Buckeyes’ rookies Mike Thomas and Von Bell are coming up big for Saints
By Dean Mullen
The Saints may have hit the Ohio State lottery this past NFL Draft. Both wide receiver Mike Thomas and safety Von Bell have been huge contributors this year as rookies. Who Dat Nation can thank the Ohio St. Buckeyes for grooming them to be NFL ready.
Vonn Bell came out of Georgia and was recruited by plenty of SEC schools. But Vonn Bell decided to play for Ohio State. Bell played in their championship season, which included a win over Alabama. That season he had 92 tackles and six interceptions.
Bell was considered a little undersized and was supposedly weak on tackling. The Saints saw something different and ended up giving up a couple of picks for Bell to snag him in the second round.
Bell has been a great addition this year to the Black and Gold getting a combined 38 tackles along with a forced fumble in six starts. There’s no doubt that he will be a force to be reckoned with for years to come.
On the other end of the field, wide receiver Mike Thomas has simply been spectacular. Thomas came out of Los Angeles, California where he decided to go to Columbus as well. Bell played basketball and football but decided around his junior year that football was his ticket. Moreover, Mike Thomas is currently on pace to break Odell Beckham’s rookie season.
In 2016, Thomas has 47 catches already with a eye grabbing 573 yards and 5 touchdowns. Thomas is quickly becoming a favorite target of Drew Brees. He is simply becoming a star early on in the NFL. Both guys were very fortunate to come out of a great system in college at Ohio St.
As a matter of fact In 2016, Urban Meyer had one of the best draft classes to come out ever in college football. Twelve players were picked from the Ohio St. Buckeyes in 2016. The Buckeyes also had five players drafted in the top 20 and another five in the top 100. Pro Football Reference had this draft class the highest since the 1946 Notre Dame team!
Surely, the Saints are more than happy to keep the streamline to Ohio State. Ultimately, players from Columbus are simply destined to be drafted in the NFL. These two young studs in particular are going to be great in the future. And plays like these will be happening for a long time.