2017 Fall Camp & Tidbits

[ScriptOhio]

Nice list of the guys (2017 freshmen) who didn't enroll early. I'm sure a few could make the 2 deep line up and/or get significant time on special teams, etc.

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM OHIO STATE'S NON-EARLY ENROLLEES IN 2017

The early enrollees from Ohio State's 2017 class have earned no shortage of praise thus far from Urban Meyer.

"Maybe our best group that we've had come in," Meyer said this spring. “This is a very mature group. I love this group.”

The Buckeyes had 10 players arrive in time to participate in spring ball, but the rest of Ohio State's highly-touted 2017 recruiting class got to campus over the weekend. We've written a few different stories on how the early enrollees fared (spoiler: quite well), but with the rest of the class officially in the fold now in time for summer classes and workouts, we figured now would be a good time to post a reminder of the rest of the group.

What follows is a brief breakdown of the Buckeyes' non-early enrollees in the 2017 class and what to expect from them this fall:

CHASE YOUNG — ★★★★★ DE — HYATTSVILLE, MARYLAND
Ohio State is loaded at defensive end in 2017, but the nation's No. 8-ranked overall prospect is certainly going to have his shot to earn some playing time. Young has the potential to be an All-American for the Buckeyes down the road and big things are expected from the 6-foot-5, 250-pounder.

WYATT DAVIS — ★★★★★ OL — BELLFLOWER, CALIFORNIA
With one spot open on the interior of the offensive line, the No. 1-ranked offensive guard in the 2017 class will certainly have a chance to compete right away. It's rather unusual for a true freshman to start on Ohio State's offensive line, but it did happen just last year with Michael Jordan. Davis is a punishing interior lineman who seems destined for a great career in Columbus.

TREVON GRIMES — ★★★★ WR — FORT LAUDERDALE, FLORIDA
If Grimes is 100 percent healthy — he suffered a torn ACL at the end of his senior season — look out. He's a big, strong, fast wide receiver that Ohio State didn't really have prior to his arrival. With the lack of unproven production at the position, Grimes can be an instant impact player. Again, though, he has to be healthy.

Entire list: http://www.elevenwarriors.com/ohio-...-from-ohio-states-non-early-enrollees-in-2017

 

[ScriptOhio]

 

[ScriptOhio]

 

[RB07OSU]

I'm still hoping for an offer, I'm ready to play

 

[ScriptOhio]

Kevin Wilson Hopeful Competitive Spring Leads to Productive Summer

Kevin Wilson worked this spring for a productive summer

Kevin Wilson is in his sixth month of an ongoing 12-month commitment to the Ohio State offense. Spring football is well in the rear-view, while fall camp is still two months away. Long before the shoulder pads went on in the spring, however, work was being done in the winter to ensure that spring camp would be productive.

Similarly, everything in the spring is done with an eye towards the summer. Coaches have a limited number of hours to spend with their players before the season begins, so every moment is precious and momentum needs to be maintained so that there are no lulls.

That can be difficult in the summer when the coaches are around the players even less. That momentum then falls on the players themselves, as well as strength coach Mickey Marotti. The good news for the Buckeyes is that the veteran presence of this team has been at the forefront since winter workouts began.

"I know we’ve got a long way to go to be where we want to be," Wilson said back in April. "To me, I thought the winter was very positive as far as it’s a veteran group, a lot of talent. There are a lot of strong leaders and a lot of positive work habits. So, I thought we started out working pretty good. There’s a challenge every day because we go against a great defensive unit, so the practices are so competitive with trying to block those guys and get open and pick up their blitzes. So it’s a very competitive deal."

Entire article: http://theozone.net/Ohio-State/Foot...Competitive-Spring-Leads-to-Productive-Summer

 

[MD Buckeye]

 

[ScriptOhio]

Five Predictions for the Ohio State Football Freshmen

Back in February, I gave you five (or so) predictions for Ohio State’s 2017 early enrollees, so I thought it would be a good idea to do the same for the rest of the freshmen now that they are all on campus. I’m going to use the same topics that I did in February. I could say it was for clarity’s sake, but in reality it’s because I’m quite lazy, as you know.

Anyway, we’ll only be talking about the Ohio State football players who did not enroll early, which excludes Baron Browning, J.K. Dobbins, Tate Martell, Josh Myers, Jeffrey Okudah, Isaiah Pryor, Kendall Sheffield, Shaun Wade, Brendon White, and Marcus Williamson.

Will you agree with my assessments? Do you ever?

Let’s get started.

1. Who plays, who redshirts?

There is nothing wrong with redshirting, just ask most of the players Ohio State has sent to the NFL over the last few years. The need for a redshirt can be about the player needing to develop more, or the prominent depth at the position he plays. As to who I think redshirts, I will go with defensive tackle Jerron Cage, receiver Ellijah Gardiner, receiver Jaylen Harris, offensive lineman Thayer Munford, and linebacker Pete Werner. Maybe defensive tackle Haskell Garrett too. There are just so many defensive tackles already on the roster.

I could see Jaylen Harris playing this year. He could have a similar trajectory as Binjimen Victor last year. Victor wasn’t ready early on, but by the end of the season he was working into the rotation. I really like Haskell Garrett, but where are the minutes? Josh Alabi already moved to the offensive line because of the lack of a need for another 300-pounder this year. Pete Werner could get some time on special teams, but they’ve already got Tuf Borland, Justin Hilliard, Keandre Jones, Malik Harrison, and more for that role. I suppose kicker Blake Haubeil should be mentioned here as well. We won’t know his situation until he either wins the job or doesn’t. If he doesn’t, there’s no need to play him this year.

So who plays? Everybody else. Offensive guard Wyatt Davis is going to push for a spot in the two-deep, but is that enough to burn his redshirt? Is a freshman Davis a better backup than Demetrius Knox or Gavin Cupp or fellow freshman Josh Myers? I don’t know.

I do expect wide receiver Trevon Grimes to play. He’s too athletically-proficient to sit. I see cornerback Amir Riep helping out on special teams eventually as well. Then there is defensive end Chase Young. There are no snaps available for him, but I don’t know if that matters.

2. Who is the first to start a game?

If I go with Blake Haubeil here, that’s not a cop-out, right? It’s not? Cool. Thanks for agreeing with me. I don’t really think Haubeil is going to beat out Sean Nuernberger, but that’s a whole helluva lot easier than somebody like Chase Young beating out Sam Hubbard or Tyquan Lewis. Anyway, I shouldn’t have to justify this pick to you. You already told me it wasn’t a cop-out.

Entire article: http://theozone.net/2017/06/five-friday-predictions-ohio-state-football-freshmen/

 

[Dryden]

 

[MARVYMARV14]

It's getting to the point where our opponents are going to start feeling like they are going up against some type of super team or all star team, watching our players warm up is going to begin to be very discouraging going forward....mwahahahahahaha ha!

 

[Taosman]

No pressure.
Win another National Championship!

 

[ScriptOhio]

Good Vibrations on the Beach for Buckeye Defensive Line?

“There’s a world where I can go and tell my secrets to
In my room, in my room
In this world I lock out all my worries and my fears
In my room, in my room
Do my dreaming and my scheming”

Those are the lyrics to “In My Room” by the Beach Boys, but it could also be the inner thoughts of Ohio State defensive line coach Larry Johnson.

How so? We’ll get to that in a bit.

The Buckeyes kicked off fall practice on Thursday and in so doing they also kicked off a brand new drill for the defensive linemen.

Enter the beach, boys.

It’s actually not a beach, as there is no body of water nearby. Instead, it is just a sandpit near the Ohio State practice fields that was once used for drills, but is now used to keep injured Buckeyes busy and sandy.

This sandy hellscape received a renewed purpose on Thursday, however, as the OSU defensive linemen were in there running drills, spinning their wheels in the sand with every turn.

If you’ve ever tried running in sand, you get the idea. Now imagine doing it over and over and over again, pretending to chase a football that does not exist.

You can see a small bit of it here.



Entire article: http://theozone.net/2017/07/lifes-a-beach-for-buckeye-defensive-line/

Just sayin': I have "good vibrations" about the 2017 season......

 

[ScriptOhio]

What are the Ohio State Coaches Looking for Early in Camp?

Wednesday was the first day in pads for the Ohio State football team. Saturday will mark the first scrimmage for the Buckeyes. Until these two things take place, there’s not a whole lot of depth chart movement.

The coaches want to see stellar play, obviously, but they’re more interested in how players practice, rather than how well.

“It’s all culture at this point,” Urban Meyer said on Monday. “It’s the whole thing, the go-hard, because there are going to be plenty of mistakes. The player that freezes up, and we have a saying around here, when contact is made, that means when you’re in a game-like situation, you revert back to your training. The players that revert back to their training.”

The players who maintain that training will look a whole lot better than those who don’t. And at a successful program like Ohio State, you’re going to notice the ones who are having trouble keeping up.

Early in camp, the coaches want to see the culture of what they have built shine through and stand tall. Even though the pecking orders will come after the scrimmages, you can get a pretty good idea of what things are going to look like just by how players work from the outset.

Entire article: http://theozone.net/2017/08/ohio-state-football-looking-early-camp/

 

[ScriptOhio]

Ohio State Football Notebook: ‘I’ll be devastated’

Best Group Ever?

Back in the spring, Urban Meyer said that Ohio State’s group of 10 early enrollees was maybe the best he’s ever had. Nothing throughout the spring changed his thoughts.

Quarterback Tate Martell, running back J.K. Dobbins, offensive lineman Josh Myers, linebacker Baron Browning, and defensive backs Marcus Williamson, Shaun Wade, Jeffrey Okudah, Kendall Sheffield, Brendon White, and Isaiah Pryor were all impressive at various points in spring camp.

While Meyer said that the group was “maybe” his best, cornerbacks coach Kerry Coombs had zero doubt in his mind, saying the group was “absolutely” the best he’s ever had in 11 years of college coaching.

The good news for Meyer, Coombs, and Buckeye fans is that the 11 freshmen who arrived in the summer have picked up right where the early enrollees left off.

“It’s really a good class,” Meyer said.

And if this class doesn’t end up being something special?

“I’ll be devastated,” he said. “I just think it’s a great class. You talk about great grades. It’s been…the last two classes, ’16 and ’17, have been great. I’m just hoping the production is there in football.”

Blurred Lines

In football, there are generally 11 starters and at least 11 backups. When it comes to the Ohio State football team, however, the number of starters actually goes to 11 and beyond.

The Buckeyes “started” four defensive ends and three cornerbacks last season, along with two safeties, two defensive tackles, and three linebackers. For those keeping count, that’s 14 starters.

When you get technical, however, and mention to a Buckeye coach or a player about who the actual starters are, you’ll generally get corrected pretty quickly.

Such is the case if you were to ask defensive end Tyquan Lewis what it’s like to have Jalyn Holmes and Nick Bosa as backups on the defensive line.

“The thing about that is we don’t consider them backups,” Lewis said. “They’re just another asset to the starting lineup. They’re always featured. The line is deep, it’s always fresh. Fresh rotation. Nobody’s afraid of anything. We’re more experienced and a well-seasoned group that can do things and pursue goals and objectives that we set throughout the year as a whole unit.”

Entire article: http://theozone.net/2017/08/ohio-state-football-notebook-devastated/

 

[ScriptOhio]

 

[RB07OSU]

This is the time of the year where I will have to consider just stopping following all OSU football news whatsoever, or just do nothing else but look at updates for all of fall camp. We all know I will choose the latter but my excitement come August is not containable, I just wanna hit the fast-forward button to August 31 even though I know I need to savor each moment of the off-season.