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Jim Knowles welcomes pressure at Ohio State: ‘I don’t think we’re far off’
By Keith Farner
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Jim Knowles knows what’s ahead of him at Ohio State, and understands that the task of repairing the Buckeyes defense is not an “entry-level job.”
So the former Oklahoma State defensive coordinator welcomes the challenge, and said as much during his first meeting with reporters since taking the Buckeyes job.
“There is a lot of pressure,” Knowles said Monday, per the Columbus Dispatch. “I mean, that’s not lost on me. This is not an entry-level position, you know. To those that a lot has been given, a lot is expected.”
Coach Ryan Day has said he intends for Knowles to be a “defensive head coach,” and Knowles understands what’s ahead of him in 2022 from what he’s studied about the Ohio State’s 2021 defense.
“From what I’ve seen, I don’t think we’re far off,” Knowles said, and added that he’s encouraged by the potential there.
Knowles’ scheme is based on disguising intentions and attacking the opposing offense’s vulnerabilities. Knowles wants to use 2 or 3 basic alignments from which the defense has the flexibility to do several things.
“We want to be able to create indecision for the offense and particularly for the offensive coordinator,” he said. “I think in college, offensive coordinators even have more hands-on things that happen than in the NFL, so we want to be able to create multiple defenses, and out of simple looks, and to be creative in a way that the players can understand.”
Knowles said he wasn’t looking to leave Oklahoma State, but he was lured to Ohio State by its community, tradition and ability to compete for national championships on a consistent basis.
Keith Farner has written about college football for newspapers and web sites since 2005.