Ohio State is ranked No. 7 in the country in scoring defense (13.1 points-allowed per game) and No. 13 in total defense (284.7 yards-allowed per game).

If it seems like the Buckeyes are among the nation’s best every season in those categories, it’s because they are.

Do defensive coordinator Jim Heacock, co-defensive coordinator/linebackers coach Luke Fickell, cornerbacks coach Taver Johnson and safeties coach Paul Haynes get enough credit for the quality work they do? That’s a topic for another day, but it’s clear they form one of the best defensive staffs in the land.

Following OSU’s practice on Wednesday, we caught up with Heacock for a Q&A session that addressed a number of topics.

Do you feel good about where the defense is at right now?

“There’s some things I think we’re doing real well and there’s some things I think we certainly need to improve on over the next four weeks,” Heacock said. “But overall, I think it’s been a fairly consistent group. They prepare hard and the majority of the times we’ve made plays. We’ve made more plays this year than maybe we have in a while.”

Specifically, what do you need to improve on the most?

“I think we’ve got to become better tacklers,” Heacock said. “That’s always something that if you’re going to be good down the stretch, you have to be good tacklers. You have to get back to the fundamentals and get back to the little things, the things that add up. I think we can improve in all those areas.”

When you study your defense, what are you most pleased with up to this point?

“I think we’ve been able to get some front-four pressure and anytime you can get front-four pressure, that makes it easier for everybody,” Heacock said. “We have a group that’s been able to do that fairly consistently and get some pressure on the quarterback. It starts there.

“And I think our linebackers have been playmakers and of course Kurt Coleman has been making plays for us. I think they’ve been fairly consistent and we’ve been able to make plays when we’ve been able to.”

You have been playing defensive ends Thaddeus Gibson and Nathan Williams together more often. Why is that?

“Yeah, I guess what we’re looking at is trying to get the best four pass rushers on the field together,” Heacock said. “Cameron (Heyward) and Doug (Worthington) can play the outside spots, but what we’ve gotten into is playing Cam and Doug mostly at the inside spots. And that’s probably a little more to their liking and allows them to be a little bit more successful.

“And then of course Thad has been a fairly consistent pass rusher. Nathan had a very good season last year and he had a rough spring with some injuries, so he didn’t really get a chance to come on. But this year as we’ve gone through practices in the fall and as he’s played more and more, he’s obviously a pretty good pass rusher. And so, we’re always going to try and get our best four on the field, especially on third down in pass-rush situations.”

Gibson had just one sack through the first seven games, but had three against Minnesota. Did the light bulb come on for him, or has he been playing well all year and has just been unlucky?

“He’s been playing well all year,” Heacock said. “Sometimes I think it’s hard when you’re supposed to be the guy that gets all the sacks and you push a little bit too much. I think he tried to hard or whatever, but he was close and he’s played well all year. That’s the thing you have to tell him is, ‘Relax, relax. Who cares?’ But he was fortunate this past week to get three of them. And the amazing thing is some of these sacks, maybe he didn’t do as well as some earlier games when he didn’t get sacks. So, it’s weird. But he plays hard.”

When he walked off the practice field in 2007 and threatened to transfer, did you actually think he would ever leave?

“Yeah, I thought he did leave,” Heacock said. “He did have some tough times and it was tough for him. But he’s not unique. A lot of guys have experienced that. I remember going to Purdue without him two years ago (because he was suspended for walking out of practice). That might have helped him mature and grow up a little bit and realize that you’ve got to pay your dues and you’ve got to do things right. And since then, he’s been great. What a kid. He’s a great kid.”

How much has the loss of Dexter Larimore to a knee injury hurt you guys?

“It’s big,” Heacock said. “It’s big whenever you get into a base defense. Dexter is a guy … he didn’t make a bunch of plays, but when you lose him, you realize how valuable he is. He’s one of those guys where once you lose him, all of a sudden you’re not getting quite the push at times. Dex was very solid and stout inside and you knew he was going to be in his gap and he was going to get up the field.

“But we’ve had guys fill in and do a good job. Johnny Simon has been doing a good job and has been playing well for us all year and that’s helped out a lot. And having Todd (Denlinger) around, a guy that’s been around as long as he has and you can put him in there as a backup, the depth has been great and we’re fortunate. Sometimes you might even think you have too many guys at a position coming into a year, but the pounding they take in this league from game-to-game and practice-to-practice, you better have a bunch of defensive linemen because you’re going to need them.”

I know Larimore’s not out for the year, but Jim Tressel said he wouldn’t be back until November at best. Does that mean Penn State? Are you hoping to get him back by the Penn State game?

“Yeah, we’re hoping to get him back by then,” Heacock said. “But I’m hoping to get him back by tomorrow. That’s not going to happen, though (getting him back this week).”

Has Simon been a pleasant surprise? Not many true freshmen defensive tackles play around here and he’s playing a lot.

“Johnny Simon, he’ll be a great one if he stays healthy just because of the type of kid he is. He’s the first one into meetings. He’s been in here (the Woody Hayes Athletic Center) all day. He’s in there watching film taking notes and he’s a coach’s dream. He’s very good in the classroom – he’s a good student.

“But he’s a fanatic. He lives it. He studies it. It comes with a little bit of pain because every day he’s in there, ‘What can I do to get better? How can I get better? What do I have to do?’ He’s in the weight room after every practice. He’s down there right now. He’s one of those guys … and he’s not that big of a kid, he’s not that heavy, but he benches over 400, so he’s strong. But he’s got pretty quick feet for a nose guard and he’s more active than some of the nose guards that we’ve had. He’s just a fanatic and he’s going to be as good as he wants to be.”

Can you talk about Andrew Sweat’s injury?

“Yeah, he was really coming on, too,” Heacock said. “Obviously in the Toledo game he had the nice interception and he was kind of the guy we were counting on to be that first backup linebacker. So, he was valuable. He’s got some knee problems and I’m not sure when we’re going to get him back, but we miss him.”

Etienne Sabino was special teams player of the week against Minnesota and looks good in that role. But when will the light come on for him as a linebacker? What is holding him back?

“To be honest with you, coming into the year and even going back to spring, Etienne was struggling a little bit in terms of just learning the defense,” Heacock said. “And a lot of it was paralysis by analysis. He was just thinking and wasn’t really cutting loose.

“But the last three weeks now, Etienne has really come on. He’s kind of fit into that role of Sweat a little bit as one of the top backups. He’s had three really good weeks of practice and we’re really excited that he’s coming on. And I think a lot of it is that he’s a young kid and is still learning. But now that he knows the defense better, he’s able to cut loose and play a little bit. We’re going to count on him down the stretch. You’re going to be seeing him.”