Scarlet Sunrise: Three Buckeyes land on preseason watch list for Bednarik Award

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Three Buckeyes land on preseason watch list for Bednarik Award

Ohio State expects to have one of the best, if not the best defense, in all of college football this season. The Buckeyes are led by plenty of superstars on that side of the ball, a unit that returns the top passing defense from a year ago and a stout run defense.

Two members of that top-ranked secondary and one member of the elite defensive line are being honored this preseason, as the preseason watch list for the Bednarik Award was released. Safety Caleb Downs, a former Alabama star, defensive end Jack Sawyer and cornerback Denzel Burke are all on the preseason watch list for the Bednarik Award, which is given annually to the country’s premier defensive player.

Only one Ohio State player has won the Bednarik Award since it began being handed out in 1995; defensive end Chase Young won it in 2019.

Ohio State tied with Michigan, Iowa, Georgia and Miami (FL) with three defenders on the list each; they lead the country with three each.

Ohio State near top of preseason AP Poll

Ohio State already opened training camp as one of the top-ranked teams in college football when the Coaches Poll was released last week. Now the AP Poll voters in the media have solidified that belief that the Buckeyes are among the best in the country.

Yes, it’s the preseason, meaning preseason polls continue to trickle out. The latest comes courtesy of the media. The AP Poll is officially out.

Ohio State checked in at No. 2 to begin the season, trailing No. 1 Georgia. The Buckeyes and Bulldogs are the two heavy favorites to win their respective leagues and potentially win the national title in January.

The Buckeyes received 15 first-place votes. Georgia earned 46. Others to receive first-place votes are Oregon, which received one.

The preseason AP Top 10 can be found below.

AP Poll (Preseason)

No. 1 Georgia (46 first-place votes)
No. 2 Ohio State (15)
No. 3 Oregon (1)
No. 4 Texas
No. 5 Alabama
No. 6 Ole Miss
No. 7 Notre Dame
No. 8 Penn State
No. 9 Michigan
No. 10 Florida State

Five-star OL, Buckeyes target Josh Petty commits to Georgia Tech

Five-star Roswell (Ga) Fellowship Christian School interior offensive tackle Josh Petty announced his commitment to Georgia Tech on Monday afternoon. The 6-foot-4, 255-pound Petty had a final group of Ohio State, Florida State, Stanford and Tennessee along with the Yellow Jackets.

Petty is the No. 29 overall prospect and the No. 2 interior offensive lineman in the On3 Industry Rankings. On3 has Petty as the No. 53 overall prospect and the No. 5 interior offensive lineman.

The Buckeyes made a strong final push for Petty over the last few weeks, but there was too much ground to make up. Georgia Tech and Florida State had long been viewed in that top-tier group for Petty, particularly the Seminoles. Petty has strong relationships with the staff at Florida State and a main talking point throughout his recruitment was that his sister attends the university.

But the Yellow Jackets never relented in their pursuit for who undoubtedly was their top priority prospect of the 2025 cycle.

Counting Down

Buckeyes vs. Akron: 18 days
Buckeyes vs. Michigan: 109 days

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