Scarlet Sunrise: Looking back at Ohio State players drafted during Ryan Day era
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Looking back at Ohio State players drafted during Ryan Day era
Ohio State has had 90 players taken in the first round of the NFL Draft all-time, more than any other school in the country.
With the first round of this year’s draft taking place Thursday, now’s a good time to look back at the Buckeyes stars who have been picked during the Ryan Day era.
2020 NFL DRAFT
| ROUND | PICK# | TEAM | PLAYER | POSITION |
| 1 | 2 | Washington Commanders | Chase Young | DE |
| 1 | 3 | Detroit Lions | Jeff Okudah | CB |
| 1 | 19 | Las Vegas Raiders | Damon Arnette | CB |
| 2 | 55 | Baltimore Ravens | J.K. Dobbins | RB |
| 3 | 73 | Jacksonville Jaguars | DaVon Hamilton | DT |
| 3 | 75 | Detroit Lions | Jonah Jackson | G |
| 3 | 98 | Baltimore Ravens | Malik Harrison | LB |
| 6 | 199 | Los Angeles Rams | Jordan Fuller | S |
| 7 | 220 | Los Angeles Chargers | K.J. Hill | WR |
| 7 | 235 | Detroit Lions | Jashon Cornell | DT |
+ Ohio State had two players go in the top five of the 2020 draft: defensive end Chase Young and cornerback Jeff Okudah. Young won AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year with the Commanders — at the time known as the Washington Football Team — and played in last year’s Super Bowl for the San Francisco 49ers. He now plays for the New Orleans Saints. Okudah got off to a slow start with the Detroit Lions but has started 24 games over the last two years, the first 15 with the Lions and the next nine with the Atlanta Falcons. He now plays for the Houston Texans.
+ Former Buckeyes running back J.K. Dobbins has had unfortunate injury luck since joining the league. Dobbins has suffered not one but two season-ending injuries, the latest being a torn Achilles that kept him out practically all of the 2023 season. His best season was his first season with the Ravens, during which he rushed for 805 yards and nine touchdowns on 134 carries, averaging 6.0 yards a pop. He now plays for the Los Angeles Chargers.
2021 NFL DRAFT
| ROUND | PICK# | TEAM | PLAYER | POSITION |
| 1 | 11 | Chicago Bears | Justin Fields | QB |
| 2 | 60 | New Orleans Saints | Pete Werner | LB |
| 2 | 62 | Green Bay Packers | Josh Myers | C |
| 3 | 86 | Minnesota Vikings | Wyatt Davis | G |
| 3 | 88 | San Francisco 49ers | Trey Sermon | RB |
| 3 | 105 | Denver Broncos | Baron Browning | LB |
| 4 | 132 | Cleveland Browns | Tommy Togiai | DT |
| 5 | 145 | Jacksonville Jaguars | Luke Farrell | TE |
| 5 | 160 | Baltimore Ravens | Shaun Wade | CB |
| 7 | 239 | Denver Broncos | Jonathon Cooper | DE |
+ Justin Fields has experienced a bit of a roller coaster career so far. At times, Fields starred for the Bears, notably becoming just the third quarterback in NFL history to rush for at least 1,000 yards in a season during his head-turning 2022 campaign. The only others to do so? Now-two-time MVP Lamar Jackson and, of course, Michael Vick. Fields enjoyed his best passing season in 2023, completing a career-high 61.4% of his attempts and posting a 16:9 touchdown-to-interception ratio, but his inconsistencies three years in have led the Bears to hit reset on the quarterback position. Preparing to take Caleb Williams No. 1 in this year’s draft, they traded Fields to the Pittsburgh Steelers this offseason.
+ Both of Ohio State’s second-round picks from the 2021 draft are still with the same teams that selected them: Linebacker Pete Werner is with the Saints, and center Josh Myers is with the Packers. Werner has increased his tackle count each year he’s been in New Orleans. During his third season in the league, Werner piled up a career-high 93 total tackles, intercepted a pass and recovered two fumbles.
2022 NFL DRAFT
| ROUND | PICK# | TEAM | PLAYER | POSITION |
| 1 | 10 | New York Jets | Garrett Wilson | WR |
| 1 | 11 | New Orleans Saints | Chris Olave | WR |
| 3 | 69 | Tennessee Titans | Nicholas Petit-Frere | OT |
| 3 | 101 | New York Jets | Jeremy Ruckert | TE |
| 5 | 158 | Seattle Seahawks | Tyreke Smith | DE |
| 7 | 238 | Las Vegas Raiders | Thayer Munford | OT |
+ Ohio State’s first-round receiver pipeline began in the 2022 draft when Garrett Wilson went No. 10 overall to the New York Jets, and Chris Olave went No. 11 overall to the New Orleans Saints. Wilson won AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, but both he and Olave eclipsed the 1,000-yard receiving mark. Actually, they became the first receivers from the same school to reach that milestone in the same rookie season. What’s more, they both got there again in 2023, despite Wilson once again dealing with sub-par quarterback play. Olave one-upped his first go-around with 87 receptions in his sophomore campaign.
+ Nicholas Petit-Frere started 16 games at right tackle for the Titans in 2022. Last year, however, he served a four-game suspension for violating the league’s gambling policy, and he landed on IR later that season. Now, he’s in the mix to start again at tackle, but Tennessee could explore other options in this year’s draft.
2023 NFL DRAFT
| ROUND | PICK# | TEAM | PLAYER | POSITION |
| 1 | 2 | Houston Texans | C.J. Stroud | QB |
| 1 | 6 | Arizona Cardinals | Paris Johnson Jr. | OT |
| 1 | 20 | Seattle Seahawks | Jaxon Smith-Njigba | WR |
| 3 | 75 | Atlanta Falcons | Zach Harrison | DE |
| 4 | 111 | Cleveland Browns | Dawand Jones | OT |
| 6 | 190 | Cleveland Browns | Luke Wypler | C |
+ C.J. Stroud, a two-time Heisman Trophy finalist, went No. 2 overall to the Houston Texans, a franchise he helped transform from worst to first in the AFC South while winning AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year and becoming the youngest quarterback in league history to win a playoff game. Stroud also set the record for most pass attempts (177) to start an NFL career without an interception, and he rounded out the 2023 campaign with 4,108 passing yards, 23 touchdowns and just five picks.
+ Paris Johnson Jr. started all 17 games at right tackle for the Arizona Cardinals last season, helping bolster a rebuilding offensive line. The Cardinals won only four games, but the return of dual-threat quarterback Kyler Murray reminded fans that the future is bright in the desert. Johnson is part of that future. He allowed eight sacks and 42 pressures his first year in the league, per Pro Football Focus. But he ended the year with three straight no-sack games, a span in which he gave up just three total pressures, too.
+ Jaxon Smith-Nijgba continued the Buckeyes’ receiver run. Although he didn’t have the breakout rookie year some expected from him in Seattle, he still ranked third on the Seahawks in receptions (63), receiving yards (628) and receiving touchdowns (four). Perhaps most notably, JSN made the game-winning touchdown catch against the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday Night Football, as well as a game-winning catch-and-run touchdown on the road versus the Cleveland Browns earlier in the season.
Six burning questions facing Ohio State ahead of summer workouts
The spring season is over for Ohio State. It has been for more than a week now. At this point, the focus has shifted to the next phase of the offseason, training camp.
Lettermen Row came up with six burning questions facing the Buckeyes as they gear up for another pivotal August at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center.
Although we learned quite a bit about Ohio State in spring ball, there are still plenty of unanswered questions about the 2024 squad.
Check those out here.
Post-spring Ohio State recruiting stock report: offense
Most of the spring visits are in the rear view mirror for Ohio State. The Buckeyes’ staff is getting ready for on-the-road evaluations, not to mention the start of official visits on May 31.
In the meantime, though, Lettermen Row is overviewing the 2025 recruiting board to track the stock of Ohio State prospects on the trail.
Our own Alex Gleitman kicked things off with a breakdown of Buckeyes targets on the offensive side of the ball.
Get that analysis here.
Counting Down
Buckeyes vs. Akron: 131 days
Buckeyes vs. Michigan: 222 days
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