Ohio State football: Who is the best defensive lineman on the roster?

The Ohio State football program has produced an insane amount of defensive line talent in the last few years. With Chase Young gone, who is the best defensive lineman on the Buckeyes’ roster?

Ohio State football has been the premier football program in the country in terms of sending talent to the NFL. Since 2000, no program has had more first-round picks than Ohio State. They have been able to produce an amazing amount of talent for a long period of time.

The defensive line talent has been part of that. Several defensive linemen have recently had immediate impacts in the NFL, including Joey and Nick Bosa. Now Chase Young will get a chance to make an immediate impact as the number two overall pick in April’s draft.

Young was the most dominant player I’ve ever seen play football at Ohio State. With him gone, that leaves a pretty big hole to fill on the defensive line. He was a one-man wrecking crew. With him gone, who is the best defensive lineman on the roster?

Zach Harrison has the best chance to become the next dominant defensive end at Ohio State. The former five-star recruit now becomes the focal point of the pass rush. He showed flashes of his talent as a true freshman a year ago, recording 3.5 sacks in 10 games of action.

Harrison is still young and needs time to develop. He might become the best defensive lineman on the team, but he isn’t yet. That title should go to Jonathon Cooper. Cooper is back for a fifth year at Ohio State after he redshirted because of an ankle injury a year ago.

Before his injury, Cooper was just starting to show his ceiling. He played in 12 games for the Buckeyes in 2018 and had 2.5 sacks and 6.5 tackles for loss. Last year, he was supposed to team up with Young for a devastating combo off the edge.

Now that Cooper is fully healthy, he should be able to show off his dominance in 2020. Hopefully he can have his best collegiate season.