Ohio State football may have dodged a real bullet as the Chaz Coleman saga has taken another turn with Tennessee
There was a time when the Ohio State Buckeyes were hot after former Penn State EDGE Chaz Coleman. Now, it appears the Buckeyes were better off by not getting involved with the now Tennessee pass rusher.
Back in the winter when the transfer portal opened there wasn’t a player brought up for the Ohio State Buckeyes more than former Penn State EDGE Chaz Coleman, at least initially.
As time went on it appeared less likely the Buckeyes would land the Ohio native in the portal. Ohio State ended up bringing in former Alabama EDGE Qua Russaw and Coleman ended up signing with Tennessee.
Since Coleman has been with the Vols, it’s been a rocky tenure. The latest update adds more fuel to the fire that things may not work out for him in Knoxville.
Chaz Coleman story takes another turn and the Buckeyes look just fine for missing out
Coleman missed most of the spring practices with Tennessee and that caused some worry. The exact reason was never made public, just potential rumors of what could be going on. The latest news that Coleman has not reported to Knoxville for summer workouts as Tennessee ramps up for the warm months, first reported by On3’s Pete Nakos.
“Chaz has been dealing with some things,” Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel said, “and we’re here to support him and we’ll continue to go through that process.”
The Ohio native and former four-star recruit had limited playing time as a true freshman for Penn State last year. But in 144 snaps, he finished with 12 pressures, three tackles for loss, and a strip sack. However, the ceiling looks to be really high for the 6-foot-4, 250-pound EDGE, and that’s why he was highly sought after in the transfer portal. In the end, Coleman was given a large NIL deal by Tennessee.
Coleman followed former Ohio State defensive coordinator Jim Knowles from Penn State to Tennessee. Now, there are real question marks on whether Coleman will actually ever play for the Vols with how rocky his acclimation has been.
Summer workouts are a very key part of the offseason and as a new player at Tennessee, Coleman should definitely be there. If there’s a serious and legit reason he’s away, then this will all be a non-talking point once the fall is here.
We won’t pretend to know what Coleman is dealing with and why he’s now missing more time away from Tennessee. One thing I can say is that Ohio State not bringing him back to Ohio looks to be the right outcome for the Buckeyes.