They're still favored but early departures will test football Buckeyes

  CHICAGO – Urban Meyer said he never has seen anything like it. Besides losing a senior class that helped him go 50-4 over his first four seasons at Ohio State, the Buckeyes also had nine underclassmen leave for the NFL draft, including first-round picks Joey Bosa, Ezekiel Elliott, Eli Apple and Darron Lee. “We have to find a way to replace arguably one of the best groups of players ever to come through college football,” Meyer said Tuesday at Big Ten media days. The Buckeyes have three returning starters on offense and three returning starters on defense. Yes, three. Of Meyer’s 85 scholarship players, 44 — more than half — never have played a college game. But this is Ohio State. Expectations don’t change. The Buckeyes, with J.T. Barrett back at quarterback, are preseason favorites to win the Big Ten championship, according to last week’s media poll. “The issue would be if it was a non-talented young team,” Meyer said. “And that’s not the case at all.” The Buckeyes have ranked near the top of national recruiting rankings every year under Meyer. One example of what’s hidden behind the curtain includes Jashon Cornell, the former Cretin-Derham Hall defensive lineman…

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