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LGHL Football season is over, what do we do now?

Football season is over, what do we do now?
Chris Renne via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here

Syndication: Arizona Republic

Alex Gould/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK

If you’re like me, the offseason adjustment doesn’t naturally occur. Bare with me as I try to walk us through some ways we can pass the time until the ball is kicked off again.

The Kansas City Chiefs won Super Bowl LVII 38-35 over the Philadelphia Eagles, signaling the end of the football season. For non-NFL fans, this has been the case for a month now, but for those of us that follow the two leagues to the end of the line, the journey of 2022-23 football season is over.

The dedicated life of a fan never stops. The football offseason is a journey as long as the season itself. There will be time for all the message board posting, recruiting news, and debates about realignment among many other topics that fill our beloved sport of football’s time off. But even with all of that fun stuff, there is still so much more time on your hands — time that you need to fill until Ohio State or your other favorite team kicks off again to start the year.

Once the Lombardi Trophy is handed over to the winning team, a question looms in many of our minds: what now? That question is not easy to answer, but this is not only the offseason for players. Fans need time to recoup as well. Not to say what us fans do is anything near the players, but the emotional ride has a level of demand to it.

To recover best, maximizing your time in the offseason starts with your other hobbies, then devolves into our helpless habits of fanaticism. Today, we get into the best ways to maximize your time away from the game.

Catch up on all those shows you missed

This is an easy one. Fall is not just time for college football apparently. New shows come out in the fall, and with all the streaming services dropping new content at any given time, we’re bound to miss something. Starting here is the easiest way to get a fresh reset. There is a ton of non-football stuff out there I’ve been told. What time is better than now to find that stuff?

Sylvester Stallone is in a show based in Tulsa, and apparently he is King. If that doesn’t get you excited for the potential this offseason brings, the show with Kevin Costner has a few spin-offs that can eat away the time until football. Without too many recommendations, there is a lot out there that can widen the horizon. Rather than talking about that five star recruit at dinner with your significant other or friends, you can discuss these shows.

There’s also not just TV shows, movies still exist and the new Avatar was pretty cool. James Cameron can probably fill at least a month of your time, but there are also movies like Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile, and if your offseason is filled with that, then maybe just get on recruiting message boards.

Try that new hobby you have been putting off

Moving on, I know with the TikToks and social media, people see a bunch of stuff they might want to try. Throw that might word out of the vocabulary and take some new hobbies by the horns.

There are some cool people who read this site that have incredible skills and hobbies. If you’re like me and do not, there is a lot of potential out there. Hobbies come and go in our life. With limited time on our hands, we have to pick and choose meaning some of our favorite activities fall by the wayside. Without football taking up seven days out of the week, there is time to reignite those passions.

The list is long here, starting with woodworking. Could you imagine being able to say you built a bird house or something? That feels like a pretty productive offseason to me. You could even build it with Ohio State in mind with the paint scheme. After you start with the bird house, your skills will develop, and eventually you’ll be on a wooden canoe you made yourself.

Some less labor intensive hobbies include painting and video games. You could even enjoy the performing arts with your local theatre. If those don’t fill the time well enough, there is a wide variety of potential hobbies out there that could be fun.

Turn your attention to the next sport

This is the safest area. With the NBA in full swing, the transition tends to be pretty seamless for us. If you’re an unfortunate sole who is a fan of one of the six teams that aren’t in the NBA playoffs this is a tough place to be.

Major League Baseball is still a couple of months away from starting, and outside of people who root for teams that are drafting in the top-10, this might not be the best option.

In that case, you might as well stay committed to the mission of following the Buckeyes. We will get to the two ways to do that next, but before we do there are a lot of angles to follow additional sports.

ESPN+ has Cricket — can I say without shame that I now know what wicket is? No, but I have watched more than I thought. There is a level of learning to new sports, but with so many options, I’m sure you can find something.

Sports betting is also legal, and throwing a few bones on a game will always increase the viewer experience. It will never replace the rush of Ohio State football, but in a responsible manner and with our betting partner DraftKings, why not throw down an offseason wager or two?

Follow any of Ohio State’s Spring Sports with the same vigor

There will be no mention about Ohio State’s men’s basketball team due to the unfortunate state of their season. Even without the natural Buckeye transition, the Ohio State athletic program has some highly ranked, competitive sports. This might be the easiest way to transfer your football energy, as there is already a bias heading into the following.

The Buckeyes are ranked fourth in men’s wrestling, 13th in women’s basketball, seventh in men’s hockey, and first in men’s tennis. That gives plenty of options to pivot your attention to during the football offseason — and you don’t have to buy new gear. These teams may end up breaking your heart, but the journey is always the friends you make along the way. The best part is you won’t have to go anywhere else to get coverage of these teams.

Getting into other Buckeye teams has never been easier with the Big Ten Network, and if these programs keep winning, there is no reason you can’t have a lot of fun.

Become a message board genius

At the end of the day we’re all here because there is no way out. This is our life. Thursday will get here and the attention will shift immediately to recruiting. With the additions of NIL, transfers, and realignment still center stage, there is never a shortage of conversation to be had. That is where message boards and platforms like Twitter become the outlet to unleash our fandom on the world.

You may carve some wood sculptures or catch up on all your shows, but you and I both know that is not how it ends. The rumors of a five-star recruit taking a spring visit will eat at your mind until you get an update. A Notre Dame fan will spew nonsensical praise about Marcus Freeman, and you’ll have to remind them what happened last season. This is the way of life we have chosen, and even with an effort to step away, the game will always bring you back.

There will always be another recruit, another fan base, and another debate to be had. While you try to expand your horizons, we all end up back to making a depth chart projection ahead of Spring Practice, We will have our conspiracies to discuss and that is what makes this sport so great. The grind never stops, and that is the life of the fan. As long as there is an Ohio State football, we will never go a day with out it.

With the football offseason officially here, we begin the long road back to watching Ohio State on Saturday’s in the Shoe – or any football at all. That realization sucks, but there are things to do to fill the void.

If you’re like me, you’ll probably just skip to message board genius and grind away until the Buckeyes play again.

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LGHL You’re Nuts: The next Buckeye to win an NFL end-of-season award

You’re Nuts: The next Buckeye to win an NFL end-of-season award
Josh Dooley via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here

NFL: Super Bowl LVII-NFL Honors

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Garrett Wilson and Nick Bosa just took home NFL awards, so who’s next?

Everybody knows that one of the best parts of being a sports fan is debating and dissecting the most (and least) important questions in the sporting world with your friends. So, we’re bringing that to the pages of LGHL with our favorite head-to-head column: You’re Nuts.

In You’re Nuts, two LGHL staff members will take differing sides of one question and argue their opinions passionately. Then, in the end, it’s up to you to determine who’s right and who’s nuts.

This week’s topic: The next Buckeye to win an NFL end-of-season award

Josh’s Take​


Lost in the hype of Super Bowl week, and the subsequent gifting of another game to the Kansas City Chiefs, was the NFL’s recognition of its best or most deserving individual players.

NFL Honors, the league’s annual awards show, was held last Thursday to celebrate greatness and hand out trophies across the board: MVP, Offensive/Defensive Player of the Year, Rookie of the Year and so on. The show also reveals the league’s next Hall of Fame class, as well as its plans for continuing to protect and promote the legacy of Pat Mahomes via random game stoppages and phantom calls... Oh, wait, that was just a random nightmare I had last night.

During this year’s ceremony, two former Ohio State Buckeyes were recognized for their stellar on-field performance. Wide receiver Garrett Wilson of the New York Jets was tabbed as the AP Offensive Rookie of the Year (ROTY), while defensive end Nick Bosa took home AP Defensive Player of the Year (DPOY). The latter is just the second former Buckeye to win DPOY (Randy Gradishar in 1978), while Wilson became the fifth Ohio State rookie to earn a ROTY award (offense or defense) since 2016!

Including Michael Thomas’ 2019 win for Offensive POTY, the Scarlet and Gray can now claim seven major awards in the past seven seasons. Which inevitably got us thinking: Who’s next? Which former OSU player is going to take home the next prestigious NFL award, and will it be next season?

Recent history tells us the answer is “yes”, but Gene and I did not want to back ourselves into a corner. If I wanted to predict that Kyle McCord wins ROTY in 2025, such an option was available to me. However, I chose to go in a slightly different direction.

While it may not be considered a major award, I am always intrigued by Comeback Player of the Year. I just think it is a cool idea and often recognizes a player who overcame some sort of adversity to enjoy a great season. I also think it is borderline hilarious that Chad Pennington won it twice in three seasons, for essentially just staying healthy and playing average football. I mean, how does one have two “comeback” seasons in the span of 36 months? With no injury in between? But I digress. Because I think there is one former Buckeye who could be a prime candidate for this award in 2023. His name is Chase Young.

Young was chosen second overall in the 2020 NFL Draft, and he immediately took the league by storm. The uber-athletic DE finished his rookie season with 7.5 sacks, four forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries, and a touchdown, flashing potential to become one of the NFL’s most disruptive defensive players. He earned Defensive ROTY honors, and was one of only two rookies voted to the Pro Bowl. All signs pointed toward Young following in the footsteps of the Bosa brothers, poised to terrorize quarterbacks for years to come... But the wheels have since fallen off for this Washington Commander, with injury acting as the main culprit.

Young battled a sophomore slump throughout the first half of the 2021 season, before tearing his ACL and PCL in Week 10. He had only tallied 1.5 sacks to that point; a precipitous drop-off from his productive rookie campaign. The injury he suffered was a significant one, which then lingered... and lingered... and lingered, nearly wiping out all of his 2022 season. Young returned in Week 16, but had minimal impact on the field. Not surprising given his long layoff.

But I expect Young to bounce back in a major way in 2023. He is too talented not to. All this guy has done, when healthy, is make life hell for opposing quarterbacks — minus a few games during which he was consistently double and triple-teamed. Helping Young’s Comeback POTY cause is the Washington roster. The Commanders do not have a ton to hang their hat(s) on, but what they do have is a silly-talented defensive line group. Jonathan Allen, Daron Payne, and Montez Sweat should all take on their fair share of opposing blockers, putting Young in a lot of one-on-one matchups. If he wins enough of them, he will be a fixture in the backfield.

Beyond believing in Young’s overall talent, I want to believe that he can overcome his unfortunate injury. You never want to see an athlete’s career significantly impacted by injury at such a young age, regardless of which team he or she played for. But it certainly cuts a little deeper when said athlete donned scarlet and gray. So Chase Young is my prediction for 2023 Comeback Player of the Year, and if his past playing history is any indication, you can take that prediction to the bank!

Gene’s Take​


As Josh already laid out, Ohio State players have made quite a habit of taking home end-of-season awards in the NFL over the past few years, including most recently Nick Bosa and Garrett Wilson. I love Josh’s choice of Chase Young as Comeback Player of the Year, because we still have not really seen what a fully healthy version of the freakishly athletic defensive end looks like in a full NFL season. However, with the way the Buckeyes have been producing wide receivers under Brian Hartline, I’m going to place my bet on the offensive side of the football.

Offensive or Defensive Rookie of the Year are likely the easiest awards to try and predict, and you generally know which players are going to be taken at or near the top of the draft and which of those guys will be playing big roles for their teams in year one in the league. However, the possibility of picking yet another Ohio State receiver to take home Offensive Rookie of the Year is simply too good to pass up, and so for that reason my choice to be awarded OROY in 2023 will be none other than Jaxon Smith-Njigba.

People might forget just how good JSN was after missing basically the entirety of the 2022 campaign, but I think that is only going to play into the situation he lands in at the NFL level. Had Smith-Njigba played the lions share of the snaps this past year as expected, he would undoubtedly be WR1 in this year’s NFL Draft. However, without much of anything on tape from this season, he will likely fall to later in the first round — where the better team’s in the league are drafting. Rather than being taken by a team in the top-10 that is likely closer to a rebuild than competing, JSN will likely find himself on a good team to start his professional career.

Why should we think that Smith-Njigba will shine right away at the next level? Well, might I remind you that JSN was actually the best receiver in a WR room that featured both Garrett Wilson and Chris Olave — two guys who just posted 1,000-yard seasons in their rookie years, one of which took home OROY. He didn’t even just put up marginally better stats, either. He was significantly ahead of both Olave and Wilson, posting over 1,600 yards receiving on 95 catches, ahead of the second-place Wilson’s 70 receptions for 1,058 yards.

Don’t get me wrong, all three of these guys are tremendous talents, and pretty much everyone knew that Olave and Wilson would be stars at the next level. This is not to say that JSN will be even better than they are in the NFL, because that is already an incredibly high bar to achieve, but the combination of landing in a potentially better situation on top of already proving his talent level when surrounded by other stars leads me to believe that Jaxon Smith-Njigba should be the clear favorite to win OROY in 2023.

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LGHL Dimitrious Stanley’s Ohio State legacy worthy of respect

Dimitrious Stanley’s Ohio State legacy worthy of respect
Michael Citro via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here

Dimitrious Stanley Ohio St


He wasn’t the flashiest receiver to ever don the scarlet and gray, but Stanley deserves Buckeye Nation’s respect.

A little-used bench option from 1993 to 1995, former OSU wide receiver Dimitrious Stanley broke out during the 1996 college football season that started just a few months after I donned cap and gown and walked for my degree in Ohio Stadium. I was at every home game in which Stanley played — in that same stadium.

So when news of Stanley’s passing at just 48 years old after a battle with prostate cancer for four years dropped three days ago, it shook me up a bit.

It occurred to me that many of our readers, and even some of our writers here at Land-Grant Holy Land, are too young to have seen him play, or at least too young to remember it. I figured that those of us who do remember him have an obligation to talk about what we remember from the man who wore No. 3 for the Buckeyes (for three seasons, anyway — he wore No. 86 his freshman season). After all, remembering people who are gone is the only form of immortality we’ve got at the moment.

A four-year letterwinner from 1993-96, Stanley could easily be lost amidst the names of great Buckeye wide receivers. He was only a starter during his senior season of 1996. He made the most of his time in the starting lineup for John Cooper’s Buckeyes that season, catching 43 passes for 829 yards and eight touchdowns to lead the Buckeyes in all three major categories.

Of those 43 catches, 10 receptions came in a monster performance against Wisconsin for a total of 199 receiving yards. The Buckeyes needed every play Stanley made that day, winning just 17-14 at home. Ohio State had beaten No. 4 Penn State by 31 points a week earlier and then struggled to score or to run the ball against the Badgers’ eight-man front. A sloppy OSU team turned the ball over repeatedly and had a kick blocked.

Still, Stanley scored the winning touchdown on a throw by Joe Germaine, keeping the Buckeyes on track for an eventual Rose Bowl berth.

Only four players have bested Stanley’s career high for yards in a game in that win over Wisconsin, and they are a who’s who of great OSU receivers: Jaxon Smith-Njigba (twice), Terry Glenn, Santonio Holmes, Gary Williams, and David Boston.

Stanley capped his senior season in style, helping the Buckeyes snap a long Rose Bowl title drought. Two of his catches came on a second-half drive that gave his team a 14-10 lead. The second of those catches went 72 yards to the house.


The Buckeyes couldn’t hold the lead and fell behind late. But Germaine rallied the Buckeyes and converted a pair of third downs on the decisive drive by finding Stanley. Boston capped the winning drive with a five-yard touchdown reception. All Stanley did was pull two defenders with him on a slant route to free up Boston for the game-winning score.

The winning drive was one of the most dramatic game-winning possessions in school history. It snapped Ohio State’s four-game losing streak in the “Granddaddy of them All” and gave the Buckeyes their first Rose Bowl championship since 1974.

Entering the 2022 season, Stanley was still seventh on Ohio State’s career list for receiving yards per game, averaging 18. As previously mentioned, he didn’t play much his first three seasons, so his career totals are not much higher than his 1996 totals: 63 receptions for 1,136 yards and 13 touchdowns. By today’s standards, that’s somewhere between what a second and third receiver on a Ryan Day offense nets in one season.

Stanley then capped his OSU career with a selection to the 1997 Senior Bowl. After a cup of coffee in the Canadian Football League and arena football, Stanley’s football career was over. He may be more widely remembered for his work on local television in Columbus than as a player, but I’ll never forget what he did to get Ohio State that elusive Rose Bowl win.

While there are far bigger names on the long list of great Buckeye wideouts that leap more immediately to mind, Stanley deserves to be remembered, too.

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LGHL No. 13 Ohio State women’s basketball vs. No. 2 Indiana: Game preview and prediction

No. 13 Ohio State women’s basketball vs. No. 2 Indiana: Game preview and prediction
1ThomasCostello via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here

Ohio State Buckeyes forward Cotie McMahon (32) plays against...

Photo by Jeremy Hogan/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

The Buckeyes and Hoosiers meet for the final time in the regular season, with a lot on the line for the Scarlet & Gray.

The Ohio State women’s basketball team has had a tough go as of late. After a 19-0 start to the season, the Buckeyes have dropped four of six games. Part of that downfall was a defeat on Jan. 26 against the Indiana Hoosiers.

On Monday, Ohio State and Indiana return to the court in opposite positions. It’s now the Hoosiers coming in as the No. 2 side against the No. 13 Buckeyes. It’s not only another game between two top-15 Big Ten teams, but a chance for the Scarlet & Gray to get back to where they were before the last week of January sent the season in a different direction.

Preview​


Although this edition of the game is at home for the Buckeyes, it’s arguably a more difficult matchup than almost three weeks ago. That’s because Ohio State faces an Indiana team who’s hitting their stride even better than they were in January.

Indiana is fresh off a program record conference play crowd witnessing IU take down the No. 4 Iowa Hawkeyes. On the court of Assembly Hall, the Hoosiers neutralized center Monika Czinano, forcing guard Caitlin Clark to try and win the game alone, unsuccessfully.

On the other side, the Buckeyes are 2-2 since their loss to the Hoosiers. Outside of lopsided wins over the Minnesota Golden Gophers and Wisconsin Badgers, Ohio State lost to an unranked Purdue Boilermakers and continued struggles against top-10 ranked conference opponents.

Ohio State’s struggles culminated on Feb. 5 in a trip to College Park, Maryland. Against the No. 8 Terrapins, the Buckeyes lost by a season-high 34 point deficit. Never in the 40 minutes did the Scarlet & Gray look up to the challenge of guard Diamond Miller and the Terps. Now, it’s another game against center Mackenzie Holmes’ Hoosiers.

“She’s one of the best post players in the country,” said head coach Kevin McGuff. “So, we certainly have our hands full.”

On Jan. 26, Holmes led all scorers with 26 points, although Ohio State did well to keep her out of a strong rebounding night. Even so, Holmes’ four rebounds were made up for through guards Sydney Parrish and Yarden Garzon’s 21 combined boards.

Holmes hurts the Buckeyes the way she has since she joined the Hoosiers: inside the paint. The Scarlet & Gray haven’t had an answer for Holmes since the start of last season and now Indiana’s gotten stronger around her, creating one of the most well-balanced teams in the country.

That. Cut. @kenzieholmes_ | #IUWBB pic.twitter.com/XnospeVU1f

— Indiana Women’s Basketball (@IndianaWBB) February 10, 2023
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Indiana features point guard Grace Berger, who moved into the one-spot in her senior season this year. Berger leads IU with 5.6 assists per game, which would be the fifth-highest in the Big Ten if not for missing nine games of the season due to a knee injury.

Berger not only finds Holmes, who shoots strong inside the paint but can move throughout the arc and hit midrange jumpers, but a trio of offensive threats on the perimeter.

This summer, head coach Teri Moren added three players — two from the transfer market and one incoming freshman. They’re Parrish, an Oregon Ducks transfer, freshman Yarden Garzon and former Minnesota Golden Gopher Sara Scalia.

Garzon was especially dangerous in the matchup in Bloomington, Indiana. The Israeli National Team guard had a double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Garzon hit four threes and also had three steals, with two turning into fastbreak points. Those turnovers were crucial in Indiana’s win against a Buckeyes team who outscored Indiana for three quarters, but fell hard in the third quarter.

The Buckeyes turned the ball over six times in the third quarter, with Indiana 7-0 in fastbreak points and 13-0 in points off turnovers. Ohio State’s six points is the second lowest total they’ve scored in a quarter all season.

“Hopefully we can bottle what we did in those three quarters in Bloomington and apply it to Monday night’s game, is what I’m hoping,” said head coach Kevin McGuff.

However, Ohio State might not have the same people available to play those three strong quarters. A potential absence for Monday is forward Rebeka Mikulášiková. The Slovakian suffered a high ankle sprain halfway through the first quarter of Wednesday’s win against Minnesota.

On Friday, Mikulášiková told the coaching staff she was good to go for Monday, but nothing’s official until after weekend practice and McGuff and the Buckeyes can see what she does on the court. Although, Mikulášiková didn’t affect the last game in Indiana as much as the team needed, scoring three points and grabbing four rebounds.

If the injury does keep Mikulášiková out, it’ll be up to transfer forward Eboni Walker. Walker played 25 minutes, scoring 12 points and dishing six assists. All a Buckeye career high from the former Nevada Gatorade Player of the Year honoree. When Ohio State was effective against Holmes on Jan. 26, it was when Walker was on the court. Walker had seven rebounds in the game, good for second best on the Scarlet & Gray in the defeat.

Another injury discussion is around guard Jacy Sheldon. Will she return? Against Maryland, Sheldon made her long awaited return after not playing since Nov. 30 due to a foot injury. Buckeye fans were surprised on Wednesday when Sheldon didn’t suit up for the game against Minnesota, but that was by design. On Saturday, coach McGuff gave more detail about why Sheldon didn’t play.

“She’s chomping at the bit to play,” said McGuff. “She’s still day to day because I’m watching her move and I’ll just be frank, I didn’t think she was moving like she normally does, when she’s healthy at Maryland, so I kind of took a step back and said ‘hey, I just want to make sure we’re doing the right thing here.’”

Fans and the Buckeyes all want Sheldon back at 100%, but McGuff is still worried more about making sure Sheldon doesn’t aggravate her injury, and still with the mindset that they get Sheldon ready for the stretch run. Although the end of the regular season is coming quickly, next Friday against the Maryland Terrapins.

A win for Ohio State against Indiana could still happen without Sheldon. The Minnesota win showed that the Buckeyes can hit shots, after a cold spell came as the winter months blew in. The more players like guard Rikki Harris and forwards Taylor Thierry and Cotie McMahon hit their shots, the more space guard Taylor Mikesell will have to work with against the Hoosiers.

In the last outing, McMahon led the Buckeyes in scoring and made things especially difficult for Indiana in the first half. The freshman had 18 of her 21 points in the game in the first two periods, with the Hoosiers finally adjusting to her attacking style in the second half.

If McMahon gets started like that again, and her teammates hit shots, there’s no telling what could happen.

Projected Lineups​

Lineup Notes​

  • Thierry is third in the Big Ten in field goal percentage at 64.9% and has scored double-figures in nine games in a row.
  • McMahon leads the Buckeyes with 119 free throws this season, hitting 68.9% of her shots.
  • Buckeyes 83.1 points per game is the second-highest in the conference.

Lineup Notes​

  • Holmes leads the conference in shooting percentage (69%) and second in points per game (22.1).
  • Indiana has the best defense in the Big Ten, allowing 60.3 points per game.
  • Berger had her best game of the season last week, against Iowa, with 26 points, nine rebounds and six assists.

Prediction ​


With the ability of Indiana, and how they’ve grown as a unit this season, it’s difficult to see a Buckeyes victory. Something going Ohio State’s way is that they don’t have to play in front of a crowd of over 10,000 who are against them, like the Buckeyes did in Bloomington.

However, Indiana is the better team on Monday. If Mikulášiková is out, Walker will play well against Holmes, with Thierry part of that coverage too. But Walker can’t play 40 minutes, and the lack of depth will be difficult for Ohio State to overcome.

The Buckeyes will shoot better than they did in the third quarter against Indiana in January, but it won’t be enough to overcome Indiana. It’ll be a closer game than last month, but the same result.

How to Watch​


Date: Monday, Feb. 13, 2023
Time: 7:00 p.m. ET
Where: Schottenstein Center, Columbus, Ohio
Television: Big Ten Network
Stream: Fox Sports app with Big Ten Network subscription

LGHL Prediction: 78-72 Indiana Hoosiers​

Big Growth in Big Ten​


From the Buckeyes’ sellout against the Iowa Hawkeyes to Indiana selling over 13,000 tickets for an upcoming rivalry game against Purdue, the popularity and growth of Big Ten women’s basketball can’t be ignored.

“It’s amazing what some of the conference schools are doing in terms of attendance,” said McGuff. “The league is as good as its ever been in terms of the depth so there are great games and great programs all around and I’m just really happy that people are out and supporting women’s basketball like that in the Big Ten.”

Ohio State is hoping for some of that on Monday, too. While there’s no word yet on attendance numbers, another sellout could help the Buckeyes against a tough opponent like Indiana.

This season, the Buckeyes’ attendance is on the rise, averaging 5,622 per game. That’s the highest it’s been in four seasons. With games against Indiana and Maryland at home to finish the home regular season, there’s a strong chance for it to rise even further.

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LGHL LGHL Uncut Podcast: Izzo, Holtmann discuss Michigan State’s win, state of Ohio State program

LGHL Uncut Podcast: Izzo, Holtmann discuss Michigan State’s win, state of Ohio State program
Connor Lemons via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here

Michigan State v Ohio State

Photo by Kirk Irwin/Getty Images

You can always count on Tom Izzo for some good quotes.

Throughout the season, Land-Grant Holy Land will be bringing you uncut audio primarily from Ohio State press conferences, but also from individual interview sessions.

Listen to the episode and subscribe: ​

Subscribe: RSS | Apple | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts | iHeart Radio​


Following Ohio State’s lopsided, comical loss to Michigan State Sunday afternoon, we spoke to Tom Izzo, Chris Holtmann, and Bruce Thornton about that game and the state of Ohio State’s program in general.

Izzo spoke at length about Holtmann and the Ohio State program. He mentioned that “once you build the monster, you have to feed the monster” meaning that once you establish success at this level, you have to figure out how to sustain it. Izzo said Sunday’s game was a “rock fight” but that he had several players contribute in other ways than scoring.

Thornton talked about the losses piling up and was also asked about social media. He said there are a lot of “hate comments” thrown his way, but that he’s had to stay mature and just learn to ignore people on the internet.

Holtmann talked about how Izzo’s Spartans slowed the pace down quite a bit from when the two teams met last season, but that his offense was just all-around “rough.” He talked a bit about Brice Sensabaugh’s continued struggles and what he’d like to see from Roddy Gayle for the rest of the season.


Connect with Connor:
Twitter: @lemons_connor

Theme music provided by www.bensound.com​


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LGHL We’ll talk about this later: Donna Kelce, dressing the part

We’ll talk about this later: Donna Kelce, dressing the part
Meredith Hein via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here

Super Bowl LVII Pregame

Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Roc Nation

Your dose of lighthearted takes from this week’s happenings.

Each week, we’ll break down something that happened during the Ohio State game (and occasionally other games and events) that we’ll be talking about for a while—you know, the silly sideline interactions, the awful announcing and the weird storylines that stick with us for years to come. We’ll also compare each of these happenings to memorable moments in pop culture, because who doesn’t love a good Office reference?

Donna Kelce’s gameday fit was on point for yesterday’s Super Bowl. From the split sweatshirt to the custom clear bag to the personalized sneakers, one for each son playing in the big game, the whole ensemble was everything we could have hoped for.

#gamedayfit pic.twitter.com/l96sLcLwiz

— Donna Kelce (@dkelce1) February 12, 2023
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For Ohio State fans, the immediate and selfish feeling when seeing a pair of brothers playing in the Super Bowl might be one of what could have been. The pair were from Westlake, Ohio near Cleveland and attended Cincinnati. Might they have had starring roles had they played for a program a couple hours up the road? (Probably not, as Travis was a two-star recruit out of high school and Jason didn’t have a recruiting rating.)

However, the very next thought that should be popping in our brains is a repressed memory from the 2006 Fiesta Bowl game between Notre Dame and Ohio State when Laura Quinn (now Laura Hawk) wore a split jersey to support her brother, Brady Quinn, then-quarterback for the Fighting Irish, and boyfriend, AJ Hawk, linebacker for Ohio State.

The most savage moment in College Football was when Brady Quinn’s sister wore a split jersey between her and then boyfriend Ohio State LB AJ Hawk and AJ got a sack and pointed to his now wife

Man I miss that era of college football

Dope they both made it and stayed together pic.twitter.com/TduU6JQxPL

— Tevin Studdard Sr. (@TevinStuddard) December 30, 2018
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Who wore it better? Our biases might lead us to Donna, since as Ohio State fans we don’t want to see fans splitting their loyalties away from the Buckeyes. Unbiased, though, Donna completed the look and her shoes were fresh.

It was also special to see that Donna was seated between Roger Goodell and Damar Hamlin in what was clearly the VIP section of State Farm Stadium, and another friendly reminder of the incredible inspiration Hamlin has been at the close of the NFL season.

And while we joke about it when we don’t necessarily care about the outcome, Donna probably really did just wish that both teams had fun yesterday.

Good luck today, boys. #SBLVII @tkelce @JasonKelce pic.twitter.com/Zrw2he6elP

— NFL (@NFL) February 12, 2023
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Google Ohio State to Host 5-Star DB Bolden for Official Visit | 2024 Ohio State Football Recruiting Tracker - Sports Illustrated

Ohio State to Host 5-Star DB Bolden for Official Visit | 2024 Ohio State Football Recruiting Tracker - Sports Illustrated
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".

Ohio State to Host 5-Star DB Bolden for Official Visit | 2024 Ohio State Football Recruiting Tracker Sports Illustrated

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Google 4 Takeaways: Joey Hauser erupts, Spartans down hapless Buckeyes in Columbus - Sports Illustrated

4 Takeaways: Joey Hauser erupts, Spartans down hapless Buckeyes in Columbus - Sports Illustrated
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".

  1. 4 Takeaways: Joey Hauser erupts, Spartans down hapless Buckeyes in Columbus Sports Illustrated
  2. WATCH: Chris Holtmann discusses loss to Michigan State Yahoo Sports
  3. Ohio State Historically Bad on Offense vs. Michigan State as Losing Streak Continues Sports Illustrated

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LGHL You’re Nuts: Which former Ohio State player had the best Super Bowl performance?

You’re Nuts: Which former Ohio State player had the best Super Bowl performance?
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here

NFL: JAN 30 Super Bowl XXXIV - Titans v Rams


Your (almost) daily dose of good-natured, Ohio State banter.

Everybody knows that one of the best parts of being a sports fan is debating and dissecting the most (and least) important questions in the sporting world with your friends. So, we’re bringing that to the pages of LGHL with our favorite head-to-head column: You’re Nuts.

In You’re Nuts, two LGHL staff members will take differing sides of one question and argue their opinions passionately. Then, in the end, it’s up to you to determine who’s right and who’s nuts.

Today’s Question: Which former Ohio State player had the best Super Bowl performance?​

Jami’s Take: Eddie George in Super Bowl XLIII, 1997​


When we look at historic Buckeye Super Bowl performances, the obvious choice here is Santonio Holmes. He’s the only Buckeye in history to win the Super Bowl MVP award, a title he earned in 2009 after he helped the Steelers beat the Arizona Cardinals with 9 catches for 131 yards and a game-winning touchdown in the final minute in Super Bowl XLIII.

Alternatively, we did say “Best Performance,” so I did toy with naming my kings Shaun Gayle (former Buckeye safety) and Mike Tomczak (former Buckeye quarterback). Because has there ever been a better football “performance” than the 1985 Chicago Bears’ “The Super Bowl Shuffle”? Methinks not (I’m a Bears fan. I’m biased on the subject. You already know this, so let’s move on).

The problem is, I don’t feel great about selecting my guys in the Shufflin’ Crew for “Best Performance,” given that they didn’t match that legendary dance with on-the-field greatness in the Super Bowl game itself. Tomczak was in his rookie season, and while he did play in the game on the kickoff unit, he was penalized for a face mask. Gayle, for his part, didn’t record a single tackle in Super Bowl XX (though he is pretty well-known and loved in Chicago in spite of it).

So instead of taking the easy out or the kind of lame left-field out, I present for your consideration: Eddie George.

You might have heard of him.

George – Ohio State’s Heisman Trophy-winning running back – was drafted in the first round by the Houston Oilers in 1996. He was the starting tailback from 1996-2003, never missing a start and moving with the team to Nashville when the Oilers became the Tennessee Titans.

This is where our story begins. It is now the year 2000. A month ago, we were worried the human race would be wiped off the planet because of Y2K (a concern I still don’t fully understand), and now we’re ready to celebrate our survival by watching the Tennessee Titans take on the St. Louis Rams at the Georgia Dome in Super Bowl XXXIV.

The Titans and the Rams had both gone 13-3 in the regular season, though the Titans needed a wild card berth to make the playoffs and the Rams were favored.

For both franchises, the playoffs were a welcome change of pace: The Rams hadn’t made the playoffs since 1989 – their first playoff berth since moving from Los Angeles to St. Louis, and the Titans were making their first since 1993, and their first since moving from Houston.

Here’s where George comes in. The game was a largely defensive battle for the first half, with both teams coming up empty on drives deep into their opponent’s territory. George took on his usual role as a steady force though, with some major plays for the Titans' offense. Over the course of the game, he ran for 95 yards in 28 plays.

In the second half, things really got going for George. Playing small ball, George was able to help the team drive down the field. His touchdowns on back-to-back drives cut the Rams’ lead to 16-13. They followed that with a field goal to tie the game, 16-16.

The Rams did ultimately tack on another touchdown, which brings us to one of the greatest ends of an NFL game in history.

In the final seconds of the game, the Titans ran an unbelievable play that used tight end Frank Wychek as a decoy to free up receiver Kevin Dyson. And it almost worked.

Except Rams linebacker Mike Jones caught on just in time, making the tackle with two seconds on the clock. The Titans had no timeouts and were unable to get another play off, falling just short of a last-second comeback. How short? Mere inches.

Final score: 23-16, Rams.

But while the end of this game went down in infamy, it needs to be noted that George brought his team back from what was previously considered an insurmountable deficit. The Rams’ 16-point lead was the largest deficit to be erased in a Super Bowl. It was the first time a deficit larger than 10 points was erased. It was the first time in Super Bowl history a team tied the game after being down double digits in the fourth quarter.

And that was thanks to George.

It’s easy to dole out recognition to players on the winning team. But George broke records, fought back, and held his team in the game until the final seconds, and though the Titans didn’t walk away with the victory, he also made it a helluva game to watch. And that, my friends, is a performance worth talking about.

Matt’s Take: Santonio Holmes in Super Bowl XLIII, 2009​


I love Eddie George. He won the Heisman my freshman year of high school; I was at his Senior Tackle in The Horseshoe; I’ve interviewed him here at Land-Grant Holy Land; I proudly wear my Tennessee State hat as often as possible.

But, there’s no way to argue that any Buckeye had a better Super Bowl performance than Santonio Holmes. Fourteen years ago, the Pittsburgh Steeler wide receiver caught the game-winning touchdown with just 35 seconds remaining to win the franchise’s sixth Super Bowl. That catch capped a nine-reception, 131-yard performance, earning him the honor of being the Super Bowl XLIII MVP. The Steelers took home the title in a 27-23 victory over the Arizona Cardinals.

While I am not a passionate NFL fan, it does still pain me a little bit to pick a Steeler even if he does have very strong Columbus roots. If I’m being honest, I would have preferred to go further back in history to pick my Super Bowl Buckeye hero, especially considering Holmes’ spotty legal history. I wish I could have picked Orlando Pace, Tom Matte, Matt Snell, or even Mike Vrabel, but how can I argue with Holmes? He’s the only Buckeye with a Super Bowl MVP trophy, he caught the game-winning score in dramatic fashion, and he put up some really impressive numbers.

So, my heart will always side with Eddie (Eddie, Eddie), but I’ve got to go with Santonio on this one.


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