11W Mailbag: Tackling your questions about the Buckeyes and the NFL Draft.
Where does Ohio State rank in number of drafted players in the past 25 years. I’ll take a stab at it and say #1? And I’ll go out on a limb and say it will be an overwhelming #1, at least 10 more than #2 on the list.
~Knarcisi
Knarcisi, between 1993 and 2018 (25 drafts) Ohio State had 159 players selected. That number includes Terrelle Pryor getting picked by the Raiders in the supplemental draft. If you exclude Pryor, the number drops to 158.
In the question request thread, Bucknut1994 posted a tweet that shared the most NFL Draft picks since 2000. Below, you will find the most picks since 1993 (25 years) with the +/- since 2000.
| RANK | SCHOOL | PICKS | +/- | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | OHIO STATE | 159* | NC | ||
| 2 | FLORIDA STATE | 151 | +3 | ||
| 3 | MIAMI | 142 | -1 | ||
| 4 | FLORIDA | 139 | +3 | ||
| 5 | ALABAMA | 138 | -2 | ||
| 6 | USC | 135 | NC | ||
| 7 | GEORGIA | 127 | +1 | ||
| 8 | LSU | 124 | -4 | ||
| 9 | NOTRE DAME | 120 | +1 | ||
| 10 | TENNESSEE | 117 | +1 |
Michigan (107), Oklahoma (107) and Penn State (106) just missed the Top 10.
*Terrelle Pryor's supplemental draft pick is included.
"And I’ll go out on a limb and say it will be an overwhelming #1, at least 10 more than #2 on the list."
Florida State's mid-'90s dominance bumped the Seminoles up quite a bit when going back to 1993. There is quite a gap between No. 1 Ohio State and No. 3 Florida. Fairly telling that Ohio State is the only Big Ten team to make the top 10.
Okay, after spending close to 3 hours researching that question, let's move on to the next inquiry on the docket.
In the modern draft era, how many times have NFL teams traded up to draft a buckeye? The next part is subjective (but I’ll let you decide how to tackle it), how many of those players panned out?
~AC
I found it difficult to find records of draft day trades involving picks. I believe the Packers made a trade with the Eagles in the early 1990s that resulted in Green Bay selecting Vinnie Clark with the 19th pick of 1991 NFL Draft. However, I think Green Bay had a top 10 pick and traded down to get Clark at 19.
I also believe the Cowboys traded two first round draft picks to Seattle for Joey Galloway in the late '90s or early 2000s. I don't think the trade paid off for Dallas as Seattle used one of the draft picks to take Shaun Alexander. Galloway was a talented veteran, but Alexander did earn league MVP honors.
Don't remember, but did the Broncos trade up to select Maurice Clarett? If Denver did, that would constitute as a gamble that did not pay off.
Another possible player that might meet your criteria is Tom Cousineau. The Bills traded O.J. Simpson to the 49ers for five draft picks in 1978. The result? Buffalo had the No. 1 overall draft pick in 1979 and selected Cousineau. The Buckeye linebacker never signed with the Bills and decided to start his pro career a little farther north...in the Canadian Football League. He did earn Grey Cup MVP honors, but never played for the Buffalo. Several years later, Cousineau found his way to Cleveland.
Sorry, that's what I'm able to recall. To help answer your question, I'm going to defer to the vast knowledge of the 11W community. If you can think of a draft day trade involving Ohio State players, please share it in the comments. I will include your contribution above and give you credit.
Using the following draft value chart, which is supposedly utilized by NFL GMs to set values for draft trades, which draft year would have the highest total when combining the point values of all the Buckeye players drafted? Which year would have the lowest?
~Weave77
| RANK | YEAR | POINTS |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2016 | 8,479.5 |
| 2 | 1997 | 6,144.8 |
| 3 | 2006 | 5,906.0 |
| 4 | 1971 | 4,466.4 |
| 5 | 2017 | 4,140.0 |
| 5 | 1996 | 4,140.0 |
The chart only gives a value for players drafted 1-224, that means players selected with pick 225 or higher receive a value of zero. Therefor, there will be several years in which more Buckeyes were selected in a draft than players that will receive draft value points.
The draft year with the most points is 2016. 12 players earned draft value points that year for a total of 8,479.5. An impressive number, especially when you consider that second place 1997 earned 6,144.8 points.
The year with the least amount of draft value points was 1998. That is because it is the only year in which an Ohio State player was not selected in the NFL Draft. The year with the lowest points in which at least one Buckeye was drafted was 1983. Only one player earned points for a program low 36.5. Close to taking the low crown was 1973 with 40.4 points, four players combined for a program low 10.1 average per selection.
Alright, that rabbit hole only ate up around 3.5 hours of my time. Let's see what else is out there.
Going to lift the theme from my question posed last year, swapping out Earle's last active NFL player for Tressel's - but focusing on the 2002 team.
Feels like there aren't any active players left from that team, unless Mike Nugent is still planning on pursuing a gig in 2019.
I want to say Nick Mangold was the last player (non-specialist divsion) from the 2002 BCS National Champions? I can't think of anyone else there (I know Ben Hartsock had a good run, along with Hawk, to name a few)?
~Hovenaut
Hovenaut, 38 players from the 2002 roster made it on NFL teams. Cie Grant was the first in 2003 and Mike Nugent was the last in 2018.
| PLAYER | LAST YEAR IN NFL | YEARS PLAYED |
|---|---|---|
| MIKE NUGENT | 2018 | 14 |
| AJ HAWK | 2016 | 11 |
| NICK MANGOLD | 2016 | 11 |
| WILL ALLEN | 2015 | 12 |
| SANTONIO HOLMES | 2014 | 9 |
| ROB SIMS | 2014 | 9 |
| BEN HARTSOCK | 2013 | 10 |
| WILL SMITH | 2013 | 10 |
| JAY RICHARDSON | 2013 | 5 |
| CHRIS GAMBLE | 2012 | 9 |
| MICHAEL JENKINS | 2012 | 9 |
| BOBBY CARPENTER | 2012 | 7 |
AJ Hawk and Nick Mangold were the last non-special team position players from the 2002 roster to play in the NFL. Other than Mike Nugent, Will Allen had the longest NFL career at 12 years.
Hi Remy. Please correct me if I'm wrong but if Haskins goes in the first round (as expected) he'll be the first OSU QB to be drafted in the first round since Art Schlichter. Do I have my history correct here?
~Dstacify
| YEAR | PLAYER | RD | PICK | TEAM |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1938 | JIM McDONALD | 1 | 2 | EAGLES |
| 1982 | ART SCHLICHTER | 1 | 4 | COLTS |
| 1961 | TOM MATTE | 1 | 7 | COLTS |
| 1941 | DON SCOTT | 1 | 9 | BEARS |
| 1988 | TOM TUPA | 3 | 68 | CARDINALS |
Dstacify, there is nothing to correct because you're spot on with your Ohio State history. Schlichter was selected by the Colts with the fourth pick of the 1982 draft.
However, Schlichter is not the highest drafted Buckeye quarterback. That honor goes to Jim McDonald. In 1938, the Eagles took McDonald with the second pick of the draft. A couple of fun facts, the Eagles selected him as a back and not a QB and the Francis Schmidt product never played for the Eagles. Instead, he joined the Lions for two seasons.
*Listed at quarterback on Ohio State's roster during the player's last season.
Has a Buckeye ever been "Mr. Irrelevant?"
~Hetuck
Yes, Everett Ross earned the "honor" in 1989. The Vikings took Ross with the last pick (335) of that year's NFL Draft. The Buckeye WR is also the first Big Ten player to be Mr. Irrelevant. Minnesota cut Ross in camp and he joined the Army.
In 1992, Michigan's Matt Elliott became the second, and last, Big Ten player to "earn" Mr. Irrelevant.
Crazy difficult question. With some wonderlic scores getting leaked, there was a lot of discussion about wonderlic scores correlating with individual success. Is there any correlation with average known wonderlic scores and team success? Basically, do you think you could figure out if smarter overall teams win more games?
~Kangarooman
You are correct, that is a difficult question. I don't have access to the players' Wodnderlic scores, so I am unable to answer your question. My guess is the team with the smartest, strongest, fastest and toughest players normally wins. The game has evolved and it has become more of a thinking/technical game than just line-up and pound the guy across from you. So, yes, having intelligence does help today's players.
It’s a lot of work but it would be interesting to know what % of OSU players drafted played the entirety of their rookie contract?
~AC
Like the Wonderlic scores, I need the rookie contracts of all 442 drafted Ohio State players. I don't have access to those contracts, so I'm unable to answer your question. Sorry.
How many LB have gone in the first round? Enough to be called LBU?
~Lamplighter
Lamplighter, there are several ways to find the answer to your question: Draftee was listed as a LB during his final season at Ohio State, the players was selected as a LB by the NFL team, or the player eventually became a LB.
The answer is 10 if you base it off of the player being listed as a LB during his final season at Ohio State. The number jumps to 12 if LB is determined by the NFL. The total is 13 if you include players listed at LB by either Ohio State or the NFL.
| YEAR | PLAYER | OSU | NFL | TEAM |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | DARRON LEE | LB | LB | JETS |
| 2014 | RYAN SHAZIER | LB | LB | STEELERS |
| 2008 | VERNON GHOLSTON | DL | LB | JETS |
| 2006 | AJ HAWK | LB | LB | PACKERS |
| 2006 | BOBBY CARPENTER | LB | LB | COWBOYS |
| 1999 | ANDY KATZENMOYER | LB | LB | PATRIOTS |
| 1995 | CRAIG POWELL | LB | LB | BROWNS |
| 1988 | ERIC KUMEROW | LB | DE | DOLPHINS |
| 1979 | TOM COUISNEAU | LB | LB | BILLS |
| 1977 | BOB BRUDZINSKI | DE | LB | RAMS |
| 1974 | RICK MIDDLETON | LB | LB | SAINTS |
| 1974 | RANDY GRADISHAR | LB | LB | BRONCOS |
| 1960 | JIM HOUSTON | END | LB | BROWNS |
Regardless of round, the total number of Ohio State players selected as a linebacker during their final season in Columbus is 48.
Fun Facts: Jim Houston was the first Ohio State player to be selected at LB based on the NFL Draft. The Browns took the Buckeye end with the 8th pick of the first round in 1960.
In 1971, Doug Adams became the first Buckeye who was listed as a linebacker on the team roster to get selected in the NFL Draft. The Broncos took him in the 7th round with the 165th pick. Again, this is based on the position listed on Ohio State rosters.
Not sure if 10 (or 13) first round picks is enough to be called linebacker university. However, it is pretty impressive.
Going a little bit deeper on this, there have been 2,249 players drafted as linebackers (position designated by the NFL for the draft). Ohio State has had 55 players selected at the position. Penn State? 61. However, in the last 25 years, Penn State has had 17 linebackers drafted with only one being a first rounder (LaVar Arrington). Ohio State? 26 total and six first round selections.
So, in the last 25 years Ohio State has produced more NFL selected linebackers than Penn State, the program that likes to call itself LBU.
Will the Bengals draft Haskins if he is there at their pick? I feel it is a great fit for both Dwayne and the Bengals?
Buckeyearchie76
Cincinnati currently sits with the 11th pick of the draft. The teams that are believed to be in the market for a quarterback ahead of them are the Cardinals (1), Giants (6) and Jaguars (7). Two teams that might make a trade to move up and grab a quarterback are the Dolphins (13) and Redskins (15).
If Haskins is available when Cincinnati is on the clock, I believe they should take him. Andy Dalton is getting a little long in the tooth and I don't think he has ever guided the team to a playoff victory. The Bengals have had some stud receivers during Dalton's tenure, yet the team has not had playoff success. Haskins to A.J. Green could be a great duo.
Full disclosure, I'm a Seahawks fan and could care less what the Bengals or Browns do in the draft. With that said, I wouldn't mind watching Haskins play in Cincinnati.
In no way am I an expert at this stuff, so let's take a look at what guys who get paid for prognosticating the moves of NFL GMs think.
| EXPERT | PICKCHARLES DAVIS | POSITION | SCHOOL |
|---|---|---|---|
| WILL BRINSON | CODY FORD | OL | OKLAHOMA |
| CHARLES DAVIS | DWAYNE HASKINS | QB | OHIO STATE |
| JARED DUBIN | DWAYNE HASKINS | QB | OHIO STATE |
| RHETT LEWIS | RASHAN GARY | DE | MICHIGAN |
| PETE PRISCO | DEVIN BUSH | LB | MICHIGAN |
| CHRIS TRAPASSO | DWAYNE HASKINS | QB | OHIO STATE |
| RYAN WILSON | RASHAN GARY | DE | MICHIGAN |
| RJ WHITE | DANIEL JONES | QB | DUKE |
If you are a fan of the Bengals, you are probably hoping Davis, Dubin and Trapasso are correct and that Lewis, Prisco and Wilson are as good at predicting the NFL Draft as Jim Harbaugh is at beating Ohio State.
Any Buckeyes a good fit for the Brown's needs this year? As a Browns fan, I haven't paid much attention to the draft this year and barely knew it was coming up this weekend.
Cledaybuck
According to draft experts, the Browns are looking to improve at the following positions: WR, DE, DT, OT, OG and RB. Cleveland has currently has eight picks, but don't have one in the first round and get their first shot with pick number 49.
If the Browns do not move up, they will likely not be in position to select Nick Bosa, Dwayne Haskins, Dre'Mont Jones or Parris Campbell. So, those four Buckeyes are off the board. That leaves the following Ohio State players: OG Michael Jordan, CB Kendall Sheffield, RB Mike Weber, OT Isaiah Prince and WR Terry McLaurin.
2nd Round, Pick 49
The Browns have one second round picks, but have to wait until spot 49. There is a chance that Parris Campbell will be available. If he is, I would expect him to be in Cleveland next year. However, don't hold your breath that Campbell and his speed will fall to 49. Terry McLaurin and Michael Jordan might be considered reaches if the Browns took them at this point of the draft. Then again, McLaurin could be off the board sooner, or later.
3rd Round, Pick 80
If McLaurin is available, and the Browns did not take another WR with their first pick, the speedy receiver could be headed to Cleveland. Jordan would be again be considered a slight reach at this point and the same would be said about Weber. The running back from Cass Tech is believed to be a 4th round pick, but Cleveland could take him at this spot as a solid back-up to Nick Chubb.
4th Round, Pick 119
This is the sweet spot for Weber, Sheffield and Prince. If the Browns pass on Weber in the third round, this would be a nice time to take him. Sheffield would add speed to their secondary and Prince should help an offensive line looking to improve.
If the Browns do not take a Buckeye with their first three picks, they will likely not get a chance to add an Ohio State player in this draft. Cleveland's next picks aren't until the fifth round (144, 155 and 170) and there might be one Buckeye hanging around this deep.
Thank you to everybody who asked a question, without them this piece is not possible. Have fun watching the NFL Draft tonight, even if your team chooses poorly.
