The Ohio State defensive line has its veteran leader on the edge well established. That would be redshirt senior Jonathon Cooper. It also has its young star of the future in place. That would be sophomore Zach Harrison.

But what about the players that occupy that middle ground?

The majority of Ohio State's primary rotational pieces at defensive end will be comprised of players from its 2018 recruiting class, where pass rushers like Tyreke Smith, Tyler Friday and Javontae Jean-Baptiste all originated.

It's a talented trio. Smith and Friday were each top 70 overall prospects coming out of high school, and Jean-Baptiste was a four-star in his own right, listed by Rivals as the No. 30 outside linebacker in the country.

But none of them took a huge step forward to separate one from another in 2019, despite Cooper's injury and Chase Young's two-game suspension affording them more opportunities than they may have had otherwise.

In the third edition of our preseason superlatives series, we make our picks for which Buckeye defensive end out of the class of 2018 will make the biggest leap in 2020.