Ohio State football: Why Nick Bosa is making the right call

Reports have surfaced that Nick Bosa is not going to attempt to return to Ohio State this season and will focus on preparing for the 2019 NFL Draft.

For Ohio State Buckeyes star defensive end Nick Bosa, college football was always just a launching pad to bigger things.

Not that Bosa didn’t pour his heart and soul into the Ohio State program, but his decision to focus on getting healthy and ready for the NFL instead of trying to get back onto the field for the Buckeyes is probably the least surprising news of the college football season.

Here’s the original report on Bosa’s decision.

In just 29 college games, Bosa has solidified himself as a guaranteed top 10 draft pick and one of the most dominant edge defenders in all of college football. He racked up 16 tackles for loss and 8.5 sacks as a sophomore at Ohio State, undoubtedly his best season statistically.

He already had six tackles for loss and four sacks in just four games so far in 2018 before going down with a ‘core muscle’ injury.

Even if Bosa was capable of returning this season, his decision to simply sit out until the 2019 NFL Draft is not without merit. There have been a number of horror stories of players who got injured in their final collegiate seasons or even their final college game and it cost them a lot of money when it comes to the NFL Draft.

Every year, more and more players are sitting out meaningless bowl games in order to preserve their NFL Draft stock, and as unpopular as these decisions are for fans of the college teams these kids play for, it’s impossible to fault them for making calculated business decisions.

The story might be different if these athletes had the chance to make money in college which is a different argument entirely.

Bosa isn’t necessarily going to endear himself to the Ohio State faithful with this move given the Buckeyes are undefeated and in the midst of a college football playoff race at 7-0 so far this season.

With that said, this is not the first time a Bosa has made an unpopular business decision in the eyes of the fans of the team they play for.

If you’ll recall, Joey Bosa also inexplicably held out well into his rookie season in the NFL before finally agreeing to the very specific language of the contract he was seeking.

The Bosas certainly read the fine print and they don’t take unnecessary risks. If Nick feels like returning to Ohio State at any point this season compromises his NFL future, he’s not getting paid to play in college, so he might as well wait until he is getting paid to put his body on the line.