New Ravens running back J.K. Dobbins says he’s eager take care of the unfinished business he left behind at Ohio State, is confident Baltimore is a good fit for him despite his frustrations about lasting deep into the second round and is excited about representing his late father in the NFL.
The 5-foot-9, 209-pound Dobbins accumulated 5,104 yards and 43 touchdowns with the Buckeyes from 2017-2019, but because he never won a national championship, the La Grange, Texas, native wasn’t able to accomplish all of the goals he set when he decided to attend Ohio State.
The Buckeyes narrowly missed out on the College Football Playoff in 2017-18 and 2018-19, but they earned a spot this past season. Ohio State lost to Clemson, 29-23, in a semifinal matchup and finished the season 13-1. Likewise, the Ravens’ season ended with a thud after a 14-2 regular season. Baltimore lost in the divisional round of the playoffs to the Tennessee Titans, 28-12.
The Buckeyes’ loss to Clemson still weighs on Dobbins, but he thinks the Ravens are a perfect spot to achieve his championship dreams.
“I definitely still feel it. I feel that loss from that College Football Playoff game because we didn’t go to the championship, and that’s what I went to Ohio State for,” Dobbins said on Glenn Clark Radio April 29. “Knowing that this team has a chance, all the great athletes and players on this team and all the great coaches, it’s extra motivation. Like, OK, I’m back in this situation. I want to finish it. I want me and my teammates to finish it. Let’s get this ring.”
That the Ravens and Dobbins seem to be a natural fit doesn’t mean he wasn’t peeved when he slipped well into the second round. Dobbins was ranked by NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah as the No. 37 player in the draft class but fell to No. 55 overall. He was the fifth running back taken after LSU’s Clyde Edwards-Helaire (No. 32, Kansas City Chiefs), Georgia’s D’Andre Swift (No. 34, Detroit Lions), Wisconsin’s Jonathan Taylor (No. 41, Indianapolis Colts) and Florida State’s Cam Akers (No. 52, Los Angeles Rams).
But Dobbins knew he landed in a favorable situation when he was drafted by Baltimore. The Ravens posted a league-record 3,926 rushing yards on 596 rushing attempts, 98 carries clear of the San Francisco 49ers, the team with the second-most carries. Offensive coordinator Greg Roman has a long track record of piloting productive running games, and that figures to continue to be the case in Baltimore with reigning league MVP Lamar Jackson under center.
Safe to say that makes up for Dobbins’ slide.
“I was pretty upset at the moment, not about the pick but I fell a little bit, so I was a little upset about it,” Dobbins said. “But then when I saw the call, I was like, ‘No way, no way. The Ravens [are the] best rushing team in the NFL.’ Whenever it happened, I thought about it. I was like, ‘You know, I’m so happy to be a Raven.’ And so I’m blessed to be with this team.”
Dobbins is coming off the best year of his college career in 2019. He broke Eddie George’s 24-year-old single-season Ohio State rushing record by running for 2,003 yards in 14 games. He’s joining a stacked backfield in Baltimore, but there should be plenty of carries to go around for Jackson and running backs Mark Ingram, Gus Edwards, Justice Hill and Dobbins.
When Dobbins hits the field, he’ll be wearing No. 27, his father’s number at La Grange High School, where Dobbins also went to school. Dobbins’ father, Lawrence, died of a stroke at the age of 33 at Bartlett State Jail. Dobbins was 15 at the time.
Dobbins, who said Lawrence would be “super proud” of him right now, shared one lesson he learned from his father.
“Always work hard,” Dobbins said. “Don’t ever slack off because I want to be one of the greatest. If I ever slack off, I can’t do that. That’s one thing I learned is always work hard.”
Hard work is a prerequisite for those hoping to get on the field at Ohio State, which brings in top recruiting classes annually and fields one of the best teams in college every fall. The Buckeyes went 38-4 overall and won three Big Ten championships from 2017-2019, due in no small part to Dobbins’ contributions.
The defensive side of the ball wasn’t too shabby, either, with new Ravens linebacker Malik Harrison (205 career tackles) one of the leaders of that unit. Dobbins is happy Harrison is around to make his transition to the NFL easier, and once practices start, they’ll surely pick back up where they left off in Columbus, Ohio.
“At Ohio State, we compete every day, so even during the week – the beginning of the week during a game week – that first Tuesday practice we go after each other,” Dobbins said. “So every day it was almost like a game. I know we both got the best of each other a few times.”
For more from Dobbins, listen to the full interview here:
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Ohio State Athletics