DE C.J. Hicks (National Champion)
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- Buckeye Football
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C.J. Hicks Confident He Can Flourish in New Role Coming Off the Edge
C.J. Hicks believes playing on the edge will be a much better fit for his game and says he’s practicing with a strong sense of urgency as he looks to finally break out in his senior year.
C.J. Hicks Confident He Can Flourish in New Role Coming Off the Edge
C.J. Hicks believes he’s finally playing the role that best suits his game.
For the past three years, Hicks has struggled to earn a consistent role in Ohio State’s defense while playing as an off-ball linebacker. Going into his senior season, Hicks is now a defensive end, and the five-star recruit from the 2022 class is confident about what he can do at his new position.
“I feel like the change to edge fits my play style a lot more. It allows me to be more aggressive. And when it's time to get to the quarterback, I’m gonna get to the quarterback,” Hicks said Tuesday.
Hicks believes his explosiveness off the snap will enable him to be a dynamic edge rusher, and he says his power is something people shouldn’t underestimate either.
“A lot of people think because of the fact that I am 240, I don't have any power, but I can definitely run through somebody's face if I need to,” said Hicks, who plans to bulk up to 245 pounds by the start of the season.
Although linebacker remained his primary position last season, when he played 149 snaps as Ohio State’s No. 4 LB behind Sonny Styles, Cody Simon and Arvell Reese, Hicks has been preparing for a potential move to the edge since last year. With Jack Sawyer and JT Tuimoloau concluding their Ohio State careers last season, the plan as of December was for former defensive coordinator Jim Knowles to reintegrate the Jack position into his defense this year, with Hicks playing that role.
While Knowles left in January to become Penn State’s defensive coordinator, the plan to move Hicks to the edge remains in full swing under new defensive coordinator Matt Patricia, who’s excited about Hicks’ potential to play a hybrid outside linebacker/defensive end role in Ohio State’s defense.
“Skill set-wise, he's really unique,” Patricia said Monday. “He can play off the ball, he can play on the ball, he does a good job of transitioning his vision. Sometimes when you go behind the line of scrimmage, you gotta adjust your vision, but he does that very well. And then just, I would say, his explosive power. When you watch him, obviously pass rush and he can have some great skill pass-rushing on the edge, but even in the run game, just that explosive pop that he can have.
“Some of the other type of like hybrid outside linebacker/defensive ends that I've coached in the past, similar type of skill sets, similar type of body frame, things like that. And that's good, ‘cause you can use them in unique ways and in different ways and hopefully cause the offense a little bit of confusion when you do that with those guys.”
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