Ohio State’s football defense is different from that seen in top-school football programs.
Most defenses have a five-cent corner or a third supporter in the field. But Ohio State’s defense presents a player in a “ball position,” a hybrid between protection and supporter.
Defensive back Jaylen Johnson of La Salle High School fits that mold.
“(My coaches) put me in the most productive position imaginable,” Johnson said. “Wherever they put me, I can adapt. I’m a wonderful athlete and a perfect apprentice. “
Johnson, a deep three-star ranked 409th in the 2021 recruiting elegance through 24/7Sports, signed his letter of intent Wednesday to play for the Buckeyes.
“They fit a flexible guy,” said La Salle’s head coach Pat McLaughlin. “He played deep for us, and I think he can come in and play as a supporter. He’s a physical child. I think it’s happening to get bigger and faster and more powerful when it gets there. “
Johnson is one of five defensive runners in Ohio State’s second elegance recruiting elegance in 2021, however, he would possibly be the most productive in the position to play the ball. Johnson already weighs 6 feet and two hundred pounds, and few high school recruits have their mix of strength and athletics.
“Ohio State is looking for someone who can play as a supporter and as a security guard,” said Bill Kurelic of 247/Sports. “(Johnson) is so athletic and runs so well. He has a giant length and he definitely has a slightly unpleasant attitude in the field, and I say it in a positive way. It needs to make an impact.
When La Salle faced Anderson in the playoffs of the best schools of 2020, Anderson’s head coach Evan Dreyer said he never knew where Johnson would line up.
In some games, Johnson covered himself as a deep, wandering 20 yards down the punch line. In other games, Johnson covered himself as an in-house supporter and won Anderson’s short game.
Dreyer said Johnson was the hardest hit through the game closest to the coup line, and said the dominance could continue in Ohio State.
“He can be a supporter in the area and be a monster in the middle of the field,” Dreyer said. “They played it in many other positions, and their ability to play in multiple positions is their greatest strength.
Last season, Johnson made 55 tackles at La Salle and helped lead his dominant defensive to the state semifinals. He has won gifts from the University of Cincinnati, Michigan State and Kentucky, but Johnson pledged to play for the Buckeyes on January 7.
“You may see it begin at the time or in the third year at Ohio State,” Kurelic said. “It fits well. They have desires in high school. They sought to point out at least five defensive runners, and he’s one of the boys. “
Eleven months after his engagement, Johnson officially joined a program that has nine defensive nfl runners and signed his letter of intent on a rite Wednesday at La Salle.
Johnson doubted his decision.
“My recruitment procedure was very simple,” Johnson said. ” I knew where I was looking to go from the beginning. I knew Columbus was the house in my heart, so I didn’t need to waste the other coaches’ time. “
When he arrives in Ohio, Johnson will be a component of the Buckeyes’ evolutionary defense. Traditionally, defenses have placed 3 or 4 supporters in the middle of the field, and the attributes of those supporters have been the ability to avoid the race.
Over the past decade, as groups have thrown the ball more frequently, defenses have begun looking for supporters who can make can make can do can make canopy shots at closed wings, stockings and receivers, but those players have yet to be strong enough to make an attack on the opposite surface. to a physical ball carrier.
During his career at La Salle, Johnson demonstrated that he can do either thing and play as a classic security. Regardless of what the state of Ohio throws at you, you’ll be ready.
“They’ve given him a lot of football knowledge,” McLaughlin said. “He studies the game and loves it. I think he’s a very smart player. “