Ohio State’s defense hasn’t skipped a beat under Matt Patricia. The front is sturdy, the back end communicates, and the multiplicity Patricia brought from the NFL has translated into clean execution. The Silver Bullets look familiar in all the right ways. They are disciplined against explosives and opportunistic on money downs yet fresh enough to keep offenses guessing. Even with personnel turnover and a new voice, the unit has adopted Patricia’s adjustments quickly, signaling buy-in and a shared language from sideline to huddle.

That invites a natural comparison to Jim Knowles’ tenure. Knowles built an efficient, explosive-averse structure that prized leverage and disguise, often orchestrated from the booth where the panoramic view sharpened his chessboard approach. Patricia, by contrast, has leaned into field-level presence, mixing fronts and coverages without losing the core identity that made last year’s group elite. Both favor clarity for the players and answers for modern offenses, but their delivery systems differ. And there’s one more difference that’s come into focus on Saturdays.

 As reporter Patrick Murphy relayed, “Patricia said it’s good to be on the field calling the defense because he’s being able to communicate with those on the sideline. He said the iPad has been really helpful, as the NFL doesn’t have video like college.” Read straight, it’s logistics. Read between the lines, it can be heard as a subtle dig at Jim Knowles’ booth-first approach. It’s a suggestion that real-time, face-to-face communication and instant video feedback give a tangible edge in the series. The emphasis on in-person interaction, quick corrections, and tablet cutups shows Patricia’s preference to live the game at eye level. Whether intended or not, the contrast is unmistakable: the sideline as a force multiplier versus the press box as a command post.

Patricia’s sideline vantage also dovetails with how he spotlights personnel pillars. He praised defensive tackle Kayden McDonald as “strong in the middle of the defense, which is what you want,” adding that McDonald has been “great” and has “allowed the Buckeyes to push the defense out a little more.” When the nose wins his gap, it compresses the interior, frees the defensive ends to play wider and faster, and opens the call sheet to simulated pressure and late-rotating coverage without sacrificing run integrity. It also lets linebackers trigger downhill with cleaner reads, turning second-and-5 into third-and-7, the down-and-distance where this defense thrives.

Knowles and Patricia are different coaches with distinct advantages, but the mandate in Columbus is still about eliminating explosives, winning leverage, and closing drives. Patricia’s field-first style, amplified by on-the-spot video teaching and direct communication, offers a fresh way to reach that same outcome. And it may also be a quiet commentary on how to keep great defenses nimble in real time. If the middle keeps holding, edges keep setting, and coverage keeps matching route distributions, the only message that matters won’t be a sly dig; it’ll be the scoreboard.

Franklin is uneasy with Knowles’ pace

Penn State’s 34-0 win over FIU disguised a first half that dragged, with rain and execution hiccups slowing a No. 2 team expected to dictate terms from the jump. James Franklin’s post-game focus landed on the defense’s tempo and processing under new coordinator Jim Knowles, signaling that the standard goes beyond a shutout to how quickly calls translate into clean, aggressive football. The message: the result was satisfactory, but the rhythm was not.

Franklin was direct about what needs to change in Knowles’ early install: “Defensively, we’re not playing fast yet,” he said. “They’re still thinking a lot with some of the new wrinkles in the new defense. We’ve got to get some of those things cleaned up so they can play faster and more naturally.” That critique points to communication and assignment clarity as the next steps, so instincts can replace hesitation and the front-seven triggers can hit on time.

Even so, Franklin balanced urgency with optimism by spotlighting emergent pieces that fit Knowles’ vision. “You guys are starting to see what we saw [of Coleman] in camp,” Franklin said of freshman Chaz Coleman. “He wasn’t even here for spring ball, so I think you’re going to just see him continue to take significant strides. But he is quick, he’s twitchy, he’s athletic, he’s 250 pounds and looks skinny.” With flashes from Dani Dennis‑Sutton and depth stepping up amid injuries, the path forward is clear: trim the mental load, lock the communication, and let the talent play at full speed.