Presser Bullets: Keenan Bailey is Spending More Time With Ohio State's Wideouts, Nicknames for Ohio State Offensive Linemen Include "Sicko Mode" and "Piggy"

The No. 2 Buckeyes face No. 10 Miami after the Hurricanes beat Texas A&M on the road in the first round of the CFP. Four offensive players spoke to the media Monday morning as Ohio State works to fix its issues on that side of the ball: Julian Sayin, Max Klare, Carson Hinzman and Jeremiah Smith.

After saying Ohio State has "something for" Miami, Smith dove into what went down with his injury at the end of the season and said he wasn't at full health for the Michigan game. He added that tight ends coach Keenan Bailey is spending more time with the Buckeyes' wide receivers now that Brian Hartline is moving on to South Florida.

Hinzman has seen progression out of Gabe VanSickle and dove into the offensive line's nicknames for each other. Klare said he transferred to Ohio State to play in games like these and Sayin said he needs to get the ball out of his hands quicker on pass plays.

QB Julian Sayin

• Sayin's dove into Miami film much more deeply since Saturday.
• On Miami's defense: "Well-coached ... tackle well, they cover well. They have a really good front seven."
• The Hurricanes have a fantastic pass rush. "Have to be extremely quick in your decision-making and can't be holding onto the ball forever."
• Ohio State's No. 1-ranked defense has given a great look to an offense trying to fix its issues that have appeared. "It's been challenging and they've brought the best out of us the past couple weeks."
• On what he learned from Will Howard's preparation for last year's CFP: "He was able to play his best football when it mattered the most. ... So that's definitely something we'll need to do going forward."
• Sayin said that it's been great to have Ryan Day in the quarterback room with a more hands-on approach to coaching during the layover before the CFP.
• On Jeremiah Smith: "Every week you see a guy who's really humble, but someone who works extremely hard. ... I'm excited for him in this matchup."
• On the process of setting pass protections pre-snap: "I think throughout the season, I've gained a lot more confidence in that area." He added that Carson Hinzman has been a big help in that area.
• Sayin has noted the high number of turnovers that Miami has forced this season. "It's gonna be important for us to take care of the football."
• On his gratitude for playing on this stage: "Just being a kid and playing the game I love. Growing up, I always wanted to play on the biggest stage. ... It's been awesome this season."
• On taking a season-high in sacks against Indiana: "A lot of it's on me, I can't hold onto the ball as long. ... So just being able to keep us on schedule and get us in the right play."
• Expanding more on his issue holding onto the ball too long, Sayin said he needs to be willing to take checkdowns more often.

TE Max Klare

• On Miami's defense: "They're really talented, they play really hard and they do a lot of things well."
• Klare said he transferred to Ohio State to play in these types of games. "This is what college football's all about."
• Klare said the Buckeyes aren't looking ahead to a potential national championship. "Right now it's just one game, that's all we got. It's a one-game season."
• On how Sayin boosts Ohio State's offense: "I think it's just the consistency that he brings on a daily basis. ... That's something that you really want in a quarterback."
• Klare said that Ohio State is an angry football team right now. "We have a lot to prove. We have a chip on our shoulder now."
• On how Sayin's grown throughout the year: "How comfortable he is back there ... he's just gotten even more comfortable throughout the season."
• On the adversity he's faced since his transfer: "It's been a long road. ... I've been challenged here a lot ... those challenges have really built me up into a better player."
• Klare feels prepared for the Cotton Bowl from the Buckeyes' practices. "The physicality of playing at Ohio State and the practices here will prepare us for this stretch that we want to go on."
• It's been a strange feeling for Klare to not have played a game in a few weeks. "It's been a while. It's been kind of weird. It's been half a year it feels like."
• Klare hasn't made a decision on whether he'll enter the NFL draft.
• Klare noted he has a lot of room to grow as a player. "All aspects of the game."
• On how Ohio State is addressing its problems on offense: "I think it really comes down to execution."

C Carson Hinzman

• On Gabe VanSickle: "He's been proving that he's more than capable of going out there and playing with us. ... He's done a great job of not only building his own confidence, but building confidence with Phillip (Daniels) and I."
• On how Ohio State has worked in practice to go on a similar run to last year: "It's just getting back to the basics."
• The offensive line's substandard performance vs. the Hoosiers has provided massive motivation, Hinzman said. "When we're playing at our best, I think we can play with anyone in the country."
• On Miami's defensive tackles: "The interior there is good. It's an elite-level defense. ... They get pressure, they do what they're supposed to do."
• On his communication in setting pass protections with Sayin: "It's been good. He's been growing every game we've played. He's an extremely smart individual. ... Sometimes the way I see it isn't the way he sees it and vice versa. ... These games coming up will be a great opportunity to show that we've fixed our problems there."
• On the message to the rest of the offensive line: "I think it comes down to winning those early downs. ... These games come down to being able to make positive throws and completions and keeping us on schedule." Hinzman added that the offensive line has emphasized a need to control the ground game.
• On where the offensive line's depth has grown: "Gabe has done a great job stepping into that right guard position. Joshua Padilla has done a great job ... really, all of our depth. ... That's really important going into (the CFP)."
• Hinzman joked about the nicknames on the offensive line like VanSickle's "Sicko Mode." "The brotherhood grows closer."
• Some other offensive line nicknames: Austin Siereveld is "Piggy," Tegra Tshabola is "Tigré," Ethan Onianwa is "Biggie" and Joshua Padilla is "Dilla."

WR Jeremiah Smith

• On his eagerness to play his hometown team and thoughts on losing the Biletnikoff Award: "I'm very excited to play the guys from back home. ... The Biletnikoff, just use that as motivation, can't think about it too much."
• Smith is attacking his preparation with as much fervor as possible. "I'm trying to crank it up a little bit because now it's time to win another natty around here."
• On Miami's defense: "That front is special ... got a good interior, got a good back end, good linebackers."
• Ohio State returned to its preseason camp intensity in practice recently, Smith said. "The way we've practiced over the past few weeks has been very intense."
• On Brian Hartline "He's been around, he's been helping us in the receiver room.
• Keenan Bailey has been involved in the receiver room these past few weeks. "He's been involved with us over the last couple weeks ... he's been in the receiver room before."
• On coming back from injury: "That was something serious that I had to deal with. After Rutgers week, I was feeling really down because I didn't know if I could play against the Team Up North." Smith said the injury was a quad strain.
• Getting back for the Michigan game was a huge deal for Smith. "I didn't want to miss that game. I did everything I could to not miss it."
• Smith isn't worried about late or dirty hits, because whatever he takes, he'll dish back out. "I'm probably gonna be the one doing it too. I'll get a little chippy."
• There's still plenty of animosity Smith has seen over the 2003 BCS National Championship Game. "All over Twitter, they still talking about that. We got something for them coming New Year's Eve."
• On seeing former teammate Jojo Trader again: "For us to be on this stage in the Cotton Bowl, it's something that we dreamed of growing up."
• On whether he was at full health for the Michigan game: "Going into that game, no, I was not 100 percent. ... But right now I'm healthy, back healthy."
• Smith said that Miami nickel Kionte Scott does a great job in both run and pass defense. "He's a very good football player."
• On where he's grown the most this season: "I've grown as a leader, using my voice, that's been the biggest thing."
• On what Carnell Tate has meant to him: "Carnell meant a lot to me. ... Carnell is a special person on and off the field. ... I'm very excited to be on the journey with him and he's a first-round draft pick."