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Football
Looking at Monday’s Depth Chart: Offense
By Brandon Castel

COLUMBUS, Ohio — It was only one day of practice.

A lot is going to change before things kick off on Sept. 1, but we now have a better idea of what the Ohio State coaches are thinking about a few different spots in the two-deep. 

Here is a look at our estimation of the depth chart after watching Monday’s practice. Check out our full Practice Insider on the Offense here.

QUARTERBACK
5 Braxton Miller (6-3, 210, So.)
13 Kenny Guiton (6-3, 206, rJr.)

*Nothing to see here. These are going to be the top two guys all year. Cardale Jones is not seeing the field in 2012 unless disaster strikes.

TAILBACK
34 Carlos Hyde (6-0, 235, Jr..)
2 Rod Smith (6-3, 230, rSo.)
25 Bri’onte Dunn (6-1, 214, Fr.)
28 Warren Ball (6-2, 200, Fr.)

*With Jordan Hall out, Carlos Hyde got the bulk of the snaps with the first group Monday. Rod Smith also got a few reps with the ones, while Bri’onte Dunn and Warren Ball worked in a little with the twos. 

H-Back
44 Zach Boren (6-1, 246, Sr.)
49 Adam Homan (6-3, 245, Sr.)

*Again, not much to see here. Boren is the guy, but he didn’t see any action as a ball carrier Monday. They could move Homan around a little bit.

SPLIT END (X)
15 Devin Smith (6-1, 196, So.)
83 Mike Thomas (6-2, 193, Fr.)

*Smith was the guy who really caught Urban Meyer’s attention Monday, but both of these guys are going to play. They were both out there making catches Monday, with Smith hauling in the deep fly route that had his head coach raving after practice.

FLANKER (Z)
16 Evan Spencer (6-1, 190, So.)
29 Taylor Rice (5-10, 185, Sr.)

*Meyer said Spencer ran a 4.4 in the 40 this offseason and seems to be a candidate for the offensive playmaker position. It was interesting to see Rice get some reps with the second group. No Verlon Reed on Monday. 

SLOT (H)
10 Corey Brown (5-11, 182, Jr.)
80 Chris Fields (6-0, 180, rJr.)

*Brown lined up in the backfield once, but he was immediately motioned out wide. No real signs of the “hybrid No. 3” position on Monday.

TIGHT END
11 Jake Stoneburner (6-5, 245, rSr.)
81 Nick Vannett (6-6, 248, rFr.)
86 Jeff Heuerman (6-6, 247, So.)

*Stoneburner was back with the first group and he seemed to be Miller’s favorite target on Monday. It looked like the same was true for Vannett with the second group. His pass-catching ability might give him a slight edge on Heuerman at this point.

LEFT TACKLE
74 Jack Mewhort (6-6, 310, rJr.)
76 Darryl Baldwin (6-6, 292, rSo.)
66 Kyle Dodson (6-6, 315, Fr.)

*It’s a good thing Mewhort is back at practice or this line would be in some real trouble. Dodson looked good in his first real action as a freshman, but Baldwin still plays too high and off-balanced.

LEFT GUARD
78 Andrew Norwell (6-6, 304, Jr.)
69 Eric Kramer (6-4, 285, rSo.)
55 Tommy Brown (6-4, 310, rFr.)

CENTER
71 Corey Linsley (6-3, 292, rJr.)
73 Antonio Underwood (6-2, 301, So.)
50 Jacoby Boren (6-2, 283, Fr.)
60 Joey O’Connor (6-4, 295, Fr.)

*It was strange to see Underwood snapping the ball at center Monday, but he probably moves back to guard once Boren, O’Connor and Pat Elflein are fully healthy. Boren will end up as the No. 2 center behind Linsley.

RIGHT GUARD
79 Marcus Hall (6-5, 315, rJr.)
57 Chase Farris (6-4, 285, rFr.)
64 Ivon Blackman (6-3, 310, Jr.)

*Farris might actually be the fastest offensive lineman on the team now, but he has a lot to learn. He could be a good pulling guard, but he is not much of a pass protector, even without pads. Blackman had a good day after missing spring ball with an injury.

RIGHT TACKLE
77 Reid Fragel (6-8, 298, Sr.)
68 Taylor Decker (6-8, 313, Fr.)
67 Ben St. John (6-3, 277, So.)

*This is going to be a tightly contested battle to watch throughout camp. Fragel took almost all the snaps with the first group Monday, but he still hasn’t completely gotten the hang of pass protection. He could be lethal as a run-blocker, but Decker is going to make a battle because of his ability to protect the quarterback. 

Defensive Depth Chart Comments

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