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LGHL I-70 Football Podcast: Ranking the top 10 Big Ten football games in 2024, 2025
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I-70 Football Podcast: Ranking the top 10 Big Ten football games in 2024, 2025
JordanW330 via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images
In this episode, Jordan and Dante rank the 10 games they’re most excited to watch in 2024 and 2025.
Welcome to a new episode of Land-Grant Holy Land’s I-70 podcast. On this show, we talk about all things Big Ten football and basketball. After every week of action, we will catch you up on all the conference’s games and look ahead at the matchups, storylines, and players you should be paying attention to next week. My name is Jordan Williams, and I am joined by my co-host Dante Morgan.
Listen to the episode and subscribe:
Subscribe: RSS | Apple | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts | iHeart Radio
In this episode, Jordan and Dante take a deeper look at the Big Ten’s schedule release. While we’re still over a year away from 2024 and the 2023 season hasn’t even started the guys are excited about some of the potential matchups that we will get starting in 2024. The conference knew that fans would have been waiting for this and smartly dropped the matchups for 2024 and 2025.
Ranking the match up from ten to one, the guys try to predict which matchups will be the most fun to watch, have the best storylines, or have the most stakes at the time. As expected USC is pretty heavily involved in this list as they have to come into the conference and prove that they can hang with Michigan, Ohio State, and Penn State plus Wisconsin is built like Utah, a team they haven’t been able to best in the past few seasons including last year under Lincoln Riley.
Plus, can Penn State maintain its number three spot in the conference with the addition of USC? Will UCLA be a better program in the Big Ten due to the lack of firepower in the conference? Also, the 2024 Ohio State vs. Michigan game could be very interesting if Michigan wins three straight for the future of Ryan Day and the potential to set up The Game to be played in back-to-back weeks.
Check out some of our list below:
Jordan: Dante:
10: OSU vs. Illinois ‘24 10: Iowa vs. USC ‘24
9: UCLA vs. Michigan ‘24 9: UCLA vs. Purdue ‘25
8: Wisconsin vs. Nebraska ‘24 8: UCLA vs. Michigan ‘24
7: OSU vs. PSU ‘ 25 7: OSU vs. PSU ‘25
6: Illinois vs. UCLA ‘24 6: Wisconsin vs. PSU ‘24
Connect with us on Twitter:
Jordan: @JordanW330
Dante: @DanteM10216
Continue reading...
JordanW330 via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images
In this episode, Jordan and Dante rank the 10 games they’re most excited to watch in 2024 and 2025.
Welcome to a new episode of Land-Grant Holy Land’s I-70 podcast. On this show, we talk about all things Big Ten football and basketball. After every week of action, we will catch you up on all the conference’s games and look ahead at the matchups, storylines, and players you should be paying attention to next week. My name is Jordan Williams, and I am joined by my co-host Dante Morgan.
Listen to the episode and subscribe:
Subscribe: RSS | Apple | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts | iHeart Radio
In this episode, Jordan and Dante take a deeper look at the Big Ten’s schedule release. While we’re still over a year away from 2024 and the 2023 season hasn’t even started the guys are excited about some of the potential matchups that we will get starting in 2024. The conference knew that fans would have been waiting for this and smartly dropped the matchups for 2024 and 2025.
Ranking the match up from ten to one, the guys try to predict which matchups will be the most fun to watch, have the best storylines, or have the most stakes at the time. As expected USC is pretty heavily involved in this list as they have to come into the conference and prove that they can hang with Michigan, Ohio State, and Penn State plus Wisconsin is built like Utah, a team they haven’t been able to best in the past few seasons including last year under Lincoln Riley.
Plus, can Penn State maintain its number three spot in the conference with the addition of USC? Will UCLA be a better program in the Big Ten due to the lack of firepower in the conference? Also, the 2024 Ohio State vs. Michigan game could be very interesting if Michigan wins three straight for the future of Ryan Day and the potential to set up The Game to be played in back-to-back weeks.
Check out some of our list below:
Jordan: Dante:
10: OSU vs. Illinois ‘24 10: Iowa vs. USC ‘24
9: UCLA vs. Michigan ‘24 9: UCLA vs. Purdue ‘25
8: Wisconsin vs. Nebraska ‘24 8: UCLA vs. Michigan ‘24
7: OSU vs. PSU ‘ 25 7: OSU vs. PSU ‘25
6: Illinois vs. UCLA ‘24 6: Wisconsin vs. PSU ‘24
Connect with us on Twitter:
Jordan: @JordanW330
Dante: @DanteM10216
Continue reading...
LGHL Early thoughts on the 2024, 2025 football schedules for the Big Ten and Ohio State
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Early thoughts on the 2024, 2025 football schedules for the Big Ten and Ohio State
Brett Ludwiczak 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
On Thursday the Big Ten conference revealed the conference play opponents for football in the 2024 and 2025 seasons
A few days ago the Big Ten released the conference schedules for the 2024 and 2025 seasons. While the dates of the games are yet to be determined, schools figured out who they will be playing in the conference’s first two seasons as a 16-team conference. Not only will the Big Ten be adding USC and UCLA, but the conference will also be moving away from the division format. As if those weren’t enough changes to wrap your head around, the 2024 season will also see the College Football Playoff expand to 12 teams.
Now that divisions are going away in the Big Ten, there’s a possibility Ohio State and Michigan could play in their final game of the regular season, and also in the Big Ten Championship Game the next week. Just imagine two weeks of intense rivalry hate instead of one! I don’t know if I can handle two straight weeks of nerds crossing out the letter M to show how much they hate the Wolverines!
What will be really interesting to see is how the Buckeyes and Wolverines approach the games if it looks like a given that both teams are going to make the 12-team playoff. Obviously, they would care about the Big Ten Championship Game if it guaranteed one team a bye in the playoff. What if both teams head into the regular season battle at 11-0 and say they are the top two teams in the country? I’m not saying either team is going to want to see the other win, but might the teams let up a little sooner than normal if they know they are going to play the next week in the Big Ten Championship Game, and there will also be a number of playoff games ahead of them?
An even crazier scenario than two straight weeks of Ohio State-Michigan games is if they ended up meeting a third time in a season in the College Football Playoff. Luckily there would be a few weeks to prepare for a third Ohio State-Michigan game if it did happen. I hope we do see a trifecta of Ohio State-Michigan games in a season at some point, but I’m not sure if my body and mind are prepared for it to happen on a regular basis since the games between the rivals are so taxing.
Aside from the battle with the Wolverines in Columbus at the end of November, the rest of Ohio State’s home schedule is awful. The Buckeyes play Southern Miss, Western Michigan, Marshall, Illinois, Iowa, Northwestern, and Rutgers in Columbus. Nobody should be excited to see any of those games. I feel bad for the season ticket holders that have to pay for those games. There’s no reason that any of those games should be closer than 3-4 touchdowns.
It’s not all bad, though. The home schedule for Ohio State picks up in 2025, as not only will Texas visit Columbus, USC will make its first trip to Ohio’s capital city as a member of the Big Ten. There could also be a sneaky good game on the schedule if Matt Rhule is able to make strides at Nebraska. If the Cornhuskers can be even somewhat competitive, it could make for a fun matchup at Ohio Stadium.
For a while, the game on Ohio State’s schedule that scared Buckeye fans the most was the annual battle with Penn State. Even more so if that game was played under the lights in State College. During the time when Ohio State was dominating Michigan, it seemed as if the Nittany Lions would always push the Buckeyes to the limit. Even though Penn State has only beaten Ohio State once since 2012, it sure feels like the Nittany Lions have had a few more victories than that against the Buckeyes.
With the Big Ten’s announcement of their protected rivalry matchups, Penn State is the only school that doesn’t have a protected rival. It’s quite shocking that Ohio State and Penn State weren’t protected rivals, especially considering their memorable battles over the years. While the Buckeyes have a protected rival in Michigan, there are a number of schools in the conference that were given more than one protected rival.
If the conference didn’t want Ohio State playing both Penn State and Michigan each year to try and improve the conference’s shot at placing more teams in the expanded playoff, they still could have paired the Nittany Lions with someone as a protected rival. The most natural choice would have been Michigan State since the schools have played annually for the Land-Grant Trophy. Maryland would be a natural rival for Penn State because the schools are about three hours apart. Reportedly, PSU asked the conference to not have any protected rivalries, for whatever reason.
So, the Big Ten obliged and gave Penn State the Jan Brady treatment.
I completely understand why Iowa was named as protected rivals for Nebraska, MInnesota, and Wisconsin. It doesn’t mean that it isn’t a strange look for the Big Ten to give the Hawkeyes three protected rivals, while most of the other schools have one, or none in Penn State’s case. Iowa plays Minnesota for a bronze pig, Nebraska for something called the “Heroes Trophy”, and Wisconsin for whatever the Heartland Trophy is. Honestly, a Heroes Trophy should be given to anyone that makes it through a whole Iowa-Nebraska game.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24716972/1244913647.jpg "COLLEGE FOOTBALL: NOV 19 Iowa at Minnesota")
What I’m curious about is why Iowa’s rivalries matter more than other rivalries around the Big Ten. Did the Hawkeyes speak up more about preserving their rivalries than someone like Penn State did? Was Iowa given so many rivalry-protected games because they aren’t seen as big of a threat to make the College Football Playoff, so at least with more rivalry games, it will keep their fans interested in the season? Maybe these things work themselves out when the next set of Big Ten schedules is released, but it just looks really odd right now.
The Trojans and Bruins knew they were going to rack up the miles when they agreed to join the Big Ten. With their opponents for next season released, we now know just how much the teams from Los Angeles will be traveling. USC will travel over 16,000 miles for Big Ten games, while UCLA surpasses 15,000 miles. The amount of travel is over double Nebraska’s mileage, which clocks in third in the conference with scheduled travel of just over 7,000 miles.
These totals are just for their travel for Big Ten games and don’t take into account non-conference games, a possible Big Ten Championship Game, and potentially making the College Football Playoff. At least flying is a lot more comfortable these days than it used to be. Plus, USC and UCLA can splash some of that sweet Big Ten cash to upgrade their travel arrangements.
Even more hilarious about the travel mileage totals for the Big Ten teams next year, Purdue won’t even hit 2,500 miles, as their longest trip is to Maryland. The Boilermakers will barely have any time or distance away from the toxic wasteland that is West Lafayette!
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
Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK
On Thursday the Big Ten conference revealed the conference play opponents for football in the 2024 and 2025 seasons
A few days ago the Big Ten released the conference schedules for the 2024 and 2025 seasons. While the dates of the games are yet to be determined, schools figured out who they will be playing in the conference’s first two seasons as a 16-team conference. Not only will the Big Ten be adding USC and UCLA, but the conference will also be moving away from the division format. As if those weren’t enough changes to wrap your head around, the 2024 season will also see the College Football Playoff expand to 12 teams.
Ohio State and Michigan could play in back-to-back weeks
Now that divisions are going away in the Big Ten, there’s a possibility Ohio State and Michigan could play in their final game of the regular season, and also in the Big Ten Championship Game the next week. Just imagine two weeks of intense rivalry hate instead of one! I don’t know if I can handle two straight weeks of nerds crossing out the letter M to show how much they hate the Wolverines!
What will be really interesting to see is how the Buckeyes and Wolverines approach the games if it looks like a given that both teams are going to make the 12-team playoff. Obviously, they would care about the Big Ten Championship Game if it guaranteed one team a bye in the playoff. What if both teams head into the regular season battle at 11-0 and say they are the top two teams in the country? I’m not saying either team is going to want to see the other win, but might the teams let up a little sooner than normal if they know they are going to play the next week in the Big Ten Championship Game, and there will also be a number of playoff games ahead of them?
An even crazier scenario than two straight weeks of Ohio State-Michigan games is if they ended up meeting a third time in a season in the College Football Playoff. Luckily there would be a few weeks to prepare for a third Ohio State-Michigan game if it did happen. I hope we do see a trifecta of Ohio State-Michigan games in a season at some point, but I’m not sure if my body and mind are prepared for it to happen on a regular basis since the games between the rivals are so taxing.
Ohio State’s 2024 home schedule is gross, 2025 home schedule is better
Aside from the battle with the Wolverines in Columbus at the end of November, the rest of Ohio State’s home schedule is awful. The Buckeyes play Southern Miss, Western Michigan, Marshall, Illinois, Iowa, Northwestern, and Rutgers in Columbus. Nobody should be excited to see any of those games. I feel bad for the season ticket holders that have to pay for those games. There’s no reason that any of those games should be closer than 3-4 touchdowns.
It’s not all bad, though. The home schedule for Ohio State picks up in 2025, as not only will Texas visit Columbus, USC will make its first trip to Ohio’s capital city as a member of the Big Ten. There could also be a sneaky good game on the schedule if Matt Rhule is able to make strides at Nebraska. If the Cornhuskers can be even somewhat competitive, it could make for a fun matchup at Ohio Stadium.
Nobody cares about Penn State
For a while, the game on Ohio State’s schedule that scared Buckeye fans the most was the annual battle with Penn State. Even more so if that game was played under the lights in State College. During the time when Ohio State was dominating Michigan, it seemed as if the Nittany Lions would always push the Buckeyes to the limit. Even though Penn State has only beaten Ohio State once since 2012, it sure feels like the Nittany Lions have had a few more victories than that against the Buckeyes.
With the Big Ten’s announcement of their protected rivalry matchups, Penn State is the only school that doesn’t have a protected rival. It’s quite shocking that Ohio State and Penn State weren’t protected rivals, especially considering their memorable battles over the years. While the Buckeyes have a protected rival in Michigan, there are a number of schools in the conference that were given more than one protected rival.
If the conference didn’t want Ohio State playing both Penn State and Michigan each year to try and improve the conference’s shot at placing more teams in the expanded playoff, they still could have paired the Nittany Lions with someone as a protected rival. The most natural choice would have been Michigan State since the schools have played annually for the Land-Grant Trophy. Maryland would be a natural rival for Penn State because the schools are about three hours apart. Reportedly, PSU asked the conference to not have any protected rivalries, for whatever reason.
So, the Big Ten obliged and gave Penn State the Jan Brady treatment.
Iowa has three protected rivals!
I completely understand why Iowa was named as protected rivals for Nebraska, MInnesota, and Wisconsin. It doesn’t mean that it isn’t a strange look for the Big Ten to give the Hawkeyes three protected rivals, while most of the other schools have one, or none in Penn State’s case. Iowa plays Minnesota for a bronze pig, Nebraska for something called the “Heroes Trophy”, and Wisconsin for whatever the Heartland Trophy is. Honestly, a Heroes Trophy should be given to anyone that makes it through a whole Iowa-Nebraska game.
What I’m curious about is why Iowa’s rivalries matter more than other rivalries around the Big Ten. Did the Hawkeyes speak up more about preserving their rivalries than someone like Penn State did? Was Iowa given so many rivalry-protected games because they aren’t seen as big of a threat to make the College Football Playoff, so at least with more rivalry games, it will keep their fans interested in the season? Maybe these things work themselves out when the next set of Big Ten schedules is released, but it just looks really odd right now.
Hopefully USC and UCLA like flying
The Trojans and Bruins knew they were going to rack up the miles when they agreed to join the Big Ten. With their opponents for next season released, we now know just how much the teams from Los Angeles will be traveling. USC will travel over 16,000 miles for Big Ten games, while UCLA surpasses 15,000 miles. The amount of travel is over double Nebraska’s mileage, which clocks in third in the conference with scheduled travel of just over 7,000 miles.
These totals are just for their travel for Big Ten games and don’t take into account non-conference games, a possible Big Ten Championship Game, and potentially making the College Football Playoff. At least flying is a lot more comfortable these days than it used to be. Plus, USC and UCLA can splash some of that sweet Big Ten cash to upgrade their travel arrangements.
Even more hilarious about the travel mileage totals for the Big Ten teams next year, Purdue won’t even hit 2,500 miles, as their longest trip is to Maryland. The Boilermakers will barely have any time or distance away from the toxic wasteland that is West Lafayette!
Continue reading...
LGHL ‘What If’ the Best Musical Tony nominees were actually Ohio State football players
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‘What If’ the Best Musical Tony nominees were actually Ohio State football players
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
You’re not going to get this kind of analysis from any of the real reporters on the Ohio State beat.
Please forgive this article of digression, but today is a very big day for me. I have been working in the New York theatre community for nearly a decade now as a reporter, editor, producer, and host covering the inner workings of the Broadway and Off-Broadway communities. So, tonight, when the 76th Annual Tony Awards take place at the United Palace in New York City, that is kind of like my Super Bowl... or at least my Super Bowl outside of the actual Super Bowl and The Game and Ohio State’s bowl game.
See, there aren’t very many people working on the Buckeye beat that are as dedicated to the Buckeyes and to Broadway as I am... in fact — with perhaps the exception of my LGHL colleague Jami Jurich — I would say I might be the only one. However, I do recognize that there is a possibility that there will be a number of Buckeye fans who end up watching the Tonys telecast on CBS beginning at 8 p.m. ET on Sunday, June 11 because a friend, partner, roommate, child, or someone else in their general vicinity has it on the TV.
For those specific cases, I wanted to at least give you some semblance of understanding about what is going on in the ceremony’s most important category, Best Musical. So, I have gone through all five nominees and picked a current Ohio State football player that is most exemplified by the show, so that you can get a sense of what it is all about, without traveling to New York or listening to a single second of their individual cast albums. You’re welcome, Buckeye Nation.
If you would like to hear my predictions for every Tonys category, along with those of my BroadwayRadio colleague Ashley Steves and Broadway Records A&R Director and cabaret icon Robbie Rozelle, check out the episode below:
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Matthew Murphy | Photo by Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Stark Sands and Betsy Wolfe in ‘& Juliet’ | Chip Trayanum
“& Juliet” is what we in the biz call a “jukebox” musical, because it takes songs that were originally released in more traditional, popular music venues. The show repurposes some of the biggest hits written by 25-time Grammy nominee and five-time winner, 11-time ASCAP Pop Music Awards Songwriter of the Year, and Oscar (and now Tony) nominee Max Martin.
Now, unless you are a major pop music aficionado, you probably don’t know Martin’s name, but the Sweed has written or co-written such songs as “...Baby One More Time,” “It’s Gonna Be Me,” “I Want It That Way,” “It’s My Life,” “Larger Than Life,” “Since U Been Gone,” “I Kissed a Girl,” “So What,” “California Gurls,” “Teenage Dream,” “Raise Your Glass,” “Domino,” “Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.),” “Whataya Want From Me,” “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together,” “Roar,” “Shake It Off,” “Blank Space,” “Bad Blood,” “Can’t Feel My Face,” “Can’t Stop the Feeling!”, just to name a few.
Many of those songs are featured in “& Juliet,” but what makes this show interesting is that it is not about Max Martin’s life and career, nor is it about any of the artists that he’s worked with. Instead, it imagines a world in which William Shakespeare’s wife, Anne Hathaway (yes, that was her real name), convinces him not to have Juliet die at the end of “Romeo and Juliet” and the have very musical disagreements over how the story should end.
Not only does the musical reinvents one of the most famous stories in all of Western literature, but it also reimagines some of the most popular songs of the last 25-30 years.
One Buckeye who is no stranger to reinvention and reimagining what his football career could be is Chip Trayanum. I’m old enough to remember that when he was being recruited to Ohio State, it was under the name DeaMonte Trayanum and the Buckeyes wanted him to play linebacker.
Despite being a lifelong Ohioan, Chip saw himself as a running back, so he went to Arizona State, but after two years, the Akron native returned home and finally found a place in the Ohio State linebacking corps. However, a nearly never-ending rash of injuries at the running back position last season forced Trayanum to move back over to offense. Though he only rushed the ball 15 times in 2022, he did average 6.1 yard per carry, and will be remaining in the running back room for this upcoming season.
So, if there is anyone on the Ohio State roster who can understand what it is like to reconceive a story (and songs) in order to find something new and special, it would be DeaMonte... I mean Chip.
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Joan Marcus | Scott Taetsch/Getty Images
Victoria Clark in ‘Kimberly Akimbo’ | Sonny Styles
The presumed frontrunner for the Best Musical Tony Award is “Kimberly Akimbo.” At the center of the story is a 16-year-old girl who is seemingly the only sane person in a family of screwups. However, she has issues of her own, most notably that she has a rare genetic condition that causes her to age four and a half times faster than normal; meaning that at age 16, she appears to be roughly 72 years old.
To me, this screams of a Sonny Styles connection. Yes, the Ohio State legacy is going into his second year of college football, but only because he reclassified and skipped his senior year at Pickerington Central (also my alma mater, go Tigers). Because of that, Styles is still just 18 years old (he won’t turn 19 until the day before the Buckeyes play Michigan in November), and yet, he is expected to be a major part of the Buckeye secondary this season.
His rare blend of size — he’s 6-foot-4, 225 pounds — and athleticism have made him one of the most exciting prospects to come to campus in a long time.
In addition to “Kimberly Akimbo” being the likely (though not guaranteed) winner for the evening’s biggest prize, it is likely to be rewarded with at least one acting trophy. While Victoria Clark, who plays the title character, is the frontrunner for the Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical award, the person who is the runaway leader in the Best Featured Actress in a Musical category is Bonnie Milligan, who plays Kimberly’s felonious Aunt Debra.
What makes that especially exciting for us here in Buckeye Nation is that Milligan is an Ohio State alum! So, go Bonnie and go Bucks!
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Paul Kolnik | Brooke LaValley / USA TODAY NETWORK
Clyde Alves and Colton Ryan in ‘New York, New York’ | Marvin Harrison Jr.
Look, if you can make it there, you can make it anywhere. Garrett Wilson is proving that he has what it takes to make it in the Big Apple, come December, I believe that Marvin Harrison Jr. will have a very exciting trip to the City that Never Sleeps on his schedule.
The musical “New York, New York” is based loosely on the Liza Minnelli, Robert DeNiro movie of the same name and follows the love story of two artists looking to carve out a life as artists in post-WWII New York. While their journeys to success had significant ups and downs, for Marv, his assent has been rapid and undeniable. So much so that, despite having an unproven, first-time starting quarterback throwing to him, he will ride the wave of his otherworldly abilities to the Heisman Trophy ceremony in New York last this year.
I’m not yet going to predict that Marv will win the trophy, because we know how difficult it is for anyone other than QBs to take home that honor; however, we’ve seen it happen recently, and if there has ever been a receiver more ready-made for that opportunity, I don’t know who he could be.
Not only does Harrison have the size and physical abilities needed to absolutely dominate any defensive back, but he literally grew up being trained by a Hall of Famer, so his technique and precision are unmatched. Anyone who follows the Buckeye beat also has heard tell of his relentless preparation and practice, so no one will be outworking Big Marv.
When you factor in the fact that Ohio State will be front and center on many TVs across the country all year, there are a ton of other WR weapons on the team so defensive coordinators can’t completely focus on him, and HIS NAME IS MARVIN HARRISON JR., there will be little doubt that he will absolutely have every opportunity to prove that he is the best player in college football this season.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24716228/shucked_cade.jpg)
Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman | Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports
Ashley D Kelley and Grey Henson in Shucked | Cade Stover and Ruben Hyppolite II
“Shucked” is a musical about corn. Like, literally, the entire plot of the show (and many of the never-ending jokes in the script) is about corn. So, really, this one picked itself, because Cade Stover grew up on a farm that grows corn. They raise other stuff as well, like cows, alfalfa, and more, but how could I not pick the corn farmer for the musical about corn?
In fairness, there is more to “Shucked” than just corn, there is love, loyalty, family, acceptance, growth, and trips to the big city, but it all revolves around corn, so Cade, you’re about to get “Shucked.”
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24716686/sometommy.jpg)
Marc J. Franklin | Photo by Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
J. Harrison Ghee and Christian Borle in ‘Some Like It Hot’ | Tommy Eichenberg
“Some Like It Hot,” based on the classic Tony Curtis, Jack Lemon, Marilyn Monroe movie of the same name, is a throwback to the old style of musical comedy that Broadway doesn’t do much of anymore. Not only are the humor and storytelling reminiscent of the Golden Age of American musical theatre, but the music — by the famed team of Scott Wittman and Marc Shaiman — has this big band, brassy sound that harkens back to a bygone era... much like the linebacker play of Tommy Eichenberg.
In all fairness, I did not expect much from Tommy, as I thought he was going to be a poor man’s Tuf Borland — which would have made him pretty destitute if you ask me. However, I was wrong, and when I’m wrong, I say I’m wrong (a line delivered by Broadway icon Jerry Orbach in the movie “Dirty Dancing”). Eichenberg has turned out to be an incredibly consistent and productive presence in the middle of the Buckeye defense.
He is a throwback to a different breed of LB, much like “Some Like It Hot” is a different breed of musical that we don’t see much of these days.
Unlike all of these pretty contrived Ohio State-Best Musical connections, there are actually two shows with nominations that have direct ties to Ohio State. The first is... “The Ohio State Murders.” It is a fictional story written by now-91-year-old Theatre Hall of Famer Adrienne Kennedy who just so happens to be an Ohio State alum. The harrowing story takes place on and around Ohio State’s campus in the 1950s. Six-time Tony winner Audra McDonald is nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role in a Play for her turn in the show.
The other play that features our fair school is “Summer, 1976.” Written by Pulitzer Prize winner David Auburn, the show takes place in the summer of America’s Bicentennial in Columbus when two very different women become unlikely friends. One of them, played by four-time Emmy winner Laura Linney is an art professor at Ohio State. Her costar in the two-hander, Jessica Hecht is nominated in the same category as McDonald.
Fortunately for you, you aren’t going to have to worry about which actress from a play set in Columbus to root for in that category, because neither of them is going to win. The person taking home the trophy will either be Oscar-winner Jessica Chastain for “A Doll’s House,” or Emmy-winner Jodie Comer for “Prima Facie.”
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
You’re not going to get this kind of analysis from any of the real reporters on the Ohio State beat.
Please forgive this article of digression, but today is a very big day for me. I have been working in the New York theatre community for nearly a decade now as a reporter, editor, producer, and host covering the inner workings of the Broadway and Off-Broadway communities. So, tonight, when the 76th Annual Tony Awards take place at the United Palace in New York City, that is kind of like my Super Bowl... or at least my Super Bowl outside of the actual Super Bowl and The Game and Ohio State’s bowl game.
See, there aren’t very many people working on the Buckeye beat that are as dedicated to the Buckeyes and to Broadway as I am... in fact — with perhaps the exception of my LGHL colleague Jami Jurich — I would say I might be the only one. However, I do recognize that there is a possibility that there will be a number of Buckeye fans who end up watching the Tonys telecast on CBS beginning at 8 p.m. ET on Sunday, June 11 because a friend, partner, roommate, child, or someone else in their general vicinity has it on the TV.
For those specific cases, I wanted to at least give you some semblance of understanding about what is going on in the ceremony’s most important category, Best Musical. So, I have gone through all five nominees and picked a current Ohio State football player that is most exemplified by the show, so that you can get a sense of what it is all about, without traveling to New York or listening to a single second of their individual cast albums. You’re welcome, Buckeye Nation.
If you would like to hear my predictions for every Tonys category, along with those of my BroadwayRadio colleague Ashley Steves and Broadway Records A&R Director and cabaret icon Robbie Rozelle, check out the episode below:
‘& Juliet’ is Chip Trayanum
Stark Sands and Betsy Wolfe in ‘& Juliet’ | Chip Trayanum
“& Juliet” is what we in the biz call a “jukebox” musical, because it takes songs that were originally released in more traditional, popular music venues. The show repurposes some of the biggest hits written by 25-time Grammy nominee and five-time winner, 11-time ASCAP Pop Music Awards Songwriter of the Year, and Oscar (and now Tony) nominee Max Martin.
Now, unless you are a major pop music aficionado, you probably don’t know Martin’s name, but the Sweed has written or co-written such songs as “...Baby One More Time,” “It’s Gonna Be Me,” “I Want It That Way,” “It’s My Life,” “Larger Than Life,” “Since U Been Gone,” “I Kissed a Girl,” “So What,” “California Gurls,” “Teenage Dream,” “Raise Your Glass,” “Domino,” “Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.),” “Whataya Want From Me,” “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together,” “Roar,” “Shake It Off,” “Blank Space,” “Bad Blood,” “Can’t Feel My Face,” “Can’t Stop the Feeling!”, just to name a few.
Many of those songs are featured in “& Juliet,” but what makes this show interesting is that it is not about Max Martin’s life and career, nor is it about any of the artists that he’s worked with. Instead, it imagines a world in which William Shakespeare’s wife, Anne Hathaway (yes, that was her real name), convinces him not to have Juliet die at the end of “Romeo and Juliet” and the have very musical disagreements over how the story should end.
Not only does the musical reinvents one of the most famous stories in all of Western literature, but it also reimagines some of the most popular songs of the last 25-30 years.
One Buckeye who is no stranger to reinvention and reimagining what his football career could be is Chip Trayanum. I’m old enough to remember that when he was being recruited to Ohio State, it was under the name DeaMonte Trayanum and the Buckeyes wanted him to play linebacker.
Despite being a lifelong Ohioan, Chip saw himself as a running back, so he went to Arizona State, but after two years, the Akron native returned home and finally found a place in the Ohio State linebacking corps. However, a nearly never-ending rash of injuries at the running back position last season forced Trayanum to move back over to offense. Though he only rushed the ball 15 times in 2022, he did average 6.1 yard per carry, and will be remaining in the running back room for this upcoming season.
So, if there is anyone on the Ohio State roster who can understand what it is like to reconceive a story (and songs) in order to find something new and special, it would be DeaMonte... I mean Chip.
‘Kimberly Akimbo’ is Sonny Styles
Victoria Clark in ‘Kimberly Akimbo’ | Sonny Styles
The presumed frontrunner for the Best Musical Tony Award is “Kimberly Akimbo.” At the center of the story is a 16-year-old girl who is seemingly the only sane person in a family of screwups. However, she has issues of her own, most notably that she has a rare genetic condition that causes her to age four and a half times faster than normal; meaning that at age 16, she appears to be roughly 72 years old.
To me, this screams of a Sonny Styles connection. Yes, the Ohio State legacy is going into his second year of college football, but only because he reclassified and skipped his senior year at Pickerington Central (also my alma mater, go Tigers). Because of that, Styles is still just 18 years old (he won’t turn 19 until the day before the Buckeyes play Michigan in November), and yet, he is expected to be a major part of the Buckeye secondary this season.
His rare blend of size — he’s 6-foot-4, 225 pounds — and athleticism have made him one of the most exciting prospects to come to campus in a long time.
In addition to “Kimberly Akimbo” being the likely (though not guaranteed) winner for the evening’s biggest prize, it is likely to be rewarded with at least one acting trophy. While Victoria Clark, who plays the title character, is the frontrunner for the Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical award, the person who is the runaway leader in the Best Featured Actress in a Musical category is Bonnie Milligan, who plays Kimberly’s felonious Aunt Debra.
What makes that especially exciting for us here in Buckeye Nation is that Milligan is an Ohio State alum! So, go Bonnie and go Bucks!
‘New York, New York’ is Marvin Harrison Jr.
Clyde Alves and Colton Ryan in ‘New York, New York’ | Marvin Harrison Jr.
Look, if you can make it there, you can make it anywhere. Garrett Wilson is proving that he has what it takes to make it in the Big Apple, come December, I believe that Marvin Harrison Jr. will have a very exciting trip to the City that Never Sleeps on his schedule.
The musical “New York, New York” is based loosely on the Liza Minnelli, Robert DeNiro movie of the same name and follows the love story of two artists looking to carve out a life as artists in post-WWII New York. While their journeys to success had significant ups and downs, for Marv, his assent has been rapid and undeniable. So much so that, despite having an unproven, first-time starting quarterback throwing to him, he will ride the wave of his otherworldly abilities to the Heisman Trophy ceremony in New York last this year.
I’m not yet going to predict that Marv will win the trophy, because we know how difficult it is for anyone other than QBs to take home that honor; however, we’ve seen it happen recently, and if there has ever been a receiver more ready-made for that opportunity, I don’t know who he could be.
Not only does Harrison have the size and physical abilities needed to absolutely dominate any defensive back, but he literally grew up being trained by a Hall of Famer, so his technique and precision are unmatched. Anyone who follows the Buckeye beat also has heard tell of his relentless preparation and practice, so no one will be outworking Big Marv.
When you factor in the fact that Ohio State will be front and center on many TVs across the country all year, there are a ton of other WR weapons on the team so defensive coordinators can’t completely focus on him, and HIS NAME IS MARVIN HARRISON JR., there will be little doubt that he will absolutely have every opportunity to prove that he is the best player in college football this season.
‘Shucked’ is Cade Stover
Ashley D Kelley and Grey Henson in Shucked | Cade Stover and Ruben Hyppolite II
“Shucked” is a musical about corn. Like, literally, the entire plot of the show (and many of the never-ending jokes in the script) is about corn. So, really, this one picked itself, because Cade Stover grew up on a farm that grows corn. They raise other stuff as well, like cows, alfalfa, and more, but how could I not pick the corn farmer for the musical about corn?
In fairness, there is more to “Shucked” than just corn, there is love, loyalty, family, acceptance, growth, and trips to the big city, but it all revolves around corn, so Cade, you’re about to get “Shucked.”
‘Some Like It Hot’ is Tommy Eichenberg
J. Harrison Ghee and Christian Borle in ‘Some Like It Hot’ | Tommy Eichenberg
“Some Like It Hot,” based on the classic Tony Curtis, Jack Lemon, Marilyn Monroe movie of the same name, is a throwback to the old style of musical comedy that Broadway doesn’t do much of anymore. Not only are the humor and storytelling reminiscent of the Golden Age of American musical theatre, but the music — by the famed team of Scott Wittman and Marc Shaiman — has this big band, brassy sound that harkens back to a bygone era... much like the linebacker play of Tommy Eichenberg.
In all fairness, I did not expect much from Tommy, as I thought he was going to be a poor man’s Tuf Borland — which would have made him pretty destitute if you ask me. However, I was wrong, and when I’m wrong, I say I’m wrong (a line delivered by Broadway icon Jerry Orbach in the movie “Dirty Dancing”). Eichenberg has turned out to be an incredibly consistent and productive presence in the middle of the Buckeye defense.
He is a throwback to a different breed of LB, much like “Some Like It Hot” is a different breed of musical that we don’t see much of these days.
Unlike all of these pretty contrived Ohio State-Best Musical connections, there are actually two shows with nominations that have direct ties to Ohio State. The first is... “The Ohio State Murders.” It is a fictional story written by now-91-year-old Theatre Hall of Famer Adrienne Kennedy who just so happens to be an Ohio State alum. The harrowing story takes place on and around Ohio State’s campus in the 1950s. Six-time Tony winner Audra McDonald is nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role in a Play for her turn in the show.
The other play that features our fair school is “Summer, 1976.” Written by Pulitzer Prize winner David Auburn, the show takes place in the summer of America’s Bicentennial in Columbus when two very different women become unlikely friends. One of them, played by four-time Emmy winner Laura Linney is an art professor at Ohio State. Her costar in the two-hander, Jessica Hecht is nominated in the same category as McDonald.
Fortunately for you, you aren’t going to have to worry about which actress from a play set in Columbus to root for in that category, because neither of them is going to win. The person taking home the trophy will either be Oscar-winner Jessica Chastain for “A Doll’s House,” or Emmy-winner Jodie Comer for “Prima Facie.”
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