Ohio State football: This linebacker could see more playing time

The Ohio State football team will get back to spring practices this week. Linebacker Cody Simon could be in line for more playing time.

The Ohio State football team appears to be shaking up the defensive side of the ball this spring. A couple of weeks ago defensive coordinator Jim Knowles said that they would be scrapping the ‘Jack’ position this spring, but we don’t know exactly what will be employed instead.

We may have got a hint as Jim Knowles had this to say about linebacker Cody Simon last week, via Eleven Warriors:

"“I definitely want to rotate them more. I think Cody Simon, with Tommy out this spring, Cody’s gonna have a big spring,” Knowles said. “And he’s gonna put himself in a position to play regularly. That’s my vision so that we can have a really nice rotation there."

So, it appears that the base defense will still be played with two linebackers, but Simon is going to earn some time in the rotation. I also wouldn’t be surprised to see Ohio State play more three-linebacker sets if Knowles feels like Simon is one of his better players on defense. I think the key to having a good defense is putting your best players on the field and it sounds like Knowles might agree.

Cody Simon, the former top-100 player in his 2020 recruiting class, has had some bad luck wearing the Scarlet and Gray. First, he has had some injury problems, most notably having shoulder surgery in 2021. That was followed by Knowles joining as defensive coordinator last season and implanting a two-linebacker system, thus cutting Simon out of a starting job.

But it sounds like Simon is going to carve out his niche this year for the Buckeyes. And I would love to see a player like Simon, who has stuck with the program while battling obstacles, get a chance to succeed in Columbus.