Ohio State Football: What will the Buckeyes D-Line look like in 2020?

Ohio State football has a long tradition of dominant defensive linemen. With Chase Young off to the NFL, who is going to continue that in 2020?

It was a big year for the defensive line in Columbus in 2019. Led by Heisman finalist Chase Young, the Buckeyes defensive front terrorized college offenses all across the country. This, among other things as well, led to a 13-1 season for the Buckeyes, a Big Ten Championship, and a third College Football Playoff berth.

Part of what made that defensive line so effective was the veteran presence. Starting off with Young, he was a junior, but he had the pleasure of playing behind Nick Bosa, and later stepping up when Bosa went out with an injury in 2018. In that sophomore campaign, he came up with 34 tackles, 14.5 tackles for loss, and 10.5 sacks. It was a great season for the young stud, but what came next was legendary.

In Young’s junior, Heisman finalist season, he ended up with 46 tackles, 21 tackles for loss, and 16.5 sacks. The 16.5 sacks led the country, and the 21 tackles for loss was No. 4 in the nation. For his career Young totaled 30.5 sacks, placing No. 2 in Buckeye history in just three seasons.

How do you replace that type of production? Simply put, you don’t. It is hard for me to believe that we will see a player of that dominance come through Columbus for a long time. That being said though, this defensive line still has a lot of potential to be very good in 2020.

In the middle, it was a trio of seniors that led the way for the Buckeyes in 2019. Davon Hamilton, Jashon Cornell, and Robert Landers were nothing short of menaces for the Buckeyes up the middle. It showed in the Buckeyes rushing defense too as the Buckeyes gave up just 104 rushing yards per game, good for No. 8 in the country.

That trio won’t be as daunting to replace as Young but still is no simple task. There should be a host of new faces on the defensive line this year, but will the line still continue its dominance?

The talent of the recruits says yes, as Zach Harrison, who should be the leader of the line and step in to hopefully continue some of the dominance that Young left behind, is a former five-star recruit. Part of the 2019 recruiting class, Harrison was the best player in Ohio, the No. 12 player in the country, and the No. 2 defensive lineman in the country according to 247Sports.

As a freshman last season, Harrison worked his way onto the field quickly and was second in total snaps among defensive ends at the end of the season. He totaled 24 tackles, 5 tackles for loss, and 3.5 sacks. Ironically, Chase Young had almost identical numbers in his first season, ending up with the exact same amount of tackles for loss and sacks as Harrison. Is that a sign of things to come? Everyone in Columbus sure hopes so.

Once you get past Harrison is when things get a little bit more uncertain. Jonathon Cooper, a fifth-year senior who took a redshirt last season after injury, should get most of the starts at the other end. Cooper showed a lot of promise in 2018 playing behind Young and Bosa in his junior season. He totaled 25 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, and 2.5 sacks on the season. He seemed primed for a big senior season in 2019, but an injury held him back.

Up the middle is where things start to get a little more interesting. Especially when you consider Taron Vincent, a former 5-star recruit heading into his redshirt sophomore season. Vincent saw little playing time his freshman season, and then saw none his second year as he went down with a season-ending injury in preseason. He should start at one of the defensive tackle positions in 2020, and has all of the promise to be a beast up the middle.

Standing next to him will likely be junior from Pocatello, Idaho Tommy Togiai. Togiai was able to find some playing time last year despite being behind that talented trio of seniors. He played in all 14 games for the Buckeyes, totaling 16 tackles, and 2 tackles for loss in a rotation role. He should step into the starting role with Vincent in 2020, rounding out what should be a very talented defensive line.

Despite all the losses, the depth shouldn’t be a problem either for the Buckeyes as Tyler Friday, Tyreke Smith, and Javontae Jean-Baptiste should rotate in on the ends, with Antwuan Jackson Jr., Haskell Garrett, and Jerron Cage rotating in at defensive tackle.

Buckeye fans can only hope that this defensive line that lives up to those of the past. With Larry Johnson heading the charge as the defensive line coach once again, and with all the promising talent there, it should be yet another good year on the defensive front in Columbus.