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Tyvis Powell, Zach Boren analyze Ohio State staff overhaul, next steps on defense

Austin-Wardby:Austin Ward•02/21/22•

AWardSports

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Ohio State safety Tyvis Powell is on the Buckeye Cruise. (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

MARINER OF THE SEAS — Ohio State had to make some moves.

Now the real work begins to see if the Buckeyes can pay them off with dramatic improvements on the defensive side of the ball.

Jim Knowles has arrived as the highest-paid coordinator in program history. Ohio State added two new coaches in the secondary. And with Larry Johnson electing to return for another season with the Buckeyes, the expectations for that revamped staff are clear: Reclaim the Silver Bullets standard to get back to winning championships.

“I knew how important this hire was,” Ohio State coach Ryan Day said last month. “But at the end of the day, I was I was really looking for a head coach of the defense. And certainly his background, and all the people that have worked for him and with him have said such unbelievable things. You watch the film with the way his team plays, they play hard, they have a system, they have answers, and they’ve done a great job developing.

“So when you combine all of those things … it seemed like the best fit.”

Knowles is now in place, and the work is about to get ramped up for the new coaches with a critical camp looming.

What needs to get done? In the latest conversation on the Buckeye Cruise with some standouts at Ohio State, former captain Zach Boren and national-title-winning safety Tyvis Powell sat down with Lettermen Row to cover a lot of ground about the defense heading into the start of spring practice in March.

Among the topics for those Buckeyes:

  • What Jim Knowles will be bringing to Ohio State in terms of scheme after a successful run with Oklahoma State over the last four seasons.
  • Key Buckeyes who could emerge and make the most of spring camp when the pads are on at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center in a couple weeks.
  • The strength of the Buckeyes brotherhood as former players return to a cruise ship every February to raise money in the fight against cancer.

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