This the-Ozone 2006 Fiesta Bowl Coverage made possible by:

Football
Three Buckeyes with NCAA Eligibility Eying NFL Draft
By John Porentas

Mike Kudla, Anthony Schlegel, A. J. Hawk, Bobby Carpenter, Nate Salley, Nick Mangold, Rob Sims, Tyler Everett, Marcus Green, Brandon Schnittker, Ryan Hamby, and others.

The list of OSU football players that will complete their college eligibility and move on following the Fiesta Bowl has some impressive names on it. The question on a lot of minds, however, is how many players who have not completed their eligibility will also move on.

Three names have surfaced as underclassmen who may be eying an early exit from college to seek greener postures, or at least some green, in the NFL.

Wide receiver Santonio Holmes, corner Ashton Youboty and safety Donte Whitner are the likely candidates for to move on with eligibility remaining. We've asked all three where they stand on that issue. Here's our take on whether they stay or whether they go.

Donte Whitner: Whitner has played three years and arguably played better this season than he did in the previous two. He is a playmaker who played safety, was OSU's nickel back (third cover corner in the nickel package) and seems to have all the skills to be able to move on to the next level.

Whitner has filed papers with the NFL requesting an evaluation of his probable draft position. According to Whitner, how that evaluation comes back will go a long way toward determining whether he plays pro football or college football in 2006, but that he definitely has not reached a decision one way or another at this point.

"I'm not leaning one way of the other," said Whitner recently.

"I put the paperwork in to see what my draft status would be. I'm not leaning either way. If it comes back and it's not something that I like, I'm coming back.

"If it's something I like, then maybe I'm fixing to go, but right now I'm just thinking about playing Notre Dame and sending the seniors out of here with a 4-0 record in bowl games. I'll make a decision after the bowl game," Whitner said.

According to Whitner, he will wait until after the bowl game to really start thinking about next year, and armed with his draft evaluation, will seek some help in making that decision.

"I'll sit down with Coach Tressel. His thing is that if you're not a first round pick, come back and try and improve your draft status. I'm going to sit down with him, sit down with my family and make the best decision for everyone," said Whitner.

Whitner said that while helping his parents financially is a consideration, there is no real financial urgency for his family that might press him to decide for the NFL.

"My family is all right (financially)," said Whitner.

"We don't have the most, but we have enough to get by. If they had to go another year, they would go another year no problem. They're doing OK."

Whitner says that his draft position will be important, but not the only consideration in his decision.

"Where I would be drafted at, the things we have coming back here next year, that will impact me, a chance to win a national championship. A chance to come back and be up for and maybe win some major awards, a lot of those things will impact my decision," said Whitner.

Whitner did say that if he is evaluated as a first-round pick, however, that evaluation would trump all other considerations. Anything less-than a first round evaluation would leave him with a decision to make.

"First round? Coach Tressel would go in the first round out of here," said Whitner.

"Some guys, if they're a second round pick this year, the next year they'd also be a second round pick, while other guys increase their draft stock. It comes down to whether you think you can increase your stock by staying. If they were to say I was a third round pick this year but could be a first round pick next year, I definitely would stay.

"If I come back there's a possibility of being a captain, possibility of winning a national championship, that's one reason that Mike Doss came back, and I know we're not going to have a lot of guys back in defense, but I can be the leader of the defense next year and help a lot of young guys who are going to be out there and really lead this defense and have a chance to win some major awards, be All-American, things like that. When I'm weighing the decision I'll weigh all sides of it, the NFL side with the pros and cons, and the college side with the pros and cons.

Based on all that Whitner has said, the-Ozone thinks that if Whitner is not a projected as a first-rounder, there is a good possibility that he will be back in a Buckeye uniform next season.

Ashton Youboty: Like Whitner, Youboty has filed with the NFL for an evaluation of his draft possibilities. Also like Whitner, Youboty is not saying that leaving is a sure thing at the moment.

"I'm not in a rush to leave Ohio State, but I know I have an opportunity and I'm going to look into it, but I'm not really in a rush to get out of here," said Youboty.

Youboty had an outstanding sophomore season, capped by a great performance in the Michigan game in which he held up well against Wolverine star receiver Braylon Edwards. This season, however, Youboty has had some moments that were not so memorable, depending on your point of view. He had some coverage problems at Minnesota and in the Texas game as well.

NFL scouts to whom we have spoken evaluate Youboty as a "cheater", not meaning that he breaks the rules, but meaning that he cheats one way or another on certain plays to try to gain leverage. He got away with it in 2004, but it cost him some in 2005 when the opposition had better scouting on him and could take advantage of his technique. That experience seems to have been somewhat of a reality check for Youboty.

"The one thing I've learned is that there's always room to improve. Even when you think you're good enough, the receivers learn a new release to get by you. There's always room to improve," he said.

Youboty will likely use the draft evaluation heavily to make his decision. Chances are that he would be drafted fairly high, but that he would be able to improve his draft stock considerably with one more year of college ball to prove that he doesn't have to "cheat" in coverages. We think there is a better chance that Youboty will be back at OSU next season rather than in the NFL, but ultimately his draft evaluation will determine that decision.

Santonio Holmes: Holmes redshirted his freshman year, so has actually completed four years at Ohio State. His exit at the end of the season would not exactly be an "early out", but he would be leaving with one year of eligibility remaining. Unlike Whitner and Youboty, Holmes did not apply with the NFL for a draft evaluation.

Holmes probably has the biggest financial need of the three players in question. He has several children whom he supports, and he is probably the most likely to leave. His teammates talk about his participation in the upcoming bowl game as if it definitely will be his last game as a Buckeye. Perhaps the biggest hint came from Donte Whitner who, when evaluating OSU receivers, said the following.

"Gonzalez is a guy that a lot of people don't think he's as good as he is, but next year he'll really shine with probably Santonio being gone."

It looks like a pretty good bet that Holmes won't be back, but Holmes himself is hedging that statement. According to Holmes, going in the first round is a make-or-break proposition for coming out.

"I want to see where I'm projected. I want to be a first-round pick," said Holmes.

Since he has not applied for an evaluation, Holmes will rely on other means of determining his draft status, but insists that being a first-rounder is a prerequisite for his entry to the NFL next year.

"That's why I came here, to become a first-round draft pick. Knowing the history of all the receivers that would have been here and I want to be a part of that," he said.

Holmes also said that getting his degree is also a priority and will enter into his decision.

"It's important for me to finish my education here at Ohio State. I'm almost there (his degree), so I'm not going to let it slip away just like that. I have about 40 or 45 hours to go," he said.

It's a pretty good bet that Holmes will be a first-round pick, and given his financial need, he is likely going to be in the NFL next season. About the only thing to prevent that would be something to move him down in the draft. We don't see that as a likely scenario.

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