The Ohio State football team had one of the best defenses in the country in 2024. They led in several significant categories and came up in big spots late in the season. The defense was one of the biggest reasons why the Buckeyes were able to win the national championship.
Jim Knowles ran a certain defense that was very successful. His 4-2-5 defense was executed perfectly, and it allowed the Buckeyes to beat Tennessee, Oregon, Texas, and Notre Dame on the way to the national title. It was a fairly predictable defense, though.
Ohio State didn't run exotic blitzes or certain coverages. Quite frankly, they didn't need to. Knowles' philosophy was to get his team to run their base defense extremely well. That's what they did. That predictability is why the defense is going to be much scarier in 2025.
The Ohio State football team will run multiple defenses, which will make them harder to beat
Matt Patricia doesn't like to run a specific base defense. If he does, he's not in it very often. He matches his personnel on the field to match what the offense on the other side is doing. He will make sure that the Ohio State Buckeyes won't be seen as predictable in any way.
With the talent that the Buckeyes still have, that should make them even scarier next season. Caleb Downs could be lining up close to the line of scrimmage some plays, while playing in his traditional safety spot in others. Patricia will have a few things up his sleeve.
Of course, the results on the field will show just how good the defense is. No one knows exactly how the defense will work until they actually unveil it against Texas. At that point, we can finally ascertain just how scary of a defense it will be.