Former Ohio State DB Tyvis Powell dishes on Buckeyes mates

Ohio State defensive back Tyvis Powell is one of about a dozen Buckeyes likely to turn the NFL draft on April 28-30 into an infomercial for Urban Meyer's program.

None of the Buckeyes enjoys talking about his former teammates more than Powell, who laughed and giggled his way through 30 minutes of scouting reports and stories for the latest installment of his draft diary.

In fact, there are so many Ohio State players to talk about that Powell's Buckeyes Breakdown will take two entries.

Part I:

Defensive end Joey Bosa, a possible top-five pick and probably the first Buckeye off the board.

Tyvis' take: ''Joey is kind of a silly guy. He does goofy things, but at the end of the day when you put the helmet on, I still to this day say I've never seen Joey get blocked. It's the most amazing thing I've ever seen. It's to the point where like in practice they would have to pretend that he wasn't there because he would not get blocked. Joey, he was silly, but on game day he would get serious. He's a totally different monster. And that's what I love about him.''

Running back Ezekiel Elliott, likely high first-round pick and first running back selected.

Tyvis' take: ''Zeke is just a huge competitor. He's going to do everything he can to help the team win a game. That's why I say I feel like he's the best back in the draft. Even when he doesn't have the ball he still finds a way to be effective. That's what separates him from most running backs.

''If there's a pass play most running backs can't block, Zeke picks up every block, he goes down the field 20 yards to cut-block the safety. In practice we don't cut block each other, but he has let me know it's coming down. He comes flying down and he's telling me, `Oooo, Tyvis I got you now.' I'm like, `You're right.' When I see him on the next level, I know what it is. He know I know. I know he know I know.''

Wide receiver Mike Thomas, possible late first-rounder whose Twitter handle is (at)cantguardMike.

Tyvis' take: ''He's not a blazing fast guy, but for some odd reason he finds a way to get open. Every Saturday we go against a good corner I always watch that matchup because Mike finds a way. I don't know how he does it. He has it in his mind that nobody can stop him.

''Some of the best battles I've seen is him and (cornerback) Eli (Apple) in practice. Eli lines up in the boundary, and I'm the safety with Eli. It'll be (Thomas) and Braxton (Miller), which is like a nightmare for any secondary except for ours. It's not a nightmare for us because we lock'em down, but that's a totally different story.

''But when I get a chance to look at them (Apple and Thomas), they be really going at it, man. There's a bunch of fighting going on. A bunch of trash talking. You'd pay good money to see it because it is really good, Eli and Mike going at it.

''Mike is going to talk his trash. Mike believes he's the best thing since sliced bread. You let him catch that ball, he's going to tell you about it. Now me knowing that, when I see him on the next level, I know what it is. I'll PI (pass interference) before I let him catch the ball on me.''

Cornerback Eli Apple, expected to be selected mid-to-late first round.

Tyvis' take: ''I was there when Eli first got there. He had a rough couple years. I mean, I had it bad. He had it as bad as I did. I was looking at him like, this is just how I looked as a freshman. He was lost in the sauce for real. I was like, I don't know if he's going to make it. Then, I don't know what happened, Eli came out two springs ago, that spring ball he just came out of nowhere making plays. I was like, shoot, I see it now.

''He went out there, became a starter and went out there and became our No. 1 corner. It ain't shocking now. It goes to show what coach Meyer said is true, `It's never too late to change.' And he changed his ways and he figured it out and it's helping him out now.''

Linebacker Darron Lee, former high school quarterback expected to be a first-round pick.

Tyvis' take: ''Eli tries to remain humble, he don't really trash talk. The only people on the defense that will trash talk are me and (fellow safety) Vonn (Bell) and D-Lee. If you follow Darron's Twitter handle ((at)DLeeMG8) you know how he be acting.

''His first year he was struggling a little bit, too. Me and Josh (Perry) talked to him a little bit, just telling him, we went through the same thing he's going through right now. We're just telling him some stuff he had to do. He's one of those players that really took it to heart. He really changed his ways. He started grinding extra hard. He just said he's going to make this linebacker thing work. He just came out his redshirt freshman year, that spring practice, we was like, `Whoa, this dude right here, this is a ball player right here.'

''There's not a lot of people that can go from being a dual-threat quarterback to being one of the best outside linebackers in the draft.''

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In the next edition, Powell dishes information on offensive tackle Taylor Decker, quarterback-turned-receiver Braxton Miller, safety Vonn Bell, and his roommate, quarterback Cardale Jones.

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