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LGHL Ohio State dishes out handful of new offers on Wednesday, emerging for 2026 QB target
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Ohio State dishes out handful of new offers on Wednesday, emerging for 2026 QB target
Caleb Houser 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 via Imagn Images
The Buckeyes stay busy on the recruiting trail offering a handful of new names in the current and future cycles.
When it comes to the 2027 class at wide receiver, Ohio State couldn’t be off to a better start.
Brian Hartline has already snatched up the top-ranked player at the position thanks to Huber Heights Wayne product Jamier Brown as the trend of landing the top receivers continues. The No. 6 player nationally per the 247Sports Composite has been committed since November 2024, and while he’d be enough for most classes to be excited about, on Wednesday Hartline was out looking for more.
Making a stop in Indiana, one of the latest offers to be extended was to Lawrence North’s Monshun Sales. A 6-foot-5, 195 pound receiver, Sales is ranked just one spot below Brown as the No. 14 player nationally and second best receiver per the 247Sports Composite.
With 30-plus schools already in the fold, Sales holds offers from the likes of Alabama, Auburn, LSU, Miami, Notre Dame, Oregon, Penn State, Tennessee, and several others. Ohio State now officially entering this race, you have to imagine Hartline’s track record immediately gives the Buckeyes an edge, and it doesn’t hurt that he’s just one state away.
As it’s been seen time and time again, when Hartline zeros in on a player, he tends to get what he wants. It won’t be a shock to see him go all in for Sales, who poses a ton of ability. His frame alone is a dream for any coach looking to stretch the field. Getting him to campus in the very near future will be the next mission, but plan on hearing this name often moving forward.
Keeping with the receiver position, Hartline continued a busy Wednesday when he sent out an additional offer to California native, Quentin Hale. Taking to his social media to share the latest, Ohio State joins a list of nearly 20 schools to be in the mix including Arizona State, North Carolina, Oregon, Tennessee, USC, Washington, and a host of others.
Another longer prospect, Hale checks in at 6-foot-3, 175 pounds and grades out as the No. 70 player nationally and 13th best receiver per the 247Sports Composite.
Typically adding at least three receivers in each class, seeing these new offers go out shows Hartline’s desire to have things rolling sooner rather than later to join the aforementioned Brown. With these major recruiting weeks coming up in June, the Buckeyes are going to be bringing in elite players seemingly each day, so seeing these newly offered players making the trek to campus should be in the works.
Moving to the defensive side of the ball, one of the Ohio State staffers that has been as impressive as it gets is linebackers coach, James Laurinaitis. Proving his worth both on and off the field, top prospects in the 2026 class are taking notice of his development, but he’s also taking time to work on the 2027 class. Wednesday gave way to one of his most recent offers when California native Isaiah Phelps received the good news.
A 6-foot-1, 200 pound athlete, Phelps is currently the No. 254 player nationally and 16th best linebacker per the 247Sports Composite for his cycle. Another impressive offer list of 20-plus schools, Phelps has Auburn, Michigan, Notre Dame, Oregon, Stanford, Tennessee, Texas, and USC among others interested.
Simply put, it’s no surprise to see him as highly-touted for his position when it comes to the rankings, and a big reason as to why the Buckeyes are showing their own interest. Recruiting California maybe harder than ever, having the west coast in the Big Ten landscape certainly doesn’t hurt Ohio State’s chances here.
Continue reading...
Caleb Houser 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 via Imagn Images
The Buckeyes stay busy on the recruiting trail offering a handful of new names in the current and future cycles.
When it comes to the 2027 class at wide receiver, Ohio State couldn’t be off to a better start.
Brian Hartline has already snatched up the top-ranked player at the position thanks to Huber Heights Wayne product Jamier Brown as the trend of landing the top receivers continues. The No. 6 player nationally per the 247Sports Composite has been committed since November 2024, and while he’d be enough for most classes to be excited about, on Wednesday Hartline was out looking for more.
Making a stop in Indiana, one of the latest offers to be extended was to Lawrence North’s Monshun Sales. A 6-foot-5, 195 pound receiver, Sales is ranked just one spot below Brown as the No. 14 player nationally and second best receiver per the 247Sports Composite.
With 30-plus schools already in the fold, Sales holds offers from the likes of Alabama, Auburn, LSU, Miami, Notre Dame, Oregon, Penn State, Tennessee, and several others. Ohio State now officially entering this race, you have to imagine Hartline’s track record immediately gives the Buckeyes an edge, and it doesn’t hurt that he’s just one state away.
As it’s been seen time and time again, when Hartline zeros in on a player, he tends to get what he wants. It won’t be a shock to see him go all in for Sales, who poses a ton of ability. His frame alone is a dream for any coach looking to stretch the field. Getting him to campus in the very near future will be the next mission, but plan on hearing this name often moving forward.
#AGTG After a great conversation with @brianhartline I am blessed to receive an offer from @OhioStateFB@coach_mal @CoachMillz_ @CoachKelich @IAMCOACHWILSON pic.twitter.com/P7lpLHFNwC
— Monshun “Showtime” Sales (@__1problem) May 21, 2025
Keeping with the receiver position, Hartline continued a busy Wednesday when he sent out an additional offer to California native, Quentin Hale. Taking to his social media to share the latest, Ohio State joins a list of nearly 20 schools to be in the mix including Arizona State, North Carolina, Oregon, Tennessee, USC, Washington, and a host of others.
Another longer prospect, Hale checks in at 6-foot-3, 175 pounds and grades out as the No. 70 player nationally and 13th best receiver per the 247Sports Composite.
Typically adding at least three receivers in each class, seeing these new offers go out shows Hartline’s desire to have things rolling sooner rather than later to join the aforementioned Brown. With these major recruiting weeks coming up in June, the Buckeyes are going to be bringing in elite players seemingly each day, so seeing these newly offered players making the trek to campus should be in the works.
#AG2G
Extremely blessed and grateful to have received an offer from The University Of Ohio State #gobuckeyes pic.twitter.com/XaP3jXTIL0
— Quentin Hale 4️ (@QuentinHalee15) May 21, 2025
Moving to the defensive side of the ball, one of the Ohio State staffers that has been as impressive as it gets is linebackers coach, James Laurinaitis. Proving his worth both on and off the field, top prospects in the 2026 class are taking notice of his development, but he’s also taking time to work on the 2027 class. Wednesday gave way to one of his most recent offers when California native Isaiah Phelps received the good news.
A 6-foot-1, 200 pound athlete, Phelps is currently the No. 254 player nationally and 16th best linebacker per the 247Sports Composite for his cycle. Another impressive offer list of 20-plus schools, Phelps has Auburn, Michigan, Notre Dame, Oregon, Stanford, Tennessee, Texas, and USC among others interested.
Simply put, it’s no surprise to see him as highly-touted for his position when it comes to the rankings, and a big reason as to why the Buckeyes are showing their own interest. Recruiting California maybe harder than ever, having the west coast in the Big Ten landscape certainly doesn’t hurt Ohio State’s chances here.
Quick Hits
- Still searching for their class of 2026 quarterback commit, the Buckeyes have had no shortage of offers sent out, but are now seeing a potential for prospect Luke Fahey to be a real contender to take that spot. The No. 355 player nationally and 23rd best signal caller per the 247Sports Composite, Fahey has nearly 30 offers to his name. While that doesn’t yet include the Buckeyes, that soon could change.
Continue reading...
LGHL BOOOOM! Buckeyes find new scholarship QB, men’s basketball target exits NBA Draft
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BOOOOM! Buckeyes find new scholarship QB, men’s basketball target exits NBA Draft
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
@EliBrickhandler
The OSU football team lands Eli Brickhandler, while men’s hoops hopes to land Darrion Williams.
We’ve long known that Ryan Day and the Ohio State Buckeyes would need to add a fourth scholarship quarterback. Coming out of the spring, the roster only had three QBs, and none of them had much experience; in fact, the three combine for a total of 34 collegiate pass attempts (and only 15 completions).
While the position battle is going to come down to the heir apparent Julian Sayin (5-for-12 for 84 yards) and Lincoln Keinholz (10-for-22 for 111 yards), with true freshman Tavien St. Clair waiting in the wings, Day always likes to have a veteran guy in the mix, to serve as an emergency option and someone to show the young pups how to carry themselves as college signal callers.
Well, on Tuesday, the Buckeyes found their fourth in the form of former Houston Christian quarterback Eli Brickhandler — yes, that’s his real name.
Despite being a graduate transfer, the newest Buckeye has two years of eligibility remaining. He started his career at North Carolina A&T and then headed to Houston after two seasons. Last year, he shared the QB responsibilities with Cutter Stewart — also his real name — and completed just 49.4% of his passes (38-of-77) for 557 yards, 4 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions, adding 4 touchdowns on the ground; obviously not wildly exciting numbers if Ohio State ever needed to call on him to take the offensive reigns.
But Brickhandler isn’t coming to Columbus to contend for playing time, and he will clearly be QB4, but he will be a veteran who can run the scout team, and give OSU’s defense convincing reps against a mobile QB.
Welcome to the family, Eli.
Moving from the gridiron to the hardwood, a few puzzle pieces seem to be slowly coming together for Jake Diebler’s men’s basketball team. The second-year head coach has been holding one spot on his roster to try and find the perfect fit to help get his squad back to the NCAA Tournament.
This offseason, Diebs has already dipped into the transfer portal to add centers Joshua Ojianwuna (Baylor) and Christoph Tilly (Santa Clara), power forward Brandon Noel (Wright State), and point guard Gabe Cupps (Indiana). All of those players will bring experience to the team (although Ojianwuna will likely be out for a while rehabbing an ACL tear), but the Buckeyes still need someone who can make an immediate impact. Perhaps someone who averaged 15.1 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 3.6 assists for a team that made it to the Elite 8 before losing by 5 points to the eventual national champions.
Yesterday, former Texas Tech Red Raider Darrion Williams officially withdrew from the NBA Draft process, and according to CBS Sports’ Matt Norlander, “Ohio State is the team to watch here, though not guaranteed, they are considered the favorites for Darrion Williams.”
This news comes on the day after The Columbus Dispatch’s Adam Jardy reported that William’s Texas Tech teammate Devan Cambridge had opted not to take a visit to Columbus, and on the same day that he committed to UCF.
If Williams was going to be available, there is no doubt that the Buckeyes would go with him over just about anyone else still available. He is the No. 6 player in the transfer portal and the No. 2 power forward, and would instantly join the Buckeyes’ starting lineup.
Now, there are other schools reportedly in the mix, including Kansas, N.C. State, BYU, and Auburn, but there is a lot of smoke around Williams potentially joining Bruce Thornton, John Mobley, Devin Royal, Micah Parrish, Taison Chatman, and the rest of the aforementioned transfers.
I don’t know much, and I am an affirmed homer, but that seems like it would make for a pretty exciting rotation for Diebler to play with heading into the 2025-26 season.
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
@EliBrickhandler
The OSU football team lands Eli Brickhandler, while men’s hoops hopes to land Darrion Williams.
We’ve long known that Ryan Day and the Ohio State Buckeyes would need to add a fourth scholarship quarterback. Coming out of the spring, the roster only had three QBs, and none of them had much experience; in fact, the three combine for a total of 34 collegiate pass attempts (and only 15 completions).
While the position battle is going to come down to the heir apparent Julian Sayin (5-for-12 for 84 yards) and Lincoln Keinholz (10-for-22 for 111 yards), with true freshman Tavien St. Clair waiting in the wings, Day always likes to have a veteran guy in the mix, to serve as an emergency option and someone to show the young pups how to carry themselves as college signal callers.
Well, on Tuesday, the Buckeyes found their fourth in the form of former Houston Christian quarterback Eli Brickhandler — yes, that’s his real name.
Despite being a graduate transfer, the newest Buckeye has two years of eligibility remaining. He started his career at North Carolina A&T and then headed to Houston after two seasons. Last year, he shared the QB responsibilities with Cutter Stewart — also his real name — and completed just 49.4% of his passes (38-of-77) for 557 yards, 4 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions, adding 4 touchdowns on the ground; obviously not wildly exciting numbers if Ohio State ever needed to call on him to take the offensive reigns.
But Brickhandler isn’t coming to Columbus to contend for playing time, and he will clearly be QB4, but he will be a veteran who can run the scout team, and give OSU’s defense convincing reps against a mobile QB.
Welcome to the family, Eli.
Moving from the gridiron to the hardwood, a few puzzle pieces seem to be slowly coming together for Jake Diebler’s men’s basketball team. The second-year head coach has been holding one spot on his roster to try and find the perfect fit to help get his squad back to the NCAA Tournament.
This offseason, Diebs has already dipped into the transfer portal to add centers Joshua Ojianwuna (Baylor) and Christoph Tilly (Santa Clara), power forward Brandon Noel (Wright State), and point guard Gabe Cupps (Indiana). All of those players will bring experience to the team (although Ojianwuna will likely be out for a while rehabbing an ACL tear), but the Buckeyes still need someone who can make an immediate impact. Perhaps someone who averaged 15.1 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 3.6 assists for a team that made it to the Elite 8 before losing by 5 points to the eventual national champions.
Yesterday, former Texas Tech Red Raider Darrion Williams officially withdrew from the NBA Draft process, and according to CBS Sports’ Matt Norlander, “Ohio State is the team to watch here, though not guaranteed, they are considered the favorites for Darrion Williams.”
This news comes on the day after The Columbus Dispatch’s Adam Jardy reported that William’s Texas Tech teammate Devan Cambridge had opted not to take a visit to Columbus, and on the same day that he committed to UCF.
If Williams was going to be available, there is no doubt that the Buckeyes would go with him over just about anyone else still available. He is the No. 6 player in the transfer portal and the No. 2 power forward, and would instantly join the Buckeyes’ starting lineup.
Now, there are other schools reportedly in the mix, including Kansas, N.C. State, BYU, and Auburn, but there is a lot of smoke around Williams potentially joining Bruce Thornton, John Mobley, Devin Royal, Micah Parrish, Taison Chatman, and the rest of the aforementioned transfers.
I don’t know much, and I am an affirmed homer, but that seems like it would make for a pretty exciting rotation for Diebler to play with heading into the 2025-26 season.
Continue reading...
2027 CA WR Quentin Hale (Verbal Offer)
- By pnuts34
- Football Recruiting
- 0 Replies
247
Rivals
Twitter
HudL
Class: 2027
Position: WR
School: Los Angeles(CA) Cathedral
Height: 6-foot-3
Weight: 175lbs
Login to view embedded media
Rivals
HudL
Class: 2027
Position: WR
School: Los Angeles(CA) Cathedral
Height: 6-foot-3
Weight: 175lbs
Login to view embedded media
LGHL If I were in charge, Jake Diebler would be allowed to add his brother to his coaching staff
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If I were in charge, Jake Diebler would be allowed to add his brother to his coaching staff
Brett Ludwiczak via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Greg Bartram-USA TODAY Sports
Ohio State football has gotten creative to avoid nepotism laws with some assistant coach hires, so Diebler can too.
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 what we would do if we were in charge of our favorite position group, team, conference, or sport. You can catch up on all of the Theme Week content here and all of our ”If I Was in Charge” articles here.
Jake Diebler’s first full season as Ohio State men’s basketball coach was pretty disappointing. The Buckeyes would post a 17-15 record in the 2024-25 season, failing to make the NCAA Tournament for a third straight season. Among the reasons for another season of mediocrity for Ohio State was a number of transfers failing to live up to expectations.
Meechie Johnson returned to Ohio State after spending two years at South Carolina, but only played in a handful of games before sitting out the rest of the season due to personal reasons.
Kentucky transfer Aaron Bradshaw was unavailable for a few games due to a legal investigation into an off-campus incident, while Duke transfer Sean Stewart pretty much spent the whole season in foul trouble.
Johnson will head back to South Carolina for the upcoming season, Bradshaw is off to Memphis, and Stewart will stay in the Big Ten after moving on to Oregon in the transfer portal.
An even bigger issue for Diebler after taking over as the Ohio State’s permanent men’s basketball head coach following the firing of Chris Holtmann was that the new head coach wasn’t allowed to hire his brother, former Buckeye sharpshooter Jon Diebler.
Ohio’s nepotism laws kept Jake Diebler from giving a public contract to a family member since Diebler himself is a public employee. These laws were first enacted in 1973 and have been revised and strengthened multiple times, most recently just last year.
But, the way they are set up means that Jon Diebler could accept a position on Kevin McGuff’s coaching staff for the women’s basketball team, but working on his brother’s staff is a no-no, even though he would be a home run hire.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/26001825/usa_today_25652202.jpg "NCAA Basketball: Big Ten Conference Tournament First Round-Ohio State vs Iowa")
Robert Goddin-Imagn Images
I can understand situations where Ohio’s nepotism law is necessary. This isn’t one of those situations. Jon Diebler was Ohio's Mr. Basketball in high school before playing at Ohio State from 2007 to 2011.
Following his college years, Diebler would go on to play overseas for a decade before being hired by Butler as their Director of Recruiting in April 2022. Despite not yet holding an assistant coaching position, it’s quite obvious that Diebler is certainly qualified to hold an assistant coaching position.
Had the hire been allowed, Jake Diebler would have made his brother the fifth assistant coach, as well as one of his on-the-road recruiters. Instead, Diebler’s assistant coaches were Joel Justus, Dave Dickerson, Jamall Walker, Talor Battle, and Luke Simons.
Diebler and Simons were both on staff under Bryce Drew at Valparaiso, so it’s likely that Simons filled the spot that Diebler had tabbed for his brother since Simons hadn’t held an assistant coaching position until last season.
What makes Jon Diebler being denied an assistant coaching position on his brother’s coaching staff even more annoying is that there have been a few assistant coaching hires for the football team that look pretty similar to what Jake Diebler wanted to do.
When Urban Meyer was head coach at Ohio State, his son-in-law was a member of his coaching staff. Corey Dennis started as an intern at Ohio State in 2015, eventually working his way up to quarterbacks coach in 2020 on Ryan Day’s staff. While many will likely speak positively about the work Dennis put in during his time in Columbus, even he knows that the only reason he was a Buckeye intern and then assistant was because he married Meyer’s daughter.
Before Meyer brought in Dennis, head coach Jim Tressel hired his brother, Dr. Dick Tressel. At first, Dick Tressel was associate director of football operations before he was moved to running backs coach. Some may think Tressel adding his brother to the coaching staff was nepotism but Dick Tressel was head coach in Division III at Hamline University from 1978 to 2000. With such an extensive coaching career before coming to Ohio State, Dick Tressel was more than qualified for a position on the Buckeye football coaching staff.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/26001828/1702738560.jpg "Ohio State v Notre Dame")
Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images
It could be argued that since Dennis and the other Tressel were initially hired at lower-level positions before being elevated to assistant coach status, they were actually hired by other assistant coaches and coordinators, rather than their father-in-law and brother. But we all know head coaches are control freaks, so they definitely signed off on the hires. Maybe Jake Diebler should have gotten creative to add his brother to last year’s coaching staff.
It’s hard to imagine that Ohio’s nepotism laws were created to keep one of the most dangerous three-point shooters in Ohio State history off of his brother’s coaching staff. Would the Buckeyes have been more competitive and made the NCAA Tournament this year had Diebler been able to hire his brother as an assistant? Who really knows if that would have made much of a difference when it comes to Ohio State’s performance during the 2024-25 season, but it certainly wouldn’t have hurt to have someone who played at the level Diebler did working with the Buckeyes all season.
In my opinion, if you are Jake Diebler and the athletic department, you have to get creative to find a way to bring Jon Diebler into the fold.
For those who are going to say that it is tough to skirt a state law. Apparently not, since a couple of the football coaches were able to do it to bring in family members. Had the men’s basketball team been at the height of its powers, like when Thad Matta took the team to a couple of Final Fours, you would have seen a creative solution found to add Jon Diebler to his the staff.
I’m guessing the athletic department felt the headache of trying to prove this wasn’t a nepotism hire wasn’t worth it, since the basketball program was already dealing with so many problems.
If clowns like the “pitbull lawyer” representative from Toledo can waste time with trying to get flag planting at college sporting events made a felony, then we can see some changes to Ohio’s nepotism laws, since Jake Diebler needs all the help he can get after seeing what he did in his first full season as head coach at Ohio State.
Jon Diebler will likely forget more about basketball than the rest of us will ever know, so saying he is getting a job just because his brother is the head coach is dead wrong. Any Buckeye basketball head coach would give serious consideration to hiring Diebler if they had the chance to bring him in as an assistant.
When it comes to an assistant coaching hire for Ohio State, family or not, the one question asked should be, “Will this be a better hire than when Urban Meyer hired the best man from his wedding, Billy Davis?”
If the answer is “Yes” (which in pretty much every case it will be), then any nepotism laws shouldn’t matter. The Davis hire was infinitely more infuriating than Diebler possibly bringing in his brother, since Davis was terrible at his job, though admittedly, he did have a decent resume before taking the position.
I would hope that common sense would prevail in a situation like Diebler’s, but it is quite obvious that common sense waved bye-bye to a lot of people in Ohio, as well as around the country, a long time ago. Since whatever the basketball program is trying to do isn’t working, they might as well try and push some boundaries since the football program has found a way to make it work for them.
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
Greg Bartram-USA TODAY Sports
Ohio State football has gotten creative to avoid nepotism laws with some assistant coach hires, so Diebler can too.
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 what we would do if we were in charge of our favorite position group, team, conference, or sport. You can catch up on all of the Theme Week content here and all of our ”If I Was in Charge” articles here.
Jake Diebler’s first full season as Ohio State men’s basketball coach was pretty disappointing. The Buckeyes would post a 17-15 record in the 2024-25 season, failing to make the NCAA Tournament for a third straight season. Among the reasons for another season of mediocrity for Ohio State was a number of transfers failing to live up to expectations.
Meechie Johnson returned to Ohio State after spending two years at South Carolina, but only played in a handful of games before sitting out the rest of the season due to personal reasons.
Kentucky transfer Aaron Bradshaw was unavailable for a few games due to a legal investigation into an off-campus incident, while Duke transfer Sean Stewart pretty much spent the whole season in foul trouble.
Johnson will head back to South Carolina for the upcoming season, Bradshaw is off to Memphis, and Stewart will stay in the Big Ten after moving on to Oregon in the transfer portal.
An even bigger issue for Diebler after taking over as the Ohio State’s permanent men’s basketball head coach following the firing of Chris Holtmann was that the new head coach wasn’t allowed to hire his brother, former Buckeye sharpshooter Jon Diebler.
Ohio’s nepotism laws kept Jake Diebler from giving a public contract to a family member since Diebler himself is a public employee. These laws were first enacted in 1973 and have been revised and strengthened multiple times, most recently just last year.
But, the way they are set up means that Jon Diebler could accept a position on Kevin McGuff’s coaching staff for the women’s basketball team, but working on his brother’s staff is a no-no, even though he would be a home run hire.
I can understand situations where Ohio’s nepotism law is necessary. This isn’t one of those situations. Jon Diebler was Ohio's Mr. Basketball in high school before playing at Ohio State from 2007 to 2011.
Following his college years, Diebler would go on to play overseas for a decade before being hired by Butler as their Director of Recruiting in April 2022. Despite not yet holding an assistant coaching position, it’s quite obvious that Diebler is certainly qualified to hold an assistant coaching position.
Had the hire been allowed, Jake Diebler would have made his brother the fifth assistant coach, as well as one of his on-the-road recruiters. Instead, Diebler’s assistant coaches were Joel Justus, Dave Dickerson, Jamall Walker, Talor Battle, and Luke Simons.
Diebler and Simons were both on staff under Bryce Drew at Valparaiso, so it’s likely that Simons filled the spot that Diebler had tabbed for his brother since Simons hadn’t held an assistant coaching position until last season.
What makes Jon Diebler being denied an assistant coaching position on his brother’s coaching staff even more annoying is that there have been a few assistant coaching hires for the football team that look pretty similar to what Jake Diebler wanted to do.
When Urban Meyer was head coach at Ohio State, his son-in-law was a member of his coaching staff. Corey Dennis started as an intern at Ohio State in 2015, eventually working his way up to quarterbacks coach in 2020 on Ryan Day’s staff. While many will likely speak positively about the work Dennis put in during his time in Columbus, even he knows that the only reason he was a Buckeye intern and then assistant was because he married Meyer’s daughter.
Before Meyer brought in Dennis, head coach Jim Tressel hired his brother, Dr. Dick Tressel. At first, Dick Tressel was associate director of football operations before he was moved to running backs coach. Some may think Tressel adding his brother to the coaching staff was nepotism but Dick Tressel was head coach in Division III at Hamline University from 1978 to 2000. With such an extensive coaching career before coming to Ohio State, Dick Tressel was more than qualified for a position on the Buckeye football coaching staff.
It could be argued that since Dennis and the other Tressel were initially hired at lower-level positions before being elevated to assistant coach status, they were actually hired by other assistant coaches and coordinators, rather than their father-in-law and brother. But we all know head coaches are control freaks, so they definitely signed off on the hires. Maybe Jake Diebler should have gotten creative to add his brother to last year’s coaching staff.
It’s hard to imagine that Ohio’s nepotism laws were created to keep one of the most dangerous three-point shooters in Ohio State history off of his brother’s coaching staff. Would the Buckeyes have been more competitive and made the NCAA Tournament this year had Diebler been able to hire his brother as an assistant? Who really knows if that would have made much of a difference when it comes to Ohio State’s performance during the 2024-25 season, but it certainly wouldn’t have hurt to have someone who played at the level Diebler did working with the Buckeyes all season.
In my opinion, if you are Jake Diebler and the athletic department, you have to get creative to find a way to bring Jon Diebler into the fold.
For those who are going to say that it is tough to skirt a state law. Apparently not, since a couple of the football coaches were able to do it to bring in family members. Had the men’s basketball team been at the height of its powers, like when Thad Matta took the team to a couple of Final Fours, you would have seen a creative solution found to add Jon Diebler to his the staff.
I’m guessing the athletic department felt the headache of trying to prove this wasn’t a nepotism hire wasn’t worth it, since the basketball program was already dealing with so many problems.
If clowns like the “pitbull lawyer” representative from Toledo can waste time with trying to get flag planting at college sporting events made a felony, then we can see some changes to Ohio’s nepotism laws, since Jake Diebler needs all the help he can get after seeing what he did in his first full season as head coach at Ohio State.
Jon Diebler will likely forget more about basketball than the rest of us will ever know, so saying he is getting a job just because his brother is the head coach is dead wrong. Any Buckeye basketball head coach would give serious consideration to hiring Diebler if they had the chance to bring him in as an assistant.
When it comes to an assistant coaching hire for Ohio State, family or not, the one question asked should be, “Will this be a better hire than when Urban Meyer hired the best man from his wedding, Billy Davis?”
If the answer is “Yes” (which in pretty much every case it will be), then any nepotism laws shouldn’t matter. The Davis hire was infinitely more infuriating than Diebler possibly bringing in his brother, since Davis was terrible at his job, though admittedly, he did have a decent resume before taking the position.
I would hope that common sense would prevail in a situation like Diebler’s, but it is quite obvious that common sense waved bye-bye to a lot of people in Ohio, as well as around the country, a long time ago. Since whatever the basketball program is trying to do isn’t working, they might as well try and push some boundaries since the football program has found a way to make it work for them.
Continue reading...
2027 CA LB Isaiah Phelps (Verbal Offer)
- By pnuts34
- Football Recruiting
- 0 Replies
247
Rivals
Twitter
HudL
Class: 2027
Position: LB
School: Oxnard(CA) Pacifica
Height: 6-foot-1
Weight: 205lbs
Login to view embedded media
Rivals
HudL
Class: 2027
Position: LB
School: Oxnard(CA) Pacifica
Height: 6-foot-1
Weight: 205lbs
Login to view embedded media
LGHL You’re Nuts: What is one change you would make to college football?
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You’re Nuts: What is one change you would make to college football?
Brett Ludwiczak via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
Your (almost) daily dose of good-natured, Ohio State banter.
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 what we would do if we were in charge of our favorite position group, team, conference, or sport. You can catch up on all of the Theme Week content here and all of our ”If I Was in Charge” articles here.
We can all agree that we love college football. Even though some areas of college football definitely could use an overhaul, we tend to put the issues we have at the back of our minds during the season.
Now that spring practices are over and we are just twiddling our thumbs until late August when the Buckeyes kick off their 2025 season against Texas. This is a perfect time to look deeper into the sport we love so much, and kick around some ideas on how to make it better. Over the last decade, there have been a number of new issues that have popped up, which seem to dominate the conversation when it comes to areas of college football that are a little tougher to stomach.
Today, we are going to look at things we would change about college football. Maybe it’s a rule change that you feel is desperately overdue for change. Or it could be changing something that has recently been introduced into college football, like NIL or the expanded playoff.
A change you are passionate about making could be something simple, like kickoff time for games or uniforms that are worn for certain contests. With so many hardcore college football fans, there should be an interesting collection of ideas on how to make college football better than it has ever been.
The current college football schedule was fine when there was just a four-team playoff. Now that the College Football Playoff features 12 teams, and likely will soon expand to 16 teams, there is absolutely no reason to start the season as late as they currently do. I know that Labor Day weekend is unofficially the start of the college football season, but I think the start of the season needs to take place more in the middle of August.
There are a number of reasons I am in favor of an earlier start to the college football season. The first is that there really isn’t much going on when it comes to the sports world in mid-August. There is baseball and some preseason NFL games, although we are not about to pretend that preseason NFL games are important events. Even though some schools likely won’t have started fall classes yet with an earlier start to the season, student-athletes should have no problem overlooking that fact since they are now able to pocket NIL money.
Another reason an earlier start to the season makes sense is that there is way too much for college football programs to deal with when it comes to December and January, especially if teams are involved in the playoff.
The awards circuit, December’s National Signing Day, the opening of the transfer portal, and the coaching carousel all take place in December and January. With the season starting Labor Day weekend, there is a crush of activities coaches have to focus on when the regular season ends.
At least if you start the season a few weeks earlier, then things can be spaced out a little better. Plus, an earlier start to the season makes conference title games a little easier to stomach. With the current schedule, they feel a little unnecessary, but if the season starts earlier, then they can be held, and more of a rest period following the conference title games can be given to those teams playing in them.
The earlier start to the college football season also won’t have college football going up against the NFL as much at the end of the season. Last year, the CFP title game felt a bit more like an afterthought since a lot of people’s main focus was on the NFL playoffs. There really is no reason for the final college football game of the season to be played in the latter half of January.
Even when the championship game of the four-team playoff felt a bit late. At the very latest, the title game should be held the day after the final day of the NFL regular season game of the year. While a Monday championship game isn’t ideal, it is obvious that the NFL won’t back down from holding Saturday games in December and January, so Monday title games are something we’ll have to continue to deal with.
Maybe there is some pushback from teams farther south that an earlier start to the season wouldn’t work because of the heat in some areas. Too bad. Any complaints about player safety went out the window when championship teams are now expected to play 15-16 games a season.
Broadcast partners should be in favor of an earlier start to the season since, with no other sports really on in mid-August, ratings would be even bigger than normal since fans are so starved to see any type of real football at that time of the year. An earlier start to the season, to go along with an earlier end to the season, is something we need sooner rather than later.
I’m not going to lie, Brett is 100% correct on this. Many of the ways that the college football season has grown and expanded are positive, as far as I am concerned. However, the way that they have impacted the schedule is approaching a net negative for me. The physical impact of the increased number of games, the overlap with the NFL playoffs impacting excitement, the issues with the academic schedule and the transfer portal, and much more have created just as many problems as these things were meant to solve.
So, while Brett is right that the schedule needs to be pushed up, what we really need is a college football commissioner to help guide the sport through the idiocy that has popped up as it has naturally evolved.
The big story of last week was whether or not Ohio State is playing too many noon games; now the big story of this week is whether or not USC and Notre Dame are going to continue scheduling their annual rivalry game. Both stories are deeply rooted in the ever-changing business of sports media rights and conference expansion (which itself is just a byproduct of sports media rights).
So they are both emblematic of just how complex and complicated the modern world of college football is given the billions of dollars being spent on it, but they are both incredibly stupid stories. Of course Ohio State’s biggest games of the year (outside of The Game) should be played at night, or at least 3:30 p.m. ET. Save the noon kicks for MAC schools and maybe an occasional up-and-coming Big Ten squad.
And of course USC and Notre Dame should play every season. I know that Notre Dame isn’t in the Big Ten, so that makes it complicated yada yada yada, but both sides need to grow up and get a contract signed that locks them into the series for the next 100 years.
You know who could make sure that these types of things got done, and ensure that college football doesn’t completely abandon what makes it the most emotionally satisfying (and sometimes torturous) sport in existence? Someone who, by the power vested in them by the member conferences, has the authority to squash incipient stupidity for the good of the sport. Someone who, in similar sporting structures, is known as a commissioner.
Rodger Goodell wouldn’t suffer this asininity; he would make a ruling, and that’s the way it would be. For decades, CFB fans have wanted someone to expedite common-sense rule changes to keep the sport the best in the world, but no one has yet been installed to this seat of authority. Instead, we have had to see every well-intentioned decision splinter off into a dozen or so easily foreseeable unintended consequences that have undermined the initial move.
We need someone to sail the ship through these increasingly choppy waters and get us onto the solid shores on the other side of NIL, conference realignment, and media rights deals; and I am willing to make the sacrifice and volunteer as tribute. So, friends, with great humility, today I declare that I am ready to serve as college football’s first commissioner.
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
Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
Your (almost) daily dose of good-natured, Ohio State banter.
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 what we would do if we were in charge of our favorite position group, team, conference, or sport. You can catch up on all of the Theme Week content here and all of our ”If I Was in Charge” articles here.
We can all agree that we love college football. Even though some areas of college football definitely could use an overhaul, we tend to put the issues we have at the back of our minds during the season.
Now that spring practices are over and we are just twiddling our thumbs until late August when the Buckeyes kick off their 2025 season against Texas. This is a perfect time to look deeper into the sport we love so much, and kick around some ideas on how to make it better. Over the last decade, there have been a number of new issues that have popped up, which seem to dominate the conversation when it comes to areas of college football that are a little tougher to stomach.
Today, we are going to look at things we would change about college football. Maybe it’s a rule change that you feel is desperately overdue for change. Or it could be changing something that has recently been introduced into college football, like NIL or the expanded playoff.
A change you are passionate about making could be something simple, like kickoff time for games or uniforms that are worn for certain contests. With so many hardcore college football fans, there should be an interesting collection of ideas on how to make college football better than it has ever been.
Today’s question: What is one change you would make to college football?
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: Adjusting the college football schedule
The current college football schedule was fine when there was just a four-team playoff. Now that the College Football Playoff features 12 teams, and likely will soon expand to 16 teams, there is absolutely no reason to start the season as late as they currently do. I know that Labor Day weekend is unofficially the start of the college football season, but I think the start of the season needs to take place more in the middle of August.
There are a number of reasons I am in favor of an earlier start to the college football season. The first is that there really isn’t much going on when it comes to the sports world in mid-August. There is baseball and some preseason NFL games, although we are not about to pretend that preseason NFL games are important events. Even though some schools likely won’t have started fall classes yet with an earlier start to the season, student-athletes should have no problem overlooking that fact since they are now able to pocket NIL money.
Another reason an earlier start to the season makes sense is that there is way too much for college football programs to deal with when it comes to December and January, especially if teams are involved in the playoff.
The awards circuit, December’s National Signing Day, the opening of the transfer portal, and the coaching carousel all take place in December and January. With the season starting Labor Day weekend, there is a crush of activities coaches have to focus on when the regular season ends.
At least if you start the season a few weeks earlier, then things can be spaced out a little better. Plus, an earlier start to the season makes conference title games a little easier to stomach. With the current schedule, they feel a little unnecessary, but if the season starts earlier, then they can be held, and more of a rest period following the conference title games can be given to those teams playing in them.
The earlier start to the college football season also won’t have college football going up against the NFL as much at the end of the season. Last year, the CFP title game felt a bit more like an afterthought since a lot of people’s main focus was on the NFL playoffs. There really is no reason for the final college football game of the season to be played in the latter half of January.
Even when the championship game of the four-team playoff felt a bit late. At the very latest, the title game should be held the day after the final day of the NFL regular season game of the year. While a Monday championship game isn’t ideal, it is obvious that the NFL won’t back down from holding Saturday games in December and January, so Monday title games are something we’ll have to continue to deal with.
Maybe there is some pushback from teams farther south that an earlier start to the season wouldn’t work because of the heat in some areas. Too bad. Any complaints about player safety went out the window when championship teams are now expected to play 15-16 games a season.
Broadcast partners should be in favor of an earlier start to the season since, with no other sports really on in mid-August, ratings would be even bigger than normal since fans are so starved to see any type of real football at that time of the year. An earlier start to the season, to go along with an earlier end to the season, is something we need sooner rather than later.
Matt’s answer: Introducing a college football commissioner
I’m not going to lie, Brett is 100% correct on this. Many of the ways that the college football season has grown and expanded are positive, as far as I am concerned. However, the way that they have impacted the schedule is approaching a net negative for me. The physical impact of the increased number of games, the overlap with the NFL playoffs impacting excitement, the issues with the academic schedule and the transfer portal, and much more have created just as many problems as these things were meant to solve.
So, while Brett is right that the schedule needs to be pushed up, what we really need is a college football commissioner to help guide the sport through the idiocy that has popped up as it has naturally evolved.
The big story of last week was whether or not Ohio State is playing too many noon games; now the big story of this week is whether or not USC and Notre Dame are going to continue scheduling their annual rivalry game. Both stories are deeply rooted in the ever-changing business of sports media rights and conference expansion (which itself is just a byproduct of sports media rights).
So they are both emblematic of just how complex and complicated the modern world of college football is given the billions of dollars being spent on it, but they are both incredibly stupid stories. Of course Ohio State’s biggest games of the year (outside of The Game) should be played at night, or at least 3:30 p.m. ET. Save the noon kicks for MAC schools and maybe an occasional up-and-coming Big Ten squad.
And of course USC and Notre Dame should play every season. I know that Notre Dame isn’t in the Big Ten, so that makes it complicated yada yada yada, but both sides need to grow up and get a contract signed that locks them into the series for the next 100 years.
You know who could make sure that these types of things got done, and ensure that college football doesn’t completely abandon what makes it the most emotionally satisfying (and sometimes torturous) sport in existence? Someone who, by the power vested in them by the member conferences, has the authority to squash incipient stupidity for the good of the sport. Someone who, in similar sporting structures, is known as a commissioner.
Rodger Goodell wouldn’t suffer this asininity; he would make a ruling, and that’s the way it would be. For decades, CFB fans have wanted someone to expedite common-sense rule changes to keep the sport the best in the world, but no one has yet been installed to this seat of authority. Instead, we have had to see every well-intentioned decision splinter off into a dozen or so easily foreseeable unintended consequences that have undermined the initial move.
We need someone to sail the ship through these increasingly choppy waters and get us onto the solid shores on the other side of NIL, conference realignment, and media rights deals; and I am willing to make the sacrifice and volunteer as tribute. So, friends, with great humility, today I declare that I am ready to serve as college football’s first commissioner.
Continue reading...
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