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LGHL Film Preview: Rutgers will do its best to throw Ohio State off its game, but that won’t be...
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Film Preview: Rutgers will do its best to throw Ohio State off its game, but that won’t be enough
Chris Renne via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Joshua A. Bickel/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK
Greg Schiano blitzes... a lot, and against Ohio State he will need to hope his creativity can give his team enough to keep the game interesting.
Ohio State hosts Rutgers and former defensive coordinator Greg Schiano, now the headman of the Scarlet Knights. The Buckeyes have never lost to Rutgers, and looking at Rutgers’ season in totality, there isn’t any reason to think that will change this year.
This matchup features a lot of familiarity between Ohio State having its former defensive coordinator being the head coach and the two schools being divisional rivals, meaning there is nothing to hide between the two teams. In my own research, Ohio State has an average margin of victory of 42.5 points in the all-time series. Rutgers will once again be fighting an uphill battle against Ohio State to make this game close.
Today, we’re going to look at how Rutgers might try to do that. By looking at film from last season, we can see how the Buckeyes attacked Rutgers’ defense, the way Rutgers’ defense has looked this year, and how their offense can be their own worst enemy against better teams.
Ohio State offense vs. Rutgers
Ohio State and Rutgers have played eight times, with the Buckeye having an average margin of victory of 42.5 points. There was no reason that was needed, just like there is no reason there needs to be a mention of Rutgers being 0-8 against Ohio State. But with eight games, that means we have some previous film to look at to see how the Buckeyes will look to attack Greg Schiano’s defense.
In all eight matchups, the Buckeyes’ offense has beaten Rutgers in to submission in a lot of ways, and this year the plan of attack shouldn’t change much. Schiano and the Rutgers defense have blitzing built in to their identity, and a leopard can’t change its spots. This means Ohio State will need to be on its game from a protection and play-calling standpoint.
RPO
Last year, C.J. Stroud was having a rough go of it heading into the matchup against Rutgers. Coming off a rough performance and injury, Rutgers was an opportunity for him to get some clean throws against aggressive looks. The Buckeyes found their rhythm passing the ball against Rutgers, and that should scare Rutgers’ fans because the Buckeyes have come a long way since this contest.
For Stroud, Day mixed in a good dose of RPO’s early to get Stroud into a rhythm. This is less needed this year, given where Stroud is as a quarterback, but from an attacking standpoint the play design below can be an effective way to get the slot receiver the ball. By motioning the tight end across the formation, they grab the attention of the nickel corner over top of the slot-receiver. For the option aspect here, Stroud is reading the linebackers. If they drop into coverage the play would be a “Split-zone,” instead they throw the route top side.
This is an easy throw for a big gain, and challenges the discipline of an incredibly aggressive defense.
Shallow Crossers
This year, it feels like shallow crossers have turned into deep crossers, with most of the catches being between 10-15 yards down field instead of five. Rutgers chooses to drop into coverage in this play, only bringing four rushers. Ohio State brings an X-Shallow crosser across the formation with the trips side receivers taking the defenders the other direction. This opens up a wide field throw with a lot open grass for the completion.
Ohio State used similar concepts to attack Wisconsin, and this is their bread-and-butter in the passing game. Expect a lot of these types of throws, especially early, to get Ohio State’s receivers into space.
Rutgers’ Defense in 2022
Rutgers has been solid on defense early into the season, and as a unit have only given up 55 total points. Schiano is an aggressive defensive mind, and early in the season this has paid dividends for their success. The issue for Rutgers is Iowa, Temple, and Boston College do not have the offensive fire power that Ohio State brings to the table.
Against Wide Zone
One of the concepts Ohio State has been deploying this season frequently is “Wide Zone.” This is a zone blocking outside run play that uses a horizontal run action to create vertical lanes for backs to cut into. Rutgers fills aggressively, but despite getting to their spots, Iowa moves them out of the way. With the way Ohio State’s offensive line is blocking, this will be a significant challenge for Rutgers to stop this play. They will need to get creative in throwing off how the offensive line counts the defenders, but history says getting too complicated with checks is not a strength of a Schiano defense.
Blitzing
One of the main ways Schiano tries to throw off blocking schemes in both the run and passing game is by blitzing a lot. Before the match up against Iowa, @CFBFilmRoom on Twitter had Rutgers with the highest Blitz Rate in the Power-5 at 41.8 percent.
In his first year at Rutgers, DC Joe Harasymiak is running an aggressive defense, leading the Big Ten in blitz rate. pic.twitter.com/xgp6m2Y3RH
— CFB Film Room (@CFBFilmRoom) September 22, 2022
Against teams without C.J. Stroud at quarterback, this is an incredibly effective way to challenge QBs with intermediate skill sets. The pressure forces the opposing quarterbacks internal clock to speed up, and if they are not well-prepared this pressure can force mistakes. Schiano and defensive coordinator Joe Harasymiak will blitz in any situation, forcing offenses to always be prepared.
In the first play, Iowa is running a long developing downfield passing concept. Their quarterback takes a three step drop, and the pressure forces him out of the pocket before he has time to locate a throwing option. He scrambles for almost no gain and this is why Rutgers brings pressure. Ohio State has handled pressure well this year, and the Buckeyes will need to continue this trend to have a chance to make some big plays.
The vulnerability comes from Rutgers getting a little too aggressive, and when the blitz doesn’t get home, big plays can happen for Rutgers’ opponent. Iowa once again runs a long developing passing concept, but this time they protect the quarterback long enough to set up a throw. The Scarlet Knights defense brings a safety blitz from the deep safety. The corner gets beat by the receiver and the safety, needing to disguise his formation, can not get across the field in time. The window for this throw is gigantic, and this is the risk a team runs when the blitz doesn’t get home.
Rutgers Offense in 2022
Offensively, Rutgers runs a spread offense with a lot of 11-personnel. Their tight end Johnny Langan is often utilized as a motioner across the formation, and also is utilized as a wild cat quarterback at times. The passing game relies on attacking horizontally and trying to get the ball into their receivers’ hands in space. In the running game, they use almost exclusively zone runs with a quarterback read. And the final thing you should always expect when they play Ohio State is a few trick plays.
Read Option
Looking at Rutgers’ read option concept, they are willing to run the quarterback inside, which gives them more options. Having the quarterback as an inside run option changes how the read defender needs to react. The Iowa defensive end plays the read option poorly by taking the running back, and this allows the quarterback to pull the ball.
By over-pursuing to the running back, the Rutgers offensive line is able to get up field and get their blocks at the second level. Rutgers will look to challenge Ohio State’s discipline in a lot of ways, but this play type will be the primary test for the Buckeyes.
Turnovers
Now Rutgers has improved in a lot of ways under Greg Schiano, but the main issue for Rutgers is turnovers. In the play below, Rutgers shows how this issue can rear its ugly head for the offense, and why this is the defense’s worst enemy. The Rutgers offense throws a pass down field that gets picked off and Iowa runs it back for the score. Rutgers actually played a solid football game against Iowa, but they spotted the Hawkeyes two defensive touchdowns. This is the one thing Rutgers can’t do against Ohio State, and if they want to make the game more interesting, limiting turnovers is the place to start.
There is not a lot to say about this matchup, Ohio State has dominated the series on both sides of the football. Rutgers has been playing catch up in so many ways since joining the Big Ten, and they are still on the journey. Playing in the Big Ten East hasn’t helped by any means, and every time they play Ohio State, the talent differential is not the only issue needing to be overcome.
Rutgers doesn’t run a complex scheme on either side of the ball, but they are aggressive in everything they do. They will bring pressure at an incredibly high rate on defense to try to throw off opposing offenses. On offense, they will attack down field and get creative with a few trick plays. Throwing the kitchen sink at teams has worked when the talent is close, but against Ohio State, that is not the case.
Ohio State is more talented and they are a team that can capitalize on any mistakes Rutgers makes. Historically, the moment is too big for them every time they play Ohio State, but Greg Schiano is going to throw some punches. Rutgers deserves respect in the growth they’ve had recently, and the toughness of this team grows on a yearly basis. Schiano has added more talent to the roster, but it still has not netted any crazy gains.
They will throw the playbook at Ohio State with blitzes and trick plays. With how Ohio State is playing, it won’t be enough. The Buckeyes are always well-prepared for Rutgers and this game should be no different. The Buckeyes just need to remain disciplined and they will move to 9-0 all-time against Rutgers on Saturday.
Continue reading...
Chris Renne via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Joshua A. Bickel/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK
Greg Schiano blitzes... a lot, and against Ohio State he will need to hope his creativity can give his team enough to keep the game interesting.
Ohio State hosts Rutgers and former defensive coordinator Greg Schiano, now the headman of the Scarlet Knights. The Buckeyes have never lost to Rutgers, and looking at Rutgers’ season in totality, there isn’t any reason to think that will change this year.
This matchup features a lot of familiarity between Ohio State having its former defensive coordinator being the head coach and the two schools being divisional rivals, meaning there is nothing to hide between the two teams. In my own research, Ohio State has an average margin of victory of 42.5 points in the all-time series. Rutgers will once again be fighting an uphill battle against Ohio State to make this game close.
Today, we’re going to look at how Rutgers might try to do that. By looking at film from last season, we can see how the Buckeyes attacked Rutgers’ defense, the way Rutgers’ defense has looked this year, and how their offense can be their own worst enemy against better teams.
Ohio State offense vs. Rutgers
Ohio State and Rutgers have played eight times, with the Buckeye having an average margin of victory of 42.5 points. There was no reason that was needed, just like there is no reason there needs to be a mention of Rutgers being 0-8 against Ohio State. But with eight games, that means we have some previous film to look at to see how the Buckeyes will look to attack Greg Schiano’s defense.
In all eight matchups, the Buckeyes’ offense has beaten Rutgers in to submission in a lot of ways, and this year the plan of attack shouldn’t change much. Schiano and the Rutgers defense have blitzing built in to their identity, and a leopard can’t change its spots. This means Ohio State will need to be on its game from a protection and play-calling standpoint.
RPO
Last year, C.J. Stroud was having a rough go of it heading into the matchup against Rutgers. Coming off a rough performance and injury, Rutgers was an opportunity for him to get some clean throws against aggressive looks. The Buckeyes found their rhythm passing the ball against Rutgers, and that should scare Rutgers’ fans because the Buckeyes have come a long way since this contest.
For Stroud, Day mixed in a good dose of RPO’s early to get Stroud into a rhythm. This is less needed this year, given where Stroud is as a quarterback, but from an attacking standpoint the play design below can be an effective way to get the slot receiver the ball. By motioning the tight end across the formation, they grab the attention of the nickel corner over top of the slot-receiver. For the option aspect here, Stroud is reading the linebackers. If they drop into coverage the play would be a “Split-zone,” instead they throw the route top side.
This is an easy throw for a big gain, and challenges the discipline of an incredibly aggressive defense.
Shallow Crossers
This year, it feels like shallow crossers have turned into deep crossers, with most of the catches being between 10-15 yards down field instead of five. Rutgers chooses to drop into coverage in this play, only bringing four rushers. Ohio State brings an X-Shallow crosser across the formation with the trips side receivers taking the defenders the other direction. This opens up a wide field throw with a lot open grass for the completion.
Ohio State used similar concepts to attack Wisconsin, and this is their bread-and-butter in the passing game. Expect a lot of these types of throws, especially early, to get Ohio State’s receivers into space.
Rutgers’ Defense in 2022
Rutgers has been solid on defense early into the season, and as a unit have only given up 55 total points. Schiano is an aggressive defensive mind, and early in the season this has paid dividends for their success. The issue for Rutgers is Iowa, Temple, and Boston College do not have the offensive fire power that Ohio State brings to the table.
Against Wide Zone
One of the concepts Ohio State has been deploying this season frequently is “Wide Zone.” This is a zone blocking outside run play that uses a horizontal run action to create vertical lanes for backs to cut into. Rutgers fills aggressively, but despite getting to their spots, Iowa moves them out of the way. With the way Ohio State’s offensive line is blocking, this will be a significant challenge for Rutgers to stop this play. They will need to get creative in throwing off how the offensive line counts the defenders, but history says getting too complicated with checks is not a strength of a Schiano defense.
Blitzing
One of the main ways Schiano tries to throw off blocking schemes in both the run and passing game is by blitzing a lot. Before the match up against Iowa, @CFBFilmRoom on Twitter had Rutgers with the highest Blitz Rate in the Power-5 at 41.8 percent.
In his first year at Rutgers, DC Joe Harasymiak is running an aggressive defense, leading the Big Ten in blitz rate. pic.twitter.com/xgp6m2Y3RH
— CFB Film Room (@CFBFilmRoom) September 22, 2022
Against teams without C.J. Stroud at quarterback, this is an incredibly effective way to challenge QBs with intermediate skill sets. The pressure forces the opposing quarterbacks internal clock to speed up, and if they are not well-prepared this pressure can force mistakes. Schiano and defensive coordinator Joe Harasymiak will blitz in any situation, forcing offenses to always be prepared.
In the first play, Iowa is running a long developing downfield passing concept. Their quarterback takes a three step drop, and the pressure forces him out of the pocket before he has time to locate a throwing option. He scrambles for almost no gain and this is why Rutgers brings pressure. Ohio State has handled pressure well this year, and the Buckeyes will need to continue this trend to have a chance to make some big plays.
The vulnerability comes from Rutgers getting a little too aggressive, and when the blitz doesn’t get home, big plays can happen for Rutgers’ opponent. Iowa once again runs a long developing passing concept, but this time they protect the quarterback long enough to set up a throw. The Scarlet Knights defense brings a safety blitz from the deep safety. The corner gets beat by the receiver and the safety, needing to disguise his formation, can not get across the field in time. The window for this throw is gigantic, and this is the risk a team runs when the blitz doesn’t get home.
Rutgers Offense in 2022
Offensively, Rutgers runs a spread offense with a lot of 11-personnel. Their tight end Johnny Langan is often utilized as a motioner across the formation, and also is utilized as a wild cat quarterback at times. The passing game relies on attacking horizontally and trying to get the ball into their receivers’ hands in space. In the running game, they use almost exclusively zone runs with a quarterback read. And the final thing you should always expect when they play Ohio State is a few trick plays.
Read Option
Looking at Rutgers’ read option concept, they are willing to run the quarterback inside, which gives them more options. Having the quarterback as an inside run option changes how the read defender needs to react. The Iowa defensive end plays the read option poorly by taking the running back, and this allows the quarterback to pull the ball.
By over-pursuing to the running back, the Rutgers offensive line is able to get up field and get their blocks at the second level. Rutgers will look to challenge Ohio State’s discipline in a lot of ways, but this play type will be the primary test for the Buckeyes.
Turnovers
Now Rutgers has improved in a lot of ways under Greg Schiano, but the main issue for Rutgers is turnovers. In the play below, Rutgers shows how this issue can rear its ugly head for the offense, and why this is the defense’s worst enemy. The Rutgers offense throws a pass down field that gets picked off and Iowa runs it back for the score. Rutgers actually played a solid football game against Iowa, but they spotted the Hawkeyes two defensive touchdowns. This is the one thing Rutgers can’t do against Ohio State, and if they want to make the game more interesting, limiting turnovers is the place to start.
There is not a lot to say about this matchup, Ohio State has dominated the series on both sides of the football. Rutgers has been playing catch up in so many ways since joining the Big Ten, and they are still on the journey. Playing in the Big Ten East hasn’t helped by any means, and every time they play Ohio State, the talent differential is not the only issue needing to be overcome.
Rutgers doesn’t run a complex scheme on either side of the ball, but they are aggressive in everything they do. They will bring pressure at an incredibly high rate on defense to try to throw off opposing offenses. On offense, they will attack down field and get creative with a few trick plays. Throwing the kitchen sink at teams has worked when the talent is close, but against Ohio State, that is not the case.
Ohio State is more talented and they are a team that can capitalize on any mistakes Rutgers makes. Historically, the moment is too big for them every time they play Ohio State, but Greg Schiano is going to throw some punches. Rutgers deserves respect in the growth they’ve had recently, and the toughness of this team grows on a yearly basis. Schiano has added more talent to the roster, but it still has not netted any crazy gains.
They will throw the playbook at Ohio State with blitzes and trick plays. With how Ohio State is playing, it won’t be enough. The Buckeyes are always well-prepared for Rutgers and this game should be no different. The Buckeyes just need to remain disciplined and they will move to 9-0 all-time against Rutgers on Saturday.
Continue reading...
LGHL Why is this News? All the articles and tweets Buckeye fans need for September 29, 2022
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- 0 Replies
Why is this News? All the articles and tweets Buckeye fans need for September 29, 2022
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
All the Buckeye news thats fit to re-print.
Look, we get it. Your days are busy and you don’t have time to read all of the stories and tweets from the three dozen websites dedicated to covering Ohio State athletics, or the 237 Buckeye beat writers churning out hot takes and #content on a daily basis. But that’s ok, that’s what your friends at Land-Grant Holy Land are here for.
Monday through Friday, we’ll be collecting all of the articles, tweets, features, interviews, videos, podcasts, memes, photos, and whatever else we stumble across on the interwebz and putting them in our daily “Why is this News?” article. That way, you’ll have a one-stop shop for all of the most important Buckeye news, jokes, and analysis.
You’re welcome!
For your Earholes...
Subscribe: RSS | Apple | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts | iHeart Radio
Ask LGHL
Introducing ‘Ask LGHL,’ asking and answering questions throughout the football season
Matt Tamanini, Land-Grant Holy Land
LGHL Asks: What were your takeaways from Wisconsin win? What will happen vs. Rutgers?
Matt Tamanini, Land-Grant Holy Land
On the Gridiron
Practice Report: Lessons Learned as Buckeyes gear up for Rutgers
Spencer Holbrook, Lettermen Row
Watch Jyaire Brown, JK Johnson, Matthew Jones, Robbie Hickman, Josh Proctor, Jesse Mirco, J.T. Tuimoloau and Taron Vincent Recap Ohio State’s First Month of the Season
Garrick Hodge, Eleven Warriors
Column: What have we learned through one week of conference play?
Meredith Hein, Land-Grant Holy Land
Settle in as @MattyAOSU breaks down Saturday's matchup between @OhioStateFB and Rutgers with this week’s Tools of the Game powered by @DEWALTtough#GoBucks pic.twitter.com/ycZ5DuqMf1
— Ohio State Buckeyes (@OhioStAthletics) September 28, 2022
Ohio State vs. Rutgers football: Greg Schiano breaks down QB situation, ‘going to Columbus to win the game’
Robbie Weinstein, 247Sports
Rutgers Defensive Player to Watch: Safety Christian Izien
Josh Dooley, Land-Grant Holy Land
How Ohio State DC Jim Knowles is disguising the Buckeyes’ looks on defense (paywall)
Nick Baumgardner, The Athletic
QBs Since 2000 w/ 1,200+ Pass Yards, 16+ Pass TD, 200+ PER, & <= 1 INT in their 1st 4 Games of a Season:
C.J. Stroud - 2022
Tua Tagovailoa - 2019
Geno Smith - 2012
RG3 - 2011 @OhioStateFB pic.twitter.com/9524LiC4a0
— Greg Harvey (@BetweenTheNums) September 28, 2022
How young cornerbacks are changing Buckeyes secondary outlook (paywall)
Austin Ward, Dotting the Eyes
Evaluating Buckeyes cornerback depth, health entering October (paywall)
Spencer Holbrook, Lettermen Row
The coach who led Ohio State’s cornerbacks through a painful, humbling start to the season (paywall)
Nathan Baird, cleveland.com
Buckeyes showing early improvement finishing drives in red zone
Joey Kaufman, The Columbus Dispatch
Column: OSU is playing the best football in the country
Jami Jurich, Land-Grant Holy Land
Ohio State’s defense getting pressure, and more sacks could soon come (paywall)
Bill Landis, Dotting the Eyes
Ohio State football stadium receives historical marker for 100-year anniversary
Mariah Guzman, 247Sports
Family guy: Palaie Gaoteote proud of his parents, siblings and ancestors
Lori Schmidt, The Columbus Dispatch
You’re Nuts: Nurf guns, improv games; what’s the best way to make a boring game interesting?
Matt Tamanini and JamiJurich, Land-Grant Holy Land
On the Hardwood
One looming question for each Ohio State player as practice begins
Adam Jardy, The Columbus Dispatch
“First day of practice as you can see went marvelous” - @_Issaaac
Great way to end first day with a treat for the coaches’ kids pic.twitter.com/dOlAppHMXX
— Ohio State Hoops (@OhioStateHoops) September 28, 2022
Justice Sueing “110%” Healthy After Yearlong Injury Layoff, Says “I Feel Better Than I Felt, Ever” Ahead of Long-Awaited Return
Griffin Strom, Eleven Warriors
Women’s Basketball Single Game Tickets on Sale
Ohio State Athletics
Outside the Shoe and Schott
Wrestling: Stieber Relishes Introduction Into Hall of Fame, Continues Leaving Impact as Assistant Coach
Robbie Mackinnon, The Lantern
Women’s Cross Country: Engel Earns Second Big Ten Athlete of the Week Accolade
Ohio State Athletics
BUCKEYES WIN
#GoBucks Tea
53 pic.twitter.com/zGyar4PLkS
— Ohio State Women's Volleyball (@OhioStateWVB) September 29, 2022And now for something completely different...
And there is history:
61 years since 61.
Aaron Judge has written his name alongside Roger Maris in baseball's record books. pic.twitter.com/1V4Gums34C
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) September 29, 2022
Continue reading...
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
All the Buckeye news thats fit to re-print.
Look, we get it. Your days are busy and you don’t have time to read all of the stories and tweets from the three dozen websites dedicated to covering Ohio State athletics, or the 237 Buckeye beat writers churning out hot takes and #content on a daily basis. But that’s ok, that’s what your friends at Land-Grant Holy Land are here for.
Monday through Friday, we’ll be collecting all of the articles, tweets, features, interviews, videos, podcasts, memes, photos, and whatever else we stumble across on the interwebz and putting them in our daily “Why is this News?” article. That way, you’ll have a one-stop shop for all of the most important Buckeye news, jokes, and analysis.
You’re welcome!
For your Earholes...
Subscribe: RSS | Apple | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts | iHeart Radio
Ask LGHL
Introducing ‘Ask LGHL,’ asking and answering questions throughout the football season
Matt Tamanini, Land-Grant Holy Land
LGHL Asks: What were your takeaways from Wisconsin win? What will happen vs. Rutgers?
Matt Tamanini, Land-Grant Holy Land
On the Gridiron
Practice Report: Lessons Learned as Buckeyes gear up for Rutgers
Spencer Holbrook, Lettermen Row
Watch Jyaire Brown, JK Johnson, Matthew Jones, Robbie Hickman, Josh Proctor, Jesse Mirco, J.T. Tuimoloau and Taron Vincent Recap Ohio State’s First Month of the Season
Garrick Hodge, Eleven Warriors
Column: What have we learned through one week of conference play?
Meredith Hein, Land-Grant Holy Land
Settle in as @MattyAOSU breaks down Saturday's matchup between @OhioStateFB and Rutgers with this week’s Tools of the Game powered by @DEWALTtough#GoBucks pic.twitter.com/ycZ5DuqMf1
— Ohio State Buckeyes (@OhioStAthletics) September 28, 2022
Ohio State vs. Rutgers football: Greg Schiano breaks down QB situation, ‘going to Columbus to win the game’
Robbie Weinstein, 247Sports
Rutgers Defensive Player to Watch: Safety Christian Izien
Josh Dooley, Land-Grant Holy Land
How Ohio State DC Jim Knowles is disguising the Buckeyes’ looks on defense (paywall)
Nick Baumgardner, The Athletic
QBs Since 2000 w/ 1,200+ Pass Yards, 16+ Pass TD, 200+ PER, & <= 1 INT in their 1st 4 Games of a Season:
C.J. Stroud - 2022
Tua Tagovailoa - 2019
Geno Smith - 2012
RG3 - 2011 @OhioStateFB pic.twitter.com/9524LiC4a0
— Greg Harvey (@BetweenTheNums) September 28, 2022
How young cornerbacks are changing Buckeyes secondary outlook (paywall)
Austin Ward, Dotting the Eyes
Evaluating Buckeyes cornerback depth, health entering October (paywall)
Spencer Holbrook, Lettermen Row
The coach who led Ohio State’s cornerbacks through a painful, humbling start to the season (paywall)
Nathan Baird, cleveland.com
Buckeyes showing early improvement finishing drives in red zone
Joey Kaufman, The Columbus Dispatch
Column: OSU is playing the best football in the country
Jami Jurich, Land-Grant Holy Land
Ohio State’s defense getting pressure, and more sacks could soon come (paywall)
Bill Landis, Dotting the Eyes
Ohio State football stadium receives historical marker for 100-year anniversary
Mariah Guzman, 247Sports
Family guy: Palaie Gaoteote proud of his parents, siblings and ancestors
Lori Schmidt, The Columbus Dispatch
You’re Nuts: Nurf guns, improv games; what’s the best way to make a boring game interesting?
Matt Tamanini and JamiJurich, Land-Grant Holy Land
On the Hardwood
One looming question for each Ohio State player as practice begins
Adam Jardy, The Columbus Dispatch
“First day of practice as you can see went marvelous” - @_Issaaac
Great way to end first day with a treat for the coaches’ kids pic.twitter.com/dOlAppHMXX
— Ohio State Hoops (@OhioStateHoops) September 28, 2022
Justice Sueing “110%” Healthy After Yearlong Injury Layoff, Says “I Feel Better Than I Felt, Ever” Ahead of Long-Awaited Return
Griffin Strom, Eleven Warriors
Women’s Basketball Single Game Tickets on Sale
Ohio State Athletics
Outside the Shoe and Schott
Wrestling: Stieber Relishes Introduction Into Hall of Fame, Continues Leaving Impact as Assistant Coach
Robbie Mackinnon, The Lantern
Women’s Cross Country: Engel Earns Second Big Ten Athlete of the Week Accolade
Ohio State Athletics
BUCKEYES WIN
#GoBucks Tea53 pic.twitter.com/zGyar4PLkS— Ohio State Women's Volleyball (@OhioStateWVB) September 29, 2022
And there is history:
61 years since 61.
Aaron Judge has written his name alongside Roger Maris in baseball's record books. pic.twitter.com/1V4Gums34C
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) September 29, 2022
Continue reading...
LGHL Bucketheads Podcast: Recapping Ohio State men’s basketball media day
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- 0 Replies
Bucketheads Podcast: Recapping Ohio State men’s basketball media day
Connor Lemons via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images
Connor was in attendance for Monday’s men’s basketball media day at the Schottenstein Center.
Land-Grant Holy Land’s newest podcast, ‘Bucketheads’ takes you on a journey across the college basketball landscape every episode. The only basketball-focused podcast in the LGHL family of podcasts, co-hosts Connor Lemons and Justin Golba give the latest scoop on the Ohio State Buckeyes as well as all the other happenings in the college hoops world. ‘Bucketheads’ will be released every Thursday throughout the regular season and every other Thursday during the off-season.
Subscribe: RSS | Apple | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts | iHeart Radio
This week, Connor and Justin recap the info and quotes that Connor was able to grab while at the Ohio State men’s basketball media day on Monday afternoon. Players were available for 45 minutes at various stations throughout the practice gym, and Chris Holtmann spoke for about 30 minutes after the players were done.
Connor spent the most time speaking to freshmen Brice Sensabugh, Roddy Gayle, and Bruce Thornton, as well as senior forward Justice Sueing, who is fully healthy and very excited to play in the Maui Invitational this season, in his home state of Hawaii. Chris Holtmann followed with roughly 30 minutes of media availability, hitting on a plethora of topics including who one of the three Ohio State captains will be.
Justin and Connor use Holtmann’s comments as talking points in breaking down the Buckeyes, spitballing their ceiling in the Big Ten, and challenge Ken Pomeroy to come on the podcast.
Connect with the Podcast:
Twitter: @BucketheadsLGHL
Connect with Connor:
Twitter: @lemons_connor
Connect with Justin:
Twitter: @justin_golba
Continue reading...
Connor Lemons via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images
Connor was in attendance for Monday’s men’s basketball media day at the Schottenstein Center.
Land-Grant Holy Land’s newest podcast, ‘Bucketheads’ takes you on a journey across the college basketball landscape every episode. The only basketball-focused podcast in the LGHL family of podcasts, co-hosts Connor Lemons and Justin Golba give the latest scoop on the Ohio State Buckeyes as well as all the other happenings in the college hoops world. ‘Bucketheads’ will be released every Thursday throughout the regular season and every other Thursday during the off-season.
Subscribe: RSS | Apple | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts | iHeart Radio
This week, Connor and Justin recap the info and quotes that Connor was able to grab while at the Ohio State men’s basketball media day on Monday afternoon. Players were available for 45 minutes at various stations throughout the practice gym, and Chris Holtmann spoke for about 30 minutes after the players were done.
Connor spent the most time speaking to freshmen Brice Sensabugh, Roddy Gayle, and Bruce Thornton, as well as senior forward Justice Sueing, who is fully healthy and very excited to play in the Maui Invitational this season, in his home state of Hawaii. Chris Holtmann followed with roughly 30 minutes of media availability, hitting on a plethora of topics including who one of the three Ohio State captains will be.
Justin and Connor use Holtmann’s comments as talking points in breaking down the Buckeyes, spitballing their ceiling in the Big Ten, and challenge Ken Pomeroy to come on the podcast.
Connect with the Podcast:
Twitter: @BucketheadsLGHL
Connect with Connor:
Twitter: @lemons_connor
Connect with Justin:
Twitter: @justin_golba
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LGHL Buckeyes set to host more recruits this weekend, including 2024 five-star defensive lineman
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Buckeyes set to host more recruits this weekend, including 2024 five-star defensive lineman
Caleb Houser via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
A five-star Chicago native is set to be in Columbus this weekend when Rutgers comes to town.
The fifth home game in a row to start the year, Ohio State is set to host Rutgers this weekend for another conference matchup. Another home game also means yet another opportunity to host recruits on campus for a game day experience. Now more than just a handful of dates left to entertain guests, Ohio State’s five home games in a row have really become a major tool for their recruiting efforts, not only in the current cycle as they look to finish their 2023 haul, but also in the 2024 class and beyond.
Sure, this weekend won’t be the night game atmosphere the Buckeyes have had a couple of times already, but it’s still a chance to bring in top recruits. With more guys headed to campus this weekend, Ryan Day and his crew will be pulling double duty again as they have all season to this point, which means the work even after the game is not finished.
2024 five-star in town
The improvements on defense to this point in comparison to last year are night and day. While not perfect, Ohio State has shown a ton of examples that prove why Jim Knowles is the perfect fit and the right hire to run that side of the ball. The increase in production is being seen all over the field, and when looking at how the defensive line is playing, clearly this defensive coaching staff is not only teaching things the right way in terms of scheme, but they’re also getting the most out of players, and surely recruits are taking notice to that.
A key to the overall success of the defense, the defensive line is performing well right now. With guys like Mike Hall Jr. creating havoc for the opposing offenses, the defensive tackle position is yet another spot where the improvements have been seen. Position coach Larry Johnson continues to do what he does best, and that’s develop his players.
Hoping for another stand out performance this weekend from the guys up front, the Buckeyes will have the attention of their fans for one, but another big time target in the 2024 class will also be taking note of how this team looks in addition to the rest of the game day atmosphere. Scheduled to be in attendance this weekend, five-star Justin Scott will be taking in the Ohio State game in person on Saturday.
This is definitely one of the premier visitors that will be on site. The 6-foot-5, 310 pound Chicago native plays his prep ball at St. Ignatius, and is one of the top players in the country for his class regardless of position. The No. 31 player nationally, Scott is listed as the fourth best defensive lineman and the top player from Illinois for the 2024 class per the 247Sports Composite. With nearly 25 offers to his names, Scott has no shortage of accolades, and with schools such as Texas A&M, Auburn, USC, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, and a host of others including Ohio State, it’s easy to see why he’s as highly touted as he currently is.
Make no mistake about it too, he will be keeping tabs on the Buckeyes this weekend. Ohio State is looking to make a step in the right direction for being a serious contender for his services in the long haul.
Quick Hits
No stranger to Ohio State, the prep powerhouse in Missouri, Christan Brothers College, has produced several elite talents over the years, and McClellan is just another top talent to come out of CBC with an interest in Ohio State.
The No. 204 player nationally, McClellan is the 29th best receiver in the 2024 class and the fifth best player from his home state all according to the 247Sports Composite. Ohio State will be heavily in the mix for the top receivers in the 2024 cycle, and Jeremiah is definitely a name worth paying attention to as his class continues to gain more momentum.
The Ohio State this weekend @brianhartline @ScottPingel10 @ryandaytime @OhioStateFB
— Jeremiah Mcclellan (@jay_mac2481) September 28, 2022
Excited to be in the Shoe this weekend for the Rutgers game! @OhioStateFB #GoBucks @CoachKMcFarland @CoachJimKnowles pic.twitter.com/VpQ4aF2i4l
— Maddox Arnold (@MaddoxArnold_37) September 28, 2022
️-H-I-️
Welcome
️️️️ OL Luke Montgomery (@lukeMonty8) to the 2023 All-American Bowl @NBCSports #GoBucks #theG23ATESTshow #AllAmericanBowl @GEICO pic.twitter.com/tqFrTspcy2
— All-American Bowl (@AABonNBC) September 29, 2022
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
Photo by Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
A five-star Chicago native is set to be in Columbus this weekend when Rutgers comes to town.
The fifth home game in a row to start the year, Ohio State is set to host Rutgers this weekend for another conference matchup. Another home game also means yet another opportunity to host recruits on campus for a game day experience. Now more than just a handful of dates left to entertain guests, Ohio State’s five home games in a row have really become a major tool for their recruiting efforts, not only in the current cycle as they look to finish their 2023 haul, but also in the 2024 class and beyond.
Sure, this weekend won’t be the night game atmosphere the Buckeyes have had a couple of times already, but it’s still a chance to bring in top recruits. With more guys headed to campus this weekend, Ryan Day and his crew will be pulling double duty again as they have all season to this point, which means the work even after the game is not finished.
2024 five-star in town
The improvements on defense to this point in comparison to last year are night and day. While not perfect, Ohio State has shown a ton of examples that prove why Jim Knowles is the perfect fit and the right hire to run that side of the ball. The increase in production is being seen all over the field, and when looking at how the defensive line is playing, clearly this defensive coaching staff is not only teaching things the right way in terms of scheme, but they’re also getting the most out of players, and surely recruits are taking notice to that.
A key to the overall success of the defense, the defensive line is performing well right now. With guys like Mike Hall Jr. creating havoc for the opposing offenses, the defensive tackle position is yet another spot where the improvements have been seen. Position coach Larry Johnson continues to do what he does best, and that’s develop his players.
Hoping for another stand out performance this weekend from the guys up front, the Buckeyes will have the attention of their fans for one, but another big time target in the 2024 class will also be taking note of how this team looks in addition to the rest of the game day atmosphere. Scheduled to be in attendance this weekend, five-star Justin Scott will be taking in the Ohio State game in person on Saturday.
This is definitely one of the premier visitors that will be on site. The 6-foot-5, 310 pound Chicago native plays his prep ball at St. Ignatius, and is one of the top players in the country for his class regardless of position. The No. 31 player nationally, Scott is listed as the fourth best defensive lineman and the top player from Illinois for the 2024 class per the 247Sports Composite. With nearly 25 offers to his names, Scott has no shortage of accolades, and with schools such as Texas A&M, Auburn, USC, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, and a host of others including Ohio State, it’s easy to see why he’s as highly touted as he currently is.
Make no mistake about it too, he will be keeping tabs on the Buckeyes this weekend. Ohio State is looking to make a step in the right direction for being a serious contender for his services in the long haul.
Quick Hits
- On the offensive side of the ball, the Buckeyes will be hosting some more of their top targets this weekend, even without the primetime match-up atmosphere. Heading in from St. Louis, Missouri, four-star receiver Jeremiah McClellan (St. Louis, Missouri/Chritian Brothers College) will be here and taking in all that the Buckeyes have to offer.
No stranger to Ohio State, the prep powerhouse in Missouri, Christan Brothers College, has produced several elite talents over the years, and McClellan is just another top talent to come out of CBC with an interest in Ohio State.
The No. 204 player nationally, McClellan is the 29th best receiver in the 2024 class and the fifth best player from his home state all according to the 247Sports Composite. Ohio State will be heavily in the mix for the top receivers in the 2024 cycle, and Jeremiah is definitely a name worth paying attention to as his class continues to gain more momentum.
The Ohio State this weekend @brianhartline @ScottPingel10 @ryandaytime @OhioStateFB
— Jeremiah Mcclellan (@jay_mac2481) September 28, 2022
- In-state linebacker in the 2025 class, Maddox Arnold, (Cincinnati, Ohio/Elder) will be visiting this weekend for the Rutgers game. A 6-foot-2, 208 pound high school sophomore, Arnold currently has one offer to his name from Purdue, and when his class is ready for their own recruiting rankings, it won’t be a surprise at all to see him listed as one of the better linebackers in the country.
Excited to be in the Shoe this weekend for the Rutgers game! @OhioStateFB #GoBucks @CoachKMcFarland @CoachJimKnowles pic.twitter.com/VpQ4aF2i4l
— Maddox Arnold (@MaddoxArnold_37) September 28, 2022
- Just one of his many accomplishments, current 2023 Ohio State commit Luke Montgomery was presented with his All-American Bowl jersey yesterday as one of the selections for the prestigious All-Star game. In addition to representing the Buckeyes, his brother and Ohio State quarterback target in the 2025 class, Ryan Montgomery, gave a little pro Ohio State vibes in the photos. Congrats to another Buckeye commit who will play their final prep game in one of the best environments.
️-H-I-️Welcome
️️️️ OL Luke Montgomery (@lukeMonty8) to the 2023 All-American Bowl @NBCSports #GoBucks #theG23ATESTshow #AllAmericanBowl @GEICO pic.twitter.com/tqFrTspcy2— All-American Bowl (@AABonNBC) September 29, 2022
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LGHL LGHL Asks: What were your takeaways from Wisconsin win? What will happen vs. Rutgers?
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LGHL Asks: What were your takeaways from Wisconsin win? What will happen vs. Rutgers?
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK
You ask, we answer. Sometimes we ask, others answer. And then other times, we ask, we answer.
Every day for the entirety of the Ohio State football season, we will be asking and answering questions about the team, college football, and anything else on our collective minds of varying degrees of importance. If you have a question that you would like to ask, you can tweet us @LandGrant33 or if you need more than 280 characters, send an email HERE.
It is mid-week here in Buckeye Nation which means that it is time to turn our attention to Saturday’s opponent, the 3-1... Rutgers Scarlet Knights. Look, there is almost zero chance that this game is competitive, but that doesn’t mean that we don’t want your thoughts on things.
But, before we get into all of your State University of New Jersey-related thoughts, let’s take a look back at the Buckeyes’ beatdown of the Wisconsin Badgers from last weekend.
Question 1: What was your biggest takeaway from Ohio State’s win over Wisconsin?
Despite the fact that the Buckeyes beat a traditional Big Ten power by 31 points on Saturday, some fans still found things to complain about. So, this question is to gauge where you came down following the big win over the Badgers.
Let us know what your thoughts were following the win.
Question 2: If Rutgers makes Saturday’s game close, it will be primarily because:
At this point in the week, we aren’t exactly sure which — if any — of Rutgers’ quarterbacks will be healthy and available, but they have two different options that bring unique skill sets to the table. While Noah Vedral is the more veteran option for Schiano, sophomore Gavin Wimsatt was the No. 4 dual-threat QB recruit in the 2021 class.
Given how the Buckeyes struggled at times to contain and tackle Toledo’s Dequan Finn, if Wimsatt is healthy, that very well could end up being a challenge for Jim Knowles’ defense. However, if Vedral does end up playing the more experienced, pro-style QB could pose something of a problem with the thin and injured cornerback position.
While it’s less likely, we all know that Greg Schiano is an expert defensive coach, and I suppose it is possible that he could come up with a way to limit Stroud and the offense. I don’t think that is anywhere near realistic, but I guess stranger things have happened.
Question 3: What will be the outcome of Saturday’s game against Rutgers?
If this Saturday, Ohio State plays as well as they did in the first half against Wisconsin, 41.5 points is almost a certainty, but that is a tall task, heck, even the Buckeyes couldn’t maintain that pace for a full game (Day taking his foot off of the gas notwithstanding).
They say that great teams win, elite teams cover. In the case of Saturday’s game against Rutgers, do you think that the Buckeyes will be elite? I will share my score prediction when we give you the results of the survey later in the week.
Have your voice heard and share your thoughts on the Buckeyes here:
*=depending on when you see this, there might be a typo in one of the responses in the first question. We know, we’ve got the tech guys working on it.
Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the NCAA. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Ohio State Buckeyes fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate.
Continue reading...
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK
You ask, we answer. Sometimes we ask, others answer. And then other times, we ask, we answer.
Every day for the entirety of the Ohio State football season, we will be asking and answering questions about the team, college football, and anything else on our collective minds of varying degrees of importance. If you have a question that you would like to ask, you can tweet us @LandGrant33 or if you need more than 280 characters, send an email HERE.
It is mid-week here in Buckeye Nation which means that it is time to turn our attention to Saturday’s opponent, the 3-1... Rutgers Scarlet Knights. Look, there is almost zero chance that this game is competitive, but that doesn’t mean that we don’t want your thoughts on things.
But, before we get into all of your State University of New Jersey-related thoughts, let’s take a look back at the Buckeyes’ beatdown of the Wisconsin Badgers from last weekend.
Question 1: What was your biggest takeaway from Ohio State’s win over Wisconsin?
Despite the fact that the Buckeyes beat a traditional Big Ten power by 31 points on Saturday, some fans still found things to complain about. So, this question is to gauge where you came down following the big win over the Badgers.
Let us know what your thoughts were following the win.
Question 2: If Rutgers makes Saturday’s game close, it will be primarily because:
At this point in the week, we aren’t exactly sure which — if any — of Rutgers’ quarterbacks will be healthy and available, but they have two different options that bring unique skill sets to the table. While Noah Vedral is the more veteran option for Schiano, sophomore Gavin Wimsatt was the No. 4 dual-threat QB recruit in the 2021 class.
Given how the Buckeyes struggled at times to contain and tackle Toledo’s Dequan Finn, if Wimsatt is healthy, that very well could end up being a challenge for Jim Knowles’ defense. However, if Vedral does end up playing the more experienced, pro-style QB could pose something of a problem with the thin and injured cornerback position.
While it’s less likely, we all know that Greg Schiano is an expert defensive coach, and I suppose it is possible that he could come up with a way to limit Stroud and the offense. I don’t think that is anywhere near realistic, but I guess stranger things have happened.
Question 3: What will be the outcome of Saturday’s game against Rutgers?
If this Saturday, Ohio State plays as well as they did in the first half against Wisconsin, 41.5 points is almost a certainty, but that is a tall task, heck, even the Buckeyes couldn’t maintain that pace for a full game (Day taking his foot off of the gas notwithstanding).
They say that great teams win, elite teams cover. In the case of Saturday’s game against Rutgers, do you think that the Buckeyes will be elite? I will share my score prediction when we give you the results of the survey later in the week.
Have your voice heard and share your thoughts on the Buckeyes here:
*=depending on when you see this, there might be a typo in one of the responses in the first question. We know, we’ve got the tech guys working on it.
Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the NCAA. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Ohio State Buckeyes fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate.
Continue reading...
LGHL You’re Nuts: Nurf guns, improv games; what’s the best way to make a boring game interesting?
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- 0 Replies
You’re Nuts: Nurf guns, improv games; what’s the best way to make a boring game interesting?
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Joshua A. Bickel/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK
Your (almost) daily dose of good-natured, Ohio State banter.
Everybody knows that one of the best parts of being a sports fan is debating and dissecting the most (and least) important questions in the sporting world with your friends. So, we’re bringing that to the pages of LGHL with our favorite head-to-head column: You’re Nuts.
In You’re Nuts, two LGHL staff members will take differing sides of one question and argue their opinions passionately. Then, in the end, it’s up to you to determine who’s right and who’s nuts.
Today’s Question: What’s the best way to make a boring game interesting?
Context: The Ohio State Buckeyes opened as 41.5-favorites over the Rutgers Scarlet Knights on Saturday. And while blowouts against traditionally respectable teams like Wisconsin can be fun, generally beating the pants off of consistently overmatched opponents can be tedious and boring.
So, Jami and Matt tried to come up with different ideas to make what could be a difficult game to suffer through more enjoyable.
Jami’s Take: Nerf Gun Darts
As the resident chaos monger of Land-Grand Holy Land, I am begging the football gods not to punish me by unleashing chaos on my Buckeyes this weekend. I need a normal, boring football game against Rutgers to get back in the swing of West Coast 9 AM start times.
In the event that the football gods wreak havoc on my nervous system, please disregard everything after this sentence and go about your normal screaming, crying, and nail-biting routines.
But if I get my wish and the game against the Scarlet Knights on Saturday is a bit of a sleeper, I have the perfect way to liven things up: Nerf guns.
This is a family-friendly activity (that can include but certainly does not require alcohol if it’s that kind of watch party).
In my family, this game has been known to bring maximum chaos (ask my brother and cousin Mary who got locked in a closet together for HOURS while my other cousin and I were babysitting because we were so distracted by the nerf gun game that we couldn’t hear them screaming. They’re still in therapy for this. We got grounded). Fair warning: Keep your hands, arms, and small children inside the room at all times.
The only props you need are nerf guns, armed with the Nerf suction darts.
If you’ve ever played the mustache game (where you stick a mustache on the tv and drink or score a point every time it properly lines up on someone’s face), this game is in the same vein. But it’s a little more active and therefore, is a little more fun.
The general gist is that you shoot your nerf suction darts at the TV (they are foam and shouldn’t harm the TV in any way) – if you hit a target, you score a point. Feel free to make your own rules for scoring to keep things interesting! Some ideas for potential scoring methods are as follows:
The nerf gun game was always a favorite of ours as kids. It’s funny, mostly safe (stay away from closets though), and can keep people entertained for hours. It’s harder than it sounds to hit moving targets, especially when the TV broadcasts change angles on you, so it can also be a challenge that keeps everyone engaged if the game gets boring. And if the game starts to pick up, you can always put the nerf guns down and just enjoy the football.
Matt’s Take: Play-by-play improv
Wow, I honestly don’t know if I can compete with Jami’s idea. I suppose that some people will opt to consume copious amounts of alcohol, but I am a teetotaler, so I have less than zero insight into how to make a game fun that way. So I’m going to have to zig where Jami and others have zagged.
So, my idea is that if the game is boring, what you can do is assign a fictional character or real-life celebrity to each player in the game based on whatever criteria your imagination can come up with; if a player has long blonde hair a la Clay Matthews Jr., call him Thor. If a player shares a name with a character, go with that; Santonio Holmes becomes Sherlock Holmes for example.
Once you have a new name for every major player, take over as the play-by-play announcer, turning the in-game action into a narrative like it’s a movie. Come up with deep, psychological motivations for why Jonathan Taylor Thomas just took down J. Jonah Jameson; or why Steve Urkel just stole the ball from Papa Smurf.
Not only does this bring added stakes to the actual game itself, but it also allows you to exercise your creativity and show off your pop cultural and literary knowledge. Think about it, if you are watching a game with a group of people that is so collectively disinterested in the actual intricacies of the contest, there is a better chance that they will appreciate other things like your encyclopedic knowledge of the Marvel Cinematic Universe or the complete works of J.R.R. Tolkein.
This is also a great group activity as different people can riff off of the storylines created from play to play. It’s effectively a guided improv game in which different “announcers” can tag in to take over calling the action whenever they want, or you can go in a circle one play at a time.
Essentially, in this exercise, everything is fair game and the only limits are those of your own creativity and imagination; and there are no right or wrong answers, the only thing you have to say is “Yes, and?”
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
Joshua A. Bickel/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK
Your (almost) daily dose of good-natured, Ohio State banter.
Everybody knows that one of the best parts of being a sports fan is debating and dissecting the most (and least) important questions in the sporting world with your friends. So, we’re bringing that to the pages of LGHL with our favorite head-to-head column: You’re Nuts.
In You’re Nuts, two LGHL staff members will take differing sides of one question and argue their opinions passionately. Then, in the end, it’s up to you to determine who’s right and who’s nuts.
Today’s Question: What’s the best way to make a boring game interesting?
Context: The Ohio State Buckeyes opened as 41.5-favorites over the Rutgers Scarlet Knights on Saturday. And while blowouts against traditionally respectable teams like Wisconsin can be fun, generally beating the pants off of consistently overmatched opponents can be tedious and boring.
So, Jami and Matt tried to come up with different ideas to make what could be a difficult game to suffer through more enjoyable.
Jami’s Take: Nerf Gun Darts
As the resident chaos monger of Land-Grand Holy Land, I am begging the football gods not to punish me by unleashing chaos on my Buckeyes this weekend. I need a normal, boring football game against Rutgers to get back in the swing of West Coast 9 AM start times.
In the event that the football gods wreak havoc on my nervous system, please disregard everything after this sentence and go about your normal screaming, crying, and nail-biting routines.
But if I get my wish and the game against the Scarlet Knights on Saturday is a bit of a sleeper, I have the perfect way to liven things up: Nerf guns.
This is a family-friendly activity (that can include but certainly does not require alcohol if it’s that kind of watch party).
In my family, this game has been known to bring maximum chaos (ask my brother and cousin Mary who got locked in a closet together for HOURS while my other cousin and I were babysitting because we were so distracted by the nerf gun game that we couldn’t hear them screaming. They’re still in therapy for this. We got grounded). Fair warning: Keep your hands, arms, and small children inside the room at all times.
The only props you need are nerf guns, armed with the Nerf suction darts.
If you’ve ever played the mustache game (where you stick a mustache on the tv and drink or score a point every time it properly lines up on someone’s face), this game is in the same vein. But it’s a little more active and therefore, is a little more fun.
The general gist is that you shoot your nerf suction darts at the TV (they are foam and shouldn’t harm the TV in any way) – if you hit a target, you score a point. Feel free to make your own rules for scoring to keep things interesting! Some ideas for potential scoring methods are as follows:
- Score a point any time you hit a Rutgers player
- Score a point any time a player makes a mistake (turnover, incomplete pass, missed block, flag) and you hit them as a result
- Choose a specific player and score a point any time you hit your player
- Bonus points if you hit a mascot
- Bonus points if you can Dot the I during Script Ohio
The nerf gun game was always a favorite of ours as kids. It’s funny, mostly safe (stay away from closets though), and can keep people entertained for hours. It’s harder than it sounds to hit moving targets, especially when the TV broadcasts change angles on you, so it can also be a challenge that keeps everyone engaged if the game gets boring. And if the game starts to pick up, you can always put the nerf guns down and just enjoy the football.
Matt’s Take: Play-by-play improv
Wow, I honestly don’t know if I can compete with Jami’s idea. I suppose that some people will opt to consume copious amounts of alcohol, but I am a teetotaler, so I have less than zero insight into how to make a game fun that way. So I’m going to have to zig where Jami and others have zagged.
So, my idea is that if the game is boring, what you can do is assign a fictional character or real-life celebrity to each player in the game based on whatever criteria your imagination can come up with; if a player has long blonde hair a la Clay Matthews Jr., call him Thor. If a player shares a name with a character, go with that; Santonio Holmes becomes Sherlock Holmes for example.
Once you have a new name for every major player, take over as the play-by-play announcer, turning the in-game action into a narrative like it’s a movie. Come up with deep, psychological motivations for why Jonathan Taylor Thomas just took down J. Jonah Jameson; or why Steve Urkel just stole the ball from Papa Smurf.
Not only does this bring added stakes to the actual game itself, but it also allows you to exercise your creativity and show off your pop cultural and literary knowledge. Think about it, if you are watching a game with a group of people that is so collectively disinterested in the actual intricacies of the contest, there is a better chance that they will appreciate other things like your encyclopedic knowledge of the Marvel Cinematic Universe or the complete works of J.R.R. Tolkein.
This is also a great group activity as different people can riff off of the storylines created from play to play. It’s effectively a guided improv game in which different “announcers” can tag in to take over calling the action whenever they want, or you can go in a circle one play at a time.
Essentially, in this exercise, everything is fair game and the only limits are those of your own creativity and imagination; and there are no right or wrong answers, the only thing you have to say is “Yes, and?”
Continue reading...
LGHL Hangout in the Holy Land Podcast: Greg Schiano and the boys are coming to town
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- 0 Replies
Hangout in the Holy Land Podcast: Greg Schiano and the boys are coming to town
Gene Ross 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
The Buckeyes take on the Scarlet Knights looking to stay unbeaten in 2022.
The latest episode of Land-Grant Holy Land’s flagship podcast ‘Hangout in the Holy Land’ is here! Join LGHL’s co-managing editor Gene Ross alongside his co-host Josh Dooley as they cover everything from football to basketball to recruiting and more!
Listen to the episode and subscribe:
Subscribe: RSS | Apple | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts | iHeart Radio
On this episode, Gene and Josh preview Ohio State’s Week 5 contest against Rutgers. Greg Schiano is coming back to his old haunts at Ohio Stadium looking to upset his former employer. The Scarlet Knights have never defeated the Buckeyes in the eight prior meetings in the all-time series since Rutgers joined the Big Ten in 2012. In C.J. Stroud’s lone appearance in the matchup, Ohio State defeated Rutgers 52-13. Will this year’s contest be more of the same, or will Schiano have his guys fighting to shock the world in Columbus?
“Hangout in the Holy Land” will be back to two episodes per week during the regular season, with an episode before and after each Ohio State game to give you all the preview and recap content you may need. Be sure to download and listen in wherever you get your podcasts, and leave us a review on Apple to let us know your thoughts and how we can make things even better!
You can also follow us on Twitter @HolyLandPod, where we will want to hear from you guys even more! If there’s anything you’d like us to talk about on the show, @ us and let us know!
As always, Go Bucks.
Connect with the Podcast:
Twitter: @HolyLandPod
Connect with Gene:
Twitter: @Gene_Ross23
Connect with Josh
Twitter: @jdooleybuckeye
Continue reading...
Gene Ross 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
The Buckeyes take on the Scarlet Knights looking to stay unbeaten in 2022.
The latest episode of Land-Grant Holy Land’s flagship podcast ‘Hangout in the Holy Land’ is here! Join LGHL’s co-managing editor Gene Ross alongside his co-host Josh Dooley as they cover everything from football to basketball to recruiting and more!
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On this episode, Gene and Josh preview Ohio State’s Week 5 contest against Rutgers. Greg Schiano is coming back to his old haunts at Ohio Stadium looking to upset his former employer. The Scarlet Knights have never defeated the Buckeyes in the eight prior meetings in the all-time series since Rutgers joined the Big Ten in 2012. In C.J. Stroud’s lone appearance in the matchup, Ohio State defeated Rutgers 52-13. Will this year’s contest be more of the same, or will Schiano have his guys fighting to shock the world in Columbus?
“Hangout in the Holy Land” will be back to two episodes per week during the regular season, with an episode before and after each Ohio State game to give you all the preview and recap content you may need. Be sure to download and listen in wherever you get your podcasts, and leave us a review on Apple to let us know your thoughts and how we can make things even better!
You can also follow us on Twitter @HolyLandPod, where we will want to hear from you guys even more! If there’s anything you’d like us to talk about on the show, @ us and let us know!
As always, Go Bucks.
Connect with the Podcast:
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Twitter: @jdooleybuckeye
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LGHL Column: OSU is playing the best football in the country
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Column: OSU is playing the best football in the country
JamiJurich via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Gaelen Morse/Getty Images
At this point in the season, the Buckeyes look consistent and in sync.
A lot can change as the season goes on. Conference play is just getting underway, and this is the Big Ten, after all. But at the end of Week 4, Ohio State is playing the best football in the country.
An important distinction needs to be made before the SEC fans jump down my throat (although if you’re an SEC fan here, I do have to ask… are you lost?). I am in no way claiming Ohio State is the best team in the country (they are). I am not claiming they will win the National Championship (they very well could). I am merely saying that at this point in the season, they are playing the most consistently excellent football of any program in the NCAA.
While the Buckeyes have shown consistent improvement since their slow start against Notre Dame in Week 1, other teams in the Top 5 have slowly revealed their weaknesses.
Georgia, the No. 1 team in the country and the team I would argue had been playing the best football in the country up until their Saturday battle against Kent State, allowed 22 points – more than in each of their first three games COMBINED – against an unranked school who was expected to be a blip on the radar. What once seemed like a formidable defense showed it is not completely impenetrable.
No. 2 Alabama looked great this past weekend in their routing of Vanderbilt. But they barely - just barely - eked out a win against Texas two weeks ago. Yes, the same Texas that was upended in an upset by Texas Tech this past weekend. While Nick Saban is no stranger to helping his team bounce back from one game filled with adversity, the Crimson Tide has worthy opponents the next two weeks in Arkansas and Texas A&M. Both teams had close calls of their own this past weekend and will be eager to exploit the holes Alabama revealed last week in an effort to prove themselves.
No. 4 Michigan, our favorite team to hate, had a close call against Maryland this past weekend. This Wolverine team brings to mind the Michigan team of 2017, who failed to meet the high expectations set forth for them. UM will never be a team the Buckeyes can write off entirely, but J.J. McCarthy is his own worst enemy, and they are certainly not playing the best football in the country.
No. 5 Clemson. Do NOT get me started on Clemson. They are not playing Top 5 football, let alone the best football in the country. Certainly they showed resilience in their double OT win this weekend, and that kind of adversity can be good, but they never should have been in double OT with Wake Forest to begin with.
Meanwhile, the Buckeyes’ stats increase. C.J. Stroud’s Heisman campaign is well-underway. The team finds new ways to gel. As other teams are finding their weak spots, the Buckeyes are growing stronger.
They remind me a lot of the 2014 National Championship team. That was a team that ran deep, trusted each other to get things done, and ultimately, by the time playoffs rolled around, were certainly playing better football than even the Alabama team that seemed so formidable at the time. If we can continue on this trajectory, I’m feeling Good about this season. With a capital G.
Now I’m no idiot (OK, sometimes I’m an idiot. But usually not about football). I am well aware that this season is still young. Momentum can shift, injuries can change things, and this team certainly isn’t perfect. While Jim Knowles has whipped the defense into shape in his first year as defensive coordinator, there are still some kinks to be worked out, particularly in the secondary. So this column is not to say that they should get lazy.
I don’t think they will, though. Because the thing about this team is that they are having a tremendous amount of fun, and when you’re playing with that kind of heart, history shows that you tend to get better week after week. I’m excited to see where that heart will take them this season.
Continue reading...
JamiJurich via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Gaelen Morse/Getty Images
At this point in the season, the Buckeyes look consistent and in sync.
A lot can change as the season goes on. Conference play is just getting underway, and this is the Big Ten, after all. But at the end of Week 4, Ohio State is playing the best football in the country.
An important distinction needs to be made before the SEC fans jump down my throat (although if you’re an SEC fan here, I do have to ask… are you lost?). I am in no way claiming Ohio State is the best team in the country (they are). I am not claiming they will win the National Championship (they very well could). I am merely saying that at this point in the season, they are playing the most consistently excellent football of any program in the NCAA.
While the Buckeyes have shown consistent improvement since their slow start against Notre Dame in Week 1, other teams in the Top 5 have slowly revealed their weaknesses.
Georgia, the No. 1 team in the country and the team I would argue had been playing the best football in the country up until their Saturday battle against Kent State, allowed 22 points – more than in each of their first three games COMBINED – against an unranked school who was expected to be a blip on the radar. What once seemed like a formidable defense showed it is not completely impenetrable.
No. 2 Alabama looked great this past weekend in their routing of Vanderbilt. But they barely - just barely - eked out a win against Texas two weeks ago. Yes, the same Texas that was upended in an upset by Texas Tech this past weekend. While Nick Saban is no stranger to helping his team bounce back from one game filled with adversity, the Crimson Tide has worthy opponents the next two weeks in Arkansas and Texas A&M. Both teams had close calls of their own this past weekend and will be eager to exploit the holes Alabama revealed last week in an effort to prove themselves.
No. 4 Michigan, our favorite team to hate, had a close call against Maryland this past weekend. This Wolverine team brings to mind the Michigan team of 2017, who failed to meet the high expectations set forth for them. UM will never be a team the Buckeyes can write off entirely, but J.J. McCarthy is his own worst enemy, and they are certainly not playing the best football in the country.
No. 5 Clemson. Do NOT get me started on Clemson. They are not playing Top 5 football, let alone the best football in the country. Certainly they showed resilience in their double OT win this weekend, and that kind of adversity can be good, but they never should have been in double OT with Wake Forest to begin with.
Meanwhile, the Buckeyes’ stats increase. C.J. Stroud’s Heisman campaign is well-underway. The team finds new ways to gel. As other teams are finding their weak spots, the Buckeyes are growing stronger.
They remind me a lot of the 2014 National Championship team. That was a team that ran deep, trusted each other to get things done, and ultimately, by the time playoffs rolled around, were certainly playing better football than even the Alabama team that seemed so formidable at the time. If we can continue on this trajectory, I’m feeling Good about this season. With a capital G.
Now I’m no idiot (OK, sometimes I’m an idiot. But usually not about football). I am well aware that this season is still young. Momentum can shift, injuries can change things, and this team certainly isn’t perfect. While Jim Knowles has whipped the defense into shape in his first year as defensive coordinator, there are still some kinks to be worked out, particularly in the secondary. So this column is not to say that they should get lazy.
I don’t think they will, though. Because the thing about this team is that they are having a tremendous amount of fun, and when you’re playing with that kind of heart, history shows that you tend to get better week after week. I’m excited to see where that heart will take them this season.
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LGHL Column: What have we learned through one week of conference play?
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Column: What have we learned through one week of conference play?
Meredith Hein 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
Biggest takeaways from across the Power Five.
As of last week, every team in the Big Ten, Pac-12 and SEC has played at least one conference game. As a result, we have some more normalized data to understand where programs actually stand, since everyone has played at least one game against an opponent on a similar level (we’ll talk about Michigan momentarily…).
So, what have we learned? Let’s take a lesson from each conference.
Big Ten: Sell Michigan, double down on Ohio State
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Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports
We’ll start in our own backyard. The Big Ten entered this week with two teams ranked in the top five of the AP Poll: No. 2 Ohio State and No. 4 Michigan.
Going chronologically, Michigan kicked off against Maryland at noon. The Wolverines continued to be highly touted entering Week 4, having put up monster numbers against (drumroll) Colorado State, Hawai’i and UConn. In other words, no one from the Power Five. Offensively, Michigan averaged more than 55 points per game while allowing just 17 points defensively — all season.
When all was said and done, Michigan limped away with a 34-27 win over the Terps. The heady hype surrounding the Wolverines was doused with a bucket of cold water.
It would have been easy, for non-Ohio State fans at least, to look at the result and say sure, Michigan had its first real test, came away with a W and got a wake-up call before entering conference play in earnest — had it not been for what happened Saturday night in Columbus.
Facing a Wisconsin team widely picked to win the West, Ohio State didn’t miss a beat in its absolute throttling of the Badgers. The game, broadcast in primetime on ABC, was over by the end of the first quarter. Questions around Jim Knowles’ defense were generally answered, as the Buckeyes held the Badgers to just 296 yards of offense (aided largely by a 75-yard TD run by Braelon Allen against mostly backups), and the test of Ohio State’s offense against an objectively good defense went in favor of the Buckeyes.
In short, the Buckeyes won the weekend.
ACC: Surviving, not thriving
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Photo by Lance King/Getty Images
Out of the ACC, Dabo Swinney and the Tigers have returned after a brief hiatus to make Clemson the hot team in the conference once again. In what seems to be a competitive ACC this year, Clemson remains the cream of the crop and the conference’s best hope for a Playoff berth after missing the four-team field entirely in 2021.
Last week, Clemson beat Wake Forest in what was a phenomenal game to watch. But let’s be real: No offense to Wake Forest, but should it really have taken overtime to beat them for a Clemson team that’s allegedly “back”? A Clemson team that earned a top-five ranking this week?
The Tigers face 10th-ranked NC State this week, so we’ll see if what happened against Wake Forest was just a wake-up call, or if maybe we should hit pause on the Clemson welcome party.
Big 12: The future of the SEC is 0-2
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Photo by Brian Bahr/Getty Images
Have Oklahoma and Texas simply given up ahead of their eventual departure from the Big 12? The Sooners, who were ranked sixth in the nation heading into last week, fell to Kansas State 31-34. While such a loss feels embarrassing for the Sooners, Oklahoma is actually just 1-3 against the Wildcats in the last four seasons.
Texas, meanwhile, was competitive against Alabama in their high-profile Week 2 matchup. And then what? Credit the Longhorns for scheduling, but alas, Texas is sitting at 2-2 with wins against Louisiana-Monroe and UTSA. Most recently, the Longhorns fell to Texas Tech 37-34 in overtime, blowing a 14-point third-quarter lead.
Texas has been irrelevant for a while, but Oklahoma’s loss highlights a more recent trend in the Big 12: one where Kansas, Oklahoma State and TCU are the only undefeated squads coming out of the non-conference season. The Big 12 is not good, but it’s interesting to see the up-and-comers fighting to fill the void that will eventually be left by Texas and Oklahoma.
It will be intriguing to see where the Big 12 falls come the release of the College Football Playoff rankings. Both the Big 12 and the Pac-12 have a lone representative in the latest AP Poll top-10. In the case of the Big 12, it’s Oklahoma State. We’ll get to the Pac-12 in a minute.
However, the previously unbeaten Sooners do have one advantage: a more impressive win over Kent State than Georgia does.
Pac-12: The transfer portal a new team makes
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Photo by Ali Gradischer/Getty Images
USC scraped by with a win against Oregon State last week, coming away with a 17-14, physical victory over the Beavers. Why is a win over Oregon State impressive? Because just last year, the Trojans finished 4-8, including 3-6 in the Pac-12, and were absolutely dismantled by the Beavers 45-27 in Los Angeles. Yikes. And yes, impressive is a strong word.
The Pac-12 and Big 12 are arm wrestling for the bottom spot in the Power Five, but the weight of the conference’s reputation seems to be resting squarely on the shoulders of USC. Oregon and Utah, the pride of the Pac-12 heading into the season, have already disappointed, both having incurred high-profile losses to SEC teams in their season openers.
Meanwhile, USC started the season 14th in the AP Poll, but the Trojans have risen to No. 6 on the back of their 4-0 record and wins over Rice, Stanford, Fresno State and Oregon State. Admittedly, USC would likely be in the same boat as the Ducks and Utes had they also played a challenging out-of-conference opponent, but alas, we’ll have to wait for bowl season to find out.
But what is particularly impressive is how USC is this year’s Michigan State: The Trojans, again, were really bad last year, but they leveraged two things:
Naturally these two points reinforced one another and now, USC is actually a different team than they were in 2021.
UCLA also happens to be 4-0. It’s a stronger early season showing than the future SEC members had, at least.
SEC: The bottom of the SEC is, like, really bad
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Photo by Michael Chang/Getty Images
We get it, Georgia and Alabama are good. In fact, Georgia looks significantly better than Bama, though the Bulldogs allowed 22 points against Kent State. But we’re not going to deal with that now, because the bottom of the SEC is super stinky.
That fact was on full display when Auburn took on Mizzou Saturday. The Tigers (from Auburn) emerged with a 17-14 overtime victory in a game neither team seemed keen to win. It took a fumble in overtime to finally decide the game. In the second half, the two teams punted a dozen times and scored a total of zero points. But the first half was no picnic either. Overall, from poor play on the field to terrible coaching decisions to absolute anemia on offense, it was among the most painful games of the weekend to watch.
Neither Auburn nor Mizzou had much going for them before Saturday. Auburn was destroyed by Penn State in its premier out-of-conference matchup earlier this month. Mizzou, meanwhile, only has wins over Louisiana-Tech and Abilene Christian.
Continue reading...
Meredith Hein 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
Biggest takeaways from across the Power Five.
As of last week, every team in the Big Ten, Pac-12 and SEC has played at least one conference game. As a result, we have some more normalized data to understand where programs actually stand, since everyone has played at least one game against an opponent on a similar level (we’ll talk about Michigan momentarily…).
So, what have we learned? Let’s take a lesson from each conference.
Big Ten: Sell Michigan, double down on Ohio State
We’ll start in our own backyard. The Big Ten entered this week with two teams ranked in the top five of the AP Poll: No. 2 Ohio State and No. 4 Michigan.
Going chronologically, Michigan kicked off against Maryland at noon. The Wolverines continued to be highly touted entering Week 4, having put up monster numbers against (drumroll) Colorado State, Hawai’i and UConn. In other words, no one from the Power Five. Offensively, Michigan averaged more than 55 points per game while allowing just 17 points defensively — all season.
When all was said and done, Michigan limped away with a 34-27 win over the Terps. The heady hype surrounding the Wolverines was doused with a bucket of cold water.
It would have been easy, for non-Ohio State fans at least, to look at the result and say sure, Michigan had its first real test, came away with a W and got a wake-up call before entering conference play in earnest — had it not been for what happened Saturday night in Columbus.
Facing a Wisconsin team widely picked to win the West, Ohio State didn’t miss a beat in its absolute throttling of the Badgers. The game, broadcast in primetime on ABC, was over by the end of the first quarter. Questions around Jim Knowles’ defense were generally answered, as the Buckeyes held the Badgers to just 296 yards of offense (aided largely by a 75-yard TD run by Braelon Allen against mostly backups), and the test of Ohio State’s offense against an objectively good defense went in favor of the Buckeyes.
In short, the Buckeyes won the weekend.
ACC: Surviving, not thriving
Out of the ACC, Dabo Swinney and the Tigers have returned after a brief hiatus to make Clemson the hot team in the conference once again. In what seems to be a competitive ACC this year, Clemson remains the cream of the crop and the conference’s best hope for a Playoff berth after missing the four-team field entirely in 2021.
Last week, Clemson beat Wake Forest in what was a phenomenal game to watch. But let’s be real: No offense to Wake Forest, but should it really have taken overtime to beat them for a Clemson team that’s allegedly “back”? A Clemson team that earned a top-five ranking this week?
The Tigers face 10th-ranked NC State this week, so we’ll see if what happened against Wake Forest was just a wake-up call, or if maybe we should hit pause on the Clemson welcome party.
Big 12: The future of the SEC is 0-2
Have Oklahoma and Texas simply given up ahead of their eventual departure from the Big 12? The Sooners, who were ranked sixth in the nation heading into last week, fell to Kansas State 31-34. While such a loss feels embarrassing for the Sooners, Oklahoma is actually just 1-3 against the Wildcats in the last four seasons.
Texas, meanwhile, was competitive against Alabama in their high-profile Week 2 matchup. And then what? Credit the Longhorns for scheduling, but alas, Texas is sitting at 2-2 with wins against Louisiana-Monroe and UTSA. Most recently, the Longhorns fell to Texas Tech 37-34 in overtime, blowing a 14-point third-quarter lead.
Texas has been irrelevant for a while, but Oklahoma’s loss highlights a more recent trend in the Big 12: one where Kansas, Oklahoma State and TCU are the only undefeated squads coming out of the non-conference season. The Big 12 is not good, but it’s interesting to see the up-and-comers fighting to fill the void that will eventually be left by Texas and Oklahoma.
It will be intriguing to see where the Big 12 falls come the release of the College Football Playoff rankings. Both the Big 12 and the Pac-12 have a lone representative in the latest AP Poll top-10. In the case of the Big 12, it’s Oklahoma State. We’ll get to the Pac-12 in a minute.
However, the previously unbeaten Sooners do have one advantage: a more impressive win over Kent State than Georgia does.
Pac-12: The transfer portal a new team makes
USC scraped by with a win against Oregon State last week, coming away with a 17-14, physical victory over the Beavers. Why is a win over Oregon State impressive? Because just last year, the Trojans finished 4-8, including 3-6 in the Pac-12, and were absolutely dismantled by the Beavers 45-27 in Los Angeles. Yikes. And yes, impressive is a strong word.
The Pac-12 and Big 12 are arm wrestling for the bottom spot in the Power Five, but the weight of the conference’s reputation seems to be resting squarely on the shoulders of USC. Oregon and Utah, the pride of the Pac-12 heading into the season, have already disappointed, both having incurred high-profile losses to SEC teams in their season openers.
Meanwhile, USC started the season 14th in the AP Poll, but the Trojans have risen to No. 6 on the back of their 4-0 record and wins over Rice, Stanford, Fresno State and Oregon State. Admittedly, USC would likely be in the same boat as the Ducks and Utes had they also played a challenging out-of-conference opponent, but alas, we’ll have to wait for bowl season to find out.
But what is particularly impressive is how USC is this year’s Michigan State: The Trojans, again, were really bad last year, but they leveraged two things:
- Lincoln Riley, arguably the greatest offensive mind coaching college football today besides Ryan Day, is now in Pasadena
- The Trojans were super-users of the transfer portal
Naturally these two points reinforced one another and now, USC is actually a different team than they were in 2021.
UCLA also happens to be 4-0. It’s a stronger early season showing than the future SEC members had, at least.
SEC: The bottom of the SEC is, like, really bad
We get it, Georgia and Alabama are good. In fact, Georgia looks significantly better than Bama, though the Bulldogs allowed 22 points against Kent State. But we’re not going to deal with that now, because the bottom of the SEC is super stinky.
That fact was on full display when Auburn took on Mizzou Saturday. The Tigers (from Auburn) emerged with a 17-14 overtime victory in a game neither team seemed keen to win. It took a fumble in overtime to finally decide the game. In the second half, the two teams punted a dozen times and scored a total of zero points. But the first half was no picnic either. Overall, from poor play on the field to terrible coaching decisions to absolute anemia on offense, it was among the most painful games of the weekend to watch.
Neither Auburn nor Mizzou had much going for them before Saturday. Auburn was destroyed by Penn State in its premier out-of-conference matchup earlier this month. Mizzou, meanwhile, only has wins over Louisiana-Tech and Abilene Christian.
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LGHL Rutgers Defensive Player to Watch: Safety Christian Izien
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Rutgers Defensive Player to Watch: Safety Christian Izien
Josh Dooley via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images
Izien is arguably one of the more underrated defensive stars in the Big Ten. He is the leader of the Scarlet Knights’ defense, and will be looking to make Buckeye ball carriers pay on Saturday.
For the better part of... forever, the Rutgers Scarlet Knights have relied upon a stingy defense to win football games. When they win football games, that is. Particularly under Greg Schiano, the Knights have generally played a tough, disciplined, angry brand of defense, leading to a few successful seasons in which Rutgers ranked inside the top-10 for points per game allowed. Their defense has fallen off a bit in recent seasons, but much of that can be attributed to the overall success – or lack thereof – of the team.
That is because from 2016-19, former Ohio State defensive coordinator Chris Ash figuratively disemboweled Rutgers’ program. He compiled an 8-32 record, stripping the team of any favorable status it had under Schiano (or Kyle Flood), and leaving it state of disarray. Recruiting was terrible, on-field results were worse, and it is a surprise any coach would take on the challenge of building this program back up. But Schiano is a Rutgers guy who brought them to prominence once before. He will be looking to do it again, and it likely starts on the defensive side of the ball.
Now I understand that the Scarlet Knights have been scoring points in 2022. But let’s be honest here: Wagner was on the schedule. Temple and Iowa held the team to 16 and 10 points, respectively. So if Schiano’s offense look great against Ohio State, I will gladly eat crow. But I don’t plan on it. Rutgers’ best chance of pulling off an upset Saturday is to play lights-out defense — something that is at least within the realm of possibility.
Thus far in 2022, the Scarlet Knights have been pretty steady on the defensive side of ball. But again, I feel the need to reference their schedule. Boston College has a solid quarterback, but they’ve woefully underperformed, starting out 0-2 and averaging approximately eight inches per rushing attempt. Wagner is an FCS school. Temple played like one under Rod Carey. And have you seen Iowa’s offense!?
Rutgers hasn’t exactly found its defense pitted against The Greatest Show on Turf, if you know what I mean. This Ohio State group will present a greater challenge, but one that RU players should also view as an opportunity to make plays and show out against a superior opponent.
One of those players – and the guy I will have my eyes on – is fourth-year safety Christian Izien. While I was tempted to highlight cornerback Robert Longerbeam AKA Bobby Lightbeam, Izien has been a pillar of consistency for the Scarlet Knights.
In 2019, as a first-time starter, he racked up 76 total tackles. He followed that up by recording four interceptions and three fumble recoveries in just nine games during the 2020 season. Izien’s consistency and versatile skillset have made him one of Rutgers’ most important defenders during the early stages of their rebuild, and for that reason, he is this week’s Defensive Player to Watch.
Similar to wide receiver and teammate Aron Cruickshank, Izien attended the legendary Erasmus Hall High School (Neil Diamond, chess champion Bobby Fischer, and OSU’s Curtis Samuel). It was there that this New York native played both ways, and eventually became on of the state’s highest rated recruits. However, unlike Cruickshank, Izien chose to remain close to home in pursuit of his college football dream. While recruited by Ash, he has been an inherited gift for Schiano, and ultimately become one of the Scarlet Knights’ true leaders.
As previously mentioned, Izien broke onto the scene in 2019. After seeing action in four just games during the 2018 season (on special teams), he earned a starting nod the following year. However, it did take a few weeks. He played in all 12 games, but only topped the depth chart for the final seven. Regardless, Izien made sure that his presence was always felt, whether off the bench or in the starting lineup. He notched 78 tackles, which was good for third on the team. He also added three pass breakups, but often found himself cleaning up plays as the last line of defense. That would change in 2020, as Izien blossomed into a playmaker.
During a pandemic-shortened 2020 season, the Scarlet Knights managed to play nine games... yes, nine. One more than the Big Ten champion Buckeyes, and three more than the cowardly *ichigan Wolverines. And while I don’t image it was a fun 3-9 season, Izien was a stud for Schiano and the defensive coaching staff. The 5-foot-10 DB provided his typical solid pursuit and sound tackling – as evidenced by his average of seven tackles per game – and also added a ball-hawking element which was not present before.
In what amount to three quarters of a season, Izien came up with an impressive seven turnovers. He added 4 PBU, yet somehow only earned the distinction of Honorable Mention All-Big Ten. In defense of the voters, it was a loaded year. But alas, the Rutgers safety had proven his versatility, which he continues to display on a weekly basis.
Izien has not come up with a turnover since, but the defensive scheme now calls for him to play in the box more often. As a result, he was credited with 8.5 TFL during the 2021 season. And thus far in 2022, he has added 2.5, to go with his first career sack (half). While those stats might not be comparable to a box safety specialist like the NFL’s Jamal Adams, it still shows a level depth to Izien’s game. Seven turnovers one season, 8.5 TFL the next. And most importantly, this Scarlet Knights stud is rarely out of place. He knows where to be on the field.
Izien has once again proven to be one of the best safeties in the Big Ten his season, making plays beyond his 2.5 TFL. He leads Rutgers with 33 total tackles, and has two PBU. He is still looking for his first interception since 2020, but it is simply a matter of time. Hopefully C.J. Stroud does not float one as he did last Saturday, because Izien is likely to be in position. TreVeyon Henderson and Miyan Williams should also be aware of what is coming their way, because the Scarlet Knights’ leader can lay the boom as a sure tackler.
Come Saturday, Izien will be tested... big time. But he will do all that he can to help keep Rutgers in the game. Whether it is coming down with an interception or delivering a big hit, he has proven he can do it all from the safety position. Izien will need help from his teammates, but expect them to come out swinging. Or chopping, whichever Schiano prefers.
Continue reading...
Josh Dooley via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images
Izien is arguably one of the more underrated defensive stars in the Big Ten. He is the leader of the Scarlet Knights’ defense, and will be looking to make Buckeye ball carriers pay on Saturday.
For the better part of... forever, the Rutgers Scarlet Knights have relied upon a stingy defense to win football games. When they win football games, that is. Particularly under Greg Schiano, the Knights have generally played a tough, disciplined, angry brand of defense, leading to a few successful seasons in which Rutgers ranked inside the top-10 for points per game allowed. Their defense has fallen off a bit in recent seasons, but much of that can be attributed to the overall success – or lack thereof – of the team.
That is because from 2016-19, former Ohio State defensive coordinator Chris Ash figuratively disemboweled Rutgers’ program. He compiled an 8-32 record, stripping the team of any favorable status it had under Schiano (or Kyle Flood), and leaving it state of disarray. Recruiting was terrible, on-field results were worse, and it is a surprise any coach would take on the challenge of building this program back up. But Schiano is a Rutgers guy who brought them to prominence once before. He will be looking to do it again, and it likely starts on the defensive side of the ball.
Now I understand that the Scarlet Knights have been scoring points in 2022. But let’s be honest here: Wagner was on the schedule. Temple and Iowa held the team to 16 and 10 points, respectively. So if Schiano’s offense look great against Ohio State, I will gladly eat crow. But I don’t plan on it. Rutgers’ best chance of pulling off an upset Saturday is to play lights-out defense — something that is at least within the realm of possibility.
Thus far in 2022, the Scarlet Knights have been pretty steady on the defensive side of ball. But again, I feel the need to reference their schedule. Boston College has a solid quarterback, but they’ve woefully underperformed, starting out 0-2 and averaging approximately eight inches per rushing attempt. Wagner is an FCS school. Temple played like one under Rod Carey. And have you seen Iowa’s offense!?
Rutgers hasn’t exactly found its defense pitted against The Greatest Show on Turf, if you know what I mean. This Ohio State group will present a greater challenge, but one that RU players should also view as an opportunity to make plays and show out against a superior opponent.
One of those players – and the guy I will have my eyes on – is fourth-year safety Christian Izien. While I was tempted to highlight cornerback Robert Longerbeam AKA Bobby Lightbeam, Izien has been a pillar of consistency for the Scarlet Knights.
In 2019, as a first-time starter, he racked up 76 total tackles. He followed that up by recording four interceptions and three fumble recoveries in just nine games during the 2020 season. Izien’s consistency and versatile skillset have made him one of Rutgers’ most important defenders during the early stages of their rebuild, and for that reason, he is this week’s Defensive Player to Watch.
Similar to wide receiver and teammate Aron Cruickshank, Izien attended the legendary Erasmus Hall High School (Neil Diamond, chess champion Bobby Fischer, and OSU’s Curtis Samuel). It was there that this New York native played both ways, and eventually became on of the state’s highest rated recruits. However, unlike Cruickshank, Izien chose to remain close to home in pursuit of his college football dream. While recruited by Ash, he has been an inherited gift for Schiano, and ultimately become one of the Scarlet Knights’ true leaders.
As previously mentioned, Izien broke onto the scene in 2019. After seeing action in four just games during the 2018 season (on special teams), he earned a starting nod the following year. However, it did take a few weeks. He played in all 12 games, but only topped the depth chart for the final seven. Regardless, Izien made sure that his presence was always felt, whether off the bench or in the starting lineup. He notched 78 tackles, which was good for third on the team. He also added three pass breakups, but often found himself cleaning up plays as the last line of defense. That would change in 2020, as Izien blossomed into a playmaker.
During a pandemic-shortened 2020 season, the Scarlet Knights managed to play nine games... yes, nine. One more than the Big Ten champion Buckeyes, and three more than the cowardly *ichigan Wolverines. And while I don’t image it was a fun 3-9 season, Izien was a stud for Schiano and the defensive coaching staff. The 5-foot-10 DB provided his typical solid pursuit and sound tackling – as evidenced by his average of seven tackles per game – and also added a ball-hawking element which was not present before.
In what amount to three quarters of a season, Izien came up with an impressive seven turnovers. He added 4 PBU, yet somehow only earned the distinction of Honorable Mention All-Big Ten. In defense of the voters, it was a loaded year. But alas, the Rutgers safety had proven his versatility, which he continues to display on a weekly basis.
Izien has not come up with a turnover since, but the defensive scheme now calls for him to play in the box more often. As a result, he was credited with 8.5 TFL during the 2021 season. And thus far in 2022, he has added 2.5, to go with his first career sack (half). While those stats might not be comparable to a box safety specialist like the NFL’s Jamal Adams, it still shows a level depth to Izien’s game. Seven turnovers one season, 8.5 TFL the next. And most importantly, this Scarlet Knights stud is rarely out of place. He knows where to be on the field.
Izien has once again proven to be one of the best safeties in the Big Ten his season, making plays beyond his 2.5 TFL. He leads Rutgers with 33 total tackles, and has two PBU. He is still looking for his first interception since 2020, but it is simply a matter of time. Hopefully C.J. Stroud does not float one as he did last Saturday, because Izien is likely to be in position. TreVeyon Henderson and Miyan Williams should also be aware of what is coming their way, because the Scarlet Knights’ leader can lay the boom as a sure tackler.
Come Saturday, Izien will be tested... big time. But he will do all that he can to help keep Rutgers in the game. Whether it is coming down with an interception or delivering a big hit, he has proven he can do it all from the safety position. Izien will need help from his teammates, but expect them to come out swinging. Or chopping, whichever Schiano prefers.
Continue reading...
LGHL Why is this News? All the articles and tweets Buckeye fans need for September 28, 2022
- News
- 0 Replies
Why is this News? All the articles and tweets Buckeye fans need for September 28, 2022
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK
All the Buckeye news thats fit to re-print.
Look, we get it. Your days are busy and you don’t have time to read all of the stories and tweets from the three dozen websites that cover Ohio State athletics, or the 237 Buckeye beat writers churning out hot takes and #content on a daily basis. But that’s ok, that’s what your friends at Land-Grant Holy Land are here for.
Monday through Friday, we’ll collect all of the articles, tweets, features, interviews, videos, podcasts, memes, photos, and whatever else we stumble across on the interwebz and put them in our daily “Why is this News?” article. That way, you’ll have a one-stop shop for all of the most important Buckeye news, jokes, and analysis.
You’re welcome!
For your Earholes...
Subscribe: RSS | Apple | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts | iHeart Radio
Ask LGHL
Introducing ‘Ask LGHL,’ asking and answering questions throughout the football season
Matt Tamanini, Land-Grant Holy Land
On the Gridiron
No timetable set for Buckeyes receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba’s return
Joey Kaufman, The Columbus Dispatch
Ohio State kicker Parker Lewis cleared to play by the NCAA
Patrick Murphy, Bucknuts
Presser Bullets: Ryan Day Not Putting Timetable on Jaxon Smith-Njigba’s Return, Hopes Cameron Brown, Denzel Burke Will Be Back Against Rutgers
Griffin Strom, Eleven Warriors
Key Takeaways as Buckeyes move on to Rutgers prep (paywall)
Austin Ward, Dotting the Eyes
Practice Report: Buckeyes keep focus on competitive stamina as October slate nears
Spencer Holbrook, Lettermen Row
How is this even a question at this point? Damn, making a national college football show must be so easy.
Is @OhioStateFB a true CFP title contender this season?@joelklatt thinks so (via @JoelKlattShow)pic.twitter.com/17GuA2xj7b
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) September 27, 2022
Walton on lack of depth at corner: ‘That’s why you have everybody ready’ | Praises play of Johnson, Brown
Dave Biddle, Bucknuts
Will Ohio State football cornerbacks Denzel Burke and Cam Brown play against Rutgers?
Nathan Baird, cleveland.com
Continuing Tradition: Block O to Nod at Its Past During Card Stunt and 100 Years of Ohio Stadium Celebration Saturday
Olivia Riley, The Lantern
Jyaire Brown, JK Johnson give Buckeyes emergin depth in cornerback room
Tim May, Lettermen Row
Miyan Williams (@Miyannnn3) has been the most difficult ball carrier to bring down in the Big Ten this season pic.twitter.com/P8ObPEeMuw
— CFB Film Room (@CFBFilmRoom) September 27, 2022
Boots on the Ground: 31 up-close observations from Ohio State’s 31-point drubbing of Wisconsin
Josh Dooley, Land-Grant Holy Land
You’re Nuts: What branded items would you want to see Ohio State players wear?
Brett Ludwiczak and Meredith Hein, Land-Grant Holy Land
Week 3 Roundup: Buckeyes in the NFL
Megan Husslein, Land-Grant Holy Land
On the Hardwood
Five things we learned from Ohio State men’s basketball media day
Connor Lemons, Land-Grant Holy Land
Hear Holtmann’s full press conference here:
Ohio State men’s basketball player preview: Eugene Brown
Justin Golba, Land-Grant Holy Land
Women’s Basketball: Guzdanski and Murray Secure New Titles
Ohio State Athletics
“That’s Something They Don’t Want”: Ohio State Basketball Players Dish on How a Game Against the Football Buckeyes Would Go
Garrick Hodge, Eleven Warriors
Outside the Shoe and Schott
Men’s Golf: Goldovan Posts Another Top 5, Buckeyes Finish 7th at Inverness
Ohio State Athletics
Men’s Soccer: Borkovic Adapting to US, Role with the Buckeyes
Gaurav Law, The Lantern
And now for something completely different...
I am very excited about this but also glad that this means that Hugh won’t be the long-term Logan in the MCU.
Hard keeping my mouth sewn shut about this one.
pic.twitter.com/OdV7JmAkEu
— Ryan Reynolds (@VancityReynolds) September 27, 2022
Continue reading...
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK
All the Buckeye news thats fit to re-print.
Look, we get it. Your days are busy and you don’t have time to read all of the stories and tweets from the three dozen websites that cover Ohio State athletics, or the 237 Buckeye beat writers churning out hot takes and #content on a daily basis. But that’s ok, that’s what your friends at Land-Grant Holy Land are here for.
Monday through Friday, we’ll collect all of the articles, tweets, features, interviews, videos, podcasts, memes, photos, and whatever else we stumble across on the interwebz and put them in our daily “Why is this News?” article. That way, you’ll have a one-stop shop for all of the most important Buckeye news, jokes, and analysis.
You’re welcome!
For your Earholes...
Subscribe: RSS | Apple | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts | iHeart Radio
Ask LGHL
Introducing ‘Ask LGHL,’ asking and answering questions throughout the football season
Matt Tamanini, Land-Grant Holy Land
On the Gridiron
No timetable set for Buckeyes receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba’s return
Joey Kaufman, The Columbus Dispatch
Ohio State kicker Parker Lewis cleared to play by the NCAA
Patrick Murphy, Bucknuts
Presser Bullets: Ryan Day Not Putting Timetable on Jaxon Smith-Njigba’s Return, Hopes Cameron Brown, Denzel Burke Will Be Back Against Rutgers
Griffin Strom, Eleven Warriors
Key Takeaways as Buckeyes move on to Rutgers prep (paywall)
Austin Ward, Dotting the Eyes
Practice Report: Buckeyes keep focus on competitive stamina as October slate nears
Spencer Holbrook, Lettermen Row
How is this even a question at this point? Damn, making a national college football show must be so easy.
Is @OhioStateFB a true CFP title contender this season?@joelklatt thinks so (via @JoelKlattShow)pic.twitter.com/17GuA2xj7b
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) September 27, 2022
Walton on lack of depth at corner: ‘That’s why you have everybody ready’ | Praises play of Johnson, Brown
Dave Biddle, Bucknuts
Will Ohio State football cornerbacks Denzel Burke and Cam Brown play against Rutgers?
Nathan Baird, cleveland.com
Continuing Tradition: Block O to Nod at Its Past During Card Stunt and 100 Years of Ohio Stadium Celebration Saturday
Olivia Riley, The Lantern
Jyaire Brown, JK Johnson give Buckeyes emergin depth in cornerback room
Tim May, Lettermen Row
Miyan Williams (@Miyannnn3) has been the most difficult ball carrier to bring down in the Big Ten this season pic.twitter.com/P8ObPEeMuw
— CFB Film Room (@CFBFilmRoom) September 27, 2022
Boots on the Ground: 31 up-close observations from Ohio State’s 31-point drubbing of Wisconsin
Josh Dooley, Land-Grant Holy Land
You’re Nuts: What branded items would you want to see Ohio State players wear?
Brett Ludwiczak and Meredith Hein, Land-Grant Holy Land
Week 3 Roundup: Buckeyes in the NFL
Megan Husslein, Land-Grant Holy Land
On the Hardwood
Five things we learned from Ohio State men’s basketball media day
Connor Lemons, Land-Grant Holy Land
Hear Holtmann’s full press conference here:
Ohio State men’s basketball player preview: Eugene Brown
Justin Golba, Land-Grant Holy Land
Women’s Basketball: Guzdanski and Murray Secure New Titles
Ohio State Athletics
“That’s Something They Don’t Want”: Ohio State Basketball Players Dish on How a Game Against the Football Buckeyes Would Go
Garrick Hodge, Eleven Warriors
Outside the Shoe and Schott
Men’s Golf: Goldovan Posts Another Top 5, Buckeyes Finish 7th at Inverness
Ohio State Athletics
Men’s Soccer: Borkovic Adapting to US, Role with the Buckeyes
Gaurav Law, The Lantern
And now for something completely different...
I am very excited about this but also glad that this means that Hugh won’t be the long-term Logan in the MCU.
Hard keeping my mouth sewn shut about this one.
pic.twitter.com/OdV7JmAkEu— Ryan Reynolds (@VancityReynolds) September 27, 2022
Continue reading...
LGHL The Dotted Line Podcast: Breaking down biggest recruits on campus for Wisconsin game
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- 0 Replies
The Dotted Line Podcast: Breaking down biggest recruits on campus for Wisconsin game
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Adam Cairns-USA TODAY Sports
Can the Buckeyes land one, two, or even three five-star edge rushers in the 2023 class?
On “The Dotted Line”, Land-Grant Holy Land’s Matt Tamanini talks to recruiting experts, LGHL’s recruiting analysts, and prospects themselves to get a unique perspective on the players that will be a part of Ohio State’s future.
Listen to the episode and subscribe:
Subscribe: RSS | Apple | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts | iHeart Radio
On this episode of Land-Grant Holy Land’s recruiting-centric podcast, LGHL’s Matt Tamanini and Caleb Houser take a look at the major recruits who were on campus for last Saturday’s win over Wisconsin. Though five-star edge rusher Keon Keeley is crystal balled to go to Alabama, the Buckeyes are hoping to still have a shot following his second visit in September.
And while they might be getting a bit ahead of themselves, Matt and Caleb daydream about how great it would be to get Keeley and/or any combination of him, fellow five-star defensive ends Matayo Uiagalelei or Damon Wilson.
They also talk about four-star offensive lineman Ian Moore, the No. 1 wide receiver in the 2024 class Jeremiah Smith, four-star edge rusher Elias Rudolph, and more.
Connect with Caleb Houser
Twitter: @CalebHouser9
Connect with Matt Tamanini
Twitter: @BWWMatt
Continue reading...
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Adam Cairns-USA TODAY Sports
Can the Buckeyes land one, two, or even three five-star edge rushers in the 2023 class?
On “The Dotted Line”, Land-Grant Holy Land’s Matt Tamanini talks to recruiting experts, LGHL’s recruiting analysts, and prospects themselves to get a unique perspective on the players that will be a part of Ohio State’s future.
Listen to the episode and subscribe:
Subscribe: RSS | Apple | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts | iHeart Radio
On this episode of Land-Grant Holy Land’s recruiting-centric podcast, LGHL’s Matt Tamanini and Caleb Houser take a look at the major recruits who were on campus for last Saturday’s win over Wisconsin. Though five-star edge rusher Keon Keeley is crystal balled to go to Alabama, the Buckeyes are hoping to still have a shot following his second visit in September.
And while they might be getting a bit ahead of themselves, Matt and Caleb daydream about how great it would be to get Keeley and/or any combination of him, fellow five-star defensive ends Matayo Uiagalelei or Damon Wilson.
They also talk about four-star offensive lineman Ian Moore, the No. 1 wide receiver in the 2024 class Jeremiah Smith, four-star edge rusher Elias Rudolph, and more.
Connect with Caleb Houser
Twitter: @CalebHouser9
Connect with Matt Tamanini
Twitter: @BWWMatt
Continue reading...
MotS&G Darkness Falls: Big Ten Clash
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- 0 Replies
Darkness Falls: Big Ten Clash
Richard Tongohan via our good friends at Men of the Scarlet and Gray
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
It is game day folks! Today, we will see our undefeated Buckeyes square off against a 2-1 Wisconsin team in a “Black Out” game.
Badger Challenges
Wisconsin with QB Graham Mertz and RB Brealon Allen will go into the game as the impact players on offense. Mertz has been inconsistent in his play. Without an established or “go-to” WR/TE on their roster look for Allen to test the Buckeyes on the ground.
The defense will surely be tested and this is a welcomed challenge for this team who struggled against a dual-threat QB. They were torched by one man and even gave up a few splash plays. Will they be up for a challenge with Mertz leaning on his bruiser back?
The Badgers will also filed another formidable defense that has accumulated 7 sacks, 7 interceptions and 1 forced fumble/fumble recovery through three contests. Their main focus is to prevent balance and limit CJ Stroud to check-downs and stop the run.
The game in the trenches is what will determine the winner. This is the best Offensive Line the Buckeyes have had and I’d imagine they’re going to try and dominate in such an electric environment.
Can they dominate against a conference foe, in prime time? Or will they start slow like they did against Norte Dame and then dominate in the second half? Will the rumored injuries or actual injuries play a part in a Badger upset?
Offensive Injury Bug Woes
The injury bug has taken a few playmakers, specifically on the offensive side of the ball. We saw JSN fall to injury for about a week and last week he was overshadowed by the stellar play of MHJ, Egbuka and Fleming.
There was also another notable player to go down in star RB Henderson. He limped off but his injury remains a mystery in the upcoming contest with Wisconsin. With only two scholarship RB’s on the roster without Henderson, can they adapt and overcome?
Will The Streak Continue?
Out of 84 contests, Ohio State has defeated Wisconsin 61 times. There have been 18 defeats and 5 ties. The Buckeyes have also won 8 straight.
This matchup will pit Ryan Day’s high flying offense against Jim Leonhard’s stingy defense. Which one will win out in the end?
This is what makes this matchup intriguing. The in-game chess match between a dynamic offense and a pesky defense. These two teams play every two years or so, but when they collide it’s an old school Big Ten game for sure.
The Buckeyes’ last defeat came in 2010 at Madison. Will this be the year Coach Chryst and Coach Leonhard pull of the upset and in Columbus?
The game will be one to watch especially in a Black Out environment. We will see if the Buckeyes come in prepared to play with their hairs on fire. Or if it’s another flashy game where they come out flat and unmotivated.
Prime Time Recruiting Destination
What better atmosphere to reload than this one in the Shoe?! Black Out condition with a lot of committed and uncommitted talent will food the stadium. Ohio State will look to these recruits as they face them in prime time.
Sure, it would be great to sign everyone but not everyone is destined to don the Scarlet and Gray, but those who Are right for the program will. And those who aren’t won’t. Let’s not get tied up on the semantics, but let’s hope the Buckeye come to play and dominate to sway them in our favor.
Game Predictions:
Final Score: 38-20
The Wisconsin D is disruptive in the beginning stages but a poised CJ Stroud finds a way to beat the Leonhard defense.
Impact Players:
#GoBucks
Continue reading...
Richard Tongohan via our good friends at Men of the Scarlet and Gray
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
It is game day folks! Today, we will see our undefeated Buckeyes square off against a 2-1 Wisconsin team in a “Black Out” game.
Badger Challenges
Wisconsin with QB Graham Mertz and RB Brealon Allen will go into the game as the impact players on offense. Mertz has been inconsistent in his play. Without an established or “go-to” WR/TE on their roster look for Allen to test the Buckeyes on the ground.
The defense will surely be tested and this is a welcomed challenge for this team who struggled against a dual-threat QB. They were torched by one man and even gave up a few splash plays. Will they be up for a challenge with Mertz leaning on his bruiser back?
The Badgers will also filed another formidable defense that has accumulated 7 sacks, 7 interceptions and 1 forced fumble/fumble recovery through three contests. Their main focus is to prevent balance and limit CJ Stroud to check-downs and stop the run.
The game in the trenches is what will determine the winner. This is the best Offensive Line the Buckeyes have had and I’d imagine they’re going to try and dominate in such an electric environment.
Can they dominate against a conference foe, in prime time? Or will they start slow like they did against Norte Dame and then dominate in the second half? Will the rumored injuries or actual injuries play a part in a Badger upset?
Offensive Injury Bug Woes
The injury bug has taken a few playmakers, specifically on the offensive side of the ball. We saw JSN fall to injury for about a week and last week he was overshadowed by the stellar play of MHJ, Egbuka and Fleming.
There was also another notable player to go down in star RB Henderson. He limped off but his injury remains a mystery in the upcoming contest with Wisconsin. With only two scholarship RB’s on the roster without Henderson, can they adapt and overcome?
Will The Streak Continue?
Out of 84 contests, Ohio State has defeated Wisconsin 61 times. There have been 18 defeats and 5 ties. The Buckeyes have also won 8 straight.
This matchup will pit Ryan Day’s high flying offense against Jim Leonhard’s stingy defense. Which one will win out in the end?
This is what makes this matchup intriguing. The in-game chess match between a dynamic offense and a pesky defense. These two teams play every two years or so, but when they collide it’s an old school Big Ten game for sure.
The Buckeyes’ last defeat came in 2010 at Madison. Will this be the year Coach Chryst and Coach Leonhard pull of the upset and in Columbus?
The game will be one to watch especially in a Black Out environment. We will see if the Buckeyes come in prepared to play with their hairs on fire. Or if it’s another flashy game where they come out flat and unmotivated.
Prime Time Recruiting Destination
What better atmosphere to reload than this one in the Shoe?! Black Out condition with a lot of committed and uncommitted talent will food the stadium. Ohio State will look to these recruits as they face them in prime time.
Sure, it would be great to sign everyone but not everyone is destined to don the Scarlet and Gray, but those who Are right for the program will. And those who aren’t won’t. Let’s not get tied up on the semantics, but let’s hope the Buckeye come to play and dominate to sway them in our favor.
Game Predictions:
Final Score: 38-20
The Wisconsin D is disruptive in the beginning stages but a poised CJ Stroud finds a way to beat the Leonhard defense.
Impact Players:
- Henderson (if healthy)/Williams/Hayden: If Henderson cannot go, look for these two to feast and batter the defensive front seven in his absence.
- Stover: He has been getting at least three catches per game. Look for him to finally get a TD.
- Hall/Williams/Sawyer/Tuimoloau: Disruption in the trenches. I think a big game from at least one of these four is likely. My bet is on Hall.
- Eichenberg: He will lead the team in tackles and make key stops.
- Burke: Has been beat a lot lately, but he will build positive momentum during the game.
#GoBucks
Continue reading...
LGHL Ohio State target and four-star OL from Indiana looks to be nearing a decision
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Ohio State target and four-star OL from Indiana looks to be nearing a decision
Bret Favachio 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
The Buckeyes look to be on the verge of reeling in their second pledge in the 2024 class, as a top offensive line target is planning a decision soon.
Despite it being a relatively quiet day on the recruiting trail on Tuesday, Ohio State could be on the verge of adding their second prospect into the fold for the 2024 recruiting class sooner rather than later. Plus, a blue-chip prospect from Georgia in next years cycle says the Buckeyes are one of the programs recruiting him the hardest thus far.
Moore nearing end of recruitment
It’s no secret that first year offensive line coach Justin Frye has his sights set on 2024 four-star interior offensive lineman Ian Moore of New Palestine (IN) as he is one of just four interior lineman in the class that has already landed an offer from Ohio State.
The 6-foot-5, 295-pounder isn’t exactly hiding that fact that he is interested in the Buckeyes, as well as he has made multiple visits to Columbus in this month alone. The first trip for Moore this month was the opening weekend contest in which he was able to see Ohio State down Notre Dame. This past weekend, Moore made his way back to campus, and was able to take in the Buckeyes destruction of the Badgers. He was also able to spend a little time with a potential future teammate in the process.
“I got to talk to Luke Montgomery a bit, and he was just asking me about where I’m at in the recruiting process.” From the looks of it, Moore could be on the verge of reaching the conclusion of that process sometime next month.
According to Garrick Hodge of Eleven Warriors, Moore will make a visit to Wisconsin this weekend when the Badgers face off against Illinois. After that, the Indiana standout will go into decision making mode and chose his collegiate home “in the coming weeks.”
As of now, it’s Ohio State who is the unanimous favorite on the 247Sports Crystal Ball, and unless Wisconsin is able to dramatically shift the trajectory of his recruitment, the Buckeyes look to be the team that will come out victorious in the race for Moore. If that’s indeed the case, it will be a welcomed addition for the aforementioned Frye and 2024 five-star quarterback and Ohio State pledge Dylan Raiola of Chandler (AZ).
Moore currently pencils in as a Too 100 player in the class at No. 91 overall. Perhaps more impressive is that the Indiana talent ranks as the fourth-best interior offensive lineman in the class, and is the top-ranked player in the state.
Smith feeling Ohio State love
Another prospect in next years class that the Buckeyes have done a tremendous job recruiting so far is four-star right end Michael Smith of Calvary Day School (GA). The Savannah native made that known on Tuesday when he named Ohio State one of the three programs recruiting him the hardest.
Country's No. 6 TE who visited #OhioState over the weekend tells @247Sports Georgia recruiting insider @Mansell247 #Buckeyes are one of three teams recruiting him the hardest. On @Bucknuts247. VIP https://t.co/saQ2n52YfL @OSUCoachKDub
— Bill Kurelic (@Bill_Kurelic) September 27, 2022
As noted above by 247Sports’ Bill Kurelic, Smith also made the trip up to Columbus, much like the aforementioned Moore, and watched Ohio State take care of business against Wisconsin.
The Buckeyes seem to have put themselves in a respectable position for the 6-foot-4, 225-pounder already despite no hint of clarity on when a potential decision could come for the Georgia prospect. A trio of other programs that are considered “warm” for Smith on his 247Sports profile include Central Florida, Kentucky, and Miami (FL).
Smith is one of just six prospects at the tight end position is 2024 that have been offered by the Buckeyes. However, a pair of those have already made their pledge elsewhere which makes it fair to say that Smith could potentially be the top remaining target on the board at the position at this time.
Smith slots outside of the Top 100 prospects that the class to offer but an impressive season for the Cavaliers could be a reason for Smith to rise from his current 128th overall ranking. As for tight ends, Smith grades out as the sixth best prospect at the position in his class and slots in as the No. 22 best player from the always talented state of Georgia.
Quick Hits
Continue reading...
Bret Favachio 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
The Buckeyes look to be on the verge of reeling in their second pledge in the 2024 class, as a top offensive line target is planning a decision soon.
Despite it being a relatively quiet day on the recruiting trail on Tuesday, Ohio State could be on the verge of adding their second prospect into the fold for the 2024 recruiting class sooner rather than later. Plus, a blue-chip prospect from Georgia in next years cycle says the Buckeyes are one of the programs recruiting him the hardest thus far.
Moore nearing end of recruitment
It’s no secret that first year offensive line coach Justin Frye has his sights set on 2024 four-star interior offensive lineman Ian Moore of New Palestine (IN) as he is one of just four interior lineman in the class that has already landed an offer from Ohio State.
The 6-foot-5, 295-pounder isn’t exactly hiding that fact that he is interested in the Buckeyes, as well as he has made multiple visits to Columbus in this month alone. The first trip for Moore this month was the opening weekend contest in which he was able to see Ohio State down Notre Dame. This past weekend, Moore made his way back to campus, and was able to take in the Buckeyes destruction of the Badgers. He was also able to spend a little time with a potential future teammate in the process.
“I got to talk to Luke Montgomery a bit, and he was just asking me about where I’m at in the recruiting process.” From the looks of it, Moore could be on the verge of reaching the conclusion of that process sometime next month.
According to Garrick Hodge of Eleven Warriors, Moore will make a visit to Wisconsin this weekend when the Badgers face off against Illinois. After that, the Indiana standout will go into decision making mode and chose his collegiate home “in the coming weeks.”
As of now, it’s Ohio State who is the unanimous favorite on the 247Sports Crystal Ball, and unless Wisconsin is able to dramatically shift the trajectory of his recruitment, the Buckeyes look to be the team that will come out victorious in the race for Moore. If that’s indeed the case, it will be a welcomed addition for the aforementioned Frye and 2024 five-star quarterback and Ohio State pledge Dylan Raiola of Chandler (AZ).
Moore currently pencils in as a Too 100 player in the class at No. 91 overall. Perhaps more impressive is that the Indiana talent ranks as the fourth-best interior offensive lineman in the class, and is the top-ranked player in the state.
Smith feeling Ohio State love
Another prospect in next years class that the Buckeyes have done a tremendous job recruiting so far is four-star right end Michael Smith of Calvary Day School (GA). The Savannah native made that known on Tuesday when he named Ohio State one of the three programs recruiting him the hardest.
Country's No. 6 TE who visited #OhioState over the weekend tells @247Sports Georgia recruiting insider @Mansell247 #Buckeyes are one of three teams recruiting him the hardest. On @Bucknuts247. VIP https://t.co/saQ2n52YfL @OSUCoachKDub
— Bill Kurelic (@Bill_Kurelic) September 27, 2022
As noted above by 247Sports’ Bill Kurelic, Smith also made the trip up to Columbus, much like the aforementioned Moore, and watched Ohio State take care of business against Wisconsin.
The Buckeyes seem to have put themselves in a respectable position for the 6-foot-4, 225-pounder already despite no hint of clarity on when a potential decision could come for the Georgia prospect. A trio of other programs that are considered “warm” for Smith on his 247Sports profile include Central Florida, Kentucky, and Miami (FL).
Smith is one of just six prospects at the tight end position is 2024 that have been offered by the Buckeyes. However, a pair of those have already made their pledge elsewhere which makes it fair to say that Smith could potentially be the top remaining target on the board at the position at this time.
Smith slots outside of the Top 100 prospects that the class to offer but an impressive season for the Cavaliers could be a reason for Smith to rise from his current 128th overall ranking. As for tight ends, Smith grades out as the sixth best prospect at the position in his class and slots in as the No. 22 best player from the always talented state of Georgia.
Quick Hits
- Ohio State pledge and 2023 four-star offensive tackle Luke Montgomery of Findlay (OH) will be honored as an All-American tonight. The All-American Bowl ceremony honoring the top 100 players in the nation is set to begin at 8:00 p.m ET.
Continue reading...
LGHL Ohio State men’s basketball player preview: Eugene Brown
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Ohio State men’s basketball player preview: Eugene Brown
justingolba via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Joseph Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports
One of the few returning Buckeyes, Brown is due for a big leap his junior season
As the basketball offseason continues and we move into the fall, Land-Grant Holy Land will continue to put out our basketball player and team previews. There will be two previews per week leading all the way into the start of the season, starting with player previews.
We have now made it to the four returning Buckeyes, starting with rising junior Eugene Brown.
Name: Eugene Brown
Height: 6-foot-6
Weight: 195 pounds
High School: Southwest Dekalb
Class: Junior
2021-22 stats: 3.5 PPG, 2.4 RPG, 9.5 APG, .351 FG%, .280 3FG%, .500 FT%
Outlook
Eugene Brown is one of the only four returning Buckeyes to the team now that Seth Towns has medically retired. Brown is a junior that played in 26 of 32 Ohio State games last season and started in 10 of them.
In that 2021-22 campaign, Brown averaged 3.5 points and 2.4 rebounds per game on an average of 17 minutes played. He played a lot more during conference play than he did during non-conference play because of injuries and some depth issues the Buckeyes ran into later in the season. He struggled shooting the ball on the season, hitting just 35 percent from the field, 28 percent from three-point range and 50 percent from the free throw line.
He did legitimately win a game for the Buckeyes against Indiana, blocking a layup attempt at the buzzer to force overtime and giving the Buckeyes a chance to win the game in the extra period, as they did. Brown finished with 10 points and six rebounds in that contest.
“That’s something I used to be known for in high school actually was going and blocking shots like that,” Brown said when asked about the play last season. “So, it just felt good to kind of relive that and bring that side back out. Blocks like that always give your team a great boost of energy, especially off of a turnover that it happened on. So, it was just great.”
Unfortunately for Brown, he dealt with multiple injuries, including a concussion early in the season that forced him to miss four games.
“Gene, I’ve been disappointed for him because he’s had stretches where he’s got in a rhythm, played really,” Ohio State head coach Chris Holtmann said last season. “He’s probably played as well in this stretch as he has all season, and then he has a little injury. But he’ll bounce back from it. He’s had a go of it. He had a concussion along with some other illnesses and now this that’s been kind of interrupted his time this year.
“His performance at Purdue was as good as he’s played in a Buckeye uniform,” Holtmann added. “And I’m excited about his continued growth and the evolution of his game. I’m excited. He’s a young player that I think continues to get better and will with increased time and certainly will have a major role for us moving forward next year.”
When injuries keep popping up for a player, it is hard to get into a nice groove and tempo in the season. Brown has proven himself as a valuable member not just on defense, but shooting the ball and crashing the boards as well.
“He rebounds. He really pursues the balls, and we miss that impact on the glass when he’s not in the game at the wing spot,” Holtmann said. “We don’t have another wing that really gets to the glass quite like he does. So, it’s an important part of his game.”
Expectation
With the depth of this team and Brown now being in the rotation for two seasons and entering his third, he should be able to take a more solidified and more comfortable role on the team. With that, he can utilize his strengths more and really focus on being the defensive stalwart that he can be and was his freshman season and at times last season.
Prediction
Brown is no stranger to the starting lineup, as he started in 10 contests last season. But with the transfers and freshman they have coming in, it is more likely that Brown will come off the bench.
He has proven himself valuable of playing time, however, and will see the court, as his defense would be wasted on the bench. Since he isn’t as aggressive on offense as other guys, I would expect to see him in lineups with guys who can score the ball well and are versatile, like Tanner Holden, Justice Sueing and Sean McNeil, as he can really be a defensive force sharing the floor with guys like that.
I would expect him to play anywhere from 15-25 minutes per game off the bench, depending on the game situation and scenario.
Highlights
Continue reading...
justingolba via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Joseph Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports
One of the few returning Buckeyes, Brown is due for a big leap his junior season
As the basketball offseason continues and we move into the fall, Land-Grant Holy Land will continue to put out our basketball player and team previews. There will be two previews per week leading all the way into the start of the season, starting with player previews.
We have now made it to the four returning Buckeyes, starting with rising junior Eugene Brown.
Name: Eugene Brown
Height: 6-foot-6
Weight: 195 pounds
High School: Southwest Dekalb
Class: Junior
2021-22 stats: 3.5 PPG, 2.4 RPG, 9.5 APG, .351 FG%, .280 3FG%, .500 FT%
Outlook
Eugene Brown is one of the only four returning Buckeyes to the team now that Seth Towns has medically retired. Brown is a junior that played in 26 of 32 Ohio State games last season and started in 10 of them.
In that 2021-22 campaign, Brown averaged 3.5 points and 2.4 rebounds per game on an average of 17 minutes played. He played a lot more during conference play than he did during non-conference play because of injuries and some depth issues the Buckeyes ran into later in the season. He struggled shooting the ball on the season, hitting just 35 percent from the field, 28 percent from three-point range and 50 percent from the free throw line.
He did legitimately win a game for the Buckeyes against Indiana, blocking a layup attempt at the buzzer to force overtime and giving the Buckeyes a chance to win the game in the extra period, as they did. Brown finished with 10 points and six rebounds in that contest.
“That’s something I used to be known for in high school actually was going and blocking shots like that,” Brown said when asked about the play last season. “So, it just felt good to kind of relive that and bring that side back out. Blocks like that always give your team a great boost of energy, especially off of a turnover that it happened on. So, it was just great.”
Unfortunately for Brown, he dealt with multiple injuries, including a concussion early in the season that forced him to miss four games.
“Gene, I’ve been disappointed for him because he’s had stretches where he’s got in a rhythm, played really,” Ohio State head coach Chris Holtmann said last season. “He’s probably played as well in this stretch as he has all season, and then he has a little injury. But he’ll bounce back from it. He’s had a go of it. He had a concussion along with some other illnesses and now this that’s been kind of interrupted his time this year.
“His performance at Purdue was as good as he’s played in a Buckeye uniform,” Holtmann added. “And I’m excited about his continued growth and the evolution of his game. I’m excited. He’s a young player that I think continues to get better and will with increased time and certainly will have a major role for us moving forward next year.”
When injuries keep popping up for a player, it is hard to get into a nice groove and tempo in the season. Brown has proven himself as a valuable member not just on defense, but shooting the ball and crashing the boards as well.
“He rebounds. He really pursues the balls, and we miss that impact on the glass when he’s not in the game at the wing spot,” Holtmann said. “We don’t have another wing that really gets to the glass quite like he does. So, it’s an important part of his game.”
Expectation
With the depth of this team and Brown now being in the rotation for two seasons and entering his third, he should be able to take a more solidified and more comfortable role on the team. With that, he can utilize his strengths more and really focus on being the defensive stalwart that he can be and was his freshman season and at times last season.
Prediction
Brown is no stranger to the starting lineup, as he started in 10 contests last season. But with the transfers and freshman they have coming in, it is more likely that Brown will come off the bench.
He has proven himself valuable of playing time, however, and will see the court, as his defense would be wasted on the bench. Since he isn’t as aggressive on offense as other guys, I would expect to see him in lineups with guys who can score the ball well and are versatile, like Tanner Holden, Justice Sueing and Sean McNeil, as he can really be a defensive force sharing the floor with guys like that.
I would expect him to play anywhere from 15-25 minutes per game off the bench, depending on the game situation and scenario.
Highlights
Continue reading...
LGHL LGHL Uncut: Chris Holtmann speaks at Ohio State media day
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- 0 Replies
LGHL Uncut: Chris Holtmann speaks at Ohio State media day
Connor Lemons via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo courtesy of Connor Lemons
The Buckeyes’ head coach talked about his freshmen, transfers, and the recent recruiting surge.
Throughout the season, Land-Grant Holy Land will be bringing you uncut audio primarily from Ohio State press conference, but also from individual interview sessions.
Listen to the episode and subscribe:
Subscribe: RSS | Apple | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts | iHeart Radio
In this episode, you will hear uncut audio from Ohio State men’s basketball coach Chris Holtmann during the program’s annual media day, held inside the practice gym at the Schottenstein Center. Holtmann spoke for about 30 minutes and touched on a bit of everything, starting with the health of Justice Sueing and ending with Tanner Holden’s gradual improvement and progression.
In between, Holtmann was also asked questions about LeBron James, NIL, Sean McNeil not being just another Justin Ahrens, and his team’s porous defense the past two seasons — among other topics. He also thanked the roughly 60 media members for joining this season to, “tell the stories of these young men.” Holtmann ensured that Team 124 is a fun group that fans will enjoy following and getting to know as the season progresses.
Connect with the Podcast:
Twitter: @BucketheadsLGHL
Connect with Connor:
Twitter: @lemons_connor
Theme music provided by www.bensound.com
Continue reading...
Connor Lemons via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo courtesy of Connor Lemons
The Buckeyes’ head coach talked about his freshmen, transfers, and the recent recruiting surge.
Throughout the season, Land-Grant Holy Land will be bringing you uncut audio primarily from Ohio State press conference, but also from individual interview sessions.
Listen to the episode and subscribe:
Subscribe: RSS | Apple | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts | iHeart Radio
In this episode, you will hear uncut audio from Ohio State men’s basketball coach Chris Holtmann during the program’s annual media day, held inside the practice gym at the Schottenstein Center. Holtmann spoke for about 30 minutes and touched on a bit of everything, starting with the health of Justice Sueing and ending with Tanner Holden’s gradual improvement and progression.
In between, Holtmann was also asked questions about LeBron James, NIL, Sean McNeil not being just another Justin Ahrens, and his team’s porous defense the past two seasons — among other topics. He also thanked the roughly 60 media members for joining this season to, “tell the stories of these young men.” Holtmann ensured that Team 124 is a fun group that fans will enjoy following and getting to know as the season progresses.
Connect with the Podcast:
Twitter: @BucketheadsLGHL
Connect with Connor:
Twitter: @lemons_connor
Theme music provided by www.bensound.com
Continue reading...
LGHL Boots on the Ground: 31 up-close observations from Ohio State’s 31-point drubbing of Wisconsin
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- 0 Replies
Boots on the Ground: 31 up-close observations from Ohio State’s 31-point drubbing of Wisconsin
Josh Dooley via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Gaelen Morse/Getty Images
A certain individual made their triumphant return to The Shoe, and no, we’re not talking about Paul Chryst.
For the first time in what felt like forever, I attended an Ohio State football game in The Shoe. Saturday’s matchup with Wisconsin was my much-anticipated return to OSU’s campus, although, looking back at it, said anticipation may have been exclusive to yours truly. Perhaps I just missed the “Welcome Back” banner...
In reality, I had not been to a game since the 2019 season. Because the pandemic wiped out 2020, and general life stuff prevented it from happening in 2021. Before that, I had attended dozens as both a student and lifetime Columbus native. So I was very much looking forward to a fun, physical, competitive game between Big Ten foes. Unfortunately, Paul Chryst and the Badgers did not get the memo. In fact, Wisconsin’s head man could have been confused with an early Halloween skeleton on their sideline. He was absolutely D.O.A. But I refused to let it ruin my fun (same goes for the Buckeyes), and as an alternative to one of my weekly columns, I thought I would give some observations from my up-close and personal experience Saturday night. How does 31 of them sound?
1.) Ohio State fans still know how to have a good time, despite corporate takeover attempts. High Street and Lane Avenue – staples of the OSU campus – have been raided by corporations and construction companies, destroying the old aesthetic. Bars, parties, and general unruly behavior will never be the same again, but the tailgate scene around Ohio Stadium was fantastic.
2.) I had a front-row seat (stance) for the Buckeyes’ walk to their pregame Skull Session, and here were my Get-Off-The-Bus All-Stars: Marvin Harrison Jr., Cade Stover, Tommy Eichenberg, and Dawand Jones
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24057917/1243527544.jpg)
Photo by Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Jones is a literal mountain of a man
3.) You don’t fully grasp how large Jones is until you see him in-person... it’s breathtaking.
4.) Same goes for the “blackness” of Ryan Day’s beard.
5.) I got to snap a picture with Zed Key, and he is also taller than one might realize. It may have been the angle, or a hole I was standing in, but that picture will never see the light of day... I look 5-foot-5.
6.) Coors Light is vastly overrated, even in a tailgate setting.
7.) Energy outside of the stadium was awesome. I was unsure how people would react, given Wisconsin’s 2-1 record, but Saturday still had a big game feel.
8.) Football should never start before mid-September; the weather was perfect, the vibes were great, and I will die on this hill.
9.) The Shoe is still a beautiful sight to behold. Like a fine wine, it gets better with age.
10.) Once players came out to warm up, it quickly became apparent that JSN was not likely to play... He did take part in some jogging and calisthenics but transitioned to bystander once real warmups and pass-catching drills began.
11.) In my very amateur opinion, he seems close.
12.) Wisconsin players lacked juice. Not sure if it was the opponent, the setting, or the lack of passion from their coach, but many did not appear to be amped up.
13.) My wife and I went to get food before kickoff, and Ohio Stadium needs to do better with food options on the visitor side, in my humble opinion. Because no offense to the wonderful people at Panera, but an upscale deli selection is not doing the trick once I’ve had a few “pops”. I need burger availability every 50 feet and more Donato’s Pizza.
14.) Back for kickoff, and I would estimate that 80-90% of Ohio State fans got the blackout memo.
15.) Even on the visitor side, there were very few visiting fans. Shame on you, Wisconsin... Although, if that was the product I was forced to watch, I might skip the roadies as well.
16.) The black jerseys play. Even better in-person.
17.) OSU’s opening drive on offense was surgical. Wisconsin seemingly had no answer(s), and C.J. Stroud looked like he was playing 7-on-7.
18.) The Buckeyes’ offensive line imposed their will from the first snap onward. I was both pleasantly surprised by their efforts, and equally underwhelmed by that of the Badgers.
19.) Credit goes to all five guys, but Jones and Paris Johnson Jr. each put on a clinic throughout the evening. Wisconsin’s Nick Herbig is a hell of a football player, but he had nothing for the Ohio State bookends.
20.) Cade Stover is the real deal, and I feel bad for Jeremy Ruckert. Where has this offense been? Ryan Day utilized Stover heavily during the first half, perhaps to force Herbig into decision-making mode. Regardless of motive, the converted linebacker can do it all, and he has proven then the sticky hands are no fluke. Ruckert must be punching the air during every OSU game.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24057919/1427102448.jpg)
Photo by Gaelen Morse/Getty Images
21.) Even when he’s off, Stroud is still on. The Heisman frontrunner did not put forth his best statistical effort, and he floated a few, but Stroud is such a joy to watch in person. It is easy to appreciate some of his throws on TV — especially via replay — but the touch he puts on others is absolutely incredible. He dropped a few into the proverbial bucket, which had me wondering whether or not he should have even attempted them? And the answer, when it comes specifically to Stroud, is always going to be a “yes” from me.
22.) Miyan Williams might be Ohio State’s 1A. To be more precise, I believe the Buckeyes have two 1A’s. But I can no longer argue that TreVeyon Henderson is clearly the top option — especially if the team is not going to use him as a pass catcher.
23.) I miss seeing JSN out there, but OSU is in great hands with Marvin Harrison Jr., Emeka Egbuka, and the finally healthy Julian Fleming.
24.) Ohio State’s defense still has questions pertaining to their pass rush, or lack thereof. Jack Sawyer is dynamic, J.T. Tuimoloau has moves for days, and Zach Harrison possesses strong fundamentals... but can any of them consistently get after the passer? Wisconsin seemed like an opponent OSU’s DL could feast on, but they came away with only one sack.
25.) Ohio State’s defense is STOUT against the run. Braelon Allen was largely bottled up until garbage time, when his coach decided 100 yards was more important than preserving your only offensive weapon during a 30-pt blowout. He had to work for it, and I could see fatigue set in during the third quarter.
26.) Tommy Eichenberg and Steele Chambers form a legit linebacker duo. Neither is a perfect three-down LB, but both have steadily improved over time. They love to make a decision and shoot the gap aggressively, and I enjoyed watching them hunt down ball carriers. I was even more impressed than I thought I would be.
27.) I still have no idea what the Buckeyes have at corner. J.K. Johnson and Jyaire Brown had their moments, but they were rarely tested.
28.) Tanner McCallister is a coach on the field. Not only did he play well, but he made sure both Johnson and Brown were well-prepared before each snap.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24057920/1243527323.jpg)
Photo by Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
29.) Sonny Styles could be this year’s version of Braelon Allen, but on defense: An early enrollee who exceeds expectations, and makes an immediate impact while he should still be in high school.
Styles was the de facto third LB early on and appeared consistently on special teams Saturday. While the intricacies of LB or safety are difficult to pick up on – and even more difficult to master – I could see this young freshman earning additional playing time as the season progresses. He loves contact, and will not hesitate to mix it up out there.
30.) High hopes for this team are warranted. You can sense the confidence, and each and every unit passes the eye test. Ryan Day has a squad on his hands, and they obliterated one of the perceived favorites in the Big Ten West.
31.) Nothing beats Ohio State football. We as Buckeye fans are sickeningly fortunate, and I will never take the in-person experience for granted. Go Bucks!
Continue reading...
Josh Dooley via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Gaelen Morse/Getty Images
A certain individual made their triumphant return to The Shoe, and no, we’re not talking about Paul Chryst.
For the first time in what felt like forever, I attended an Ohio State football game in The Shoe. Saturday’s matchup with Wisconsin was my much-anticipated return to OSU’s campus, although, looking back at it, said anticipation may have been exclusive to yours truly. Perhaps I just missed the “Welcome Back” banner...
In reality, I had not been to a game since the 2019 season. Because the pandemic wiped out 2020, and general life stuff prevented it from happening in 2021. Before that, I had attended dozens as both a student and lifetime Columbus native. So I was very much looking forward to a fun, physical, competitive game between Big Ten foes. Unfortunately, Paul Chryst and the Badgers did not get the memo. In fact, Wisconsin’s head man could have been confused with an early Halloween skeleton on their sideline. He was absolutely D.O.A. But I refused to let it ruin my fun (same goes for the Buckeyes), and as an alternative to one of my weekly columns, I thought I would give some observations from my up-close and personal experience Saturday night. How does 31 of them sound?
1.) Ohio State fans still know how to have a good time, despite corporate takeover attempts. High Street and Lane Avenue – staples of the OSU campus – have been raided by corporations and construction companies, destroying the old aesthetic. Bars, parties, and general unruly behavior will never be the same again, but the tailgate scene around Ohio Stadium was fantastic.
2.) I had a front-row seat (stance) for the Buckeyes’ walk to their pregame Skull Session, and here were my Get-Off-The-Bus All-Stars: Marvin Harrison Jr., Cade Stover, Tommy Eichenberg, and Dawand Jones
Jones is a literal mountain of a man
3.) You don’t fully grasp how large Jones is until you see him in-person... it’s breathtaking.
4.) Same goes for the “blackness” of Ryan Day’s beard.
5.) I got to snap a picture with Zed Key, and he is also taller than one might realize. It may have been the angle, or a hole I was standing in, but that picture will never see the light of day... I look 5-foot-5.
6.) Coors Light is vastly overrated, even in a tailgate setting.
7.) Energy outside of the stadium was awesome. I was unsure how people would react, given Wisconsin’s 2-1 record, but Saturday still had a big game feel.
8.) Football should never start before mid-September; the weather was perfect, the vibes were great, and I will die on this hill.
9.) The Shoe is still a beautiful sight to behold. Like a fine wine, it gets better with age.
10.) Once players came out to warm up, it quickly became apparent that JSN was not likely to play... He did take part in some jogging and calisthenics but transitioned to bystander once real warmups and pass-catching drills began.
11.) In my very amateur opinion, he seems close.
12.) Wisconsin players lacked juice. Not sure if it was the opponent, the setting, or the lack of passion from their coach, but many did not appear to be amped up.
13.) My wife and I went to get food before kickoff, and Ohio Stadium needs to do better with food options on the visitor side, in my humble opinion. Because no offense to the wonderful people at Panera, but an upscale deli selection is not doing the trick once I’ve had a few “pops”. I need burger availability every 50 feet and more Donato’s Pizza.
14.) Back for kickoff, and I would estimate that 80-90% of Ohio State fans got the blackout memo.
15.) Even on the visitor side, there were very few visiting fans. Shame on you, Wisconsin... Although, if that was the product I was forced to watch, I might skip the roadies as well.
16.) The black jerseys play. Even better in-person.
17.) OSU’s opening drive on offense was surgical. Wisconsin seemingly had no answer(s), and C.J. Stroud looked like he was playing 7-on-7.
18.) The Buckeyes’ offensive line imposed their will from the first snap onward. I was both pleasantly surprised by their efforts, and equally underwhelmed by that of the Badgers.
19.) Credit goes to all five guys, but Jones and Paris Johnson Jr. each put on a clinic throughout the evening. Wisconsin’s Nick Herbig is a hell of a football player, but he had nothing for the Ohio State bookends.
20.) Cade Stover is the real deal, and I feel bad for Jeremy Ruckert. Where has this offense been? Ryan Day utilized Stover heavily during the first half, perhaps to force Herbig into decision-making mode. Regardless of motive, the converted linebacker can do it all, and he has proven then the sticky hands are no fluke. Ruckert must be punching the air during every OSU game.
21.) Even when he’s off, Stroud is still on. The Heisman frontrunner did not put forth his best statistical effort, and he floated a few, but Stroud is such a joy to watch in person. It is easy to appreciate some of his throws on TV — especially via replay — but the touch he puts on others is absolutely incredible. He dropped a few into the proverbial bucket, which had me wondering whether or not he should have even attempted them? And the answer, when it comes specifically to Stroud, is always going to be a “yes” from me.
22.) Miyan Williams might be Ohio State’s 1A. To be more precise, I believe the Buckeyes have two 1A’s. But I can no longer argue that TreVeyon Henderson is clearly the top option — especially if the team is not going to use him as a pass catcher.
23.) I miss seeing JSN out there, but OSU is in great hands with Marvin Harrison Jr., Emeka Egbuka, and the finally healthy Julian Fleming.
24.) Ohio State’s defense still has questions pertaining to their pass rush, or lack thereof. Jack Sawyer is dynamic, J.T. Tuimoloau has moves for days, and Zach Harrison possesses strong fundamentals... but can any of them consistently get after the passer? Wisconsin seemed like an opponent OSU’s DL could feast on, but they came away with only one sack.
25.) Ohio State’s defense is STOUT against the run. Braelon Allen was largely bottled up until garbage time, when his coach decided 100 yards was more important than preserving your only offensive weapon during a 30-pt blowout. He had to work for it, and I could see fatigue set in during the third quarter.
26.) Tommy Eichenberg and Steele Chambers form a legit linebacker duo. Neither is a perfect three-down LB, but both have steadily improved over time. They love to make a decision and shoot the gap aggressively, and I enjoyed watching them hunt down ball carriers. I was even more impressed than I thought I would be.
27.) I still have no idea what the Buckeyes have at corner. J.K. Johnson and Jyaire Brown had their moments, but they were rarely tested.
28.) Tanner McCallister is a coach on the field. Not only did he play well, but he made sure both Johnson and Brown were well-prepared before each snap.
29.) Sonny Styles could be this year’s version of Braelon Allen, but on defense: An early enrollee who exceeds expectations, and makes an immediate impact while he should still be in high school.
Styles was the de facto third LB early on and appeared consistently on special teams Saturday. While the intricacies of LB or safety are difficult to pick up on – and even more difficult to master – I could see this young freshman earning additional playing time as the season progresses. He loves contact, and will not hesitate to mix it up out there.
30.) High hopes for this team are warranted. You can sense the confidence, and each and every unit passes the eye test. Ryan Day has a squad on his hands, and they obliterated one of the perceived favorites in the Big Ten West.
31.) Nothing beats Ohio State football. We as Buckeye fans are sickeningly fortunate, and I will never take the in-person experience for granted. Go Bucks!
Continue reading...
LGHL You’re Nuts: What branded items would you want to see Ohio State players wear?
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You’re Nuts: What branded items would you want to see Ohio State players wear?
Brett Ludwiczak via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Kyle Robertson/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK
Your (almost) daily dose of good-natured, Ohio State banter.
Look good, play good. Marvin Harrison Jr. certainly took that mantra up a notch on Saturday night against Wisconsin. Harrison’s three catches for 46 yards wasn’t his best performance of the season, but it didn’t really matter since Ohio State scored touchdowns on their first four drives of the game on their way to a 52-21 win over Wisconsin.
Marvin Harrison Jr. is playing with an Apple Watch and Louis Vuitton cleats
pic.twitter.com/gmQiU3gCpk
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) September 25, 2022
Even though Harrison was overshadowed by the what Emeka Egbuka and Cade Stover did catching passes from C.J. Stroud against the Badgers, Harrison made some waves with what he was wearing in the first half on Saturday night. Harrison made sure to accentuate Ohio State’s “blackout” uniforms with a pair of black and white Louis Vuitton cleats, and a black Apple Watch.
We have seen plenty of branded cleats, or other accessory items in the NFL. Now that trend is starting to make its way to college football with the introduction of NIL legislation in college athletics. While there are some fans that are traditionalists and want everything to look the same, the introduction of more branded items allows the players to show off some of their personality.
Today’s question: What branded items would you want to see Ohio State players wear?
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: Scarlet and gray Zubaz pants
In some ways, I’m the old man yelling at clouds. I don’t really think Ohio State needs alternate uniforms since their traditional uniforms are iconic. All Ohio State needs to do is throw some gray shoulder stripes on the uniforms and they would be perfection. I get it though, the school needs to come up with some of these alternate uniforms to not only sell more jerseys, but also to catch the eyes of recruits.
Anyone that knows me knows that I’m not a very fashionable guy. My current Ohio State jersey is a No. 3 jersey that I bought like 15 years ago when Brandon Saine was sporting that number. At least now I can claim that jersey is just a vintage Miyan Williams jersey. Honestly, I’ve migrated from jerseys to the “shirtseys” since they are a lot less than shelling out $100 or more for a replica jersey.
One staple of my exceptionally simple wardrobe is a pair of Buffalo Bills Zubaz pants. The pants usually get plenty of positive reactions because not only do a lot of people seem to love Buffalo Bills fans, they are pretty loud in terms of the design. Also, they are the comfiest pair of pants I’ve ever owned, to the point where I never want to wear jeans or most other types of pants ever again.
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I know there would be a lot of people that would hate the football team wearing Ohio State Zubaz-themed pants in a game, but I just know that in a short time there would be plenty of fans wearing the same pants. Just imagine tailgating on a chilly fall morning for an Ohio State game in a pair of comfy Buckeye Zubaz. Any opponents seeing Ohio State come out of the tunnel in Zubaz-themed pants would be ready to get back on the bus before the game even kicked off.
Meredith’s answer: Louboutin cleats
The LV cleats were another level, but I’m also going to go with a cleat option. Imagine Christian Louboutin cleats with the iconic red (scarlet) soles. It would be a pretty neat conversion of brands between the famed French designer and Ohio State. I mean, look at these shark-inspired sneakers.
The Sharky Sock sneaker will have you walking on sunshine this summer. Discover more on https://t.co/pTWG3uLXcH. #ChristianLouboutin #Loubishark pic.twitter.com/9oRQZPUMzg
— Christian Louboutin (@LouboutinWorld) August 14, 2022
Similar to the Louis Vuitton cleats, it’s not as though Louboutin cleats would scream durability or performance the way that cleats made by brands like Nike (which is why it’s probably best to stick to the classics). However, the LVs do whisper of style, refinement and finesse, which fits the persona of Harrison—a graceful receiver who is breaking out from under his father’s reputation and building his own brand.
What would Louboutin cleats represent? This designer prides himself on agility, confidence and control, almost like a running back like TreVeyon Henderson who so effectively controls the ball and does so with speed. A veteran back, he doesn’t hesitate, but runs at full speed and with confidence.
What might these cleats look like? Classic, black, sleek and, of course, with a signature scarlet heel.
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Your (almost) daily dose of good-natured, Ohio State banter.
Look good, play good. Marvin Harrison Jr. certainly took that mantra up a notch on Saturday night against Wisconsin. Harrison’s three catches for 46 yards wasn’t his best performance of the season, but it didn’t really matter since Ohio State scored touchdowns on their first four drives of the game on their way to a 52-21 win over Wisconsin.
Marvin Harrison Jr. is playing with an Apple Watch and Louis Vuitton cleats
pic.twitter.com/gmQiU3gCpk— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) September 25, 2022
Even though Harrison was overshadowed by the what Emeka Egbuka and Cade Stover did catching passes from C.J. Stroud against the Badgers, Harrison made some waves with what he was wearing in the first half on Saturday night. Harrison made sure to accentuate Ohio State’s “blackout” uniforms with a pair of black and white Louis Vuitton cleats, and a black Apple Watch.
We have seen plenty of branded cleats, or other accessory items in the NFL. Now that trend is starting to make its way to college football with the introduction of NIL legislation in college athletics. While there are some fans that are traditionalists and want everything to look the same, the introduction of more branded items allows the players to show off some of their personality.
Today’s question: What branded items would you want to see Ohio State players wear?
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: Scarlet and gray Zubaz pants
In some ways, I’m the old man yelling at clouds. I don’t really think Ohio State needs alternate uniforms since their traditional uniforms are iconic. All Ohio State needs to do is throw some gray shoulder stripes on the uniforms and they would be perfection. I get it though, the school needs to come up with some of these alternate uniforms to not only sell more jerseys, but also to catch the eyes of recruits.
Anyone that knows me knows that I’m not a very fashionable guy. My current Ohio State jersey is a No. 3 jersey that I bought like 15 years ago when Brandon Saine was sporting that number. At least now I can claim that jersey is just a vintage Miyan Williams jersey. Honestly, I’ve migrated from jerseys to the “shirtseys” since they are a lot less than shelling out $100 or more for a replica jersey.
One staple of my exceptionally simple wardrobe is a pair of Buffalo Bills Zubaz pants. The pants usually get plenty of positive reactions because not only do a lot of people seem to love Buffalo Bills fans, they are pretty loud in terms of the design. Also, they are the comfiest pair of pants I’ve ever owned, to the point where I never want to wear jeans or most other types of pants ever again.
I know there would be a lot of people that would hate the football team wearing Ohio State Zubaz-themed pants in a game, but I just know that in a short time there would be plenty of fans wearing the same pants. Just imagine tailgating on a chilly fall morning for an Ohio State game in a pair of comfy Buckeye Zubaz. Any opponents seeing Ohio State come out of the tunnel in Zubaz-themed pants would be ready to get back on the bus before the game even kicked off.
Meredith’s answer: Louboutin cleats
The LV cleats were another level, but I’m also going to go with a cleat option. Imagine Christian Louboutin cleats with the iconic red (scarlet) soles. It would be a pretty neat conversion of brands between the famed French designer and Ohio State. I mean, look at these shark-inspired sneakers.
The Sharky Sock sneaker will have you walking on sunshine this summer. Discover more on https://t.co/pTWG3uLXcH. #ChristianLouboutin #Loubishark pic.twitter.com/9oRQZPUMzg
— Christian Louboutin (@LouboutinWorld) August 14, 2022
Similar to the Louis Vuitton cleats, it’s not as though Louboutin cleats would scream durability or performance the way that cleats made by brands like Nike (which is why it’s probably best to stick to the classics). However, the LVs do whisper of style, refinement and finesse, which fits the persona of Harrison—a graceful receiver who is breaking out from under his father’s reputation and building his own brand.
What would Louboutin cleats represent? This designer prides himself on agility, confidence and control, almost like a running back like TreVeyon Henderson who so effectively controls the ball and does so with speed. A veteran back, he doesn’t hesitate, but runs at full speed and with confidence.
What might these cleats look like? Classic, black, sleek and, of course, with a signature scarlet heel.
Continue reading...
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