How are former Ohio State CBs Ryan Watts, Sevyn Banks and Lejond Cavazos doing?
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Ohio State football has not had much depth at cornerback in 2022.
Entering the season with returning starters in Denzel Burke and Cameron Brown, the Buckeyes have only six scholarship options with JK Johnson, Jordan Hancock, Jyaire Brown and Ryan Turner. And with injuries to both Cameron Brown and Hancock throughout 2022, the Buckeyes have had to add depth, cross-training safeties Jantzen Dunn and Cameron Martinez at cornerback.
However, coming into 2022, Ohio State lost quite a bit of depth at cornerback, with Ryan Watts, Sevyn Banks and Lejond Cavazos entering the transfer portal after the 2021 season along with the loss of Terrance Brooks in the 2022 class. It was the second straight season the Buckeyes lost a cornerback commit, after five-star Jaheim Singletary initially committed in 2021 before flipping to Georgia.
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Here's a look at how those pieces are doing at their new stops.
Ryan Watts, Texas
Watts never had much of a chance to show what he could do in Ohio State's secondary.
After starting the Buckeyes' season opener against Minnesota, playing 49 snaps against the Golden Gophers, he played only 71 snaps over five games for the rest of the season, per Pro Football Focus, finishing his career with 11 tackles and two interceptions.
After announcing his intention to transfer Dec. 10, Watts found a home at Texas, starting along with cornerback D'Shawn Jamison and recording 37 tackles, two tackles for loss, an interception and three pass deflections in nine games.
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Sevyn Banks, LSU
Banks was in line to become the next first-round cornerback developed at Ohio State.
He started in all eight games for the Buckeyes as a junior in 2020, recording 23 tackles, six pass deflections, one interception and a fumble recovery returned for a touchdown, ending the season with honorable mention All-Big Ten honors.
But a preseason knee injury limited Banks to eight games and 313 snaps in 2021, per PFF, eclipsed by Cameron Brown and Burke, leading to him entering the transfer portal after withdrawing from the 2022 NFL draft and choosing LSU to spend his redshirt senior season.
However, after two games in which he recorded five tackles and 0.5 tackles for loss, Banks was carted off the field against Auburn, suffering a spinal cord bruise where he would miss five-to-six weeks, according to LSU coach Brian Kelly. Banks has not played since Oct. 1.
Lejond Cavazos, North Carolina
After redshirting his freshman year at Ohio State in 2020, Cavazos was deep in the Buckeyes' depth chart in 2021.
Playing only 112 snaps per PFF, Cavazos, a former four-star cornerback, recorded seven tackles and two pass deflections in five games for the Buckeyes, electing to transfer to North Carolina ahead of this season.
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With the Tar Heels, playing time has been hard to come by, playing 109 snaps with a season-high 36 snaps against Notre Dame. In 2022, he has six tackles and one pass deflection in limited playing time.
Terrance Brooks, Texas
Terrance Brooks was originally Ohio State's third cornerback commit in the Buckeyes' 2022 class, along with Ryan Turner and Jyaire Brown, coming in as the No. 8 cornerback and the No. 59 prospect in the country, according to the 247Sports composite rankings.
However, on the first day of the early signing period, Brooks flipped his commitment and signed his letter of intent with Texas.
In his first season with the Longhorns, Brooks has appeared in five games, recording 48 snaps this season, per PFF. He has recorded two tackles
Jaheim Singletary, Georgia
Singletary was originally a building block of Ohio State's 2021 class, a five-star cornerback and the No. 14 player overall in the class.
However, Singletary de-committed from the Buckeyes before the 2021 season, later signing with Georgia.
After redshirting the 2021 season, Singletary has played in only three games for the Bulldogs in 2022.
Ohio State football's 2022 schedule
Sept. 3: Ohio State 21, Notre Dame 10
Sept. 10: Ohio State 45, Arkansas State 12
Sept. 17: Ohio State 77, Toledo 21
Sept. 24: Ohio State 52, Wisconsin 21
Oct. 1: Ohio State 49, Rutgers 10
Oct. 8: Ohio State 49, Michigan State 20
Oct. 22: Ohio State 54, Iowa 10
Oct. 29: Ohio State 44, Penn State 31
Nov. 5: Ohio State 21, Northwestern 7
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State football transfers: How are former cornerbacks doing?
