‘A dream come true.’ Ruckert chosen by hometown N.Y. Jets
When the phone rang late Friday night, the Ruckert family gathering became silent.
It was late in the third round of the NFL draft, and the New York Jets were on the clock. Ohio State tight end Jeremy Ruckert grew up a Jets fan in Lindenhurst, New York. He attended Jets games 50 miles from his Long Island home. He went to their training camp practices.
He dreamed of playing for the Jets. Now it seemed on the verge of happening.
“Once that phone rang, you could hear a pin drop,” Ruckert said in a video interview with a Jets team reporter. “Once I signaled for my brother to grab this ( Jets) hat, it erupted. Jets chants going on left and right. It’s a dream come true.”
Ruckert will be reunited with Buckeye wide receiver Garrett Wilson in New York. Wilson was taken with the 10th overall pick on Thursday.
Ruckert was the 101st player taken, but it’s hard to imagine anyone happier.
“I can’t even explain it,” he said. “Everybody here grew up a Jets fan. I grew up a Jets fan. I’m so excited. I can’t wait to get there and be a part of it and get to work right away.”
There should be little doubt about Ruckert’s work ethic. He could have chosen a more comfortable path in college than going to Ohio State. Ruckert was primarily a wide receiver in high school.
But he knew tight end would be his eventual position, and he was determined to be a complete one, not just a passcatcher. Ruckert signed with Ohio State four years ago understanding that Buckeye tight ends don’t put up gaudy receiving numbers.
Ruckert did not, in fact, catch as many passes as a Buckeye as he probably would have elsewhere. In his four-year career, Ruckert had 54 catches for 615 yards and 12 touchdowns.
But he did develop into a wellrounded tight end, and his blocking was instrumental in Ohio State’s offensive success last year.
“Maybe the (statistical) production isn’t there, but inside that locker room and on that team, if you play tight end at Ohio State you are doing every single job and you make an impact in every single way,” Ruckert said at the NFL combine. “I knew that going into Ohio State that maybe the production wouldn’t be there. But what I was going to get out of that program, the person I’d become, the player I’d become, the versatility I’ve been able to adapt to, I don’t regret that at all.
“I’ve learned how to play in a really competitive environment, with great competition every week, winning championships. Shoot, I wouldn’t trade that for the world.”
Ruckert did have several key moments. His one-handed touchdown catch against Wisconsin in the 2019 Big Ten championship with the Buckeyes trailing 21-7 sparked Ohio State’s comeback victory. Ruckert caught two touchdown passes against Penn State in 2019 and two against Clemson in the College Football Playoff semifinals in 2020.
But on a 2021 team that featured Wilson and 11th overall pick Chris Olave as well as star sophomore Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Ruckert was a secondary target with 26 catches. He was a three-year All-Academic Big Ten selection.
“The biggest decision for me in going to Ohio State was I wanted to be that complete guy,” Ruckert said at the combine. “I wanted to adapt to that toughness and their culture. Looking back from when I got on campus there to where I am now, I’m going to do whatever it takes to win, whatever a team wants me to do. If there is a job as a tight end, I’m going to do it.”
Ruckert was the second Buckeye taken Friday night. Offensive tackle Nicholas Petit-Frere went earlier in the third round to Tennessee. On Saturday, OSU defensive lineman Tyreke Smith was drafted by the Seahawks in the fifth round (158th overall) and offensive lineman Thayer Munford was picked by the Raiders in the seventh round (238th overall).