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LGHL You’re Nuts: Which holiday movie best sums up this Ohio State football season?
- News
- 0 Replies
You’re Nuts: Which holiday movie best sums up this Ohio State football 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
Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK
Your (almost) daily dose of good-natured, Ohio State banter.
Everybody knows that one of the best parts of being a sports fan is debating and dissecting the most (and least) important questions in the sporting world with your friends. So, we’re bringing that to the pages of LGHL with our favorite head-to-head column: You’re Nuts.
In You’re Nuts, two LGHL staff members will take differing sides of one question and argue their opinions passionately. Then, in the end, it’s up to you to determine who’s right and who’s nuts.
All the Oh-Whos down in Oh-Whoville liked Christmas a lot, but Jim Harbaugh, who lived just North of Oh-Whoville DID NOT.
I assume everyone is at least vaguely familiar with Dr. Seuss’s story of “The Grinch Who Stole Christmas,” but as a quick refresher for anyone who might need it, the residents of Whoville absolutely live for Christmas. I mean, their entire personality is Christmas, and they are going to make sure you know it.
It drives one neighbor, The Grinch, a heartless furry green fellow who lives on the nearby Mount Crumpit with his dog Max, absolutely bananas. Mr. Grinch cannot stand the Whos’ toxic positivity and deranged obsession with twinkle lights, so he sets out to ruin their year by stealing Christmas.
With Max as a reindeer, the Grinch dresses himself up like Santa Claus, only instead of delivering goodies a la the Big Guy, he steals everything.
Presents. Trees. Christmas lights. Their Who pheasants and roast beasts. He steals every last drop of their Christmas, shoves it in a sack, and drags it up to Mount Crumpit to dump it.
The Whos’ somewhat naïve, childlike joy and vocal obsession mirrors that of Buckeye fans. Everyone in the land is going to know we are rooting for Ohio State because much like the Whos (and much to the chagrin of our neighbors who absolutely do not want to hear one more round of “Buckeye Battle Cry), we simply won’t shut up about it.
And for most of this season, there was much to celebrate. We headed into Thanksgiving undefeated. We had a solid shot at the No. 1 seed in the playoffs. The end of the year was, much like the Whos, our time to shine.
And so, the Whos bedazzled Whoville with Christmas lights, cranked up the carols, and wrapped up their presents. We bedazzled ourselves in Buckeye beads, cranked up the fight songs, and wrapped ourselves up in coats to brave a weekend in Michigan in November.
And our joy was stolen from us by a coldhearted thief. He stuffed our undefeated season in a sack, shoved our Big Ten title hopes up the chimney, and dumped our playoff hopes off Mount Crumpit.
He even stole our signs with the same cold-blooded glee as the Grinch finishing off the Whos’ Who-Feasts.
Devastating, and frankly, disorienting end to the regular season. The following weeks brought the Big Ten Championship game with no Buckeyes in sight. It felt like waking up on Christmas morning to find an empty fridge and no presents, and it required us to recalibrate.
Now Dr. Seuss gave us a happy ending, with the Grinch also returning what he stole, embracing the Whos, and finding his heart grew three sizes in a single day. I’m not expecting Jim Harbaugh to give back what he took willingly the way the Grinch does (for Harbaugh’s heart to grow three sizes, he’d have to have one to begin with). There is still always the possibility the NCAA will play the role of Dr. Seuss here, though, by forcing Michigan to vacate all its wins due to the sign-stealing scandal.
But even if Harbaugh gets to keep it all, where we really mirror the Whos is our resilience. The Whos don’t stop loving Christmas just because the green meanie takes their stuff away. It’s something they feel in their bones, and the spirit still arrives on Christmas Day even without the lights and the presents.
Without any of their goodies, the Whos join hand-in-hand to sing a Christmas song.
And even without a Big Ten Title or a playoff spot, if there’s one thing Buckeye fans are gonna do, it’s get their complaints out of their system and then stand arm-in-arm to sing Carmen Ohio.
The Whos’ love of Christmas runs deep, and not even The Grinch can steal that from them. So to does our love of Ohio State. Our bond is thicker than the waters of the Olentangy, and even if the Grinch of Ann Arbor steals everything else, he can’t take that away from us.
Time, change and Grinches will — and dare I say HAVE — surely shown how firm thy friendship, Ohio.
Happy holidays to you and yours, Buckeye fans, and best wishes for a wonderful New Year.
I don’t think that there is anyone amongst us who can claim that this past Ohio State football season was as bright and cheery as the Rankin/Bass stop-motion Christmas classics, or as relatively drama-free as a Hallmark holiday movie, but I am starting to feel like we might have happy ending nonetheless.
While you cannot directly map the 2023 Buckeye football season over top of the iconic Christmas film “It’s a Wonderful Life,” I feel like we, as OSU fans, experienced many of the same emotions contained in the movie classic. There were moments of despair, for both George Bailey and Buckeye fans, including — in some cases — ones that led to complete exacerbation that made it seem like there would never be another day when the sun shone upon us.
But one of the things that this season forced us to do was to take a look back at all of the good things that we have as Buckeye fans. As if we had our own guardian angel second class guiding us through the highs of Ohio State football. With all due respect to the recently departed — but still very much alive — Kyle McCord who still managed to put up solid and somewhat impressive statistics, his shortcomings reminded us of how good we had it with the likes of Terrelle Pryor, Braxton Miller, J.T. Barrett, Dwayne Haskins, Justin Fields, and C.J. Stroud.
Finally having a legitimate Silver Bullets defense again, and an absurd level of offensive talent, this fall was almost like being able to see what Ohio State fandom would have been if none of our elite-level quarterbacks had ever been born. While obviously not as disastrous as what would have befallen Bedford Falls had George Bailey never been born, this season was at times just as emotionally taxing for Buckeye fans.
But as if Clarence was here to grant our wishes, things seem to be turning around for Ohio State. There has been legitimate concern from Buckeye fans — including some who write for LGHL — about the seeming lack of aggression in the transfer portal, but we are starting to learn that there might be a very good reason for that perceived passivity.
While there have been precious few confirmations about veterans’ 2024 intentions, rumors and general vibes seem to suggest that Ryan Day and company are going to get a sizeable number of starters back for next season. And while landing someone like linebacker Tackett Curtis, defensive tackle Derrick Harmon, or even quarterback Will Howard would be nice, if OSU ends up getting back impact players like Denzel Burke, Emeka Egbuka, Donovan Jackson, Jordan Hancock, TreVeyon Henderson, Jack Sawyer, J.T. Tuimoloau, and Tyleik Williams back, that would certainly make a wonderful life for Buckeye fans, besides, as the old saying goes, “every time a player returns, an angel gets his wings.”
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
Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK
Your (almost) daily dose of good-natured, Ohio State banter.
Everybody knows that one of the best parts of being a sports fan is debating and dissecting the most (and least) important questions in the sporting world with your friends. So, we’re bringing that to the pages of LGHL with our favorite head-to-head column: You’re Nuts.
In You’re Nuts, two LGHL staff members will take differing sides of one question and argue their opinions passionately. Then, in the end, it’s up to you to determine who’s right and who’s nuts.
Today’s Question: Which holiday movie best sums up this Ohio State football season?
Jami’s Take: ‘The Grinch’
All the Oh-Whos down in Oh-Whoville liked Christmas a lot, but Jim Harbaugh, who lived just North of Oh-Whoville DID NOT.
I assume everyone is at least vaguely familiar with Dr. Seuss’s story of “The Grinch Who Stole Christmas,” but as a quick refresher for anyone who might need it, the residents of Whoville absolutely live for Christmas. I mean, their entire personality is Christmas, and they are going to make sure you know it.
It drives one neighbor, The Grinch, a heartless furry green fellow who lives on the nearby Mount Crumpit with his dog Max, absolutely bananas. Mr. Grinch cannot stand the Whos’ toxic positivity and deranged obsession with twinkle lights, so he sets out to ruin their year by stealing Christmas.
With Max as a reindeer, the Grinch dresses himself up like Santa Claus, only instead of delivering goodies a la the Big Guy, he steals everything.
Presents. Trees. Christmas lights. Their Who pheasants and roast beasts. He steals every last drop of their Christmas, shoves it in a sack, and drags it up to Mount Crumpit to dump it.
The Whos’ somewhat naïve, childlike joy and vocal obsession mirrors that of Buckeye fans. Everyone in the land is going to know we are rooting for Ohio State because much like the Whos (and much to the chagrin of our neighbors who absolutely do not want to hear one more round of “Buckeye Battle Cry), we simply won’t shut up about it.
And for most of this season, there was much to celebrate. We headed into Thanksgiving undefeated. We had a solid shot at the No. 1 seed in the playoffs. The end of the year was, much like the Whos, our time to shine.
And so, the Whos bedazzled Whoville with Christmas lights, cranked up the carols, and wrapped up their presents. We bedazzled ourselves in Buckeye beads, cranked up the fight songs, and wrapped ourselves up in coats to brave a weekend in Michigan in November.
And our joy was stolen from us by a coldhearted thief. He stuffed our undefeated season in a sack, shoved our Big Ten title hopes up the chimney, and dumped our playoff hopes off Mount Crumpit.
He even stole our signs with the same cold-blooded glee as the Grinch finishing off the Whos’ Who-Feasts.
Devastating, and frankly, disorienting end to the regular season. The following weeks brought the Big Ten Championship game with no Buckeyes in sight. It felt like waking up on Christmas morning to find an empty fridge and no presents, and it required us to recalibrate.
Now Dr. Seuss gave us a happy ending, with the Grinch also returning what he stole, embracing the Whos, and finding his heart grew three sizes in a single day. I’m not expecting Jim Harbaugh to give back what he took willingly the way the Grinch does (for Harbaugh’s heart to grow three sizes, he’d have to have one to begin with). There is still always the possibility the NCAA will play the role of Dr. Seuss here, though, by forcing Michigan to vacate all its wins due to the sign-stealing scandal.
But even if Harbaugh gets to keep it all, where we really mirror the Whos is our resilience. The Whos don’t stop loving Christmas just because the green meanie takes their stuff away. It’s something they feel in their bones, and the spirit still arrives on Christmas Day even without the lights and the presents.
Without any of their goodies, the Whos join hand-in-hand to sing a Christmas song.
And even without a Big Ten Title or a playoff spot, if there’s one thing Buckeye fans are gonna do, it’s get their complaints out of their system and then stand arm-in-arm to sing Carmen Ohio.
The Whos’ love of Christmas runs deep, and not even The Grinch can steal that from them. So to does our love of Ohio State. Our bond is thicker than the waters of the Olentangy, and even if the Grinch of Ann Arbor steals everything else, he can’t take that away from us.
Time, change and Grinches will — and dare I say HAVE — surely shown how firm thy friendship, Ohio.
Happy holidays to you and yours, Buckeye fans, and best wishes for a wonderful New Year.
Matt’s Take: ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’
I don’t think that there is anyone amongst us who can claim that this past Ohio State football season was as bright and cheery as the Rankin/Bass stop-motion Christmas classics, or as relatively drama-free as a Hallmark holiday movie, but I am starting to feel like we might have happy ending nonetheless.
While you cannot directly map the 2023 Buckeye football season over top of the iconic Christmas film “It’s a Wonderful Life,” I feel like we, as OSU fans, experienced many of the same emotions contained in the movie classic. There were moments of despair, for both George Bailey and Buckeye fans, including — in some cases — ones that led to complete exacerbation that made it seem like there would never be another day when the sun shone upon us.
But one of the things that this season forced us to do was to take a look back at all of the good things that we have as Buckeye fans. As if we had our own guardian angel second class guiding us through the highs of Ohio State football. With all due respect to the recently departed — but still very much alive — Kyle McCord who still managed to put up solid and somewhat impressive statistics, his shortcomings reminded us of how good we had it with the likes of Terrelle Pryor, Braxton Miller, J.T. Barrett, Dwayne Haskins, Justin Fields, and C.J. Stroud.
Finally having a legitimate Silver Bullets defense again, and an absurd level of offensive talent, this fall was almost like being able to see what Ohio State fandom would have been if none of our elite-level quarterbacks had ever been born. While obviously not as disastrous as what would have befallen Bedford Falls had George Bailey never been born, this season was at times just as emotionally taxing for Buckeye fans.
But as if Clarence was here to grant our wishes, things seem to be turning around for Ohio State. There has been legitimate concern from Buckeye fans — including some who write for LGHL — about the seeming lack of aggression in the transfer portal, but we are starting to learn that there might be a very good reason for that perceived passivity.
While there have been precious few confirmations about veterans’ 2024 intentions, rumors and general vibes seem to suggest that Ryan Day and company are going to get a sizeable number of starters back for next season. And while landing someone like linebacker Tackett Curtis, defensive tackle Derrick Harmon, or even quarterback Will Howard would be nice, if OSU ends up getting back impact players like Denzel Burke, Emeka Egbuka, Donovan Jackson, Jordan Hancock, TreVeyon Henderson, Jack Sawyer, J.T. Tuimoloau, and Tyleik Williams back, that would certainly make a wonderful life for Buckeye fans, besides, as the old saying goes, “every time a player returns, an angel gets his wings.”
Continue reading...
LGHL You’re Nuts: Where would be your most surprising transfer portal destination?
- News
- 0 Replies
You’re Nuts: Where would be your most surprising transfer portal destination?
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 Ryan Hunt/Getty Images
Your (almost) daily dose of good-natured, Ohio State banter.
Over the weekend news came out that former Ohio State quarterback Kyle McCord had decided on where he would be taking his talents after entering the transfer portal earlier this month. After flirting with Nebraska a bit, McCord surprised a lot of people by choosing to move on to Syracuse. By joining the Orange, not only will McCord not have to worry about a competition to win the starting quarterback position, he also will be playing for a head coach with some ties to where McCord grew up, as new Syracuse head coach Fran Brown has ties to Philadelphia and South Jersey.
Since McCord’s transfer destination was to a school that really wasn’t on anyone’s radar, today we figured we would get a little crazy with where we would transfer to if we entered the transfer portal. Not saying that McCord deciding to go to Syracuse was right or wrong, it is just very interesting since it has been a while since the Orange were relevant in college football. In the end, we hope this move turns out to be exactly what McCord was looking for.
Back to the question we posed about where your most surprising transfer portal destination would be. Today’s question doesn’t have to only take into consideration entering the transfer portal in football. Maybe your favorite college sport is basketball, hockey, volleyball, or any other collegiate sport that is played. With limits to your answers being low, there should be a bunch of interesting responses to today’s question!
I don’t know a lot about Virginia Tech coach Brent Pry, but I’m not really basing my decision much on the coaches of the Hokies. What has always stood out to me about Virginia Tech has been its passionate fans and the atmosphere in Blacksburg. I can’t even describe how amped I would be if I was able to run out onto the field at Lane Stadium while “Enter Sandman” by Metallica was blasting over the PA system. I’ve been a Metallica fan for decades so I’ll never pass on an opportunity to jam out to one of their most iconic songs.
Along with a fun setting to play football at, Virginia Tech fans would be great to play in front of. When supporters of the Hokies descended upon Columbus in 2014 for the game between Ohio State and Virginia Tech, fans of the Hokies were pleasant. For some reason since I joined Twitter more than a decade ago, I’ve become friends with a number of Virginia Tech fans, so I’ve always had a soft spot for the Hokies. Can we replace Penn State fans in the Big Ten with Virginia Tech fans since Nittany Lions fans are mostly unbearable?
Even though Virginia Tech isn’t quite what it used to be on the football field, I would relish the challenge of trying to turn them back into a contender in the time I would be there. Since they are in the ACC, it’s not like there are a ton of obstacles in the way of winning the conference. Just look at Louisville, they brought in a new head coach and quarterback this year and made it all the way to the conference championship game.
Don’t worry any Hokie fans reading this, I’m 38 and even if I had any college eligibility, no coach would be interested in bringing me in. Just wanted you to know how much I admire your fan base and atmosphere!
Look, I’m not afraid to get up early or to push myself physically (as I like to remind all of my Instagram followers with regular, fairly pathetic videos from CrossFit classes), but there is just no possible way that I would ever survive four years at a service academy, be it at West Point, Annapolis, the Air Force Academy, the Coast Guard Academy, the Merchant Marine Academy, the Citadel, VMI, or even those uber-intense ROTC programs or whatever they are at Virginia Tech and Texas A&M.
Why you ask? The answer is simple: Math. All of those military academies want you to major in something like engineering or economics or robotics and every single one of those courses of study requires an understanding of math that not only surpasses my brain’s capabilities but exponentially exceeds it... the only problem is that — because it has to do with numbers — I’m not 100% sure that I’m using the term “exponentially” correctly in this context.
Now, I know that you don’t have to major in a numbers-based subject at all of the academies, and the options vary between which one you attend, but they still want you to take those courses and have a basic understanding of how they work, and, friends, that’s just not for me. When I was at Ohio State, I did everything I could to take the bare minimum math and science classes and found any loophole I could to take the least mathy and sciency versions possible.
I certainly want people flying military aircraft to have an advanced understanding of aerospace engineering and for everyone in the Army Corps of Engineers to have years of training in all things civil engineering, but I could take a decade’s worth of classes and I still wouldn’t understand the first page of those textbooks.
So, as I pace my name in the transfer portal, I am open to any school that has a good liberal arts degree track and something that doesn’t require me to use a calculator more advanced than the one that comes on my iPhone when I hold it vertically — because when I turn it sideways, that’s way too complicated for me.
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 Ryan Hunt/Getty Images
Your (almost) daily dose of good-natured, Ohio State banter.
Over the weekend news came out that former Ohio State quarterback Kyle McCord had decided on where he would be taking his talents after entering the transfer portal earlier this month. After flirting with Nebraska a bit, McCord surprised a lot of people by choosing to move on to Syracuse. By joining the Orange, not only will McCord not have to worry about a competition to win the starting quarterback position, he also will be playing for a head coach with some ties to where McCord grew up, as new Syracuse head coach Fran Brown has ties to Philadelphia and South Jersey.
Since McCord’s transfer destination was to a school that really wasn’t on anyone’s radar, today we figured we would get a little crazy with where we would transfer to if we entered the transfer portal. Not saying that McCord deciding to go to Syracuse was right or wrong, it is just very interesting since it has been a while since the Orange were relevant in college football. In the end, we hope this move turns out to be exactly what McCord was looking for.
Back to the question we posed about where your most surprising transfer portal destination would be. Today’s question doesn’t have to only take into consideration entering the transfer portal in football. Maybe your favorite college sport is basketball, hockey, volleyball, or any other collegiate sport that is played. With limits to your answers being low, there should be a bunch of interesting responses to today’s question!
Today’s question: Where would be your most surprising destination in the transfer portal?
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: Virginia Tech
I don’t know a lot about Virginia Tech coach Brent Pry, but I’m not really basing my decision much on the coaches of the Hokies. What has always stood out to me about Virginia Tech has been its passionate fans and the atmosphere in Blacksburg. I can’t even describe how amped I would be if I was able to run out onto the field at Lane Stadium while “Enter Sandman” by Metallica was blasting over the PA system. I’ve been a Metallica fan for decades so I’ll never pass on an opportunity to jam out to one of their most iconic songs.
Along with a fun setting to play football at, Virginia Tech fans would be great to play in front of. When supporters of the Hokies descended upon Columbus in 2014 for the game between Ohio State and Virginia Tech, fans of the Hokies were pleasant. For some reason since I joined Twitter more than a decade ago, I’ve become friends with a number of Virginia Tech fans, so I’ve always had a soft spot for the Hokies. Can we replace Penn State fans in the Big Ten with Virginia Tech fans since Nittany Lions fans are mostly unbearable?
Even though Virginia Tech isn’t quite what it used to be on the football field, I would relish the challenge of trying to turn them back into a contender in the time I would be there. Since they are in the ACC, it’s not like there are a ton of obstacles in the way of winning the conference. Just look at Louisville, they brought in a new head coach and quarterback this year and made it all the way to the conference championship game.
Don’t worry any Hokie fans reading this, I’m 38 and even if I had any college eligibility, no coach would be interested in bringing me in. Just wanted you to know how much I admire your fan base and atmosphere!
Matt’s answer: Any service academy
Look, I’m not afraid to get up early or to push myself physically (as I like to remind all of my Instagram followers with regular, fairly pathetic videos from CrossFit classes), but there is just no possible way that I would ever survive four years at a service academy, be it at West Point, Annapolis, the Air Force Academy, the Coast Guard Academy, the Merchant Marine Academy, the Citadel, VMI, or even those uber-intense ROTC programs or whatever they are at Virginia Tech and Texas A&M.
Why you ask? The answer is simple: Math. All of those military academies want you to major in something like engineering or economics or robotics and every single one of those courses of study requires an understanding of math that not only surpasses my brain’s capabilities but exponentially exceeds it... the only problem is that — because it has to do with numbers — I’m not 100% sure that I’m using the term “exponentially” correctly in this context.
Now, I know that you don’t have to major in a numbers-based subject at all of the academies, and the options vary between which one you attend, but they still want you to take those courses and have a basic understanding of how they work, and, friends, that’s just not for me. When I was at Ohio State, I did everything I could to take the bare minimum math and science classes and found any loophole I could to take the least mathy and sciency versions possible.
I certainly want people flying military aircraft to have an advanced understanding of aerospace engineering and for everyone in the Army Corps of Engineers to have years of training in all things civil engineering, but I could take a decade’s worth of classes and I still wouldn’t understand the first page of those textbooks.
So, as I pace my name in the transfer portal, I am open to any school that has a good liberal arts degree track and something that doesn’t require me to use a calculator more advanced than the one that comes on my iPhone when I hold it vertically — because when I turn it sideways, that’s way too complicated for me.
Continue reading...
LGHL Focused, aggressive Jacy Sheldon leading Ohio State women’s basketball into Big Ten play
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Focused, aggressive Jacy Sheldon leading Ohio State women’s basketball into Big Ten play
ThomasCostello via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Kirk Irwin/Getty Images
The graduate senior is scoring at unseen personal levels in five NCAA seasons
The 2023 offseason for Ohio State women’s basketball featured a lot of talk around the departure of guard Taylor Mikesell, and rightfully so. In two seasons in scarlet and gray, Mikesell was known for scoring and hitting big shots. Leaving the NCAA for professional basketball left the Buckeyes with a scoring deficit, and so far in the 2023-24 season, it’s been guard Jacy Sheldon filling it.
Although, that’s really no surprise because Sheldon’s done this before.
Looking past a bit of recency bias with the play of Mikesell from last season, leading the Buckeyes with 17.2 points per game, the Dublin, Ohio guard’s been the most consistent scorer for the scarlet and gray over the past four years.
During the 2021-22 season, the first with Mikesell as a Buckeye, Sheldon led Ohio State with 19.7 points and 4.2 assists per game. That season included three games where Sheldon scored at least 30 points across 32 games.
This year, Sheldon is arguably better.
“She’s really focused,” said head coach Kevin McGuff following Friday’s win over Belmont University. “She’s playing really aggressively, but within the system, and it’s really producing great results for us right now.”
In the Buckeyes’ 84-55 victory, Sheldon led the Buckeyes with 31 points, her second game in a row scoring at least 30 points. It’s already the third time hitting that milestone in only 12 games of the 23-24 season.
Sheldon’s slid into a Mikesell-like role where she’s become the benefactor of teammate movement and passing.
“We played really well together and once we started swinging it to each other, kind of got things going there in the second half,” Sheldon said.
Ohio State’s best work began in the second quarter. After a slow start where Belmont erased a six-point deficit and turned it into a two-point lead, Sheldon led the way; scoring nine points of the Buckeyes’ 17 points heading into halftime.
Getting the ball to the guard was clear on Friday. Sheldon’s performance included going 5-for-9 from beyond the arc, only the second time in her career that the guard hit at least five in a contest. However, that was only the half of it. Sheldon continued to do what she does best and drove into the paint.
When asked about her offense hitting a new level, Sheldon did what Sheldon does when individual attention comes her way: It’s deflected toward her teammates.
“I talk about our chemistry all the time, but it’s really working itself out,” said Sheldon. “We’re really learning how to play together.”
Sheldon’s led the Buckeyes in scoring in each of the last four games, and around her is a rotating group of teammates picking up baskets. Friday it was fellow graduate senior Celeste Taylor. Outside of the handful of dynamic defensive moments Taylor provides nightly, the Duke transfer had her best scoring game as a Buckeye with 15 points.
Against Penn State on Dec. 10, it was forward Cotie McMahon following Sheldon’s 31 points with a 27-point, eight-rebound, performance of her own. Against UCLA, despite the final outcome not going the Buckeyes’ way, guard/forward Taylor Thierry added 20 points, helping Sheldon and Ohio State almost erase a 22-point deficit in eight minutes.
The scarlet and gray are still improving, and that should be frightening for Big Ten opponents as the full remaining slate of conference games tips off on Dec. 30, in a trip to Ann Arbor, Michigan.
“Still got work to do, which I think is a good thing,” said Sheldon. “We haven’t reached our peak yet and we probably won’t for a while.”
As Ohio State ascends closer to that peak, it’ll be with Sheldon leading the way.
Continue reading...
ThomasCostello via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Kirk Irwin/Getty Images
The graduate senior is scoring at unseen personal levels in five NCAA seasons
The 2023 offseason for Ohio State women’s basketball featured a lot of talk around the departure of guard Taylor Mikesell, and rightfully so. In two seasons in scarlet and gray, Mikesell was known for scoring and hitting big shots. Leaving the NCAA for professional basketball left the Buckeyes with a scoring deficit, and so far in the 2023-24 season, it’s been guard Jacy Sheldon filling it.
Although, that’s really no surprise because Sheldon’s done this before.
Looking past a bit of recency bias with the play of Mikesell from last season, leading the Buckeyes with 17.2 points per game, the Dublin, Ohio guard’s been the most consistent scorer for the scarlet and gray over the past four years.
During the 2021-22 season, the first with Mikesell as a Buckeye, Sheldon led Ohio State with 19.7 points and 4.2 assists per game. That season included three games where Sheldon scored at least 30 points across 32 games.
This year, Sheldon is arguably better.
“She’s really focused,” said head coach Kevin McGuff following Friday’s win over Belmont University. “She’s playing really aggressively, but within the system, and it’s really producing great results for us right now.”
In the Buckeyes’ 84-55 victory, Sheldon led the Buckeyes with 31 points, her second game in a row scoring at least 30 points. It’s already the third time hitting that milestone in only 12 games of the 23-24 season.
Sheldon’s slid into a Mikesell-like role where she’s become the benefactor of teammate movement and passing.
“We played really well together and once we started swinging it to each other, kind of got things going there in the second half,” Sheldon said.
Ohio State’s best work began in the second quarter. After a slow start where Belmont erased a six-point deficit and turned it into a two-point lead, Sheldon led the way; scoring nine points of the Buckeyes’ 17 points heading into halftime.
Getting the ball to the guard was clear on Friday. Sheldon’s performance included going 5-for-9 from beyond the arc, only the second time in her career that the guard hit at least five in a contest. However, that was only the half of it. Sheldon continued to do what she does best and drove into the paint.
@JacySheldon was on in the first half with 18 points!#GoBucks pic.twitter.com/CN0krtdQZR
— Ohio State WBB (@OhioStateWBB) December 22, 2023
When asked about her offense hitting a new level, Sheldon did what Sheldon does when individual attention comes her way: It’s deflected toward her teammates.
“I talk about our chemistry all the time, but it’s really working itself out,” said Sheldon. “We’re really learning how to play together.”
Sheldon’s led the Buckeyes in scoring in each of the last four games, and around her is a rotating group of teammates picking up baskets. Friday it was fellow graduate senior Celeste Taylor. Outside of the handful of dynamic defensive moments Taylor provides nightly, the Duke transfer had her best scoring game as a Buckeye with 15 points.
Against Penn State on Dec. 10, it was forward Cotie McMahon following Sheldon’s 31 points with a 27-point, eight-rebound, performance of her own. Against UCLA, despite the final outcome not going the Buckeyes’ way, guard/forward Taylor Thierry added 20 points, helping Sheldon and Ohio State almost erase a 22-point deficit in eight minutes.
The scarlet and gray are still improving, and that should be frightening for Big Ten opponents as the full remaining slate of conference games tips off on Dec. 30, in a trip to Ann Arbor, Michigan.
“Still got work to do, which I think is a good thing,” said Sheldon. “We haven’t reached our peak yet and we probably won’t for a while.”
As Ohio State ascends closer to that peak, it’ll be with Sheldon leading the way.
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LGHL You’re Nuts: What Christmas gift would you give the Ohio State women’s basketball team?
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You’re Nuts: What Christmas gift would you give the Ohio State women’s basketball team?
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK
Your (almost) daily dose of good-natured, Ohio State banter.
Everybody knows that one of the best parts of being a sports fan is debating and dissecting the most (and least) important questions in the sporting world with your friends. So, we’re bringing that to the pages of LGHL with our favorite head-to-head column: You’re Nuts.
In You’re Nuts, two LGHL staff members will take differing sides of one question and argue their opinions passionately. Then, in the end, it’s up to you to determine who’s right and who’s nuts.
It’s the festive time of the year and that means giving gifts. Ohio State women’s basketball is well known for its ability to take things from opponents, namely steals through a high-intensity press. However, this season the Buckeyes have been generous against its biggest opponents: Giving them opportunities to rebound.
Now, I’d give more rebounding to the group, but that isn’t something that the scarlet and gray have needed over the past two seasons to come away with wins.
Monday night, against the UCLA Bruins, there was a strong likelihood that the away side was going to come out on top in the rebound margin, and they did. After all, the Bruins featured 6-foot-7 center Lauren Betts and four additional players averaging at least five rebounds per game. UCLA outrebounded Ohio State 40-30.
Even so, the Buckeyes were within two possessions at the final whistle. What would have gotten Ohio State the victory? Better shooting.
This offseason, the scarlet and gray were left with a huge hole from beyond the arc with the graduation and move to the professional ranks for guard Taylor Mikesell. The Northeast Ohio native left the NCAA with three seasons leading the Big Ten in made three-point shots and her final season in second (although the 116 made was a career-high in a season, only eclipsed last year by Iowa’s Caitlin Clark). Mikesell’s impact wasn’t only felt on the scoreboard, in the three-point stat line.
No, Mikesell gave everyone more room to move. The shooting gave defenses fits, forcing double-teams on the guard. Mikesell hit the most in a single season with the opposition throwing not only its best defender but often a second to help because of the lightning-quick release.
This isn’t a dig at the Buckeyes today because the players in the 23-24 season have different strengths than Mikesell, in areas where the shooting guard wasn’t the strongest. For example, even though it's a down year hitting shots from deep, Ohio State is second in the conference in stopping opponents from hitting threes. The gift is a few more makes a game.
Currently, Ohio State sits 12th out of 14 Big Ten teams in three-point average, and ninth in makes per game. After the game Monday, against UCLA, Betts spoke with the media and said that the lack of shooting from deep allowed her to play closer to the paint. Playing closer to the paint meant players like guard Jacy Sheldon and forwards Taylor Thierry and Cotie McMahon had less success going to the rim.
McMahon had seven points, and six came from beyond the arc. Sheldon and Thierry, who led the game with 30 and 20 points respectively, scored a combined five from beyond the arc. When those shots were falling, Ohio State was either winning or cutting away at leads.
The more threes go in, the more the defense has to move. The more the defense moves, the more other players have room to maneuver.
This holiday wish is replacing the classic, “You’ll shoot your eye out” with a Buckeyes rendition of, “You’ll shoot the lights out.”
Football? What’s a football?
Far be it for me to disagree with anything Thomas says about the Ohio State women’s basketball team, because not only is he our resident expert, but he is also the best there is at covering the team, but based on my much less expert viewing of the team so far this season, I am asking Santa to slip an elite post player under the tree tonight.
The Buckeyes’ top-rebounder is currently 6-foot wing Taylor Thierry. She heads into Christmas with 73 boards, which is good for only 18th in the conference. Second on the team is 6-foot-1 forward Cotie McMahon, who has 64, outside of the conference’s top 25. As a team, Ohio State ranked 11th in the conference in total rebounding. And I recognize that because of the suffocating style of defense that the Buckeyes play, their opponents don’t get off as many shots as they often do otherwise (OSU has allowed the fourth fewest field goal attempts in the B1G this season), but that doesn’t account for the full rebounding disparity.
As Thomas mentioned above, in the Buckeyes loss to UCLA, they were outrebounded 40-30 by their future conference foe. That is just a few weeks after OSU lost to another soon-to-be B1G colleague as they fell to USC by a score of 83-74. In that game, the Buckeyes lost the rebounding battle 43-28.
Now, I am not saying that Kevin McGuff’s team lost both of those games strictly because they were beaten on the glass, but it certainly feels that there is more causation than correlation there.
So far this season, the Buckeyes are also 11th in the conference in blocked shots, so at the top of my Christmas list for the team is that in 2024, a dominant post presence is developed, whether that is someone currently on the roster like veteran Rebeka Mikulášiková or true-freshman Faith Carson, or if Santa wants to work some of his holiday magic to bypass NCAA rules and gift an All-American center to the team on Christmas morning.
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
Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK
Your (almost) daily dose of good-natured, Ohio State banter.
Everybody knows that one of the best parts of being a sports fan is debating and dissecting the most (and least) important questions in the sporting world with your friends. So, we’re bringing that to the pages of LGHL with our favorite head-to-head column: You’re Nuts.
In You’re Nuts, two LGHL staff members will take differing sides of one question and argue their opinions passionately. Then, in the end, it’s up to you to determine who’s right and who’s nuts.
Today’s Question: What Christmas gift would you give the Ohio State women’s basketball team?
Thomas’ Take: Consistent Three-Point Shooting
It’s the festive time of the year and that means giving gifts. Ohio State women’s basketball is well known for its ability to take things from opponents, namely steals through a high-intensity press. However, this season the Buckeyes have been generous against its biggest opponents: Giving them opportunities to rebound.
Now, I’d give more rebounding to the group, but that isn’t something that the scarlet and gray have needed over the past two seasons to come away with wins.
Monday night, against the UCLA Bruins, there was a strong likelihood that the away side was going to come out on top in the rebound margin, and they did. After all, the Bruins featured 6-foot-7 center Lauren Betts and four additional players averaging at least five rebounds per game. UCLA outrebounded Ohio State 40-30.
Even so, the Buckeyes were within two possessions at the final whistle. What would have gotten Ohio State the victory? Better shooting.
This offseason, the scarlet and gray were left with a huge hole from beyond the arc with the graduation and move to the professional ranks for guard Taylor Mikesell. The Northeast Ohio native left the NCAA with three seasons leading the Big Ten in made three-point shots and her final season in second (although the 116 made was a career-high in a season, only eclipsed last year by Iowa’s Caitlin Clark). Mikesell’s impact wasn’t only felt on the scoreboard, in the three-point stat line.
No, Mikesell gave everyone more room to move. The shooting gave defenses fits, forcing double-teams on the guard. Mikesell hit the most in a single season with the opposition throwing not only its best defender but often a second to help because of the lightning-quick release.
This isn’t a dig at the Buckeyes today because the players in the 23-24 season have different strengths than Mikesell, in areas where the shooting guard wasn’t the strongest. For example, even though it's a down year hitting shots from deep, Ohio State is second in the conference in stopping opponents from hitting threes. The gift is a few more makes a game.
Currently, Ohio State sits 12th out of 14 Big Ten teams in three-point average, and ninth in makes per game. After the game Monday, against UCLA, Betts spoke with the media and said that the lack of shooting from deep allowed her to play closer to the paint. Playing closer to the paint meant players like guard Jacy Sheldon and forwards Taylor Thierry and Cotie McMahon had less success going to the rim.
McMahon had seven points, and six came from beyond the arc. Sheldon and Thierry, who led the game with 30 and 20 points respectively, scored a combined five from beyond the arc. When those shots were falling, Ohio State was either winning or cutting away at leads.
The more threes go in, the more the defense has to move. The more the defense moves, the more other players have room to maneuver.
This holiday wish is replacing the classic, “You’ll shoot your eye out” with a Buckeyes rendition of, “You’ll shoot the lights out.”
Football? What’s a football?
Matt’s Take: A Dominant Post Presence
Far be it for me to disagree with anything Thomas says about the Ohio State women’s basketball team, because not only is he our resident expert, but he is also the best there is at covering the team, but based on my much less expert viewing of the team so far this season, I am asking Santa to slip an elite post player under the tree tonight.
The Buckeyes’ top-rebounder is currently 6-foot wing Taylor Thierry. She heads into Christmas with 73 boards, which is good for only 18th in the conference. Second on the team is 6-foot-1 forward Cotie McMahon, who has 64, outside of the conference’s top 25. As a team, Ohio State ranked 11th in the conference in total rebounding. And I recognize that because of the suffocating style of defense that the Buckeyes play, their opponents don’t get off as many shots as they often do otherwise (OSU has allowed the fourth fewest field goal attempts in the B1G this season), but that doesn’t account for the full rebounding disparity.
As Thomas mentioned above, in the Buckeyes loss to UCLA, they were outrebounded 40-30 by their future conference foe. That is just a few weeks after OSU lost to another soon-to-be B1G colleague as they fell to USC by a score of 83-74. In that game, the Buckeyes lost the rebounding battle 43-28.
Now, I am not saying that Kevin McGuff’s team lost both of those games strictly because they were beaten on the glass, but it certainly feels that there is more causation than correlation there.
So far this season, the Buckeyes are also 11th in the conference in blocked shots, so at the top of my Christmas list for the team is that in 2024, a dominant post presence is developed, whether that is someone currently on the roster like veteran Rebeka Mikulášiková or true-freshman Faith Carson, or if Santa wants to work some of his holiday magic to bypass NCAA rules and gift an All-American center to the team on Christmas morning.
Continue reading...
