Ohio State '21 CA OL (RS JR) - Josh Simmons (Transfer from San Diego State)

This is Josh Simmons in his eighth start. San Diego St at Fresno St. He's more physical in this game than the Boise St game. More comfortable too imo. Had an unfortunate end to the first half, but responded well in the second. Here's nearly all of the first half. Right tackle. pic.twitter.com/cCsZY8uHSV

— Tony Gerdeman (@TonyGerdeman) July 15, 2023

 

Here is Josh Simmons in his third game. It's at Utah, and this is from the 20-min game version via YouTube, so it isn't complete by any means. Right tackle. pic.twitter.com/GpYCOzUjUj

— Tony Gerdeman (@TonyGerdeman) July 15, 2023

 

Here's just about every snap from the first half at Boise State. The second half is more of the same, so the first half is pretty representative. This is start No. 5 for Josh Simmons. Right tackle. pic.twitter.com/88IsNNjhW2

— Tony Gerdeman (@TonyGerdeman) July 15, 2023

 

Closer Look: Josh Simmons Brings Experience, Athleticism To Offensive Line https://t.co/E8QDn5GWGw

— Tony Gerdeman (@TonyGerdeman) July 16, 2023

 

Described by fellow offensive tackle Josh Fryar as “freaky athletic,” Josh Simmons has turned heads with his athleticism in his first few months at Ohio State. https://t.co/pGVw4lD1mg

— Eleven Warriors (@11W) July 31, 2023

 

Ohio State OT Josh “Jimmy” Simmons attacking the sled today.

Simmons transferred in from San Diego State after the spring season. He’s competing for a #Buckeyes starting tackle spot. pic.twitter.com/KvDBfWqUys

— Andy Backstrom (@andybackstrom) August 3, 2023

 

• “I can tell you that we’re very excited about Jimmy Simmons ... He’s off to a great start.” Day also said he is really excited about Luke Montgomery’s future at Ohio State.

 

🚨 𝗕𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗽𝗲 𝗔𝗹𝗲𝗿𝘁 🚨

Newest member of the O-Line, welcome to the brotherhood, Jimmy Simmons! pic.twitter.com/KsLwg0z1sa

— Ohio State Football (@OhioStateFB) August 10, 2023

 

• On San Diego State transfer Jimmy Simmons taking first-team reps at left tackle: “I think he’s had some really good practices and he has shown he can be the starting left tackle. He hasn’t won that job yet but he’s shown us he can do that.”

 

Call him Jimmy, call him Josh, but Ohio State will likely be calling upon Simmons to protect the blind side of whichever quarterback wins the starting job for the team. https://t.co/lFDBCYmHPb

— Eleven Warriors (@11W) August 15, 2023

 

• In the midst of some confusion as to whether he’s going by Jimmy or Josh, Simmons said he’s going by Jimmy on the football field and Josh off of it.
• Donovan Jackson has been one of Simmons’ biggest mentors since arriving at Ohio State. “He has the best mind. One of the best minds on the field to pick, especially when it comes to offensive line play.”
• On what it means to be in line to start at left tackle: “There’s a lot of expectations. I take it with a grain of salt. Maybe I’m kind of making some progress right now, but I’m still trying to work to get better at it.”
• On how he assimilated to be in a position to start so quickly: “It was a lot of grind. Especially in camp, you’re just like, ‘I’ve got another day of this?’ But you’ve just got to put your head down and go to work.”
• Simmons said the adjustment of moving from right to left tackle is a big one. “You’re going against the best D-linemen in college football, so you’ve got to really lock in.”
• The Ohio State offensive line room made Simmons feel welcome immediately upon his arrival, he said. “At some other schools, they’d be like ‘Hey,’ kind of test the waters a little bit. But here it was just open arms. Immediately upon arrival, guys were like, ‘Hey, you want to go hang out after lifts?’ It was amazing.”
• On going against Ohio State’s defensive linemen: “I didn’t expect them to be that fast. That was the biggest thing. You hear people say, ‘These guys are fast’ — coming from the Mountain West (conference), you have some dudes some weeks, but it was speed (here).”
• The angles taken to cut off some of those speedy pass rushers are where Simmons feels he’s made some of his biggest strides since arriving in Columbus. “When you’re talking about pass blocking, especially against these dudes, you’ve got to understand what type of pass play it is, whether it’s long or short. So you’ve just got to work on those angles accordingly.”

 

Josh Simmons set to start at left tackle for Buckeyes in season openerhttps://t.co/hc8LzHYqHx

— Lettermen Row (@LettermenRow) August 21, 2023