Music

Good morning, Bucknotters. Welcome to the Buckknuts Morning 5 here on Friday, March 26, 2021. I am Dave Biddle. I am joined by Jonah Booker for his usual Friday visit.

It's going to be all about Ohio State's linebackers on today's show. We got a chance to interview linebacker coach Al Washington, as well as linebackers Teraja Mitchell and Dallas Gantt yesterday.

Let's start out with Dallas Gantt. He seems locked into a starting middle linebacker job to me, Jay Book, but he will miss spring with the foot injury. He didn't want to get into specifics with the foot how he injured it exactly what it was, but he'll be out for the spring.

He's, you know, indicating he'll be fine for the fall. Your thoughts on Dallas Gantt.

Yeah, it's unfortunate that he's going to miss spring. I thought that he was, you know, really going to need these reps as, as a potential starting Mike linebacker.

But the way things sound when you listen to out Washington, they're extremely high on Dallas, Al even said that he's one of the leaders in the linebacker room.

So that's some very encouraging to hear, especially if a guy's going to be the leader of your middle and your defense, you want him to be the leader in your linebacker room.

I'm excited for him. Hopefully he can get that foot back healthy. He's definitely going to need to get up the speed once the fall starts.

But like you said, all indications are he's going to be one of the starters once the past track won't come to fall.

And to Roger Mitchell's definitely going to be a starter as well. I found it very interesting. We got to speak to two linebackers and it was Dallas Gantt and to Roger Mitchell.

That tells me those two guys are locked in as starters and to Roger Mitchell's healthy. He's waited his turn.

Dallas Gantt's waited his turn. Some of these other guys that are battling for jobs like cave on Pope, we didn't get a chance to talk did not get a chance to talk to or also they've waited their turn. But to Roger Mitchell's a guy.

And we've been talking about him. It seems like for five years, even though this is only been up on his fourth year in the program. I keep saying every year.

It's going to be his breakout year. This year, I'm serious. It's going to be his breakout year. He seems another guy, man. It looks like he's got a starting job locked down and he's healthy. So I'm really excited about Roger Mitchell, Jay Boog.

Yeah, I'm excited as well. He's a very upbeat positive kid always on social media, encouraging people to do the right thing and keeping their heads up.

With him, as you mentioned, he's been in a program for quite a bit of time. Doesn't have a ton of actual game reps. So it's going to be critical for him in that starting role this spring to really harness his skills and develop this game.

I think this year, you know, with the set of linebackers that they have, you're going to see more of the bullet positions. So they're going to be pulling one of those guys up the field.

Hopefully that doesn't just carry some of the other guys who who were banking on seeing the field a lot more this year because with last year, when you had the linebackers that you had, when you have four of her classmen, the coaching staff said that, you know, they kind of shot away from the bullet because that meant you had to pull one of those guys off the field.

Now that they are gone, headed to the NFL, you're going to see that bullet position with a Craig young, potentially filling into that role.

And they have a whole list of other guys that they like in that position. But overall, when you look at their linebacker position, I feel really good about them.

Listen to Al talk about the linebacker position. You can't help but admire Al. He's so well spoken, such a great coach in a high stage, fortunate to have him in that role as a leader.

...