When stud high school football prospects sign their letters of intent and eventually put on the pads in college, some take a little longer to regain the edge that made them so dominant on the prep circuit.
Even if you're a five-star recruit who develops quickly, it's not always easy to break into the mold at college right away.
"The better you are (as a team), the more experienced you are, the more difficult it is," Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer said Monday.
Meyer mentioned skill positions like wide receiver or cornerback represent two places a freshman could earn time early if they do what they're supposed to and a spot is available. In the trenches, however, that's not the case.
"Offensive and defensive linemen are tough," Meyer said. "The Joey Bosas of the world coming into play as a freshman, that doesn't happen very often."
Bosa earned a starting position at defensive end for the Buckeyes midway through his freshman season in 2013 and became an All-American during Ohio State's 2014 national championship season as a sophomore.
On the other side of the ball, the Buckeyes return four of five starting offensive linemen from a year ago. Fifth-year senior Chase Farris is primed and ready to step in and fill out the first five, leaving hardly any room for a young player to earn time.
"That's a great group. Really pleased. They're big kids, but they're also very talented, they love football. They're very coachable, they just have all the characteristics that you're looking for."– Ed Warinner on the freshmen OL
However, the five offensive linemen Ohio State brought in with its 2015 recruiting class — it would have been six, but Mirko Jurkovic couldn't enroll due to academics — are doing all they possibly can to make Ed Warinner happy.
"That's a great group. Really pleased. They're big kids, but they're also very talented, they love football," Warinner said Wednesday after practice. "They're very coachable, they just have all the characteristics that you're looking for."
Ohio State opened fall camp Monday, but didn't put the pads on until Wednesday. Freshmen can be in for a rude awakening on the first day of full pads in college for a multitude of reasons, but that wasn't the case for a group that includes Matthew Burrell, Isaiah Prince, Kevin Feder, Branden Bowen and Grant Schmidt.
"Today they showed up, first day in pads, and they were ready to go," Warinner said. "They weren't intimidated by the environment. Because we have a very good defensive line, so that was exciting."
The older guys on the offensive line agree with their position coach.
"Those guys go hard," center Jacoby Boren said. "Some freshmen are timid sometimes and those guys right from the beginning are firing on all cylinders."
"We have a really good freshman class that just came in," right guard Pat Elflein added. "Those four or five guys, I'm impressed with them."
The sheer size of the freshmen offensive linemen is impressive alone. The group averages 6-foot-7 and 298 pounds, with Feder being the tallest at 6-foot-9 and Bowen leading the way in weight at 320 pounds.
It was Prince, though, who Warinner said stuck out most Wednesday.
"They all looked good today but maybe Isaiah Prince might be ahead of the others," Warinner said.
So while every college football player develops at different stages in their careers once they leave high school, the Buckeye big guys in the trenches are pleasing their position coach in the first week of camp.
"I wasn't sure what we'd get in the first day in pads and they all looked good, so we're excited to have them here and I think they'll be great players here in the future," Warinner said.
