OHIO STATE NEEDS JOSH PROCTOR TO TAKE THE NEXT STEP IN HIS DEVELOPMENT AFTER EARNING A STARTING SAFETY JOB LATE LAST SEASON
We all lived it, agonizing over an Ohio State defense that couldn't consistently stop any offense of significance before it all came to a head in a 52-24 thrashing handed out by Nick Saban's Crimson Tide in the national championship game.
Allowing 621 total yards – 464 through the air – and giving up eight scoring drives while forcing just two punts and one turnover was a bit more than usual, yet wasn't entirely shocking based on the unit's body of work to that point.
On the season, the Buckeyes ranked No. 122 out of 127 teams in pass defense (304.0 ypg), No. 59 in total defense (401.6 ypg) and No. 43 in scoring defense (25.8 ppg).
The sharp decline in defensive effectiveness – the 2019 Buckeyes ranked No. 1 in both total defense (259.7 ypg) and pass defense (156.0 ypg) – was fueled by the departures of Jeff Okudah, Damon Arnette and Jordan Fuller in the secondary along with Chase Young, among others, in the front seven.
Last year, with spring drills abruptly canceled due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and an abbreviated fall camp, breaking in replacements proved an insurmountable task for defensive coordinator Kerry Coombs and company.
Despite the carnage, there were a few bright spots signaling a chance of better days ahead. One of those came as safety Josh Proctor, in his third year in the program, emerged as a starter, replacing a struggling Marcus Hooker before the Big Ten Championship Game and continuing in that role versus Clemson and Alabama in the College Football Playoff.
It would be a stretch to say Proctor set the world on fire, but he showed flashes as a playmaker and big-time hitter who often seemed to be around the football. With that came sporadic issues of being out of position due to overpursuit in run support and/or relying too much on raw talent and not staying within his assignment.
Truth be told, the prevailing notion leading into the 2020 season was Proctor would actually start right from the jump after backing up Jordan Fuller the previous season. That wasn't to be, however, as Hooker started the first five games.
Entire article:
https://www.elevenwarriors.com/ohio...t-after-earning-starting-job-late-last-season