2020 Ohio State Offseason Thread

[MrNubbz]

Shaun Wade coming back. A big and surprising return.

Thought for sure he would be making bank,good news

[NorthernOhioBuckeye]

I think they will use B10 refs.  I figure the most important thing to have returning is QB, and then OL.  A program like Ohio State will generally have running backs and wide outs aplenty, same with LBs and defensive backs and DLs.  Usually.  They can of course find lightning in one of those players.

That's even worse for tOSU than using P10 refs. 

[bayareabadger]

That's even worse for tOSU than using P10 refs.

Why's that? 

[TyphonInc]

That's even worse for tOSU than using P10 refs.

I disagree. IMHO B1G refs seem to slant some calls to favor non-Buckeyes (mainly holding calls) but don't go so far as to "cheat". Again my opinion, Pac Refs will blatantly make mind baffling calls that absolutely alter the course of a game. When OSU's scoop and score got overturned, I joked are these Pac Refs? 
OU/Oregon - onsides blunder.
Wisconsin vs. one of the Arizona schools, after the play the opponent runs over and falls bt himself on the ball for like 20 seconds to prevent Wisconsin from getting off a game winning field goal. 
Cal - WSU - Calling penalties on the wrong team. 

I won't go so far to say refs in other conferences are good, but man the Pac Refs are really bad.

[CWSooner]

OU/Oregon - onsides blunder.

3 or 4 plays later, OU got a pick that would have enabled the Sooners to close out the game.  But DPI was called, and it was upheld even though the replay clearly showed that the ball had been tipped at the LoS.
That's the only game involving my team, or with my team on the receiving end of a bad call anyway, where I couldn't come up with a plausible explanation for how the zebras could have gotten it wrong.
Here's the video of the onside kick.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btSGkMBrqI4

No Duck ever has control of the ball.  The zebras cannot say who on Oregon's team recovered it.

#23 in white recovers the ball.  I guess he should have made an ass of himself doing a choreographed celebration dance.  Maybe that would have caught somebody's attention.

[NorthernOhioBuckeye]

Why's that?

I will say that I don't really watch to many P10 games so most of my opinion is from watching B10 games. That said, IMHO B10 officials are horrendous. It may be some homerism on my part, but it seems that offensive holding calls always favor our opponent. But again, that may just be my Buckeye goggles clouding my view. 

[medinabuckeye1]

Now that I *THINK* all the NFL defections have been declared, here is a look at Ohio State's Offense heading into next year:


It appears that the Buckeyes will have six returning starters on offense and a total of 14 returning from the 2-deep.  Going by position groups:

QB's:
Having a Heisman Finalist returning at QB is pretty much as good as it gets.  The departure of his backup sets up a battle for the #2 (who will presumably be #1 in 2021) but shouldn't be a big issue.  

RB's:
Obviously losing the School's single season rushing record-holder is not a good thing.  IMHO, Teague is a decent back.  He is very physical, so much so that I might actually prefer him over Dobbins in a 3rd and 1 situation but he lacks Dobbin's speed.  In the CFP semi-final Dobbins had a 68 yard TD run and a 64 yard run that was oh-so-close to being another TD.  Those were just run-of-the-mill plays but he beat one guy and had the speed to turn it into a LONG play.  In those situations Teague would have been more likely to run for 20-30 yards due to having less speed in the open field.  

WR's:
The Buckeyes are losing two out of three starters and three of the six in the two-deep.  That said, WR is a position of depth at tOSU so this shouldn't be a major problem.  Olave, Wilson, and Gill are a quality group and have seen plenty of playing time.  The WR's should be fine next year.  

TE's:
The starting JR and the backup SO are both back so this position should get better.  

OL:
The Buckeyes are losing two out of five starters and three out of 10 from the 2-deep.  At this position where youngsters rarely see the field let-alone start that isn't too bad.  

Overall I think that tOSU's offense should be at least close to as effective in 2020 as it was in 2019.  

[medinabuckeye1]

Ohio State's Defense heading into next year:


The defense was hit harder than the offense by NFL defections, losing both standout DE Chase Young and standout CB Jeffrey Okudah.  In total only four starters and 13 of the two-deep return.  Going by position groups:

DL:
Obviously losing three out of four starters including Chase Young is a hit, but the Buckeyes seem to have recruited extremely well on the DL.  DE should actually be a position of strength again.  The bigger question, I think, is on the interior.  The Buckeyes are not only losing both starters there, but one of the backups as well.  Development of guys for these two positions will be a key for Ohio State next year.  

Linbackers:
The Buckeyes return two out of three starters and four out of six from the two-deep so this should be a wash.  

Defensive Backfield:
Losing three out of four starters is problematic but Shaun Wade's return should help dramatically (particularly if he can keep his head up and stay in games).  

Overall I would predict a step back for the defense in 2020 but the Buckeyes were so good in 2019 that they could take a significant step back and still be REALLY good.  

[Brutus Buckeye]

Are they losing both backup QBs? Gunner and Chugs?

[Honestbuckeye]

Are they losing both backup QBs? Gunner and Chugs?

Keeping Gunner.
people don’t realize, what Ryan Day has done for his QBs......he has never had a returning starter.

i expect the o-line to be every bit as good.

the defensive line depends on the health and development of the tackles.  Namely Tommy Togiai who would have played a ton this season but for a torn labrum.  They say he is far and away the strongest player.   Also...can Antwan Jackson develop into the 5 star prospect he was thought to be.


OSU is loaded with LBs and ends.   How healthy can the DBs stay with Wade, Brown, Riep, Banks and Proctor as your primary group.  Thin behind them.  

[MaximumSam]

Kerry Coombs coming back to the bucks as co defensive coordinator

[Honestbuckeye]

Kerry Coombs coming back to the bucks as co defensive coordinator

Huge!

[MaximumSam]

Amir Riep and Jahsen Wint charged with rape

[OrangeAfroMan]

Okay, Ryan Day, so you wanted to be a HC...

1- this isn’t some bungled sexual misconduct or something, it’s straight up rape. 
2- both players are seniors...no, it’s not important, but this usually happens with younger guys before they’ve matured any, doesn’t it?