Ohio State Football Camp Observations: Day 3
Ohio State training camp rolled along on Friday morning as the Buckeyes continue to prepare for the 2021 season. The team is eager to get the season started in fewer than four weeks when they open up at Minnesota. Friday morning allowed media members their second of five scheduled brief looks at the team this fall.
For what it's worth, unfortunately the media was not allowed to assess any full 11-on-11 practice on Friday morning. We watched a handful of individual drills during the first 20 minutes of practice and had our best look at the following position groups.
Overall, the energy level seemed high. I didn't see anyone who looked particularly sluggish. There's a noticeable buzz in the air at practice that we haven't had a chance to see very much in two years.
Running Backs
Most of the team, even individual drills tend to have a seniority to them. It wasn't particularly surprising to see Master Teague, Miyan Williams, Marcus Crowley, TreVeyon Henderson and Evan Pryor practicing QB-option pitches and running to the sideline through padded contact. Master Teague looks like he's in great shape, but I think there's more intrigue with the remainder of the unit because they aren't as well-known.
Marcus Crowley delivered a hit so firm at one point that it knocked over one of the staff members.
But you really can't garner too much overall information from watching guys go through a drill like that. They all ran hard and nobody fumbled. Henderson's size stood out to me. I'm looking forward to watching him run the ball this season. I can't imagine that he doesn't see a reasonable number of carries during the year.
Offensive Line
Three of the offensive line spots are seemingly locked down. It would take something catastrophic (knock on wood) for Thayer Munford and Nick Petit-Frere not to start at tackle. Paris Johnson is going to be the starting right guard. Harry Miller and Matthew Jones appear to have the inside track on the other two spots - yes Miller started last year, but I'm not sure it's a complete slam dunk that he's going to start this season. He certainly has a good chance though to be the team's starting center.
Josh Fryar and Luke Wypler are in the mix and both looked good during their individual drills.
Defensive Line
Jack Sawyer and J.T. Tuimoloau are hard not to watch. Even with talented teammates around them, including a few guys on the inside like Haskell Garrett and Jerron Cage that are guys Buckeye fans know and love, the two freshmen stars are enticing to watch. Both went through drills this morning with good pace, strength and power.
I expect both of them to see the field this fall. At this point, Sawyer is probably a bit ahead of his classmate, but that's a product of the time that both have been here so far.
Quarterbacks
Unfortunately, we didn't have a chance to watch the quarterbacks throw for more than about five minutes - not too much to learn there. But C.J. Stroud seemed to be the first one in line, followed by Jack Miller III and then Kyle McCord. All three appeared to be in good form. The battle continues.
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