New Orleans -- They're just a bunch of old guys doing their jobs. Ask the Ohio State defensive players about Arkansas quarterback Ryan Mallett, and they say he's the best quarterback they've seen this season. Ask them about themselves, they'll talk about doing their 1/11th, one man's portion of the defense, until you never want to hear about fractions...
View full sizeOhio State defensive coordinator Jim Heacock.New Orleans -- They're just a bunch of old guys doing their jobs. Ask the Ohio State defensive players about Arkansas quarterback Ryan Mallett, and they say he's the best quarterback they've seen this season. Ask them about themselves, they'll talk about doing their 1/11th, one man's portion of the defense, until you never want to hear about fractions again.
It's been Ohio State's defensive shtick for two seasons. They're the Silver Bullets, they've called themselves a bunch of no-names. But when asked about Ohio State's defense Friday, the Arkansas Razorbacks followed the same talking points.
"They do their assignments because they trust their teammates," Arkansas tight end D.J. Williams said. "I don't think they're going to make too many mistakes or beat themselves.
"You have other defenses that have standout guys and they let them freelance and go make plays, or some defenses do unsound things to try to confuse an offense.
"What's impressive about their [the Buckeyes'] defense is that you don't see anybody trying to stand out or taking anything away from anybody else. They all work as a unit. That's huge for a defense, one guy sacrificing his body for other guys to make plays, and they will do that."
The talk of the Sugar Bowl has surrounded four Ohio State junior starters on offense facing suspensions in 2011. When considering what to do with that situation, OSU coach Jim Tressel asked his seniors for their opinions, and there just so happens to be seven longtime senior starters on defense -- defensive linemen Cameron Heyward and Dexter Larimore, linebackers Brian Rolle and Ross Homan, cornerbacks Chimdi Chekwa and Devon Torrence and safety Jermale Hines -- who have started 210 games among them.
"It's great coach Tressel would include us in that conversation," Homan said. "The seniors know they're our brothers, and we're a team and we're all for them."
And they're all for each other. The Buckeyes' defenders know the Arkansas offense is explosive and filled with stars. Some of the old SEC speed talk seeped back into the conversation Thursday. Ohio State's defense vs. the Arkansas offense is the most critical matchup of the Sugar Bowl, specifically the ability of the OSU front four to get pressure on Mallett.
After what's happened with the Buckeyes the past month, maybe it's best that a drama-free senior class that worked through four years with virtually no issues on or off the field steps to the front. With just three senior starters on offense, the seniors' imprint is felt most on the defensive side.
"Being seniors, you start to look around and assess not only how good guys are, but what kind of people they are," Larimore said. "These guys are the kind of guys it's good to be a part of."
"They're an unbelievable group of seniors," OSU co-defensive coordinator Jim Heacock said. "They've been great to be around ever since they've been here. They work hard and do the right things. It's an honor for us to be around them and coach them."
During this bowl prep, they haven't had to coach them as much. Co-defensive coordinator Luke Fickell and middle linebacker Rolle both said practice has reached the point where many things don't need to be said. Coaches think it, seniors know it. And Arkansas sees it.
"You can tell they have veteran players because it's like they understand what's going on," Arkansas offensive coordinator Garrick McGee said. "Their middle linebacker, he understands when you're running the ball or when you're running play-action passes."
McGee said the defensive line and linebackers effectively coordinate disguising their defensive looks. The secondary is big. The safeties can tackle. Heyward can "disrupt the game all by himself," McGee said.
But it's all within the now familiar framework. And with this experience, Fickell said the defense is great at making and communicating in-game adjustments, because so many defenders have seen it all before. He said, for instance, that was more of a problem in Ohio State's last trip to New Orleans, for the national title three years ago, when the defense was younger.
Will all this be enough to stop Arkansas? It might be enough, but at the very least, the Buckeyes won't try to make it too much.
"They play disciplined and they aren't too aggressive," Arkansas running back Knile Davis said. "I can definitely tell they're mature. I can tell they're in their gaps where they need to be. There's not too much tricky and you can't really trick them, so I can definitely tell they're an older bunch.
"Every defense plays a little different. Some people are over-aggressive, like Mississippi State wanted to stop the run and they didn't really care about the pass. But with Ohio State, that's not the case. They do their job. That's all you can ask for. Because spectacular can get you in trouble sometimes."
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