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LGHL Players to Watch: Christoph Tilly gives Ohio State basketball a presence in the paint
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Players to Watch: Christoph Tilly gives Ohio State basketball a presence in the paint
Brett Ludwiczak via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
James Snook-Imagn Images
The center from Santa Clara should be able to step in immediately for the Buckeyes and form a potent combo with Devin Royal down low.
From now until preseason camp starts in August, Land-Grant Holy Land will be writing articles around a different theme every week. This week is all about the Buckeyes we expect to excel this season. You can catch up on all of the Theme Week content here and all our “Players to Watch” articles here.
Ohio State’s men’s basketball program hasn’t done much to inspire confidence over the last few seasons. The last time the Buckeyes made the NCAA Tournament was back in 2022 when they beat Loyola-Chicago in the first round before losing to Villanova. Ohio State hasn’t made the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament in over 10 years, with their last trip to the Sweet Sixteen coming in 2013.
Jake Diebler’s first full season as head coach of the Buckeyes was a rocky one. Diebler took some swings in the transfer portal that didn’t work out, bringing back Meechie Johnson Jr., along with scooping up Aaron Bradshaw and Sean Stewart.
Johnson only played a handful of games in his second stint in the scarlet and gray before personal issues sidelined him for the rest of the season in December. Bradshaw dealt with an off-court legal issue which resulted in the Kentucky transfer being away from the team for a few weeks, while Stewart frequently found himself in foul trouble when he was on the court.
Even though Bradshaw and Stewart have size, they weren’t really a force in the paint. With both bigs having already transferred to new schools during the offseason, Diebler was forced to look for reinforcements to give the Buckeyes a presence down low for the 2025-26 season.
Enter Santa Clara seven-footer Christoph Tilly, who will be a senior this season after spending three years in the WCC with the Broncos. If Tilly can put up numbers anywhere close to what he was able to do at Santa Clara, he will form a scary combo in the paint with Devin Royal.
Tilly was born in Berlin, Germany and played for two squads in Germany’s Pro B North League, as well as for Germany’s U18 team in the 2021 Euro Challengers Tournament before heading to Santa Clara. Despite not starting a game as a freshman with the Broncos, Tilly did make an impact on the court, averaging 5.0 points per game and 2.7 rebounds per game, playing just 12 minutes per game.
Tilly was able to score at least 10 points in five games during the 2022-23 season, with his best scoring output coming in the NIT loss to Sam Houston State when he scored 16 points.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/26021361/2204244170.jpg "West Coast Conference Men’s Basketball Tournament - Quarterfinals")
Photo by Candice Ward/Getty Images
As a sophomore, Tilly became a fixture in the Santa Clara starting lineup, starting in 28 of the 29 games he appeared in. One of those games came against Ohio State in the Emerald Coast Classic. Unfortunately for Tilly and the Broncos, the game wasn’t much of a contest, as Ohio State won by 30 points in Florida.
Tilly had just seven points in 16 minutes in the loss, but one of his better games of the season came in the portion of the tournament that was on-campus. Against Southeastern Louisiana, Tilly netted 20 points, which was only bested during the season by the 22 points he scored against Portland. For the year, Tilly averaged 9.4 points per game and 4.5 rebounds per game.
Last season Tilly grew even more as a player, averaging 12.5 points per game and 4.9 points per game. The junior not only registered three double-doubles during the season, he also eclipsed 20 points in five games. Along with scoring a season-high 25 points against Loyola Marymount, Tilly recorded 21 points and 12 rebounds against Pacific.
In Santa Clara’s final game of the season, which would also end up being Tilly’s final game with the Broncos, the German big man scored 17 points and pulled down 12 rebounds in the loss to UAB in the second round of the NIT.
Along with his noticeable improvement on the court over the last few years, what has also been impressive about Tilly is he is smart with the shots he takes. Last year Tilly led the WCC with a 55.4% field goal percentage. In each of his three seasons at the college level, Tilly has shot at least 50 percent.
Even though the majority of Tilly’s shots have come from close to the basket, he has shown the ability to step outside and hit the occasional three-pointer. Last season Tilly hit 17 of the 54 three-pointers he attempted, which translates to just over a 30 percent success rate from beyond the arc.
Will bringing in Tilly make Ohio State a national title contender in 2025-26? I wouldn’t start booking hotels in Indianapolis for the Final Four just yet. At least what Tilly will bring to the team this year is some toughness to go along with some of the senior leadership that Bruce Thornton and Micah Parrish will bring to the table.
On a team that felt like it lacked direction at times last year, the more experience that Diebler can bring in will help to make his job easier.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/26021362/2207269695.jpg "Santa Clara v Pepperdine")
Photo by Candice Ward/Getty Images
For those who might be worried about Tilly’s ability to play in the Big Ten, it’s not like he was playing against scrubs in the West Coast Conference while with Santa Clara. Tilly spent the last three years matching up with Gonzaga and Saint Mary’s, along with a usually ambitious non-conference schedule for the Broncos.
Plus, with his past professional experience in Germany, Tilly could be a sleeper to make some noise in the Big Ten as the Buckeyes look to end their recent postseason drought.
Continue reading...
Brett Ludwiczak via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
James Snook-Imagn Images
The center from Santa Clara should be able to step in immediately for the Buckeyes and form a potent combo with Devin Royal down low.
From now until preseason camp starts in August, Land-Grant Holy Land will be writing articles around a different theme every week. This week is all about the Buckeyes we expect to excel this season. You can catch up on all of the Theme Week content here and all our “Players to Watch” articles here.
Ohio State’s men’s basketball program hasn’t done much to inspire confidence over the last few seasons. The last time the Buckeyes made the NCAA Tournament was back in 2022 when they beat Loyola-Chicago in the first round before losing to Villanova. Ohio State hasn’t made the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament in over 10 years, with their last trip to the Sweet Sixteen coming in 2013.
Jake Diebler’s first full season as head coach of the Buckeyes was a rocky one. Diebler took some swings in the transfer portal that didn’t work out, bringing back Meechie Johnson Jr., along with scooping up Aaron Bradshaw and Sean Stewart.
Johnson only played a handful of games in his second stint in the scarlet and gray before personal issues sidelined him for the rest of the season in December. Bradshaw dealt with an off-court legal issue which resulted in the Kentucky transfer being away from the team for a few weeks, while Stewart frequently found himself in foul trouble when he was on the court.
Even though Bradshaw and Stewart have size, they weren’t really a force in the paint. With both bigs having already transferred to new schools during the offseason, Diebler was forced to look for reinforcements to give the Buckeyes a presence down low for the 2025-26 season.
Enter Santa Clara seven-footer Christoph Tilly, who will be a senior this season after spending three years in the WCC with the Broncos. If Tilly can put up numbers anywhere close to what he was able to do at Santa Clara, he will form a scary combo in the paint with Devin Royal.
Tilly was born in Berlin, Germany and played for two squads in Germany’s Pro B North League, as well as for Germany’s U18 team in the 2021 Euro Challengers Tournament before heading to Santa Clara. Despite not starting a game as a freshman with the Broncos, Tilly did make an impact on the court, averaging 5.0 points per game and 2.7 rebounds per game, playing just 12 minutes per game.
Tilly was able to score at least 10 points in five games during the 2022-23 season, with his best scoring output coming in the NIT loss to Sam Houston State when he scored 16 points.
As a sophomore, Tilly became a fixture in the Santa Clara starting lineup, starting in 28 of the 29 games he appeared in. One of those games came against Ohio State in the Emerald Coast Classic. Unfortunately for Tilly and the Broncos, the game wasn’t much of a contest, as Ohio State won by 30 points in Florida.
Tilly had just seven points in 16 minutes in the loss, but one of his better games of the season came in the portion of the tournament that was on-campus. Against Southeastern Louisiana, Tilly netted 20 points, which was only bested during the season by the 22 points he scored against Portland. For the year, Tilly averaged 9.4 points per game and 4.5 rebounds per game.
Last season Tilly grew even more as a player, averaging 12.5 points per game and 4.9 points per game. The junior not only registered three double-doubles during the season, he also eclipsed 20 points in five games. Along with scoring a season-high 25 points against Loyola Marymount, Tilly recorded 21 points and 12 rebounds against Pacific.
In Santa Clara’s final game of the season, which would also end up being Tilly’s final game with the Broncos, the German big man scored 17 points and pulled down 12 rebounds in the loss to UAB in the second round of the NIT.
Along with his noticeable improvement on the court over the last few years, what has also been impressive about Tilly is he is smart with the shots he takes. Last year Tilly led the WCC with a 55.4% field goal percentage. In each of his three seasons at the college level, Tilly has shot at least 50 percent.
Even though the majority of Tilly’s shots have come from close to the basket, he has shown the ability to step outside and hit the occasional three-pointer. Last season Tilly hit 17 of the 54 three-pointers he attempted, which translates to just over a 30 percent success rate from beyond the arc.
Will bringing in Tilly make Ohio State a national title contender in 2025-26? I wouldn’t start booking hotels in Indianapolis for the Final Four just yet. At least what Tilly will bring to the team this year is some toughness to go along with some of the senior leadership that Bruce Thornton and Micah Parrish will bring to the table.
On a team that felt like it lacked direction at times last year, the more experience that Diebler can bring in will help to make his job easier.
For those who might be worried about Tilly’s ability to play in the Big Ten, it’s not like he was playing against scrubs in the West Coast Conference while with Santa Clara. Tilly spent the last three years matching up with Gonzaga and Saint Mary’s, along with a usually ambitious non-conference schedule for the Broncos.
Plus, with his past professional experience in Germany, Tilly could be a sleeper to make some noise in the Big Ten as the Buckeyes look to end their recent postseason drought.
Continue reading...
LGHL You’re Nuts: Which Ohio State freshman in history were you most excited to watch?
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You’re Nuts: Which Ohio State freshman in history were you most excited to watch?
Brett Ludwiczak via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Jamie Sabau/Getty Images
Your (almost) daily dose of good-natured, Ohio State banter.
This week at LGHL, we are taking a deeper look at what we’ll see on the field from the 2025 Ohio State Buckeyes with our “Players to Watch” Week. Incoming freshmen, transfer portal acquisitions, and new starters are on the radar of our writers this week as we are now less than three months away from the start of the football season. With so many key players from last season’s national title team now preparing for their rookie seasons in the NFL, there will be a new cast of characters in Columbus who will be looking to earn their place in Ohio State lore.
Today, we want to know what past Ohio State recruit had you most excited when they committed to being a Buckeye. Even though many of the answers to this question are likely to come from football, we are accepting picks from other sports as well.
Kids these days might find it hard to believe since the men’s basketball team has a hard time bringing in big-time recruits, but Thad Matta was a monster when it came to convincing high-profile talent to commit to the program. Buckeye Nation was salivating when Matta was able to convince Greg Oden and Mike Conley to make a pit stop at Ohio State before heading to the NBA.
What makes today’s question a little more interesting is that Matt and Brett have already looked towards this season since earlier this week they revealed the players they think could be sleeper first-round picks in the 2026 NFL Draft after their Ohio State careers are over.
So, after trying to predict the future, now they are looking back and celebrating some of the Buckeyes that had them excited about the future when they officially announced they were heading to Ohio State.
I didn’t move to Columbus from Western New York until 2005, so I wasn’t in on the ground floor for all the hype surrounding Maurice Clarett ahead of and during his freshman season in 2002. The first massive high school recruit that I can remember being excited about, possibly even becoming a Buckeye, was Terrelle Pryor. Along with Ohio State, Pryor was also considering Penn State, Michigan, Oregon, and West Virginia.
There was even a time when many were wondering if Pryor was also going to play basketball at the school he committed to, as he originally committed to the University of Pittsburgh while Jamie Dixon was the basketball coach. Pryor decommitted from Pitt and reopened his recruitment when it became obvious that his sports future was with football. While most high school football recruits would sign their letters of intent in early February, Pryor delayed his decision until after Jeannette’s basketball team won a state championship in mid-March, officially signing with Ohio State on March 19, 2008.
Even before taking a snap as a Buckeye, Pryor had fans anointing him as the next big thing. Not only did Pryor register a 4.4 in the 40-yard dash, but there were comparisons to Vince Young and Randall Cunningham. In high school, Pryor became the first player in Pennsylvania to throw for 4,000 yards and run for 4,000 yards. Just a couple of years removed from Troy Smith winning the Heisman Trophy, Ohio State fans were anticipating having an even better version of Smith at quarterback.
Ohio State was coming off a 2007 season that saw them make it to the BCS National Championship Game with Todd Boeckman at quarterback. If a Buckeye offense with Boeckman could come close to winning a national title, imagine what the offense could do with Pryor running the show.
Despite Pryor and Ohio State not winning a national title during his three years in Columbus, the quarterback did lead the Buckeyes to three BCS games, winning the Rose Bowl against Oregon and the Sugar Bowl against Arkansas. We never got to see Pryor’s senior year play out since he declared for the NFL’s Supplemental Draft after he was suspended for the “Tatgate” scandal, and head coach Jim Tressel was fired.
My excitement to watch a specific true freshman is a bit different than Brett’s. The buzz surrounding Terrelle Pryor’s recruitment made him one of the most anticipated players to ever step foot on Ohio State’s campus. When Maurice Clarett got to Columbus, I had never heard of him. One, because this was long before the recruiting explosion, and two, we were still generally using dial-up internet in those days.
But my Mo C excitement kicked in at epic levels when I sat in my very hot A-Deck seat at Ohio Stadium on Aug. 24, 2002 for the first game of my senior year. That was the day that Clarett announced himself to the Ohio State and college football worlds as he proceeded to rip off 175 yards and three touchdowns against Texas Tech in his first game as a Buckeye.
That game set off one of the most thrilling, nerve-inducing roller coasters of a season that I have ever experienced in any sport, and Clarett was the driving force of many of the positive and negative emotions. To this day, I still believe that had he not gotten hurt about two months into the season, he would have been a Heisman Trophy finalist as a true freshman, and potentially could have gone down as the greatest freshman running back in college football history.
Between being a bit banged up and the now-infamous ego and personality issues that plagued him during his all-too-short stint as a Buckeye, that did not come to pass. Nonetheless, he finished his one season of college football with 1,237 yards rushing on a 5.6 yards per carry average. He rushed for 16 touchdowns and added two through the air.
Clarett was a powerful, violent runner and seemed to only get better the more hits he took, but he complemented that with incredible speed and balance. However, when Mo C was right, there was never a more game gamer, or someone who more refused to give up.
I don’t think that I would get too much of an argument from folks when I say that his strip of Sean Taylor following a Craig Krenzel interception in the end zone in the third quarter of the BCS Title Game is one of my favorite plays in Buckeye history (Jack Sawyer’s strip sack touchdown of Quinn Ewers is up there too).
Clarett didn’t give up on a play that he easily could have avoided getting anywhere near, and no one would have faulted him. But that effort, resiliancy, and grittiness are what made him such an exciting player to watch every time that he put on the scarlet and gray.
No, Mo C’s time on the field with the Buckeyes never reached anywhere near what its potential could be, but to see him be fully embarrassed by Ryan Day and the program over the last year or so honestly makes me emotional. To know what Maurice has gone through and the man that he has worked incredibly hard to become makes me root for him just as hard now as I did 23 years.
Continue reading...
Brett Ludwiczak via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Jamie Sabau/Getty Images
Your (almost) daily dose of good-natured, Ohio State banter.
This week at LGHL, we are taking a deeper look at what we’ll see on the field from the 2025 Ohio State Buckeyes with our “Players to Watch” Week. Incoming freshmen, transfer portal acquisitions, and new starters are on the radar of our writers this week as we are now less than three months away from the start of the football season. With so many key players from last season’s national title team now preparing for their rookie seasons in the NFL, there will be a new cast of characters in Columbus who will be looking to earn their place in Ohio State lore.
Today, we want to know what past Ohio State recruit had you most excited when they committed to being a Buckeye. Even though many of the answers to this question are likely to come from football, we are accepting picks from other sports as well.
Kids these days might find it hard to believe since the men’s basketball team has a hard time bringing in big-time recruits, but Thad Matta was a monster when it came to convincing high-profile talent to commit to the program. Buckeye Nation was salivating when Matta was able to convince Greg Oden and Mike Conley to make a pit stop at Ohio State before heading to the NBA.
What makes today’s question a little more interesting is that Matt and Brett have already looked towards this season since earlier this week they revealed the players they think could be sleeper first-round picks in the 2026 NFL Draft after their Ohio State careers are over.
So, after trying to predict the future, now they are looking back and celebrating some of the Buckeyes that had them excited about the future when they officially announced they were heading to Ohio State.
Today’s question: Which Ohio State freshman were you most excited to watch?
We’d love to hear your choices. Either respond to us on Twitter at @Landgrant33 or leave your choice in the comments.
Brett’s answer: Terrelle Pryor
I didn’t move to Columbus from Western New York until 2005, so I wasn’t in on the ground floor for all the hype surrounding Maurice Clarett ahead of and during his freshman season in 2002. The first massive high school recruit that I can remember being excited about, possibly even becoming a Buckeye, was Terrelle Pryor. Along with Ohio State, Pryor was also considering Penn State, Michigan, Oregon, and West Virginia.
There was even a time when many were wondering if Pryor was also going to play basketball at the school he committed to, as he originally committed to the University of Pittsburgh while Jamie Dixon was the basketball coach. Pryor decommitted from Pitt and reopened his recruitment when it became obvious that his sports future was with football. While most high school football recruits would sign their letters of intent in early February, Pryor delayed his decision until after Jeannette’s basketball team won a state championship in mid-March, officially signing with Ohio State on March 19, 2008.
Even before taking a snap as a Buckeye, Pryor had fans anointing him as the next big thing. Not only did Pryor register a 4.4 in the 40-yard dash, but there were comparisons to Vince Young and Randall Cunningham. In high school, Pryor became the first player in Pennsylvania to throw for 4,000 yards and run for 4,000 yards. Just a couple of years removed from Troy Smith winning the Heisman Trophy, Ohio State fans were anticipating having an even better version of Smith at quarterback.
Ohio State was coming off a 2007 season that saw them make it to the BCS National Championship Game with Todd Boeckman at quarterback. If a Buckeye offense with Boeckman could come close to winning a national title, imagine what the offense could do with Pryor running the show.
Despite Pryor and Ohio State not winning a national title during his three years in Columbus, the quarterback did lead the Buckeyes to three BCS games, winning the Rose Bowl against Oregon and the Sugar Bowl against Arkansas. We never got to see Pryor’s senior year play out since he declared for the NFL’s Supplemental Draft after he was suspended for the “Tatgate” scandal, and head coach Jim Tressel was fired.
Matt’s answer: Maurice Clarett
My excitement to watch a specific true freshman is a bit different than Brett’s. The buzz surrounding Terrelle Pryor’s recruitment made him one of the most anticipated players to ever step foot on Ohio State’s campus. When Maurice Clarett got to Columbus, I had never heard of him. One, because this was long before the recruiting explosion, and two, we were still generally using dial-up internet in those days.
But my Mo C excitement kicked in at epic levels when I sat in my very hot A-Deck seat at Ohio Stadium on Aug. 24, 2002 for the first game of my senior year. That was the day that Clarett announced himself to the Ohio State and college football worlds as he proceeded to rip off 175 yards and three touchdowns against Texas Tech in his first game as a Buckeye.
That game set off one of the most thrilling, nerve-inducing roller coasters of a season that I have ever experienced in any sport, and Clarett was the driving force of many of the positive and negative emotions. To this day, I still believe that had he not gotten hurt about two months into the season, he would have been a Heisman Trophy finalist as a true freshman, and potentially could have gone down as the greatest freshman running back in college football history.
Between being a bit banged up and the now-infamous ego and personality issues that plagued him during his all-too-short stint as a Buckeye, that did not come to pass. Nonetheless, he finished his one season of college football with 1,237 yards rushing on a 5.6 yards per carry average. He rushed for 16 touchdowns and added two through the air.
Clarett was a powerful, violent runner and seemed to only get better the more hits he took, but he complemented that with incredible speed and balance. However, when Mo C was right, there was never a more game gamer, or someone who more refused to give up.
I don’t think that I would get too much of an argument from folks when I say that his strip of Sean Taylor following a Craig Krenzel interception in the end zone in the third quarter of the BCS Title Game is one of my favorite plays in Buckeye history (Jack Sawyer’s strip sack touchdown of Quinn Ewers is up there too).
Clarett didn’t give up on a play that he easily could have avoided getting anywhere near, and no one would have faulted him. But that effort, resiliancy, and grittiness are what made him such an exciting player to watch every time that he put on the scarlet and gray.
No, Mo C’s time on the field with the Buckeyes never reached anywhere near what its potential could be, but to see him be fully embarrassed by Ryan Day and the program over the last year or so honestly makes me emotional. To know what Maurice has gone through and the man that he has worked incredibly hard to become makes me root for him just as hard now as I did 23 years.
Continue reading...
LGHL Ohio State fans are excited to see what these two new starters can do this season
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Ohio State fans are excited to see what these two new starters can do this season
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Jason Mowry/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
You ask, we answer. Sometimes we ask, others answer. And then other times, we ask, we answer.
Throughout the year, we will be asking and answering questions about various Ohio State teams, the players, and anything else on our collective minds of varying degrees of importance. If you have a question that you would like to ask, you can tweet us @LandGrant33, or if you need more than 280 characters, send an email HERE.
This week at LGHL is “Players to Watch Week”, so for our weekly fan survey, we asked Buckeye Nation which players they were most excited to watch this coming season. We broke it down into two categories, returning starters and guys who didn’t start (at least not for OSU) last year. And now, the results are in.
As always, if the guy you would have picked wasn’t included, please feel free to head down to the comments and write him in. Also, while you’re at it, since they are sponsoring this article, you should go to FanDuel Sportsbook and put some money on your selected player to win the Heisman, or maybe make a bet on the NBA or Stanley Cup Finals. It’s your money, do whatever makes your heart happy.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/26021205/OhioState_1_60425.png)
Yeah, this is a no-brainer, right? Like, I love Caleb Downs, but no one gives anywhere close to the entertainment value of Jeremiah Smith. Every time I think that we have seen the most incredible thing that he will ever do, he not only one-ups it, he 12-ups. The dude is a beast, he is an animal, he is an alien, and thank Woody, he is a Buckeye!
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/26021206/OhioState_2_60425.png)
This one was interesting to me. On a lot of levels, it makes sense because James Peoples is a running back and Max Klare is a tight end, so they will have the potential to have a flashier impact on the team by virtue of being offensive skill players. And don’t get me wrong, they are perfectly acceptable answers, I just kind of thought it would go a slightly (but probably not entirely) different direction.
I had kind of thought that someone like Kenyatta Jackson, Jr., Arvell Reese, or even C.J. Hicks would contend for the top spot here, since they have been with the program for a while and have long been players who generated excitement and anticipation. While Jackson and Reese are slotted in to be starters, Hicks has moved from linebacker to defensive end, which will hopefully allow him to display his superhuman athleticsm.
Throughout the year, we ask questions of the most plugged-in Ohio State fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys. This survey was brought to you by FanDuel.
Continue reading...
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Jason Mowry/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
You ask, we answer. Sometimes we ask, others answer. And then other times, we ask, we answer.
Throughout the year, we will be asking and answering questions about various Ohio State teams, the players, and anything else on our collective minds of varying degrees of importance. If you have a question that you would like to ask, you can tweet us @LandGrant33, or if you need more than 280 characters, send an email HERE.
This week at LGHL is “Players to Watch Week”, so for our weekly fan survey, we asked Buckeye Nation which players they were most excited to watch this coming season. We broke it down into two categories, returning starters and guys who didn’t start (at least not for OSU) last year. And now, the results are in.
As always, if the guy you would have picked wasn’t included, please feel free to head down to the comments and write him in. Also, while you’re at it, since they are sponsoring this article, you should go to FanDuel Sportsbook and put some money on your selected player to win the Heisman, or maybe make a bet on the NBA or Stanley Cup Finals. It’s your money, do whatever makes your heart happy.
Question 1: Which Ohio State returning starter are you most excited to watch this season?
Yeah, this is a no-brainer, right? Like, I love Caleb Downs, but no one gives anywhere close to the entertainment value of Jeremiah Smith. Every time I think that we have seen the most incredible thing that he will ever do, he not only one-ups it, he 12-ups. The dude is a beast, he is an animal, he is an alien, and thank Woody, he is a Buckeye!
Question 2: Which Ohio State non-returning starter are you most excited to watch this season (other than Julian Sayin)?
This one was interesting to me. On a lot of levels, it makes sense because James Peoples is a running back and Max Klare is a tight end, so they will have the potential to have a flashier impact on the team by virtue of being offensive skill players. And don’t get me wrong, they are perfectly acceptable answers, I just kind of thought it would go a slightly (but probably not entirely) different direction.
I had kind of thought that someone like Kenyatta Jackson, Jr., Arvell Reese, or even C.J. Hicks would contend for the top spot here, since they have been with the program for a while and have long been players who generated excitement and anticipation. While Jackson and Reese are slotted in to be starters, Hicks has moved from linebacker to defensive end, which will hopefully allow him to display his superhuman athleticsm.
Throughout the year, we ask questions of the most plugged-in Ohio State fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys. This survey was brought to you by FanDuel.
Continue reading...