The Ohio State football team has a new defensive coordinator with Jim Knowles bolting for Penn State. Ryan Day decided on Matt Patricia as the choice to replace him. Patricia comes in with a lot of ideas on how he wants to run the defense, not wanting to stick to one specific formation.
For the first couple of days of Fall camp, Caleb Downs has been lining up in spots other than his traditional safety spot. He has been spotted lining up in the nickel corner spot alongside both Jaylen McClain and Malik Hartford. It's a position that Downs didn't play at all last season.
Downs is perhaps the best defensive player in the country, so Patricia clearly wants to give other teams some different looks when it comes to him lining up all over the field. Following practice on Friday, he spoke to the media and talked about why he had Downs lining up in that spot.
Matt Patricia explains why Ohio State football player Caleb Downs lined up at nickel corner spot
Caleb Downs has been working at nickel a decent amount over the first couple of practices, allowing two promising young safeties in Malik Hartford and Jaylen McClain to get on the field together.
— Dillon Davis (@DillonDavis56) August 1, 2025
Here’s Ohio State DC Matt Patricia on that concept and why Downs can do it: pic.twitter.com/WNN7yHn7Ox
"Caleb's such a versatile player that now he can do that, so he can give some of those guys a chance to get on the field more."
Patricia must think that McClain and Hartford are one of the best 11 defensive players that he has on the roster, so he wants to get them on the field as much as he can. The Buckeyes have plenty of defensive players who have been waiting their turn to get on the field, and this year has a lot of spots open.
It's not likely that Downs spends a lot of time at nickel corner when the season actually starts, but he will likely spend a little bit of time there with certain matchups. He's certainly good enough to move wherever Patrica needs him.