COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The Ohio State Buckeyes listed 26 seniors who are scheduled to be honored at Senior Day before Saturday’s game against Penn State, 17 of them current scholarship players. They’ll run out of the tunnel a final time to meet coach Ryan Day and then share a moment with their families.
The guys playing their last home games who aren’t seniors, they’ll still be on the sidelines. I asked Day this week if he’s open to the idea of some juniors who clearly won’t be back in 2020 getting the chance to go through the same ceremony and have that moment with the fans, their coach and their families.
“We typically like to do it just for the seniors,” Day said. “That’s something that’s special when you’ve put four or five years into the program, that you get a chance to do that. For guys that decide early, they typically don’t get that opportunity. Not that that’s right, wrong or indifferent, that’s just our policy.”
But, as always, we know there are Buckeyes who aren’t seniors who are saying their Ohio Stadium goodbyes. Let’s figure out who they might be. We’ve done this for several years now.
Last year, six Ohio State underclassmen declared for the draft: Nick Bosa, Dwayne Haskins, Dre’Mont Jones, Michael Jordan, Mike Weber and Kendall Sheffield. Jordan was the only one that I predicted on Senior Day would stay.
in 2017, only three Ohio State underclassmen went pro: Denzel Ward, Jerome Baker and Sam Hubbard. On Senior Day, our consensus had six Buckeyes leaving.
In 2016, six OSU underclassmen left for the NFL: Marshon Lattimore, Gareon Conley, Malik Hooker, Curtis Samuel, Raekwon McMillan and Noah Brown. We called all of them on Senior Day except Brown.
In 2015, nine underclassmen declared for the draft, which was the moment when everyone knew how serious this could get as the Buckeyes started churning out more NFL talent. After this season, the Buckeyes won’t have that many underclassmen declare. But they’ll have their fair share. Here are the candidates, with guesses from me, Nathan Baird and Stephen Means as to what might happen.
Chase Young, defensive end
He’s been on a three-year plan since he arrived and teammate Jalyn Holmes projected him as the No. 1 pick in the 2020 NFL Draft after one game as a freshman. With a player like this, a program can only hope it gets the full three years, and that something doesn’t go wrong that junior season. Something did go wrong for Young, but he’s back for Saturday after missing two games for a minor NCAA violation, and the Buckeyes will take it. But this is it.
Doug: Leave
Nathan: Leave
Stephen: Leave
Jeff Okudah, cornerback
Young was the No. 7 overall recruit in the 247sports.com rankings for 2017. Okudah was No. 8. Young is the ideal NFL defensive end. Okudah is the ideal NFL corner. Young is almost a lock for the top five in the draft. Okudah is almost a lock for the top 15.
Doug: Leave
Nathan: Leave
Stephen: Leave
J.K. Dobbins, running back
After a down sophomore season, he was no sure thing to be three-and-done entering this season. But while averaging 7.04 yards per carry (second-best in the nation behind Clemson’s Travis Etienne among backs with at least 100 rushes) Dobbins has once again flashed the speed, vision, power and agility that will interest the NFL. He’s certainly not as obvious as Young and Okudah. And he’s not assured of being a first-round pick, not when only one running back was drafted in the first round in 2019. But Dobbins has shown everything he can do with three full years of college football. It would be a huge boost for the Buckeyes if he stays. If he leaves, Master Teague will carry the rushing load in 2020 and the running back still to be added to the 2020 class could play immediately as well.
Doug: Leave
Nathan: Leave
Stephen: Leave
Shaun Wade, cornerback
This might be the most interesting (and important) decision on the roster. Wade is a redshirt sophomore and part of that dynamic 2017 recruiting class. His play at slot corner this season has stirred talk of potential first-round ability. If the Buckeyes win a title, he could go out on top and head to the NFL, meaning the Buckeyes would lose all four starters in the secondary (also Okudah, and seniors Damon Arnette and Jordan Fuller). If he stays, he would be the No. 1 outside corner next season and show what he could do there after two seasons in the slot. He likes secondary coach Jeff Hafley, and being a captain and No. 1 corner are strong reasons to stick around. But if he gets a first-round grade from the NFL Draft Advisory Board? That could be tough to turn down. This is only a guess because this complicated decision could go either way.
Doug: Leave
Nathan: Stay
Stephen: Stay
Baron Browning, linebacker
He’s battled injuries this year during his first season when he’s really looked comfortable and has been able to show the potential he brought to Columbus as a five-star recruit. He’s the kind of player who could be better as a pro than he’s been at Ohio State. But with Ohio State losing senior Malik Harrison, maybe he’d get a chance to start on the outside next season after three years at middle linebacker. There’s still more for Browning to show, but there’s always the chance he’d rather start showing it in the NFL.
Doug: Stay
Nathan: Stay
Stephen: Stay
Thayer Munford, left tackle
Munford had back surgery in the offseason, and sometimes when players deal with major physical issues, they realize they may need to earn a paycheck for football as soon as possible. Munford isn’t a first-rounder, but he’ll certainly be drafted. Among recent OSU tackles, Jamarco Jones was a fifth-rounder and Isaiah Prince was a sixth-rounder. This is Munford’s second season as a starter, so, as always, if he feels like he’s shown what he can be, he has to consider the idea of leaving.
Doug: Leave
Nathan: Leave
Stephen: Leave
Wyatt Davis, right guard
In his first full year as a starer, Davis has played at nearly an All-American level. The Buckeyes have lost redshirt sophomores who were first-year starters before, including Darron Lee, Malik Hooker and Marshon Lattimore. It would be a little more unusual on the offensive line, but Davis is a top-100 national recruit who, like the others on this list, has lived up to the hype. So the NFL would certainly take him if he feels like he’s ready. It’s not impossible.
Doug: Stay
Nathan: Stay
Stephen: Leave
Josh Myers, center
Same deal as Davis. But this one would be harder to imagine. Myers has played well but it seems like he has more he could learn from a second year of starting. But talent gives you options.
Doug: Stay
Nathan: Stay
Stephen: Stay
The 17 scholarship seniors Ohio State has listed for Saturday’s pregame ceremony
WR K.J. Hill
WR Austin Mack
WR Binjimen Victor
WR C.J. Saunders
QB Chris Chugunov
OL Branden Bowen
OL Jonah Jackson
OL Joshua Alabi
TE/DE Rashod Berry
LS Liam McCullough
DT Davon Hamilton
DT B.B. Landers
DT Jashon Cornell
DE Jonathon Cooper
LB Malik Harrison
CB Damon Arnette
S Jordan Fuller
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2019-11-23 10:08:00Z
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