Nick Bosa is probably going to be one of the top picks, if not the top pick, in the upcoming NFL Draft. That's what made his decision to focus on rehabbing from his early-season injury understandable; there was no guarantee that he'd have been able to come back before the end of the season, and another injury might've cost him literally tens of millions of dollars.
Still, his announcement that he was foregoing the rest of his final season as a Buckeye to focus on the draft still stung, in part because he was an integral part of Ohio State's defense, but also because as one of the best defensive players in college football, he was just an utter joy to watch. His presence on the field was missed in more ways than one.
And it's pretty clear from his letter on The Players Tribune that the feeling was mutual. Bosa talks about his reaction to his injury, the camaraderie that he built with his teammates, and most especially, his love and affection for Buckeyes everywhere:
This school, this city, these fans…… there really is something SPECIAL about Ohio State. I’m not sure what the exact right word is: spirit, pride, I don’t know. But even 2,000 miles away — even all the way out here in California. You can feel it.
It’s just there.
And I think that has to be one of the best lessons I’ve learned — both over these last few months of ups and downs, and during my amazing three years in Columbus.
That it doesn’t matter what happens, or when it happens, or how, or why.
It doesn’t matter where you are in the entire world.
Ohio State is forever.
Good luck to Nick Bosa wherever he lands in the NFL, and prayers up to whatever offensive lineman has to face him.
