As the National Football League kicks off today, Ohio State faithful are looking for any way to get their fill of Buckeye football.
Even though they won’t be in scarlet and gray, two Buckeye alumni will take the gridiron tonight when the Houston Texans contest the reigning Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs.
Ohio State is all too familiar with Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson, who inked a four-year, $160 million contract extension Saturday.
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During the 2016 Fiesta Bowl between No. 2 Ohio State and No. 3 Clemson, Watson dished out 259 passing yards and rushed for two touchdowns alongside two interceptions and one passing score. It was the largest margin of defeat in Ohio State program history as the Buckeyes were blanked 31-0.
Here are the Buckeyes who will kickoff the NFL's 101st season.
Gareon Conley
Conley enters his fourth season in the NFL and first full season with the Texans after getting traded from the Oakland Raiders for a 2020 third-round pick in Oct. 2019.
The Massillon, Ohio, native originally committed to Michigan in March 2012 before decommiting later that year and choosing to be a Buckeye that December. He was a two-year starter at cornerback during the 2015 and 2016 seasons.
Conley was a team captain during the 2016 season and helped comprise the fearsome Ohio State secondary with Malik Hooker and Marshon Lattimore. Conley finished tied with the latter for second-most interceptions on the team with four.
One of those interceptions was thrown by Watson during the Fiesta Bowl. It was Conley’s most active game in which he also recorded six tackles.
Conley was voted to the 2016 All-Big Ten Second Team by the coaches and was taken by the Raiders with the No. 24 pick in the 2017 NFL Draft.
Conley currently has four interceptions through 31 games in his NFL career. He notched a pick-six off then-rookie Baker Mayfield to begin the scoring in a 45-42 Raiders victory in Sept. 2018. The interception was the first thrown by Mayfield in his young professional career.
Conley was placed on injured reserve on Sept. 7 and will be eligible to return to the active roster after three games.
Bradley Roby
Beginning his seventh season and second with Houston, Roby represents the second Buckeye playing in the NFL season opener.
Roby received just one offer as the No. 650 overall and three-star recruit from Suwanee, Georgia.
He started at cornerback during his second year in the program after redshirting his true freshman season during Jim Tressel’s final season at the helm of Ohio State. In his second career game Roby intercepted a Jacory Harris pass for 17 yards, and it was the first of three that allowed him to finish in a tie with Orhian Johnson for most on the team.
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Roby broke out and was named a First Team All-American in 2012. His 17 passes defended during that perfect 12-0 season are tied with Ahmed Plummer in 1998 for most in Buckeyes single-season history.
He decided to return for his redshirt junior season and collected an additional 120 yards on three interceptions. Roby’s 36-career pass break-ups are most in program history, and he is also third on the list for most career interception yards in Ohio State program history with 226.
The Denver Broncos chose Roby with the 31st pick in the 2014 NFL Draft, ahead of eventual Pro Bowlers Teddy Bridgewater (32), Derek Carr (36) and Jarvis Landry (63).
Roby started four games in his second season and finished tied for second on the team with 10 passes defended and the only defensive player to return a fumble recovery for a touchdown. He contributed to winning Super Bowl 50 by collecting two tackles and leading all players in the game with three passes defended.
Roby is currently one of two first-string cornerbacks on the Texans depth chart.
