Dating back to Jake Stoneburner, Ohio State has a long tradition of excellent tight-end play. Is Nick Vannett ready to carry on that tradition?
Going into this year, Nick Vannett was a hot draft commodity, the second rated tight-end on some sites, and was predicted to improve on last year's 220-yard, 5 TD pass-catching campaign. Vannett has since faded from the offensive stat line into a less flashy, but more gritty role.
We should have seen this coming. The Ohio State coaching staff admitted this summer that they were going to try to shore up Vannett's blocking abilities, particularly on the inside:
"Nick had some big catches for us," said tight ends coach Tim Hinton, who added that Vannett has a knack for reading coverages and getting open.