Ohio State football: How the Buckeyes replace Shaun Wade

Ohio State football has now had a couple of players opt out of the season. Cornerback Shaun Wade is one of them. How will the Buckeyes replace him?

Ohio State now has the unenviable task of replacing another first-round corner after Shaun Wade decided to prepare for the 2021 NFL Draft. The Buckeyes have had to replace Jeff Okudah, Damon Arnette, and Denzel Ward in recent years. They are no strangers to replacing elite talent.

Wade was projected to be a first-round pick after the Buckeyes lost to Clemson in the CFP a year ago. He could have made the decision to leave immediately and could have been playing in the NFL this past weekend. But instead, he tried to wait on the Big Ten to be sensible, which did not happen.

But now Wade is officially gone, so the Buckeyes have to replace him. Sevyn Banks will now be someone who has to step up and be the next great corner. Banks was in line to fight Cameron Brown for one of the outside corner spots. Now he’s pretty much guaranteed an outside spot.

Banks has been one of those players who has always had the potential to be great. He just hasn’t gotten the opportunity because he has played behind so many great players. He’s got good size for a corner and has good range. His ball skills are improved as well.

All of that should add up to him being a solid replacement for Wade. He won’t be as good as Wade right away, but he might be in a couple of years. He just needs the playing time to develop some experience.