COLUMBUS, Ohio — Matt Patricia knows what Ohio State’s defense was capable of last season.
Now, he’s focused on finding out what this year’s group can become.
The Buckeyes return just four defensive starters from last year’s team, leaving Patricia with another significant personnel turnover to navigate in his second season as Ohio State’s defensive coordinator. But Patricia isn’t approaching the 2026 season by trying to recreate last year’s defense. Instead, he’s evaluating a new collection of players with different backgrounds, experiences and skill sets and figuring out how to put them in positions to succeed.
“We had like 51 new players, I think, overall on the team and certainly with the young guys and the transfer guys, it’s just a completely different group,” Patricia said.
That has made the spring and summer an important period for Patricia and his staff as they learn what their new players can do.
The Buckeyes have players arriving from different programs and defensive systems, while younger players already in the program have had to take on larger leadership roles.
“And I think the great thing that’s been interesting to watch through the course of the spring and the summer really, is those different personalities coming from different areas,” Patricia said. “So whether it’s two from one school in the SEC, another from the ACC, another from the Big Ten, and just kind of watching those cultures kind of come in the building and then get on the Buckeye culture here has been pretty cool.”
At the same time, Patricia said Ohio State’s returning players have begun to emerge as leaders and help the newcomers adjust.
“Watching our young guys that have been here really kind of emerge to lead and kind of show them the way has been really neat,” he said.
The next step is figuring out exactly how all of those pieces fit together. Last season, Patricia had to learn what his players did well and then build the scheme around those strengths. He’s going through that process again, only this time without the benefit of having already watched many of these players develop over multiple seasons.
“I think the biggest thing for me was figuring out what could they do,” Patricia said. “What do they do well and how do we fit that into things scheme-wise that they can do well and play fast?”
Patricia acknowledged that the process is similar to what he went through last year, but the personnel is different.
“I feel we’re probably still in the same boat,” Patricia said. “It’s just there’s probably no history behind a couple years of watching them kind of grow and develop, so we have to evaluate that soon to figure out what do they do now.”
And that difference in personnel could lead to a different-looking defense.
“And yes, I think there are different skill sets on the field now than maybe what we had last year, not better or worse, just different,” Patricia said. “So it is really trying to figure out what they do well now.”
That evaluation is already influencing how Patricia is thinking about the defense schematically.
Ohio State has flexibility at linebacker and in the secondary, giving Patricia the ability to adjust personnel based on what opposing offenses put on the field. He said the Buckeyes could use more three-linebacker looks against bigger offensive personnel while also maintaining flexibility with their defensive backs.
“It’s interesting. The game of football kind of cycles through, and what was old is new and vice versa,” Patricia said.
The defensive coordinator also isn’t ruling out different combinations in the secondary as Ohio State continues to determine the best positions for some of its newer players.
“I think we’re still evaluating that through the spring and trying to figure out what are the best positions for those guys,” Patricia said. “Maybe it’s just DBs. I don’t know.”
While the scheme is still taking shape, Patricia emphasized that with so many new players learning the defense, the Buckeyes need to establish trust and consistency before expanding what they can do schematically.
Photo via Ohio State Dept. of Athletics.
