Why do Ohio State football's cornerbacks wear visors during practice?
During Thursday's practice, Ohio State football's cornerbacks had a bit of extra head gear.
Cornerbacks like Jordan Hancock, JK Johnson and Ryan Turner were seen wearing Ohio State visor caps attached to their helmets.
According to Ohio State, the visors are not an ode to the backwards cap cornerbacks coach Tim Walton traditionally wears.
The Buckeyes cornerbacks were using the visors as a tool to keep them from looking up, keeping their eyes forward and straight ahead, looking at the wide receivers' chest and eyes instead of for the ball in the air.
The visors were wrapped around the helmet with a black elastic strap, putting the bill of the cap over the face mask.
For Walton, it's an untraditional drill for a group in need of a boost heading into 2022.
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Last season, Ohio State finished with the No. 12 pass defense in the Big Ten, allowing 246.2 yards per game and 21 touchdowns, with opposing quarterbacks completing 61.6% of pass attempts.
Heading into 2022, cornerback is a position where the Buckeyes are continuing to look for depth. Hancock did not participate in practice Thursday due to an undisclosed injury, as did Turner.
Cameron Brown is also on a "pitch count," getting limited reps on the practice field.
Day confirmed that both Hancock and Turner's absences will not be long term, saying that both were dealing with bumps and bruises. But depth remains a concern at cornerback, heading into the preseason with six scholarship options in Walton's room.
“We need to make sure we’re building depth there,” Day said. “And we certainly have some candidates.”
Day confirmed that safeties Cameron Martinez and Jantzen Dunn were cross-training at cornerback.
“They both have cover skills, and the position they play, they have to do a lot of covering,” he said. “So every time they’re out there, they’re learning that skill, of playing man-to-man and covering guys. That says a lot about their skillset.”
Freshman cornerback Jyaire Brown was the first member of the 2022 class to lose his black stripe, adding to the depth at cornerback with Denzel Burke, Johnson and walk-on Lloyd McFarquhar.
The Ohio State cornerbacks will put those skills to the test in the season opener against Notre Dame Sept. 3.
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State football cornerbacks use visors for drills in fall
