Ohio State practiced in full pads today, a day before two-a-day sessions begin, and one freshman saw his black stripe removed at the end of a day. The honor went to walk-on Joe Ramstetter, a 6-foot-3, 205-pound wide receiver from Elder High School in Cincinnati. Ramstetter's "big brother" in the program is fellow wide receiver Michael Thomas.
Last year, defensive back Devan Bogard was the first freshman to have his stripe removed, signaling he had completed the work to become a true Buckeye, and many felt one of the more hyped freshmen, like Dontre Wilson or Joey Bosa, would be the first to lose his stripe in 2013, but Urban Meyer decided to reward a guy that's worked just as hard as the 5-star commitments (if not harder).
In other practice news, left guard Andrew Norwell, who suffered a foot sprain Wednesday, is expected to be out for only a couple of days, while freshman safety Jayme Thompson, who broke his ankle Wednesday, is out indefinitely. Thompson had surgery this morning at the OSU Medical Center. Freshman Khaleed Franklin from Columbus' Beechcroft High School, will replace Thompson on the 105-man roster.
The team will relocate to Ackerman Road Field for eight days of practice and team-building tomorrow.
