Quarterback Terrelle Pryor was not among the Buckeyes named to the All-Big Ten team.
View full sizeDane Sanzenbacher (12) was one of five Ohio State players named by both the media and the Big Ten coaches to the conference's postseason first team.COLUMBUS, Ohio -- A year after just two Buckeyes were named first-team All-Big Ten players, Ohio State put 10 players picked to the first team by either the media or the coaches, double the number of any other school.
Five Buckeyes were named to the first team by both groups: defensive lineman Cameron Heyward, linebacker Brian Rolle, cornerback Chimdi Chekwa, receiver Dane Sanzenbacher and offensive tackle Mike Adams.
Three other Buckeyes were chosen first team only by the coaches: running back Dan Herron, safety Jermale Hines and linebacker Ross Homan. Center Mike Brewster and offensive guard Justin Boren were picked only by the media to the first team. The OSU defense, which leads the conference in every major category, didn't have a player ranked in the top 18 in the Big Ten in tackles, yet had five defenders named to the first team.
In all, 33 players made at least one of the first teams, and after the 10 Buckeyes, Wisconsin was second with five players, while Iowa and Michigan State each had four. Every team other than Minnesota had at least one player named to the first team. Last season, Boren and graduated safety Kurt Coleman were the only Buckeyes selected.
"An honor like this means the world to me," Heyward said in a statement released by Ohio State. "To say that I am all-Big Ten is truly a blessing because that was one of my goals from the day I entered college. I have always wanted to be a part of that elite group."
Kicker Devin Barclay was named to the media second team, bringing the number of Buckeyes honored to 11, but quarterback Terrelle Pryor wasn't one of them. He tied Iowa's Ricky Stanzi for the Big Ten lead with 25 touchdowns and was fourth in total offense behind Michigan's Denard Robinson, Northwestern's Dan Persa and Indiana's Ben Chappell.
For the second straight year, Pryor was the Big Ten's preseason offensive player of the year and after the season was an honorable mention pick at quarterback.
Robinson was named the league's offensive player of the year by the coaches and media and was the first-team quarterback by the media, with Persa on the second team. The coaches put Persa on the first team and Wisconsin's Scott Tolzien on the second team, obviously seeing Robinson more as an all-around threat than a true quarterback.
Two juniors, Adams and Herron, were the best stories among the OSU picks, with Adams, a former five-star recruit, getting more dominant as the year went on after struggling to lock down the starting job last year. Herron began the season sharing the running duties with Brandon Saine but wound up as one of four conference backs with 1,000 yards.
"This honor is just a blessing and a dream come true," Herron said. "It belongs also to my teammates at running back and all our offensive linemen."
Senior offensive lineman Bryant Browning won Ohio State's Sportsmanship Award.
At 11-1 and 7-1 in the conference, the Buckeyes shared the Big Ten title with Wisconsin and Michigan State. Ranked No. 6 in the BCS standings, Ohio State has a BCS bid all but locked up. The bowl pairings will be announced Sunday night.