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Fresh Off Earning Iron Buckeye Honors, Payton Pierce Has Developed Into a Starting-Caliber Linebacker at Ohio State
James Laurinaitis views Payton Pierce as a starter for Ohio State and the Texas resident says his friends have been sending him “a lot of Horns Down emojis lately.”
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calibuck
Too soon old, too late smart
Well, once more, a former NFL Buckeye is coaching at his alma mater, and appears to be doing a great job of it, imparting his knowledge to his players/students. PS, on the B10 preview last night, it appeared to me that Brian Hartline was definitely more ripped than Laurinaitis. Was I fooled, or did anyone else note that as well?
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ScriptOhio
Everybody is somebody else's weirdo.
Fresh Off Earning Iron Buckeye Honors, Payton Pierce Has Developed Into a Starting-Caliber Linebacker at Ohio State
James Laurinaitis views Payton Pierce as a starter for Ohio State and the Texas resident says his friends have been sending him “a lot of Horns Down emojis lately.”www.elevenwarriors.com
In James Laurinaitis’ mind, Ohio State has three starters at linebacker.
The first two are fairly obvious to OSU fans, with Sonny Styles emerging as the leader of the defense and Arvell Reese carving out a large role for himself by the time 2024 ended. But Laurinaitis holds Payton Pierce in equal esteem with the other two and says he’ll count on all three to play consistent reps this fall.
“I think just having those three, you’re able to throw them in at any time to keep them fresh as the game goes on,” Laurinaitis said Wednesday. “Coach Matt Patricia (has told me), ‘You’re in charge of the rotation and to let it roll.”
“It meant a lot, I feel like it was one of my biggest accomplishments in my life up to now,” Pierce said. “I think the goal one day is to be a captain here. But I feel like being an Iron Buckeye, having a big offseason and getting bigger and stronger, I think it just meant a lot because our teammates vote on it too. Just knowing that every day when we do those one-on-one competitions and leading guys, people are noticing that I was giving everything I had. So it meant a lot to have coach Mick and all of them choose me to be an Iron Buckeye.”
“I mean, I just started off with competing with (Sonny and Arvell),” Pierce said. “I feel like I've made a statement on who I am and how I fit this defense. And I'm just trying to build off that and keep playing. And my goal is to be better than the other two guys and not let any of the younger guys be better than me. And their goal is the exact same thing. And it just builds competition.”
“I feel like I'm pretty confident in the box,” Pierce said. “And I feel like it kind of lets (Reese and Styles) open up and do whatever they wanna do. And this fall camp, I've gotten to do a lot of different things. And we're all playing different spots and stuff. I'm just real excited for this season.”
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“He has this tough-guy leadership qualities that's similar to Tommy (Eichenberg),” Laurinaitis said. “And it's just like, you know when that ball is run between the tackles that he's going to go down there and you'd be surprised if he got through a practice without chips off of his face mask, you know? And obviously that's the way that I think the LB position should be played.”
Just sayin': WOW, it looks like he has really "stepped up".
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ScriptOhio
Everybody is somebody else's weirdo.
Payton Pierce Said He Talked to Matt Patricia More in First Two Days Than He Talked to Jim Knowles In An Entire Year
Ohio State linebacker Payton Pierce said he talked more with new defensive coordinator Matt Patricia in his first two days at OSU than he spoke with Jim Knowles in an entire year.
Payton Pierce Said He Talked to Matt Patricia More in First Two Days Than He Talked to Jim Knowles In An Entire Year
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Pierce said the strong relationships he and his teammates have with Patricia has played a key role in their success so far this season.
“It makes you trust that he wants what's best for you and wants what's best for everyone else,” Pierce said. “We can just go have fun and play fast and play free and love each other. A lot of people talk about the process; he said it's not even about the process, it's about the company and who you do it with, and he truly means that. And we're living that every single day.”
Pierce wasn’t the only Buckeye who praised Patricia on Wednesday. Defensive end Beau Atkinson, who never played for Knowles as he transferred from North Carolina to Ohio State this offseason, said he loves playing for Patricia.
“He's an awesome, super, super obviously smart guy. But there's just lots of little details that a lot of people probably overlook that he's able to focus on. And then obviously schematically, he's a genius and everything,” Atkinson said.
Cornerback Aaron Scott Jr., a sophomore like Pierce, hinted at the stronger relationships the Buckeyes have with Patricia than Knowles last week. After seemingly stopping himself from commenting specifically on Knowles, who’s now the defensive coordinator at Penn State, Scott said Patricia had made a huge difference in helping him become more comfortable in Ohio State’s defense this season.
“Well, last year – hold on, I don’t want to say too much – but when we got a new DC, it started clicking more,” Scott said. “I got to spend more time with him, and just getting more time with Coach Patricia, he's a real player-type guy. So whenever I needed help, I could just go in and talk to him and we had a good (rapport), so I feel like he's made it way more easier for me.”
Nine months into his Ohio State tenure, it’s clear Patricia is loved by Ohio State’s defensive players and is allowing them to play at their best. The Buckeyes’ defense has been the best in the country so far this season as a result, though Ryan Day doesn’t want them to become satisfied with their early success.
“Nobody's gonna probably really remember much about the first five games we played, but they're gonna remember the rest of them. So we gotta keep getting better every day,” Day said Wednesday when asked about Ohio State’s defense being the best in the country. “And what'll matter in the end is who's the best defense at the end of the year, not right now.”
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