COLUMBUS, Ohio — The mood around Ohio State’s Woody Hayes Athletic Center was somber, far from the optimism that can typically be found in Columbus two weeks prior to the start of a season.
Billboards went up around town, expressing support. Players used interviews as therapy sessions, often falling short of finding a silver lining. Urban Meyer described himself as having gone “berserk.”
To say the torn labrum in Braxton Miller’s throwing shoulder, suffered one year ago Tuesday, shook the Buckeyes program to its core might be considered dramatic.
It also wouldn’t necessarily be inaccurate. And if anything, it might be an understatement.
One year later, Ohio State finds itself preparing to defend its national championship as J.T. Barrett and Cardale Jones compete to be the Buckeyes starting quarterback. It took stellar efforts from both players to make up for Miller’s absence—and then some—leading to a quarterback battle unlike any other in college football.
Miller, meanwhile, kept good on his promise to return to OSU for a fifth year. But after the life-altering 365 days that followed last August’s injury, he now seems more like a rookie than one of the oldest players inside the Buckeyes locker room.
That’s because with his shoulder injury having yet to have fully healed and Barrett and Jones having each proved themselves as qualified signal-callers, Miller is no longer a quarterback, having made the move to the wide receiver/H-back…
Continue Reading: What a Difference a Year Makes for Ohio State’s Braxton Miller
