Senior defensive end Jack Sawyer says Ohio State is ready to get to work with Akron coming in for Saturday's season opener.
Steve Helwagen
Ohio State senior defensive end Jack Sawyer did not mince words this week when he was asked about what it meant for him to be selected as a team captain going into his final year with the Buckeyes.
"It meant everything to me," said Sawyer, a product of nearby Pickerington North High School. "It's one of the most special moments of my life. It's something that I've dreamt of since I committed here. So, for it to happen the way it happened, it was awesome. It was definitely one of my favorite moments of my life."
Sawyer was among a group of Ohio State seniors who considered a jump to the NFL but decided last January to come back for their senior year. Sawyer was among the first to make that decision and then lobbied others to follow his lead.
That is similar to the recruiting process he had back in 2020 and 2021, when he verbaled early to OSU and helped recruit others to join him.
Sawyer was asked how he has tried to show leadership.
"I just think that Coach Mick (Marotti) always says leaders have to be heard, seen, and felt," Sawyer said. "I think that this whole offseason now, with the team we've got, I know that with great leadership that we can go as far as we want.
"I just tried to take that leadership role in the weight room and off the field and outside of the Woody. So it's been great. I think a lot of guys have done a great job as well."
The Buckeyes have been installed as the No. 2 team in the preseason polls as they go into Saturday's season opener against Akron (3:30 p.m., CBS). Sawyer and his fellow seniors have yet to notch a win over Michigan or win a Big Ten championship. But he said he is optimistic after going through a spirited preseason camp with this new team.
"I think we feel really good," Sawyer said. "I think we're in a really good spot, and we're all just champing at the bit to get on the field this Saturday. And we can't wait to put our product on the field. It feels like a long time coming to when we all decided to come back.
"Then we got the big pieces we added (in the transfer portal) and then with the off-season we've had, it feels like a long time coming, building to this point. We just can't wait to put it on the field Saturday."
The 6-5, 265-pound Sawyer realized some of his immense potential as he earned second-team All-Big Ten honors as a junior in 2023. Sawyer is a veteran of 39 games with 13 starts. He enters his senior year with 19.5 tackles-for-loss (second-most among current Buckeyes) and a team-best 14.0 quarterback sacks, in addition to 84 tackles.
In 2023, he ranked second among all defensive linemen with 48 tackles and leading all linemen with 24 solo stops. His tackle totals last year included team-high totals of 10 tackles-for-loss, for 46 yards in losses, and 6-1/2 quarterback sacks.
He is one of nine returning starters on a defense that was among the nation's best. After allowing 21 points per game in 2022, the Buckeyes trimmed that averaged down to a stellar 11.2 points allowed per game in 2023.
Click here to see the full video of Sawyer's comments from this week. Below, we have more of his pertinent comments.
More Comments From Jack Sawyer
Here were more of Sawyer's comments leading into the opener:
* On his three-sack game against Missouri in the Cotton Bowl – "Yeah, I think that ending the season the way it did, it sucked losing. But obviously, like you said, playing pretty well, definitely gives you a little boost going into the off-season.
"I think that my confidence grew the whole second half of the season, I feel like I played my best football since I've been here. So I'm just really excited to, after a long off-season, a lot of hard work we all put in, we're all in a really great spot."
* On Alabama transfer Caleb Downs at safety – "He's a guy who, the minute he came here, he's just so mature for his age, and a super hard worker. He is always in the Woody, always studying something and super smart. And I feel like he diagnoses his plays so quick from the safety position.
"He's only a sophom*ore, but he's such a veteran guy already. So he just brings more, that veteran savvy that you need for this defense. So I think he's been great."
* On what he has seen from QB Will Howard – "Will, he's a big dude, like 6-4, 235, 240, and can run. And he's a great guy off the field, he jelled really well in this locker room. From the minute he stepped foot on campus, that was no problem for him at all.
"I'm really excited to see what he brings this Saturday. And he's put in a lot of hard work, super team first guy, and an excellent player from what I've seen. So I'm really excited for him to come and go on the field Saturday."
* On his finish to last season – "Yeah, I think it gives me a lot of confidence. I think for a lot of guys, we started playing our best ball, especially on the defensive side of the ball, that second half of the season. And so we're just all excited, like I said, just champing at the bit to get to Saturday. We can't wait to put the pads on, be in the shoe with 100,000-plus fans, and put on a good performance."
* On chasing perfection with the defense – "We've talked a lot about shutouts, and I'm not going to say that's the expectation.
"But we think that our defense is good enough to go out there and win the game for us, and there's nothing wrong with saying that because that's why we all came back. We came back to be the best defense in the country. And I think that the expectation's got to be super high for us.
"We've got to hold each other to a high standard, which we have. And I'm just really excited to see it all come together in a game format against somebody else other than our offense."
* On missing on shutouts in a few games last year, allowing just three points three times and seven points twice – "Yeah, and that pissed us off too, giving them three points up. But we're really excited for the opportunity to hopefully get one of those this year."
* On his DE mate J.T. Tuimoloau – "J.T., he's taking that next step. He's super focused in this whole off-season. We've been really dialed in and trying to pinpoint stuff that we can get better at, specifically attacking and really trying to focus in and get better on those things. I think that he has. He looks great this whole fall camp and leading up to this game, so far this game prep week, so he's definitely taken huge strides.
"And I think a lot of people would give him unfair criticism too, because they do all expect him to have a Penn State game every game, which is, that's one of the best defensive games anyone's ever played. So it's unfair to say that, but he's been consistently one of the best defensive ends in college football, if you turn on the tape.
"So I'm really excited to get out there with him this year and wreak some havoc off that edge."
* On the high expectations for the ends – "That's something we talk about. I think that's something all four of us and really eight of us on the D-line talk about is being dominant. There's no ceiling to how good we can be this year, and we know that it's all about us going out there and doing it. We can talk about it all day, but until we go out there and do it, it doesn't mean a damn thing.
"So we're all excited to get out there, man, we're hungry. And I've seen this on a different level of determination, to chase greatness that I've seen since I've been here. So like I said, we just can't wait for Saturday."
* On being a prohibitive 49-point favorite against Akron – "I think the challenge is that we're playing, an opponent's coming into our house in the Shoe this week. We've only get eight shots left in the Shoe, and we've got to make every one of them count. And Akron's a good football team. Good head coach (Joe Moorhead), I believe he was the offensive coordinator for Oregon when they beat us here my freshman year. So they're going to be well-coached, they're going to run their offense well, and play good defense.
"And Coach Day always says, it's never about our opponent, it's always about us. If we're executing at a high level and playing fast and physical, then things will take care of itself. So we've got a good opponent in Akron, and we're excited to play them this Saturday."
