Bucks' stoppers
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Posted: October 11, 2006
Tom Dienhart
Meet Jim Laurinaitis.
Go ahead, shake his hand. You need to know the name and his game. Here's why: Laurinaitis, a sophomore middle linebacker, is the heart of an Ohio State defense that is better -- much better -- than anyone dreamed it would be.
"He's a special player," Texas offensive coordinator Greg Davis says. "Lauri ... . How do you say his name again?"
It's Lore-in-EYE-tis. It rhymes with -- well, it doesn't really rhyme with anything. But it rolls off your tongue once you've mastered the pronunciation. Here, try it again: Lore-in-EYE-tis.
Ah, forget it. Just look for No. 33 the next time Ohio State plays. He's a 6-3, 244-pound focus of fury, the kind of player grizzled coaches say "plays like his hair is on fire."
Perfect.
Funny, isn't it? Most were forecasting imperfection for the defense in the preseason. Back in August, the skinny on the Buckeyes went something like this: "The offense is going to have to be as great as everyone thinks to cover for an iffy defense." A Lamborghini with a four-cylinder engine. More to the point: Tackle Quinn Pitcock and cornerback Malcolm Jenkins had star power, but Ohio State was replacing nine starters, including a group of linebackers that featured first-round draft picks A.J. Hawk and Bobby Carpenter.
But look at Ohio State now, towing a 6-0 record, a No. 1 ranking and a head of steam that has the Buckeyes on track for their second national championship in five years.
"When we looked at the Ohio State film, I was hoping we might see some weaknesses with all the great players who left," Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz says. "I don't mind telling you that I was a little skeptical over the summer when I kept hearing that everyone was picking Ohio State to be at the top of the heap in the country.
"It's amazing. For the quote, unquote inexperience on the defensive side, those guys are playing super football."
Through six games, Ohio State's defense has morphed from suspect to super. The numbers don't lie. The Buckeyes lead the Big Ten and rank first in the nation in scoring defense (9.3 ppg), the only defensive stat that matters. Ohio State's numbers figure to improve over the next five games, which we'll unkindly dub speed bumps, until a season-ending visit from Michigan.
"This is a different team than last year," Ohio State defensive coordinator Jim Heacock says. "We are getting the feel of what works and what doesn't work with this group. We have a comfortable front four and continue to make progress and play better each week."
Still skeptical? Well, remember this: Few -- if any -- teams have played two tougher road games than the Buckeyes, who have ventured to Texas and Iowa and won. But the Texas game served as the punch-in-the-face attention grabber for the Ohio State defense and Laurinaitis, who recorded 13 tackles, two forced fumbles and an interception.
A rehab project? Ridiculous.
"They are a carbon copy of last year," says Northern Illinois offensive coordinator John Bond, who got the first crack at Ohio State's defense this season.
"We had some success with screens into some of their zone pressures, but that was about all we did that worked consistently well. They swarm to the ball. They gang tackle."
And they're deep despite losing all of those starters, including six NFL draft picks -- safeties Donte Whitner and Nate Salley, linebacker Anthony Schlegel and cornerback Ashton Youboty, in addition to Hawk and Carpenter.
"It's interesting to have as many guys rotating on defense as we do," Laurinaitis says. "It also is comforting. Any time a team has a lot of depth, it fires up competition and makes everyone step it up in practice. But we have a lot of work to do to eliminate big plays and increase our confidence."
Another key to Ohio State's defensive prowess: The Buckeyes haven't plugged freshmen into many starting roles. Check out the line, which starts three seniors and a sophomore. That veteran savvy, led by Pitcock, has created a disruptive push that has buffered the most youthful aspect of the defense: the secondary.
No doubt: If you're looking for a weakness, stop here. Ohio State starts a redshirt freshman. And another starter (Anderson Russell) has been lost for the season because of a knee injury, which further muddles the picture. The Buckeyes have minimized their use of risky coverages because of the youth and are playing lots of zone. Ohio State has yielded a few big plays -- too many for Heacock's liking -- but this still is an aggressive, attacking defense. It just has to be more judicious than it was last season when it comes to punching the pedal.
And then there are the linebackers. The famed Hawk-Carpenter-Schlegel trio has been replaced by sophomore Marcus Freeman, fifth-year senior John Kerr and Laurinaitis, the team's leader in tackles and interceptions.
Laurinaitis is an animal. Well, not really, but he is the son of The Animal, who was half of the famed tag team pro wrestler duo known as the Road Warriors and later as the Legion of Doom. Come crying to Daddy with a skinned knee in this family and you'll likely get a folding chair across the back. So, given those bloodlines, it's no wonder Laurinaitis is doing what he's doing.
"He's smart," Ohio State coach Jim Tressel says. "He studies it. And he's committed physically. He's very instinctive, and I think he'll do nothing but keep getting better."
Just like the Ohio State defense.
Tom Dienhart is an associate editor for Sporting News. E-mail him at
[email protected].
