Jump to content

Buckeyes' Robiskie, Jenkins, Freeman, Boone and Laurinaitis coming back; Gholston entering NFL draft


Recommended Posts

[quote][size=5][b]Buckeyes' Robiskie, Jenkins coming back; Gholston entering NFL draft[/b][/size]
ESPN.com news services

Updated: January 11, 2008, 6:42 PM ET

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- If Ohio State is to make a run for a third-straight appearance in the BCS championship game next season, some familiar stars will be there to help the cause.


Brian Robiskie, the Buckeyes' top receiver, and star cornerback Malcom Jenkins will both return for their senior seasons. Jenkins' decision to return was reported by ESPN's Joe Schad.

However, the Buckeyes will lose defensive end Vernon Gholston, who told Schad he will enter the NFL draft. Additionally, Jenkins said linebacker James Laurinaitis and linebacker Marcus Freeman are torn about returning to Ohio State or entering the NFL draft, Schad reported.

"It's time to take care of my family. It's time to let my teammates shine," Gholston said. "They say I'm a second-rounder. But what I bring is versatility. At 265 pounds I can add or lose weight. I can be a rush end and a linebacker. One thing I've never had a problem doing is beating blockers."


Gholston surpassed Mike Vrabel's single-season school record with 14 sacks and was eighth on the team with 37 tackles. He could be drafted in the first round.

Robiskie said there's still a lot he wants to accomplish in college, including winning a national championship. The Buckeyes were defeated 38-24 by LSU in this season's BCS title game and lost the 2006 national championship game to Florida, 41-14.

Robiskie had 55 catches for 935 yards, and his 11 touchdowns were tied for fourth-highest in Ohio State history.

The 20-year-old son of former Cleveland Browns interim head coach Terry Robiskie had been mentioned as one of the juniors who could leave early for the NFL. Members of Robiskie's class must declare their draft intentions by Tuesday.

Jenkins, who had 47 tackles and four interceptions, said winning the Jim Thorpe Award is one of his goals next season. The award is given annually to the nation's top defensive back.

"What's important to me is accomplishing more. I want to win the Thorpe. I want to be a first-team All-American," Jenkins said. "I want to win a national championship. I want to experience a senior season. You can't put a price tag on that. To be paid to play football is just a benefit. I'm not ready to transition to the next stage of my life yet."

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.[/quote]


[url="http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/draft08/news/story?id=3192411&campaign=rss&source=NCFHeadlines"]http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/draft08/news...ce=NCFHeadlines[/url]
Link to comment
Share on other sites

i have some inside sources on OSu football, i actually spoke with Boone last night and he told me that he is defintly coming back. I asked him about Little Animal and he said and i quote "no one knows, even him"

take if for what its worth i guess


ive said before that i do not think Little Animal is ready for the pros but i just cant see how he could improve his stock anymore by playing another year.


Also heard rumors that Freeman is gone, Schoenhoft is all but gone, heard he is visting Delaware. Albert Dukes a former 4 star WR from Fla is supposedly transfering to App St
Link to comment
Share on other sites

[quote][size=5][b]Freeman to return for senior season[/b][/size]
[size=3][b]Buckeyes' second-leading tackler and Wayne High School grad 'went back and forth' on his decision.[/b][/size]

By Doug Harris

Staff Writer

Sunday, January 13, 2008

COLUMBUS — Ohio State linebacker Marcus Freeman announced Saturday he's coming back for his senior season — and this time he means it.

After saying last week he was staying for one more year, Freeman had a change of heart following the national title game. But after meeting with his parents, coach Jim Tressel and linebackers coach Luke Fickell, the Wayne High School grad said he has no more second thoughts.

"The big thing is, you can regret leaving early, but you can't regret coming back," he said. "It was a tough decision. I went back and forth. One minute, I was thinking it was time to move on. When I was sitting on the bench after the game, I was saying, 'This is my last one.'

"But you can't beat the atmosphere here. ... I just wasn't ready to move on and start another chapter in my life."

Freeman, the Buckeyes' second-leading tackler, is scheduled to have an MRI done this week to see whether he'll need knee surgery to repair a torn meniscus, and he might not have been able to work out for NFL scouts much before the draft. But he said that wasn't a factor.

"If I was ready to go, I could have gone with a hurt knee or not," he said.

Freeman joins cornerback Malcolm Jenkins and receiver Brian Robiskie among juniors passing up a shot at the pros. The Buckeyes are still awaiting decisions from left tackle Alex Boone and linebacker James Laurinaitis, who have until Tuesday to enter the draft.

Alex Boone met with his mother Saturday night to discuss his future.

"He'll know for sure by Monday," Amy Boone said.

Laurinaitis, a potential top-10 pick, also was meeting with family Saturday in Columbus. And Freeman said his teammate has been agonizing over his decision.

"I don't know with him," Freeman said. "Sometimes I get the vibe he's coming back and sometimes I get the vibe he's leaving. I'm as anxious to find out as anyone else."


Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2125 or at dharris@DaytonDailyNews.com[/quote]
Link to comment
Share on other sites

[quote][size=5][b]Boone staying; Laurinaitis waiting[/b][/size]
Monday, January 14, 2008 2:56 AM
By Tim May

THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

While Ohio State waits to learn whether linebacker James Laurinaitis will return for his senior year, the Buckeyes received plenty of good news yesterday from current and future players who plan to be on campus next season, including massive left tackle Alex Boone.

Boone has decided to stay for his senior season after contemplating leaving a year early to enter the NFL draft.

"It doesn't feel right to leave right now," he said.

Last week, linebacker Marcus Freeman said pretty much the same thing, as did cornerback Malcolm Jenkins and receiver Brian Robiskie. Only defensive end Vernon Gholston has said he is leaving early.

Laurinaitis, the 2007 Butkus Award winner, is the only junior who has yet to announce his intentions. He might not make up his mind until Tuesday, the deadline for underclassmen to declare for the April draft.

Boone said on Channel 10's Wall to Wall Sports last night that he expects Laurinaitis to return.

If Laurinaitis stays, the Buckeyes, despite losing their second straight national championship game, 38-24 to LSU a week ago, would be considered among the national elite going into the 2008 season. They lose just four senior starters plus Gholston from a team that won its third straight Big Ten title.

"We could be really good, but (in the wake of the loss to LSU) we all know we've got a lot of work to do to make that happen," Boone said.

Another player who won't be around is sophomore third-string quarterback Rob Schoenhoft, who said yesterday that he is transferring to NCAA Division I-AA Delaware. Under NCAA transfer rules, he will be eligible to play immediately for the Blue Hens, who won the 2007 national title.

Meanwhile, the Buckeyes' 2008 recruiting class added two members with commitments from fullback Jermil Martin of Cleveland Glenville and safety Zach Domicone of Beavercreek, Ohio. While Martin, 5 feet 11, 220 pounds, had been on the OSU radar for a while, Domicone, 6-3, 215, jumped onto the screen unexpectedly.

Domicone received a scholarship offer from Nebraska in December, then suddenly received offers from Oklahoma and Ohio State on Friday.

"I grew up as an Ohio State fan, and all my life I had dreamed of playing there," he said after making an official visit during the weekend.

The clincher, he said, was a two-hour meeting with coach Jim Tressel.

"I'd say I was already 99.9 percent sure Ohio State was where I was going," Domicone said, laughing. "Coach Tressel had to persuade me that other point-one percent."

tmay@dispatch.com[/quote]



[url="http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/football/stories/2008/01/14/osufb0114.ART_ART_01-14-08_C3_HF926Q6.html?sid=101"]http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/footb...Q6.html?sid=101[/url]
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Great news Buckeye fans Laurinaitis is returning for his senoir season :049:

[url="http://www.cleveland.com/osu/index.ssf/2008/01/ohio_states_laurinaitis_will_r.html"]http://www.cleveland.com/osu/index.ssf/200...tis_will_r.html[/url]

Link to comment
Share on other sites

[quote name='akiliMVP' post='622379' date='Jan 14 2008, 07:38 AM']I've heard that Laurinitis will announce his intention to stay for his senior season sometime today.[/quote]


Good call ! :headbang:

[quote name='spazz' post='622601' date='Jan 14 2008, 05:29 PM']Great news Buckeye fans Laurinaitis is returning for his senoir season :049:

[url="http://www.cleveland.com/osu/index.ssf/2008/01/ohio_states_laurinaitis_will_r.html"]http://www.cleveland.com/osu/index.ssf/200...tis_will_r.html[/url][/quote]

[quote][size=5][b]Ohio State's Laurinaitis will return for senior season[/b][/size]
by Doug Lesmerises
Monday January 14, 2008, 5:14 PM
DOUG LESMERISES
Plain Dealer Reporter

COLUMBUS - Ohio State All-American linebacker James Laurinaitis told the Plain Dealer this afternoon that he will return for his senior season at Ohio State.

"To be honest with you, there was a lot of praying and trying to trust the Lord and there were certain signs," Laurinaitis said. "Talking to my mom this weekend, whenever I talked to her about coming back next year with the Buckeyes, I was more excited than anything about the NFL. I'm having too much fun at Ohio State."

Laurinaitis said he anticipated he would have been a top 10 pick in the NFL Draft in April. With his return, the Buckeyes retained five of the six juniors who considered leaving for the NFL, with only defensive end Vernon Gholston going pro.

"Money can't give you this experience, especially your senior season with the way this season could go," Laurinaitis said. "I'm excited about my choice to come back."


He said the decisions of linebacker Marcus Freeman, a fourth-year junior, and fellow third-year juniors Malcolm Jenkins, Alex Boone and Brian Robiskie had an effect on his decision. That recruiting class of 2005 was the backbone of this year's team and will return without losing anyone to the NFL. Gholston was a fourth-year junior.

"It had something to do with maturity and being able to move on with life. I think I'm mature enough to handle the next level, but I didn't want to leave here," Laurinaitis said. "My class came together and we committed to leaving together.

"I talked to them a lot. They influenced me a little bit. I don't think you want to be the only guy coming back from an entire class, so I think it influence med, though these decisions are made on an individual basis."

Julie Laurinaitis flew down from Minnesota over the weekend to meet with her son, who also talked with Jim Tressel and linebacker coach Luke Fickell. He said he reached his decision Sunday afternoon.

"I think after talking my parents, our list of pros for coming back this year was a lot longer than the cons for coming back at the end of the day," Laurinaitis said. "Everybody's happy about it. It's a relief just to know."

Laurinaitis also spoke Sunday with Green Bay Packers linebacker A.J. Hawk, who served as a mentor when he was a Buckeye senior and Laurinaitis was a freshman. Hawk turned down a first-round projection as a junior to return for his senior year.

"I talked to A.J. and he said you can't take back that college experience," Laurinaitis said. "And I can do nothing but solidify my draft position with another year, and this was the right decision for me and he helped me with it.

Laurinaitis also listened to the Ohio State fans.

"I'm hoping they're happy," Laurinaitis said. "I hope Buckeye Nation knows I love them and they're a big reason I'm coming back, because of their love and support and how proud I am to represent them."

With the return of their Butkus Award-winning defensive captain, Ohio State will be the heavy favorite to repeat as Big Ten champions and must enter the 2008 season as a legitimate national title contender once again.

"I think we have an opportunity to do something special," Laurinaitis said. "You can't come back and want to do this or do that. We have to go through the same process we do every year. It's going to be hard for us this year. Last year we came in under the radar. Other people didn't have much confidence in us but we knew we had a solid team. Now every big game, everyone is going to start doubting us again and we have to be mentally tough and that starts with this offseason."

That task will be easier with Laurinaitis leading the charge.[/quote]



:dance::party::headbang::party::dance:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

[quote]And I can do nothing but solidify my draft position with another year, and this was the right decision for me and he helped me with it.[/quote]

Well...not to be a Debbie Downer...but you can do a lot besides solidifying your draft position, such as having a catastrophic injury. oh well!
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Wow..Ohio State is about to make it back-to-back-to-back National Championship games if they can take care of USC early in the season which I think they can..

I love this quote..

[quote]"I'm hoping they're happy," Laurinaitis said. "I hope Buckeye Nation knows I love them and they're a big reason I'm coming back, because of their love and support and how proud I am to represent them."[/quote]
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...