'08 Buckeyes have full cupboard
The month of May might still be days away, but spring already has come and gone for the veteran-heavy Ohio State football team.
The Buckeyes are back to the offseason-workout phase of their training; the coaches hit the road recruiting, stacking more big names onto the 2009 commitment list; and the fans, stoked by a blase-as-usual spring game, are left to consider the real possibility that their team could return to a third straight national championship game. Oh, and Terrelle Pryor is scheduled to start OSU summer school on June 16.
With all of that in mind, Dispatch beat reporters Tim May and Ken Gordon hit the past, present and future blocking sleds as they, too, ponder the great beyond for what appears to be one of the more talented teams overall in OSU history:
May: There's no argument with the basic premise that this team is loaded, especially with the weight brought to bear by the return of linebackers James Laurinaitis and Marcus Freeman, cornerback Malcolm Jenkins and left tackle Alex Boone. They could be counting their money today, because all four probably would have been taken in the first two rounds of the NFL draft yesterday. Instead, their return not only bulked up the Buckeyes, it provided a compass through spring drills toward the ultimate target: the national title game in Miami in January.
Gordon: It's starting to feel a little like 2005, with the high expectations and a veteran team returning. That club started 3-2 -- partly, of course, because of the rustiness of QB Troy Smith coming off a suspension. I certainly don't see two early losses for OSU this fall, but I think this team might be setting everyone up for disappointment, only because it's "title game or bust," and that is really tough to accomplish. No doubt, though, the talent is deeper than I can ever remember. Tim, when is the last time the Buckeyes had four legitimate QBs on the roster? Ever?
May: That's happened a couple of times over the years. But what sets this group apart is Todd Boeckman, Antonio Henton, Joe Bauserman and Terrelle Pryor were all targeted as the quarterback for their particular OSU class (Bauserman went to baseball first, obviously). That means at some point the coaches could see the team being led by each of those fellows, and as the spring game showed, that wasn't far-fetched. As you and I discussed, Bauserman stole the show that day. But, you know, Rob Schoenhoft sort of did the same thing a year ago, and he's now at Delaware. The carousel keeps turning as some get off, some keep riding, and some jump on.
Gordon: Well, I think the interesting thing to watch when fall camp opens is, first, whether Henton sticks around. Remember, running back Erik Haw transferred out after spring ball 2006, when he realized he wasn't in line for more playing time. But if Henton has his competitive juices flowing, he'll stay, and that sets up a fine battle for the No. 2 position behind Boeckman. Another subject to keep an eye on between now and fall is health: How well running back Beanie Wells' wrist heals, and also whether highly touted offensive tackle Mike Adams can recover from shoulder surgery in time to compete with Bryant Browning for the right tackle spot.
May: Between now and then, most of the freshmen will be on campus, working out with the veterans. Some of those seven-on-seven "games" might be as attractive as summer-league basketball, as newcomers such as Pryor, DeVier Posey and Lamaar Thomas join the mix of Boeckman, Henton, Bauserman, Brian Hartline, Brian Robiskie, Dane Sanzenbacher, Taurian Washington, et al. The spirit of competition should be quite high. And the defensive backs and linebackers should get their best summer workout of recent years.
Gordon: Speaking of defensive backs, we might not learn anything more about the status of cornerback Donald Washington and safeties Jamario O'Neal and Eugene Clifford until the season opener. The trio clearly is in jeopardy of some sort, and I think it's safe to say that suspensions are possible. Suspensions of one or two games are not a big deal, though, because the first two games are against Youngstown State and Ohio University (that hurts to say, as an OU grad). But week three at Southern California is when the Buckeyes need to be at full strength.
May: Talk about anticipation, the game at USC will be the Buckeyes' second trip to the West Coast in two years (they won at Washington last year). It will be the fork in the road for the '08 season, no doubt -- the Buckeyes' chance to prove to national media skeptics that they deserve to be in the conversation for the title game, even if they did trip embarrassingly in the big dance the past two years. The latter aside, momentum has rarely been this strong for OSU. Despite the depth already on board, the Buckeyes just gained one of the nation's top five recruiting classes, capped by the signing of Pryor, and they're halfway done -- 12 commitments thus far -- toward putting together another top-five class for 2009. They not only own Ohio, they're trying to annex talent-rich western Pennsylvania. There's no recession in sight.
Gordon: The Buckeyes have one tough road trip in each of the three months of their schedule: at USC on Sept. 13; at Wisconsin for a night game on Oct. 4; then at Illinois on Nov. 15 -- once again, the week before the Michigan game. It will be difficult to win all three of those, and one loss could wipe the Buckeyes off the national scene. But I agree with you on the state of the program in general. I wrote on our blog (Dispatch.com/bucksblog) recently that this indeed was a golden age. I was referring to recruiting, but it's true in the big picture, as well.
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