Ohio State enters the 2017 season as favorites not only in the Big Ten but for a College Football Playoff berth, as well.
That doesn't mean the Buckeyes are a perfect team, however. Far from it, actually.
Like anybody else, Ohio State has questions to answer and holes to fill. And what better way to solve these issues than to mythically pick players from the Buckeyes' competition to plug said holes?
What follows below is the selection of one player from each team in the Big Ten East that Ohio State could use on its roster for the 2017 season. Some would be high-impact players while others would simply provide depth at certain positions. We tried to base it on fit in relation to the Buckeyes' roster rather than just selecting the best player from every team. We picked one from each Big Ten East squad — even Rutgers.
We'll go in order from how each team finished the 2016 campaign in the league standings. Let's get right to it.
Penn State — Running back Saquon Barkley
This was the easiest selection of the group as Barkley is one of the best players in the country regardless of position. Ohio State has a pretty solid running back in Mike Weber, but Barkley is an elite talent who would start for any team in college football.
As a sophomore, Barkley had 1,496 rushing yards, 402 receiving yards and 22 touchdowns. He's widely expected to be a top-10 pick in the 2018 NFL Draft should he opt to forgo his senior season with the Nittany Lions.
Michigan — Defensive tackle Maurice Hurst
Ohio State is loaded along the defensive line in 2017, but there's no question the Buckeyes are stronger at end than on the interior. Hurst would be a big addition to the middle of Ohio State's defensive line.
He recorded 4.5 sacks and 11.5 tackles for loss last season for archrival Michigan.
Indiana — Linebacker Tegray Scales
Ohio State feels pretty good about its linebacking corps that features Chris Worley, Jerome Baker and Dante Booker. However, only Worley and Baker are proven commodities out of that group.
Scales is one of the top returning defensive players in the Big Ten as the linebacker recorded 125 tackles and 24 tackles for loss last season for Indiana. Both of those numbers were tops in the conference.
Indiana linebacker Tegray Scales led the Big Ten in tackles last season ( Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports)
Maryland — Wide receiver D.J. Moore
Admittedly, this was the most difficult school to pick a player from. The Terrapins look like they could be in for a bit of a rough season under D.J. Durkin as proven talent isn't necessarily jumping off the roster just yet.
But Ohio State has an unproven crop of players in its wide receiver room so adding a guy like Moore, who had 41 catches for 637 yards and six touchdowns last season as a sophomore, would likely be a welcomed addition.
Michigan State — Offensive lineman Brian Allen
Ohio State's offensive line features four returning starters in 2017 but there is a vacant spot on the interior following Pat Elflein's departure. Billy Price moved over from guard to center to replace Elflein, but the Buckeyes are still searching for their starting right guard.
Why not pick Allen here, who made 24 starts over the last two seasons on the interior of Michigan State's offensive line?
Rutgers — Wide receiver Janarion Grant
As mentioned above, Ohio State doesn't have a lot of proven playmakers at the wide receiver position so Grant would make a ton of sense to add. He missed most of last season due to a broken ankle, but he's proven to be a game breaker throughout his career.
Grant had just 35 catches for 352 yards and one touchdown during his last healthy full season, but during that year he also returned three kicks and one punt for a touchdown. Grant has eight career return touchdowns which are tied for the most in FBS history and that is certainly a part of Ohio State's team that lacked in recent years.
