Ohio State Football: Three defenders who will perform vs. Tulsa

Going into the Ohio State football team’s game against Tulsa, most are anxious to see what the defense looks like. It is no secret, the defense has been bad, and change is expected to come.

For the Buckeye defense to turn around, some players need to emerge and have big performances starting this weekend. If OSU can have several players perform at a high level consistently, this will do wonders for their defensive unit.

Finding a handful of stud contributors on the defensive end begins against Tulsa. Who will step up against the Golden Hurricanes and help turn this defense around?

1. Haskell Garrett will be a leader in improving Ohio State football’s rushing defense

The elephant in the room right now is the rush defense. Giving up 236 rushing yards per game is simply not going to cut it. So which Buckeye can make a lot of noise in stopping the run?

Look no further than Haskell Garrett. He has a lot of experience as a fifth-year senior and should be able to guide his teammates in the right direction.

Garrett was dominant last season and has displayed that some this season. Even against Oregon, Garrett still got some penetration at times. Other defenders just could not clean up after Garrett created some disruption.

Consistent disruption from defensive tackles definitely helps in stopping the run. Running backs are usually thrown off-course, this makes other defenders’ jobs a lot easier. Garrett’s ability to shed blocks in the run game could substantially help this defense.

Garrett has been inconsistent so far this season, he has not been consistently dominant like he was last season. But that doesn’t mean Garrett cannot do it anymore, he should be able to create havoc against Tulsa.

As long as other Buckeyes can make the final tackle after Garrett’s disruption, the run defense can improve.