COLUMBUS, Ohio — Josh Proctor knows it was in God’s plan for him to come back for another season.

Heading into 2021, he was mentally prepared, pushed into that leadership role as the elder statesman of the defensive backs at free safety, quarterbacking the entire unit. It was something he was ready for and was willing to do.

But he didn’t get much of a chance.

Three tackles into his second game of the 2021 season, Proctor’s senior season was over,

“When I got up, I couldn’t move my leg,” Proctor recalled. “I just looked down and saw the bone. That’s when I dropped down to the ground.”

The senior safety’s last impression of 2021 was being carted off the field at Ohio Stadium, leg wrapped in an air cast protecting a compound fracture.

From that moment, he knew it wasn’t the end, coming to terms with the path that lay ahead, rehabbing for a chance to be that leader, to be that elder statesman. To leave the Buckeyes on his own terms.

To him, that was God’s plan. And it was clear where Proctor’s path would start.

From the moment Kye Stokes stepped onto campus at Ohio State, he was deemed “mini Proctor.”

The similarities were uncanny: the similar body type, the similar passion and aggression shown at the free-ranging safety position in the middle of the defensive backfield, the speed, the knack for finding the football.

Even in the Ohio State locker room, Stokes was called “mini Proctor, mini Proctor.”

It’s a comparison Stokes likes, instantly gravitating himself toward the veteran he was ecstatic to start playing with, mirroring him, learning from him, picking up his wisdom and keys to the game that brought him to where he is heading into his fifth season with the Buckeyes.

Stokes found himself learning the dos and don’ts of college football from the player he wants to emulate.

“I would say it’s fair,” the four-star safety said of the redshirt senior. “I wouldn’t mind playing like him. He’s a great athlete. That’s big bro. I’ve been mirroring him, I’ve been learning from him, so that’s not a bad comparison at all.”

When Proctor first met Stokes, he saw a player who oozed confidence, a player who wants to be great. He saw that energy, the goofiness, the happiness of a freshman safety eager to please.

Proctor saw a player who wants to play for Ohio State, who loves the game, who will not get discouraged and will not let anyone run over him.

In Stokes, Proctor saw himself. And he knew how hard the journey from Owasso, Oklahoma to Columbus was for him.

“Just from the years being here, I’ve seen how coming in that transition, it gets hard,” Proctor said. “So when I get here, I try and spot out someone who kind of seems like me, who kind of comes in and have that confidence, but not really feeling like yourself around a big place like this.

“Just trying to help him and keep him focused. Let him know that even though like, yeah, you believe you’d be here, you believe you're good enough, like it’s still going to be day-by-day. And you have days where you still have to improve. You're not going to be right there with us from day one. You just have to take it step by step. Just be yourself.”

In a sense, that’s the step-by-step process Proctor continues to go through.

With just over a week to go before Ohio State’s Spring Game, the redshirt senior safety was cleared for team reps for the first time since his injury, putting himself between 80-85% healthy, a full go without contact.

On the injury front, Proctor is ahead of schedule. But he’s still behind.

The safety describes himself as a “ticking time bomb” ready to busrt. He’s a player that defensive coordinator Jim Knowles knows he can use, but doesn’t know exactly what he can do, calling him a player that can really change the game without seeing him at full speed himself.

“He’s what we want at safety,” Knowles said. “So I just want him to get healthy.”

Proctor faces the process of learning Knowles’ playbook without getting those reps — meeting with coaches, stepping and mentally walking through reps on the sideline — while also re-gaining that confidence he had when he was healthy, prowling the Ohio State defensive backfield.

This was the path that Proctor knew faced him when he was carted off the field at Ohio Stadium. But Proctor senses progress, helped by the love and support he felt from those around him every day.

“When you deal with injuries like that, it’s easy to get down in the hole, get down on yourself. And especially if you don’t have the right support around you, like these guys are here,” Proctor said. “They’ve helped me out a lot, helped me out so much, just getting back into the swing of things, getting that confidence back in myself, realizing that it’s going to take day-by-day.I’m not going to feel like myself every day, but it’s definitely important.”

With one more week of spring practice to go, Stokes has already made a clear impact as a freshman.

And Ohio State rewarded him for it.

The freshman safety circled up with the rest of the team as director of player development C.J. Barnett officially welcomed its first freshman onto the team

“This dude has been a presence since he got here,” C.J. Barnett shouted to the rest of the team. “In the weight room, has a great attitude, great work ethic. Around the Woody, infectious attitude. Always smiling. And on the field, he’s been making plays. He’s got a high ceiling to keep working.”

Barnett called Stokes up, removing his black stripe, the second player in the class, along with Oklahoma State transfer safety Tanner McCalister to participate in the team’s ceremony.

“I just came in ready to work,” Stokes said with a smile on his face. “I love you boys with all my heart.”

Stokes has bought in, something Proctor did in 2018 when he first arrived. It’s something Proctor had to do again returning from his compound fracture.

Proctor sees himself in “mini Proctor.” He sees Stokes’ potential.

“I think his ceiling is very high,” Proctor said. “He’s very athletic. He’s long, like me, strong. I think once he gets everything down and learns the playbook, he’ll be OK.”

That’s why Proctor had to come back and battle through injury for one last hurrah.

He had to be the elder statesman to a freshman who seems to be eager to carry on that tradition the redshirt senior is carrying, one dating back to him backing up Jordan Fuller when he first arrived.

“I feel I had to step into that role,” Proctor said. “I feel like it was God’s plan for me to do that.”