Buckeyes defense gaining confidence with ‘get-better approach’

COLUMBUS — All Ohio State defensive coordinator Jim Knowles could do was knock on wood.

After a member of the media asked Knowles during his weekly press conference on Tuesday about his defense and the fact that his unit has not given up a touchdown of longer than 2 yards through four games, Knowles showed his superstitious side.

Of course, the Buckeyes are one of the three best scoring defenses in the country this year. But they’re also one of the top teams nationally in avoiding explosive plays, the exact type of touchdowns that broke their collective back in the two biggest games of the season last fall. And Knowles knows the improvements have been made through four games.

But he also can see a unit that must continue to get better following a grinding win over Notre Dame and a much-needed off week.

“I’m seeing a lot of resiliency,” Knowles said. “I’m seeing a get-better approach, accountability in mistakes across the board, if they’re made, how do we fix them? I just feel like everybody’s working together. Thats the biggest thing. It’s always ‘what have you done for me lately?’ We need to focus on, keep pressing forward, but there’s enough good things that we can look at and say, ‘look this was this was good’ and there are enough things that we can fix you know to always stay hungry.”

Ohio State began to see its shift in defensive philosophy pay off early in the offseason, when it was apparent during spring ball and preseason practice that the defense simply looked better.

But seeing it inside the Woody Hayes Athletic Center and seeing it in the Horseshoe — and opposing stadiums — are two different things.

“I think it started in the offseason, though,” Ohio State coach Ryan Day said. “It’s hard to talk about that when you know, nobody else sees it. But when you see it every day in practice, there’s just a confidence that builds over time. When good is going against good, if you can score on our defense or if our defensive can stuff our offense, on both sides, you’re going to get really good people. And that builds confidence within the building.

“But now you’re starting to see it on the field.”

Whether it’s the defensive ends, setting career-high bars in pressures and pressure rate, to the linebackers to the incredible safety play and lock-down cornerback play, Ohio State looks up for any task in front of this defense.

So far, every test has been aced. But there are certainly bigger challenges looming, beginning this weekend against Maryland and extending to matchups against Penn State and Michigan.

“There’s bigger challenges ahead,” Day said. “First four games in the books, you’ve seen some improvement there. But we know in all areas, including on defense, we’ve got to continue to grow and get better.

“And, again, the encouraging thing as you watch the film, there’s plenty areas, Jim will tell you, that we can get better at.”

Knowles agreed.

“That belief among our players, it’s exactly like you talk about in our game,” Knowles said. “It’s all good to talk about. But you know, until you actually do it on the field, you want to talk a game, you want to you want to envision the game, then it’s either you do or you don’t. And the more you do, you know, the better you feel and the more you believe.”

Ohio State has that belief right now. It is limiting big plays and living up to an ultra-high standard on the defensive side of the ball.

But knock on wood. Because the biggest tests are still ahead of Ohio State.

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