With just over a week left until fall camp begins, Ohio State head coach Ryan Day provided some updates on how his team is shaping out at Big Ten Media Days Tuesday afternoon at Lucas Oil Stadium.
Taking the lectern for about 15 minutes as the last of the six head coaches to speak during Day 1 of Big Ten Media Days, Day was first asked about how the competitions are shaping out on the offensive line this season, a position group that is looking to bounce back after an inconsistent year marred by protection troubles and costly penalties.
While there is a load of pressure on the offensive line heading into fall camp, Day said he has been encouraged by the progress that group has made, and there are multiple players vying for the starting role at both right guard and center as the season nears.
“Some guys have really stepped up,” Day said. “Josh Fryar, to me he’s had an unbelievable summer. (Donovan Jackson) has been much of a leader. When it comes to that right guard position, Carson Hinzman and Seth (McLuaghlin), they both can swing between center and guard. But then Tegra Tshabola is someone who has also stepped up and had a good summer. (So has) Luke Montgomery.
“So we feel like we have some decent guys who can fill that role, but we have to go put it on the field and see how this training and everything that has happened this summer is going to translate to the field.”
Day had previously touched on the improvement of Josh Fryar and the offensive line as a whole, saying in June that Fryar was trending towards starting at right tackle but had displayed enough versatility to draw some interest at right guard, a position that both Montgomery and Hinzman saw time at during spring camp.
As for the other positions, this was the first time Day has flaunted the idea of McLaughlin playing at guard, as the Alabama transfer had played at center for the entire spring camp, often splitting time with Hinzman at the position. As Day alluded to, Jackson is set to reclaim his role at left guard, while Josh Simmons is slated to start again at left tackle.
Day also talked about the lofty expectations his team is facing this season with double-digit starters and a league-high four All-Big Ten players returning, a reality that has them as the presumptive favorites in an expanded Big Ten that now includes power programs such as Oregon, Washington, USC and UCLA.
While many eyes are on the Buckeyes heading into the 2024 campaign, Day said his team must remain focused on the month of practice that lies ahead of them if they want to achieve their three main goals this season, something that the head coach said his team is poised to attack.
“You can see the look in their eyes, it’s a special group,” Day said. “Then the pieces that we’ve added, we’re very, very excited right now. It’s a fun group to be around every day. Coach Mick (Marotti) has been doing a great job with some of the workouts that we’ve had this summer, but now as we head into the preseason camp, it’s going to be critically important to build a foundation.
“Every year you rebuild a team. You don’t just jump back to where you were the year previous. We’re going to work really hard to have a physical preseason camp and build that foundation as that’s going to be what’s going to be the difference in the end.
“What we can’t do is let those distractions grab our focus from what we need to do day in and day out. We know it’s going to be a long season, but we have to have a great preseason. We have to have a physical preseason. We have to lay that foundation for what’s going to come as we head throughout the season.”
