Hickman Endorses Buckeye Defense Ahead of Conference Battle at Rutgers

Those errors were chalked up to the young secondary’s lack of experience and mostly went away after the 48-hour news cycle expired.

The defensive concerns reared their ugly head once more however the very next weekend after Ohio State’s loss to Oregon. The Ducks posted over 500 yards of total offense in the game.

Hickman assured the media these struggles were nothing more than growing pains, and that the defensive stars of tomorrow would reach their potential by following the fundamentals, like eye control.

“Our coaches have made it (clear) to us that it's critically important for us to stay on top of those things, with us being young and not having the experience,” Hickman said, “We’ve been taught rules, and if we follow those rules, we’ll be good.”

Hickman spoke as well about defensive coordinator Kerry Coombs and safeties coach Matt Barnes.

Coombs was recently moved from the sideline to the press box, a role many said was a demotion.

However Hickman said Barnes and Coombs both excel at their jobs and are a fantastic partnership.

“They both do a great job of coaching what needs to be coached,” Hickman said, “They both work well together.”

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