3 things to know about Ohio State left tackle Josh Simmons

Josh Simmons is back for his second year as Ohio State’s left tackle.

The San Diego native won the job last year despite not arriving as a transfer from San Diego State until after spring practice. Given the lack of time to acclimate, it wasn’t surprising that Simmons had his struggles, along with the rest of the line , especially early in the season.

But he allowed only one sack, according to Pro Football Focus, and allowed only four quarterback hits all season. The expectation is that he’ll take a major step forward with a year under his belt.

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Here are three things to know about Simmons:

They sometimes call Josh Simmons "Jimmy"

It may have been confusing last year when Ohio State coaches and teammates referred to Simmons as “Jimmy.” That came about becauseOhio State’s right tackle is Josh Fryar, and they wanted to be able to distinguish between them.

They took the “J” from Josh and the “im” from Simmons, and that's what he was often called.

“At first it was just something in-house,” Simmons said. “Then it got on Twitter.”

He didn’t wallow

Simmons said the hardest thing about his transition to Ohio State was switching from the right tackle spot he played at SDSU to the left side.

“You think it’s kind of like, ‘Just flip your mindset,’ but there’s a whole lot else that goes into it. I think toward the back end (of the season), I started to figure it out.”

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He knew he had to dig deep early in the season when he had his struggles.

“This is Ohio State,” Simmons said. “A lot of people (regard) this as the best program in the country. I knew I was going to get that (criticism). It was up to me. I took it like, ‘Josh, you’ve got to lock in and figure it out.’”

Simmons’ ability wows teammates

The 6-foot-5, 310-pound Simmons isn’t yet a finished product, but OSU coaches and players believe he has the ability to be a dominating player.

“He’s a freak athlete,” said center Seth McLaughlin, a transfer from Alabama. “He’s one of the best athletes I’ve seen throughout my career.”

Defensive end J.T. Tuimoloau, a potential first-round NFL draft pick, goes against Simmons in practice. He notices a difference in Simmons this year.

“He’s more poised,” Tuimoloau said. “There’s a lot of great reps (between us). He tests me athletically. I test him athletically. He has great feet and is very athletic.

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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: 3 things to know about Ohio State left tackle Josh Simmons