COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) – When fall camp opened, coach Urban Meyer had a pretty good idea how quarterback J.T. Barrett played would dictate Ohio State’s fortunes, that Curtis Samuel would be a top playmaker and Mike Weber had what it took to be the next elite tailback in Columbus.
Those were pretty safe bets.
But some other things happened in 2016 that not even Meyer could have predicted – most of them good.
With the Buckeyes preparing to play in the College Football Playoff on Saturday, here are five surprises from this season:
AN ELITE DEFENSE EMERGES