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DL in 2010
Written by Duane Long   
Wednesday, 30 September 2009 13:22

Yesterdays post brought out concerns about the defensive line next year:

..
written by Clown Baby, September 29, 2009

Your last paragraph intrigued me. OSU could be scary good next year but I also could see Heyward and Gibson leaving after this year. Is that a real possibility, considering Gibson already redshirted? If they did leave, what would the impact be?



...
written by nat, September 30, 2009
speaking of 2010 DL concerns, duane, is it a possibility that wilson will look into and could be granted a medical hardship extra year of eligibility for missing all but a couple plays in 2007? haven't heard anyone talking about it yet, but if wilson's draft prospects aren't looking all that great at the end of this season, it could be a possibility he'd look into it, wouldn't you think?

 

I think Heyward leaving is a major concern. He is playing so well and he is playing a position that is much in demand in the NFL. No matter the defensive scheme, the strong side end, called a base end in a 4-3 and a 5-technique in the 3-4, is something both use. I think 3-4 teams covet the 5-technique more than 4-3 teams covet the base end. We are in a period where more teams are moving to the 3-4. If there is a player at the position ranked higher than Heyward at this point I have not seen it. I know none are playing better. Someone mentioned that Heywards mom has seen all this up close and thinks she would advise him to stick around and enjoy college. That is a possibility but she has also seen up close the wear and tear that impacts a football players life long after retirement. The way Heyward is playing I see a sure top 20 kid that could move into the top 10 with a good combine. I say his chances of coming back are less than 50-50. That brings me to projecting who will fill his spot.

The first name that comes to mind is Lawrence Wilson. I like what I have seen out of him this year. He lost two years to injuries. I have to think the Buckeyes will apply for a medical redshirt. It looks like Melvin Fellows is going to burn his reshirt year. It has to happen. If Wilson is not granted a medical redshirt, Fellows is the starter. We have no other options. None of the weak side DEs is right for the postition. None of the tackles. I am not concerned about Fellows. He is a major talent. The problem is depth. There is nobody behind him. J.T. Moore is the odds on back-up. A sophmore backed up by a true freshman. Don't like the sound of that but it is what it is. My heart sunk when Fre'Shad Hunter committed to North Carolina State. I really like Moore but I like Hunter better. He would only be a freshman too but the more options we have the better. Another name to keep in mind is Robert Rose. He missed a year to injury. Maybe they will look at a medical redshirt for him too.

On Gibson. Until last Saturday I thought any talk of him going early is premature. Solid year so far but not one that you jump to the Show off of. Edge guys are always at the top of the draft but there are a number of guys I like better and I assume the NFL will too.Just off the top of my head, Carlos Dunlap from Florida, Derrick Morgan from Georgia Tech, Greg Hardy from Mississippi, George Selvie from S. Florida are the names he is going to have to overcome as a DE in the draft. As a 3-4 edge DE he is going to have to fight off Eric Norwood, Sean Weatherspoon from Missouri and a few others. He has it in him to get into the first round but the talent is deeper and he needs to string together a few more great games to make that happen. I don't see him leaving.

That said, it is not nearly the problem that Heyward leaving early would be. Nate Williams is the starter anywhere else. Until the Illinois game I think he offered a strong argument for being the better player so far this year. Sol Thomas just needs opportunity. Jon Newsome has been so impressive that despite being no better than #4 on the depth chart they burned his redshirt year. David Durham is a great looking player committed to the class of 2010. You always hate losing a real talent early but we can handle it on the weakside. I am just not convinced yet that we will need to worry about it.

 


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Comments (13)Add Comment
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written by sehs95, September 30, 2009
I'm fairly certain Wilson is done after this year, and not eligible for a 6th year.

2005: Freshman year, played in all but 1 game.
2006: Sophomore year, played in 12 games.
2007: Played in 1 game, broke leg... Redshirt
2008: Played in 7 games.
2009: Played in 4 games so far.

Since he played 1 game in 2007, THAT was his medical hardship waiver, and not a typical redshirt. Had he not played at all in '07, he could have taken a regular redshirt. That would have opened the door for a Medical later on... but even in 2008, he played in too many games for that season to qualify for a medical.

So I'm fairly certain he is DONE after this year...unless someone has a better understanding of this than me and can explain it.

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written by dbuckeye44, September 30, 2009
I just don't see Gibson going this year but agree with you whole heartedly regarding Heyward going. I think Wilson is done as well. Yes, as you eluded it is always tough losing this talent early but I believe with Williams, Durham, Fellows and Baldwin we can get through it. There is still a slight chance that perhaps Bellamy could move out to DE.
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written by ans52, September 30, 2009
What about Keith Wells? I guess he is behind Sol on the depth chart right now. We are going to miss Doug, Rob, Cam, and Lawrence for their size more than anything; it is rare to have so many big guys capable of playing on the end.
Lawrence will be done after this year, sehs95 is correct.
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written by fish-61, September 30, 2009
Could Simon help fill in for Heyward when OSU goes to the odd man front? I don't think he probably fits best at base end but if OSU continues to use the odd man front next year he could possibly fit in there.
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written by smu0104, September 30, 2009
If Heyward and Gibson go I am concerned about the DL in 2010. I think the lack of depth compared to 2009 is remedied by a lot of 3 man fronts. Williams, Larimore, and Goebel play with their hand in the dirt, Sabino lines up as a stand up end.

The players are still there, but the depth and experience has been drastically reduced. However, I'm sure many schools would love to go to war each Saturday with Williams, Simon, Larimore, Goebel, Fellows, etc, etc.
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written by buckatborder, September 30, 2009
duane, What about Keith Wells? I saw him on the sideline during the game and he looked much, much thicker. Could he replace heyward if he left and play the 3-4 end?
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written by Bukirob, September 30, 2009
I have more confidence in Heyward staying. For one thing there isn't the immediate financial need. 2nd his mom can tell him about the facts of life as it pertains to the NFL.

Gibson is gone if he finishes the year like he played last week
IMO
written by KasinoRoyale, September 30, 2009
Im with Rob on Heyward. His mom will probably tell him to stay the year and enjoy himself. She's been through the grind with her husband and probably will protect her son as long as possible. Then again she also understands the money and injury side of things as well. I'm thinking Heyward comes back.

Gibson will have to go on a terror for the rest of the season to be labeled a sure first rounder. It's very possible but right now I would say he comes back. He test the waters but ultimately comes back.
...
written by Zonabuck, September 30, 2009
That might be the case with Cam - staying for his final year, but I think we need to keep two things in mind. First, if he eval comes back as a 1st rounder, JT will be honest and tell him he should go. He also needs to look no further than Wilson and Rose to find two very promising DLs whose NFL careers will not happen due to injury.
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written by O-State, September 30, 2009
What do you mean Fellows has to burn his redshirt? He's redshirting this year. He's out with an injury.
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written by Ron Krum, September 30, 2009
Duane,

The talking heads on ESPN NFL show, are talking seriously about a MAJOR change in rookie salary cap for next year. They are projecting that many more kids are going to be coming out early because of this. So we may be losing more than we would normally expect.
...
written by BOBBY HAINES, October 01, 2009
First of all I think the Rookie Salary Cap starts this year.
Second of all Rose has played 10, 11, and 12 games through three seasons and will not get a RS.

I agree with sehs95 about Wilson's 5 years, but then again what would be the purpose of filing for their medical redshirt if there wasn't some kind of greivance in the first place. We may get it.

If we play a 3-4; explain to us the balance of what kind of players we have in that 3-4. What mixture of DTs, SSDEs, WSDE are they? Obviously we have a NG in the middle, but besides that?
We are currently playing a 12 man DL rotation with the reserves, and playing it pretty well. 5 of them are seniors and 3 are juniors. They have been together for a long time jelling. I think they are the BEST IN THE COUNTRY. And here we were a little over a year ago bitching about how poor our DTs were.
How far we have come in 12 months and have a very bright future!

I know you DONT count Baldwin in the equation, but the jury is still out on that subject, and by the numbers we are looking at from both positions; IMO we have to try him at SSDE next year.
So hopefully we will have
HEYWARD - WILSON - FELLOWS - MOORE(rs) - BALDWIN(rs)
GIBSON - WILLIAMS - THOMAS - NEWSOME - WELLS - DURHAM(rs)
SIMON - GOEBEL
LARIMORE - BELLAMY
ROLLE - KLEIN - WHITING - McVEY(rs)
HOMAN - SWEAT - HICKS(rs)
MOELLER - SABINO - BELL - HAGAN(rs)

We are going to HAVE TO PLAY ALOT OF 3-4 DEFENSES
with alot of HYBRIDS and the SPEED to make up for the STRENGTH.

FOUR schollie DTS is so very thin, we do have three or four more walk ons, but we usually have seven or eight scholarship DTs on the roster for rotation.
What if there are injuries?
We are looking for disaster here and waiting for the class of 2011 to be coming in quick. And most of those I see are DEs that need to be converted to DTs.
But then again isn't that the Tressel recruiting method?
MOVE DOWN!

...
written by Ron Haggis, October 03, 2009
Goebel could play the strongside DE spot. Simon would probably also get a look. They probably won't be as disruptive or athletic as Cam at that spot, but I would think both would be steady and could hold the point of attack and free up our playmakers to be disruptive.

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