The aura around the Buckeyes’ defensive line room during the 2021 season was plenty palpable.

Incoming five-star defensive ends Jack Sawyer and J.T. Tuimoloau added to the hype surrounding the room at the start of the year. Ohio State saw one more season from both linemen Haskell Garrett and Tyreke Smith before they moved on to the professional level.

Defensive tackles stole the show last season, as the interior Buckeyes broke into the pocket for more sacks than the ends. That statistic alone will be enough to give Ohio State’s edge rushers heading into 2022, hoping to get back to dominant levels seen over recent seasons by Joey Bosa, Nick Bosa and Chase Young.

Even still, though, Ohio State finished among the top-three teams for sacks in the Big Ten last season, totaling at least 37 for the third time in the last four seasons.

Stopping the run was a critical issue for the Buckeyes’ defensive line last season, allowing the two-highest rushing totals in both their losses to No. 5 Michigan and No. 12 Oregon. Ohio State staved off surrendering 226 rushing yards to No. 11 Utah and claimed victory in the Rose Bowl, but it didn’t come easily.

Next up in the Position Previews series in advance of the Buckeyes’ 2022 season is the defensive line room, home to several former Top-50 recruits from a handful of years.

Here are the defensive linemen listed on Ohio State’s roster:

Freshman defensive end Omari Abor

Graduate defensive tackle Jerron Cage

First-year defensive lineman Zach Cicero

Freshman defensive end Caden Curry

Senior defensive end Javontae Jean-Baptiste

Senior defensive end Tyler Friday

Redshirt freshman defensive tackle Michael Hall Jr.

Sophomore defensive tackle Ty Hamilton

Senior defensive end Zach Harrison

Freshman defensive end Kenyatta Jackson

Freshman defensive tackle Hero Kanu

Junior defensive tackle Jaden McKenzie

Second-year defensive lineman Bryce Prater

Second-year defensive lineman Zach Prater

Sophomore defensive end Jack Sawyer

Sophomore defensive end J.T. Tuimoloau

Fifth-year defensive tackle Taron Vincent

Sophomore defensive tackle Tyleik Williams

Cage and Vincent will have some of the most experience coming back into Ohio State’s defensive line room. One year removed from injury, Friday will retake the field alongside some of his longest-tenured teammates.

The Buckeyes brought in four defensive linemen from their 2022 class, a quartet of four stars from four different states. Kanu, in fact, is originally from Germany.

Nearly two-thirds of Ohio State’s defensive line room are underclassmen, with Cicero and the Prater twins being walk-ons.

Harrison leads all returning Buckeye defensive linemen with more than a dozen starts under his belt.

Jean-Baptiste made a handful of starts in 2021 and has the second-most starts of any returning defensive lineman. Even though he missed all of last season, Friday is next with five starts in his career.

Vincent, Tuimoloau, Cage and Hamilton are next with the most starting experience, led by Vincent’s five. He figures to compete for one of the Buckeyes’ starting defensive tackle positions left vacant by Garrett and former lineman Antwuan Jackson.

Defensive tackles led the Buckeyes in sacks

Last season, defensive tackles recorded 16.5 sacks, edge rushers had 15 and the remaining positions accounted for 5.5.

Garrett and Williams found themselves at the top of Ohio State’s sacks leaderboards, each recording at least five with the former just ahead of the latter with 5.5. Harrison led the defensive ends with four sacks.

Known for its dangerous edge rushers over the last handful of seasons, Ohio State saw its defensive tackles claim themselves as breadwinners in 2021. The trend began early in the season, as Garrett returned a 32-yard scoop-and-score in Week 1 at Minnesota.

Williams went three-consecutive weeks with at least one sack Weeks 3-5, totaling two against Akron in a six-tackle performance.

Sawyer and Smith combined for six sacks last season, and the Buckeyes will need to replace the latter as he was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks in the fifth round of the NFL draft in April.

In a program where names like “Bosa” and “Young” are recent staples of the defensive line room, it was the defensive tackles that brought the Buckeyes more sacks last season.

Friday returns from ACL injury

Head coach Ryan Day announced Friday would miss the 2021 season due to an ACL injury suffered leading up to preseason.

It’s not the first time Friday dealt with injuries during his time at Ohio State. He missed three games during the 2020 season, including the College Football Playoff National Championship game against No. 1 Alabama.

But Friday will be ready to return in 2022.

When healthy, Friday presents a capable contributor to the group of Buckeye defensive ends. In 2019, he made eight tackles and two sacks across 11 games, including one sack against former Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence in the Fiesta Bowl.

Friday will enter his fifth season at Ohio State in 2022. An ACL injury sidelined him one year ago, but he’ll return from the ailment and be ready at the start of the preseason.

Johnson is lone returning defensive coach

Day and Ohio State nearly turned over their entire defensive coaching staff during the offseason, bringing in three new coaches for the cornerbacks, linebackers and safeties.

Going into his ninth season with the Buckeyes, defensive line coach Larry Johnson will continue to man his post finding the next edge rushers and tackles to send to the NFL. Ohio State’s rushing defense ranked No. 6 in the Big Ten last season, allowing 126.8 yards per game on the ground.

The 2022 season obviously won’t be Johnson’s first rodeo, but it’ll be different than many of the years past in that Johnson is the only returning Buckeye defensive coach. For more than two decades, Johnson has coached in the college ranks, so he’ll be around to share wisdom on what it’s like coaching at Ohio State.

Can second-year defensive linemen take the next step?

The Buckeyes hadn’t landed a pair of five-star defensive linemen in nine classes until Sawyer and Tuimoloau broke that streak in 2021.

Adolphus Washington and Noah Spence were the last two five-star defensive ends to commit to Ohio State in the same class. Much like Sawyer and Tuimoloau, one of the two was an in-state recruit and the other came from outside Ohio.

While Sawyer and Tuimoloau commanded most of the attention going into last season, Williams made a statement with 6.5 tackles for loss and five sacks as a true freshman.

Hall will also play in his second season as a Buckeye this fall, making an appearance in four games last season before redshirting. The former four-star contributed a tackle for loss and provided depth behind Garrett and Jackson in 2021.

Ohio State’s four-man 2021 defensive line class met expectations and even exceeded them last season. All four figure to earn more reps this preseason and jockey for more game action, and what’s left to find out is who takes the most advantage.

How does the “Leo” affect the defensive line?

New defensive coordinator Jim Knowles is lauded for his football mind, and one of his unique concepts could come to Ohio State in the form of the “Leo.”

Knowles’ “Leo” position is a hybrid linebacker, one that can line up close to the tackle box or drop back in coverage. The objective of the “Leo” is to stop the run and work in the passing game, leaving opposing teams guessing on the disguise.

Knowles tabbed sophomore defensive-lineman-turned-linebacker Mitchell Melton during the spring, but an injury during the spring game will force him to miss “significant” time in 2022, according to Day.

Knowles has also said he likes Curry, Jean-Baptiste and Sawyer for his hybrid linebacker position. He began working on applying and coaching the position during the spring, and with an injury ruffling some of the cards, the Buckeyes and Knowles may be reconsidering who and how they can make the “Leo” fit in their defense.

Harrison leads multiple Buckeyes to First Team All-Big Ten for first time since 2019

Arriving as Ohio State’s prized five-star defensive end recruit in 2019, some labeled Harrison as the next “Chase Young” or NFL-caliber defensive end to move through the program in three seasons.

Plans didn’t unravel as expected over Harrison’s first three seasons — and he’s back for a fourth.

A pandemic-impacted 2020 season threw Harrison’s sophomore season for a loop, seeing him make just one start after making two as a true freshman but still forcing his way for a pair of sacks and Second Team All-Big Ten recognition by conference coaches.

Earning captain status last season, Harrison put his head down and assumed a starting position on Ohio State’s defensive line, starting all 12 games and setting a new career high with four sacks. The Lewis Center, Ohio, native led all defensive linemen with 34 tackles in 2021 en route to Big Ten coaches naming him to the all-conference Third Team.

No Buckeye defensive linemen made the First Team All-Big Ten for the second-straight season; Ohio State had a defensive lineman make the First Team in each year from 2010-19.

The timeline may have shifted, but Harrison can still be on track to take his talents to the NFL. A big senior season in 2022 can see him being one of the top defensive linemen off the board in the 2023 NFL draft.

Harrison could be accompanied by a variety of his defensive line teammates. Cage or Vincent could take advantage of one final season at Ohio State, or Sawyer or Tuimoloau could lead the youth movement for a second season in a row to help the Buckeyes’ defensive line address stopping opposing teams up front.