All Kai Caesar has wanted to do for seven months is tackle somebody.
The redshirt junior has been itching for his fourth season at Ohio to begin since spring camp began in March. When Ohio’s season was suspended until spring, all Caesar could do was bide his time until he could take the field again.
“When I found out I was like, ‘Man, I really do want to hit someone,’” Caesar said. “But even if they said no season, at the end of day, we will have a season eventually. ”
The Cache, Oklahoma, native hasn’t been home since the pandemic began. He elected to remain in Athens in order to focus on football and to keep himself safe from COVID-19. Caesar has also done his best to remain isolated while still in Athens. He hasn’t seen many people aside from his teammates and kept his daily schedule oriented around preparing for fall camp.
His routine over the summer was simple: exercise in the morning, watch game film and then call his coaches to see what he can improve upon. Tremayne Scott, the defensive tackles coach for Ohio, gets notifications from Caesar constantly.
“I'd be at home watching films, and I text (Scott) and say ‘Hey, coach, I think we need to do this,’ or “Hey, coach, how can I be better here?” Caesar said. “I call him probably about four times a week.”
Caesar has also taken to watching game film of pro players to improve his game, most notably Aaron Donald for the Los Angeles Rams. Donald is quick on his feet for a defensive tackle, and Caesar wants to implement it more into his play style.
At 310 pounds, Caesar is the second heaviest on the defensive line. If he can improve his speed, the redshirt junior will be a dominant force on the defense. Caesar has been encouraging his fellow linemen to do the same. After an underwhelming last season, the defense is looking to improve.
“Our biggest thing, especially on the defensive line, is just getting off the ball,” Caesar said, “Using the speed that we have and using the strength that we have as well so the linebackers can play off of us now. And we're attacking a lot more, which is perfect.”
Caesar will have a chance to influence the defense more practically now. Alongside Jared Dorsa and Austin Conrad, Caesar was named one of the team captains for defense this season. With his new leadership, he has an obligation to look after the rest of the players in his position group.
Caesar isn’t worried about his line, however. Aside from freshmen Dane Middlebrook and Joey Woolard, the rest of the defensive line are confident in what to focus on this season.
“Everything is a mental game and just being mentally in task,” Caesar said. “That's one thing I appreciate: these guys just come out going, ‘You focus on yourself. Focus on the things that you need to do so you can make us better.’”
The defensive line has been hungry to improve from last season, and they have the energy to match. Caesar has noted that his teammates’ nose-to-the-grindstone mentality has remained as strong during practice as it was this summer.
Caesar considers himself a high-energy person, and he wants to rub off on his position group and keep the energy high during practice. As long as the energy stays high, Caesar believes Ohio will improve. And so far, the results have been impressive.
“We have great energy every day in practice,” Caesar said. “We bring it every day, and we coach each other. We like to compete with each other, in individuals and then on the field. Everyone’s getting better every day.”
As colleges began their seasons this fall and the return of the Mid-American Conference seemed like an inevitability, Caesar and the defensive line only worked harder in case they would be returning to camp. If Ohio were to return in the middle of the pandemic and come out with a MAC Championship, it would show how far its players will go to win.
“It just got me closer to my teammates, the fact that we're playing through a pandemic,” Caesar said. “That's something we can tell our kids later on in life, so this is a very great opportunity for all of us.”
