Jim Knowles thought Tanner McCalister would already be a year into his NFL career by now.
During his introductory press conference upon being hired as Ohio State’s new defensive coordinator last year, Knowles said he expected the Oklahoma State safety to enter the draft rather than follow him to Columbus.
“I thought he was gonna move on to the NFL, and I thought he could,” Knowles said on Jan. 31, 2022. “Every game you say things to different guys in the stretch lines. And my thing with him was always, ‘Hey, man you’re a professional. You’re a professional at what you do.