Drew Thurman (3:06 pm)

It was not that long ago that rumors were circulating that Ray Small was going to leave for the NFL or transfer. After losing his number 4 jersey, remaining in Tressel's dog house, and sitting out a few games late in the season for a bevy of incidents, Small and his father seemed to be ready for new horizons elsewhere. When push came to shove though, Small didn't leave and decided to "buy in" for his senior season.

Many Buckeye fans (myself included) were ready to part ways with Small and his father too. Those sentiments may have been a little premature though. With the departure or Brian Hartline and Brain Robiskie, the Buckeyes now find themselves with a talented yet raw set of youngsters at wideout. Leadership is something that is going to be essential for this unit to take it to the next level, and Small just may be what the doctor ordered.

By all reports Small has been looking very sharp in spring practices. There has been a lot less drama from him this year, and he has been working hard while catching everything that is thrown his way. Dave Biddle of Bucknuts reecently had this to say of Small's performance in spring ball:

"The same is true for Ray Small. He is a player that continues to stand out to me. He’s having a very good spring as a receiver, catching almost everything that comes his way. He didn’t have that good of a day as a return man – which was a bit of a surprise. But as a WR, Small looks very good."  

So maybe, just maybe, Small is finally going to live up to all the hype in his final season with the Buckeyes. For a guy who Ted Ginn Sr. said was a better talent than his son coming out of high school, Small has been a source of a lot of frustration. If he keeps his nose clean this summer off the field, Small could finally erase all the bad memories with a stellar senior season. He has always had the talent, but has just never put all the pieces together, at least until now. So I don't want to curse anything, but it just might be the time to jump on the Ray Small bandwagon.

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