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TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — When asked, University of Alabama guard Arie Kouandjio had no problem raving about Ohio State defensive lineman Joey Bosa.
It might have something to do with he probably won’t see that much of the unanimous All-American selection in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 1 (8:30 p.m. ET, ESPN).
“I think he looks great, he looks awesome,” Kouandjio said. “He’s a strong-style player. He has some lineage and bloodlines tied to football and stuff like that. He’s another guy who’s going to be a challenge for us, a challenge we look forward to.”
Bosa, the Big Ten defensive player of the year despite being just a sophomore, was a finalist for three major national awards, the Bednarik (best defensive player), Rotary Lombardi (best lineman) and Ted Hendricks (top defensive end), but was shut out. He topped the conference with 13.5 sacks and 20.0 tackles for a loss.
As for the lineage part, his father John was a first-round NFL Draft pick by the Miami Dolphins out of Boston College in 1987, and his uncle on his mother side is former Ohio State standout linebacker Eric Kumerow.
“Joey Bosa is a really good player,” said Nick Saban, who recruited Bosa and offered him a scholarship when he was just 15. “He was a really, really good player in high school. We recruited him here really hard. His family has a lot of ties to Ohio State, and we certainly respect that.
“He’s certainly developed and played fantastic for them all year, and you have to have a tremendous amount of respect for that kind of competitive character and the effort and toughness and intangibles he plays with. He has really good ability. So you put all those things together and you have a really good player.”
The Crimson Tide players who will have to worry about Bosa the most are tackles Cam Robinson and Austin Shepherd, as Oho State likes to move him around. The 6-foot-6, 323-pound freshman Robinson is the best matchup in terms of size, as Bosa is listed as 6-5, 278, while Shepherd (6-5, 320) has the experience factor as a senior.
“I don’t really think about who I’m playing against,” Shepherd said. “ I kinda approach everybody the same way, so I’m really thinking about the accolades. I’m just trying to look at how I can beat him every play.”
Christopher Walsh has covered Alabama football since 2004 and is the author of 19 books. In his free time, he writes about college football.
