Sonny Styles earns starting safety role for Ohio State football

Sonny Styles has solidified himself as one of Ohio State’s starting safeties, defensive coordinator Jim Knowles said Monday.

“He’s definitely a guy we’re going to have on the field,” Knowles said.

Styles is in line to start at nickel safety, a spot where he had been getting first-team reps since the Buckeyes opened preseason training camp earlier this month.

His move up into the starting secondary has been a rapid one, coming after he graduated a year early from Pickerington Central and enrolled at Ohio State last summer. He only turned 18 last November.

But Styles’ physical gifts and work ethic caught the attention of the staff, putting him in position for a bigger role as a sophomore.

Styles is a departure from the recent mold of starting nickel safeties in Knowles’ defense.

Knowles had seen the position as a third cornerback in recent years with a priority on coverage in the slot, a reason Tanner McCalister, who began his career as a corner, started in the spot for the Buckeyes last season after transferring from Oklahoma State, the previous stop for Knowles.

A quick glance at Styles does not reveal a cornerback’s frame. He stands 6 feet 4 and weighs 229 pounds. If he’s a hybrid safety, he might be closer to linebacker than corner.

But Knowles sees Styles as versatile enough to handle coverage and other responsibilities toward the line of scrimmage, including when teams move into two tight-end sets known as 12 personnel. There's more going on in the trenches in the Big Ten.

“I saw in Sonny that he has the ability to play high safety, to play in man coverage," Knowles said, "and he also has the length and toughness up close to the ball. Now you have more flexibility.”

While Styles is set to join Lathan Ransom in Ohio State’s starting trio of safeties, it remains without a starter at free safety.

Josh Proctor, Malik Hartford and Ja’Had Carter all are competing for the high safety spot.

"Really those three are fighting it out," Knowles said. "There's very much a competition."

All three have a mix of backgrounds. Proctor is a "super senior," using his sixth season of eligibility, while Hartford and Carter are newcomers. Hartford is a freshman from West Chester who enrolled early for the spring semester, while Carter transferred from Syracuse in January.

Joey Kaufman covers Ohio State football for The Columbus Dispatch. Contact him at jkaufman@dispatch.com and follow him on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter @joeyrkaufman.

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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State football to start Sonny Styles at safety spot