Ohio State sophomore safety Orhian Johnson could have been an Indiana quarterback, but with injuries in the secondary, the Buckeyes need to him to play like a veteran against the Hoosiers.
View full size"I definitely feel like I've come a long way from my freshman year in knowing the defense and knowing where I need to be," says former high-school quarterback and now college safety Orhian Johnson. "But I feel as if I still have more room for improvement."THE JOHNSON FILE
Orhian Johnson: OSU soph strong safety
Ht./wt.: 6-2, 205 pounds
The scoop: Was a three star recruit out of St. Petersburg, Fla., and recruited by some teams as a quarterback, though Ohio State always saw him as a safety. ... Will make his fourth career start against Indiana on Saturday. ... Was expected to win the starting job in preseason camp before he was sidelined by calf injury that allowed sophomore C.J. Barnett to win the job. Coaches also indicated they thought Johnson let down after assuming the job was his. ... Came back into the starting lineup when Barnett was lost for the season after hurting his knee against Miami. ... Tied for ninth on the team with 12 tackles, and has forced one fumble.
— Doug Lesmerises
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Two of Orhian Johnson's best options in recruiting were playing safety at Ohio State or quarterback at Indiana.
While the native of St. Petersburg, Fla., was in high school, coaches for the Hoosiers told him not to let other schools take the ball out of his hands. If Johnson had listened, he might be preparing for the Ohio State defense this week instead of being part of the defense preparing for the Indiana quarterback.
"I mean, with my goals, of course I think I would have hopefully made it to the Heisman and those other good things," Johnson said with a smile.
In reality, the third-year sophomore probably would have been backing up Indiana fifth-year senior and starting quarterback Ben Chappell. With the Buckeyes, Johnson will make his fourth career start Saturday as part of a secondary that has grown even younger with freshman Christian Bryant stepping in for senior Tyler Moeller, who is out for the season after tearing a pectoral muscle at Illinois last week.
Johnson entered the starting lineup after sophomore C.J. Barnett was lost for the season after injuring his knee against Miami. OSU safeties coach Paul Haynes on Wednesday admitted that the Buckeyes are at the limit of secondary injuries they can handle without really digging into the depth chart.
As Bryant and Johnson continue to find their way, they'll have to rely on their natural skills, and Johnson has plenty of those.
"He can jump out of the gym and run fast and do everything," OSU senior cornerback Chimdi Chekwa said. "So we have high expectations for him."
"He's a crazy athlete," senior Jermale Hines said. "He's probably the most athletic on the team besides Terrelle."
At 6-foot-2 and 205 pounds, Johnson isn't as big as 6-6, 235-pound Terrelle Pryor, but he might be the closest thing to Pryor the Buckeyes have on the roster. Indiana saw Johnson as a dual-threat quarterback, and Johnson said he could do it all under center, though he was a sucker for the big play.
"Every down I was trying to score. I went too much for the big play," Johnson said. "That's why I never criticize the quarterback because no else knows how that really feels until you've got 300 pounds in front of you and you're trying to look downfield. That's a tough job."
It's a job he wasn't attached to.
Johnson's final three choices in recruiting were the Buckeyes, the Hoosiers and South Florida, which also saw him as a quarterback.
Johnson said the Hoosiers showed him a lot of love and he seriously thought about going to Indiana, but he considered his future teammates more important than his position.
Johnson said he committed to the Buckeyes on National Signing Day in 2008 because of the friendships he'd established with fellow recruits Etienne Sabino, Travis Howard, Mike Brewster, DeVier Posey and Jake Stoneburner.
Then the quarterback, who also played some defensive back in high school, went about becoming a safety.
"I knew I wasn't great at any one position because of the fact I had played so many positions," Johnson said. "But I looked at it as more of a plus that I could fit in at a lot of places on the field. I definitely feel like I've come a long way from my freshman year in knowing the defense and knowing where I need to be. But I feel as if I still have more room for improvement."
He does.
Johnson was late making plays on several throws against Eastern Michigan two weeks ago. In the wind at Illinois last week, the secondary wasn't tested much. Hines said Johnson was making some small mistakes, while Chekwa said he's maybe more critical of Johnson than others because he sees so much potential.
But with Bryant now in the lineup, and Hines having to take the freshman under his wing, Johnson is no longer the young guy the seniors in the back end can protect. Now he really needs to be ready to be not just a football player, but a safety.
"We've got to make sure we're not happy just going out there and getting lined up. We've got to make plays," Haynes said. "He's been solid for us. He just needs to step up and make some plays."
Haynes believes that in the right system, Johnson could have been a college quarterback. Maybe it would have worked at Indiana. The best thing for the Buckeyes would be for Johnson to play safety Saturday in a way that makes the Hoosiers really wish he was theirs.
Injury update: Ohio State senior backup receiver Grant Schwartz was taken to the Ohio State Medical Center after going down during practice on Wednesday. He had movement in his extremities when he was taken to the hospital, and Schwartz's father told Channel 10 in Columbus that his son was released from the hospital and was fine. ... Quarterbacks coach Nick Siciliano said Pryor was full-go in practice again on Wednesday and looked fine after straining his thigh against Illinois. ... Tight end Stoneburner practiced some on Wednesday, according to tight ends coach John Peterson, but his status for Saturday with a high ankle sprain has still not been determined. He missed last week's game.