The Ohio State football program had one of the best defenses in the country this past season. A lot of that had to do with Matt Patricia and his system. He helped the Buckeyes play faster without having to think as much as they did under Jim Knowles' complicated system.
Another big reason is that they just had good players. Caleb Downs was chief among those, winning the Jim Thorpe Award. Arvell Reese was a stud linebacker who started for the first time in his career. He instantly became one of the best players that the Ohio State Buckeyes had on the field.