Ryan Day impressed with progress made by secondary during spring

As Ryan Day and Ohio State seek to close up the small margins to reclaim the Big Ten East and push for a national championship, there’s optimism about the defense in Year 2 under coordinator Jim Knowles. Day, in particular, has been impressed with the growth in the secondary.

Be it returning players or incoming transfers, the level of play at the cornerback and safety position has been raised, Day said. The Buckeyes were passable as a passing defense in 2022, ranking No. 26 in yards allowed per game, but finishing higher up that list in 2023 would, of course, be welcomed.

“It’s Year 2 in the system, more experience and a couple added pieces, I’ve been encouraged,” Day said.

Ohio State added two potentially key secondary pieces in the transfer portal prior to spring practice: former Ole Miss corner Davison Igbinosun and former Syracuse safety Ja’Had Carter.

Adding those two players — both rated as four-star transfers per On3’s Transfer Portal rankings — has helped raise the level in the cornerback and safety rooms, Day said, along with improvements from returning players.

“Been very impressed with our corners, I think Denzel [Burke] is playing football right now, I’m just impressed with his offseason. Impressed with his approach every day. Got his hands on a lot of balls. Had a huge interception in the two-minute drill the other day. Jordan Hancock has, now with a full offseason, and now that he’s healthy, you’re starting to see his potential pop. He came off of that really bad hamstring injury and never was quite himself last year. He’s somebody that we’ve got a lot of excitement around. And then Davison has been a great addition. It’s been great to see him out there and compete. I think he’s raising the level of everybody in that room. Jyaire Brown has played a little nickel and corner. He has just natural talent and instincts,” Day said.

At the safety position it’s a similar story, with Carter joining a cadre of returners to form a deep, solid group. However, an injury midway through spring practice kept Carter out for a handful of practices. Day wasn’t certain if he will be available for the Ohio State spring game on Saturday.

“Lathan [Ransom] and Proc [Josh Proctor] and Sonny [Styles] and some of the guys back there have done a nice job. Ja’Had Carter who was playing well, about midway through had a little bit of an injury that — I don’t whether or not he’s going to be available on Saturday. Up until that point, he had shown and kind of raised the level of everybody back there,” Day said.