Sep 26, 2015; Columbus, OH, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes linebacker Raekwon McMillan (5) celebrates his first quarter sack with teammate Tommy Schutt (90) versus the Western Michigan Broncos at Ohio Stadium. Ohio State won the game 38-12. Mandatory Credit: Joe Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports

With Urban Meyer, The Black Stripe Says It All by Charlie Lockhart

The Ohio State linebacker unit looks a lot different than when Urban Meyer took over as head coach.

When Urban Meyer took over as the Ohio State head coach, he lamented the fact that the Buckeyes lacked depth in key position units, but none more so than in the linebacking corps.

How coach Luke Fickell developed that group into a fine linebacker group is a testament to his coaching ability and to the character of those few players who were able to contribute. There just wasn’t very many of them.

Fast forward to 2016 and there may not be a deeper and more talented group of linebackers in the nation. There won’t be a need to switch a running back to middle linebacker in the middle of the season.

That’s what Urban Meyer had to do in 2012 when he brought Zach Boren over to the defensive side of the ball. There just wasn’t enough healthy players.

Etienne Sabino and Storm Cline were fine linebackers when they were healthy, they just weren’t able to play often enough in their career. Ryan Shazier was an exciting sophomore but he only had one start during his freshman season. Curtis Grant was still struggling to find his way, and Josh Perry and Cam Williams were true freshmen.

Urban set out to make sure Ohio State would never be that thin at linebacker again during his tenure. In his five recruiting classes he has recruited 18 linebackers.

Because of the nature of the position, with injuries and transfers, you are bound to lose some linebacker recruits. However, nine are still on the roster, and two former walk-ons could start for several Big Ten teams.

It’s been well documented that Chris Worley battled Darron Lee for the starting outside linebacker position in their redshirt freshmen seasons. He will start this year and share time with talented sophomore Jerome Baker. More from Scarlet and Game One recent quote could define Justin Fields’ time at Ohio State

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Donte Booker, who was one of the highest rated linebackers in the 2014 class, is slated to start on the other side. And of course there is Raekwon McMillan in the middle.

There are many highly recruited linebackers vying for the other backup spots, but first they have to get by Joe Burger and Craig Fada. The two have been beasts on special teams for Ohio State, and in spring games at linebacker as well.

The four star linebackers in the hunt are Justin Hilliard, Tuf Borland, Nick Conner, Malik Harrison and Keandre Jones. McMillan has complimented the young linebackers for their desire and work ethic. And the Captain in the middle is not an easy guy to please.

The linebacker corps in 2016 won’t be a patchwork unit like it was in Urban Meyer’s first season at Ohio State. If this talented bunch can show the grit and determination of the 2012 linebackers, they may become one of the best linebacking groups in the nation.