Another year, another Ohio State infomercial of an NFL Draft.
Song of the Day: "Vindicated" by Dashboard Confessional.
Word of the Day: Clairvoyant.
VICTORY LAP. Fair warning, if you don't want to read 400 fervent words from an extremely correct but only semi-articulate professional writer, you're gonna wanna keep on scrolling to the next section (or more realistically, click to a different page).
For those of you still with me, buckle the hell up.
Any longtime reader knows I've been obnoxiously and unironically riding the Damon Arnette train for years. While what feels like 70 percent of Buckeye fans were vocally moaning when a three-year first-team player announced he was returning (good lord, just read these comments), I was hyping it the hell up in these here Skull Sessions. Shit, I called him a "future first-round pick" back in August!
So y'all can all be surprised that he went as early as he did last night – I'm not. And more importantly, he's not either, because the dude drips confidence despite his own team's fans calling him a sentient pass interference penalty (which, to be fair, is some A+ slander) for three years.
My guy shrugged off years worth of haters as he woke up this morning knowing damn well he was going to become a millionaire today. And lo and behold...
I jus gotta go to sleep and wake up one more time..
— Damon Arnette (@damon_arnette) April 22, 2020
Arnette said he wasn't surprised he was drafted in the first round, but he appreciated the weight of the moment. He considers himself one of the best players in the draft.
— Tashan Reed (@tashanreed) April 24, 2020
I, also, consider him one of the best players in the draft – because he is. And from the sound of it, at least one NFL GM saw him as a top-10 talent.
And it's not like he came out of nowhere. You'll hear people say that he was one of the most improved players in the country last season to justify why they now think he's great after trashing him for three years. That's true, he was very much improved, but he certainly wasn't a scrub for his first three seasons, either.
In five years at Ohio State, Arnette played three very different cornerback positions in three decidedly different defensive schemes under three different defensive coordinators and was a starter for at least a portion of every playing season.
You don't start for four years as a corner at Ohio State – a school that plays almost exclusively first-round talent at defensive back – by accident. You don't convince three different cornerbacks coaches and two defensive coordinators (most of whom didn't even recruit you in the first place) to play you over an arsenal of five-star players if you're bad.
And in those four years playing, he scored more touchdowns in single coverage than he gave up. And this season, he finished the year allowing the lowest passer rating in single coverage out of any cornerback in the draft despite being one of the most targeted players in the draft class.
Damon Arnette on his playing style: "I'm a physical corner, a competitive corner, a dog. All of the above."
— Adam Hill (@AdamHillLVRJ) April 24, 2020
He's the most experienced, probably the most confident, and might be the most versatile cornerback in this draft class.
Also, physical.
Convinced this is why the Raiders took Arnette in round one pic.twitter.com/dTBJlFdr2I
— Luke Mayock (@LukeMayock) April 24, 2020
Call it a reach by the Raiders, call him overrated, call him cocky – that's all fine. He's heard the hate for his entire career. But the reality is he deserves the hell out of this, and he's done nothing but prove it on the field.
Congrats, Raiders. You have a new king.
In class chillin pic.twitter.com/OTBZtA8zXL
— damon arnette (@arnette_damon) February 6, 2018
1, 2 AND 3. Urban Meyer is now the first head coach in history to see three players he recruited (and ultimately signed) selected with the first three picks in the NFL Draft.
And thankfully for all of us, he's here to talk about each one of them.
All three were recruited by @CoachUrbanMeyer
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) April 24, 2020
Now hear what he has to say about the Top 3 NFL Draft picks pic.twitter.com/n6JJZy5F7H
Ohio State was a damn machine under Urban Meyer, and that machine seems to only be rolling even smoother under Ryan Day. I can't say it's exactly fair to anyone else, but I'm not too keen on what's fair.
Get lapped then, everyone else.
2 FOR 2. Last August, Ryan Day was basically Babe Ruth pointing to the center-field bleachers and telling everyone where he was about to deposit three home runs.
He called his shot, and he's 2-for-2 so far.
Ryan Day said Ohio State considers Jeff Okudah, Damon Arnette and Shaun Wade to all be starting cornerbacks and believes all of them have the potential to be first-round NFL draft picks.
— Dan Hope (@Dan_Hope) August 29, 2019
And to think, that's going to turn out to be the second time in five years they've had three All-American corners on the field at the same time. BIA is about damn right.
FUN WITH FACTS. There are few greater pleasures in life than putting Michigan's failures into hilarious context.
DID YOU KNOW?
— Eleven Warriors (@11W) April 24, 2020
Ohio State has had six defensive backs taken in the first round in the last four years. Michigan has six total first-round selections in the last 10 years.
The best part is the lone Michigan fan confidently replying "Wrong." seconds after Cesar Ruiz was selected, as if adding another single first-round pick completely invalidates the point of the Tweet.
Hypothetical Ohio State fan: "We slapped you by four scores."
Hypothetical Michigan fan: "Wrong. It was only by 23."
I'M NOT CRYING, YOU'RE CRYING. Jeff Okudah did what most would want to do shortly after a life-changing event – tell mom.
Only, circumstances are a bit different for him.
Touching from Okudah on the conference call. Said he's looking forward to being alone tonight and having a long talk with his mother, who passed away in 2017.
— Justin Rogers (@Justin_Rogers) April 24, 2020
I didn't really sign up for tears NFL Draft night, but here I am, re-reading 17-year-old Jeff Okudah's letter to his chronically-ill mother, and his follow-up letter ahead of the draft.
I’m sure teams will ask me about you.
They’ll ask me about my upbringing. They’ll ask me about my mom, Marie, who passed away. They’ll try to figure me out, by trying to figure you out. And honestly I can’t wait.
Because I’ll just tell them the truth.
I’ll tell them that we never had the most money, in terms of our financial situation. And that we didn’t have the most time, in terms of our years we got to spend together. But we had the most love — that’s for sure. We had more love than anyone could ever imagine.
I’ll tell them that I was raised by a mother who believed in me and who supported me, and who always made me feel like my dreams were worth dreaming about — and then fighting for. I’ll tell them that, simply put, I was raised by the best.
BIA.
Detroit got a good one.
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