Last in sequence, but not in importance, comes the Ohio State All-Decade Special Teams.
In the 2010’s, the special teams unit took on a brand new character under the leadership of Urban Meyer. While Jim Tressel took a more conservative approach to the game, Meyer loved to attack. He used kickoffs to pin the opponents back as far as he could. Punts were no longer the result of a failed third-down conversion, but were crucial for the field position battle.
In order to play snaps on offense or defense, Meyer made everyone prove themselves on special teams first. Stars like Michael Thomas and Jeffrey Okudah were special teams standouts before they played from scrimmage.
After putting together the All-Decade teams on offense and defense, here is the Ohio State All-Decade Special Teams.
Ohio State All-Decade Special Teams
Kicker: Sean Nuernberger
During Sean Nuernberger’s time at Ohio State, he never missed an extra point in 216 attempts. He only missed three field goals within 50 yards and led Ohio State in scoring in 2014 and 2017.
Punter: Cameron Johnston
Aspiring Australian punters should look to Cameron Johnston as one of the best to ever do it. He averaged 44.9 yards per punt, which is second most in school history. 109 of his punts were downed inside the 20-yard line, which is a school record, and only a handful of his punts were ever returned. Now with the Philadelphia Eagles, Johnston is the only active specialist in the NFL out of Ohio State.
Kick Returner: Parris Campbell
Only a kick returner for two years, Paris Campbell averaged a whopping 30.4 yards per return. He only returned 30 kicks between 2016 and 2017, but gained 913 yards on kick returns. Runner-up Dontre Wilson returned an impressive 53 kickoffs during his time at Ohio State, and averaged 24.2 yards per attempt.
Punt Returner: Jalin Marshall
On offense and on special teams, Jalin Marshall was one of Ohio State’s most electric players. He averaged 13.2 yards per reception, 6.5 yard per rushing attempt, and scored 23 touchdowns from scrimmage. Marshall was even the backup quarterback for the last three games of the 2014 season. He barely missed out on a spot on the All-decade offense. But what’s important here are his 52 punt returns. He averaged 12.7 yards per punt return and scored a touchdown. He also returned three kickoffs for 92 yards. Corey Brown did not make the cut, but still deserves recognition for his two touchdowns off of punt returns in 2012.
