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DE Jaylahn (JT) Tuimoloau (Owner, Giant Erector Set, All B1G)

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247sports.com

What the return of J.T. Tuimoloau means for Ohio State

The Buckeyes get another top defensive end back in 2024.
247sports.com 247sports.com

What the return of J.T. Tuimoloau means for Ohio State​

The Buckeyes get another top defensive end back in 2024.​

When J.T. Tuimoloau committed to Ohio State on July 4, 2021, he likely wasn't thinking about where he'd be three and a half years from that moment. If the thought did cross his mind, the vision likely involved leaving the Buckeyes with a bang and heading to the NFL. But things don't always go according to plan... or at least not exactly how you plan them.
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If Tuimoloau had elected to leave for the NFL, the memories would quickly turn to his performance at Penn State in 2022 when he recorded six total tackles, three tackles for a loss, two sacks, two interceptions, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and scored a touchdown. It was the kind of performance that can't be matched but sets the bar. And while Tuimoloau had other impactful moments, they didn't always show up on the stat sheet. Ohio State doesn't win at Notre Dame this season without two late big plays, for instance.

This is not to downplay the importance of Tuimoloau's return. He remains one of the few defensive linemen in college football who can take over a game on his own. His rare combination of size and athleticism allows him to do things that most defenders cannot, not to mention most defensive linemen. While Tuimoloau is never going to be a pure pass rusher in the mold of the Bosa brothers or Chase Young, he still has 83 total tackles, 22 tackles for a loss and 12 sacks and has been named first-team All-Big Ten twice in three seasons with the Buckeyes. Tuimoloau will hope to cap his college career with his best season in 2024.
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Regardless of how Johnson elects to divide up the snaps, Tuimoloau's return is important for a defense that was one of the best in the country in 2024 and has nearly all of its pieces coming back next season. As a senior, Tuimoloau can continue to improve, giving the Buckeyes another experienced player back who at his best can wreck games and even when he isn't at his peak is still a concern for opposing offensive lines and a threat to make a play. Pairing him with Sawyer, who played his best football at the end of the year, Curry and Jackson should lead to more production from the Scarlet and Gray's edge rushers.
 
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www.landgrantholyland.com

J.T. Tuimoloau enters final season still looking to write his Ohio State legacy

After arriving with high expectations, the defensive end has one season left to leave his mark on the OSU football program.
www.landgrantholyland.com www.landgrantholyland.com

J.T. Tuimoloau enters final season still looking to write his Ohio State legacy​

After arriving with high expectations, the defensive end has one season left to leave his mark on the OSU football program.

There’s no doubt Ohio State defensive end J.T. Tuimoloau arrived on campus with high expectations. After all, he was Ohio State’s highest-rated defensive prospect since the turn of the century — the No. 1 overall recruit according to 247Sports.com.

A freak athlete and multi-sport star, Tuimoloau had basketball scholarship offers as well as football when he came out of Eastside Catholic School in Sammamish, Washington, after helping lead his school to back-to-back 3A state titles in 2018 and 2019.

As we approach his senior season in Columbus, Tuimoloau has performed well, but it’s safe to say he has not met some of the lofty expectations set by his recruiting rankings. Ohio State fans had been used to seeing the Bosa brothers and Chase Young get after the quarterback. Many of them assumed Tuimoloau would be the next monster OSU defensive end, and potentially better than those who came before him.

It hasn’t turned out that way so far, but Tuimoloau has had some special games. Few Buckeye fans will forget his mammoth performance at No. 7 Penn State in 2022, when he exploded for three tackles for loss, two sacks, two interceptions, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery, and six total tackles, leading Ohio State to a 44-31 victory in Happy Valley.

Now he has one more opportunity to play more consistently and leave behind a lasting and special legacy at Ohio State.

Tuimoloau was a late commit to the Buckeyes, becoming the final member of the Buckeyes’ 2021 class when he gave his commitment on the Fourth of July that year. As a result, Tuimoloau was not an early enrollee and arrived in preseason camp having to play catch-up in learning the system and simply how to be a college football player instead of a high school star.

Still, as a true freshman, Tuimoloau played in 13 games, tallying 17 tackles (eight solo), 4.5 tackles for loss (for a total of 30 yards), 2.5 sacks, a quarterback hurry, and a pass breakup. It wasn’t the explosive start to his career that many fans expected, but it was a solid start.

Tuimoloau played in 13 games his sophomore season and nearly doubled his tackles, registering 28 (17 solo). He finished with 11 tackles for loss (netting 41 yards for the Buckeye defense), four sacks, the two interceptions against Penn State (one of which went for a touchdown), four quarterback hurries, four pass breakups, and a forced fumble. His season was good enough to make him a first-team All-Big Ten selection by the media.

It appeared Tuimoloau was poised to break out in 2023. However, he had a bit of a slow start to the season. In Ohio State’s first three games of last season, Tuimoloau totaled just seven tackles (three solo — all against Indiana in the season opener), 0.5 tackles for loss, no sacks, and just one quarterback hurry.

Tuimoloau seemed to jump-start his season on the road against No. 14 Notre Dame. He posted six tackles (three solo), half a tackle for loss, and a pass breakup. Although he didn’t record a sack, he did so in the next three games, netting 1.5 against both Maryland and Purdue and adding another against Penn State. He notched seven tackles, five TFLs, four sacks, two quarterback hurries, and a pass breakup over those three games.

The rest of Tuimoloau’s season was rather pedestrian — at least statistically. Only three of his 18 tackles over the final six games were solo stops, although he had a big game against Rutgers, recording seven total tackles. He only registered one sack, two TFLs, and three quarterback hurries over the Buckeyes’ final half dozen games of 2023.
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Just sayin': JT Tuimoloau just needs to put up 2022 Penn State numbers every game.......:nod:
 
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ScriptOhio said:
Few Buckeye fans will forget his mammoth performance at No. 7 Penn State in 2022, when he exploded for three tackles for loss, two sacks, two interceptions, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery, and six total tackles, leading Ohio State to a 44-31 victory in Happy Valley.
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Never in my life will I forget this
 
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BuckeyeNation27 said:
Never in my life will I forget this
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It's not hyperbolic to say that's the best defensive performance I've ever seen at OSU in my lifetime. Maybe JL against Texas sticks out in my mind, but the absolute dominance of JT in that game was unreal.

But for all the great flashes he's shown, I think even JT knows he needs to be more consistent to be in the rarified air of Bosas/Young/etc., and I think that's a big reason he came back. Happy he's on our side for sure, I'm excited for his senior year and hopefully he earns himself a bigger pay day with one more year.
 
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RB07OSU said:
It's not hyperbolic to say that's the best defensive performance I've ever seen at OSU in my lifetime. Maybe JL against Texas sticks out in my mind, but the absolute dominance of JT in that game was unreal.

But for all the great flashes he's shown, I think even JT knows he needs to be more consistent to be in the rarified air of Bosas/Young/etc., and I think that's a big reason he came back. Happy he's on our side for sure, I'm excited for his senior year and hopefully he earns himself a bigger pay day with one more year.
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Bosa before he was kicked out versus Notre Dame was up there too.
 
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