Former Buckeye Safety Caleb Downs Says He Got Bored Playing In College

It’s no secret that former Ohio State safety Caleb Downs is very good at football.

Before he was drafted No. 11 overall by the Dallas Cowboys in the 2026 NFL draft, he had a dominant career that spanned three seasons — one at Alabama and two with the Buckeyes. He was so dominant, in fact, that he told 105.3 The Fan that he got bored playing in college due to the ball not coming his way.

“Yeah, I’ll honestly say, yes, (I got bored with) the ball not coming my way,” Downs said when asked if he got bored when teams didn’t target him.  “Maybe the talent (isn’t) as good that week. You don’t always play high-level talent every week in college, so that’s something you have to get used to. Sometimes, those games, they can get boring just because of the fact you play a team that doesn’t have as good of an offensive line, your D-line will pretty much make all the tackles.”

It would be tough to argue that Downs is lying about getting bored at times. Even as a freshman, he was one of the better players on the field when he was with the Crimson Tide. That season, he led his team with 107 tackles (70 solo), had 3.5 tackles for loss, two interceptions and four passes broken up, earning Shaun Alexander Freshman of the Year honors.

Then, he transferred to Ohio State, where he helped the Buckeyes have back-to-back seasons in which they were the No. 1 total and scoring defense. In two seasons at Ohio State, he combined for 30 games played with 150 tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, four interceptions and eight passes broken up.

Both seasons in Columbus, Downs was named a unanimous All-American, and last season, he was ninth in Heisman Trophy voting.

There’s no doubt that the NFL will be a tougher challenge for Downs, but the Cowboys believed in him enough to trade up in the draft to select him. Downs was also one pick away from being the first safety selected in the top-10 picks of a draft since Jamal Adams was taken with the sixth overall pick in 2017.

Day said on April 24 that he was surprised to see Downs fall as far as he did.

“Sitting there as a coach when you see some guys come off the board in front of somebody like Caleb Downs, it just makes you think, ‘I wonder where they’re going to be in five to 10 years, looking back on this draft, and if they have any regrets.’ I don’t know, but I know the Cowboys got a great one.”