Ohio State Football: Power Ranking the Strongest Positions on the 2011 Roster
The Ohio State football team has a ton of questions to deal with, but few of them are from a lack of on-field talent.
On paper, the Buckeyes are one of the most talented squads in America, although the suspensions of Terrelle Pryor, Jim Tressel and four other players will significantly diminish the talent early on in the season.
But when all together, this squad may be one of the most talented and deep teams Ohio State has ever had.
With all of the 2011 class of freshmen projected into the fold, let's take a look at how deep the Buckeyes are at each position from thinnest to deepest.
9. Wide Receiver
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Any Buckeye fan who thinks that the WR corps might have an issue with the graduation of Dane Sanzenbacher and the suspensions to senior DeVier Posey have every right to think that.
And the early word out of spring football practices (based on the limited amount of information we've been given) should have Buckeye Nation very concerned.
The next two most experienced wideouts for Ohio State, Chris Fields and Corey "Philly" Brown, have combined for just 11 catches and one TD in their careers.
On top of that, redshirt freshmen James Louis and T.Y. Williams have both struggled picking up the offense and reeling in passes, although some of it might have to deal with the Buckeyes finding a QB for the first five games of the season.
Regardless, look at freshmen Devin Smith and Evan Spencer to at least get a look at some practice time in the summer, because the WR position needs all the help it can get in the first five games of 2011.
8. Offensive Line
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Ohio State center Mike Brewster has told reporters that he believes the 2011 offensive line has improved even more from a strong performance in 2010, especially in the athleticism department.
The talent that will be starting is very good; the question will be what happens when the Bucks suffer a major injury up front.
That and the suspension to All-Big Ten LT Mike Adams will be a big test to a unit that has never had tremendous depth in recent years.
The 2011 class does bring a few good linemen, especially in the interior, but they will need to improve the tackle depth in 2012's crop.
What puts this unit clearly above the WRs is the amount of proven talent starting, but it's lack of proven depth puts it slightly below the other units.
7. Safety
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Throughout the 2010 season, no position on the team saw more attrition through injuries than at the safety spot.
By the midpoint of the season, Ohio State lost three different safeties, Tyler Moeller, C.J. Barnett and Corey "Black" Brown to season-ending injuries.
Moeller and Barnett will be competing for the second starting job alongside Orhian Johnson, a converted QB who improved greatly as the 2010 season went on.
Brown will not return until fall practice due to the severity of his knee injury, and heavy hitter Jamie Wood has raised some eyebrows but has had some nagging injuries in his early career.
The safety position may be one of the more underrated positions on this team, but whoever the Buckeyes throw out there to start will certainly have earned the right to be out there.
6. Cornerback
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Losing two experienced starters in Devon Torrence and the underappreciated Chimdi Chekwa is never an easy thing to handle for any team.
But luckily for Ohio State, no player grew more in the second half of the season than Travis Howard.
A Miami native, Howard had a breakout performance late in 2010, including filling in for Chekwa when the senior went down with a dislocated wrist in the Sugar Bowl.
He's proven this spring that his run at the end of the season was no fluke, as he has looked to some like a potential All-American candidate.
Right now, there is a three-way battle for the other starting job between Dominic Clarke who showed plenty of flashes in the Sugar Bowl, Florida State transfer Dionte Allen and redshirt freshman Bradley Roby, who has raised quite a few eyebrows all around Columbus this spring.
5. Tight End
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Typically, Ohio State has not been very good about making the tight end an integral part of the passing game.
This year, with the weakness out wide and the strength at the TE position, the QBs will be looking towards the middle for a good portion of receptions.
And they learned quite a bit in 2010 that Jake Stoneburner and Reid Fragel are quite good weapons in the passing game, especially in the Sugar Bowl when both players had big receptions throughout the night.
Stoneburner may be put out wide more often due to his speed, and Fragel is more of a typical TE but is a huge target at 6'8".
Freshmen Nick Vannett and Jeff Heuerman might not see the field in 2011, but they will have two talented players to learn the position and to keep this unit as a surprising group of strength.
4. Defensive Line
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For those that felt the Ohio State defensive line wasn't very good in 2010, the unit made a definitive statement in the Sugar Bowl by dominating the Arkansas Razorbacks up front, even with some backups in the rotation as well.
But it's worth stating that it's very tough to replace the impact of Cameron Heyward, who was a major contributor in his four seasons as a Buckeye.
Luckily, the line still has star players John Simon and Nathan Williams to help try to pick up the slack, as well as sophomore Johnathan Hankins, who was a fan-favorite as a freshman.
Other backups like Garrett Goebel and Adam Bellamy will be called on frequently to play as big as they did against Arkansas, and the Bucks are also welcoming two blue-chip ends in Steve Miller and Kenny Hayes, as well as underrated DT Joel Hale.
This unit should continue to stay strong, even without Cameron Heyward.
3. Quarterback
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The suspension of Terrelle Pryor for the first five games of 2011 has really created quite a captivating QB competition in spring practice.
Senior Joe Bauserman has failed to seize his opportunity as he has thrown some questionable interceptions in media scrimmages, leaving the door open for third-year sophomore Kenny Guiton and redshirt freshman Taylor Graham, both of whom have been pretty solid so far.
But all eyes are on star freshman Braxton Miller, who has been great in practice despite the hindrance of trying to learn the playbook on the fly. Mechanically, he is further along than Pryor was as a freshman, and coming in early can only help him.
Whatever happens to start the season, the heir to Pryor, most likely Miller, will have gotten his fair share of reps early in his career and a chance to learn under one of the best QBs in OSU history.
Pryor might never get a Heisman, but he certainly has left a legacy of winning despite his character issues during his tenure.
2. Linebacker
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The Ohio State linebacking corps as constructed right now has a good combination of proven experience and skyhigh potential.
Andrew Sweat was a very solid starter last season and a consistent contributor throughout his college career.
Projected to start alongside Sweat is Etienne Sabino, who redshirted 2010 in order to learn the mental aspects of the LB position, and either Dorian Bell and Storm Klein, both athletic backers who can lay the lumber.
The freshmen coming in are no slouches either, with youngsters Ejuan Price, Ryan Shazier, Conner Crowell and consensus 5-star Curtis Grant, ranked by some as the top LB of all the 2011 prospects in the country.
By the time August rolls around, a great amount of attention will be paid to the battle at the LB position, where as many as seven to eight players, including Shazier and Grant, will be gritting their teeth to see the field.
1. Running Back
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When up to four of your running backs can start at a large majority of schools in the country, you know you have one of the deepest stables in North America.
And that's the corral of talent the Ohio State Buckeyes have at the RB position, where even the suspension of Daniel "Boom" Herron, who recorded 16 TDs in 2010, can't deter the optimism fans have of the young players.
Jordan Hall and Jaamal Berry, who teamed up to be among the top five combinations in the country in kickoff return average, will be counted on not only in the running and kicking game, but also in the passing game due to the new additions to the offense brought in by new WRs coach Stan Drayton, formerly from the Florida Gators.
And players have been raving about redshirt freshman Rod Smith, who should remind Buckeye fans of Eddie George, as Smith has a very similar build physically and with great speed as well.
Don't forget about big back Carlos Hyde, who could also see some action, especially in short yardage situations.
No matter who starts at RB for the Buckeyes, the defense that lines up against them will have their hands full to stop the running attack all year long.
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