Sam Hubbard was dripping in sweat, his wrists red from the tape he had just cut off them, but all he could do was smile.
Hubbard was exhausted. He'd just ripped off his pads following Ohio State's annual Spring Game Saturday in Ohio Stadium, but the reason for the smile was because it was the first time he's really been able to show Buckeye fans what he can do on a football field.
"I was excited," Hubbard said. "Waited a long time for it and it was just a great feeling to get out there and show what I can do."
It's been a lengthy journey for the 6-foot-5, 265-pound freak athlete, with a wide range of positions coming along with it.
Recruited to play linebacker after earning first-team All-State honors as a safety at Archbishop Moeller High School in Cincinnati, Hubbard even saw some time at tight end in his first year on campus at Ohio State. It was a whirlwind.
"I was told (I would play) linebacker and that's what I started out as. Then I got moved to tight end right before summer. When Trey Johnson went down, I got moved back to linebacker," Hubbard said. "All over the place."
Urban Meyer long lamented having Hubbard redshirt during the 2014 season, mainly because he knew what kind of an athlete he was keeping on the sidelines. He, along with the rest of the coaching staff, just couldn't find where to put him.
"I never had to take on a blocker in my entire life until I got here and now I'm taking on 300-pound linemen every day."– Sam Hubbard
"Let's play him," Meyer said during his weekly radio show last September of Hubbard. He then added the now redshirt freshman won't be playing at Ohio State in five short years.
"He'll be playing for money."
Hubbard looked the part Saturday, finishing with four tackles, two sacks and a forced fumble. He also knocked down a pair of Stephen Collier passes at the line of scrimmage.
"I think I really worked well on my hips and flipped my hips, getting around the edge and bursting to the quarterback," Hubbard said.
He's added a few pounds to his frame in order to get to where the coaches want him, mainly Larry Johnson, who's about to pump out another first-round NFL Draft pick in 2014 unanimous All-American Joey Bosa.
Bosa makes his mark by making offensive tackles look silly before terrorizing ballcarriers, something he's trying to teach Hubbard. Recently, Bosa called Hubbard his "little protégé."
"I never had to take on a blocker in my entire life until I got here and now I'm taking on 300-pound linemen every day," Hubbard said. "It's fun when you got guys around you that are willing to help you. Like Joey Bosa, Coach Johnson and all the old guys really helped me out."
His strength, quickness and desire to get on the field has meshed well with Johnson and Bosa's teachings, as Meyer said Hubbard's a guy "that's penciled in to be in the rotation" this fall.
It's clear he's found a home at defensive end, even if he's only really focused his talents at that position since spring practice opened in March.
"It's only been a few months at defensive end and to be in the position I am I'm really thankful," Hubbard said. "I really credit Coach Johnson for the coaching he's given me and welcomed me with open arms. Just taking me under his wing."
