Even the most critical college football fan can’t argue with the fact that the Ohio State football program churns out a ton of NFL players. Going even further, unless it’s just spouting off nonsense, even SEC fans would have to agree that some of those players have turned out to be some of the top performers at the highest level of the game.
So much so that former Buckeyes have won numerous awards in the NFL including instances of being rushing leaders, receiving leaders, rookie recognitions, and more. The latest comes by way of two players that got their career training in Columbus that have been named finalists for two AP NFL awards.
The 49ers’ Nick Bosa is up for one of the most coveted awards handed out yearly as the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year along with Kansas City Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones and Dallas Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons. Bosa is the odds-on favorite to take the award home as the league’s sack leader, but it’s not official until — well … it’s official.
The nominees for the 2022 AP Offensive Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year.
📺: #NFLHonors — Thursday, Feb. 9 at 9pm ET on NBC pic.twitter.com/kNQfPzWL7N
— NFL (@NFL) January 25, 2023
But it’s not just Bosa. Rookie Jets wide receiver Garrett Wilson is also one of three finalists for the Offensive Rookie of the Year award along with San Francisco quarterback Brock Purdy and Seattle Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III.
Wilson led all rookies with a total of 83 catches and 1,103 yards during the 2022-2023 season. He also scored 4 touchdowns and averaged 13.3 yards per catch.
The finalists for the 2022 AP Offensive Rookie of the Year and Defensive Rookie of the Year!
📺: #NFLHonors — Thursday, Feb. 9 at 9pm ET on NBC pic.twitter.com/WCRngvqUtc
— NFL (@NFL) January 25, 2023
Ohio State has seen this before. The program went on a pretty remarkable run of winning the NFL’s Rookie Defensive Player of the Year Awards. The Buckeyes had a player take home the honor four out of five years from 2016 through 2020 with Joey Bosa (2016), Marshon Lattimore (2017), Nick Bosa (2019), and Chase Young (2020) all making Buckeye fans proud.
Time will tell if we’ll see another trophy for a former Ohio State player, but you have to like the chances of at least one of these coming to fruition. The winners of the AP awards will be announced at the NFL Honors ceremony on February 9.
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