While Ohio State's scrimmage on Saturday morning was closed to the media, the video board at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center on Tuesday provided a glimpse into which Buckeyes performed best in the first scrimmage of the preseason.
During media interviews with defensive linemen on Tuesday, a slideshow playing on the video board above the indoor field at the WHAC highlighted 28 players who graded out as champions for their performance in Saturday's first scrimmage of the preseason.
Champions from Ohio States weekend scrimmage. pic.twitter.com/Ak6T0jJQKf
— Patrick Murphy (@_Pat_Murphy) August 17, 2021
Perhaps most notably, that list of champions included C.J. Stroud and no other quarterbacks, providing more context into Ryan Day's comments on Monday that Stroud had begun to separate himself from the pack in the quarterback competition.
Also of note, six true freshmen were on the list of players who graded out as champions: running back TreVeyon Henderson, wide receivers Emeka Egbuka and Marvin Harrison Jr., defensive end J.T. Tuimoloau and cornerbacks Denzel Burke and Jakailin Johnson. Among those six freshmen, Johnson is the only one who still has his black stripe on his helmet; Tuimoloau had his removed after his performance in Saturday's scrimmage.
The full list of Buckeyes who graded out as champions for their performance in the scrimmage:
- Quarterback: C.J. Stroud
- Running Back: Marcus Crowley, TreVeyon Henderson, Master Teague
- Wide Receiver: Chris Olave, Emeka Egbuka, Marvin Harrison Jr., Sam Wiglusz
- Offensive Line: Dawand Jones, Matthew Jones, Paris Johnson Jr., Harry Miller, Nicholas Petit-Frere, Luke Wypler
- Defensive Line: Javontae Jean-Baptiste, Ty Hamilton, Antwuan Jackson, J.T. Tuimoloau
- Linebackers: Tommy Eichenberg, Cody Simon
- Cornerback: Denzel Burke, Lejond Cavazos, Jakailin Johnson, Demario McCall, Ryan Watts
- Safeties: Jantzen Dunn, Lathan Ransom, Bryson Shaw
Overall, Ryan Day said Monday that he was happy about what he saw in Saturday's scrimmage.
“I thought the scrimmage was really physical on Saturday,” Day said. “I was very impressed with the way we finished this week.”
