Urban Meyer: Ohio State 'might be the best roster in college football in the last decade'

There’s plenty of buzz around Columbus after Ohio State reloaded through the transfer portal and on the recruiting trail this offseason. The transformation impressed FOX analyst and former Buckeyes coach Urban Meyer, who said Ryan Day’s group looks like not just one of the top teams this season, but maybe in the last 10 years.

“I talked to Jim Tressel about this,” Meyer told Mark Ingram on The Triple Option. “I’ve read about them, I’ve watched them. This might be the best roster in college football in the last decade – as far as NFL talent, as far as depth.”

Ohio State returns plenty of production from last year, led by running back TreVeyon Henderson, wide receiver Emeka Egbuka and pass rushers Jack Sawyer and J.T. Tuimoloau. But the Buckeyes added plenty of star power prior to the season with Caleb Downs, Quinshon Judkins and Will Howard coming aboard from the portal and Jeremiah Smith entering as a highly touted freshman receiver.

"This might be the best roster in college football in the last decade." 🌰@CoachUrbanMeyer & @MarkIngramII know @OhioStateFB are all in on bringing a national title back to Columbus pic.twitter.com/UmVCu9DYgq

— The Triple Option (@3xOptionShow) August 21, 2024

Those additions – specifically Howard, paired with new offensive coordinator Chip Kelly – are why Meyer is so high on Ohio State this year.

“The second string running back, whoever it is, is probably gonna be probably a first-round draft pick,” Meyer said. “I mean, they are loaded. They’ve got Will Howard, who’s gonna be a big question mark. But I think the combination of him and Chip Kelly, the new offensive coordinator, they’re married for each other.

“He’s an athletic quarterback, he’s surprisingly fast. I was told he ran 22 miles an hour in practice. You’re sub 4.5. That’s fast-fast. And he’s a big dude. He’s a big dude. I think he’s the perfect fit.”

Urban Meyer explains ‘challenge’ for Ohio State in 2024

With so much star power, though, Meyer said there’s a balancing act Day and the staff will have to play. Ohio State has the 16th-toughest strength of schedule, according to ESPN, but the Buckeyes have at least a 95% chance of winning each of their first three games.

If those games turn into blowouts, Day might pull the starters – therefore impacting their stats. Urban Meyer said that’ll be interesting to watch once Big Ten play starts up.

“Here’s the challenge … how do you keep all happy?” Meyer said. “Their schedule’s kind of a joke early on. I mean, they’re gonna be 50-point favorites in the first three games. They have a bye week and then they play Michigan State, which is a shell of themself right now.

“So the starters will probably play 30-40 plays in the first month of the season. That means statistically, they’re not gonna have many catches, the running backs are not gonna have many carries because you’re not gonna play those guys in the second half of those games.”

With that, Ingram replied the message has to be more about individual numbers. It comes down to winning a title.

“To me, Coach, it has to be everyone having the same mindset, which is why did every single one of you guys come here to Ohio State? It’s to win a championship,” Ingram said. “So in order for us to win a national championship, everyone needs to be their best. And yes, you’re gonna have individual goals which should drive you and inspire you and cause you to work hard. But at the end of the day, the only thing that matters here is getting the win.”