Ohio State Football: Why DC Greg Schiano should be back

The performance by the Ohio State defense has been disappointing this season but should Greg Schiano take all of the responsibility for the decline?

It has yet to be determined if Greg Schiano will be retained as the Ohio State defensive coordinator. The defense has taken a step back in nearly every major statistical category this season and of course coach Schiano is ultimately responsible for that. But did he forget how to coach in just one year?

The Buckeyes had a top 10 defense in each of the last two seasons with Schiano as the DC. In 2016 Ohio state was ranked No. 3 in total defense allowing 300.2 yards per game and held opponents to 15.1 points per game. In 2017 the totals were 300.9 yards and 19 ppg.

Could the slide on defense have something to do with turnover of both players and coaches? Star players moving on to the NFL and new cornerback and safety coaches on board have been an issue getting the back seven to gel.

First a look at the players who moved on due to graduation or to enter the NFL draft with eligibility remaining.

• Safety Erick Smith
• Safety Damon Webb
• Cornerback Denzel Ward

Smith and Webb were the glue in the back-end of the defense. There is no substitute for leadership, especially when those seniors are talented in their own right.

Denzel Ward was a star for Ohio State and has proven he was worthy of being the third pick in the draft. It’s hard to replace a shutdown corner like Ward.

Cornerbacks coach Taver Johnson and safeties coach Alex Grinch have been successful in the past but working with inexperienced players in a new system had to be quite a challenge.

Outside linebackers Chris Worley and Jerome Baker also moved on.

It’s difficult to replace linebackers like Worley and Baker, not only because of their talent but they were experienced. Going into this season the only returning starter was Tuf Borland and he was battling an injury.

Defensive line coach Larry Johnson also had to replace these players.

• Defensive end Tyquan Lewis
• Defensive end Sam Hubbard
• Defensive end Jalyn Holmes
• Defensive tackle Tracy Sprinkle

Coach Johnson had a big challenge replacing these guys but did a terrific job with inexperienced players. However, there were bumps in the road especially after Nick Bosa was lost due to an injury.

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The Ohio State football team is on solid footing but every new head coach wants to put his stamp on the program. It’s only natural that Ryan Day evaluate the current assistants in an attempt to get coaches he thinks will best fit his system so some may be moving on after the Rose Bowl.

But Greg Schiano shouldn’t be one of them.

It has been widely reported the two respect each other’s coaching ability and they worked well together during Day’s three game stint as Ohio State’s interim head coach. Since coach Day’s strength is on offense, it would only make sense to have someone in charge on the other side of the ball he trusts.

But does coach Schiano want to stay? Here is what the defensive coordinator had to say about that as reported by Dan Hope of Eleven Warriors.

"“I love being here. My family loves being here,” Schiano said. “Ohio State is a unique, rare place. Every week, incredible fan support. All the things you need to be successful as far as resources. Gene Smith, an incredible athletic director, who has a great staff that provides you with all the things you need to win. And more than anything, we have great players, great kids, young men that are not only talented and fun to coach in that way, but really good people.”"

Ryan Day will want stability in his first season as the Ohio State head coach and retaining Greg Schiano as defensive coordinator would go a long way in achieving that goal. He is familiar with the players on the roster and there wouldn’t be major changes in the defensive scheme.

Combine all of the things mentioned above and I think coach Schiano will be retained as the defensive coordinator. And he should be.