2021 Ohio State Offseason Thread

[MrNubbz]

The offense is pretty loaded - they need one of the QBs to be good, but that is always the case.  Clemson and Bammer won a championship with young QBs playing a pretty big role, so it's not unheard of.  The defense, OTOH, looks pretty shaky. 

You referring to tOSU? - then IMO you're right

[MaximumSam]

Speak of the devil - Jackson is coming back

[Honestbuckeye]

Speak of the devil - Jackson is coming back

Hoping, not with optimism, Garrett returns. 

[MaximumSam]

Hoping, not with optimism, Garrett returns.

Hope with optimism - he's back

[Abba]

Shocking how many guys are coming back.  Feeling pretty good about next year.  Just gotta find a QB and have Cam and Kourt get healthy to help the secondary.

[Honestbuckeye]

Hope with optimism - he's back

That is the best news.  He is for real!!

[MaximumSam]

So, pretty much every position up to now has been in pretty good shape, with the biggest question mark being quarterback, though that's a position well stocked with prospects.  Now we turn to the shaky portion of the team, the back seven.

Linebackers:

Probably leaving:

Pete Werner, Tuf Borland, Baron Browning, and Justin Hilliard are all seniors and all likely to sail off into the NFL sunset.  I believe only Werner hasn't announced in one way or another but no one expects him back.  And that is a lot.  For context, that's 4 of their top 5 tackles last year, 3 of the top 6 in 2019, and 2 of the top four in 2018.  OSU was playing a 4-4-3 against Alabama entirely because they had four senior linebackers who could play (just not play much with Bama).  The position is going to look entirely different next year.

Probably staying:

Teradja Mitchell is probably where we start.  His name has gotten mention for years but has just been beaten out by the guys ahead of him.  Now there isn't anyone ahead of him, so it would be surprising if he wasn't starting.  The team does have two other senior linebackers in Dallas Gant and K'Vaughan Pope.  Gant has gotten some snaps, Pope not so much. 

Assuming Gant and Mitchell start next year, the third guy might be either Craig Young or Cody Simon.  Young was a track star who didn't know how to play football, while Simon was a top 100 recruit who was a true freshman last year.  Also in the mix is thumper Tommy Eichenberg and Mitchell Melton.  OSU has incoming top 100 recruit Reid Carrico (shout out to Ironton) coming in as well.

The other part of this is that OSU has been recruiting safeties more with an eye towards playing them in a linebacker or hybrid role, but for now I'll treat the safeties as safeties and mention them with defensive backs.  

[MaximumSam]

Some smoke out there that Elias Ricks, a former five star corner and freshman at LSU, might transfer to OSU

[MaximumSam]

Werner officially says adios

[Mdot21]

Some smoke out there that Elias Ricks, a former five star corner and freshman at LSU, might transfer to OSU

Find that hard to believe considering LSU hooked up his family with housing and jobs and helped them relocate from California to Louisiana.

LSU got the receipts on him if he tries to go anywhere.

[Abba]

I'm curious how the OSU OL will shake out.  I'm assuming these spots are locked up:

LT Munford
C Miller
RG Matthew Jones
RT Petit-Frere

Then you have two guys who came in as tackles in Dawand Jones and Paris Johnson Jr. who need to get on the field.  These are the next 2 top guys, probably by a wide margin, so you have to start one of them.  The big question then is who starts and will that guy play LG or will they play LT and slide Munford to LG?  

We only saw a glimpse of PJJ at guard against Clemson and he flashed big time.  It's a small sample size, but sliding him in at LG would be my choice based on my limited data.

[Brutus Buckeye]

I'm worried about the C position, if we are penciling in Miller. 

Dude couldn't hit the broad side of a barn, snapping the football. 

[MaximumSam]

I think Paris Johnson is a lock at one of the guard spots.  I agree on Miller - he couldn't snap and at guard it seemed like he was good for a handful of boneheaded plays every game. 

[Brutus Buckeye]

Alright, Marotti's safe. Urban hires Anthony Schlegel as his strength and conditioning coach.