Ohio State OT Josh Simmons declares for NFL Draft

Ohio State offensive tackle Josh Simmons declared for the NFL Draft, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

“Ohio State offensive tackle Josh Simmons has declared for the draft,” Schefter wrote on Twitter. “Simmons had season-ending knee surgery after the Oregon game, but his new agent Drew Rosenhaus said surgery went well and he’s already is ahead of schedule with his rehab.

“‘Josh will be fully cleared for practice by the start of NFL training camp and he will be a high-first round pick,’ said Rosenhaus, who will represent Simmons along with Robert Bailey and Oliver Chell.”

As a member of the Class of 2021, Simmons was a three-star recruit out of La Mesa (Calif.) Helix, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He was the No. 36 overall prospect in the state, the No. 26 interior offensive lineman in the class and the No. 445 overall prospect in the class.

Josh Simmons declares for NFL Draft

Simmons went down with a season ending knee injury against Oregon back in October after he was carted off the field against the Ducks.

“The injury to Josh Simmons hurt,” head coach Ryn Day told reporters postgame. “And Zen [Michalski] did a good job of coming in and competing. Tegra [Tshabola] went down for a little bit there, and so Austin [Siereveld] had to go in. I thought those guys competed.

“I hope to get the update on Simmons, but it doesn’t look great in terms of him being able to come back this season. So that’s a that’s a big hit for us. But i thought those guys came in and competed in the game, so we’ll have to get all that identified figure out you know exactly what happened to Will Kacmarek and go back to work next week.”

But, he has NFL prospects and Simmons will surely be able to rehab as he goes through the process of becoming a pro.