Ohio State Football: 4 Freshmen Who Will Make an Early Impact for the Buckeyes

The Ohio State Buckeyes have clinched 12 bowl games dating back to 2000. In order for them to continue their dominance they need to get a good recruitment class every year.

After a season to forget, the Buckeyes will begin their 2012 campaign on September 1st in hopes of recovering from the memorabilia scandal.

The Buckeyes have been busy since they lost to Florida back on January 2^nd in the Gator bowl. Since then they have hired a new coach and listed 13 freshmen on their depth chart.

With a new coach and a good class of incoming freshmen, the Buckeyes will give the rest of the Big Ten Conference a run for their money.

The Buckeyes incoming freshmen class is anchored by Noah Spence, the No. 9 ranked recruit in the nation according to Rivals.com.

Having him in the defensive backfield will provide some much needed help for sophomores Michael Bennet and J.T. Moore.

Having the No. 25 ranked recruit in the state won’t hurt either.

Adolphus Washington and Noah Spence will be an amazing one-two punch for the Buckeyes on defense. The two may be fighting for playing time now, but in years to come both Washington and Spence will have a starting role for the Buckeyes.

Washington is about as hard of a worker as you can get. Since being recruited by the Buckeyes he has gained over 50 lbs. and switched from defensive end to defensive tackle.

Washington’s transfer to defensive tackle and the addition of freshman Tommy Schutt means that Johnathan Hankins will have a healthy competition to keep his starting job while receiving rest when needed.

Schutt—like Washington—weighs almost 300 lbs. and is explosive while playing with a high intensity according to Scout.com.

The addition of these three freshmen and a few others on defense has the Buckeyes ranked No. 1 in the defensive back and defensive tackle recruits in the Big Ten according to Rivals.com.

On offense the freshmen phenom is last years red-shirted tight end Nick Vannett from Westerville, Ohio.

Other than long snapper Bryce Hanes, Nick Vannett is the only starting freshmen listed on the Buckeyes depth chart.

Due to the positional changes of Jake Stroneburner and Reid Fragel, Vannett will start off the season splitting time with sophomore Jeff Heuerman at tight end. Do not be surprised if Vannett takes over the starting role for good once the season starts though.

Vannett is not known for his strength, but his blocking ability does not suffer because of it. He is quick off the line, and shows good awareness when it comes to reading a defense according to Scout.com.

With the addition of these four freshmen, the Buckeyes will make a name for themselves once again in the Big Ten.

Coach Urban Meyer will have a lot of depth to work with this year and in years to come. Expect the Buckeyes to stay as consistent as they have been over the past couple years, even if the NCAA has taken away scholarships and bowl games from them.