Our DL will again be among the country's elite...

 

[Buckskin86]

Position of the Day: Defensive Line

Two senior members of the defensive line - Cameron Heyward and Dexter Larimore - met with the media on the practice fields after the first session. Also addressing the media were defensive line coach/defensive coordinator Jim Heacock and coach Jim Tressel.

The two D-linemen will be key members of a defensive line that loses five off the unit from last year, with starters Thaddeus Gibson and Doug Worthington - 18.0 tackles-for-loss and six sacks between them - and part-time starter Todd Denlinger (4.0 and 2.0, respectively) the most significant losses to overcome.

Heyward, who led all defensive linemen with 46 tackles last year, including 10.0 TFLs and 6.5 sacks, was asked whether he would like to be a team captain this year.

"That's a goal," Heyward said. "I want to be a captain but if it doesn't work out it doesn't work out. We have lots of leadership on this team with guys like Rolle (Brian) and Ross (Homan), and on the offensive side people like Terrelle (Pryor), DeVier (Posey), Dane (Sanzenbacher)...we just have lots of leadership."

The Returnees Asked whether Ohio State had a better chance to win a national championship because he returned for his senior season, Heyward said "lots of guys came back who had a chance to go out...Ross, Chimdi...it wasn't just me.

"Enjoy It" Along the subject of turning pro early, Heyward was asked about the situation that Buckeye hoopster Evan Turner, a potential Top 3 NBA draft pick, is in:

"Enjoy it," Heyward said. "He should do whatever makes him happy. He is in a Blessed situation. I want to be like him."

Larimore, whose most important statistic outside his 20 tackles last season is two - the number of offensive linemen it typically takes to block him - was excused from practice about five minutes before the end because of a class. He talked about the leadership on the defensive line.

"The biggest thing [during spring ball] is leadership," Larimore said. "We've got to bring the younger guys up. We can't replace the guys we lost in terms of leadership because most were seniors, but we can bring the younger guys up through knowledge and in time they can replace them in terms of talent."

Both Praised Heyward and Larimore were each complimented by Heacock. "Cam has done a good job playing and working hard," Heacock said. "Now he has to step up and be a leader. Coach Tressel expects that.

"And Dexter, too. Dexter Larimore has done a good job being a leader for us [through the offseason]."

D-Line Needs According to Heacock, the upperclassmen "need to step up and be dominant players and the back-ups need to step up and be quality players for us."

After Thaddeus Heacock said Nathan Williams (8.0 TFLs; 3.5 sacks in 2009) and Solomon Thomas know Gibson's position is open and "both are competing hard for that spot."

Younger players along the defensive line whom Heacock expects will step up this year include John Simon, who played in all 13 games last year as a true freshman and had 16 tackles and four TFLs, Adam Bellamy and Garrett Goebel.

Spring Practice Notes Version 1 ? April 1 - The Ohio State Buckeyes Official Athletics Site - OhioStateBuckeyes.com

 

[billmac91]

...really think Solomon Thomas is going to have an eye-opening year on the D-line. Think he'll be a third down rush end, and Heyward will slide down to DT next to Simon with Williams and Thomas as rush ends. Larimore will sub out in passing situations.

 

[k2onprimetime]

i think putting Heyward at DT would be the smart thing to do, that way you have a solid rotation between him, Simon, dex, and Goebel, and maybe other players. And that way we can play young players like Wells, Fellows and Thomas get more playing time at end

 

[Buckskin86]

Looking for depth at DT. As I mentioned in my other post, Connor Smith was back at offensive line today. Instead it was Evan Blankenship getting the chance to try on the defensive line for size. The junior offensive lineman got a few reps on the third team defense and spent the day with Jim Heacock and the d-line. This tells me it's about more than just trying to find a place for Connor Smith. Although neither Smith nor Blankenship is EVER going to play on the o-line, it's clear the Buckeyes would clearly like to find a little more depth at the nose tackle position, at least until Jonathan Hankins arrives.

The-Ozone, Ohio State Football, Wrestling, Softball, Basketball, Hockey, Baseball and More

 

[Buckskin86]

Ohio State football: D-line depth to be tested
Buckeyes looking for younger players to help fill void
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
By Ken Gordon
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Cameron Heyward is getting ready.

The Ohio State defensive lineman has been a starter for three years. Last season, he emerged as a force, with 10 tackles for loss and a team-leading 6 sacks.

But he might never be needed more than he will be this fall.

A big part of the defensive line's effectiveness last year was its depth. The Buckeyes used nine players regularly, sometimes using all nine by the end of the first quarter.

"That's a big thing, especially on the D-line, is keeping guys fresh," defensive tackle Dexter Larimore said. "Being able to keep guys coming at you and coming at you, and having no letup."

So as good as he is, in 2009, Heyward was routinely taken off the field. He participated in just 60 percent of the potential minutes (223 of 371).

This year, OSU might not have that luxury.

The Buckeyes lost two starters off the line in senior Doug Worthington and junior Thaddeus Gibson, who gave up his senior season to enter the NFL draft.

Almost as important, though, are the three senior backups who are gone - Todd Denlinger, Lawrence Wilson and Rob Rose. All three played in more than 40 career games.

That trio last year contributed 281 minutes and 49 tackles, including 10 for loss and six sacks.

"We've taken a lot of production out of that defensive line, now who's going to step up?" defensive coordinator Jim Heacock said.

Ohio State football: D-line depth to be tested | BuckeyeXtra

Coming and going
Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Ohio State must replace five players off its 2009 defensive line, which helped the Buckeyes finish fifth nationally in scoring defense (12.5 points per game) and total defense (262.3 yards per game):

GONE: Thaddeus Gibson - 13 games (all starts), 261 minutes Doug Worthington - 13 games (all starts), 218 minutes Lawrence Wilson - 13 games (1 start), 108 minutes Todd Denlinger - 13 games (7 starts), 103 minutes Rob Rose - 11 games, 70 minutes

RETURNING: Cameron Heyward - 13 games (12 starts), 223 minutes Nathan Williams - 13 games (1 start), 140 minutes John Simon - 13 games, 114 minutes Dexter Larimore - 9 games (5 starts), 76 minutes Garrett Goebel - 13 games, 38 minutes Solomon Thomas - 8 games, 27 minutes

http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/sports/stories/2010/04/13/0413-coming-and-going.html?sid=101

 

[Buckskin86]

New look on the defensive line. The Buckeyes showed a lot more nickel package on defense today and when they did, they often went with a first-team defensive line that featured Heyward and John Simon at defensive tackle and Nathan Williams and Solomon Thomas at defensive end. This is similar to some looks they showed last season where Heyward moved inside to accommodate Gibson and Williams as the two ends. The second-team defensive line went Thomas and Melvin Fellows on the outside with Garrett Goebel and Keith Wells inside.

The-Ozone, Ohio State Football, Wrestling, Softball, Basketball, Hockey, Baseball and More

 

[Buckskin86]

Defensive Line Dominates

Watching the defensive line dominate the line of scrimmage should not come as a surprise to anyone who watched this team last season. The Buckeyes consistently controlled the line with their deep, talented defensive line in 2009, but a number of key players are gone from that unit.

While the Buckeyes return four starters on the offensive line, they lost Thad Gibson, Doug Worthington, Todd Denlinger, Lawrence Wilson and Rob Rose from their defensive front. That didn?t stop them from having their way with all three of the offensive lines today. Along with Simon, who had a number of tackles in the backfield to go with a pair of knockdowns and a touchdown, Cameron Heyward also had a big day for the first-team defense. He was constantly in the offensive backfield and made life miserable on Pryor and Joe Bauserman during his two series with the ones.

?Those guys are amazing,? linebacker Brian Rolle said of the defensive line.

?It?s hard to even explain how those guys play. They have a different level of play than I?ve seen in a while.?

It wasn?t just the first group. Defensive tackle Garrett Goebel made a handful of nice plays for the second-team defense while defensive ends Solomon Thomas and Melvin Fellows were just paying guys out. Both had a pair of sacks that drove Bauserman and Kenny Guiton hard into the turf.

The-Ozone, Ohio State Football, Wrestling, Softball, Basketball, Hockey, Baseball and More

 

[Buckskin86]

Defensive line still loaded. Considering the last three points have been about different defensive linemen, it?s safe to say the Buckeyes should be loaded at the position again in 2010. They may not have the depth of experience they had last year when they had three seniors (Lawrence Wilson, Rob Rose and Todd Denlinger) coming off the bench, but this group is stacked with young talent. Along with Simon, Fellows and Heyward, Solomon Thomas, Garrett Goebel and Nathan Williams also had standout days Saturday. That says nothing of nose tackle Dexter Larimore, who typically goes unnoticed because, well, he?s a nose tackle. Even when he?s out there drawing two blockers, the glory goes to whatever linebacker comes in behind him to make a play.

The-Ozone, Ohio State Football, Wrestling, Softball, Basketball, Hockey, Baseball and More

 

[journeyman]

Oh, to be true... From the O-Zone
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By BCast on 15:18:22 04/23/10
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Defensive coordinator Jim Heacock was addressing a bunch of coaches from Ohio State's coaching clinic at today's practice and had this to say about the 2010 defensive line:

"Those of you who follow us know we had a great defensive line last year. We lost 4 or 5 guys, but I want to go on the record and say that this (pointing to his current group) will be the best defensive line to ever play at Ohio State."

Take it for what it's worth, but Heacock doesn't usually blow hot air for no reason.



O-Zone: Bold Prediction from Jim Heacock at Today's Practice

 

[FerrariEnzo]

^I will take that announcement as opposed to anything to the contrary. I honestly think D-Line is my favorite position, especially in college football... a solid group just demoralizes an opposing offense in a way that is just awesome. This years D-Liners motto: "Shock and Awe".