Buckeyes defensive end Javontae Jean-Baptiste enters transfer portal
COLUMBUS — Ohio State defensive end Javontae Jean-Baptiste has entered the transfer portal, according to On3’s Matt Zenitz.
Jean-Baptiste played nine snaps in the Buckeyes’ Peach Bowl College Football Playoff semifinal defeat. Most notably, he teamed up with fellow pass rusher Zach Harrison to bring down Bulldogs quarterback Stetson Bennett IV on 3rd-and-7 from the Buckeyes 29-yard line in the third quarter, forcing a 52-yard field goal that place kicker Jack Podlesny missed.
Jean-Baptiste registered 250 total defensive snaps this season, according to Pro Football Focus, 63 fewer than he logged in 2021. But he did clock out with personal best PFF grades in every major category: run defense (72.8), tackling (76.5), pass rush (78.5) and coverage (62.8).
Jean-Baptiste spent five years at Ohio State and has one season of eligibility remaining as a graduate transfer.
Jean-Baptiste ranked third on the team in 2022 with four sacks. He accounted for half that total against Toledo, adding a forced fumble in that game as well. His most valuable performance might have come against Iowa, though, as he tallied 1.5 sacks against a Hawkeyes team that was hanging around in the first half.
Jean-Baptiste never had more than 1.5 sacks in a season at Ohio State before this year. He also finished the 2022 campaign with a career-high 19 total tackles, including nine solos.
Jean-Baptiste was part of a deep defensive line rotation run by longtime Ohio State D-Line coach Larry Johnson. He played 25 or more snaps in just two games this season (Arkansas State and Iowa), per PFF.
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The Buckeyes have quite a bit of depth on the edge returning next season, headlined by underclassmen J.T. Tuimoloau and Jack Sawyer.
The 6-foot-5, 249-pound Jean-Baptiste is a former four-star recruit from Bergen Catholic. He calls Spring Valley, New York, home and was the No. 23 linebacker in the 2018 class, according to the On3 Consensus.
Jean-Baptiste is the fifth Ohio State player to put his name in the portal this cycle. So have second-year defensive backs Jantzen Dunn and Jaylen Johnson, second-year long snapper Mason Arnold as well as fifth-year linebacker Teradja Mitchell.
To follow all of the Buckeyes portal activity, check out the Lettermen Row transfer tracker.
