The Buckeyes boasted last season's Bednarik Award winner, as Chase Young earned the distinction as college football's defensive player of the year, and they have another player on the watch list ahead of 2020.

Redshirt junior cornerback Shaun Wade was the lone Ohio State player to make the preseason watch list Monday, after deciding to forego his NFL draft eligibility to become the only returning starter on the Buckeye secondary in 2020.

Excelling in the slot corner position last year, Wade will move to the outside this season and lead a group of otherwise largely untested players that will step into first-time starting roles.

In 2019, Wade picked off a pass, recorded two sacks, four tackles for loss and forced two fumbles. Perhaps the most memorable play of his season was his hit on Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence in the Fiesta Bowl, which led to a targeting call and his ejection, subsequently fueling a comeback by the Tigers.

Wade may have been a late-first or second-round draft pick had he left school after the season, but many expect his stock to rise even further with another year in a feature role in the Ohio State secondary.

Several other Big Ten players made the watch list alongside Wade, including Penn State and Michigan State linebackers Micah Parsons and Antjuan Simmons.