• Follow us on Twitter @buckeyeplanet and @bp_recruiting, like us on Facebook! Enjoy a post or article, recommend it to others! BP is only as strong as its community, and we only promote by word of mouth, so share away!
  • Consider registering! Fewer and higher quality ads, no emails you don't want, access to all the forums, download game torrents, private messages, polls, Sportsbook, etc. Even if you just want to lurk, there are a lot of good reasons to register!

DB Jayden Bonsu (Official Thread)

Jump to latest Follow Reply
Sort by date Sort by votes
ghostbusters-better-late-than-never.gif
 
Upvote 0


IMMEDIATE IMPACT​

With Ohio State's depth chart at safety loaded with the likes of Josh Proctor, Lathan Ransom, Ja'Had Carter, Sonny Styles, Cameron Martinez and Kourt Williams, among others, Bonsu will have plenty of time to learn Knowles' defense and fine-tune his game before he gets significant playing time.

While he has already shown at the high school level he can play all three safety positions, he’s likely to need some time develop at the collegiate level before Ohio State trusts him to play on the back end with the game on the line.

LONG-TERM IMPACT​

With Proctor entering his final year of eligibility and Ransom a candidate to enter the 2024 NFL draft, Bonsu should have a chance to compete for a spot on the two-deep next year.

There’s also a chance that Bonsu, who is already 6-foot-1 and 210 pounds, could eventually move to linebacker. But he may be valuable as a versatile safety who can also move down and play in the box situationally, much like how Ohio State plans to use Styles this year.

“He played multiple spots last year, which I usually never ask a transfer to do,” St. Peter’s coach Rich Hansen told Eleven Warriors. “I usually ask them to master one thing before we ask them to do something else. He was able to really play all three safety spots, both high safety spots and the nickel spot.

“He’s big and physical, but he can still run really well. Everybody is looking for those guys that kind of have the best of both worlds in terms of length and physicality but still have those unique types of skill sets.”

Hansen believes Bonsu is capable of making the transition to linebacker if Ohio State eventually decides to move him there, though.

“He definitely does have a skill set to do both,” Hansen said. “He did play a lot of nickel snaps last year and a lot of snaps really close to the box. So there’s no doubt in my mind that he could do that. But a lot of safeties are used in those types of roles, so I’m not sure if it’s a matter of what position he plays primarily or solely. It’s just a skill set to do multiple things.”

Bonsu has said he has the "most fun" playing nickel, but he wouldn't mind playing any position in the defensive backfield.

“(Perry Eliano) told me how he sees me fitting in the scheme and how my character fits Ohio State,” Bonsu said. “He told me I’m a versatile player just in general. He feels like I can play any of the safety positions."

A potential future for Ohio State could see Bonsu playing nickel safety with Styles at strong safety and Malik Hartford or Kye Stokes at free safety, which would give Knowles and the defensive coaching staff plenty of opportunities to move things around in the defensive backfield given all of their versatility and athleticism.
 
Upvote 0
Captain Buckeye said:
Geez lol... imagine this kid at 210, Sonny at 230 and like Stokes around 200 next year lol

Some big dudes at safety.
Click to expand...
Absolutely. Bonsu was a guy that I think was low key a prospect and didn't get the ranking or attention he deserved as a prospect. I don't see him playing this year in a regular role, but in 2024 I could see him blowing it up.
 
Upvote 0
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top