Anything worth having is worth waiting for.
That old maxim applies to both Carlos Hyde’s yearlong wait to take the field with his Ohio State football teammates and also to the wait Buckeye fans have endured to see him suit up.
Because when he does suit up, Carlos Hyde is impressive indeed.
At an imposing 6-feet-1-inch and 230 pounds, Hyde is the type of big, physical back that gives opposing defensive coordinators fits, as well as any defensive backs unlucky enough to be caught in his path if he breaks into the secondary.
The reason for Hyde’s wait is academic, literally. Reports indicate that Hyde did not manage a high enough ACT score to be eligible at the same time as his fellow recruits from last year’s class.
He spent some time at the Fork Union Military Academy in Virginia while improving his score and he played on the post-graduate team there. In the process, he missed out on a Big Ten championship season and a Rose Bowl victory. Those should be reasons enough to drive the Naples High School product this season.
When Hyde is on the field, he is a force. Over the span of his junior and senior years in high school, Hyde totaled 2,599 rushing yards to go with 29 touchdowns. A year ago, SuperPrep.com had him listed as the No. 61 overall prospect.
The general consensus on Hyde amongst the many different recruit-monitoring Web sites is that he is a four-star talent. They all agree that his combination of size and strength will be a valuable asset to the OSU backfield.
What remains to be seen is whether it will be as a change-of-pace runner or as a bruising back capable of carrying the ball 20 to 25 times a game, a la former Buckeye Chris “Beanie” Wells.
Kevin Noon, managing editor of BuckeyeGrove.com, says the comparisons may not be fair and that Hyde will have a lot of work to do if he is to reach the level of production from Wells’ freshman year, which saw him play a key role in a victory over Michigan.
“While Hyde is a physical runner, he is not as fast as Wells was when coming out of Akron Garfield,” Noon said.
When Noon refers to Hyde as a physical runner, there is plenty of tape to back it up. Hyde was originally listed as a fullback, and he was adept enough at the position to be listed as the No. 1 fullback prospect in the country by Scout.com and Rivals.com.
But OSU coach Jim Tressel and his brother, running backs coach Dick Tressel, envision Hyde as a power-back to complement the speedsters who are already in a crowded OSU backfield.
The Buckeyes return running backs by committee Dan “Boom” Herron and Brandon Saine, who handled the bulk of the duty last season, as well as speedster Jaamal Berry. That doesn’t even account for Hyde’s fellow incoming freshman back Roderick Smith.
Noon sees Hyde with an advantage, as he is already enrolled at OSU.
“He will have a leg up on other members of his class, being a year older,” Noon said. “He will be a solid change of pace for the Ohio State running game, being very unique to the current stable of runners.”
Hyde came to the colder climes of Columbus from Naples, Fla. But he was not wholly unfamiliar with Ohio, as he has family in Cincinnati.
The temperature change will be the least of Hyde’s worries as he adjusts to play in the physical Big Ten. Like any high school player transitioning to college, he may not be fully prepared for the sheer size of the defensive linemen and linebackers he will be facing on a routine basis. Steve Helwagen of Bucknuts.com thinks he has the skills to handle it.
Helwagen describes Hyde as “a big power-back with deceptive fluidity between the tackles.” Helwagen said Hyde appears to be a strictly “north-south” runner when you look at his size, but that he will be able to surprise some with his quick first step.
These will all be tools Hyde will need if he wants to join the pantheon of great running backs who have taken the field for the Scarlet and Gray.
