Over March and April, it left Knowles with a glimpse of the potential of Proctor, who enters his fifth season with the Buckeyes on the cusp of his biggest role. "He's a guy that can really change the game," Knowles said. "He's what we want at safety." Proctor, who was a part-time starter at free safety in 2020 before being sidelined for most of last season, is likely to be at another spot in the secondary. That's at the boundary safety position known as the "bandit," while Ronnie Hickman steps into the free safety spot as the "adjustor." Tanner McCalister, who followed Knowles in transferring from Oklahoma State, is the favorite to step in as the slot safety, forming the potential trio of starting safeties.The role for Hickman comes with a lot of responsibilities. Positioned in the middle of the field, he'll cover a lot of safety. And as the nickname suggest, he'll make his share of adjustments to the defense before the snap based on looks from the offense. Hickman said he is prepared for it after lining up in a safety-linebacker hybrid role a year ago. "It's just going out there and being the best teammate I can be for my brothers," Hickman said. "Just like they would do the same. I'm going to do that for them. So I don't really see it as a burden or something I got to carry or something like that. It's going out there and being a teammate with my guys." The three safeties are all veterans with Hickman preparing for his fourth season, and Proctor and McCalister in their fifth seasons. - Columbus Dispatch