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CHICAGO — Like winning a national championship with his third-string quarterback, Urban Meyer views this, too, as just another obstacle.

Hours before the Ohio State coach took the podium at Big Ten media days, the Buckeyes announced that four players would be suspended for their opener against Virginia Tech, headlined by All-America defensive end Joey Bosa.

The defending champs will also be without wide receiver/H-backs Jalin Marshall, Corey Smith and Dontre Wilson for “violating department of athletics policy,” according to the school.

It all added up to the biggest buzz on the first day of the event, which will feature Penn State and coach James Franklin on Friday.

The Columbus Dispatch first reported the suspensions. ESPN reported that the players were penalized for problems with “marijuana and academics.” Meyer declined to go into specifics, calling it “internal” issue.

“All we can do is watch the indicators, watch it closely, and then dive into it with a sledgehammer if we start to see something that’s disrupting the team,” Meyer said. “And we’ve dealt with one. And I knew this was coming for a while. And at some point, we’re going to have to address it and we did.

“There’s no perfect team. There’s no perfect program. And everyone deals with stuff. You know, when you’re Ohio State or some of these other big-time programs, stuff becomes a major deal. And this is.”

Meyer compared it to losing two quarterbacks during the historic 2014 campaign in which Ohio State won the inaugural College Football Playoff by beating Alabama and Oregon.

“You push forward,” Meyer said. “We’re pushing forward.”

The news came shortly after the Buckeyes were installed as the No. 1 team in the country in the preseason Coaches Poll, a strong favorite to repeat as national champion.

But the Bucks’ lone loss last season came in September to Virginia Tech, and this fall’s meeting will be in Blacksburg. It’s a meeting that just got much trickier without Bosa, likely a high first-round pick in next spring’s NFL draft, and the group of receivers.

“Obviously, when you lose the big defensive end, that everyone knows where he’s at, that’s a concern,” Meyer said.

Meyer said he’s less concerned about the loss of receivers in part because he will be adding a two-time Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year to the corps.

Former starting quarterback Braxton Miller, who missed all of last season following shoulder surgery, will be catching passes in 2015.

“He’s very athletic, obviously, and he can catch the ball. But I’ve not seen him do that,” Meyer said. “I’m anxious to see him do that. Day one, I’ll personally work with him myself. I was a receiver coach for a long time. So I’m going to work with him myself and see if we can get him ready.”

The bigger question is who will be throwing passes to the former quarterback.

Ohio State must decide between the quarterback who started last year’s title run, J.T. Barrett, or the one who finished it, Cardale Jones.

It took the suspension of the equally high-profile Bosa in order for the Buckeyes’ ballyhooed quarterback battle out of the spotlight for a day. It won’t stay that way as training camps across the Big Ten begin to open next week.

“Basically, we’re keeping score of everything,” Meyer said. “Obviously it’s multiplied when you start adding 7-on-7, mini field, third-down periods, and all that. When I say there’s not a gut instinct involved, there will be.

“But there’s also going to be a lot of statistical data that we chart and watch very closely. And they’ve earned that right.”

Ohio State coach Urban Meyer addresses the suspensions of four players on Thursday during Big Ten media days in Chicago.
https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/web1_Big-Ten-Media-Day-Foo_Sopr1.jpg.optimal.jpgOhio State coach Urban Meyer addresses the suspensions of four players on Thursday during Big Ten media days in Chicago. Paul Beaty | AP photo

By Derek Levarse

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To see video of Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer address the media, visit the online version of this story on timesleader.com.

Reach Derek Levarse at 570-991-6396 or on Twitter @TLdlevarse

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