Last weekend it was Kansas losing a reserve player who wanted to focus on academics. This week, it’s Ohio State’s turn.
The Buckeyes revealed Tuesday that Frank Epitropoulos has decided to give up football to focus on academics. Specifically, Epitropoulos will, the school wrote, “concentrate entirely on his biology and pre-med/pre-dental academic program.”
“I love being an Ohio State Buckeye,” Epitropoulos’ statement began, “but I am also competing to get into medical school, and that is very important to me and to my family. I am already in my third year at Ohio State and the process to begin applying to medical schools is not far off. After consulting with my family, I have therefore decided to end my athletic career so I can focus solely on academics.
“I want to thank my teammates and coaching staff for all of their help and support, and I wish them the best this season and into the future.”
Epitropoulos mentioned med school being important to his family, and for good reason. His mother is an opthamologist while his sister is a third-year Dean’s List student in Ohio State’s College of Dentistry.
On the football field, Epitropoulos played in four games as a redshirt freshman in 2013. He had one career catch for six yards -- vs. Purdue in early November -- and, barring a rash of injuries, wasn’t expected to crack the two-deep depth chart at receiver at any point before the start of the season.