Tag: Ohio State Buckeyes Football

Ohio State ranked in the top ten of Sports Illustrated’s Running Back U

The Ohio State Buckeyes have had some great running backs over their historic program’s history and are ranked in the top ten of SI’s RB U.

With the bulk of the United States in lockdown, rankings and mock drafts are a dime a dozen. However, not many of the world wide web’s major sites are doing full breakdowns of positions in the collegiate football world.

Sports Illustrated is.

After being placed in the top five for O-Line U, the Buckeyes were back at it in the recently-released Running Back U.

This point-based system ranked programs on their running backs that have both been drafted and have success at the next level.

That said, the Ohio State Buckeyes have had some great running backs over their historic program’s history and are ranked in the top ten of Sports Illustrated’s Running Back U.

They came in at No. 7 with 21 points. Alabama, Georgia, LSU, Oklahoma and Standford rounded out the top five in respective order. Auburn was the other program that came between Ohio State and the top five.

As for Ohio State, in their recent history, many can remember Ezekiel Elliott. But, there’s more. Many will remember Carlos Hyde, Beanie Wells, Dan Herron, and Antonio Pittman, all backs that have been drafted over the last decade and some.

J.K. Dobbins will add to that list in the near future as he’s one of the best running backs on many big boards in the upcoming draft.

Ohio State Football Profile Card: Chris Olave

A profile of Ohio State star receiver Chris Olave.

Name: Chris Olave

Number: 2

Position: WR

Class: Junior

Height: 6’1”

Weight: 188 lbs

Hometown: San Marcos, CA

High School: Mission Hills High School, Kennesaw, GA

2019-2020 Stats:

GP Rec YDs Avg TD Rec YPG Rush ATT Rush YDs Rush TDs Rush YPA Total YPG
13 48 840 17.5 12 64.6 2 5 0 2.5 65

Overview:

Olave might not have been the expected heir to Ohio State’s tremendous receiving corps in previous seasons–he certainly didn’t show it for most of his freshman season. However, he had a huge game against Michigan in 2018, and ever since then he has been the go-to guy for the Buckeyes, and for tremendous reason.

Olave’s relationship with quarterback Justin Fields is going to be a huge asset for Ohio State this coming season. Olave’s development into his own player and a very difficult-to-guard receiver will only make him better and better as he continues to grow and develop.

Don’t let the numbers fool you–Olave is the heart and soul of Ohio State’s passing game. The Buckeyes had a very spread out attack, with each of Olave, K.J. Hill, Binjimen Victor, Garrett Wilson, and Austin Mack all pulling in over 300 yards on the season. Ohio State also had a potent rushing attack, led by J.K. Dobbins’ 2,000 yards.

It is noteworthy how rarely the Buckeyes ran from the wide receiver position this past year. Olave had the most carries of any Ohio State receiver, with two. That’s a far cry from what we were used to seeing with guys like Jalin Marshall in the backfield. We’ll see if that changes going forward, though Austin Mack might be the most likely to get more carries.

Of course, the lasting memory of Olave–in both his mind and fans’ minds–is the final offensive play of the Fiesta Bowl. Olave and Fields were not on the same page, and it led to a game-ending interception. Don’t let that sit for too long, though. Olave is too good and too essential to this team to let that define him. He will provide plenty more happy highlights when he next gets back on the field.

Highlights

Want to know what makes Olave so good? Check out his best plays from last season.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ASN_02Yk1Do&w=560&h=315]

Ohio State “hopeful” for a speedy recovery from Master Teague

The Ohio State football coaching staff is “hopeful” that running back Master Teague will have a timely recovery.

So, this is a bit of encouragement in what’s a dark time for most.

Master Teague is continuing to improve his Achilles. Teague’s injury would’ve forced him to be sidelined during the highly-anticipated spring game had it taken place.

J.K. Dobbins’ backup in 2019, Teague still put numbers that rivaled starting running backs on other Big Ten rosters. He did that much in limited snaps and is the projected starter for 2020.

He will have competition though, one reason he needs to quickly gain his strength back. With graduate transfer Trey Sermon in the backfield as well, Teague will likely be splitting carries again.

It certainly doesn’t bode well for his playing time if he isn’t ready at the start of team workouts. But, there’s apparently a positive feel around the team that he’ll back soon.

According to Land-Grant Holy Land, Day said that they are “hopeful” that Teague will have a quick recovery. Day went into praise the young back’s progress.

Teague accumulated 789 yards last season. Think about that for a second. A backup running back was 211 yards away from 1,000. His 5.8 average was strong, just like he is, standing 5-foot-11-inches and weighing 220 pounds.

That said, expect a quick recovery and more updates to come on Teague as he continues to mend.

 

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Ohio State Football among final two options for four-star WR Troy Stellato

The Ohio State Buckeyes have been a powerhouse at recruiting receivers, and four-star Troy Stellato may be the next stud to join the Bucks.

The Ohio State Buckeyes have been a powerhouse at recruiting receivers, and four-star Troy Stellato may be the next stud to join the team in Columbus.

Stellato is a top-25 receiver in the Class of 2021.

On March 15, Stellato, who had offers from some of the top programs in America, narrowed down his potential suitors to just two: Ohio State and Clemson.

As many know, Clemson downed Ohio State in the College Football Semifinal, but both are projected to be among the college football’s best teams once again in 2020.

The Fort Lauderdale-native, who also received offers from Alabama and Auburn, would have the opportunity to join an elite program spearheaded by former NFL receiver Brian Hartline.

Recruited by Hartline, Stellato took to Twitter to announce his final two programs.

Already with the No. 8 and No. 12-ranked receivers committed to their Class of 2021, and with some highly-touted freshman already in the mix, Ohio State is loaded with talent.

Stellato, who would be entering Columbus while five-star recruit Julian Fleming is entering his sophomore season, could grow and learn under some of the best.

TreVeyon Henderson keeps Ohio State in mix despite Pryor’s commitment

The Ohio State Buckeyes are in the race for another five-star running back despite recently getting a commitment from Evan Pryor.

Ohio State is in the race for another five-star running back despite recently getting a commitment from Evan Pryor. That running back is TreVeyon Henderson, the 17th-best player in the Class of 2021, and the nation’s No. 2 rated running back according to 2487Sports.

Recruited by Tony Alford, Henderson has some of the nation’s top programs on his list.

If he were to commit to Ohio State, Henderson would be the Buckeyes’ top-rated running back in the class despite the commitment from Pryor. That said, Henderson took to Twitter to announce his final nine.

Henderson’s crystal ball prediction gave the Clemson Tigers a 33% chance to land him along with the Buckeyes at 33%, so there is a good chance experts will now believe that Ohio State is the favorite to secure the high-touted prospect.

The Virginia-native also has his two major home programs in his final nine which could play a factor as well.

The 5-foot-11, 195-pound back is destined to be a stud at the next level, and although they have a commitment from Pryor, let’s hope Henderson also opts to join an elite class in Columbus.

Ohio State’s Jeff Okudah: Quintez Cephus was best WR I faced

Quintez Cephus receives considerable praise

Let’s be honest with ourselves: Statistics matter. They aren’t irrelevant. Analytics matter. They aren’t irrelevant. Physical measurements matter. They aren’t irrelevant. Clock times in speed races matter. Speed is not irrelevant.

So many measurables and tangible components are important in evaluating an NFL Draft prospect. Scouts, executives and coaches do need to look at players in order to have a better idea of what they want — and don’t want — for their teams in the coming season. They need to be able to see for themselves if a player is so good that a team’s specific needs matter less than grabbing a transcendent talent. They need to see if a player’s unique skill set can best enhance their roster for the coming year and beyond.

The stats, the measurements, the clock times, the weights, the 3-cone drills, the vertical jumps, the hand sizes — they’re not irrelevant. Of course they matter.

Yet: They don’t represent — or tell — the full story.

An important part of any player’s overall profile is the way his opponents — more precisely, the players who competed against him in one-on-one matchups — assess his quality.

Ohio State cornerback Jeff Okudah fought Wisconsin’s Quintez Cephus one-on-one when the Buckeyes played the Badgers this past season. Keep in mind that Okudah played against Michigan and Penn State. Keep in mind that he played against Clemson in the Fiesta Bowl, and went head-to-head against Tee Higgins, who is a sensational wide receiver known for making ridiculous acrobatic catches.

Okudah has played in big-boy games against elite talent… and this is what he had to say about Quintez Cephus at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis:

Okudah is regarded by Higgins — who has his own bright NFL future — as a top-five-caliber draft pick. Okudah, being the best of the best among cornerbacks in this 2020 draft class, puts Cephus at the top of his list of college wide receivers he has played against. WHOA!

That’s the kind of evaluation which has to be factored in, alongside the measurements and clock times and other numbers. Yes, the “measurables” have their place. They matter.

So does the opinion of a stud such as Ohio State’s Jeff Okudah.

That might be the biggest and best endorsement of Quintez Cephus for any NFL general manager or coach who is contemplating a pick on the Badger wide receiver.

Ohio State’s Jaxon Smith-Njigba ready to do “whatever it takes to win”

The Buckeyes have an elite class of wide receivers inbound, and one recruit, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, is ready to do whatever it takes to win.

The Buckeyes have an elite class of wide receivers joining the team in 2020, and one five-star recruit, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, is ready to do whatever it takes to win.

Smith-Njigba is just one of several skilled receivers. Players like Julian Fleming and Gee Scott Jr. will also be ready to compete for their rightful spot on the team.

However, aside from those three, the team will still have weapons like Garrett Wilson and Chris Olave. This team’s threats on the edge will be the best in the nation, and at least one recruit will be putting the team first.

Letterman Row’s Spencer Holbrook was able to sit down with Jaxon Smith-Njigba and ask him about the upcoming season and his potential role in the Buckeyes’ offense.

“You just got to look at the bigger picture. If you want to win, you’ll do whatever it takes to win. We got threats all across the field, so coming in, of course you want to see 15 balls a game. But realistically, it’s not going to happen at any level at any school. That’s really not in my mind. However many balls I have, I’ve just got to make the opportunity and take advantage of that,” Smith-Njigba said.

Smith-Njigba will likely be the team’s fourth-string receiver.

Although the fifth-best receiver in the Class of 2020, he’ll be battling with the likes of Fleming, the best receiver in the class, and Garrett Wilson, another five-star recruit and the second-best receiver in the Class of 2019.

It will be a tough battle out wide in Columbus. However, as long as players like Smith-Njigba, Wilson, and Fleming all take their respective roles as an opportunity to grow, this team will be just fine.

Wisconsin recruiting comparison: Ohio State

Recruiting

National Signing Day has come and gone and the Wisconsin Badgers have put together a fairly decent class compared to the rest of the Big Ten. In the spirit of looking at recruiting classes compared to the rest of the conference, Badgers Wire is taking a look at Wisconsin’s class on a national level and a conference level. We’ll be including their national rankings and their conference rankings. First up is the conference bellcow, the Ohio State Buckeyes. 

As has been the case for the last decade, the Buckeyes put together one of the nation’s best classes with a few of the nation’s best prospects, one of whom is one of their highest rated recruits ever. The recruit in question, Julian Fleming, is only behind Terrelle Pryor (2008) and Ted Ginn Jr. (2004) in terms of his overall recruiting rating. All told, the Buckeyes have the nation’s fifth-best recruiting class. Five of their recruits are top-three or better at their position grouping, two of them are the nation’s best player at their best position — offensive tackle Paris Johnson Jr. and the aforementioned Julian Fleming. 

The Buckeyes also had the conference’s top recruiting class. The Badgers had the nation’s 25th-ranked recruiting class and the Big Ten’s fifth-best recruiting class. The average rating per player for the Badgers was .8782 and .9180 for the Buckeyes. That’s a difference of .0398, almost four-tenths better at each position. It improves a little for the Badgers next year in terms of their overall ranking (No. 6) and conference ranking (No. 2), but their average rating deficit almost doubles (.0669) and the Buckeyes show no signs of slowing down. 

The position both classes compare at is offensive tackle. The Badgers signed Jack Nelson, a 6-foot-7, 273-pound beast out of Stoughton, Wisconsin. He’s the No. 10 player at his position in the nation. The Buckeyes, however, signed the nation’s premiere player at the position in Parison Johnson Jr., who has ambitions of being Orlando Pace. Both of these players come from a school known for churning out top prospects on the offensive line. Both of these players will be part of a productive pro-style offense. But if the Badgers want to end up in the College Football Playoff like the Buckeyes, they’ll have to start recruiting prospects like the Buckeyes.  

Wisconsin decade in review: Badgers vs Ohio State

Wisconsin versus Ohio State

As the 2019 season brings to a close another decade of college football, Badgers Wire has been engaged in a series of reflective pieces. “Record Review” is another series examining how the Badgers have fared against the rest of the Big Ten this decade. First up is the Wisconsin Badgers’ record against the current Big Ten champion, Ohio State. As one might suspect for the Badgers, it’s not a pleasant record to look over. But let’s kick off Record Review with an examination of the record versus the Buckeyes. 

Using Stassen, Badgers Wire pulled up every result against Ohio State since 2009. Overall, the Badgers went 1-9 against the Buckeyes in this decade. They were 1-2 at home, 0-4 at the Horseshoe, and 0-3 in neutral-site games for the Big Ten championship. While the Badgers played the Buckeyes much closer in the 2017 and 2019 Big Ten title games than the previous time they met in the Big Ten Championship Game, their overall point differential in those conference championships is minus-78 (120-42). Their only win over the Buckeyes this decade came in 2010.

The toughest loss for the Badgers in this series has to be the 2011 loss to a Buckeye team that finished 6-7 overall under Luke Fickell, in the lost season between Jim Tressel and Urban Meyer. While another loss wouldn’t have improved their bowl appearance or overall season that year — not a soul was going to change the fact that LSU and Alabama would play a rematch of their 9-6 game that season — Wisconsin still had a chance to beat Ohio State when it was down, and UW couldn’t do it. The best the 2011 Badgers could have done was play in the Rose Bowl, which is where they ended up anyhow. Nevertheless, blowing a chance to beat Ohio State should sting for any good Big Ten program.

This particular series means a lot for Wisconsin, since it represents an end goal. In order to win the Big, a school outside Columbus will almost certainly have to beat Ohio State. If a team can’t do it during a year in which Ohio State finished below .500 for the first time since 1988 (if you don’t count the vacated 2010 season), it’s going to be harder to turn that corner. If Wisconsin wants to start winning the conference on a regular basis, improving its recruiting rankings, and playing in College Football Playoff games, beating the Buckeyes is a must in the 2020s. Badgers Wire has written about what the Badgers could learn from Ohio State as they fight to achieve their higher goals in the coming decade.