Tag: Donovan Jackson

Ohio State lands nine players on PFF top ten positional rankings

Ohio State lands nine players on PFF top ten positional rankings #GoBucks

Pro Football Focus (PFF) has been releasing their top ten positional rankings for returning players and Ohio State leads the way with nine players making an appearance on their respective positional list.

Of the ten running backs ranked, two Buckeyes make the list with both Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson making the cut. Henderson finished last season with a PFF receiving grade of 73.6, which led all Big Ten backs. Judkins leads all current Power Five backs with 2,726 rushing yards since 2022.

Emeka Egbuka also made his positional list at wide receiver and will have an opportunity to be the number-one option in Columbus after the departure of Marvin Harrison Jr. Donovan Jackson is the lone offensive lineman to make his positional list.

Both Jack Sawyer and J.T. Tuimoloau made the top ten list for the edge defenders and it makes sense considering Sawyer was the only edge last season to earn grades 85 or higher as both a pass-rusher and run-defender. Tuimoloau is fourth among Big Ten edge defenders the last two seasons with 69 pressures. Tyleik Williams also made his positional list after tallying 26 run-defense stops, which was second among Big Ten defensive tackles.

Denzel Burke also made the cut after forcing 10 incompletions this past season, which was 20th among Power Five cornerbacks. Caleb Downs was also the number one returning safety according to PFF.

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Four Buckeyes featured on ESPN’s 2024 Way-Too-Early All-American Team

Some “way too early” recognition for some Ohio State players via ESPN. #GoBucks

It’s no secret that the college football offseason has been an exciting one for Ohio State football fans.

With multiple stars on both sides of the ball announcing their return plus the addition of former Kansas State quarterback Will Howard, former Ole Miss running back Quinshon Judkins, and former Alabama safety Caleb Downs among others the Buckeyes will enter the 2024 season loaded with talent.

This was recognized when ESPN released its “Way-Too-Early All-American team,” which featured four Buckeyes making the first team, the most of any program.

Featured on the list were running back Treveyon Henderson, left guard Donovan Jackson, defensive tackle Tyleik Williams, and new Buckeye safety Caleb Downs.

Henderson has been one of the most electrifying players in college football since his freshman year for the Buckeyes and will enter the 2024 season with big expectations as him and Judkins should form an exciting 1-2 punch at running back.

Jackson returns to the Buckeyes as the most experienced offensive lineman after all-conference seasons in 2022 and 2023. He is one of the key contributors to an offensive line that was solid, but inconsistent last season.

Williams got the Way-Too-Early All-American nod from ESPN after being an anchor in the middle of the Buckeye defense last season. He will an integral part of Ohio State’s defensive line which also returns J.T. Tuimoloau, Jack Sawyer, and Ty Hamilton.

To round out the list is new Ohio State safety Caleb Downs. After putting together an All-American season as a true freshman safety on Alabama’s defense, Downs will enter the 2024 season as one of the best players in college football.

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Ohio State gets good news on returning offensive lineman putting off NFL draft, returning to Columbus

The good news on returning guys continues for Ohio State. #GoBucks

It’s been a lot of welcoming news for the Ohio State football program ever since the turn of the New Year. Several guys have decided to come back to Ohio State rather than enter the NFL draft, there’s been positive commitments and rumors on the recruiting front, and some transfer portal momentum bringing an influx of talent to Columbus.

That continued on Wednesday when OSU starting left guard from last season, Donovan Jackson, announced he’s putting off the NFL draft to join many of his teammates in coming back for another season in the Scarlet and Gray.

The 6-foot, 4-inch, 320-pound Texas native took to social media on Wednesday to confirm some of the rumors we’ve been hearing about a likely return.

Jackson was a very highly-rated, five-star prospect in the 2021 class when he committed to Ohio State and is still thought to be a potential high draft pick, though this year’s struggling offensive line did little to likely get his draft stock where it could be. Now, however, he’ll have another season to put some exceptional game film together to do just that as a part of the 2024 “brotherhood.”

Welcome back Donovan.

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Multiple Ohio State football players on Mel Kiper’s latest big board

No surprise at the top, but behind that it is #GoBucks

It’s been a slow start for [autotag]Ohio State football[/autotag], and it seems like some analysts are a bit down on the Buckeyes.

Prior to the season, it wasn’t uncommon to have seen up to five OSU player’s getting projected to be selected early in the [autotag]NFL draft[/autotag]. Now, ESPN’s Mel Kiper has updated this 2024 NFL big board (subscription required) and only two Bucks made it into his top 25.

The good news is that there were multiple players in his positional top five, so it’s not all bad. Find out below which Ohio State football players are among the top NFL prospects in the country.

Colorado QB Shedeur Sanders landed in the NFC South in this two-round mock draft

Colorado QB Shedeur Sanders landed in the NFC South in this two-round mock draft, but who are the Saints projected to pick?

The NFC South experienced some big developments in this two-round 2024 mock draft from Draft Wire’s Curt Popejoy, updated after an exciting slate of college football action — including the addition of impressive Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders as a regular opponent for the New Orleans Saints.

Hot off a 510-yard, 4-touchdown pass performance in last week’s stunning upset of TCU, Sanders is already generating a ton of NFL interest despite his status as a junior. If he does turn pro he could end up with a quarterback-needy team and quickly become a problem for the Saints with a division rival like the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (as in this projection). Sanders will have another opportunity to play in front of pro scouts next Saturday against Nebraska.

But who did the Saints pick in Popejoy’s projection? They used their first round pick at No. 20 overall on Ohio State left guard Donovan Jackson. He looks the part of a Saints draft pick from his position to his athletic measurements and obvious fit at left guard. Andrus Peat and Cesar Ruiz are on track to be free agents in 2024 and James Hurst will be entering the final year of his contract, so adding Jackson would make a lot of sense.

That’s not all, though. The Saints also own the Denver Broncos’ pick in the second round at No. 48 overall (through their trade for Sean Payton) and in this scenario they use it on Florida defensive end Princely Umanmielen. He just fits the athletic standards they maintain at the position at a listed 6-foot-5 and 255 pounds and he’s improved year over year as a pass rusher. A strong season could put him on New Orleans’ radar with an uncertain future at defensive end. They’re always looking to invest early-round picks in trench players.

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Draft Wire predicts seven Buckeyes in first round of 2024 NFL mock draft

USA Today’s Draft Wire’s latest first-round NFL mock draft features seven Ohio State football players going in the first round.

With Week 1 of college football getting underway and the NFL preseason wrapping up, USA Today’s Draft Wire updated its 2024 NFL mock draft.

Preseason mock drafts are a tough projection to make because many things will change throughout the season. However, they are a good way to evaluate how much top-tier talent a college football team has.

The Buckeyes have sent a great deal of talent into the NFL in recent years. In fact, they’ve had at least one player in every draft since 2015, including multiple first rounders in seven of the last eight draft classes.

This mock draft projects Ohio State to produce a record number of first-round picks: Seven Buckeyes come off the board in this mock draft. Here are the Buckeyes who made the list.

Five Ohio State football players make PFF’s preseason All-American teams

Five Buckeyes projected to make the All-American teams with two more honorable mention?!? #GoBucks

Another day, another group of [autotag]Ohio State football[/autotag] players getting selected on a preseason All-American team.

This time it’s Pro Football Focus, who not only picked five Buckeyes to have those honors, but also had two more as honorable mention. You can probably guess at least one who is on the first team. Hint, he wears No. 18 and has been all over numerous other All-American lists. He also has an NFL Hall of Fame father to thank for passing some pretty impressive genes along.

The others aren’t quite as obvious, but it is a bunch of familiar names nevertheless. Find out below which five Buckeyes made either the first, second, or third team, along with the two that made honorable mention according to PFF.

Projecting Ohio State football ratings if NCAA ’24 existed: Offense

What would the Ohio State offense be rated had EA Sports came out with NCAA ’24? #GoBucks

EA Sports hasn’t produced an NCAA football video game title since 2013, when it released “NCAA ’14.” We all took it for granted not knowing it would be our last. Now it seems that every year we hear rumors of the return of this magical product, but despite the rumors heating up hotter than ever due to the emergence of name, image and likeness licensing the future is still fairly dim.

We recently took a walk down memory lane and covered the highest-rated Ohio State Buckeyes from the game’s history and that, mixed with the recent release of “Madden ’24,” got me thinking about how this current roster would shake out and how some of the most popular players would be ranked.

We are going to dive into how the offense would have possibly looked had the game been released. Again, this isn’t all-encompassing with every player on the roster, just a touch of most of the players you’ll probably see when you sit down in front of your television in the fall.

Five Ohio State players named to preseason AP All-American team

Five Buckeyes were honored as 2023 preseason AP first-team All-Americans. #GoBucks

Believe it or not, we’ll have some real, live, college football at the end of this week. Yes, you can rejoice and come out of hibernation because the best time of the year is back.

But before we get to the pigskin flying on your television set, the Associated Press released its preseason All-American teams on Monday, and as you would expect, there’s a little scarlet and gray flair to it. In fact, five Ohio State players made either the first or second-team, which ties Georgia across both teams.

You can probably guess one or two of the Buckeyes that made the AP’s list, but maybe you’ll be surprised by one or two. Either way, here’s the five representatives for Ohio State on the preseason AP All-American teams for 2023.

First Up … AP first-team preseason All-Americans

Donovan Jackson makes the Earl Campbell Tyler Rose preseason watch list

Another Buckeye on a preseason watch list. #GoBucks

We’ve been keeping you in the know when it comes to Ohio State football players appearing on preseason college football award preseason watch lists, and so far, it’s been pretty hard to keep up with.

All told, 14 Buckeyes have been mentioned on all of the preseason watch lists that have been announced thus far through the last few weeks. The latest preseason watch list that was revealed on Thursday came by way of the Earl Campbell Tyler Rose award and OSU offensive lineman Donovan Jackson.

The award has been around since 2013 and goes annually to the “top offensive player in Division I football who also exhibits the enduring characteristics that define Earl Campbell: integrity, performance, teamwork, sportsmanship, drive, community and tenacity.” It also must be a player that was born in the “Lone Star State.”

Jackson is widely considered the best offensive lineman for Ohio State this season and will anchor one of the guard spots. He came out of Bellaire, Texas, as a 5-star prosect and is entering his junior season for the Buckeyes. If he has the year everyone things, there’s a good chance that he leaves early for the NFL draft and becomes a very high draft pick in April.

And in case you are wondering, Ohio State does have a winner of the award in its history. Former running back J.K. Dobbins, who was out of La Grange, Texas, took home the honor in 2019.

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