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Ohio State football: 2016 season preview for Buckeyes, J.T. Barrett

By The Sports Xchange
Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback J. T. Barrett throws a pass before the Fiesta Bowl game on January 1, 2016. Photo by Art Foxall/UPI
Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback J. T. Barrett throws a pass before the Fiesta Bowl game on January 1, 2016. Photo by Art Foxall/UPI | License Photo

There's no more inexperienced team in major college football entering 2016 and yet the Ohio State Buckeyes and QB J.T. Barrett are a consensus Top 10 in the preseason polls.

Ohio State returns only six starters -- the lowest number among FBS teams -- but the talent is still there and Urban Meyer is still the coach. That combination figures to be enough to keep Ohio State among the elite this year and a favorite along with Michigan and Michigan State to win the Big Ten East Division championship.

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Entering year No. 5 in Columbus, Meyer has compiled a ridiculous 50-4 record and continues to stockpile top-tier talent from highly ranked recruiting classes. Meyer knows how to win and how to land the players that give him the ability to be ultra-successful year after year.

With so many players going to the NFL from last year's 12-1 team, there are a staggering number of spots to fill on offense and defense, making it paramount for newcomers and holdovers that haven't seen significant playing time to contribute in a big way.

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Meyer will be watching the incoming players with a keen eye. So will his assistants. He wants to have an idea who likely will be the starters about 12 days into August preparations.

"If we see some guys step up like we did in '14 and last year, then we have a chance to be special, because athleticism is not an issue," Meyer said in reference to Ohio State's 2014 national championship season. "Chemistry, toughness, those kinds of things, I just don't know yet."

One freshman already emerged in preseason as a likely starter. Michael Jordan, a first-year player from Michigan, was running with the first unit in camp.

Meyer really likes the freshmen.

"Last year's group was not very mature for whatever reason and there's a lot of reasons," he said. "They're not bad people. They probably looked in front of them and saw a monster that they couldn't beat out. It's human nature, 'I'm not going to beat that guy out so I'm going to act like an 18-year-old.'

"Where it falls on you to get ready in three weeks and you go, 'You're playing,' that kind of causes people to mature quickly, so I think it's a much more mature group because they see this is open season, go beat someone out."

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The offense will revolve around junior quarterback J.T. Barrett, one of three returning starters on that side of the ball along with offensive linemen Pat Elflein and Billy Price.

Wide receiver is a major question mark. The combined total of catches returning from the position group is six, and five of those were by Noah Brown, who is back after suffering a season-ending broken leg.

In addition to Brown, the candidates for playing time at wideout are Johnny Dixon, Terry McLaurin, Parris Campbell, James, Clark K.J. Hill, Torrance Gibson, Alex Stump and true freshman Austin Mack.

The tight end situation is more of the same. Marcus Baugh was the backup last year to Nick Vannett, drafted by the Seattle Seahawks this spring, but there is a considerable amount of youth behind Baugh.

Barrett doesn't seem worried about the lack of game experience with the receivers.

"With the reps that we have and plays coach (Urban) Meyer is going to give us, I believe we're going to be ready," Barrett said. "I have confidence in them."

The biggest loss of all could be running back Ezekiel Elliott, the No. 4 pick by the Dallas Cowboys in the NFL Draft who departed as one of the greatest players in school history. Left to fill his shoes is redshirt freshman Mike Weber, who missed last season with a knee injury.

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Hybrid backs Dontre Wilson and Curtis Samuel also could rotate into the mix at running back. Both players have shown flashes of game-breaking ability during their time at Ohio State but have been slowed by injuries and inconsistency.

On the other side of the ball, the defense had seven starters selected in the NFL Draft this spring, leaving the Buckeyes with the challenge of replacing three of four starting defensive backs, two of three linebackers and three of four defensive linemen.

Junior linebacker Raekwon McMillan is an All-American candidate in the middle who will be flanked by capable outside linebackers Chris Worley and Dante Booker, who are battling for those jobs.

Up front, the defensive line is somewhat unsettled, especially at the two tackle spots. Sam Hubbard and returning starter Tyquan Lewis are potential standouts after combining for 14 1/2 sacks in 2015.

In back, the only holdover starter is cornerback Gareon Conley. Plenty of battles for the remaining cornerback and safety spots are expected from Denzel Ward, Damon Webb, Erick Smith, Cam Burrows, Damon Arnett, Malik Hooker and Eric Glover-Williams.

One area with no worries is special teams. All-Big Ten senior punter Cameron Johnston and junior kicker Sean Nuernberger are returning.

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NOTES, QUOTES

SPOTLIGHT ON SEPTEMBER: All eyes will be on the Sept. 17 clash at Oklahoma between Top 5 teams. A win in Norman for a young Ohio State team would be an extreme confidence-booster for the remainder of the season. A loss wouldn't be the end of the world. There would still be time to bounce back to stay in contention for the College Football Playoff by running through the rest of the schedule. The Buckeyes' other two nonconference games should be much easier against Bowling Green in the Sept. 3 opener and at home against Tulsa on Sept. 10. They open the new nine-game Big Ten schedule against East Division opponent Rutgers, coached by former Ohio State defensive coordinator Chris Ash, on Oct. 1 in Ohio Stadium.

KEYS TO SUCCESS: QB J.T. Barrett is one of just six returning starters on the team and he must be the unquestioned leader for Ohio State to have any kind of success moving the football this year. A running back and wide receivers need to emerge from a collection of talented but relatively inexperienced candidates, and the offensive line must effectively incorporate three new starters into the mix. The defense was devastated by graduation losses and early entries into the NFL Draft. That talent drain won't be easy to replace, but LB Raekwon McMillan is back in the middle as a rock-solid anchor and his leadership will be an important factor and a steadying influence for the new starters.

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AREAS OF CONCERN: Losing a player of RB Ezekiel Elliott's caliber creates a large void in the offense. Elliott left Ohio State as one of the top rushers in school history and was drafted No. 4 overall by the Dallas Cowboys. His replacement is likely to be redshirt freshman Mike Weber, who sat out last season after suffering a knee injury in the preseason. Then there is the lack of experience the wideout and slot receiver positions. WR Michael Thomas left to enter the draft and Braxton Miller used up his eligibility. Who steps up to fill their shoes will be a focal point during preseason practices. The talent losses were similar on defense with the departures of NFL draft picks Derron Lee, Joey Bosa, Vonn Bell, Eli Apple, Adolphus Washington and Joshua Perry.

QUOTE TO NOTE: -- "Those 'O' linemen when we're playing up-tempo, they're looking at you, 'Man, I hate you.' I've got to push them because there's going to be times in the game when they're more tired than us." -- Ohio State quarterback J.T. Barrett.

STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL

HEAD COACH: Urban Meyer, fifth year at Ohio State, 50-4 record and 154-27 overall as a head coach.

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MOST IMPORTANT PLAYER: QB J.T. Barrett -- Unlike last year, Barrett enters the season firmly entrenched as the starter. A year ago, he lost the battle with Cardale Jones for the starting job but retained it during the season after an off-the-field misstep and never looked back, picking up where he left off during his freshman year when he led the Buckeyes to the Big Ten regular-season championship before he fractured an ankle against Michigan. Barrett's dual-threat capability makes him particularly dangerous. He was voted the preseason Big Ten Offensive Player of the year in a poll conducted by Cleveland.com.

BREAKOUT STAR: DE Sam Hubbard -- With All-American DE Joey Bosa off to the NFL, Hubbard is positioned to become a star. "I really think he will," coach Urban Meyer said in the spring. Hubbard came in as a 200-pound tight end and safety as a freshman. The 6-foot-5 Hubbard has bulked up now to 266 pounds and last season totaled 6 1/2 sacks and eight tackles for loss. On the other side of the line, DE Tyquan Lewis is also just a good. He had eight sacks and 14 tackles for loss a year ago. And then there's Bosa's younger brother, Nick, who arrived this summer as one of the top freshman defensive end recruits in the country.

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NEWCOMER TO WATCH: RB Mike Weber -- The redshirt freshman came to Ohio State from Michigan after an interesting recruiting battle between the Wolverines and the Buckeyes. The former four-star prospect rushed for 2,268 yards and 29 touchdowns as a high school senior despite missing three games. Last year in fall camp, Weber went down with a knee injury and sat out the 2015 season. He entered the spring in competition for the starting running back job with senior Bri'onte Dunn, who was dismissed from the team in July after and alleged domestic dispute incident. Webb is described as a hard runner with a low center of gravity who's difficult to hit.

ROSTER REPORT:

--RB Bri'onte Dunn was dismissed from the team in July after an alleged domestic abuse incident involving his girlfriend. The fifth-year senior was expected to compete for playing time at running back and continue to contribute on special teams in his final season.

--G Michael Jordan is a true freshman but practiced with the returning players on the first day of preseason camp. Ohio State coaches are so impressed with Jordan that he might wind up as a starter for the opener.

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--P Drue Chrisman won't be needed this season unless fourth-year P Cameron Johnston gets hurt, but Chrisman is on campus practicing with the team and paying his own way during the fall semester.

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