{"id":39265,"date":"2022-06-06T19:04:06","date_gmt":"2022-06-06T19:04:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/big-ten-football-transfers-ohio-state-nebraska-add-key-defensive-pieces-ready-to-make-impact-in-2022-season\/"},"modified":"2022-06-06T19:04:06","modified_gmt":"2022-06-06T19:04:06","slug":"big-ten-football-transfers-ohio-state-nebraska-add-key-defensive-pieces-ready-to-make-impact-in-2022-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/big-ten-football-transfers-ohio-state-nebraska-add-key-defensive-pieces-ready-to-make-impact-in-2022-season\/","title":{"rendered":"Big Ten football transfers: Ohio State, Nebraska add key defensive pieces ready to make impact in 2022 season"},"content":{"rendered":"
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It wasn’t that long ago when coaches treated the word “transfer” as if it had only four letters. They’d speak about them in hushed tones, and they were viewed as something of a last measure for a desperate coach. Sure, you might take one, maybe even two, but the heart of your roster was and always would be your recruiting classes.<\/p>\n

Then the NCAA got rid of the transfer waiver, and the floodgates opened immediately. “Transfer” is no longer a dirty word, and if a coach were to say he didn’t think exploring the transfer portal was a good idea, he’d get the same look astrophysicists would give Kyrie Irving as he tried to explain to them that the Earth is flat.<\/p>\n

You might not want to build the foundation of your program on transfers, but they’re a great way to make quick improvements in areas of need and they have proven to have an immediate impact across the country. In the Big Ten, these five players below will have the most significant impact of all in the 2022 season. <\/p>\n

Michigan OL Victor Oluwatimi<\/h2>\n

The Michigan defense spent a lot of time in the spotlight as the Wolverines won the Big Ten and reached the College Football Playoff last season, but the offensive line performance was crucial to the team’s success. It opened holes for the running backs and kept Michigan’s quarterbacks on their feet. It’s a unit that loses some key players, but Oluwatimi goes a long way to ensure it’ll be one of the top units in the Big Ten in 2022.<\/p>\n

You don’t think of interior linemen as impact players, but Oluwatimi isn’t your typical interior lineman, nor is he a typical transfer. He started 32 consecutive games at Virginia and was one of three finalists for the Rimington Trophy last season, the award given to the best center in the nation. <\/p>\n

Scott Frost hit the transfer portal hard this offseason, bringing in 16 total players for a transfer class that ranks atop the Big Ten, according to 247Sports’ transfer class rankings. While there are a lot of players in there expected to have an impact for the Cornhuskers, Mathis is the biggest name and most likely to have a loud impact in Lincoln.<\/p>\n

Mathis was named second-team All-Big 12 in 2020 and 2021, and was honorable mention for the Big 12 Defensive Lineman of the Year in 2020. He’s accumulated 12.5 sacks and 26 tackles for loss in his career at TCU, and Nebraska needs him to help a defense that finished 12th in the conference in sacks last season and 10th in tackles for loss.<\/p>\n