Ohio State offers 2019 Texas wide receiver
Caleb Houser via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


The Buckeyes invade the Lone Star State looking to sign another top prospect.

The Ohio State Buckeyes have completed their 2017 football season, and while the preparations for the 2018 season have certainly already started behind closed doors, Urban Meyer and his staff know there is still plenty of work to be done. With 22 current signed players in their 2018 football recruiting class, there are still a couple of spots up for grabs. With the natural attrition that seems to take place each year—this year included—what was thought to be one or at most two roster spots left may have turned into three slots left for the 2018 class. With that, the coaching staff who recruits just as well as if not better than anyone in the country as a whole has been hard at work ready to hit the finish line for 2018.

Oh Texas, you’ve been so helpful


Ohio State, as we know, can recruit nationally at anytime they want to. With their home state of Ohio already a hotbed for recruiting, the ability to go anywhere they want and scoop up the nation’s top prospects is just another cherry on top. One of those areas they have recruited so well in is Texas. Pulling top players such as current Buckeye players J.K. Dobbins, Jeffrey Okudah, and Baron Browning has set a track record for Meyer and company to be a bit of pest concerning in-state Texas college programs. When you win more than any Texas program has recently though, that’s what tends to happen.

Yesterday, momentum in the Lone Star State continued as the latest prep star to receive an Ohio State offer was Mesquite, Texas native Dylan Wright. A 6'3, 195-pound 2019 receiver, Dylan is currently ranked as a 4-star prospect and specifically as the 45th best receiver in the country as well as the 34th best prospect overall in Texas for 2019. A true speedster and a deep ball threat, Wright has the intangibles that every major college program is trying to bring into their program for the 2019 class.


In fact, in the last week alone besides the Ohio State offer yesterday, in-state Texas, Arkansas, and Mississippi State were schools to extend offers to Wright, giving him 16 overall offers currently with more likely coming. Oklahoma is thought to be the clear-cut early favorite for Wright, but that certainly hasn’t stopped the Buckeyes going for a Southern talent before, or holding off Oklahoma itself and other programs closer in the region.

If the Buckeyes want to make Wright a priority for their 2019 class they have certainly taken the first steps. The next would be to have him on an unofficial visit, likely when the 2018 class in its entirety is set in stone. If Dylan does in fact get to campus for a visit to check out what Ohio State has to offer, anything is possible. It certainly wouldn’t hurt having him around the Texas natives that currently suit up in the Scarlet and Gray and giving them the chance to showcase just how great it is to play their college ball for the Buckeyes.

Looking into the crystal ball


One of the more popular ways to keep track of recruits is the 247sports crystal ball. Recruiting experts from around the country cast their predictions to the crystal ball on where they believe a certain prospect will either sign, commit, or end up early in the process. Fortunately for Ohio State, this week has been a time where predictions in the Buckeyes' favor have not been scarce. While these predictions cannot be always 100 percent correct, there’s certainly still something to be said for when multiple crystal ball predictions are made in favor of one specific school.

Enter Tyler Friday, a 4-star New Jersey native not new to Buckeye recruiting followers, and you have a prospect Ohio State is currently seeing tremendous momentum for on those crystal balls. The second best player in New Jersey for 2018 is graded out as the third best defensive tackle in the class, but where Ohio State is concerned, Friday may end up at defensive end due to much-needed depth. A look at early playing time may just be the deciding factor for Friday, but with over twenty predictions in favor of the Buckeyes in just the last two days, many believe this recruitment is all but a done deal for Urban Meyer and defensive line coach Larry Johnson.


To make matters even more exciting, Friday himself has stated a commitment could be coming as soon as this weekend or as late as next Wednesday meaning we are very near Friday to Ohio State becoming a reality. What makes matters even better though is remembering that he was once considered a heavy Michigan lean. Looks as if Urban Meyer and Ohio State will once again defeat their rivals on and off the football field.

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Another Big Ten rout for Ohio State basketball: Buckeyes beat Maryland 91-69 - cleveland.com
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Another Big Ten rout for Ohio State basketball: Buckeyes beat Maryland 91-69
cleveland.com
Then another blistering Buckeye run, and then another comfortable win. Ohio State won its fourth game in a row, its ninth game in the last 10 tries and stayed unbeaten in Big Ten play with a 91-69 win over the short-handed Terrapins at Value City Arena ...
Ohio State: Dwayne Haskins listed with 30-1 Heisman odds; Buckeyes basketball set to face MarylandLandof10.com
Ohio State men's basketball | Buckeyes appear in ESPN's updated BracketologyThe Columbus Dispatch
Ohio State Basketball: Terrapins present new challenge for the BuckeyesScarlet and Game
Baltimore Sun -Terrapin Station -247Sports
all 177 news articles »

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Two more draft-eligible Buckeyes opt to remain at Ohio State - NBCSports.com
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Two more draft-eligible Buckeyes opt to remain at Ohio State
NBCSports.com
The return of Jones is the more surprising of the two most recent ones as he had been viewed in some corners as a potential first-round pick. Dixon led the Buckeyes in receiving touchdowns with eight and yards per catch at 23.4. For the season, he ...

and more »

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Urban’s Two Car Garage
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

With Mike Weber hinting at a return for one more year with the Scarlet and Gray, we can now officially continue one of the most interesting debates of the 2017 season: can Mike Weber and JK Dobbins co-exist in Ohio State’s offense or will 2018 turn into a Fast and Furious style race to the finish? Conventional wisdom tells us that a team can never have too much talent, however, as we saw with the JT vs. Cardale debacle in 2015, the outcome of games is not based on how much talent is on the roster, but on how that talent is managed.

Over the course of the last 6 months, we have all been witness to the unfolding of a new saga. On one end of this story, we had the grisly veteran with a growling v8 under the hood. Here was a guy who had replaced an all-time great and was fresh off a somehow under-the-radar 1000 yard freshman season, but who was battling a preseason injury. On the other, we had an untested, yet highly rated true freshman powered by an imported prototype hybrid V12 engine, who had fought his own injury troubles to get onto the field. It was under these circumstances that Ohio State’s season began, with JK Dobbins thrust into the limelight, an inexperienced starter with no veteran backup options. Dobbins exploded onto the scene, with 29 carries and 181 yards in his first ever start. This freshman revelation led many to wonder what the coaches were going to do with Weber when he returned from injury. Was he going to lose his starting job or would he be slotted back in and pick up where he left off in 2016?

When Mike Weber returned to the lineup, it was immediately apparent that he was not being used in his former role. He still wasn’t 100%. And so, as the weeks continued along and the games in which he didn’t play (or was severely underused) piled up, a lot of fans forgot about Mike Weber as we were being wowed by this young, prancing colt in JK Dobbins who was galloping up and down the field. What we were seeing in Weber was a young man with a rugged and classic style of running who had been outshone in his first year as a starter by the versatility and game-breaking ability of Curtis Samuel and now in his second was being overshadowed by a true freshman that seemed like he had electronic traction control and lightning in his shoes.

Of course, the season didn’t end after the UNLV game, and Weber returned during the cupcake section of the Buckeye’s schedule. In these games, it seemed like Urban, Kevin Wilson and Tony Alford were content to use the two backs in the exact same role, just trading them out every quarter to make sure they both had fresh legs in the 4th. However, they were still growing into their own roles in the offense. Dobbins was able to create plays in the run game, and opening up holes for quarterback JT Barrett while in scoring position. Weber found his yards in between the tackles and in short yardage situations, including on the goal line. These new roles showed in the statistics, as Dobbins averaged 85 yards per game and had 4 touchdowns over the first 3 games of the Big Ten Schedule. In the same time frame, Weber averaged 61.7 YPG and added 4 touchdowns of his own. Bam! Ohio State had found its offense on the backs of two horses at tailback, one that could weave and one that could roar, and a quarterback that would take anything the defense would give him. What we thought we were seeing was a clearer definition of roles, however, both the Penn State and the Iowa game proved that no one really had any idea what this Ohio State team was. What these games did seem to show, each in their own way, was that Dobbins was becoming the clear number one tailback and Weber was once again fading into the background. This all lasted about a week until we were all once again proven wrong.

In the Michigan State game, the entire country saw what this Ohio State offense was supposed to look like under Urban Meyer and Kevin Wilson: a three-headed rushing attack with JT Barrett, JK Dobbins and Mike Weber pounding the front seven of opposing defenses along with weapons on the outside to keep the defensive front honest. It was an offense in which you could try to reign in the horses, but one would always break free. The Spartans could attempt to stop Dobbins, and so they were gashed by JT. Then they tried to stop JT, and Weber was able to run free like a stallion down the middle of the field, breaking touchdown runs of 47- and 82-yards. Both Dobbins and Weber had a great game, Dobbins as an every down type of back and Weber as a change of pace battering ram with surprising, yet elite top end speed. All Ohio State got out of it was a 48-3 victory over a Top-15 team. This was the team everyone was expecting when Kevin Wilson was hired in the offseason.

The Illinois game saw Mike Weber take another step forward in production, once again outgaining Dobbins in a blowout, however, after playing reasonably well against Michigan, something seemed to change for the coaches. After averaging 10+ carries and 100+ yards as well as more than 1.5 TDs per game over the last 3 games of the regular season, Weber had 4 carries for 6 yards in the Big Ten Championship and 5 carries for 18 yards in the Cotton Bowl. Granted, Wisconsin had one of the best defenses in the country in 2017 and USC sold out to stop the run game, but even so, JK Dobbins had 17 carries for 174 yards against Wisconsin and 13 carries for 39 yards against USC. The coaches had apparently made up their mind about what Mike Weber was and is.

Basically what we’re talking about are two completely different runners, like two different sports cars. JK Dobbins is an Italian import– a Ferrari– agile with some freakish off the line get-up-and-go. Like the Ferrari, he takes the corners extremely well and can excite you every time he fires that engine up. Mike Weber is a classic American muscle car– a Mustang– powerful and gritty, but when you open it up, fast as the wind. He was built for the quarter mile and he’ll fly if he’s got room to go, but he’s not as fancy as the Ferrari in the corners. And now, with Demario McCall and the newest model, Jaelen Gill, looking like they’ll be pushing for touches, along with Antonio Williams and the highly touted freshman tailback class that the coaches brought in for 2018, Urban’s garage is getting smaller and smaller. The problem is, Ferraris are made by a racecar manufacturer with racing technology, while Mustangs are made by a truck manufacturer. Unfortunately for Mike Webber, it looks like Urban is going to try to ride his Scarlet Ferrari to a National Championship in 2018.




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Ohio State rolls Maryland, remains undefeated in Big Ten play
Alex Roux, BTN.com editor via Big Ten Network

Keita Bates-Diop was 6 for 8 from beyond the 3-point line and totaled 26 points in leading Ohio State to a 91-69 rout of Maryland on Thursday night.

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Ohio State runs away from Maryland, 91-69
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Bates-Diop led the scoring, but Andrew Dakich, yes Andrew Dakich, got a career high...in the first half.

Fresh off of the upset of then-No. 1 Michigan State on Sunday, the Ohio State Buckeyes (14-4, 5-0) returned to the floor tonight with a decisive home victory over the Maryland Terrapins (14-5, 3-3) by a score of 91-69.

While the victory over MSU turned into a bit of the Keita Bates-Diop show, against the Terps—even though he was the team’s leading scorer again— OSU saw significant contributions from a number of players, including some that don’t often light up the scoring column. Eight different Buckeyes hit three-pointers in the game, and four scored in double-figures.

After Jae’Sean Tate and Kaleb Wesson missed the first two attempts for the Buckeyes, good ball-movement got OSU on the board as C.J. Jackson hit a three; the first of many on the evening. The Buckeyes were able to keep pace with the Terps, despite the fact that they hit their first four shots before Tate blocked a pull up attempt by Darryl Morsell.

On the following Maryland possession, Kam Williams came up with the steal and found Tate driving. The Pickerington native got the layup to go, and was fouled in the act. After the first media timeout of the game, Tate couldn’t convert the three-point play opportunity to keep UM’s lead in check at 10-9.


Unlike the Terps, the Buckeyes struggled from the floor early, hitting only three of their first 10 attempts. However, down 15-9, Keita Bates-Diop hit back-to-back jumpers that pulled the home team within a single basket before the under-12 media timeout.

Out of the TO, Maryland’s Anthony Cowan Jr. hit a triple, and Michal Cekovsky got a dunk to extend the lead to 20-13. However, head coach Chris Holtmann was not pleased and called a timeout to get his team refocused. The decision seemed to make a difference as OSU hit their next four baskets to tie the score at 22, forcing Maryland’s Mark Turgeon to call a timeout of his own. The Buckeyes would run away from the Terps from there.

In the Buckeyes’ mini-run, Kaleb Wesson got an inside bounce pass from his brother Andre for a layup and Kam Williams hit a jumper. However, the most eye-opening buckets came from Andrew Dakich. The Michigan transfer’s only attempt in the Sunday upset over the Spartans was a 28-foot banked three-pointer. However, after a triple from the wing and a pull up jumper, the guard was OSU’s leading scorer 12 minutes into the game.

From there, Kaleb Wesson blocked an attempted three-pointer from Cowan and found Tate on the break for the go-ahead slam.


On the next Buckeye possession, Kaleb Wesson was fouled going up to the rim. He was only able to hit one of his two free-throw attempts, extending the OSU run to 10-0. However, the Buckeyes weren’t content there. Dakich hit his second three of the game to give him eight points, just two shy of his career high with 6:10 remaining in the first half.

After a pair of Morsell free-throws, Bates-Diop hit three-pointers on consecutive trips. The second was thanks to an hellacious Tate rebound that gave the Buckeyes a second-chance opportunity. On the subsequent possession, Dakich hit yet another three-pointer, giving him 11 and a new career-high. With three minutes left in the half, the Buckeyes led 37-26.


At the end of the first half, the Buckeyes were on a 29-10 run, and headed into the locker room with a 44-32 lead. Despite starting the game a bit cold from the floor, OSU finished the half shooting 56.7 percent (17-30), including hitting half of their attempts from behind the arc (7-14).

Conversely, the Terps, who started hot, had come back down to Earth, as they hit just 8 of 29 attempts following their 4-for-4 start. They were kept in the game in part by their 41.7 percent (5-12) shooting from downtown. Also, no Buckeye had more than one personal foul in the half.

Despite Dakich’s career high, Bates-Diop led the Buckeyes in scoring at intermission with 12. Tate also had an impressive 20 minutes, logging eight points, five assists, four rebounds, and four blocks.

For the Terrapins, Cekovsky led all scorers with 13, while Kevin Huerter had nine.

For the third half in a row, the Buckeyes committed only three turnovers in the first 20 minutes, as did Maryland. The only major statistical difference between the teams, aside from the shooting percentages, was the fact that OSU assisted on nearly half of their baskets (14). The unselfish ball-movement led to many open looks for the Bucks.


After the Terps opened the half with a Morsell free-throw, OSU hit a pair of a triples—one by Bates-Diop, one by Williams— to extend the lead to 50-33 in the early minutes of the second half.

With the Buckeyes threatening to run away from Maryland, Cowan found Bruno Fernando for the alley-oop. That was followed up by a Joshua Tomaic three-pointer to get the advantage down to 52-38. After nearly losing the ball, Kaleb Wesson got OSU back on the board with an old-fashioned three-point play.

At the 15:20 mark of the half, Tate hit the Buckeyes’ 10th three-pointer of the game, which temporarily put them up by 20. Shortly thereafter, Jackson hit another three, and Dakich was credited with a somewhat-suspect assist on a Jackson tip-in that pushed OSU’s lead to 63-40.


As the home team continued to maintain the 20-plus point lead, the intensity from both squads began to wane. However, Holtmann kept most of his starters in the game, allowing Bates-Diop to continue to amass buckets.


With 2:42 remaining in the game, Holtmann finally emptied the bench, getting Micah Potter, Musa Jallow, and Kyle Young a few minutes. Then, after play started, the coach got fan-favorite walk-on Joey Lane in to the NutHouse’s cheers. Lane hit his first three-pointer since Nov. 23, 2016 against Jackson State.

The basketball Buckeyes will next travel to Piscataway, NJ to take on the Rutgers Scarlet Knights on Sunday, Jan. 14. The game will tip at 7 p.m. ET and will air on BTN.

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Ohio State basketball: What we'll learn about these surprising Buckeyes vs. Maryland - cleveland.com
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Ohio State basketball: What we'll learn about these surprising Buckeyes vs. Maryland
cleveland.com
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Take a second to think about how the Ohio State basketball team has now positioned itself. The Buckeyes host Maryland on Thursday night (7 p.m., ESPN2), and fans are worried about a letdown. That's fans of the team picked to finish ...


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PFF: Buckeyes' defense graded out very well against USC - 247Sports
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


PFF: Buckeyes' defense graded out very well against USC
247Sports
You already knew Ohio State's defense played well in the Buckeyes' 24-7 win over USC in the Goodyear Cotton Bowl. But did you realize just how well the Silver Bullets performed? Thanks to our friends at Pro Football Focus, you are about to find out ...

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Ohio State wide receiver Johnnie Dixon will return in 2018
Alexis Chassen via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


There aren’t quite as many Buckeyes heading to the NFL early, after all.

Another bit of good news for Ohio State, as wide receiver Johnnie Dixon announced that he will be returning for the 2018 season. Dixon is the latest Buckeye to decide to forego this year’s NFL Draft—electing to come back and play for Ohio State instead. The others include Parris Campbell and Dre’Mont Jones.


Coach of Zone 6, Zach Smith, was noticeably excited to return two of his star players. Not only will the Buckeyes be deep at receiver, but whichever young quarterback wins the starting role in 2018, will have a bevy of experienced players surrounding him — a luxury Ohio State hasn’t had in a couple of seasons.


Dixon’s decision likely didn’t come lightly, following a college career marred with injuries. At one point, he was considering leaving the team and the game altogether, before Meyer and staff talked him into returning and rehabbing his way back into the spotlight. Which is exactly what he did.

He finished the 2017 season with 18 receptions for 422 yards and eight touchdowns, becoming one of the best deep threat options for J.T. Barrett. He averaged an astounding 23.4 yards per catch, and claimed a 70-yard reception for a career-long.

With Dixon, among a list of many returning for a potential 2018 national championship run, the Buckeyes will have just a few scholarship spots left to fill come National Signing Day on Feb. 7.

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Dre'Mont Jones staying at Ohio State, foregoing NFL Draft: Buckeyes football news - cleveland.com
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Dre'Mont Jones staying at Ohio State, foregoing NFL Draft: Buckeyes football news
cleveland.com
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Ohio State football got more good NFL Draft news on Thursday when redshirt junior defensive tackle Dre'Mont Jones announced that he'll return to the Buckeyes for another season. Jones had been projected as a possible first-round pick ...
Good news for Buckeyes as two underclassmen announce return to OSUGridiron Now
Ohio State DL Dre'Mont Jones announces he is returning for 2018 seasonLandof10.com
Dre'Mont Jones puts NFL on hold, returns to Ohio State247Sports
Eleven Warriors -OSU - The Lantern -Land-Grant Holy Land
all 12 news articles »

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Ohio State defensive lineman Dre’Mont Jones will return for 2018
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Like Parris Campbell, Jones has decided that the NFL can wait at least one more year.

As the deadline for underclassmen to declare for the NFL Draft approaches, one of the big names that Ohio State coaches and fans have been waiting to hear from is defensive lineman Dre’Mont Jones. And today, the Cleveland native confirmed via social media, that he would return to Ohio State for the 2018 season.


On the heels of H-back/wide receiver Parris Campbell announcing that he too would return to Columbus for another year, the Buckeyes are seeing more of their potentially draftable underclassman return in 2018 than they have in years past.

After a freshman All-America season in 2016, Jones netted 20 total tackles this past year, including five for loss, to bring his two-year career total to nine.

With Sam Hubbard leaving early for the NFL and Tracy Sprinkle, Tyquan Lewis, and Jalyn Holmes exhausting their eligibility, defensive line coach Larry Johnson now knows that he can build the next iteration of the Rushmen around two experienced studs in Jones and Nick Bosa.

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Improved guard play has been a big reason for Ohio State basketball’s resurgence
Brett Ludwiczak via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


The Buckeyes have only lost one game since the beginning of December because of improved play from C.J. Jackson and Kam Williams.

“(They’ve been) really critical. Almost completely tied into our offensive efficiency and offensive production is C.J. taking better care of the ball and then shooting it at the level he’s shooting it at, and then Kam really staying aggressive and being ready to shoot the ball and make shots.”

Ohio State men’s basketball coach Chris Holtmann via Adam Jardy, The Columbus Dispatch


Keita Bates-Diop may be making most of the noise for a resurgent Ohio State team this year, but what has sparked the improvement from the Buckeyes lately has been their guard play. The two Buckeye guards who have been at the center of the improvement have been C.J. Jackson and Kam Williams.

Jackson has started for Ohio State most of the year at guard, but did get a bit of a wake-up call when he came off the bench for games against Wisconsin and Michigan in early December. Prior to the benching, Jackson had turned the basketball over 12 times in two games against Butler and Clemson. Since returning to the starting lineup, Jackson hasn’t turned the basketball over more than three times in a game, and on Sunday against Michigan State, Jackson didn’t turn the basketball over at all.

Williams started the season slow, scoring in double figures in just one of the season’s first 10 games. Since then, Williams has found his shot, reaching double figures in every game except the North Carolina game. Starting with the win over William & Mary, Williams has made 15 of his last 25 three-point attempts.

Ohio State still has plenty of work to do if they want to make the NCAA Tournament in Chris Holtmann’s first year in Columbus, but the Buckeyes are on the right track. At least the Buckeyes have fixed some areas that ailed them earlier in the season, and have put the rest of the Big Ten on notice with their start to conference play.


Suddenly the hiring and salary of Washington State defensive coordinator Alex Grinch makes a lot more sense. If defensive coordinator Greg Schiano did decide to jump back into the NFL ranks, the Buckeyes would likely already have a plan in place for their defense with Grinch at the helm.

After generating some interest for Tennessee’s head coaching position, supporters of the Volunteers voiced their displeasure of the possible hire of Schiano, which led to the former Rutgers head coach returning to the Buckeyes. Schiano’s defense showed Tennessee what they were missing out on with impressive performances in wins over Wisconsin and USC to close out the year.

Should New England Patriots defensive coordinator Matt Patricia accept a head coaching job, Schiano would likely be among the candidates to take over for Patricia on Bill Belichick’s staff. Schiano and Belichick are friends, and the New England Patriots head coach said he would vouch for Schiano after the Tennessee debacle.

“Odds for the 2018 national championship were released earlier this week, and on Wednesday the initial 2018 Heisman Trophy odds were announced by Sports Betting Dime. Among the 21 favorites to take home the bronze statue next December are two Buckeyes: Dwayne Haskins and Nick Bosa.”

Patrick Murphy, Bucknuts


Now that J.T. Barrett has exhausted his eligibility at Ohio State, the Buckeyes are going to have to turn to a new quarterback for the 2018 season. Ohio State fans got a glimpse of the future when Dwayne Haskins was forced into action when Barrett was injured against Michigan. Even though Haskins played for less than a half, oddsmakers liked what they saw out of Haskins, giving him 30/1 odds to win the 2018 Heisman Trophy.

Eight other quarterbacks have higher odds than Haskins, but it’s hard not to like the Buckeye quarterback with the weapons he’ll have to work with on offense. Jake Fromm takes home the best odds at 10/1, while Penn State’s Trace McSorley had his odds set at 14/1 and Michigan quarterback Shea Patterson has 16/1 odds despite having yet to take a snap for the Wolverines.

Just behind Haskins in terms of Heisman Trophy odds is Buckeye defensive end Nick Bosa at 35/1. Bosa has the same odds as Houston defensive tackle Ed Oliver, and they are the only defensive players that odds were given to. Bosa will be looking to become just the second player ever to win the Heisman Trophy, but he should be able to make some more noise this year with the Buckeyes losing defensive ends Sam Hubbard, Tyquan Lewis, and Jalyn Holmes.

“Right now, in the season, we aren’t as ready as we will be by the end of the year. We still have a lot of kinks to work out at different positions... I’m looking forward to this weekend to see where we match up against some of the top teams in the country.”

Ohio State redshirt junior middle blocker Blake Leeson via Soliyah Stevens-Orgaz, The Lantern


After defeating North Greenville to open the season on Saturday, Ohio State will see the competition ramp up this weekend as they host Stanford and BYU. The Buckeyes will take on Stanford on Friday night before taking on the team they have defeated in the last two national title matchups on Saturday.

Ohio State has swept BYU in the championship game the last two seasons, and Saturday’s matchup could be a preview of this year’s championship game. The Buckeyes will be led by Nicolas Szerszen, who was named Volleyball Magazine National Player of the Year in 2016 and 2017.

This weekend’s matchups won’t make or break the season for Ohio State, but it’ll help give them a good idea of where they stand early in the season, and what areas they might need to improve upon. Both Friday and Saturday’s contests will take place at 7 p.m. at St. John Arena.

STICK TO SPORTS

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• Jim Tressel is on Republicans’ radar as a possible Senate candidate.
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From Baltimore camp to Big Ten, Morsell and Williams to meet again when Terps play Buckeyes - Baltimore Sun
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


From Baltimore camp to Big Ten, Morsell and Williams to meet again when Terps play Buckeyes
Baltimore Sun
His ability to defend guards and power forwards, which is what he did in Sunday night's 91-73 win over Iowa and what he will likely have to do against the Buckeyes, has made the 6-4, 205-pound player indispensable to a team that is down to eight ...


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PFF: Buckeyes' defense graded out very well against USC - 247Sports
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


PFF: Buckeyes' defense graded out very well against USC
247Sports
You already knew Ohio State's defense played well in the Buckeyes' 24-7 win over USC in the Goodyear Cotton Bowl. But did you realize just how well the Silver Bullets performed? Thanks to our friends at Pro Football Focus, you are about to find out ...

and more »

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Parris Campbell will return for another season at Ohio State
Geoff Hammersley via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


The speedy returner/H-back made the decision known on Twitter.

In the past few weeks, the Ohio State Buckeyes learned that Denzel Ward, Sam Hubbard and Jerome Baker were leaving the program for the NFL Draft.

Today, another announcement was made. However, the announcement wasn’t about entering the NFL Draft. It was about coming back to OSU for one more season. Parris Campbell, who racked up 584 yards and three touchdowns on the receiving end this season, made the decision to come back for another year in Columbus.

The Akron, Ohio and St. Vincent-St. Mary’s product posted a short video, indicating that he was coming back.


Throughout his time in Columbus, Campbell has shown that he can take off—and outpace the defense. This season, he had an 82-yard kick return against UNLV; a 74-yard reception against Indiana, which went for a TD; and entered the postseason as the Big Ten leader in kick return average (36.6).

Accolades have also come Campbell’s way. He was a selected as third-team all-Big Ten selection, and started the season by being named as a captain.

With his return, he will be one of more experienced members in the receiving corps. Campbell had junior eligibility this season, while being listed as a senior in class standing.

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Ohio State’s passing game improved in 2017, but third downs were still a challenge
Chad Peltier via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Barrett and the passing game were much improved, especially on standard downs. Can Haskins, Burrow, or Martell improve next season?

Since we’ve started the long offseason, it’s time to look back on the 2017 season and start thinking about what the 2018 team might look like.

I wanted to start with a look at the Ohio State passing game. The Buckeyes have had a remarkable run since the Barrett era started at Ohio State, but the passing game has been somewhat of a question mark since the beginning of the 2015 season. And really, besides the 2014 National Championship run, the passing game has been a question since Troy Smith left Columbus.

But, the Buckeyes showed remarkable improvement in 2017, especially compared to the last two years:



This chart shows passing S&P+ (the rating, not ranking), as well as the Buckeyes’ S&P+ rating on passing downs. These are both opponent-adjusted stats, with passing downs counting as, “Second-and-8 or more, third-and-5 or more, or fourth-and-5 or more. These are downs in which passing is easily the most likely option for gaining the necessary yardage, and defenses hold the upper hand. Offenses typically throw about two-thirds of the time on passing downs.” (full definitions here).

Ohio State’s passing S&P+ rankings during these four years: 2nd, 26th, 64th, 4th.

So as you can see, this year saw a big recovery for the Ohio State passing game, almost equal to the Buckeyes National Championship season.

The Buckeyes’ passing downs S&P+ varied nearly proportionally with overall passing S&P+ during this time. This is significant, because it indicates that the offense was successful this season (and in 2014) even when opposing defenses knew that a pass was likely. Put another way, the high overall passing S&P+ ranking might not only be due to successful passing on early downs.

But it is worth noting that Ohio State ran the ball on 26.9% of passing downs, which may not seem like a high percentage, but was 36th-highest in the country (because they had a quarterback who was nearly always reliable for at least four yards a carry).

If we zoom in on just third downs, Ohio State had a total of 185 third down attempts this season, converting 86 (46.5%). J.T. Barrett passed on 73 of those attempts, or about 39.5%, and completed 41 (56.2%). Only 61 of those passing attempts were from 4+ yards, and he completed 34 of those attempts, or 55.7%, and got the first down on 20 (32.8%).

I also looked at J.T. in comparison to other quarterbacks on third down with between 4-7 yards to go. I thought this was an interesting down-and-distance because either running or throwing could be viable options. I took the top-100 quarterbacks in terms of total passing yards in 3rd-and-medium situations, filtered out all quarterbacks who had fewer than 20 attempts in those situations — leaving 81 quarterbacks. Barrett was tied for 28th in 1st down passing success rate in third-and-medium situations, converting exactly half of those attempts (right behind Sam Darnold, who completed 51.2%). Also interesting — Trace McSorley was second overall, getting the first down on exactly two-thirds of attempts.

So what about third-and-long? J.T. isn’t among the top-100 quarterbacks in terms of total passing yards in third-and-long (7-9) situations, with 86 yards on 15 attempts (averaging 5.73 yards per attempt) and getting three total first downs (20%). For comparison, using the same method as above, Trace McSorley was the best in the country at picking up first downs, again getting them on two-thirds of attempts. The rest of the top-10 quarterbacks at converting third-and-long were names you’d expect: Mason Rudolph (No. 2), McKenzie Milton (No. 3), Baker Mayfield (No. 12), etc. Alex Hornibrook, interestingly, was 9th, converting 48.5% of his third-and-long attempts.

I think that may have been the real issue for the offense. When Ohio State did decide to throw the ball in obvious, late-down passing situations, they were overwhelmingly unsuccessful. Third-and-long is always a challenge, and it doesn’t help that the Ohio State offensive line struggled in obvious passing situations (allowing a sack on 9.5% of passing downs, which ranks 92nd), but given how effective the passing game was overall — again, 4th in the country after factoring in opposing defenses — that was a glaring weakness.

And if you take away the running back as a viable ball carrier on standard downs (i.e., forcing Barrett to keep on reads) then the offense can get behind the chains quickly. USC did this extremely well in the Cotton Bowl: Dobbins averaged 3 yards per carry with a 23% opportunity rate, while J.T.’s opportunity rate (which is the percentage of 5+ yard runs) was 165% of Dobbins’. Once the running back is slowed on standard downs, then the only effective play calls were, broadly, throwing on standard downs and quarterback runs.

So can Haskins, Burrow, or Martell improve on those third-and-long numbers next season? We don’t have a lot of data, but Haskins had 5 attempts on third-and-long last season, converting four, and 6 attempts on third-and-medium, converting three. But the interesting thing to me was that every one of Haskins’ third down completions was for a first down — meaning that he didn’t often throw behind the sticks. That’s an encouraging sign, even if it’s on extremely limited data.

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What To Watch: Buckeyes welcome injury-depleted Maryland - 247Sports
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


What To Watch: Buckeyes welcome injury-depleted Maryland
247Sports
OSU-Maryland Series: Maryland leads the all-time series with the Buckeyes 6-5. Ohio State is 3-2 in Columbus, site of the only meeting with the Terps this season. OSU is 1-4 vs. Maryland since Maryland joined the Big Ten for the 2014-15 school year ...
Ohio State men move on to 'most challenging stretch'Toledo Blade
In order to beat Ohio State, Maryland has to stop Keita Bates-DiopBaltimore Sun

all 6 news articles »

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Buckeyes the Latest Offer for Fast-Rising 2019 WR Dylan Wright - 247Sports
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Buckeyes the Latest Offer for Fast-Rising 2019 WR Dylan Wright
247Sports
The Ohio State Buckeyes are the latest program to offer 247Sports Composite four-star receiver Dylan Wright from West Mesquite (Texas). Wright reports that the Ohio State offer is one that he will be considering seriously. The 6-foot-3, 192-pound ...


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Ohio State football podcast: Buckeyes could be gearing up for a huge Friday - Austin American-Statesman
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Ohio State football podcast: Buckeyes could be gearing up for a huge Friday
Austin American-Statesman
The announcement coming on Friday from a top-10 defensive lineman being pursued by both the Buckeyes and rival Michigan. Does Ohio State have the edge? A top-5 offensive tackle who reportedly may be taking his fifth and final official visit to Columbus ...


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Ohio State offensive lineman Kevin Feder announces plans to transfer
Matt Tamanini via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


After graduating this spring, Feder will have two years of eligibility remaining.

With just four days left until the NFL Draft deadline, and less than four weeks until the February National Signing Day, Ohio State’s football roster is still continuing to evolve. Today, after three years with the program, offensive lineman Kevin Feder announced via Twitter that he will be transferring to continue his collegiate playing career elsewhere.


Feder will graduate with a degree in Sports Industry this spring, and because he did so in three years, will be eligible to play immediately for another school, while having two years of eligibility remaining.

A Ramsey, NJ native, Feder came to Columbus as the 56th-ranked offensive tackle, and 13th player from New Jersey, in the 2015 recruiting class. A former three-star prospect, he spent his first two years with the Buckeyes dealing with foot injuries. Feder only played in the Illinois game this season, as he was stuck behind a collection of talented, experienced players on the offensive line depth chart.

We wish Feder the best, wherever he decides to continue his playing career.

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Systems_id said:

I still maintain that Loving’s soul was taken from him during the D.Russ era suspension. That’s the only way to explain that sort of drop off. I think Holtmann would have lit the fire under his ass that Thad couldn’t.

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I always wanted Matta to institute a pout jar.

How to watch Ohio State vs. Maryland: Preview, game time, live streaming online
Meredith Hein via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


The Buckeyes look to follow-up their win over Michigan State against a decimated Maryland squad.

Is this real? Could the Buckeyes really be contending for a Big Ten championship? An NCAA Tournament bid? A NATIONAL TITLE?!

Probably not the last one, but Ohio State basketball has certainly exceeded its low expectations already this season. With a win over then-No. 1 Michigan State, the Buckeyes suddenly find themselves in the top-40 of KenPom’s most recent rankings--the fourth-highest team in the Big Ten. Now, the surging Buckeyes face the fifth-ranked team in the conference in Maryland.

Ohio State is sitting at 13-4 on the season, with the best record in-conference (4-0) outside of Purdue (5-0), who also remains undefeated in the Big Ten. Most recently, the Buckeyes routed Iowa in Iowa City before returning to Columbus and shocking the basketball world with a convincing, 80-64 win over No. 1 Michigan State. Junior forward Keita Bates-Diop was the hero against the Spartans, finishing the day with a career-high 32 points.

Maryland, meanwhile, has been keeping pace with expectations this season. The Terps were selected to finish fifth in the Big Ten preseason poll, far ahead of the Buckeyes who were chosen to finish the season at No. 11 in the conference.

Mark Turgeon is in his seventh season at the helm of Maryland. In that time, he has amassed a 152-72 overall record, including a 93-29 record in the last four seasons since the Terps joined the Big Ten. In that time, Maryland has had very respectable finishes in the conference, ending the season in the top-three of the conference standings and earning bids to the NCAA Tournament in each of the last three seasons.

The Terrapins are sitting at 14-4 on the season, with their most recent win coming 91-73 over Iowa on Sunday. Previously, they suffered a 30-point loss to Michigan State, giving the Terps a 3-2 in-conference record. The loss to the Spartans was the worst of Turgeon’s tenure as head coach.

Perhaps more than any other team in the Big Ten, Maryland has experienced crippling personnel issues on the court. Season-ending injuries to their two lead power forwards, Justin Jackson (who had been averaging 9.8 points per game) and Ivan Bender, mean that redshirt freshman Joshua Tomaic will likely see significantly more playing time. Combined with the loss of last year’s leading scorer in Melo Trimble, the Terps certainly have a crisis when it comes to offensive production.

The Buckeyes hold a 5-6 record all-time against Maryland, including time that the Terps spent in the ACC, but Ohio State holds a 3-2 advantage at home. Last season, Ohio State dropped both games against a ranked Maryland squad, both by less than 10 points. The Terps have taken the last four meetings against the Buckeyes, but Ohio State holds an 806-713 advantage over current teams from the Big Ten.

Numbers to know

4-0


It may be early, but the Buckeyes are still undefeated in conference play. Purdue is technically ahead of Ohio State at 5-0, with a 16-2 overall record, but the mark is the best since the 2010-11 season when the Buckeyes began 11-0 in conference play. That season, behind Aaron Craft and Jared Sullinger, Ohio State won both the Big Ten regular season and conference tournament before earning a Sweet 16 bid. Expectations are certainly not that high this year. However, it certainly means an exciting on-court product in the first year of Chris Holtmann’s tenure, and could certainly bode well for the future of Ohio State basketball.

1.0


Ohio State’s assist-to-turnover ratio has been improving somewhat as the season continues. The good news against Maryland, however, is that the Buckeyes’ mediocre 1.2 ratio is still better than Maryland’s 1.0. The Terps have been notorious in terms of turnovers this season, averaging 15 per game, led by point guard Anthony Cowan who coughs the ball up 2.7 times per outing. Ohio State, meanwhile, is averaging 13 turnovers per game to go along with 15 assists. Turnovers, which have been a point of emphasis for Chris Holtmann, were a problem for point guard C.J. Jackson earlier this season, but the junior didn’t give the ball up at all in the Buckeyes’ win over Michigan State.

99


Keita Bates-Diop needs one more block to hit 100 career rejections at Ohio State. He had one block against MSU, two against Iowa last week and a whopping five against Miami to close out 2017. With 27 blocks this season alone, Bates-Diop is No. 8 in the NCAA in the category among players under 6-foot-7. Against Iowa, on a 27-point performance, the junior forward also hit 900 career points, and is well on his way to joining Jae’Sean Tate in the 1,000 points club. After connecting for 32 points against the Spartans, Bates-Diop is sitting at 940 total career points. Last season, Bates-Diop averaged under 10 points per game while healthy. This year, his scoring production has more than doubled.

Cast of characters

Ohio State

Keita Bates-Diop


In case you have been living under a rock this basketball season, the junior forward has been the best all-around player for Chris Holtmann’s squad this season. Bates-Diop dropped 32 points on the Spartans Sunday, adding seven rebounds and three steals on the day. With this latest performance, he has become the top scorer in the conference, averaging 20 points per game. He is also shooting a reliable 82 percent from the free throw line--the best percentage on Ohio State’s roster. He is one of five Buckeyes shooting greater than 50 percent from the field, and has been hitting nearly 39 percent of his shots from three-point range. Michigan State was unable to contain Bates-Diop, and he proved to be a relentless force on behalf of Ohio State.

C.J. Jackson


The junior point guard has overcome turnover issues from early in the season to deliver reliable, double-digit scoring during each outing for the Buckeyes. He sits behind only Bates-Diop in scoring for the Buckeyes, averaging 13.5 points per game. Against the Spartans, Jackson had 14 points in 29 minutes to go along with six rebounds and three assists. He was 6-for-11 shooting on the day, and hit on 2-of-3 field goal attempts. Like Bates-Diop, Jackson has been reliable from the free-throw line, connecting on more than 80 percent of attempts from the line. Now, with graduate transfer Andrew Dakich seeing more minutes, the pressure is easing on Jackson to continue to be as productive, but, along with Bates-Diop, Jackson remains one of the Buckeyes’ most powerful offensive forces on the court.

Maryland

Anthony Cowan


The sophomore point guard has been Maryland’s top-scorer this season, averaging 16.2 points per game. Against Iowa, Cowan had 15 points, seven assists and--wait for it--zero turnovers. That’s coming from the worst turnover offender on the Maryland roster. He is the seventh-leading scorer in the conference, and second in free throw percentage, connecting on 87 percent of his shots from the line. Especially given Maryland’s personnel issues, Cowan also leads the Big Ten in minutes played, and is on the floor for nearly 36 minutes per game. Additionally, Cowan’s defense has shown significant improvement since last season, and he played a strong game against Iowa point guard Jordan Bohannon.

Joshua Tomaic


The forward from the Canary Islands did not play much early in the season, but has been seeing more time on the court as a result of key injuries to Maryland’s big men. Turgeon announced in December that starting power forward Justin Jackson would be out for the rest of the season with a torn labrum. Ivan Bender, who replaced Jackson, then had a season-ending knee injury at the end of the month, leaving an inexperienced Tomaic to fill in. Prior to Bender’s injury, Tomaic had played just 66 minutes all season. Since then, he has been seeing more time off the bench. Against Iowa, he was 3-for-3 from the field in 11 minutes on the court. Given the lack of depth at forward, Tomaic will be seeing the floor more as the season goes on.

How to watch


Game time: 7 p.m. EST

TV: ESPN2

Radio: 97.1 WBNS-FM

Streaming: WatchESPN

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Ohio State: Dwayne Haskins listed with 30-1 Heisman odds; Buckeyes basketball set to face Maryland - Landof10.com
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Ohio State: Dwayne Haskins listed with 30-1 Heisman odds; Buckeyes basketball set to face Maryland
Landof10.com
The Buckeyes host Maryland (7 p.m. ET, ESPN2) as they try to keep their perfect Big Ten record alive. Ohio State (13-4, 4-0 Big Ten) needs a win over Maryland (14-4, 3-2) to keep pace with Purdue, the only other unbeaten team in league play. “Our guys ...
Ohio State men's basketball | Guards not letting Buckeyes downThe Columbus Dispatch
Tyler Friday trending toward Buckeyes with decision coming: Ohio State football recruitingcleveland.com
Ohio State Football: Even with mass exodus, Buckeyes still ranked in top 4Scarlet and Game
austin360 -247Sports -247Sports.com
all 56 news articles »

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Ohio State: Dwayne Haskins listed with 30-1 Heisman odds; Buckeyes basketball set to face Maryland - Atlanta Journal Constitution
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Ohio State: Dwayne Haskins listed with 30-1 Heisman odds; Buckeyes basketball set to face Maryland
Atlanta Journal Constitution
A pair of Buckeyes were among the 21-player list released by Sports Betting Dime this week. Quarterback Dwayne Haskins — the favorite to take over behind center for J.T. Barrett — was given 30-1 odds, while defensive end Nick Bosa had 35-1 odds ...


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Ohio State offers speedy 2019 4-star wide receiver
Charles Doss via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


The Buckeyes have handed another standout junior a chance to play in Columbus.

Urban Meyer and the Ohio State coaching staff are always searching the recruiting trail high and low for top prospects to bring into the fold to help the Buckeyes chase championship titles for years to come.

On Wednesday afternoon, the Buckeyes offered a four-star wide receiver from the class of 2019 a chance to suit up for the Big Ten power.

Adding Ohio State to a scholarship list of over 20 offers, which includes the likes of Alabama, Arkansas, Tennessee, California, Northwestern, Wisconsin and Notre Dame. Preparatory (AZ) standout junior Jake Smith has now locked in a opportunity from Meyer and the Buckeyes.


Coming off a huge season, Smith, currently the 40th wide receiver and 229th overall prospect in the entire class of 2019, per the 247Sports Composite Rankings, put up eye popping numbers through the air and on the ground to help Notre Dame Prep finish the year with a final record of 13-1.

A threat to reach the end zone nearly every time the ball is in his hands, the 6-foot-1, 185-pounder hauled in 33 receptions for 1,055 yards and 15 touchdowns, while rushing for another 1,135 yards and 11 scores as a junior for the near state champion Saints.

Want to see what caught Ohio State’s eye? Check out Jake Smith’s junior season highlights, via the team at Hudl:

2018 DL to announce this week?


The Buckeyes picked up the commitment of Tyreke Smith at the Under Armour All-America game, and could have another class of 2018 defensive lineman joining the fold very soon.

Per a report by Brian Dohn of 247Sports, Don Bosco Prep (NJ) four-star prospect Tyler Friday could announce his college plans as early as this week.

“It should be this week. He has a video he is going to release. He will sign in February.” Tyler’s father, Sam, told Dohn.

“When I will talk to him again, I will get everything together.” He’s at school. He is doing a video so it should come this week.” The elder Friday added.

Once thought as a Michigan lean, things have changed for Friday. Taking official visits to UM, OSU, and Alabama, all signs currently point towards the 6-foot-3, 263-pounder giving his verbal pledge to Urban Meyer, Larry Johnson and the rest of the OSU staff.

Pegged by many as a defensive tackle, if Friday does select OSU, he will get his shot to crack the Buckeyes depth chart at defensive end, a position of need for the Ohio State defense.

Will Friday be the next Buckeye commitment? Stick with Land-Grant Holy Land for the latest.

Nix commits


Recruiting is a lot like football. Sometimes you win, and sometimes you lose. Ohio State learned that on Wednesday.

Surprising no one, class of 2019 four-star quarterback Bo Nix spurned coaching staffs at Ohio State and Clemson. Nix will attend Auburn, the school that his father, Patrick, attended.

“I chose Auburn because I felt like it was the best fit for me and I feel like it will be a place where I can grow as a person, player, and student.” The 6-foot-1, 195-pound Pinson Valley (AL) junior stated to AL.com on his decision to verbally commit to the Tigers.


The Buckeyes might have a locker room full of talented signal callers, but that doesn’t mean they’re done trying to add to the position going forward.

With around a year left in the process, and Nix now off the table, the Buckeyes coaching staff will shift their hunt for a 2019 quarterback fully to prospects such as Grant Tisdale, Max Duggan and others.

Quick Hits

• Chris Holtmann and the Ohio State basketball squad offered four-star power forward E.J. Liddell on Wednesday. A class of 2019 prospect, the 6-foot-7 Illinois native offer list now consists of not just OSU, but also the likes of Florida, Marquette, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, and Kansas State to name a few.
• After recently picking up offers from Ohio State, Clemson, Michigan State, and many more, Cincinnati St. Xavier class of 2020 offensive tackle Paris Johnson Jr. has now added Michigan to his growing list of scholarships.

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