B1G Thoughts: Jack Sawyer, the prince that was promised!

Sawyer has officially become an Ohio State legend, but the job’s not finished.

Every week after the Big Ten games, we will bring you some B1G thoughts on everything that happened! This will include analysis, stats, key players, moments, and more. With the Big Ten expanding from 14 teams to 18 teams in 2024 we will have a bunch of storylines to follow.

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Ryan Day and Ohio State are all in for the 2024 season. Is Oregon a national championship contender or will they stumble in their first Big Ten season? How do the former members of the Big Ten West fair in the new divisionless format?

We track all these storylines and more as the Big Ten hopes to win back-to-back national championships. Check out the I-80 Football Show for more in-depth analysis and to preview the next week of B1G games.

The prince that was promised

Jack Sawyer was supposed to be the third Bosa brother. In some ways, he never lived up to that, but in other ways, he has been all that in more. Sawyer, the Prince who was Promised, is everything right about this program, while simultaneously being the heart and soul.

Don’t take that from me, that is what any player, coach, or staffer has said any chance they get to talk about Jack. Sawyer was the first player to commit to Ryan Day. As a Columbus kid, he was coming to Ohio State anyway, but his trust in Day helped spurn one of the best recruiting classes under Day’s tenure.

After going 0-3 against Michigan, Sawyer was the first draft-eligible junior to announce publicly that he was coming back for his senior season. Like his decision as a high schooler, his commitment led to a surge in players spurning the NFL for another chance at completing one of their three stated goals: Beat That Team Up North, Win the Big Ten, & compete for a National Championship.

After losing to Michigan for the fourth year in a row, Sawyer stood up like Jon Snow against the Bolton Army, refusing to allow the Michigan players to plant a flag in Ohio Stadium. Ohio State claims ‘The Brotherhood’ when it talks about its culture, its locker room, and what makes this program special. Captain Jack is a shining example of The Brotherhood, Where he goes this program follows. After losing to Michigan he could’ve put his head between his legs, but instead, he chose to fight.

Entering the playoffs, Sawyer and the Buckeyes could’ve listened to the noise; They could’ve wilted under the pressure. Instead, Sawyer is having the best four-game stretch of his life — including the Michigan game, where he made what should’ve been a career-defining interception, except the offense couldn’t get the job done.

In his last four games, he has 4.5 sacks, 10 tackles, an interception, and a forced fumble return for a touchdown. In this biggest moment of the Michigan game, he made a play, a play doomed to be forgotten in history because of the outcome. So he turned up the pressure in the biggest moment of the 2024 College Football Playoff.

Fourth-and-goal from the 8-yard line with Texas trying to tie the game and force overtime, Captain Jack rose to the occasion. A strip sack and 83 yards later, Sawyer cemented himself as an Ohio State legend.

The job’s not finished, but this team and this defense will be ready for Notre Dame in the national championship game because Sawyer will be ready. The Columbus Kid, The Prince who was Promised, the heart and soul of the Ohio State Buckeyes is on the precipice of being immortalized in Buckeye Valhalla.

From his backyard in Pickerington to Atlanta he is making his dreams come true. With only 60 minutes left to wear the scarlet and gray, I would not count out Captain Jack.

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Jim Knowles, please fill out this blank check

This entire season and specifically this playoff run, the most impressive unit on the field at any given moment has been Ohio State’s defense. Three games into the playoffs, and this defense is still not getting the respect it deserves.

Heading into the CFP, Tennessee, Oregon, and Texas were three of the best offenses in the country. The Silver Bullets have held them to a combined 52 points, or 17 points per game. Tennessee and Oregon averaged 35 points per game, while Oregon averaged 33 points, meaning Jim Knowles’s defense has held three straight teams to half of their scoring average.

Knowles has been exactly what Ohio State needed when Ryan Day hired him, including as a leader. Rumor has it that an Ohio State staffer commented, “Wow Texas scored fast there,” leading Knowles to drop one of the greatest quotes when compared to the results saying, “They haven’t scored yet”.

Knowles’ defense has come up big in key moments all season, but specifically on the goal line. The Silver Bullets have five goal line stands this season, stopping Penn State, Nebraska, Indiana, and Michigan before this Texas game. Quick math, Knowles’s defense averages a goal-line stand once every three games. The Buckeye offense is pretty, but this defense is the MVP of the season, and if they show up one more time they will carry Ohio State to a national championship.

Through three playoff games, Knowles’ defense has 16 sacks, 28 tackles for loss, 25 passes broken up, an interception, four forced fumbles, and an 83-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown. Despite the numbers and the overwhelming dominance, this defense isn’t referred to like Georgia and Bama defenses of the past decade. Respect or no respect, the Silver Bullets keep fighting, grinding, and putting teams into submission.

Knowles should be proud of his team’s effort, and Ryan Day and Ross Bjork should hand him a blank check before the champagne dries on his shirt if they win the National Championship.

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