Stephen Means, Stefan Krajisnik and Andrew Gillis mark down their predictions for the 11 starters on offense and defense on Sept. 1.
Listen to Buckeye Talk, your favorite Ohio State football podcast, five days a week with Stephen Means, Stefan Krajisnik and Andrew Gillis.Stephen Means, Stefan Krajisnik and Andrew Gillis mark down start for the Buckeyes on both sides of the ball in that game.
Mark it down. I’m Stephen Means, that’s Stefan Kreischnick. It’s Andrew Gillis and you guys know what time it is. Andrew knows what time it is. Stefan doesn’t really know what time it is because he’s never done this before, but we’re going explain it him along the way. So it’s okay. Welcome to Buckeye Talk. We’re a month away from the season starting for Ohio State to 2024 season. Get the text 614 -350 -315. And so it’s time to do what we do every off season.
There’s a lot of guys back, right? So this is not gonna be, this might be the shortest one we do simply because so many these spots are already filled. I have compiled a starting 22 and I want you guys to ding in when you have something different. Andrew is gonna be real similar to when we do the draft pod. Just kind of ding in and go, I don’t agree with Carlos Locklyn as the starting tight end. I have Larry Johnson as the starting tight end and on down the list.
Now it gets fun. Linebacker, at Mike Linebacker, have Cody Simon and at Will Linebacker, I went with CJ Hicks. You have the experience of playing in a game. You just don’t have the experience of playing in a game at linebacker. And I think that they’re going to value that with CJ Hicks early because Sonny Styles might need more time. I don’t think that this is going to be a Cody Simon, CJ Hicks show for the entire year. I think that this is going to be a really fluid situation.
I think they can get really creative. What if Ackerman comes out with four wide receivers and so Ohio State goes with Jordan Hancock and Jermaine Matthews on the interior. What if, mean, Jim Noles talked about that eagle look, Andrew, basically the entire time he was sitting down and we got him in the spring. What if he decides to just throw that out there for the place, first play? I don’t know.
And he thinks he’s one of the more underrated players on this defensive line. And he’s one of the more guys that the exact phrasing of the question escapes me at the moment. But it was something along the lines of like, who are we not talking about? No, he did it at his podium, too. No, he did it at his podium, too. And his answer was Ty Hamilton.
No, I don’t think it’s skipping over. just, think, in all honesty, I think Cody Simon and Ty Hamilton are not in this conversation in terms of somebody might start over them. I think if someone starts other than these two guys, it will be because Ty Leake Williams is not a starter because that just happens with Larry Johnson. Ty Hamilton is a nose. I’m serious, man. Like Michael Hall Jr. was the most dominant force in 2022 on that defensive line on the interior. And he did not start.
If he goes out there and gives you some flashes is really exciting. And you’re at least looking at 2025 saying, all right, like you got to get him some more playing time in 2024 because you know, you’re probably going to need him there in 2025. Obviously you can get guys in the portal and other players can develop and players can change positions.
was flashing in spring. They like Malik Hartford a lot. Jalen McLean was flashing in the spring, right? got, it’s, the gap is wider at safety with the starters in the second string unit, but there’s some interesting key pieces there. So I’m just open, so fine. Okay, nobody has much of anything. Let’s keep it moving. Let’s take our first break and then we’ll switch over to offense where I’m sure there will be some different grinshield and how we go about things at some key spots.
But against Iowa, maybe you put Judkins back there for the first snap. And maybe it’s like we talked about with, I mentioned this with the quarterback conversation, maybe it’s not starter, maybe it’s takes the first snap. They use that kind of lingo. I think Henderson and Judkins are gonna be very matchup dependent. you get, and I think you wanna stick to your script.
But then there’s another game where Travion Henderson gets it 19 times and Quinchon Duncan only gets it nine. I think that’s where that comes in. This is going to be a situation where who’s hot, who’s rolling.
more than Henderson, but like you said, like there will be games where the snap count will end up getting canceled out. So I’m curious. I’m curious to see how it handles and how many games they have where it is pretty cool because I think it’s going to be at the end of season. You’re going look at and say that it’s pretty close. I mean, at least whatever you want to say, close is, but it’ll be pretty close. And I think it’s going to be interesting to see how that number kind of is configured.
You start that guy, you start that kid from Miami, you start him, you put him at your ex receiver and you write it in pen. No, you type it on the computer and then you print it out and you laminated and you put it on your board and he owns that spot for the next three years, that exposition, that ex receiver spot. Now he’ll move around, of course, but ex Jeremiah Smith, Cardinal Tate at Z, Amake Ibuka, Brendan, this is also going to play.
No, no, I wouldn’t hold on I’m doing math again five will all be the linemen No, no, no, I can’t. yeah, cuz quarterback. yeah that important thing. Yeah, no tight end for me Go ahead and ding it. Yeah, you wildcat this thing. Okay, gothat would have been so good if one of us was like, they’re going to run the wildcat on the first play. So yeah, I had one running back, obviously.
think they’re saying it because it’s like this is your last opportunity dude and there are dudes passing you on the depth chart. But I also think they’re saying it because people have already passed him on the depth chart and two of them are sophomores and one of them is a freshman. But okay, this is your market down. You just gotta figure out where’sSo, well, I want to mark it down even further.
That is what is going to be the calling card of this year’s team. That is why I think they’re going to try to spread them out early. I think, you know, they’re not going to run back that T formation or anything like that. I think they’re going to try to spread them out. And if you go basically for wide, you do that and you can, you know, hang on to that for a few plays. And then all of a sudden you have a lighter box and Trevion Henderson can make things happen up front.
with Jaden Ballard and Jeremiah Smith, right? Like does the veteran guy get the first snap of the first game? But Jeremiah Smith is that freshman that does that cancel it out, right? Do you go with, we have to put that star freshman on the field and get him the ball on a bubble screen like Andrew was saying and show everyone right away. We’ve been keeping it as low key as we can in the spring and the fall, but here it is snap one of game one.
I just don’t, I don’t think this is a Jayden Ballard conversation. I understand where you guys are coming from. I think the top four wide receivers are whatever order you want to put them in, Amaka, Buka, Jeremiah Smith, Cardinal, Tate, Brandon. Those are the four who are going to play meaningful snaps for Ohio State this year. While Jayden Ballard, I think they said Jayden Ballard and Bryson Rogers’ names because they want to get to six. Every year they want to have six guys they can play.
You know, and he even, and Ryan Day, he being Ryan Day, Ryan Day even said, McLaughlin can play that center guard too. He included McLaughlin when he was talking about Hinsman playing that center guard kind of rotation. So I’m not saying that McLaughlin’s like going to play guard and they’re just going to keep flip -flopping.
Like they very clearly think highly of Luke Montgomery. And I think not only would Luke Montgomery, know, not only maybe is he on that track to be a starter as a second year player, I think he also just makes things a little bit cleaner. And I think you want to give him the first rep and see if he can do anythingI think I agree with Stephen and Shabola starting and I think I agree with Andrew in the sense of Hensman probably even though he I think could be a worthy right guard.
He’s going to be their number two center, regardless of how this works out. I don’t agree with this idea of, no, what if you’re starting both of your centers? Okay, then you’re starting over your centers and if the center gets hurt, you slide the other center over the guard and you bring a guard in or if the center that’s playing guard gets hurt, then you’re bringing the guard in anyway.
Bit of a veteran, he might be ready to go, but then also he just might have more upside than Carson Hensman has as a right guard.I’ll say this. I’m curious because we, Steve and I have the same starting five, Andrew, you have Montgomery in there. I think that Hensman is the sixth best offensive lineman. He’s kind of the sixth man there.
They did upgrade his, he also had never played center before his life before last year. That’s a factual statement, which is part of the problem. The problem isn’t him. The problem is Luke Montgomery went pro and he probably shouldn’t have gone pro, but it is what it is. He’s a Cleveland Brown now. The reason I’m asking is you’re taking, yeah, yeah. Well, we’ll see what Luke Montgomery as well. Shout out to the Mark number for him. yes, but Luke Whipwood went pro earlier than he expected.
And, you know, they found Josh Friar at right tackle. And obviously you had Jones at right guard. So with Montgomery, just this is a guy who also has really done, I think, the things that he’s needed to do in the offseason. know, you do have that experience of playing in game reps. You know, they have used him as that extra offensive lineman before. Like, I just I think that Montgomery is one of those guys that you can expect to take a massive leap.
Cardinal Tate and Ameka Buka as my receivers. I’ve got G. Scott as my tight end. And I’ve got Joshua Simmons, Donovan Jackson, Seth McLaughlin, Tegra Shibola, and Josh Friar as my right tackle. Stefan Krasnik agrees with my offensive line. He doesn’t agree with the two starting running back thing. He thinks that just Trevion Henderson starts the game. And also Jeremiah Smith, Cardinal Tate, and Ameka Buka as the arch side receivers with G. Scott at tight end.
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