Record 10 Buckeyes taken in first three rounds

If you were wondering just how much talent Ohio State needs to replace off its 2015 team, a quick glance of the first three rounds of the 2016 NFL Draft will tell you all you need to know.

Ten Ohio State football players were selected in the 94 picks, meaning nearly 11 percent of the players taken to that point had been Buckeyes.

In the first round on Thursday, Joey Bosa (No. 3), Ezekiel Elliott (No. 4), Eli Apple (No. 10), Taylor Decker (No. 16) and Darron Lee (No. 20) were all selected. The five draft picks were one short of Miami’s first-round record of six. During the second round on Friday night, Michael Thomas (No. 47) and Vonn Bell (No. 61) followed. Adolphus Washington (No. 80), Braxton Miller (No. 85) and Nick Vannett (No. 94) went off the board in the third round.

The seven players drafted in the first two rounds tied an NFL Draft record. Tennessee had seven players chosen in 2000, and USC also had seven picked in 2008.

The Volunteers also had eight players selected in the first three rounds that year, the record that the Buckeyes beat. (If you’re wondering, Tennessee went 8-4 the next season, while USC went 12-1.)

What’s more remarkable about the number of Ohio State players being taken is that there are more to come. Cardale Jones and Jalin Marshall should follow in the coming rounds.

Joey Bosa started the flood of Ohio State draft picks. (USATSI)