Carson Hinzman is aiming for a smoother second stint as Ohio State’s starting center

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To say Carson Hinzman’s Ohio State career so far has been boring would be wildly inaccurate. Heading into his senior season, Hinzman has appeared in 26 games for the Buckeyes, starting 21 contests.

After redshirting as a freshman in 2022, Hinzman surprised

many people when he earned the starting center job ahead of the 2023 season, taking over for Luke Wypler, who was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in the sixth round of the NFL Draft.

Much like how something felt off with Ohio State’s 2023 season, the same can be said about Hinzman’s first stint as starting center. Even though the Buckeyes were undefeated entering the Michigan game, the offense wasn’t quite as explosive under Kyle McCord as it was in previous seasons with C.J. Stroud and Justin Fields at quarterback.

It became quite obvious there was some dissension in the ranks, as McCord entered the transfer portal just days after Ohio State fell to the eventual national champs in Ann Arbor.

While Buckeye Nation had time to digest McCord hitting the transfer portal ahead of the 2023 Cotton Bowl against Missouri, a move that shocked fans was Hinzman being benched for the game. The center’s future with the program became even more uncertain when in early January Alabama’s starting center Seth McLaughlin announced he was transferring to Ohio State following the retirement of head coach Nick Saban.

With McLaughlin in the fold, Hinzman would be relegated to second string for the 2024 season if he decided to stick around in Columbus.

Photo by Matthew Visinsky/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Luckily for Ohio State, Hinzman didn’t run to the portal at the first sign of adversity. Instead of heading to a lesser program where he would immediately become a starter, Hinzman returned in 2024, ready to take the field whenever he was needed.

With the expansion of the playoff, college football seasons have now become a war of attrition, meaning teams would need even more depth at each position. This is especially true on the offensive line because of the physical demands that come with playing on the line, and the wear and tear players are subjected to with every snap of the football.

Not only did the Buckeyes suffer a 32-31 loss at Oregon in October, they also lost offensive tackle Josh Simmons for the season after he suffered a knee injury. With Simmons out for the remainder of the season, the offensive line had to be shuffled, as left guard Donovan Jackson moved into Simmons’ spot before the Penn State, while Hinzman took over at left guard.

Hinzman would start three games at left guard before the offensive line suffered another devastating injury ahead of the Indiana game when Seth McLaughlin suffered a season-ending achilles injury.

Luckily for Ohio State they had an offensive lineman on the roster with starting experience at center. Hinzman would have a chance at redemption after his first stint as starting center didn’t go as planned. The third-year Buckeye knew he would have to be at his best since he would be in the middle of the offensive line for Ohio State’s most important games of the season.

Things didn’t go as planned early on in Hinzman’s return to the center position, as the Buckeyes were shocked by Michigan inside Ohio Stadium to close out the regular season, and deny Ohio State a rematch with Oregon in the Big Ten Championship Game. If Ryan Day’s squad bowed out of the College Football Playoff early, there likely would have been a mass exodus of Buckeyes, not only with players entering the NFL Draft, but guys like Hinzman would have benefitted with a fresh start next season.

Instead, Ohio State rallied following the loss to the Wolverines and put together a magical four-game run that allowed them to become the first champions of the 12-team College Football Playoff. The play of the offensive line was critical to the success of the Buckeyes, as Hinzman and company only allowed four sacks during the CFP.

By keeping Will Howard clean and clearing holes for running backs TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins, the Buckeyes couldn’t be stopped during their four playoff games.

Photo by Ric Tapia/Getty Images

Now Hinzman will look to carry over his positive play from the end of last season over into the 2025 season. At this point of his career, nothing should fluster the starting center since he has just about seen it all. From starting in 2023 to riding the bench in the first half of the 2024 season, then moving over to left guard for three games before injury moved him back to center.

All of that already under his belt at Ohio State, and Hinzman still has two years of college football eligibility left.

Look for Hinzman to take on more of a leadership role this year. Even though it’s not something that comes natural to him, Hinzman knows he’ll have to take more control since the Buckeye offense will be breaking in a new starting quarterback, along with two new running backs.

With all that he has endured over the last two seasons, smart money would be on Hinzman and the rest of the offensive line to be one of the strongest groups on the team this year.

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