As he has the past two Februarys, Urban Meyer met the media at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center with a smile on his face at the conclusion of National Signing Day.
As usual, he talked about how happy he was with the class both for the talent and the character it adds to his Ohio State football program.
The head coach of the Buckeyes departed from the norm, though, when he stressed the need for the class of 2014 to contribute much faster than the signees from a year ago.
"We're counting on these guys to go play," Meyer said of a group ranked No. 5 in the country by scout.com as National Signing Day wound down. "What you don't want to do, and I gotta really watch how I present this to our staff. I don't want to have a young man come in and play 12 snaps and lose a year. If we're going to play him, play him but you have to get him ready to go. And the young man has to attack it as if to go get ready (to play)."
Meyer always says he does not redshirt players in his program, but he doesn't mean that literally. The intended message is those who do redshirt more likely do it to themselves than the staff might make such a decision. Those who arrive in Columbus ready to handle the mental and physical rigors of a college football season are generally given a chance to earn a spot, and those who don't are likely to find themselves watching from the sidelines as the season plays out.
A large contingent filled the latter group last season -- 15 in all out of 24 signees. Though the circumstances varied -- a handful were injured while some faced disciplinary measures or a stacked depth chart -- the number was the number when all was said and done.
Meyer made clear he does not want to see a repeat this fall as the Buckeyes try to earn a trip back to the Big Ten Championship Game, a journey that will in all likelihood go through defending champion and new Big Ten East neighbor Michigan State.
As for candidates to start, the first place to look is likely linebacker, where a group of four players includes three of the top four outside linebacker prospects in the country -- Sam Hubbard of Cincinnati Moeller, Kyle Berger of Cleveland St. Ignatius and Dante Booker of Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary -- along with No. 5 MLB Raekwon McMillan of Hinesville (Ga.) Liberty County.
"The linebacker position is one that's going through an overhaul right now," Meyer said. "Far too many mistakes have been made in either lack of development or whatever and it's just not where we need to be.
"I'm putting pressure on them, (linebackers coach Luke) Fickell and myself to get ready for next year. They have to play for us, in addition to the players we have on our roster already. So just so everybody knows, there's no redshirt plans for those players at all. We thought about that during the recruiting process. We want mature players."
The secondary is also a spot ripe for competition after a dismal showing on the field in 2013. The newest class of recruits includes four-star Cleveland Glenville teammates Erick Smith and Marshon Lattimore along with Detroit Cass Tech cornerback Damon Webb and New Castle, Ind., safety Malik Hooker.
"Unless something happens, they're playing," Meyer said. "There's no redshirt for these players I'm getting ready to discuss.
"Damon Webb, I anticipate he'll be in the depth (chart) next year. And Marshon Lattimore from Glennville is going to be in the mix as well. And Erick Smith, he's a guy I'm really excited to get here. Played corner in the all-star game, but we plan on putting him at safety. And once again immediately in the depth."
Finally there is the offensive line, a place youngsters rarely excel in the Big Ten but Ohio State needs to at least develop depth after the graduation of four starters.
Meyer identified four-star tackle prospects Jamarco Jones of Chicago De La Salle and four-star guard Demetrius Knox of Fort Worth (Texas) All Saints Episcopal as contenders to see the field early while Brady Taylor of Columbus Bishop Ready and Marcelys Jones of Cleveland Glenville fight for time as well.
"Typically you don't put freshmen in there early, but these guys have got mature bodies, and they're fairly mature young men," Meyer said of Jones and Knox. "And you have Marcelys Jones and Kyle Trout and Brady Taylor, a guy from Columbus, impressive guy. Kind of a late comer, he's up to 295 pounds now and a wonderful family, tough guy. I love the guy. I'm really excited he might be a guy that gets in, sneaks in the depth fairly quickly as well."
Some of those players -- McMillan, Jones and Trout -- are already in school and will get a chance to make a mark this spring. The rest are due to arrive in June.
When they do, Meyer expects them to find a competitive environment full of players looking to put the disappointing end to last season behind them.
Taking another step forward in 2014 depends on it.
