Columbus, OhioWith a gold trophy to round out the first chapter of Ryan Day’s career, Ohio State started his next challenge: climbing the mountain once more.
As OSU’s fifth national championship head coach, Day has already cemented his place in the school’s history. How much higher, though, can he go? Is there any item that can start a legendary run now that the monkey has been removed from his back? Or will it be the one bright spot in his life that he never gets to experience again?
The 2025 Cotton Bowl rematch against Texas in Columbus serves as an early test of his quest to determine which way he will lean. The first glimpse of Day’s upcoming chapter as head coach of the Buckeyes comes from that game. A few members of the winning squad from the previous year are still there, but a lot has changed since the reset button was pressed. As Michigan is the last remaining black mark, he will attempt to correct the ship along the journey.
The 2025 season lays the groundwork for what will happen next rather than being a turning point for Day. At Buckeye Talk, we examine that new basis piece by piece.
Today, that continues with an examination of a team aiming to fully execute a program tagline.
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Where it s been
The rebirth of the position group’s motto, B.I.A. Best In America, will be embodied by Denzel Burke’s career as an Ohio State cornerback.
The moment Jeff Okudahand was killed, the notion that the Buckeyes were the best cornerbacks in America vanished.Following the 2019 season, Damon Arnette was selected in the first round of the NFL Draft. Two years of mediocre cornerback play followed, which was frequently the main cause of the explosive passing plays that some of those teams allowed.
The road back to glory then started in 2021 when Burke surprisingly started on a rainy Thursday night in the season opener against Minnesota.
Over the previous four years, Burke wasn’t flawless. His career highs included four interceptions, 28 pass breakups, and a 56.6% completion rate against. One of his lowest points was a regular-season loss to Oregon, where he had seven targets and seven catches for 162 yards and two scores.
Despite being the lowest-rated cornerback in OSU’s 2021 recruiting class—bested only by Jordan Hancock and J.K. Johnson, who subsequently transferred to LSU—he is the one who kept the room together while it was being rebuilt.
Burke established the stage for the better future that Tim Walton, the cornerbacks coach, has now brought about. Burke served as a link between the darkest moments of the past and the more optimistic expectations for the future, for better or worse.
He lived true to the adage “leaving something better than you found it” as the Arizona native returns home after being selected by the Cardinals in the fifth round this past April.
With five-star players and highly regarded recruits now saturating the roster, B.I.A. is officially back. And it owes its comeback to the former No. 199 player in the 2021 class, who was first signed to play wide receiver for Brian Hartline.
Burke stated at the NFL Combine, “We did a great job of bringing B.I.A. back for two or three years now.” It’s at a fantastic location. Coach Walt has it in excellent hands. I’m excited to watch the boys play.
Where it s at
Walton spent three years assembling the elite recruiting talent that now fills the cornerback room, second only to Hartline’s efforts at wide receiver in terms of both quantity and quality.
In 2023, Davison Igbinosun from Ole Miss was added to the transfer site, marking the beginning of that redevelopment. He combined it with Cincinnati prospect Jermaine Mathews, who went from being an underutilized prospect to a top 60 recruit during his final summer as a high school athlete.
In 2024, Walton’s next position involved two Ohio children who were becoming highly regarded athletes.Five-star Aaron Scott Jr. chose to remain at home rather than play for Michigan or Oregon.As another illustration of OSU’s efforts to restore its Glenville pipeline under Day, Bryce West, who will play nickel, was a top 70 prospect.
Walton then received the ultimate reward from the 2025 class in the form of Devin Sanchez, the nation’s best cornerback who, fair or not, is frequently compared to Jeremiah Smith in his cornerback form.
Watching Na eem Offordflip to Oregon has been the only defeat in the last three years. But because of all the other victories, that loss only seems so significant.
Thus, OSU will have two cornerbacks in 2025:
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Igbinosun: a three-year starter who might be a first-round pick if he can stop committing so many penalties;
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Mathews: a highly rated kid from Southern Ohio with a dog-like mentality on the verge of a breakout season;
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Scott: a five-star who is probably isn t being talked about enough as a guy ready to play meaningful snaps in Year 2;
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Sanchez: a potential ready-made freshman talent that might one day be the best of all of them.
That’s how a room is rebuilt. The next stage is to transform what is currently only hope based on high school recruiting rankings into a productive bunch for a defense searching for fresh talent. He accomplished this by emphasizing the mindset required to achieve that.
Walton remarked, “No one cares that you’re young.” When the game is about to start, they are tossing the ball over there. The competition is fierce, and you must mature quickly. We advocate for competitiveness. We don’t hesitate to do it. Regardless of whether you are a third-year student or an incoming student, you must get up and go.
Where it s headed
In terms of the caliber of talent that Ohio State’s cornerback room receives each year, Walton has succeeded in his goal. Maintaining it will be the next challenge.
Can he be mindful of the state and ensure that the upcoming class of Ohio cornerbacks, who are highly regarded, aren’t tempted to go elsewhere?Walton has established enough credibility that you can overlook Elbert Hillleaving for USC, so it’s not a concern. so long as it’s a one-time thing.
How does he adjust to a world where the greatest athletes in the country, particularly those who play a premium NFL position, frequently base their selections primarily on financial considerations?
He has added Jordan Thomas and Jakob Weatherspoon, two players outside the top 150, to the 2026 class because he believes they could be diamonds. He has the opportunity to showcase his talent, which can contribute to creating a well-balanced space.
Above all, will he be able to complete the final puzzle piece?
Since Okudah and Arnette, Ohio State has not had a cornerback selected in the first round. Not even a Day 2 pick has been made for it. If they fulfill their potential, Igbinosun, Mathews, Scott, and Sanchez have the profiles to put an end to that drought.
Should that occur, the Buckeyes may have another run that can match Kerry Coombs’ ability to consistently push out NFL players during the Urban Meyer era.
