Which Buckeye will lead Ohio State in sacks

Ohio State Football: Which Buckeye will lead Ohio State in sacks

By Alex Austin | Jul 30, 2020

GLENDALE, ARIZONA - DECEMBER 28: Trevor Lawrence #16 of the Clemson Tigers is wrapped up by Zach Harrison #33 of the Ohio State Buckeyes in the first half during the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the PlayStation Fiesta Bowl at State Farm Stadium on December 28, 2019 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images) /

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Tyreke Smith will look for a larger role in Ohio State’s defense, especially in the rush-man package. (Photo by Jamie Sabau/Getty Images) /

Two players who will play a heavy part in the rotation on the defensive line this year are juniors, Tyreke Smith and Tyler Friday.

Both players played in limited roles during their freshman and sophomore campaigns, and are looking to take the next step into a bigger role.

Smith was able to post the slightly higher sack total on the season, recording 3 sacks, but those came against Cincinnati and Maryland.

Meanwhile, Friday only had 2 sacks on the year, but one came against Clemson in the College Football Playoff game.

This is really too small of a sample size to determine if Smith or Friday are viewed significantly higher on the depth chart, however, with Smith getting action in more games last year he may have the slight edge to get on the field more often early in 2020.

It is likely that both these players see a rise in their statistics up towards the 5 sack range this year based on additional playing time with Chase Young not on the field every snap.

A fluid rotation would give both of these guys the most opportunity to get on the field and make plays.

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