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Draft Scout College Football Player News: Ohio State

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03/09/23 - Kyle McCord, Jr/2025, Ohio State + More +

Making the playoff begins with the quarterback. Ohio State has six, including Oregon State transfer Tristan Gebbia, incoming freshman Lincoln Kienholz and preferred walk-ons Mason Maggs and Chad Ray. But the real drama is between McCord and Brown. Is either a future NFL draft pick? Do they have to be? Five quarterbacks who led their schools to the CFP failed to get drafted: Kelly Bryant (Clemson), Jake Browning (Washington), J.T. Barrett (Ohio State), Jake Coker (Alabama) and Blake Sims (Alabama). So it can happen, but not recently. Bryant (2020) was the last to get passed over on draft day. There is a chance Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett and TCU quarterback Max Duggan go undrafted next month, but most draftniks think they will get picked in the mid-to-lower rounds.

What about McCord and Brown? We just don't know. In McCord's case, we have seen so little of him. In Brown's case, we have seen even less. I still don't understand why Ohio State coach Ryan Day barely played McCord last season, especially in games that had been decided midway through the third quarter. The second-year quarterback attempted just 20 passes, completing 16 for 190 yards and a touchdown. He actually saw more playing time as a freshman, completing 25 of 38 attempts for 416 yards and two TDs. McCord, who came to Columbus as a five-star recruit, has not had much opportunity to shine. Is he a star? A meteor? A black hole? Who knows? What can be said with confidence is McCord/Brown will be challenged to match Stroud's performance as a poised passer who finds receivers better than any quarterback in Ohio State history. - Columbus Dispatch

Jr/2025

QB Kyle McCord, Ohio State
News Source: Columbus Dispatch
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03/09/23 - Mitchell Melton, rJr/2025, Ohio State + More +

Defensive lineman Mitchell Melton has been medically cleared to participate in individual drills for Ohio State during spring practice. But Melton, who tore an anterior cruciate ligament in last year's spring game and missed the season as a result, is expected to remain limited to individual work for at least a majority of the practices over the next five weeks. "We've just got to be smart," Buckeyes coach Ryan Day said, "and bring him back the right way." As seen by reporters during a half-hour viewing period as spring practice opened Tuesday, Melton went through a series of drills with the defensive linemen.

A versatile edge defender, Melton enrolled at Ohio State in 2020 as a linebacker before moving to the defensive line last year. His all-around skillset made him a candidate to line up at the "Jack" position, the hybrid defensive end-linebacker role, before he went down last April. "We're hoping he can make an impact for us this year," Day said. "Before the injury, we were excited about him and what he was doing. He's got a really good pass-rush ability and good strength and play speed." - Columbus Dispatch

rJr/2025

OLB Mitchell Melton, Ohio State
News Source: Columbus Dispatch
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03/07/23 - Jack Sawyer, Jr/2025, Ohio State + More +

Where is Jack Sawyer? The former five-star recruit never really took that Year 2 jump some may have anticipated. His raw numbers were fine for a player who was third on the OSU defensive end hierarchy - 24 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss and a team-high 4.5 sacks on 329 snaps - but there was never that big moment we saw from guys like Michael Hall Jr. and J.T. Tuimoloau. Sawyer arrived as a guy known for getting after the passer and when he's been asked to do so he's shown flashes of his upside. The problem is that his second year was spent splitting time between continuing his development as an edge rusher while also learning a new position in Jim Knowles' defense.

The intrigue with the Jack and what it could be once turned into a Leo is part of what made the Knowles' hire noteworthy. The problem is we never really saw that come to fruition in 2022 and it's fair to question if that's a result of Sawyer possibly not being the best fit. "It can definitely present problems being able to show different fronts, which I think is key to what the Jack does," Sawyer said before the Sugar Bowl. "But I also feel like we can be really effective in just our base front getting after guys." Sawyer is coming into Year 3 expected to start alongside Tuimoloau. Does that mean he spends less time at the Jack, or could we see that role become a bigger part of the defense now that he's been learning it for a year? - Cleveland Plain Dealer

Jr/2025

DE Jack Sawyer, Ohio State
News Source: Cleveland Plain Dealer
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03/03/23 - Marvin Harrison Jr., Jr/2025, Ohio State + More +

Few players have the name recognition and brand value of Ohio State football's Marvin Harrison Jr. The unanimous All-America receiver remained choosy with his endorsement deals in the new age of name, image and likeness compensation for college athletes. His father's Hall of Fame NFL career set the family up well. Plus, fair or not, any company the son attached his name to, he is also attaching that of Marvin Harrison Sr., as well.

Harrison could apparently not pass up one endorsement that represents one of the best marriages thus far of athlete and company. He announced Wednesday he is "officially part of the Monarc family." Monarc makes the pitching machines that football receivers and other players use to work on routes or catching skills on their own. This deal hits close to Harrison's personal brand. His work ethic and extra time spent in the Woody Hayes Athletic Center have been part of his story from his arrival in Columbus. Usually those morning, afternoon or evening sessions spent on the indoor field involve one of those Monarc machines. "The Seeker was a big part of my success last season," Harrison said of one of the company's models in the video. "It allows me to put in work by myself. Keeps me on top of my game." - Cleveland Plain Dealer

Jr/2025

WR Marvin Harrison Jr., Ohio State
News Source: Cleveland Plain Dealer
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03/02/23 - Davison Igbinosun, So/2026, Ohio State + More +

Ohio State's eight first-round defensive backs selected over the past decade are easily the most among the DBU contenders. However, it has not recruited a first-round defensive back - or even one selected on the first two days of the draft - since Okudah in 2017. Every other contender for the ongoing title of DBU has produced at least one pick in the top three rounds in the past two drafts. LSU, Virginia Tech and Washington have each produced two. The Tigers, Hokies, Alabama and Florida all developed first-round picks.

The Crimson Tide are the only one from that group currently projected to have a first-round DB in April's draft. The list of contenders to sneak into the top 32 picks includes secondary athletes from Illinois, Maryland, Mississippi State and South Carolina. Utah's Clark Phillips III - the OSU decommit who represents the biggest hole in the defense over the past two seasons - also has an outside chance to make the first round. That deficiency was still being addressed this winter, when OSU added former Ole Miss cornerback Davison Igbinosun and former Syracuse safety Ja'Had Carter through the transfer portal. Secondary coach Tim Hinton acknowledge the need to ramp up competition, especially in the cornerback room. "During the recruiting process, we try to get the best guys in the country - to make sure the room is deep, the room is always upgraded, and make sure we keep the competition good," Hinton said earlier this spring. - Cleveland Plain Dealer

So/2026

CB Davison Igbinosun, Ohio State
News Source: Cleveland Plain Dealer
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03/02/23 - Sonny Styles, So/2026, Ohio State + More +

Even as Sonny Styles graduated a year early from Pickerington Central, he found his way into the Buckeyes' safety rotation, including in the College Football Playoff semifinal against Georgia as his 6-foot-4 frame helped to counter the Bulldogs' heavy use of tight ends. His role only figures to grow as a sophomore. The question is where he'll play. His snaps as a freshman were divided between the box and slot, making him a candidate for a variety of roles. Knowles said he has a "lot of ideas" for Styles. - Columbus Dispatch

So/2026

SS Sonny Styles, Ohio State
News Source: Columbus Dispatch
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02/27/23 - Gee Scott Jr., Sr/2024, Ohio State + More +

A full year of emotions poured out of Ohio State's Gee Scott Jr. in one ill-advised moment against Michigan last Nov. 26. The former wide receiver kept improving in his second full year as a tight end. He played the second-most snaps in that position group. He caught his first touchdown pass, at Michigan State. And until midway through the third quarter against the Wolverines, he was playing one of his best games of the season. In an inexplicably out-of-character moment, Scott head butted Michigan defensive back Rod Moore while they were out of bounds at the end of a play. For all the wrong reasons, it stood up as the most notable play of the former top-100 prospect's career thus far.

Discussing that play in Atlanta before the Buckeyes' Peach Bowl playoff semifinal against Georgia, Scott said he let his emotions get the best of him. "That doesn't define my season," Scott said. "That can maybe define my season from the outside looking in. But internally there's so much more that goes into it - not only me, but we've worked too hard to allow something so small to alter a year's worth of work." New tight ends coach Keenan Bailey recruited Scott out of Washington when he was a quality-control coach for OSU's receivers. He said Scott came out of the Michigan loss and strung together several weeks of his best practices heading into the Peach Bowl. What Bailey termed a "silly, fluke injury" prevented Scott from playing. That absence was magnified when starter Cade Stover left with a back injury in the first half. Bailey, who did not officially take over the tight end room until January, said he and Scott never addressed the Michigan gaffe. Instead, they have ongoing conversations about a personal legacy still in the making and the potential of the coming season. "He's in control of his destiny, in that sense," Bailey said. "I'm super excited to work with him." - Cleveland Plain Dealer

Sr/2024

FB Gee Scott Jr., Ohio State
News Source: Cleveland Plain Dealer
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02/21/23 - TreVeyon Henderson, Jr/2025, Ohio State + More +

Ohio State running back TreVeyon Henderson was injured against Toledo in the Buckeyes' third game of the year. He was in and out of the lineup until his season ended with an 11-carry, 19-yard performance in a 43-30 win over Maryland on Nov. 19, in which he also had a 31-yard touchdown catch. Overall, he was limited to just 571 rushing yards and six touchdowns in 2022 before he had surgery to repair a broken bone and a torn ligament in his foot.

That, plus being in and out of the OSU lineup, frustrated him. "There was some stuff involved around this injury that I didn't respect - not even coming from outside but inside of the building," Henderson said, declining to add specifics. "It hurt me a lot." That was soothed over by a heart-to-heart with Ohio State coach Ryan Day and running backs coach Tony Alford. "We got everything we needed to get off our chest," Henderson said. - Columbus Dispatch

Jr/2025

RB TreVeyon Henderson, Ohio State
News Source: Columbus Dispatch
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02/20/23 - Kyle McCord, Jr/2025, Ohio State + More +

Ryan Day has never been in a hurry to name a starting quarterback at Ohio State. Both of the previous announcements during his coaching tenure, in 2021 and 2019, came in late August, exactly 12 days before the Buckeyes were to open their seasons. As the high-profile position battles lasted beyond spring practice, they continued for months of the offseason with little divulged about the pecking order among the passers, even as C.J. Stroud and Justin Fields were viewed as the favorites. But the coming competition between junior Kyle McCord and redshirt freshman Devin Brown to replace Stroud, who left for the NFL last month, could be on a faster timeline.

Day said he hopes one of them emerges in the weeks ahead and earns the right to be named the starter following spring practice. "The way that our dynamic is, it'd be great for our program to be able to do that," Day said. "There were times in the past when I didn't see that happening. I'm hoping that can happen. If it doesn't, it doesn't, but some vision on who the starter is coming out of spring would be nice." That apparent openness to picking a starting quarterback sooner rather than later only adds to the stakes of the 15 spring practices beginning on March 7. Will McCord or Brown position himself to win the job? - Columbus Dispatch

Jr/2025

QB Kyle McCord, Ohio State
News Source: Columbus Dispatch
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02/13/23 - Kyle McCord, Jr/2025, Ohio State + More +

Spring football is right around the corner for the Ohio State football team, and the sessions will conclude with the spring game on April 15. The game will serve as the 15th and final practice that teams are allowed over a 34-day period. Of those 15 practices, on 12 are allowed to involve contact and eight can have tackling. There will be three practices that are dedicated to being 11-on-11 scrimmages, with the spring game being the only one open to the public. The scrimmage will be the first chance for fans to see the 2023 Buckeyes and get a look at the battle between Devin Brown and Kyle McCord to succeed C.J. Stroud as starting quarterback. - Cleveland Plain Dealer

Jr/2025

QB Kyle McCord, Ohio State
News Source: Cleveland Plain Dealer
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02/12/23 - *C.J. Stroud, rSo/2023, Ohio State + More +

C.J. Stroud wasn't surprised about the attention he received as Ohio State's starting quarterback over the past two seasons. But looking back, Stroud told radio host Jim Rome about the ways Ohio State fans would try and get his attention during his time in Columbus. C.J. Stroud on Proving People Right from The Jim Rome Show on Vimeo. "For me and my teammates, man, being at Ohio State, if you have any source of social media or type of technology, Ohio State fans have it," Stroud said. "So, man, I was getting DMs - I don't have social media throughout the season. I was getting DMs on Venmo, the money app, from fans telling me, 'Play better,' things like that." In two seasons as Ohio State's starting quarterback, Stroud, a two-time Heisman Trophy finalist, threw for 8,123 passing yards, 85 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. - Columbus Dispatch

rSo/2023

QB *C.J. Stroud, Ohio State
News Source: Columbus Dispatch
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02/11/23 - *Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Jr/2023, Ohio State + More +

Garrett Wilson stands by his opinion that Jaxon Smith-Njigba is the best Ohio State wide receiver between himself and Chris Olave. Talking to Yahoo Sports' Matt Harmon from Super Bowl LVII Radio Row, the former Ohio State and current New York Jets wide receiver gave people a preview of what Smith-Njigba could do in the NFL after three seasons with the Buckeyes. "Jaxon is a cold-blooded man, man," Wilson said. "That boy is, we call him 'The Natural.' He's got hands, he's got feet that will throw you by, make you miss. He'll do the laundry for you. Jaxon's cold, man. I'm confident that wherever he goes, he's going to make a big impact early." Smith-Njigba tweeted that he appreciated the kind words from Wilson, knowing that both him and Olave was the kind of production he was chasing. "Always appreciate it," he wrote. "Both you guys are the BEST though! It's fun to chase greatness."

In 2021, Smith-Njigba set school single-season records with 95 catches for 1,606 receiving yards, including a 15-reception, 347-yard day against Utah in the Rose Bowl in which he scored three touchdowns. But in 2022, Smith-Njigba spent the majority of the season sidelined with a hamstring injury, and was limited to five receptions for 43 yards against Notre Dame, Toledo and Iowa. Ahead of Ohio State's College Football Playoff semifinal game against Georgia, the school announced he would not play in the Peach Bowl and instead enter the 2023 NFL draft. - Columbus Dispatch

Jr/2023

WR *Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Ohio State
News Source: Columbus Dispatch
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02/09/23 - Josh Simmons, rSo/2026, Ohio State + More +

San Diego State starting right tackle Josh Simmons plans to enter the NCAA transfer portal, he announced on social media Tuesday. Simmons, a 6-foot-6, 305-pound sophomore from Helix High School, started all 13 games in 2022 as a redshirt freshman. He played 799 snaps, second only to left tackle Brandon Crenshaw-Dickson among the team's returning offensive linemen. Simmons was among four returning starters on the offensive line for SDSU, which begins spring camp on Feb. 20. - San Diego Union Tribune

rSo/2026

OT Josh Simmons, Ohio State
News Source: San Diego Union Tribune
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02/07/23 - Noah Ruggles, rSr/2023, Ohio State + More +

Just over two months after Ohio State ended its season with a College Football Playoff semifinal loss to Georgia, kicker Noah Ruggles sent out a final message to Buckeye fans. As time expired against the Bulldogs in the Peach Bowl, Ruggles missed a 50-yard field goal attempt wide left to secure Georgia's place in the national championship game against TCU, beating Ohio State 42-41. "If there is one thing I have learned from my journey it is no matter how dark life seems at times, moments of adversity have provided me an opportunity for unimagined growth, humility and appreciation," Ruggles said in an Instagram video Sunday.

He went on to share his gratitude to his coaches and teammates who "inspire him through my own trials," his family who has sacrificed, loved and supported him, and the people behind the scenes who "serve others selflessly." "I've witnessed the truth of Romans 8:28 and I'm humbled by how God rewards all things for the good of those who love him, but have been called according to his purpose," Ruggles continued. "From my very kick as a Buckeye to my very last, I put my faith in God, praying to give him all the glory. So I may not see what he is going to do next, but I've learned to trust him with all of it. I'm a Buckeye for life." Ruggles, a former North Carolina transfer, is one of the more decorated kickers in Ohio State history. He has the No. 1 and No. 3 kick scoring seasons in school history, setting the single-season Ohio State record with a field goal percentage of 95.2%. - Columbus Dispatch

rSr/2023

K Noah Ruggles, Ohio State
News Source: Columbus Dispatch
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02/07/23 - Avery Henry, rFr/2027, Ohio State + More +

Ohio State offensive lineman Avery Henry is about a month into his chemotherapy treatment and he's already beginning to highlight his family's support. After revealing an osteosarcoma diagnosis in December before first starting chemotherapy in January, Henry said in a tweet both he and his brother shaved their heads as the treatment continues. "It's been roughly a month since my first chemo treatment," Henry tweeted Monday. "I want to keep you guys updated on the process. Yesterday my younger brother and I decided to shave our hair! I can't thank you enough Dane. You may be my younger brother but in many ways I look up to you!" Henry ended the tweet with the hashtag "Averystrong."

Henry did not see any action for Ohio State as a freshman in 2022, but he traveled with the team to Atlanta for the College Football Playoff semifinal at the Peach Bowl. Standing at 6 feet 6 and 309 pounds, the tackle was a four-year starter at St. Clairsville High School, playing as a two-way lineman for a team that finished 13-2 in 2021 and advanced to the Division IV regional finals. - Columbus Dispatch

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