Ryan Day updates progress made by Ohio State defense under Jim Knowles

Jim Knowles was arguably the biggest hire Ryan Day made at Ohio State before the 2022 season. A year removed from helping Oklahoma State become one of the nation’s top defenses, Knowles was tasked with turning around the Buckeyes as defensive coordinator.

Ohio State saw an improvement en route to a College Football Playoff appearance last season, going from the nation’s 38th-ranked scoring defense in 2021 to No. 24 in 2022. Now, as Knowles gets ready for his second year at as defensive coordinator, Day said he’s seeing some good things out of the Buckeyes during offseason workouts.

The first season under Knowles was about laying the foundation, Day told On3’s J.D. PicKell on The Hard Count. That’s why this offseason had a different feel now that the Buckeyes have had a full season under Knowles’ scheme under their belts.

“Year one, we were learning what the defense is,” Day said. “You’re learning a new language. It’s like learning, you know, Russian and you have to process the new terms, you have to process maybe some of the new coaching techniques. I think there was a lot of progress made last year. I thought we were much more aggressive.

“But this offseason, I think a couple of things happened. One, it’s Year Two. So now, we’re learning not what to do, but how to do it and why to do it or why we’re doing it. The next thing is having guys like Tommy Eichenberg back and much more experience across the board.”

Eichenberg, last year’s tackles leader, is just one of the key pieces Ohio State has returning. The Buckeyes bring back about 77% of its production on defense from last year, according to ESPN. That number not only includes Eichenberg, but also sacks leader Jack Sawyer and EDGE J.T. Tuimoloau, who ranked second on the roster in tackles for loss.

Day and the Buckeyes were also active in the transfer portal, notably bringing in former Ole Miss cornerback Davison Igbinosun — the No. 23-ranked transfer to hit the portal this cycle, according to the On3 Transfer Portal Rankings. He, along with Notre Dame transfer athlete Lorenzo Styles, could help Ohio State improve a passing offense which ranked sixth in the Big Ten last year with 200 yards allowed per game.

Add in some motivation from a blowout loss to rival Michigan and a loss to Georgia at the buzzer in the CFP, and Day said those returning players are also playing with a chip on their shoulder.

“We’re getting almost everybody back on top of some additions,” Day said. “Some additions at corner. We have some good depth and some good experience. So I think our defense was proud and we’re all proud of the progress that was made.

“Also, just a bitter taste in our mouth coming off the last couple games. It felt like there was just too many explosive plays. But a huge emphasis here in the offseason, and we know if we want to reach our goals, we’re going to have to win games on defense. And that’s good. That’s a good thing. The best teams we’ve had we’ve done that. So they’re taking pride in that and had a good offseason.”