In a seismic move both on the field and symbolically, safety Caleb Downs announced he is transferring to Ohio State, bolting from Alabama after the retirement of Nick Saban, Downs announced Friday.
The move is another blow to new Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer, who has seen numerous players take advantage of the NCAA rule allowing players to enter the transfer portal within 30 days of a coaching change. And the biggest name has been Downs, who was Alabama’s leading tackler as a freshman and made the coaches’ All-SEC team.
Winning the Downs sweepstakes is a massive deal for Ohio State because if there was one hole on the defense next year, it was finding another starter-caliber safety. The Buckeyes added the best player in the portal to fill that void.
Downs, a freshman All-American last season, was heavily recruited by Ohio State out of high school, but he chose to play for Saban. Ohio State got its guy the second time around and can go into next season feeling confident that Downs can play alongside Lathan Ransom at safety and finalize arguably the best secondary in the country to go with a strong cornerback room of Denzel Burke, Jordan Hancock, Davison Igbinosun and Jermaine Mathews Jr.
