Ohio State Football Depth Chart 2023: Offense
Here's a look at the Buckeyes' 2023 offense:
Ohio State QB Depth Chart
There is a raging quarterback battle between Kyle McCord and Devin Brown. McCord made one start against Akron during the 2021 season, throwing for 319 yards and two touchdowns in a 59-7 win. He won the Big Ten Conference Freshman of the Week for that performance. He was a four-star recruit.
Devin Brown was also a four-star recruit and the fifth-ranked quarterback from the Class of 2022. Brown didn't make much of an impact in 2022. He is expected to be in the backup role. The position seems to be McCord's to lose. Either will have a long way to go to replace No. 2 overall pick C.J. Stroud.
Ohio State RB Depth Chart
The Buckeyes' top two backfield options will remain the same from last season. Miyan Williams ran for 825 yards on 128 attempts (6.4 average) last year while TreVeyon Henderson went for 571 yards on 107 attempts (5.3 average).
Williams did play in 11 games while Henderson was in just eight. Dallan Hayden will also get some of the workload. He rushed for 553 yards on 111 attempts (5.0 average). The weapons for Day's backfield will be similar but also dynamic.
Ohio State WR Depth Chart
Marvin Harrison Jr. is a generational talent and is expected to be a top-five pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. Harrison Jr. finished with 1,263 yards last season and chipped in 14 touchdowns as well. He did that on 77 receptions (16.4 average). Harrison Jr. is expected to be the best wide receiver in the nation and will lead a stacked receiving corps. FanDuel has the latest Marvin Harrison Jr. Heisman odds at +3000.
Julian Fleming and Emeka Egbuka have garnered high praise as well. Fleming was the No. 1 wide receiver in the class of 2020 and the No. 4 overall player of that class. Fleming had just 533 yards last season but should take a jump as the second-best receiver. Egbuka finished second on the team with 1,151 yards. He will be among the team's top-three wide receiver options as well.
The top six receiving options will also be back for coach Day.
Ohio State TE Depth Chart
Cade Stover will be the main tight end option and was a force last season, ending with 406 yards on 36 receptions. He had six receiving touchdowns as well. Stover stands 6-foot-4 and became the team's full-time starter last season.
Ohio State Offensive Line Depth Chart
The Buckeyes may not have the same starters along the offensive line, but they do have continuity as all five were with the team last season. Every backup except transfer junior Victor Cutler Jr. was with the Buckeyes.
This unit's dominance can best be seen by C.J. Stroud's sack percentage which was just 3% last year. That was lower than Bryce Young (4.5%) and Anthony Richardson (4.1%), both of which were other notable top-tier college quarterbacks. Expect this unit to be back to keep either Brown or McCord upright consistently.
Ohio State Football Depth Chart 2023: Defense
Now, a look at the Buckeyes' 2023 defense:
Ohio State Defensive Line Depth Chart
Year over year, the Buckeyes defensive line does have some improvement to make. It finished with the seventh-fewest rushing yards against in the Big Ten, allowing 119.9 per game. This unit lost defensive end Zach Harrison to the NFL.
The team should get a boost from Jack Sawyer having another year under his belt. Sawyer was the No. 1 player from Ohio and the fourth-best defensive lineman in the class of 2021. Ohio State will return a key defensive end in J.T. Tuimoloau. He ended with 10.5 tackles for a loss (second most on the team) and 3.5 sacks (fourth most). Ty Hamilton did played in 13 games but recorded just 15 tackles. The level that Sawyer and Hamilton can get to will help determine how dominant this group is.
Ohio State LB Depth Chart
The Ohio State Buckeyes will be returning both linebackers from a season ago. Tommy Eichenberg and Steele Chambers held down the defense last season, posting the team's most and second-most tackles, respectively.
Eichenberg ended with 120 tackles (77 solo and 43 assisted) while Chambers had (45 solo and 32 assisted). They respectively had 12 tackles for a loss and 6.5 tackles for a loss as well. As one can tell, these two were the heart of the defense, one that allowed just 21 points per game, the 17th-fewest in the nation.
Both players are redshirt seniors, so it will be pivotal for C.J. Hicks, a redshirt freshman, to be rotated in to keep the unit's experience afloat heading into next season.
Ohio State CB Depth Chart
All three of the Buckeyes' starting cornerbacks were with the program last season. Denzel Burke ended with 11 games and 24 tackles, the most of the three. Cameron Martinez was in 13 games and recorded 15 tackles with Jordan Hancock playing six games and totaling just five.
Hancock will take over for 2022 senior Cameron Brown in the second outside cornerback with Martinez taking over for Tanner McCalister. Burke is the only starting cornerback still on the roster from last season.
Ohio State Safety Depth Chart
While the cornerbacks may be a relatively inexperienced group in terms of starting experience, the safeties will not be. Lathan Ransom ended the season with the third-most tackles in the team (74). He also notched 3.5 tackles for a loss and 1.5 sacks to go along with an interception and three passes defended. Ransom is listed as the starting strong safety.
Josh Proctor played in 13 games and ended with 21 tackles. He will be the free safety and has the big-time playmaking abilities to be able haunt opposing offenses. The only new face for this group is free safety Davison Igbinosun. He started his career with Ole Miss before transferring to Ohio State.
Ohio State Special Teams
Jesse Mirco is a junior and was the team's starting punter last season. There's really no question that will be the guy to start the season. Ohio State's dynamic offenses typically results in little action for punters.
John Ferlmann is the lone newcomer, a redshirt transfer. He will be the starting long snapper with Max Lomonico there for emergency opportunities. At kicker is Jayden Fielding. He will take over for Noah Ruggles, who was 74-of-75 on extra points and 17-of-20 on field goals. Fielding is a sophomore and played at IMG Academy. He was a walk-on player, earning his spot in the summer of 2022. Fielding is in a competition with senior Parker Lewis for the starting spot.
Ohio State Coaches 2023
The Ohio State Buckeyes coaching staff comes in with decades of experience. Ryan Day, outside of the shortened season due to the Covid-19 pandemic, has won double-digit games in each year he's led the Buckeyes. Day has lost two games in each of the last two seasons. He will need to snap a now two-game losing streak in a rivalry between Michigan vs. Ohio State.
Brian Hartline, a former NFL and Ohio State wide receiver, has been paramount in creating one of the most electric receiver rooms in the country. He will serve served as the offensive coordinator for the first time this season, having been promoted from wide receivers coach. He recruited the likes of Garrett Wilson, Chris Olave and Jaxon Smith-Njigba. Jim Knowles is on the other side of the ball and joined the Buckeyes during the 2022 offseason. Knowles was with Oklahoma State as its defensive coordinator from 2018-2021. He will need to re-earn the trust of fans after Michigan dropped 45 on the Buckeyes at home on Nov. 26, 2022.
Ohio State Coaching Staff
- Head coach: Ryan Day
- Offensive coordinator: Brian Hartline
- Defensive coordinator: Jim Knowles
- Associate head coach/defensive line coach: Larry Johnson
- Assistant head coach for offensive/running backs coach: Tony Alford
- Run game coordinator/offensive line coach: Justin Frye
- Secondary coach/cornerbacks coach: Tim Walton
- Safeties coach: Perry Eliano
Ohio State Athletic Director
The Ohio State AD is Gene Smith. He is a senior vice president for Ohio State as well and is a native of Cleveland, Ohio. Smith was an administrative director at Arizona State before joining Ohio State in 2005.
Smith is the eighth person to hold the position for the Buckeyes. The presence of Smith and leadership of the long-time AD has been widely helpful for the Buckeyes' continually-growing football program, which is now valued at $1.5 billion.
Ohio State Roster and Depth Chart FAQ
The quarterback for Ohio State has yet to be named, but it is expected to be Kyle McCord, who started the lone game C.J. Stroud missed in 2021.
Devin Brown is expected to back up Kyle McCord, although the official quarterback has yet to be named. Brown is likely to start as the backup and could get involved if McCord struggles.
Ryan Day coaches the Ohio State Buckeyes, and he has since Urban Meyer left. Day is entering his sixth season with the Buckeyes.
Ryan Day took over as the Buckeyes' head coach in 2018. He led Ohio State to a 13-win season. Day took over from Urban Meyer, who was with the Buckeyes for six seasons.
Six Ohio State Buckeyes players were taken in the 2023 NFL Draft. C.J. Stroud was the first off the board at No. 2 and center Luke Wypler was the last one off the board, taken at No. 190 to the Cleveland Browns.
There are 61 Ohio State Buckeyes players in the NFL, with a few of the most notable being Ezekiel Elliott, Joey Bosa and Justin Fields.
Author
Nathan, a lifelong Cincinnatian, has covered the Bengals and Buckeyes at various outlets for the last half decade. He is most proud to have attended both wins of the Bengals' 2-14 season in 2019. Nathan is our go-to expert for all things Bengals and Buckeyes.
