April 29, 2022

Ohio State has four players taken in the first three rounds of the 2022 NFL Draft

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Two more Ohio State Buckeyes were selected Friday evening in the 2022 NFL Draft, giving the program four total selections in front of Rounds 4-7, which will be held on Saturday along the Las Vegas Strip.

Fourth-year junior Nicholas Petit-Frere, who graduated this past December and gave up his senior season of eligibility to enter the NFL Draft, was drafted by the Tennessee Titans with the fifth pick of the third round, and the No. 69 selection overall.

And senior tight end Jeremy Ruckert, a Long Island native, went No. 101 overall to the New York Jets. Ruckert, who scored 12 receiving touchdowns as a tight end to rank second in school history, was a compensatory pick in the third round. 

Petit-Frere and Ruckert join first-round selections WR Garrett Wilson (NY Jets) and WR Chris Olave (New Orleans) as 2022 NFL Draft picks from Ohio State.

2022 NFL Draft Picks from Ohio State University

Round 1 – WR Garrett Wilson, No. 10 overall to the New York Jets

Round 1 – WR Chris Olave, No. 11 overall to the New Orleans Saints

Round 3 – OT Nicholas Petit-Frere, No. 69 overall to the Tennessee Titans 

Round 3 – TE Jeremy Ruckert, No 101 overall to the New York Jets

Nicholas Petit-Frere – Ohio State Overview

#78 / OT / 6-5, 315 / Tampa, Fla. / Berkeley Prep

•       Nicholas won the starting right tackle job entering the 2020 season, was a two-year starter for the Buckeyes and was one of the best offensive tackles in the nation by the end of his fourth-year, true senior campaign

•       Played in 35 games between 2018-21 and started 20 times

•       Earned first-team All-American honors in 2021 by the Football Writers Association of America and also CBS Sports

•       Named first-team all-Big Ten in 2021 by both the coaches and media

•       Played on three consecutive Big Ten Conference championship teams (2018-19-20) and on two Ohio State teams that qualified for the College Football Playoffs (2019 and 2020)

•       A member of the 2021 Outland Trophy Watch List

•       Helped Ohio State rank No. 1 in the nation in 2021 in total offense and scoring offense

•       Also helped the Buckeyes to No. 5 and No. 8 national rankings in rushing yards per game in 2019 and 2020, respectively

Honors & Awards

2021: Graduated in December with his degree in marketing; First-Team All-American (FWAA and CBS Sports); First-Team All-Big Ten (coaches and media); OSU Scholar-Athlete and Academic All-Big Ten

2020: Second team All-Big Ten, OSU Scholar-Athlete and Academic All-Big Ten

2019: OSU Scholar-Athlete and Academic All-Big Ten; had an externship at WWE Headquarters in Orlando, Fla.

2018: OSU Scholar-Athlete

Jeremy Ruckert – Ohio State Overview

#88 / TE / 6-5, 252 / Lindenhurst, N.Y. / Lindenhurst HS

•       Elected to return to Ohio State for his senior season and to complete his degree in human development and family sciences

•       A member of the 2021 Mackey Award Watch List as the nation’s top tight end

•       Ohio State’s nominee for the National Football Foundation and College Football Hall of Fame’s William V. Campbell Trophy

•       Played in 46 games for Ohio State between 2018-21 and started 15 times

•       Played on three consecutive Big Ten Conference championship teams (2018-19-20) and on two Ohio State teams that qualified for the College Football Playoffs (2019 and 2020)

•       Doubled his career totals as a senior when he caught 26 passes for 309 yards and three touchdowns and earned honorable mention all-Big Ten Conference honors

•       Finished his career with 54 receptions for 615 yards and 12 touchdowns

•       His 12 touchdowns rank second all-time among Ohio State tight ends, trailing only Jake Stoneburner’s 13 TDs between 2009-12

•       His 54 receptions rank 11th among tight ends in Ohio State history

•       Hauled in two touchdown catches in a win over Penn State (10/31) in 2020 and versus Clemson (1/2) in the 2020 College Football Playoff Semifinal

•       His showing in that Sugar Bowl game included 55 yards receiving, a season high

•       Played in all 14 games as a true sophomore in 2019 and made 14 catches for 142 yards and four touchdowns.

•       Made a spectacular one-handed 16-yard touchdown grab on the Buckeyes’ first possession of the second half in the 2019 Big Ten Championship Game vs. Wisconsin, igniting a 34-21 come-from-behind victory

Honors & Awards

2021: NFF/College Football Hall of Fame Scholar-Athlete nominee; graduated in August with his degree in human development and family sciences; NFF Hampshire Honor Society; honorable mention All-Big Ten Conference; Academic All-Big Ten

2020: OSU Scholar-Athlete and Academic All-Big Ten

2019: OSU Scholar-Athlete and Academic All-Big Ten

2018: OSU Scholar-Athlete

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