Ohio and the rest of the Mid-American Conference officially began their seasons at the 2024 MAC Football Kickoff from the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton.
After the second 10-win season in two years for the Bobcats, the roster faced some serious turnover from players leaving for the NFL and through the transfer portal. With such a new roster heading into next season, Ohio will have some questions to answer.
This information comes after talking with head coach Tim Albin, graduate quarterback Parker Navarro and graduate safety Jeremiah Wood.
Albin not worried about lost pieces
Ohio enters the 2024 season having lost nearly everything on both offense and defense. The team will kick off the season with new starters at quarterback, running back, wide receiver, linebacker, defensive line, and several other key positions.
Despite all they lost, which includes award-winning defensive coordinator Spence Nowinski, Ohio coach Tim Albin isn’t worried.
“When you have success, when you lose staff members, coaches, because of that success there’s opportunities to hire better,” Albin said. “We’ve certainly done that.”
Though Ohio lost a few key positional group coaches, the program's core and recruitment staff remained vastly similar. Albin cites that though great players left the program, the same people who recruited those players have recruited the new players you see on the field in 2024; because of that, Albin is excited.
Albin went as far as to say that the team has improved in many areas.
“Top to bottom we’ve improved our roster,” Albin said. “It’ll be the most competitive at each position in my time at Ohio.”
Offense’s new look brings exciting opportunities
Former Ohio quarterback Kurits Rourke will be hard to replace. That is no secret to anyone. The Canadian-born quarterback left Ohio with the second-most passing yards in school history.
Now enters graduate student Parker Navvaro, the Bobcat's new leader on offense. Navarro isn’t short on experience for a first-year starter. A native of Arizona, Navarro started his college football career as a backup at UCF before transferring to Ohio, where he made a few starts during the 2023 season.
To cap off the 2023 season, Navarro became a Bowl-winning quarterback with a start in the Myrtle Beach Bowl.
Navarro and Rourke are opposites in terms of play style, which is a change that Albin and the offense are ready to welcome. Navarro is a true dual-threat quarterback with an advanced ability to escape the pocket and pick up yards with his legs. Rourke, on the other hand, was one of the most elite pocket passers in the game.
The depth of the offensive playbook is sure to widen, given Navarro’s dual-threat nature. One such instance Albin mentions is on third downs.
“I think it’s very problematic for a defense when the quarterback is a part of the run game,” Albin said. “Third and six can be a different call. We saw it in the (Myrtle Beach Bowl) when we were 10-of-15 on third downs.”
Defense expected to play similarly under John Hauser
One of Ohio’s biggest losses in the off-season wasn’t a player but a coach. Former Ohio DC Spence Nowinski left to become the defensive line coach at Memphis. He was in charge of the elite Bobcat defense last year, and his departure left a big hole that was filled by former DBs coach John Hauser.
Even with the loss of Nowinski, safety Jeremiah Wood expects the defense to play similarly under new DC Hauser.
“It’ll be pretty much the same defense because (Hauser) and coach Spence were around each other,” said Wood. “They take a lot of their game from each other, a lot of things they learn from each other so I think it’ll be pretty good.”
58 new faces
The most questions and the most excitement surround the 58 new players who will wear the green and white for Ohio in 2024. 58 is quite the number for players who need to learn and adjust to a new team, but Albin and the Bobcats are confident.
Both Albin and Navarro are most concerned with making sure both freshmen and transfers are completely bought into the culture and history of Ohio football. Albin cited that he has sat down with the team to teach them names like Frank Solich and Don Peden and the history of how the team came to be.
The new players will also have to learn a new offensive playbook under Albin.
“We’re building a new identity,” Navarro said. “We’ve had a lot of guys leave and a lot of guys coming in. From my standpoint, getting those guys caught up on offense, learning the new stuff we’re going to bring this year, that’s been the biggest thing.”
Navarro and all the returning players are invested in building a strong culture with a nearly all-new team. Navarro says the team has been playing video games and going on golf outings in their downtime to bring everyone together.
Secondary expected to anchor defense
As previously mentioned, Ohio lost a large number of contributors coming into this season on both sides of the ball. The front seven was the standout unit of Ohio’s defense, which ranked top 10 in the country last season, but lost key players like Bryce Houston, Keye Thompson and Rodney Matthews.
Coming into this season, the secondary projects to be the heart of the defense. Key players on the back end will be returning, and coach Albin is very high on that group to lead this year.
“Jeremiah Wood, Austin Brawley up the road here from Massillon, Adonis (Williams Jr.) from the Cleveland area, Roman Parodie, Bryon “Tank” Pearson… there’s 3000 snaps in that group,” said Albin. “The secondary … we are two to three deep, I am very excited.”
