Where Things Stand: D-Line Going Bowling

I haven’t been able to do a position update in a few weeks due to various school obligations, but fall quarter at OSU wraps up shortly and before too long I will have plenty of free time to contemplate all things scarlet and gray heading into the new year.

It seems that some Ohio State fans are leaning on the pessimistic side this holiday season no matter who Ohio State ends up playing in the Rose Bowl. This is a slightly understandable feeling considering Ohio State’s bowl disappointments the past three years. Well I am here to spread some holiday cheer and share my eternal Buckeye optimism.

Buckeye Nation will have to wait until Thursday night to find out who their opponent will be, but there are a few things that I am confident about against Beavers or Ducks.

The saying goes that games are won in the trenches, and Tresselball magnifies the importance of winning the trenches tenfold.

Luckily for the Buckeyes, the d-line has kicked some serious ass all year, and 251, 229, 228, 310, and 270 yards rushing the past five games indicates to me that the offensive line is starting to kick some ass as well.

So, if the Buckeyes can smash the opponent in the trenches (like they have been) everything else will follow, including a victory. Who will be doing said smashing? well, that’s what I’m here to tell you.

Edit: I was going to do the offensive and defensive lines in this update, but our d line is so ridiculously deep that I will save the offense for another post.

Defensive Line

Going into the year, I (along with many others) expected the defensive line to be the strength of the team. Well, we were right.

I didn’t write any updates for the d-line throughout the year because I felt that it was pretty obvious that they were kicking ass every week and I didn’t really need to go over that.

Well, now that I am trying to ramp up the confidence levels for the bowl game, it is time to talk about the embarrassment of riches that is the Ohio State defensive line.

#97 Cameron Heyward [Jr]

Games Played: 12, 42 tackles,

9 tackles for loss, 5.5 sacks

Heyward has been a force this year. He has spent time on the inside and the edge and has excelled at both. When he gets rolling he can take over a game (see: Penn State game, first drive of The Game).

Heyward says he is planning on coming back next year for his senior season, but Buckeye fans should enjoy watching him in the Rose Bowl, because it may be his last time donning the scarlet and gray.

#90 Thaddeus Gibson [RS Jr]

Games Played: 12, 41 tackles, 11 tackles for loss, 4 sacks, 1 interception, 2 forced fumbles

Gibson has also been a force this season, although he has been a little less consistent than Heyward. When Gibson is on though, he can shut down an apposing offense almost by himself (see the Illinois game).

Like Heyward, Gibson is a first round talent and may opt for an early entry into the NFL, so Buckeye fans should enjoy watching him in the Rose Bowl while they can.

#72 Dexter Larimore [RS Jr]

Games Played: 8, 18 tackles

Larimore began the season as a starter at tackle, and it looked like he was in for a helluva year before injuries cut his season short. He has returned from his injury and has been coming off the bench in the last few games of the season, however, he has not returned to the starting lineup. It looks like Larimore may have been hampered by injury clear through the season despite getting limited amounts of playing time at the end.

While he may not start in the Rose Bowl, one has to think that he will be 100% healthy by game time and hopefully he will be able to return to his beginning of the year form. If he is healthy, Larimore is a key component of the interior line rotation.

#84 Doug Worthington [RS Sr]

Games Played: 12, 40 tackles, 4 tackles for loss, 2 sacks

Worthington has been the epitome of consistency this year. He hasn’t stood out like Heyward or Gibson, but he also hasn’t done anything glaringly bad and has quietly put together a solid senior campaign.

While I don’t expect Worthington to dominate at any point, the leadership (he was voted a team captain after all) and experience that he brings to the table is a valuable part of the rotation.

Worthington has had a relatively rocky career, with position changes and sub par play along the line, but he stuck with it and has proven himself to be a true Buckeye. A win in the Rose Bowl would be a pretty sweet way to end his career.

#92 Todd Denlinger [RS Sr]

Games Played: 12, 14 tackles, 4 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, 1 interception

Denlinger has been the man filling in for Larimore as the starter at tackle. I thought that Denlinger could end up being the best tackle on the team this year, and while I would hesitate to say that is how it turned, he has been plenty disruptive and another key component of the interior line rotation.

#43 Nathan Williams [So]

Games Played: 12, 25 tackles, 8 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, 1 forced fumble

Williams has been overshadowed a bit this year by the outstanding play of Gibson and Heyward, but when Williams is in the game (which is a lot) he is constantly in the opposing backfield getting pressure on the quarterback and is always around the ball.

The fact that Williams is only a true sophomore is quite impressive and his future is bright to say the least.

#87 Lawrence Wilson [RS Sr]

Games Played: 12, 21 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, 1 interception

Wilson is coming off of back to back season ending injuries, and it seems pretty clear that he has lost a step or two from what looked like a promising young career. Still, Wilson has played in every game this year and provides plenty of leadership and experience. He is still a pretty damn good player despite the fact that he hasn’t returned to the starting lineup.

#54 John Simon [Fr]

Games Played: 12, 15 tackles, 4 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, 1 forced fumble

Simon has definitely been the surprise player of the year along the defensive line. Everyone knew that he was a beast in the weight room coming out of high school, but most people expected that it would take a little bit for him to become acclimated to the college game.

Well, he got acclimated pretty quickly and he has been absolutely dominating on the inside in the last few games. Seriously, go back and watch the highlights from The Game and it seems like Simon is in on almost every tackle [that he is in the game of course].

Like Williams, I am going to go ahead and say that Simon’s future is pretty bright.

#9 Rob Rose [Sr]

Games Played: 11, 10 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, 2 sacks

Rose got himself in some hot water at the beginning of the year which has limited the playing time that he received. He has still logged minutes in 11 games this season, and while he hasn’t quite lived up to expectations coming out of high school, he would probably be a starter at most other programs (assuming he stayed out of trouble), which is a testament to the talent and depth at Ohio State.

#53 Garrett Goebel [Fr]

Games Played: 12, 2 tackles, 1 tackle for loss

Goebel hasn’t done much statistically speaking this year, but he has played in every game thus far and will be a major part of the line rotation next year, so he is worth keeping an eye on.

#98 Solomon Thomas [RS So]

Games Played: 8, 6 tackles

Thomas is another player that hasn’t really stood out this year statistically and probably won’t get much playing time in the bowl game, but I included him because he has logged minutes in 8 games this season, which has to count for something.

Also, if Heyward and Gibson both decide to go pro, Thomas will be one of the guys looking to fill their spots next year, so he is worth keeping an eye on.

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So that about does it.

Yeah, the line is pretty ridiculous. I don’t really know what more to say about them. Throw in the fact that they all should be 100% healthy and it is hard not to get pretty excited about what they will be able to do in the bowl game.

One thing I will say, the line will lose a lot of seniors heading into next year, and if Gibson and Heyward go pro there will be even more holes to fill.

With young guys like Williams and Simon, the line will still be in pretty good shape, but I would enjoy the Ohio State defensive line that will be playing in the Rose Bowl, because it might be the best group of players that we will see in quite some time.