Everything starts up front on the gridiron, but now that we have the offensive and defensive lines covered, we can start moving further away from the line of scrimmage in our ongoing series of way too early looks at the 2010 Buckeyes.

Next up will be the linebackers. Long time readers (if there are any of you out there) know that linebacker is my favorite position, so this should be fun. Adding to the fun is the absolutely ridiculous amount of talent that the Buckeyes are packing in the linebacking corp right now.

Ohio State has depth, experience, talent, youth, and probably a few other things at linebacker going in to next year.

The only loss from last year is fifth year senior Austin Spitler.

Spitler was a solid performer for the Buckeyes last season (38 tackles, 5 tfl, 1 sack), and he did have some great moments, but there are several players waiting in the wings to take his place, and if there is any drop off at all, it should be minimal.

It can't be overstated how much talent Ohio State has here. So rather than getting out a thesaurus and trying to find some creative adjectives, I will simply jump right in.

Join me after the jump for an in depth look at the 2010 Buckeye linebackers.

Continue reading this post »

Twitter Summary: Thaddeus Gibson is a two year starter at defensive end for Ohio State. He played a hybrid end/linebacker position which utilized his athleticism and speed as a pass rusher as well as in pass coverage. This versatility along with the fact that he played linebacker in high school makes him an ideal candidate to play OLB in a 3-4 system at the next level.

What the Pro Scouts Think: Gibson declared for the draft as a redshirt junior, and many scouts believe he could have used the extra year to continue his development.

Gibson could have used an extra year in college to improve his play recognition, particularly in terms of misdirection plays as well as reading routes when he drops back in coverage. These are both areas that mostly require experience and mental recognition, which is why an extra year could have helped his draft status significantly.

Why the Pro Scouts are Stupid: Despite these concerns, Gibson's physical attributes are outstanding and he is still projected as a third rounder. If he is able to put up impressive numbers at the combine he could easily see his draft status improve to the second round range or higher, especially if he can demonstrate an ability to learn complex systems in the NFL.

I agree that Gibson could have used an extra year in college to improve his play recognition against the run as well as in pass coverage. However, family concerns forced his hand and I wish him the best in the NFL. Given a year or two in the league, I expect Gibson to be an excellent addition to a any 3-4 system as an outside linebacker.

What Does it All Mean? I would say that if Gibson is drafted in the second round or higher he may be a bit over rated, especially if the NFL team or its fans are expecting an instant impact from him. However, if the team and its fans have a bit of patience and give Gibson time to learn and grow into the position, he has the physical ability to be a game changer.

Twitter Summary: Kurt Coleman was a three year starter at strong safety for the Buckeyes. During his career, he accumulated 219 tackles (he finished third on the team in total tackles three straight years), 9 interceptions, and 5 forced fumbles. He is a tenacious defender who is always around the ball.

What the Pro Scouts Think: In general, the pro scouts seem to like everything about Coleman outside of his overall speed. Coleman is determined to prove that he can play corner back as well as safety in the NFL, making speed an even bigger concern heading into the combine.

Outside of the speed question, Coleman is extremely versatile. He has excellent football instincts, is a sure tackler, is a high character player with leadership skills, has the strength to play the run, and has a knack for making big play as evidenced by his 5 interceptions (including one returned for a touchdown against Wisconsin) and 3 forced fumbles (one of which preserved a shutout on the goal line against Toledo) during his senior season.

Why the Pro Scouts are Stupid: The infatuation with 40 times can help or hurt Coleman more than anyone I can remember in the draft. As I mentioned, there are very few negative things said about Coleman outside of the speed question, and yet he is only projected to go around the 5th round at this time. 

Leaving aside the somewhat ridiculous notion that running in a perfectly straight line without pads is an accurate way to determine "game speed", if Coleman can pop off a 4.3 40 at the combine I think there is little doubt that he would instantly move up to a late 1st round early 2nd round player.

What does it all mean? If Coleman runs a 4.5 or so (because .2 seconds without pads on is such a huge difference) and does fall past the first two rounds, I would call him a steal, and I would be extremely happy if the team I followed were able to get him that late (looking at you Browns).

Since games are won in the trenches, it is only natural that the second position I look at in these 'way too early looks' is the defensive line.

Last season the defensive line was the anchor of the team, and one of the best (if not the best) units in the entire country. In 2010, the line will look to continue the dominance they established in 2009, but will be missing a few key players as well as a lot of quality depth.

Luckily, there are also lots of young players in the pipeline itching to get on the field, giving Buckeye fans some competition to look forward to in the spring.

Best case scenario? Heyward pulls a Ndamukong Suh in his senior season. 

That is setting the bar pretty high, and I don't really expect Heyward to be in the running for the Heisman, but a Suh-like level of domination is certainly within the realm of possibilities for him.

Yeah, his decision to return is a pretty big deal.

Outside of Heyward, Ohio State has a a few other players returning from the rotation last season, and a few young guys with a ton of potential looking to get on the field for the first time. Join me after the jump for an in depth look at each position along the defensive line and the players that will be playing them.

Continue reading this post »

[Note by Jeff at the BBC, 02/12/10 4:21 PM EST ] - Bumped to the top of the page.  We buried it when the Texas news hit.

Now that the dust has settled and the ink has dried on the 2010 recruiting class, it is time to look at what Ohio State has coming back at each position and what we can expect from the incoming freshman.

The offensive line is probably the most publicized position at the moment due to missing out on three prospects on signing day. Those signing day disappointments also makes depth along the offensive line an area of concern for many Buckeye fans. Throw in the fact that Ohio State only loses one lineman (Jim Cordle) from 2009 and only gains one (Andrew Norwell) heading into 2010 and I would call the offensive line an ideal place to begin our look at next season.

Oh yeah, and the line is going to be good next season, maybe really good.

Many fans were disappointed to the point of calling  the 2010 recruiting class a bust due to the high profile recruiting misses last week. Well I am here, as always, to inject some optimism into the conversation for this season specifically, and for the future of the offensive line in general.

First let's talk about the 2010 season. Ohio State has four returning starters along the offensive line, which is nice by itself. These four helped pave the way for well over 200 yards rushing per game over the last five games of the 2009 regular season, which is even nicer. Throw in the fact that the Buckeyes have quality young depth from the 2009 recruiting class and things look pretty good... at least to me... at least for the 2010 season.

In fact, I would even say that the 2010 offensive line could be the best of the Tressel era. The best in the Big Ten? Possibly. The best in the country? We can only hope.

The key to the offensive line achieving greatness? Two questions need to be answered. Who will play at left tackle? and can the line stay healthy?

Left tackle has been a question mark since the beginning of last season. With an extra year of experience under their belts, hopefully the two main contenders to fill the position can solidify their spot in the starting lineup, extra bonus points if they solidify it early in the spring.

Health is the other major concern for the line. Last year injuries ravished the line early in the season, and the resurgence of the run game at the end of the year may have been simply due to the starting line returning to full strength.

Can the line stay healthy in 2010 and continue the momentum they established at the end of last season?

If they can... happy times.

Join me after the jump for a closer look at the each position as well as a look at the depth situation and possible future recruiting targets.

Continue reading this post »

Despite all the bluster and chest-thumping over the past 6 days, absolutely nothing has changed in the recruiting world since about 2pm last Wednesday. No new recruits, at least of the major-name status, have turned in their signed letter of intent.

Yes, Minnesota's golden boy Seantrel Henderson agreed to sign with USC, but then he didn't.  By any thinking man's reasoning, he's still unsigned and still available to be recruited.

But yet, it took a sports talk show today for that point to be driven home.

During an in-studio interview with KSTP-TV sports anchor Joe Schmit on Sunday night, Henderson and his father, Sean Henderson, made it clear that Seantrel will not sign with USC if NCAA penalties are too severe. But the extent of those penalties may not be known for months, and nobody knows how long the Hendersons are willing to wait.

There were those who pushed unfounded rumors that Henderson was going to sign with USC anyway, but those rumors have all been laughably ignored, and the real word is now in black and white.

Seantrel Henderson is available.

Here's hoping his dad isn't still in charge of the recruitment process.

Oh, what could have been.

Unfortunately for Buckeye Nation the title of "the next Orlando Pace" will have to wait for another player in another recruiting class.

Seantrel Henderson is a Trojan (insert joke).  He did say that Ohio State was his second choice.  Maybe he'll transfer when the sanctions get laid down this summer.

Needless to say, the expectations and anticipation over Henderson's choice have been at a fever pitch leading up to his decision today, and for good reason. Henderson is an elite tackle the likes of which do not come around very often (click here for details).

Making the anticipation, and ultimately the disappointment, even greater for Buckeyes everywhere is the fact that left tackle is one of the few question marks that must be answered heading into next season. Many people expected Henderson to be that answer, but alas, it was not to be.

While it is obviously a huge disappointment to miss out on a player of Henderson's caliber, he and his family have handled his recruitment with dignity and class, and you can't hold it against them for making this decision. Ultimately, with the schools he was choosing from, you couldn't really blame him for picking any of them (personal biases aside).

Honestly, with the events this morning, one could almost feel this one coming.

While Henderson was expected to come in and compete for the starting left tackle position immediately at Ohio State, the cupboard isn't exactly bare.

Junior Mike Adams (whose hype coming out of high school was pretty damn high in his own right) and redshirt senior Andy Miller will be coming back to take another crack at starting. You would have to imagine that players like Marcus Hall would get a shot at left tackle as well.

So, visions of Orlando Pace aside, there are plenty of options for the Buckeyes, even though none of them are quite as appealing as Henderson.

It is a disappointing day for sure, but the sun will rise tomorrow, and Ohio State will still field a damn fine football team in the fall.

As new commits are signing their names on the dotted line, we will be posting them.  All five BBCers will be on top of National Signing Day, both here and at SBN's main thread, making sure you get the most updated stories.

10:50am - All of the verbals are accounted for

Corey Brown, WR/RB, Springfield, Pennsylvania

10:40am -Two more

Chad Hagan, S/LB, Canonsburg, Pennsylvania

Tyrone Williams, WR, Cleveland, Ohio

9:38am - Three more signees

David Durham, LB, Charlotte, North Carolina  (originally Austin, Texas)

Taylor Graham, QB, Wheaton, Illinois

Roderick Smith, RB, Fort Wayne, Indiana

9:30am:

Johnathon Hankins, DT, Detroit, Michigan

Andrew Norwell, OT, Cincinnati, Ohio

Christian Bryant, DB, Cleveland, Ohio

9:15 am:

Drew Basil, K, Chilllicothe, Ohio

Darryl Baldwin, DE, Solon, Ohio

J.T. Moore, DE, Boardman, Ohio

Vernon Redd, QB/Athlete, Columbus, Ohio

James Louis, WR, Delray Beach, Florida

Jamel Turner, DE/OLB, Ursuline, Ohio

Bradley Roby, CB/WR, Peachtree Ridge, Georgia

Scotty McVey, LB, Cleveland, Ohio

-----------------------------

This is it. Today is the day that high school football players across the country fax in their letters of intent and lock in the college that they will be attending.

Some of these players will become stars, others will get lost in the college shuffle and never see the field (as so many college students, athletes or otherwise, tend to do).

Who will be a star and who will be a bust? No one knows, but for now, everyone is a future star, which is why today is so exciting for many fans.

There are several major story lines that are worth tracking today. Will James Louis be a Buckeye? Is Matt James heading to South Bend or Columbus? What will LaTwan Anderson and Morgan Moses do?

The question on most minds will be where Seantrel Henderson will go. He is set to announce on CBS at 5:30 E.T.

Until then, we will be updating all day as each letter of intent is faxed in with some brief analysis (with much, much more analysis to come later). If you're interested in the "liveblog" thingy, our friend Ian at Inside the Shoe would appreciate the blessing of your company.

SB Nation has also put together a page to track all of the action today, Ohio State or otherwise, so check that out if you like.

Remember, no one expects you to get any work done today, so have at it.