Ohio State Football 2011: 12 Players with the Most to Gain

It's just about time for Ohio State to finally lace up the cleats, put on pads and start putting the painful offseason behind them.

Fall camps are just around the corner with a lot of curiosity and controversy surrounding the program. Gone are its third-best coach in Jim Tressel and one of college football's most polarizing players in Terrelle Pryor.

Left is a first-year head coach in Luke Fickell and a bunch of fresh faces ready to make a huge impact in the revamped Big Ten.

Most of these faces have seen the field at some point, while others are new to the scarlet and gray. And these players will have a lot of chances to prove their worth to the program. 

Here is a look at 12 Buckeyes with the most to gain this season.

1. QB Braxton Miller

This one is obvious although Braxton is not necessarily assured of a starting job.

Miller will have to battle senior Joe Bauserman for the job; although given Miller's raw talents, he brings more to the table to help the team win. By that alone, he seems to be the best choice to be the starter.

Miller told the media in Columbus that he has bulked up to 215 lbs, which is huge because there were questions about his durability coming into this season.

But if he is able to get a grasp of the passing game, he can be a special player in the now and the future.

2. RB/WR Jordan Hall

Terrelle Pryor's old high school teammate is without a doubt the most versatile weapon that Ohio State has on offense.

Now the third-year back will be used as a RB/WR hybrid player much like Percy Harvin was at Florida due to Hall's quickness, elusiveness and his ability to catch the football.

He had a breakout year as a returner, combining with Jaamal Berry to lead the No. 5 kick return average group in the country last season.

Hall was expected to get the bulk of the carries, but he was moved to WR because of the lack of depth at the position and Hall's ability to make plays in space, a must in today's game.

He has the potential to be a dynamic playmaker on the field this season in a big way.

3. RB Jaamal Berry

Jaamal Berry may be the purest home run threat on the roster, because of his high level of acceleration and pure speed.

His burst was on display last season as he had many good kickoff returns along with a breakaway TD run against Eastern Michigan.

Berry didn't see too many carries last season due to the depth in front of him.

But with Hall moving to WR, Berry is the likely favorite to get the most carries until Dan Herron returns from his five-game suspension.

4. WR Corey Brown

Staying in the category of burners, sophomore receiver Corey Brown has the ability to have a DeSean Jackson in Ohio State's offense.

Brown has amazing speed and elusiveness in the open field which makes him a downfield threat that is as good as any in the Big Ten.

His main problem was his hands, as he dropped a number of sure catches last season that would've been of a huge boost to the offense.

With the lack of depth at the position as it stands, Brown is the No. 1 until DeVier Posey returns from suspension.

If his hands improve, he can quickly become a dynamic force.

5. RB Roderick Smith

The other member of what fans hope is Ohio State's three-headed young monster at RB is no doubt the Mack truck of the group.

Redshirt freshman Rod Smith is built very similarly to Eddie George, combining great size with a good amount of speed.

Reports from bowl practices and spring workouts said that Smith was dominant at times, including trucking senior LB Andrew Sweat.

Smith and Berry should form one heck of a thunder and lightning combination until Herron comes back as each is a big changeup from the other.

Each of these backs has a chance to be special, and Smith is definitely an old-school back that fans could attach to very quickly.

6. TE Jake Stoneburner

Jake Stoneburner is a very unique type of offensive weapon, with the size of a TE but the hands and speed of a WR.

He really had not done too much up until last season when he had 21 receptions for 222 yards and two TDs.

He will most likely be used as a flex option between the TE and WR position because he can be a mismatch for almost any defender with his size and speed.

With an inexperienced QB starting, likely Miller, Stoneburner can quickly become his best friend and safety valve.

7. DE Melvin Fellows

Of all of the players from the defensively-loaded 2009 class, one that has had a bad run on luck is Melvin Fellows.

Fellows has had injury problems in each of his first two seasons, and finally seems healthy enough to be a big contributor on the defensive line.

He brings a frame similar to Cameron Heyward, and by some accounts was very good in spring workouts.

With the amount of unproven depth on the defensive line behind John Simon, Johnathan Hankins and Nathan Williams, players like Fellows have a chance to truly shine.

8. LB Etienne Sabino

After redshirting in 2010, Etienne Sabino will finally get his chance to live up to his 5-star billing that he came to Ohio State with in 2008.

Sabino brings great size and athleticism to the MLB position, but has had to wait his turn and took 2010 to learn the mental aspects of being the QB of the front seven.

Throughout the spring, Sabino, by most accounts, was a dominant force and turned into a leader very soon.

With a young defense, a guy like Sabino will need to step up and be the guy that most thought he would be coming out of high school.

If he does well, he can be the next big thing in a long line of talented LBs in OSU history.

9. LB Curtis Grant

Like Braxton Miller, Curtis Grant comes to Ohio State as a consensus 5-star prospect, but his commitment to OSU slightly wavered in his words before he followed through.

Grant comes to Ohio State already physically ready to play, saying he is up to about 245 lbs, and he has the athleticism to play all three LB positions.

Grant compared on Rivals.com to Ray Lewis, which is unbelievably high praise for any youngster. But Grant comes across as very humble and grounded, which plays well into what Ohio State wants after the tumultuous offseason.

With an open starting job next to Sabino and Andrew Sweat, Grant has a chance to fit right in with his size and recognition ability.

10. CB Travis Howard

No player had as much of a breakout year in 2010 as Travis Howard.

The South Florida native erupted big time in the second half of the season, scoring a pick-six against Penn State and recording another INT against Michigan.

Howard will have to fill the void left behind by Chimdi Chekwa who was largely underrated by most Buckeye fans.

But for most of the spring, Howard looked dominant, All-American-esque according to some reports.

If he can keep that up next season, Ohio State will have no problems controlling the airways.

11. CB Dominic Clarke

While the No. 1 corner job is all but locked up, the battle for No. 2 appears to be a major war between Dominic Clarke, Bradley Roby and Florida State transfer Dionte Allen.

Clarke was largely an unknown outside of special teams. But with the rash of injuries that hit Ohio State in the vacated Sugar Bowl win, Clarke stepped up and held his own against Arkansas' talented WR corps.

Clarke's biggest attributes are his pure speed and his hands. He has the skills needed to be a big-time corner.

He will need some seasoning and while he doesn't have the job won, Clarke has a great ceiling and be a very good No. 2 with the potential to be a No. 1 one day.

12. SS C.J. Barnett

The knee of C.J. Barnett is one of the biggest question marks on the defense, because if the Miami game last season was any indication, he will be a difference-maker.

Barnett set up a big turnover deflecting a pass into the arms of Nathan Williams and threw a hit on Leonard Hankerson that the late Jack Tatum would be proud of.

Unfortunately, Barnett would not finish that game after suffering a major knee injury and missed the rest of what was looking to be a breakout season.

But according to Coach Fickell, the knee is fine and Barnett is ready off of that game.

He has the ability to be as good of a SS as Kurt Coleman if not better, and should be the difference-maker from the S position that OSU has not really had since Donte Whitner.

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