For most programs, an 11-2 season would be celebrated. Except, the Ohio State Buckeyes aren't like "most programs." Instead, the Buckeyes hold a standard of competing for national championships annually, which, as you would expect, leads to disappointment when those goals aren't met.
That was exactly the feeling for now-former Ohio State inside linebacker Tommy Eichenberg, who, despite being focused on preparing for the upcoming NFL Draft and is just a day away from taking the field in Lucas Oil Stadium for the NFL Scouting Combine, still is feeling the effects of a disappointing end to his senior season.
“It was very, very hard for me,” Eichenberg said about how this past season ended for the Buckeyes on Wednesday. “You just feel like you let a lot of people down, really. That was something that I had to deal with.”
Losing to the Michigan Wolverines in the "The Game" is bad enough for the Buckeyes. Especially this past season, because it marked the first time since 1997 that the Buckeyes have lost to the Wolverines in three consecutive seasons.
But to make it sting even more, the Buckeyes then fell 14-3 in the Cotton Bowl to the Missouri Tigers, in the worst offensive performance of the Ryan Day era.
Yet, for Eichenberg, the pain of seeing how the end of the season unfolded was different.
“I just wanted to be out there. I hated sitting. I hated missing games," Eichenberg said. "I hated, you know, I was a captain. I didn't want the guys to see me not playing, not practicing. So that was very tough. But I thank Coach Day because I literally, I was not, I couldn't play.”
The senior linebacker, formerly out of Cleveland, Ohio, was sidelined for the Buckeyes' last four games due to injury. Eichenberg suffered a dislocated elbow in Ohio State's 35-16 win over Rutgers, which sidelined him for the Buckeyes' next two games before returning for "The Game."
Yet, even with one of their team captains on the field, the Wolverines proved too much for the Buckeyes, as they pulled out the 30-24 win. That stinging loss was Eichenberg's final appearance in the Scarlet and Gray, as he didn't play in the Cotton Bowl.
Now, while the end to his career at Ohio State may still sting, he will look to impress NFL scouts at the Combine on Thursday when the defensive linemen and linebackers take the field.
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