Tom Dienhart's top 5 players to replace: Ohio State Buckeyes

Urban Meyer has lived a charmed life since taking over Ohio State in 2012, posting a 50-4 overall record and a 31-1 Big Ten mark. His crowning feat was winning the 2014 national championship, and last year?s team looked poised to repeat before a late-season stumble at home vs. Michigan State.

[ MORE: Get all of Tom Dienhart's players to replace posts ]

Now, Meyer faces some big challenges next season. Yes, he will have some building blocks for his fifth squad, including the likes of LB Raekwon McMillan, Gs Billy Price and Pat Elflein, DE Tyquan Lewis, CB Gareon Conley and P Cameron Johnson.

But the Buckeyes have suffered major attrition, as a national-high nine players have turned pro. Among the key losses are WR Jalin Marshall, QB Cardale Jones, LB Joshua Perry, CB Eli Apple, WR Braxton Miller, C Jacoby Boren, DT Adolphus Washington, S Tyvis Powell, TE Nick Vannett, WR Michael Thomas and OT Chase Farris.

But here is a look at the top five Buckeyes to replace from 2015.

S Vonn Bell. He paced the team with 11 passes broken up and was a demon vs. the run. The hard-hitting Bell was a leader in the secondary who opted to turn pro. Bell was first-team All-Big Ten by the media and second team by the coaches.

DE Joey Bosa. He declared for the draft after winning Big Ten Defensive Lineman of the Year honors. Bosa had just five sacks but was fourth in the Big Ten in tackles for loss with 16. His numbers were modest, but his presence created opportunities for teammates to make plays, as Bosa helped OSU have the No. 2 scoring defense in the Big Ten (15.1 ppg).

RB Ezekiel Elliott. Elliott led the Big Ten in rushing and earned Big Ten Running Back of the Year accolades. He led the Big Ten in rushing each of the last two years, rambling for 1,821 yards and 23 TDs in 2015. Elliott leaves campus with 3,961 yards and 43 TDs in just three seasons.

LB Darron Lee. He arrived on campus as a high school quarterback, redshirted, played two years at linebacker and then turned pro. Lee is a total stud who ranked No. 4 on the team in tackles with 66 last season. He was second-team All-Big Ten by the coaches and third team by the media for what was the No. 3 defense in the Big Ten (311.3 ypg).

OT Taylor Decker. A first-team All-Big Ten pick by the media and coaches, Decker helped pave the way for the No. 2 scoring offense in the Big Ten (35.7 ppg), No. 3 total offense (434.1 ppg) and No. 1 rushing attack (245.2 ypg) in helping the Buckeyes win the 2014 national title.

***

Email Tom Dienhart using the form below.

And if you want to leave a comment on this post, use the box below. All comments need to be approved by a moderator.