Takeaways from Talking to Every Assistant Coach

For the first time since the end of spring practices, we had the opportunity to talk to all of Ohio State’s assistant football coaches on Tuesday.All 10 of Ohio State’s on-field assistants as well as director of sports performance Mickey Marotti met with the media on Tuesday, giving us the opportunity to get updates on every Ohio State position group and how summer workouts are going for the Buckeyes.Just a few hours after finishing up those interviews, we sat down to record this week’s episode of Real Pod Wednesdays and talk about what stood out to us, including plenty of praise for C.J. Hicks and Sonny Styles, coaches’ initial thoughts on the newest transfer additions and much more.The rundown of what we talked about during our hourlong discussion this week:1:24: Jim Knowles sounds ready to find roles for C.J. Hicks and Sonny Styles10:21: Sonny Styles could be in the mix for the starting free safety job this preseason12:48: Knowles is open to rotating more this year, but there has to be a method to the rotation18:32: Ja’Had Carter is another safety to watch in the preseason23:54: The battle to start opposite Denzel Burke at cornerback is ongoing26:30: Lorenzo Styles might not play a big role right away, but Ohio State likes his potential29:15: What Justin Frye likes about Josh Simmons and how the offensive line could shake out36:40: Frye expected some offensive line struggles this spring, but he’s still optimistic39:36: Avery Henry isn’t likely to play this year, but he’s inspiring his Buckeye teammates41:59: Adding Joe Philbin as an analyst is a great hire46:22: Tywone Malone is fully focused on football now, which excites Larry Johnson50:16: Corey Dennis isn’t ready to name a starting quarterback yet56:30: Tony Alford’s running back room is as deep as it’s ever been59:00: Parker Fleming feels Ohio State’s kicker competition is “in a good place”1:00:25: There’s plenty of optimism entering year two for Knowles’ defense