The 2008 Seniors: Overachieving & Disappointing

Drew Thurman (11:59 am)

The seniors in this class have been through a lot together. The highs of never losing to Michigan, beating Texas at home, and smoking Notre Dame in the Fiesta Bowl. They have also seen the lows of the two losses in the National Championship against Florida and LSU, and the blow out at USC this fall. It has been a roller coaster ride thus far for these seniors, and they have given us a lot of excitement and a lot of frustration. The funny thing is, that is exactly how the class is made up as well. There have been many individuals that have suprised us with their development, but we have also witnessed several guys that have never become what they were hyped to be. So even though the season is not over, let's take a look...

Overachievers:

1) James Laurinaitis: Laurinaitis came in as an average three star linebacker from Plymouth, Minnesota. We quickly found out that he was anything but average. He played in all 12 games as a true freshmen behind Bobby Carpenter, and would end up replacing Carpenter in the Michigan and Notre Dame games due to Carpenter's broken ankle. He won the Nagurski Award as sophomore with 115 tackles for the Buckeyes, and then won Butkus Award as a junior with 121 tackles. He is an All-American, who obviously overacheived from day one.

2) Brian Robiskie: Like Laurinaitis, Robiskie was not a star recruit on paper for the Buckeyes. He in fact was a two star wideout coming out of high school, and many wondered why we were recruiting him. Four years later, we have to wonder where the wide receiving unit would be without him. His sophomore year he started to make a statement with 383 yards and five touchdowns. Then last season he took over the unit with 55 receptions for 935 yards, and 11 touchdowns. This season has started slow for Robiskie, but there is no doubt he has overacheived.

3) Malcolm Jenkins: Jenkins came to the Buckeyes as an unknown three star defensive back from Piscataway, New Jersey. Jenkins put himself on the map early on with appearances in 10 games as a freshman with 37 tackles. Since then, Jenkins has become one of the premiere cornerbacks in college football. Jenkins shuts down almost everyone he lines up against, and has added a lot of attitude to the defense. Not many expected Jenkins to have the career he has at Ohio State.

Others in this category:

Curtis Terry
Steve Rehring
Brandon Smith

Disappointments:

1) Jamario O'Neal: The Glenville Pipeline has been quite generous to the Buckeyes throughout the Tressel Era. When "Super Jamario" came in, many thought he was the next great Tarblooder to play for the Buckeyes. As a five star defensive back, many had high hopes for his future. It has  been a bumpy road for Jamario though. Things looked up for him during his sophomore season when he took over the starting job at safety and recorded 30 tackles for the Buckeyes. The National Championship game against Florida started his downfall though, as Jamario was exposed in coverage multiple times. Since then, he has played a very small role in the Buckeyes defensive backfield. He is huge player that can come up and make the big hit, but he always struggled in passing schemes.

2) Maurice Wells: Wells was a top running back his senior season coming out of the state of Florida with 5,955 career rushing yards and 55 touchdowns. In fact, Wells played in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl as a senior. Despite the impressive high school statistics, he has struggled playing for the Buckeyes. Some of it has been play calling, but the Buckeyes have never really been able to use Wells' speed on the outside. He has struggled breaking tackles from day one, and has really never lived up to the hype. He has been a hard worker though, and has never complained!

Did What We Expected:

1) Alex Boone: Boone came in as one of the prize recruits in the 2005 recruiting class. He started in the U.S. Army All-American game as a senior, and many were excited for his future at Ohio State. Now in his senior year, Boone has had great moments and some alright moments. Boone has honestly not been the next Orlando Pace, but he has been a very solid player. The Buckeyes will definitely miss him at left tackle next year! With his size and athleticism, he has a bright NFL career ahead.

2) Marcus Freeman: Freeman was a high ranked (4*) linebacker coming out Huber Heights, Ohio. His career looked to be slowed down in his second year as a Buckeye with a knee injury, but Freeman is now having his third solid year after that injury. As redshirt sophomore he had 71 tackles, and then last season he broke out with 109 tackles. Freeman has always been a great athlete at the outside linebacker spot, and probably does not get as much media attention as he should. Freeman has lived up to everything we had hoped! 

Others in this category:

Rory Nicol
Ben Person
Nadar Abdallah
Todd Boeckman