Spring football this year for the Ohio State linebackers began with seven players trying to prove they belonged. Tuf Borland was the sure thing at middle linebacker, but an injury to his Achilles tendon knocked him out of action until around September. Justin Hilliard and Baron Browning then stepped in for him and…
This is the first year the NCAA has allowed official recruiting visits during the spring. Traditionally, visits have taken place from September through February, so this was a brand new experience for college football coaches. Some coaches, like Clemson’s Dabo Swinney, did not want to extend invitations for official visits.
The Ohio State linebackers left spring ball without any starters being named, other than the injured Tuf Borland, who won’t even be practicing until around September due to an Achilles tendon injury. Based on who was healthy and who is more experienced, we can still take a pretty educated guess at where things ended up.
Normally, when a football team loses its only returning starter at linebacker to injury, the tension tightens and coaches begin to lose what little sleep they regularly subsist on. Thanks to the depth of the Ohio State linebackers, however, the Buckeye football coaches are more excited than worried about the possibilities.
Members of the Ohio State football team met with reporters on Wednesday. Cornerbacks coach Taver Johnson and a pair of corners were on hand, as were linebackers coach Bill Davis and a handful of linebackers. They each provided updates on how spring ball is going and how their respective position groups are looking.
Last week when Urban Meyer broke the news about starting middle linebacker Tuf Borland’s Achilles tendon injury, he did so without expressing any concern that Borland’s season could be in jeopardy. In fact, he said that he had been advised that Borland would still be able to play this year. On Monday, Meyer…
Ohio State’s linebackers did seem to play better later in the season. That was after Chris Worley was moved back to his more natural outside linebacker spot while Tuf Borland took over the middle linebacker role. Now, the three linebackers who finished the 2017 season are not around, with Worley and Jerome Baker off to…
Ohio State linebackers coach Bill Davis has lost starters Chris Worley and Jerome Baker from last season. The Buckeyes return three players with starting experience in fifth-year senior Dante Booker, redshirt sophomore Tuf Borland, and junior Malik Harrison. Booker is out this spring following shoulder surgery, but…
Do you smell that in the air? No, not the stench of NBA basketball. Wrong again, it is NOT the stench of the Browns fans trying to convince the world that Saquon Barkley is a horrible NFL prospect while touting Josh Allen as a franchise quarterback. This smell is greatness, this smell is real life football being played in Columbus.
For the second year in a row, the Buckeyes are going to be replacing their leading tackler. Following the 2016 season, they had to replace middle linebacker Raekwon McMillan, and now following the 2017 season, they will have to replace outside linebacker Jerome Baker. Baker finished with 72 tackles, 8.0 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, two…
For the next eight weeks until Ohio State begins spring football, we will spend each Friday talking about one particular Buckeye position group. This week, we begin with the OSU linebackers. With two starters departing and some young talent waiting in the wings, there are a ton of questions to be answered. We attempt to answer some…
