Please, Colts, Heart Can't Handle Buckeyes

As a proud, life-long Ohio State Buckeyes fan, it’s become increasingly difficult to maintain objectivity when these players get drafted by the Indianapolis Colts and don’t live up to expectations.

INDIANAPOLIS — An early childhood lesson from growing up an Ohio State fan reminds me to never mix scarlet and gray with blue.

That’s true when talking Ohio State and Michigan — oh, excuse me, “The Team Up North” or TTUN. (Buckeyes fans aren’t supposed to use the “M” word.)

And apparently that’s true when talking Ohio State and the Indianapolis Colts.

When the Colts have drafted Buckeyes in recent years, the initial reaction was one of anticipation because I know these guys well from college. But their inclusion in Indianapolis also tests the bottom line of professional objectivity between being a fan and a journalist.

Doesn’t sound too hard, huh? Trust me, it is. Especially when those Buckeyes get hurt in the NFL and don’t play like they did when I was watching them while sitting in the stands at Ohio Stadium.

Before the Bucknuts brigade starts showering me with an onslaught of insults, don’t misunderstand. I grew up crying whenever OSU lost to TTUN. It’s in my blood. Always will be. There’s one football game that matters most every year — when the Buckeyes must beat TTUN.

In each of the past few years before this pandemic, an Ohio high school buddy and I attended at least one game. The Mrs. has joined us as well, and enjoyed that memorable atmosphere of 106,000-plus fans as well as “The Best Damn Band In The Land.” I’m an easy Christmas present. Just get me something pertaining to Ohio State.

But my professional responsibility is to Colts fans. That means keeping it real and not being biased, which admittedly, has been tested at times when analyzing former Buckeyes safety Malik Hooker, wide receiver Parris Campbell, and defensive end/tackle Tyquan Lewis.

That’s why I’m asking — no, begging — for Colts general manager Chris Ballard to do me a solid and stop picking “my” Buckeyes. There’s plenty of talent out there, right? No need to keep shopping in Columbus, Ohio.

Why? Because Hooker and Campbell were placed on injured reserve on Tuesday. The fan sighs. The journalist shakes his head.

Ballard’s first draft pick after being hired as Colts GM in 2017 was Hooker with the 15th overall selection in the first round. Hooker didn’t live up to the pick. That’s just being honest. He showed flashes of his ballhawk skills we were spoiled to see in college at “The Shoe.” We didn't see enough of that when playing in the Colts' "Horseshoe."

He struggled to stay healthy, and Hooker’s Colts career probably ended on Sunday, when he ruptured an Achilles tendon. He was in a contract year after Ballard declined to pick up Hooker’s 2021 contract option in the offseason. It wasn’t picked up because Hooker was inconsistent.

Ohio State safety Malik Hooker was drafted 15th overall by the Indianapolis Colts in 2017. He was the first draft pick for new Colts GM Chris Ballard :: Mark Henle/USA TODAY Sports

Fans can say I’m being cold because it’s not a player’s fault when he gets hurt. But after covering the NFL for more than two decades, there’s another lesson that is constantly reminded — some bodies just don’t hold up in this league. Anybody who has followed the NFL for any length of time knows this is true. Fans can recite lists of guys when talking “What might have been.”

Campbell has started down that path. Sure, I was looking forward to seeing this speed burner scorch pro secondaries after he was drafted in the second round in 2019. But then he got hurt as a rookie. And kept getting hurt.

Some critical fans were quick to say he’s brittle, and perhaps listening to the fan inside, I countered with a somewhat modest, “Let’s wait and see.”

If it were any other player from another school, would I had given that benefit of the doubt? Probably not. At some point, the head vetoes the heart.

On the Colts’ second offensive play Sunday, Campbell raced around the end on a 7-yard rush and took a shot to the knee. He suffered an MCL injury. Coach Frank Reich said the slot receiver will “miss some time.”

That’s when reality smacked my face, while sitting in that Lucas Oil Stadium press box, and watching Campbell carted off to the locker room. You start thinking back to what’s happened to him since he arrived.

Campbell hurt his hamstring in his rookie preseason and missed three of four exhibitions. He would eventually need surgeries to repair a sports hernia, fractured hand, and fractured foot. The last injury landed him on injured reserve after just seven games played, in which he caught 18 passes for 127 yards and one touchdown.

Campbell, like Hooker, had a solid training camp. Coaches were excited about how they were going to play this season. Just wait and see. Campbell shined in an opening loss with six receptions for 71 yards. The NFL reporter in me just asked, somewhat simply, do it again. Then keep doing it.

Now, subtract him from the equation. How many more injuries does it take to stop listening to that fan inside, right?

I hope Campbell can recover and show the kind of talent that prompted Ballard to draft him so high. But as an NFL reporter, from now on, seeing is believing. I’m not counting on it.

It pains to write that, but if nothing else, consider this sappy dribble my therapeutic outlet. At some point, you have to face facts. I’m paid to do a job, and that’s to give an honest opinion to Colts fans. Blame me for past bias. Guilty as charged. I won’t make any apologies for expecting to see the same guys cheered for on Saturdays.

The Colts have another former Buckeyes standout on the roster, defensive end/tackle Tyquan Lewis. He was drafted in the second round in 2018.

As fate would have it, Lewis missed 15 games due to injuries in his first two seasons. I’ve talked to him several times and know how frustrated he became about his body betraying him. But at the beginning of this training camp, he wasn’t on my projected 53-man, regular-season roster.

Then Lewis had his best camp. An argument could be made that no Colts player was better. And on Sunday, despite playing just 12 snaps as a reserve for the second consecutive week, he had a sack.

That’s encouraging, and I hope it’s a sign of more impact plays ahead. Like his former Ohio State teammates Hooker and Campbell, Lewis worked hard in the offseason. He knew this camp was vitally important to his NFL future.

If Lewis keeps making plays, the Ohio State fan inside will rejoice. If he doesn’t, well, the NFL reporter will say what needs to be said. No excuses.

Regardless of how that plays out, we’ll keep our fingers crossed for an easy fix when the next NFL draft rolls around and the Colts are on the clock.

With all due respect to Mr. Ballard, Bucknuts everywhere, and thinking with the head and not the heart: No more Buckeyes, please.

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(Phillip B. Wilson has covered the Indianapolis Colts for more than two decades and authored the 2013 book 100 Things Colts Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die. He’s on Twitter @pwilson24, on Facebook at @allcoltswithphilb and @100thingscoltsfans, and his email is phillipbwilson24@yahoo.com.)