Ohio State Football: Top 5 defensive ends in Buckeye history
3. Joey Bosa
You don’t have to go very far back into Buckeye history to find the next person on this list. Joey Bosa was one of the most dangerous defensive ends to ever play in a Buckeye uniform and he proved it both via the eye test and through the statistics as well.
Through the eye test, it was easy to see just how technically sound the older Bosa brother was. He wasn’t that fast, or really an athletic freak, but he put in the work in the weight room and just knew how to glide by offensive linemen.
That allowed Bosa to garner a lot of playing time as a true freshman. He racked up 13.5 tackles for loss and seven sacks in his first year in Columbus, showing everyone just how good he had the potential to be.
Bosa was named to the Freshman First-Team All-Big Ten list and was a unanimous All-American selection heading into his sophomore season.
That potential definitely showcased itself in his sophomore season as he sacked the quarterback 13.5 times and had 21.5 tackles for loss. The 13.5 sacks are currently tied for second in the Buckeye history books for sacks in a season.
Basically any award that you can think of Bosa won after his stellar showing in 2014. Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, first-team All-American and a Lombardi Award finalist were just a few of the awards that Bosa received his sophomore year at Ohio State.
The most important award that he won that season wasn’t an individual award though as Bosa helped lead the Buckeyes to a national championship.
After a suspension in the first game of the season, Bosa’s junior season was kind of derailed for the Buckeyes and it’s what probably keeps him from topping this list. Bosa totaled just five sacks on the season as opponents were definitely more aware of Bosa’s presence on the defensive line.
For his career, Bosa ended up notching 148 tackles, 51 tackles for loss and 26 sacks. The 26 sacks rank fourth on the all-time list for Buckeyes. For most schools, Bosa would be the best defensive-end without a doubt. Not for the Buckeyes though, as we still have two more to go.