Coach Jim Tressel received some unexpected gifts when both James Laurinaitis and Malcolm Jenkins decided to resist the pull of the NFL and return for their senior year.

It has created a wealth of depth at nearly every position, leaving the players and coaches to sail through spring with few questions to answer.

The Buckeyes return nine starters on each side of the ball, plus both the kicker and punter. They even have a ready-made replacement for Vernon Gholston, their biggest personnel loss who set a school record with 14 sacks. Lawrence Wilson, who missed all of last season after breaking his leg in the opener, was expected to put up the type of sack totals last year that Gholston did.

With so many positions already secured, the coaches were able to focus on the backfield, where the only real remaining question is who will play fullback in the fall. The Bucks rotated three players last year, but all have moved on. The only true fullback on the team, Jermil Martin, is a true freshman who doesn't arrive until August. That left the coaches rotating a plethora of linebackers and walk-ons, trying to get lucky.

From all the tryouts, the two most likely candidates appear to be linebacker Curtis Terry and walk-on Ryan Lukens. Terry also missed all of last season with an ankle injury and then spent the final two weeks of spring working with the offense. He received assurances from the coaching staff he'll still see time there, and he's still listed as the starter at outside linebacker.

"I still feel like a linebacker," Terry said, "but we need a fullback."

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