There were moments when Chase Farris was ready to do something else with his life. He was set on heading to the next step and forgetting about being an Ohio State football player.
"I think everybody gets discouraged, but at the end of the day as long as you got someone in your corner that helped pick you up you can get through anything," Farris said Wednesday. "We have a coaching staff around here that would do anything for our players. If you need someone to talk to, there's plenty of people to talk to confidentially just to make sure you keep your mind in the right place."
Farris' mind remained in the right place long enough through switches from the offensive line to the defensive line and then back again, sometimes treading water and remaining near the bottom of the depth chart. He waited his turn, though, put in the time and is now the starting right tackle at Ohio State.
"We're very proud of Chase," Ohio State offensive line coach and offensive coordinator Ed Warinner said. "He's been a team, a program guy that's battled through adversity and position changes for the benefit of the team. Now he's got a home, and a place and a unit and he's really flourishing in it."
The Buckeyes closed the book on their third practice of fall camp Wednesday. Farris, a fifth-year senior, replaced Darryl Baldwin from a unit that paved the way for Ezekiel Elliott's historic run in the 2014 postseason.
"We're very proud of Chase. He's been a team, a program guy that's battled through adversity and position changes for the benefit of the team. Now he's got a home, and a place and a unit and he's really flourishing in it."– Ed Warinner
The lone new starter among the first five, Farris hardly feels like one.
"Just to be out there with the guys," he said, "spring ball I wasn't out there with everybody, but now that we're all out there in it, it just feels great to be there with the slobs and do what we do best."
Confidence in Farris spread like wildfire following Wednesday's session from his cohorts up front, just like it has all summer.
"Buying stock in Chase. I think he's going to be a great player for us," right guard Pat Elflein said. "He's right by my side. So I'm saying watch out for the right side."
"He's fast, he's quick, got great feet. He's aggressive, got great hands. He's continuing to become a better and better offensive lineman," added left guard Billy Price. "Each individual practice and each individual has things we need to get better at and he's doing a great job of taking that day-by-day and really taking a step."
Warinner simply said "thank goodness we've got him this year" after the graduation of Baldwin.
"He's going to have a great year," Warinner said. "Great attitude, great demeanor, energy guy."
It might have been a constant uphill battle for Farris in his first four years within the program, but at last he's prepared to make an impact with teammates that exhume the belief he can do it.
"The fact that I have four other guys on the line with me that have that much confidence in me to go out there and do what they do, since they've already done it at the highest level," Farris said. "To think that they think that I'm the best fit to be in there with him, it's amazing."
