The Ohio State football program has had five spring practices so far. They will have 10 more before the Spring Game rolls around. They are trying to make every one of these practices worth it, especially with 51 new players on the roster from high school and the Transfer Portal.
All 51 of those players have black stripes on their helmets when they first join. They have to work to earn the right to get those stripes off. It's a tradition that Urban Meyer started and has been kept by Ryan Day. Usually, the first black stripes get shed early on in spring.
On Saturday morning, the first black stripes were shed by the Ohio State Buckeyes. Usually, freshmen are the last players to shed their black stripes. It's very rare that they are the first. That is once again the case because the first two new Buckeyes to lose their stripes are transfer players.
Two transfers shed thier black stripes for Ohio State
Former LSU receiver Kyle Parker was one of the players who shed his stripe. Ryan Day has been very vocal with his thoughts that the receiver room is the deepest it has been in years. He has high hopes for Parker to come in and make an immediate impact.
Parker wasn't the only portal player to lose his stripe on Saturday. Earl Little Jr., a safety from Florida State, also shed his stripe. Little Jr. will play the nickel spot for Ohio State, and Matt Patricia has clearly been very impressed with what he has seen from him so far this spring.
Both players will be seeing a lot of action on the field in the Fall. Little Jr. will be a starter, while Parker is fighting for a starting spot in the slot. Regardless, both players are going to see a lot of snaps in important moments this season, and that's why they have already had their stripes removed.