Tale of the Tape: Knowing the basics of Buckeyes veteran safeties

The summer offseason is in full swing, and Lettermen Row is trying to survive it with our annual Position Week breakdowns. By the time all nine units and coaching staff at Ohio State have been covered, training camp and media days will nearly have arrived, and the return of football in the Horseshoe will be just around the corner. We’re continuing with our eighth positional week with the Buckeyes safeties unit.

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COLUMBUS — Lettermen Row is in the early stages of Safeties Week by taking a look at the basics of the veteran safeties at Ohio State. Later on Monday, we’ll break down the youngsters in the Buckeyes secondary.

Let’s dive in.

Sixth-year safety Josh Proctor

Height: 6-foot-2

Weight: 205 pounds

High school: Owasso (Owasso, Oklahoma)

On3 Industry Ranking: Four-star Josh Proctor was ranked as the No. 80 overall player in the country, the No. 7 safety and the No. 2 player in the state of Oklahoma in the class of 2018.

Picked Buckeyes over: Despite being an out-of-state prospect, Proctor picked Ohio State early in the recruiting process, choosing the Buckeyes over offers from Florida, Georgia, Michigan, Oklahoma and Texas, among others.

Stats at Ohio State: Proctor has 65 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss and one sack, two interceptions, six passes deflected and a fumble recovery in his Buckeyes career.

Fourth-year safety Lathan Ransom

Height: 6-foot-1

Weight: 207 pounds

High school: Salpointe Catholic (Tucson, Arizona)

On3 Industry Ranking: Four-star Lathan Ransom was ranked as the No. 160 overall player in the country, the No. 9 safety and the No. 5 player in the state of Arizona in the class of 2020.

Picked Buckeyes over: Ransom chose Ohio State over a list of impressive other finalists that included Notre Dame, Texas, LSU and Oklahoma.

Stats at Ohio State: Ransom has 117 tackles, six tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks, an interception, nine passes deflected, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery in his Buckeyes career.

Fourth-year safety Cameron Martinez

Height: 5-foot-10

Weight: 190 pounds

High school: Muskegon (Muskegon, Michigan)

On3 Industry Ranking: Four-star Cameron Martinez was ranked as the No. 302 overall player in the country, the No. 7 athlete and the No. 7 player in the state of Michigan in the class of 2020.

Picked Buckeyes over: Martinez chose Ohio State over Minnesota, Northwestern, Michigan and plenty of others who offered a scholarship.

Stats at Ohio State: Martinez has 36 tackles, 0.5 tackles for loss, an interception returned for a touchdown and four passes deflected in his Buckeyes career.

Fourth-year safety Kourt Williams

Height: 5-foot-10

Weight: 190 pounds

High school: St. John Bosco (Harbor City, California)

On3 Industry Ranking: Four-star Kourt Williams was ranked as the No. 145 overall player in the country, the No. 21 linebacker and the No. 16 player in the state of California in the class of 2020.

Picked Buckeyes over: Williams chose Ohio State over Texas A&M, Tennessee, Penn State, Oklahoma and a number of other national suitors.

Stats at Ohio State: Williams has 32 tackles, four tackles for loss, a sack and one pass deflection in his career — despite struggling with injuries throughout his career at Ohio State.

Fourth-year safety Ja’Had Carter

Height: 6-foot-1

Weight: 203 pounds

High school: Henrico (Richmond, Virginia)

On3 Industry Ranking: Ja’Had Carter was not ranked in the class of 2020, according to the On3 Consensus rankings.

Picked Buckeyes over: Carter chose Ohio State out of the transfer portal over other suitors after an impressive three-year career at Syracuse.

Stats at Ohio State: Carter has no stats so far in his Buckeyes career. He was a multi-year starter for the Syracuse defense, starting 28 games and appearing in 31 during his time with the Orange.