JD PicKell reveals overall expectations for Ohio State football in 2022

For the past decade, Ohio State has entered each college football season as a championship contender, and 2022 is no different. The Buckeyes have been ranked among the top six teams in each preseason AP poll for the past nine years and are likely to make it 10 when this year’s version is released.

Thanks to returning an offensive core of quarterback CJ Stroud, receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba and running back TreVeyon Henderson, many believe Ohio State can make it to its fifth College Football Playoff this season. That includes On3’s J.D. PicKell, who forecasted what to expect from the Buckeyes in a recent video.

“For Ohio State, if they can correct that defense, you know my feelings about the Buckeyes,” PicKell said. “I think they have this thing teed up to have a huge, huge season. It’s gonna be a big fall down there in Columbus.”

As PicKell alluded to, defense is the biggest question mark heading into the season for Ohio State. Despite their offense leading the nation this past year, the Buckeyes finished just ninth in the Big Ten and 59th among FBS schools in total defense. They dropped their final game of the regular season to Michigan, allowing 42 points and missing the Big Ten Championship and CFP as a result.

Ohio State brought in a new defensive coordinator this offseason in Jim Knowles with the hope of turning things around. Knowles previously spent four years as the defensive coordinator at Oklahoma State, where he helped the Cowboys to lead the country in sacks this past season. He also got cornerback Tanner McCalister to follow him from Stillwater to Columbus.

With many of the offensive stars from last season back, Ohio State has enough firepower on that end alone to remain one of the nation’s top college football teams in 2022. If the Buckeyes want to be special, however, they’ll need the defense to step up its game.

Ohio State is set to open the 2022 season on Sept. 3 with a big test against Notre Dame.