Noah Spence, by all accounts, is a good kid from a good home. Which is why his positive test for ecstasy in the aftermath of the 2013 Big Ten championship game was seen as an aberration. Spence's father said it was due to Spence accepting a drink from a stranger at an off-campus party.
The Big Ten originally wanted to suspend Spence for the year, but it was later reduced to three games.
But just when Spence was about to return, he failed another drug test (again, ecstasy was the culprit). He has since apologized entered rehab.
Enter Roy Hall, a former four-star recruit from Cleveland who played receiver at Ohio State from 2002-2006. Hall only caught 52 passes in his Ohio State career (38 of which produced first downs), but it appears his contributions to Ohio State football are still being felt.
While Roy Hall and Noah Spence don't have much in common on the surface, they do have two striking similarities: both played football at Ohio State, and both wore No. 8.
It's unclear of who sought whom, but Roy Hall is now mentoring Noah Spence:
@Roy_Hall the old #8 mentors @nspence94 the current #8.Saturday was very encouraging and productive! #BuckeyeNation pic.twitter.com/Wvtz48FXsM
— The Real Dr.Bobby L (@DrBobbyLM) October 12, 2014
Sometimes it takes a man outside of the nuclear family unit to help a younger man find his way. Spence is a freak athlete who is missed on the field, but it's good to see him getting the help he obviously needed.
It's also good to see a player who hasn't suited up for Ohio State in nearly a decade still feels the need to come back and help younger Buckeyes find there way. That's what a family is for, after all.
