Ohio State Buckeyes

Dozen or more Buckeyes could be drafted in 2016

Published May. 5, 2015 5:24 p.m. ET

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Ohio State's relatively quiet NFL draft weekend has led to much speculation about what type of showing the Buckeyes will make for the event in 2016.

Probably many fans of college football could name a handful of Buckeyes -- including seniors and eligible underclassmen -- who are likely to be high picks, but how high could the total number of players reach?

Cleveland.com speculates the number could reach 18, which would break the school record of 14 set in 2004 (the last time Ohio State was a year removed from winning it all).

Some are veritable no-brainers -- senior left tackle Taylor Decker and juniors Joey Bosa and Ezekiel Elliott -- but others are more of a stretch, including senior offensive lineman Chase Farris, who had by many accounts a strong spring but has yet to actually spend one full season as a starter at the college level.

Of course the quarterbacks present a wild card as many have projected Cardale Jones as having the natural ability to be considered a first-rounder, but he is also low on game experience at this point. He will have eligibility remaining after this season, too.

The latter is true of sophomore J.T. Barrett, who could be the starter this fall and post a second record-setting campaign or end up watching from the sidelines as Jones calls the signals.

Unless of course senior Braxton Miller proves to be fully recovered from shoulder surgery and claims the full-time job himself. Miller will be out of eligibility, so he figures to be part of the draft process, whether it is as a quarterback or at another position.

How will it all shake out? We only have to wait about 12 months to find out.

(H/T Cleveland.com)