Nick Mangold

Regarded by many to be the premier center in the collegiate ranks, Mangold combines a great blend of power, speed and intelligence. The unquestioned leader of the Buckeyes' offense, offensive line coach Jim Bollman rates him on a par with former Buckeye All-American and 2001 Rimington Award winner LeCharles Bentley. Like Bentley, Mangold can also play guard and has been the team's iron man, logging over 300 minutes of action in each of his last three seasons. Nick was a three-year starter on both offense and defense at Alter High School, hailing from the same hometown as All-America linebacker and teammate, A.J. Hawk. He was a first-team All-Ohio pick as a senior and considered one of the elite center prospects in the country. He also earned three letters in wrestling and two in track and field, competing in the shot put. Mangold appeared in eight games as a true freshman, playing behind Alex Stepanovich at center. When Stepanovich suffered a knee injury vs. San Diego State in 2003, Mangold stepped into the starting lineup and never relinquished the job. When Stepanovich returned, he shifted to guard while Mangold continued to man the center position. He earned second-team All-Big Ten Conference honors in 2004, when the coaching staff named Mangold Offensive Lineman of the Week seven times and Offensive Player of the Week vs. Northwestern. Mangold was again chosen second-team All-Big Ten in 2005, but there was little argument from pro scouts that he was by far the best performer in the collegiate ranks at his position. He closed his career with 33 starts in 45 games.

positives

Has a lean but muscular frame with good overall definition and room to add at least another 20 pounds of bulk with no loss in quickness...Has natural, athletic moves and moves with great ease coming off the snap...Has very good knee bend and quickness breaking down in space, showing light feet and quick change of direction agility to mirror the defender and stay with the play...Shows explosive acceleration getting into the second level...Quick to get his hands up to gain position coming off the ball and combines good strength with proper hand punch to generate good pop on run blocks... Has the strength to maul defenders and gets good fits, playing with leverage while consistently getting up defensive linemen...Constantly keeps his feet shuffling and has the agility to recover when he overextends...Has enough body mass and power to get movement at the point of attack...Maintains position vs. the bull rush and is effective at sustaining and finishing his blocks...Very productive getting out on short traps and pulls, doing a nice job adjusting to movement and locating his target...Has the speed to look up linebackers downfield and has the natural hip snap to break down and adjust working in space...His hand speed and placement is exceptional, using his upper body strength to gain control and a solid punch to shock the defender...When he gets his hands into the defender's chest, he is very good at grabbing, pulling and jerking the opponent off balance...Has the foot quickness to shuffle, slide and adjust in his pass set, properly keeping his weight back while staying under control.

mangold has good explosion off the ball. when he gets too high in his stance, he gets pushed back, but maintains balance and control. he has good size and above average strength, doing a good job of using leverage, positioning and technique to match up. he has decent feet and short area quickness, along with the lateral quickness to slide and mirror in pass protection.

Nick is good at picking up stunts and has good pop and punch, but needs to be more consistent. He is at his best when he is uncovered and takes good angles to his blocks. He shows the quickness to reach block and works well with his guards to neutralize the linebackers. He does a good job pulling on trap plays and screens, as he has the speed to easily mirror defenders.

negatives

Needs to add more bulk to his frame in order to face up to the massive nose guards at the pro level...Has good instincts, but will sometimes be late picking up the blitz...Has good hand usage on running plays, but needs to get his hands extended better when protecting on pass plays...His base will get narrow and he does not have the leg drive to maintain position vs. a strong bull rush...When he loses his rhythm, he can be beaten off the snap by a quick blitz...Good grabber, but gets flagged for a lot of holding penalties, as he does not disguise it too well.

mangold is a smart, instinctive player with very good quickness coming off the snap. he has the hand speed and placement to get a good push on drive blocks, but will get his hands a little too wide at times when protecting the pass. he shows the feet to slide and retreat well to protect the pocket, but will duck his head at times, losing relationship with the defensive tackle.

Nick is a very effective trap-blocker who is quick to locate second level defenders, but even with his loose hips, he will get a little off balance when having to immediately change direction, needing to gather before redirecting. He is very athletic and he displays above average speed, quickness and body control. He does a good job making line calls and leading the offensive line.

No injuries reported.

Campus: 4.96 in the 40-yard dash

415-pound bench press

605-pound squat

345-pound power clean

29-inch vertical jump

32-inch arm length

10-inch hands

Right-handed. Combine: 5.05 in the 40-yard dash

2.9 20-yard dash

1.74 10-yard dash

Bench-pressed 225 pounds 24 times

27.5-inch vertical jump

8'8" broad jump

4.36 20-yard shuttle

7.47 three-cone drill

31 7/8-inch arm length

10 3/8-inch hands.

Attended Alter (Kettering, Oh.) High School, playing football for head coach Ed Domsitz

Three-year starter on both offense and defense

First-team All-Ohio pick as a senior and considered one of the elite center prospects in the country

Also earned three letters in wrestling and two in track and field, competing in the shot put.

Business major

Uncle, Doug Hamlin, swam for Ohio State in the early 1990s

Oldest of four children of Therese and Vernon Mangold

Born 1/13/84

Resides in Centerville, Ohio.