Ryan Watts Positioning Himself to Contribute at Cornerback After Quiet First Year at Ohio State

Verbally, neither Kerry Coombs nor any other coach on Ohio State’s staff talked much in the public sphere about cornerback Ryan Watts last fall. Then a true freshman, his name almost never came up from the coaches in interviews or press conferences throughout the first season of his collegiate career.

Their actions, however, spoke significantly louder.

Offenses took blowtorches to the Buckeyes’ pass defense from the beginning of the season until it ended with Alabama’s Mac Jones throwing for 464 yards and five touchdowns, and yet Watts sat. Once Cameron Brown ruptured his Achilles, Coombs and Matt Barnes were down to just Shaun Wade and Sevyn Banks as outside cornerbacks. That didn’t much…