Ohio defensive line coach Pete Germano knows depth is key to his group’s success.
Despite losing a quartet of talented pass rushers in the offseason, Germano is encouraged by how many experienced linemen remain, as he aims to keep the unit strong.
“The first thing you think of is, ‘I lost four starters,’” he said. “But I got five (other) guys that played (last year). So they’re battle-tested and ready to go. The challenge is, there’s a big group of young kids below them.”
In one offseason, Tarell Basham, Casey Sayles, Kurt Laseak and Tom Strobel graduated from Ohio’s defensive line.
That equates to four every-game players, the school’s all-time sack leader (Basham), nearly half of the last year’s sack production and a big chunk of the sixth-best run defense in the NCAA (105.8 yards allowed per game).
This year’s four-man front, however, will still feature several familiar faces. Redshirt seniors Cleon Aloese, Kevin Robbins, Tony Porter as well as redshirt junior Kent Berger, each played in 11 or more games last year.
“I’m leaning on those guys to pick up where we left off,” Germano said. “My goal and my job is to get the younger guys caught up so we can continue to play eight guys.”
Using a rotation of eight or nine linemen last year served the dual purpose of keeping starters energized, while giving players behind them an opportunity for game reps. Now that many of the top contributors are gone, it’ll be up to the younger players to fight for spots in the rotation on game day.
Germano won’t cycle players in solely to keep the starters fresh, he said. In his first year back with the Bobcats (he spent the past five seasons at Fresno State after he coached Ohio from 2001-12), he’s still learning which of the younger players will fit best.
Injuries in fall camp have already cut down his options. Redshirt freshman Amir Miller is out for the year with a torn ACL, while Wyatt Shallman, a grad transfer who played fullback and special teams at Michigan, has a leg injury that is expected to keep him out until November.
“We need some backups,” redshirt sophomore Chukwudi Chukwu said. “We’re all working hard because we realize we don’t have that much cushion, and we realize that we’re going to get a lot of reps as well this year.”
Saturday’s matchup against Hampton, a Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) school, will be the first true look for Germano to see who’s ready to join his defensive line rotation. By midseason, if all goes according to plan, he’ll have a group of eight or nine linemen that bring energy and results on every snap.
“Especially our young guys, they still need to learn,” Aloese said. “They need playing time. Practice is different from when it’s a game situation. When you’re in a game, everything moves fast. If we leave, someone’s gotta step up and that’s gonna be our young guys.”
