Ohio State co-offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson
Q. You mentioned Isaiah Simmons. Have you seen anyone like him?
KEVIN WILSON: Watching him, he’s a guy that can come off the edge like a defensive end. And he’s seen back there running in the middle of the field, covering — ten, five-ish, whatever he is. He’s got range, he’s got length. Creating space. Brent does a nice job bringing on these pressures. Use him in certain situations almost as a hybrid rusher.
He’s a guy that sometimes will spy around and have on the quarterback. He does a lot of jobs. And I’m sure there are some guys that aren’t quote, faster. I’m sure there are some guys that are bigger, stronger, but the combination of length, size, and speed, that’s an unusual guy. What I think is pretty neat is how Brent in his mind created a position for him. Played to his skill set, which is pretty unique.
Q. What impresses you the most when you turn on the film and you’re watching him (Isaiah Simmons) play?
KEVIN WILSON: All of the multiple jobs. Because for example, I coach tight end. That means you play left tackle and wide receiver. So sometimes we have to pass block in practice, Chase Young. Then you have to go down and you’re playing one-on-one against [Jeff] Okudah. That’s a hard, hard job. It takes a skill set. This guy has a skill set. He’s playing in space and perimeter. He’s playing man-to-man. He’s pressuring. He’s playing in the box, running through the “A” gap and blitzes like an internal linebacker.
So, one, he has the skill set to do it. And the next thing, he has the courage and the mindset to do it, because a lot of guys wouldn’t want to do that. Brent [Venables] has done a great job of finding some things that are unique and great to make him a special player. I think he’s done a great job of selling him on what he could become.
He was a freshman and Lawrence Taylor was a senior, and no one played defense like that. And no one knew how to coach it. Nobody had a guy who could come up the edge and do that. So I think Brent thought, Here’s an unusual skill set. Let’s be sound in what we’re doing. Have it structured and say, Let’s play to an unusual skill set and move this cat all over the field. It’s pretty neat.
The best thing about it is no one talks about. Those inside linebackers are tough as heck. Calling the plays, too, now. They don’t have the flash. Those guys are some old-school ball players. They get no notoriety. I know Venables, he loves the inside guys. Isaiah gets all of the credit for being the dude, the guy. Those guys inside are tremendous players that complement the whole thing. It is pretty neat.
Q. What kind of difference have you seen in the maturation of J.K. [Dobbins] in terms of adapting to the offense from where he was in his first two years?
KEVIN WILSON: His first year, he graduated early. He showed up, and I showed up in January, after this game a couple of years ago. And he was unbelievable that spring. First of all, he had broken his ankle his senior year in high school in game one. It was either game one or a pre-season scrimmage.
So he didn’t have a senior year, so he was hungry. He had an unbelievable year. And with that year at Ohio State, when you have that kind of year, you get a lot of hype. He got a lot of hype. Last year, I felt — I didn’t coach him a great deal — I felt the hype was so much he was looking for the big play and the big year. And my mentor in coaching was a guy named Randy Walker, who was head coach at Northwestern and Miami Ohio. I was with the guy a long time. He was a great running back coach. He said you go for nickels. There’s not a lot of dollar bills laying on the ground, but there’s a bunch of nickels. Go get a nickel, go get a nickel, you’ll get your dollar.
This year, back in preseason, Coach [Tony] Alford and Coach [Ryan] Day did a great job with J.K. about stick it and run hard. Don’t look for the big play. Run hard, they’ll happen. He’s matured where he has confidence now where he doesn’t try to make a big play. He tries to just trust his read and run hard, and naturally those things happen. A year ago, he had a really good year, but maybe it was off a little bit because I think he was wanting so bad the big things to happen.
This year, I think he’s just come back to the fundamentals of being a fundamental guy, playing hard. And with that, I think he’s one of the best running backs I’ve been around. And I’ve had a couple now. I had a guy named Peterson [Kerlegrand] for three years. I’ve seen a couple guys who can tow the rock. That guy has had an unbelievable year. We had two guys at the Heisman. That guy — no disrespect — those are two special players. Mr. Dobbins does not take a backseat to those guys. I love that kid. He’s a great player.
Q. Is it fair to compare Justin [Fields] to Dwayne [Haskins]?
KEVIN WILSON: No. It is different.
Q. How different are they?
KEVIN WILSON: They’re both still growing, both young. Both have not played a lot of football. Year ago, I saw Dwayne through 14 games. This will be Justin’s 14th game. So they’re still young in the process. Dwayne probably a little bit more trained naturally, accurate thrower, good movement skills, but not Mr. Runner. This guy can run, but with a great throwing skill set. And a high-end skill set.
If his throwing really gets polished, as good as Dwayne was, Justin could be one of the premier players that has played the game ever. He’s a smart kid. They’re both smart. They’re both great kids, both great families. Both have had short-term success. They’re both set up for high-end success. Justin may be a little bit more natural, God-given skill with athleticism.
Q. I know you weren’t here the last time these two teams played in the College Football Semifinal. Are the seniors telling anything to the other players about that game, revenge, motive going on here?
KEVIN WILSON: I have not heard it. I don’t say that because I’m talking to you. Most of those guys that were part of that were on a scout team, being red-shirted, played minimally. We’ve had a lot of success since then. They have, too. I think we see it more this year. I think with Coach Day being here, it is a little different deal now.
No disrespect. It was Coach Meyer’s staff at the time. We’ve had some changes, new defensive coaches. Coach Day, a new head coach. Myself and Coach Day, Coach Mattison, Coach Hafley, we all go back to the game, because we saw it from afar. It is more about this team competing and preparing to play a great Clemson team.