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4/19
Rebuilding on the fly
No-name defense the key to Ohio State's title chances
Posted: Wednesday April 19, 2006 12:39PM; Updated: Wednesday April 19, 2006 12:55PM
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</td><td class="cnnImgAdPad" width="300"> <!-- REAP --><!-- PURGE: /2006/writers/stewart_mandel/04/19/ohio.state/t1_kerr_ap.jpg -->
John Kerr (right) and the Buckeyes' D isn't loaded with experience ... but it may be good enough to justify the team's No. 1 ranking.
AP
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<script>if(cnnEnableCL){if(!(location.hostname.indexOf('cnn.com')>-1)) {cnnAddCSI('contextualLinks','/.element/ssi/misc/2.0/contextual/story.html','');}else{ cnnAddCSI('contextualLinks','http://cl.cnn.com/ctxtlink/jsp/si/cl/2.0/si-story.jsp','category=sihome&url=http:/\/robots.cnnsi.com/2006/writers/stewart_mandel/04/19/ohio.state/index.html&desccharcnt=80&site=cnn_si_dyn_ctxt&origin=si');}}</script><iframe src="http://cl.cnn.com/ctxtlink/jsp/si/cl/2.0/si-story.jsp?domId=contextualLinks&time=1145469928031&category=sihome&url=http://robots.cnnsi.com/2006/writers/stewart_mandel/04/19/ohio.state/index.html&desccharcnt=80&site=cnn_si_dyn_ctxt&origin=si" name="iframecontextualLinks" id="iframecontextualLinks" style="position: absolute; visibility: hidden;" align="right" height="0" width="0"></iframe></td></tr></tbody> </table> COLUMBUS, Ohio -- It was a seemingly innocent question, but it managed to throw Ohio State linebacker John Kerr for a loop.
"Which of the new guys on defense have impressed you?"
Standing in the sun outside the Ohio Stadium locker room following practice on Monday, the fifth-year senior froze for a second. "Umm ... you're going to have to forgive me," he said, then turned to sophomore safety Jamario O'Neal milling nearby. "Hey ... what's number 21's name?"
You're forgiven, John. Number 21 is Anderson Russell, a redshirt freshman safety for the Buckeyes. As of now, not too many people outside of Columbus -- and only true diehards there -- would know the name Anderson Russell from Anderson Cooper.
However, Ohio State's chances of winning a national title next season depends, in large part, on Russell, Nick Patterson, Larry Grant and a whole bunch of other unknown names.
With offensive stars such as quarterback Troy Smith, running back Antonio Pittman and receiver Ted Ginn Jr. returning from last year's 10-2 team, the Buckeyes have been mentioned as a potential preseason No. 1 team from the minute they stepped off the field following January's Fiesta Bowl win over Notre Dame. It's a hefty tag to place on a squad that lost nine starters off the nation's fifth-ranked defense, four of whom -- linebackers A.J. Hawk and Bobby Carpenter, cornerback Ashton Youboty and safety Donte Whitner -- could be selected in the first round of the April 29 NFL draft.
Ohio State's situation, however, isn't all that different from fellow 2005 top-five teams USC (which lost offensive stars Matt Leinart, Reggie Bush and LenDale White), Texas (Rose Bowl MVP Vince Young) and Penn State (13 departed starters). As spring practices have progressed and the Buckeyes' rebuilt defense has started taking form, those close to the program have started to believe that the lofty expectations aren't entirely unrealistic.
<table align="right" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="310"> <tbody><tr><td width="10">
</td><td width="300"><!--tablemaker--> <table class="cnnTMbox" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr><td class="cnnIEBoxTitle">Walk-on Suffers Scary Injury</td></tr> <tr> <td class="cnnTMcontent"> <!-- tabled content area --> <table class="cnnTM" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="1" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td class="cnnIEColTxtL" style="border-right: 0px none;">Ohio State's spring camp took a somber turn last Friday when walk-on receiver Tyson Gentry suffered a debilitating, seemingly freakish spinal injury while being tackled after catching a pass over the middle.
Practice was canceled early after the third-year sophomore from Sandusky, Ohio, lay motionless on the field for nearly 20 minutes following a routine hit from behind by freshman cornerback Kurt Coleman.
Gentry was taken to Ohio State's University Medical Center, where he is currently in recovery following two surgeries. As of Tuesday, the school had declined to release the specifics of his condition, but the Columbus Dispatch reported his injury to be a shattered cervical vertebra. The player's father said in a statement that his son was "alert and in good spirits."
Head coach Jim Tressel has visited Gentry in the hospital, but others outside Gentry's family are being discouraged for now due to Gentry's risk of infection following the surgeries.
Buckeyes quarterback Troy Smith said Tuesday he was shaken by the incident. "I watched him come off the ball, cut come across the middle, catch it and fall awkwardly to the turf. It seemed like a routine play," said Smith. "I want to go and visit him so badly, but I can't."</td> </tr> </tbody></table>
<!-- /tabled content area --> </td> </tr> </tbody></table> <!--/tablemaker--> </td></tr></tbody> </table> When asked to describe what they've seen of the defense so far, OSU coaches, players and practice observers mention one word: Fast.
"If we measured height, weight and speed of our defense and lined last year's up to this year's, I don't know that it would be extraordinarily different," said head coach Jim Tressel. "Now, [lack of] game experience -- that's going to be the challenge."
Of the 22 defensive players listed on OSU's pre-spring two-deep, 11 are freshmen and sophomores. Yet when the Buckeyes held their biannual jersey scrimmage -- in which the offense and defense square off for the right to wear OSU's scarlet jerseys in practice -- on April 9, the defensive youngsters forced five turnovers to stun Smith, Ginn and the rest of their star-studded offensive counterparts, 69-68, the defense's first victory in the event in three years.
Perhaps that's why Smith scoffed at the suggestion that he and the offense might have to score more points than usual early in the season while the young defenders get their feet wet. "I'm 100 percent confident [the coaches] will have those guys ready to go by Day 1," he said.
Here is a position-by-position guide to the Buckeyes' new-look defense:
Defensive line
OSU coaches and players were unanimous in their assessment of this unit: "The D-line is going to be the anchor of our defense," said Kerr.
Much of that is due to the fact the line has the most experience, led by the two returning starters, senior tackles Quinn Pitcock and David Patterson (who started at end last season), as well as fifth-year senior Jay Richardson, a likely starter at one of the end spots, and senior backup tackle Joel Penton.
The player generating the most excitement, however, is 6-foot-6 sophomore defensive end Lawrence Wilson, a former all-everything recruit out of Akron who's put on 45 pounds -- going from 225 to 270 -- since his arrival on campus just over a year ago. Those who have seen him in practice expect him to evolve into a dominating presence in the same way as recent Buckeyes standout Will Smith.
Linebackers
In the long line of greats who have played this position for the Buckeyes (Randy Gradishar, Tom Cousineau, Chris Spielman, Andy Katzenmoyer), last year's trio of Hawk, Carpenter and Anthony Schlegel was arguably the greatest collective group in school history. All three are now gone. Yet somehow OSU remains deeper at this position than any other.
The projected starters as of now are middle linebacker Kerr, a former Indiana transfer who had 114 tackles as a freshman in 2002 but has been a backup since arriving in Columbus; strong side linebacker James Laurinaitis, a sophomore who filled in for an injured Carpenter against Michigan and Notre Dame to end last season; and, at weak side, speedy redshirt sophomore Marcus Freeman, who backed up Carpenter in 2004 but missed last season with a knee injury.
Fast on the trio's heels, however, are heralded freshman Ross Homan, an early enrollee who has drawn continual praise from Tressel throughout the spring; highly athletic Larry Grant, the nation's top juco defensive recruit last winter coming out of Community College of San Francisco; hard-hitting junior Curtis Terry, who, like Whitner, Smith, Ginn and O'Neal, hails from Ted Ginn Sr.'s powerhouse Glenville High program in Cleveland; and redshirt freshman Austin Spittler. (Former starter Mike D'Andrea, a fifth-year senior, is still recuperating from a 2004 knee injury.)
"Any one of the seven guys we have right now could start," said linebackers coach Luke Fickell. "All of them are really stepping up."
Defensive backs
This is where things get a little bit dicey. Youboty and Whitner's early exits for the NFL left the Buckeyes with almost no experience in the secondary.
As of now the two cornerback spots will be manned by sophomore Malcolm Jenkins, who started four games late last season, and fifth-year senior Antonio Smith, a former walk-on and surprise performer. Freshman Kurt Coleman, another early enrollee, has turned some heads and could eventually supplant Smith.
The Buckeyes are a little deeper at safety, headlined by sophomores O'Neal, one of the top recruits in the country two years ago, and Nick Patterson, both of whom saw playing time last season. Patterson has supplanted fifth-year senior Brandon Mitchell, while the aforementioned Russell, one of the standout performers of the spring, could be pegged as the nickel back.
"Those are tough positions" for inexperienced players, said Tressel. "Hopefully our experience up front will allow those guys in the back a chance to grow."
More than 40,000 title-hungry Buckeyes fans are expected to show up at the Horseshoe for Saturday's spring game, and while they're surely hoping to see some big plays from Smith, Ginn and heralded freshman tailback Chris Wells, it might be more encouraging if they don't.
As both Tressel and the players acknowledge, however, one can only read so much from practices and scrimmages.
"I think we're going to be fine, but the only way to find out how good we really are is just to play," said Kerr. "As hard as you try, you can't simulate the emotion that goes into [a game] in practice. Do you have a bunch of guys who are gamers? When it comes down to it, are they going to beat up the guy on the other side of the ball? We'll see when we get out there."
In other words, until they strap on the chin straps Sept. 2 against Northern Illinois (and again a week later at defending national-champion Texas) the new names on the OSU defense will remain just that, names -- some of them easier to remember than others.
4/19
Rebuilding on the fly
No-name defense the key to Ohio State's title chances
Posted: Wednesday April 19, 2006 12:39PM; Updated: Wednesday April 19, 2006 12:55PM
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John Kerr (right) and the Buckeyes' D isn't loaded with experience ... but it may be good enough to justify the team's No. 1 ranking.
AP
<!-- /PURGE: /2006/writers/stewart_mandel/04/19/ohio.state/t1_kerr_ap.jpg --><!-- /REAP -->
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</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="cnnCLbox" colspan="2"> <table id="cnnContextualLinks" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr> <td> Score Buckeyes Merchandise at FansedgeFansEdge sells a complete line-up of college fan merchandise. You'll be thrilled by our... www.fansedge.com
Ohio State Buckeyes Memorabilia
Ohio State Buckeyes autographed sports memorabilia. Free shipping and low prices. Every... www.prosportsmemorabilia.com
Buckeyes at Shopping.com
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<script>if(cnnEnableCL){if(!(location.hostname.indexOf('cnn.com')>-1)) {cnnAddCSI('contextualLinks','/.element/ssi/misc/2.0/contextual/story.html','');}else{ cnnAddCSI('contextualLinks','http://cl.cnn.com/ctxtlink/jsp/si/cl/2.0/si-story.jsp','category=sihome&url=http:/\/robots.cnnsi.com/2006/writers/stewart_mandel/04/19/ohio.state/index.html&desccharcnt=80&site=cnn_si_dyn_ctxt&origin=si');}}</script><iframe src="http://cl.cnn.com/ctxtlink/jsp/si/cl/2.0/si-story.jsp?domId=contextualLinks&time=1145469928031&category=sihome&url=http://robots.cnnsi.com/2006/writers/stewart_mandel/04/19/ohio.state/index.html&desccharcnt=80&site=cnn_si_dyn_ctxt&origin=si" name="iframecontextualLinks" id="iframecontextualLinks" style="position: absolute; visibility: hidden;" align="right" height="0" width="0"></iframe></td></tr></tbody> </table> COLUMBUS, Ohio -- It was a seemingly innocent question, but it managed to throw Ohio State linebacker John Kerr for a loop.
"Which of the new guys on defense have impressed you?"
Standing in the sun outside the Ohio Stadium locker room following practice on Monday, the fifth-year senior froze for a second. "Umm ... you're going to have to forgive me," he said, then turned to sophomore safety Jamario O'Neal milling nearby. "Hey ... what's number 21's name?"
You're forgiven, John. Number 21 is Anderson Russell, a redshirt freshman safety for the Buckeyes. As of now, not too many people outside of Columbus -- and only true diehards there -- would know the name Anderson Russell from Anderson Cooper.
However, Ohio State's chances of winning a national title next season depends, in large part, on Russell, Nick Patterson, Larry Grant and a whole bunch of other unknown names.
With offensive stars such as quarterback Troy Smith, running back Antonio Pittman and receiver Ted Ginn Jr. returning from last year's 10-2 team, the Buckeyes have been mentioned as a potential preseason No. 1 team from the minute they stepped off the field following January's Fiesta Bowl win over Notre Dame. It's a hefty tag to place on a squad that lost nine starters off the nation's fifth-ranked defense, four of whom -- linebackers A.J. Hawk and Bobby Carpenter, cornerback Ashton Youboty and safety Donte Whitner -- could be selected in the first round of the April 29 NFL draft.
Ohio State's situation, however, isn't all that different from fellow 2005 top-five teams USC (which lost offensive stars Matt Leinart, Reggie Bush and LenDale White), Texas (Rose Bowl MVP Vince Young) and Penn State (13 departed starters). As spring practices have progressed and the Buckeyes' rebuilt defense has started taking form, those close to the program have started to believe that the lofty expectations aren't entirely unrealistic.
<table align="right" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="310"> <tbody><tr><td width="10">
Practice was canceled early after the third-year sophomore from Sandusky, Ohio, lay motionless on the field for nearly 20 minutes following a routine hit from behind by freshman cornerback Kurt Coleman.
Gentry was taken to Ohio State's University Medical Center, where he is currently in recovery following two surgeries. As of Tuesday, the school had declined to release the specifics of his condition, but the Columbus Dispatch reported his injury to be a shattered cervical vertebra. The player's father said in a statement that his son was "alert and in good spirits."
Head coach Jim Tressel has visited Gentry in the hospital, but others outside Gentry's family are being discouraged for now due to Gentry's risk of infection following the surgeries.
Buckeyes quarterback Troy Smith said Tuesday he was shaken by the incident. "I watched him come off the ball, cut come across the middle, catch it and fall awkwardly to the turf. It seemed like a routine play," said Smith. "I want to go and visit him so badly, but I can't."</td> </tr> </tbody></table>
<!-- /tabled content area --> </td> </tr> </tbody></table> <!--/tablemaker--> </td></tr></tbody> </table> When asked to describe what they've seen of the defense so far, OSU coaches, players and practice observers mention one word: Fast.
"If we measured height, weight and speed of our defense and lined last year's up to this year's, I don't know that it would be extraordinarily different," said head coach Jim Tressel. "Now, [lack of] game experience -- that's going to be the challenge."
Of the 22 defensive players listed on OSU's pre-spring two-deep, 11 are freshmen and sophomores. Yet when the Buckeyes held their biannual jersey scrimmage -- in which the offense and defense square off for the right to wear OSU's scarlet jerseys in practice -- on April 9, the defensive youngsters forced five turnovers to stun Smith, Ginn and the rest of their star-studded offensive counterparts, 69-68, the defense's first victory in the event in three years.
Perhaps that's why Smith scoffed at the suggestion that he and the offense might have to score more points than usual early in the season while the young defenders get their feet wet. "I'm 100 percent confident [the coaches] will have those guys ready to go by Day 1," he said.
Here is a position-by-position guide to the Buckeyes' new-look defense:
Defensive line
OSU coaches and players were unanimous in their assessment of this unit: "The D-line is going to be the anchor of our defense," said Kerr.
Much of that is due to the fact the line has the most experience, led by the two returning starters, senior tackles Quinn Pitcock and David Patterson (who started at end last season), as well as fifth-year senior Jay Richardson, a likely starter at one of the end spots, and senior backup tackle Joel Penton.
The player generating the most excitement, however, is 6-foot-6 sophomore defensive end Lawrence Wilson, a former all-everything recruit out of Akron who's put on 45 pounds -- going from 225 to 270 -- since his arrival on campus just over a year ago. Those who have seen him in practice expect him to evolve into a dominating presence in the same way as recent Buckeyes standout Will Smith.
Linebackers
In the long line of greats who have played this position for the Buckeyes (Randy Gradishar, Tom Cousineau, Chris Spielman, Andy Katzenmoyer), last year's trio of Hawk, Carpenter and Anthony Schlegel was arguably the greatest collective group in school history. All three are now gone. Yet somehow OSU remains deeper at this position than any other.
The projected starters as of now are middle linebacker Kerr, a former Indiana transfer who had 114 tackles as a freshman in 2002 but has been a backup since arriving in Columbus; strong side linebacker James Laurinaitis, a sophomore who filled in for an injured Carpenter against Michigan and Notre Dame to end last season; and, at weak side, speedy redshirt sophomore Marcus Freeman, who backed up Carpenter in 2004 but missed last season with a knee injury.
Fast on the trio's heels, however, are heralded freshman Ross Homan, an early enrollee who has drawn continual praise from Tressel throughout the spring; highly athletic Larry Grant, the nation's top juco defensive recruit last winter coming out of Community College of San Francisco; hard-hitting junior Curtis Terry, who, like Whitner, Smith, Ginn and O'Neal, hails from Ted Ginn Sr.'s powerhouse Glenville High program in Cleveland; and redshirt freshman Austin Spittler. (Former starter Mike D'Andrea, a fifth-year senior, is still recuperating from a 2004 knee injury.)
"Any one of the seven guys we have right now could start," said linebackers coach Luke Fickell. "All of them are really stepping up."
Defensive backs
This is where things get a little bit dicey. Youboty and Whitner's early exits for the NFL left the Buckeyes with almost no experience in the secondary.
As of now the two cornerback spots will be manned by sophomore Malcolm Jenkins, who started four games late last season, and fifth-year senior Antonio Smith, a former walk-on and surprise performer. Freshman Kurt Coleman, another early enrollee, has turned some heads and could eventually supplant Smith.
The Buckeyes are a little deeper at safety, headlined by sophomores O'Neal, one of the top recruits in the country two years ago, and Nick Patterson, both of whom saw playing time last season. Patterson has supplanted fifth-year senior Brandon Mitchell, while the aforementioned Russell, one of the standout performers of the spring, could be pegged as the nickel back.
"Those are tough positions" for inexperienced players, said Tressel. "Hopefully our experience up front will allow those guys in the back a chance to grow."
More than 40,000 title-hungry Buckeyes fans are expected to show up at the Horseshoe for Saturday's spring game, and while they're surely hoping to see some big plays from Smith, Ginn and heralded freshman tailback Chris Wells, it might be more encouraging if they don't.
As both Tressel and the players acknowledge, however, one can only read so much from practices and scrimmages.
"I think we're going to be fine, but the only way to find out how good we really are is just to play," said Kerr. "As hard as you try, you can't simulate the emotion that goes into [a game] in practice. Do you have a bunch of guys who are gamers? When it comes down to it, are they going to beat up the guy on the other side of the ball? We'll see when we get out there."
In other words, until they strap on the chin straps Sept. 2 against Northern Illinois (and again a week later at defending national-champion Texas) the new names on the OSU defense will remain just that, names -- some of them easier to remember than others.
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