Don’t underestimate Michigan
Chad Peltier via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Sure, their offense looks mostly terrible, but so did Iowa’s — and their defense is even better than the Hawkeyes’

The Game is always The Most Important Game. But some years the two teams are so similarly talented that the game takes on extra importance.

Last year was one of those versions of The Game, with both teams ranking in the top-10 of the S&P+, but the hype for this year’s game has fallen off following Michigan’s losses to Michigan State, Penn State, and Wisconsin. Ohio State fans have noted how archaic Michigan’s offense looks, and have pointed out that the Wolverines have lost every game against a team ranked 35th or higher in the S&P+ this season. The Wolverines’ best win, by the S&P+, is against Purdue who 38th. Besides Purdue, their second-best win was a one-score win over 51st-ranked Indiana.

Not only does Michigan not have many (any?) strong wins this year, but it’s possible that they will need to turn to John O’Korn again, following Brandon Peters’ injury.

And with the one-sided nature of the rivalry since the beginning of the Tressel era, I think there’s some legitimate concern that the Buckeyes – or at least Buckeye fans – are approaching overconfidence. Because looking at their opponent-adjusted numbers, the Wolverines are still a very strong team, easily capable of upsetting the Buckeyes.


Michigan has performed almost exactly as expected from preseason advanced stats projections, given their extreme turnover: only 46 percent of production returns on offense, and third-worst 22 percent on defense. Given that degree of turnover, Michigan’s eighth-ranked defense has been incredible. The offense has been about as expected… which is solid on the ground, but worse than average through the air.

When Ohio State has the ball


Michigan still has a top-10 defense despite losing so much experience to the NFL. Overall, they are extremely efficient, only allowing a 32.9 percent rushing success rate (11th) and 26.2 percent passing success rate (1st).

They also bring a ton of pressure, creating a lot of havoc and negative plays: stuffing 27.3 percent of runs (4th), ranking 3rd in adjusted sack rate, and 2nd overall in havoc rate. This is an obvious mismatch for Ohio State, at least in obvious passing situations, as the Buckeyes rank 30th in adjusted sack rate (they’re fine against the run, ranking second in stuff rate).

They have few weaknesses as a whole, but:

1. They rarely allow efficient plays, but when they do, they're usually pretty big – they rank 116th and 93rd in rushing and passing IsoPPP, respectively. IsoPPP (unadjusted) measures the magnitude of only efficient plays to gauge explosiveness[PC1] . Until two weeks ago, I would have said that Ohio State has J.K. Dobbins and Parris Campbell as consistently explosive weapons – but it’s hard to argue with Mike Weber’s explosive production against Michigan State and Illinois. Dobbins averages 6.5 highlight yards per opportunity and[PC2] … , while Weber averages just 4.6 highlight yards per opportunity, though Weber’s stats are low from his not-totally-healthy performance from earlier in the season. Campbell averages 14.8 yards per catch, but no one on the team has displayed his level of short-area burst, vision, and top-end speed with the ball in his hands. Then Johnnie Dixon has by far the highest average yards per catch, at 24.3, but he only has 30 total targets this season, lowest of the top-6 receivers. Ohio State will likely try to match up Michigan linebacker Mike McCray in coverage with Dobbins and Campbell, who can beat him to the outside. This all suggests that the Ohio State offense could be fairly boom-or-bust, getting stopped for shorter gains fairly often, but occasionally breaking things open with an explosive play.
2. Since the offense will likely have a lower overall success rate than normal, it will be critical for the Buckeyes offense to take advantage of the scoring opportunities they do get – either scoring on the explosive plays that develop, or finishing drives. Luckily, if Michigan does allow a scoring opportunity, they tend to be a little worse with their backs against their own end zone, ranking 38th and allowing 4.07 points per scoring opportunity. Ohio State’s offense ranks 4th here, averaging 5.35 points per scoring opportunity. Generally, this suggests a game with a lot of 3-6 play drives, but relatively successful drives when they are able to get at least one first down.
3. Michigan’s run defense is 11th overall, which is obviously elite, but there’s a hint of an advantage for Ohio State. Michigan stuffs over a quarter of opponent runs (27.4 percent), which is nearly as often that they allow a 5+ yard run (33.4 percent of the time). So about 40 percent of opponent runs go between 1-4 yards. But it’s likely that their elite-ranked run defense is due in large part to how frequently they create negative plays – again, it’s a little boom-or-bust trying to run against the Wolverines[PC3]. I would guess that the Wolverines will have more success against the run in the first half, but that the offensive line will eventually wear down the Michigan front seven.
4. Their worst defensive effort, by far, was against Penn State – at 12 percent, where they allowed 42 points. Besides that poor effort, they only had sub-80 percent performances against Rutgers (72 percent) and Purdue (73 percent). Ohio State will be the best offense the Wolverines will have faced all season.

When Michigan has the ball


Michigan’s offense ranks 69th overall in the S&P+ and 74th in passing S&P+, showing the Wolverines’ most obvious weakness. Their passing success rate is just 35.8 percent (compared to the Buckeyes’ 50.9 percent). They don’t have a receiver with more than 298 receiving yards. Of their receivers with 200 or more receiving yards, only one of the four (two of whom are tight ends) have better than a 45.9 percent receiving success rate overall.

Ohio State is likely to see John O’Korn, who lost his job to sophomore Brandon Peters. O’Korn has the lowest average yards per attempt – 4.6 compared to Peters’ 6.4 – and completes just 53.2 percent of his passes. He also has the highest sack rate of the three, at 11.4 percent of his dropbacks, and the highest interception rate, at 4.03 percent compared to 2.5 percent for Wilton Speight during his shortened season (Barrett’s, despite his Iowa performance, is still just 2.19 percent). That’s good news, particularly as the Buckeyes’ secondary continues to improve.

A lot of the other problems can be traced to the offensive line, which ranks 118th in adjusted sack rate and 47th in stuff rate. The Michigan run game is solid, but they still are stuffed on 18.1 percent of runs, and only get 5+ yard carries on 37.6 percent of runs (82nd). Ohio State is 11th in stuff rate, 33rd in adjusted sack rate, and first in defensive line havoc rate (8.7 percent of plays!). That’s not a good matchup for the Wolverines.


But they have a few key areas that could hurt Ohio State’s defense.

1. First, their tight ends Sean McKeon and Zach Gentry have gotten increasingly involved in the passing game and are two of the top four receivers on the team. McKeon leads in catch rate and is second on the team in total receiving yards, while Gentry has the highest success rate and averages 18.8 yards per catch – the highest on the team. Moving Worley to the outside and promoting Tuf Borland seems to have made a world of difference at preventing efficient perimeter runs and passes, but Ohio State has nevertheless shown some vulnerability against pass-catching tight ends and running backs.
2. Donovan Peoples-Jones continues to grow in the offense. Formerly the top-ranked receiver as a recruit last year, the 6-foot-2 receiver has a higher ceiling than any pass catcher on the roster and is now the second-most targeted on the team. Anyone outside of Denzel Ward could struggle in coverage against him.
3. I mentioned earlier that while Michigan’s rushing offense as a poor success rate (42.6 percent), opportunity rate (37.6 percent) and stuff rate (18.1 percent), ranking 69th, 82nd and 47th, respectively. Overall they are 13th in rushing S&P+ overall due to their relative explosiveness (18th in IsoPPP) and the high quality of the defenses they’ve faced this season. Karan Higdon and Chris Evans have proven to be an excellent one-two punch, with both averaging at least seven highlight yards per opportunity (though they don’t get a ton of opportunities, averaging 38.2% and 36.5% opportunity rates). Ohio State rarely allows efficient performances from opposing running backs – Iowa’s Akrum Wadley is really the only one to find a ton of success.

But if Michigan is able to find some rushing success, and combine that with passes to tight ends and a few explosive passes to Peoples-Jones (and add in a few short fields from turnovers), then that might be enough to get the upset.

One final note – the Michigan offense is definitely a first-half team, ranking 42nd and 20th in the first and second quarters, but 91st and 104th in the second half. So there’s definitely a chance that the Buckeyes take a deficit or close game into halftime.

Takeaways

1. Michigan’s defense rarely allows efficient plays, but when they do, they tend to be pretty explosive.
2. Michigan’s pass defense is elite, and their run defense is ranked seventh overall. But there are indications that Ohio State may be able to find some running room against Michigan, as long as they avoid enough negative plays.
3. The Wolverines’ greatest defensive strength may be how much havoc they cause -- third in adjusted sack rate, fourth in run stuffs. Their defensive line, along with leading tackler Devin Bush, are elite at creating negative plays.
4. John O’Korn has performed worse than either Brandon Peters or Wilton Speight this year, but the Wolverines have gotten a lot of their passing production from their two tight ends, who could be a poor matchup for the Ohio State defense.
5. Michigan’s run game is explosive, despite being fairly inefficient (low opportunity rates for their top two running backs). But adjusting for opponents, the Wolverines’ offensive strength is definitely the run game.

Picks

• S&P+: Ohio State 32, Michigan 21
• My pick: Ohio State 28, Michigan 17

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Podcast: A year later, The Spot is still good
Colton Denning via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Looking back at the craziness of last year, what will decide Saturday’s game, and more.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

A new Hangout in the Holy Land episode is here to help you rest off your Thanksgiving meal, get away from family members you probably don’t want to be around, and —most importantly— get you prepped for The Game on Saturday.

Show Summary


We kick off this episode with Matt thanking everyone that came out to his recent book signings —which you can buy here— in New York and Columbus (1:25), and talk how The Spot —it was good, btw— overshadowed everything else that went on in last year’s game (4:00), and Michigan blowing an incredible amount of opportunities to win.

On the subject of the Wolverines, we discussed the report that Michigan is working on a lifetime contract for Jim Harbaugh (9:09), and whether we agree with Bill Connelly’s recent article about the hot takes regarding UM’s season (12:47).

At the 19:15 mark, we finally got to what we think will happen on Saturday. Matt broke down why you should keep an eye on Michigan’s tight ends and fullbacks, while I wondered about Ohio State’s ability to protect J.T. Barrett against a fierce Wolverines defensive line, and more.

We closed out the show by talking about our favorite games from around the country this week (25:00), which includes a host of great in-state rivalry games.

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Michigan’s offense will have a tough time against Ohio State with John O’Korn at quarterback
Christopher Jason via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


A healthy Brandon Peters would give Michigan a chance.

Brandon Peters is the best quarterback right now for the 2017 Michigan squad. Unfortunately, Peters was knocked out of last week’s game against Wisconsin with a concussion, and as of now, he is still in concussion protocol.

That means with Peters currently on the shelf with Wilson Speight, Jim Harbaugh will have to turn to John O’Korn, a fifth-year senior transfer from Houston.

"(Peters is) progressively getting better, he's still in the protocol," Michigan passing game coordinator, Pep Hamilton said. "It's on an hour-to-hour, day-to-day basis. We'll know where he stands (then). He seems to be a lot better than what he was after Saturday."

For Michigan’s sake, Peters needs to play for the Wolverines to have a chance on offense against the Buckeyes.

John O’Korn

• Michigan has very little chance to win this game with O’Korn at quarterback. He’s a very average passer and doesn’t really bring anything special to the table.
• Compared to Peters, O’Korn has very little velocity on his throws and does not throw a crisp spiral.

• Michigan runs lots of gimmicky plays that attempt to spark the otherwise bland offense. You’ll see some wildcat, a couple of reverses and a backfield full of fullbacks. Still, the offense is bland and they call sweeps on third-and-8.
• O’Korn isn’t as slow as one would think, but he is not a smart runner. He can somewhat extend plays in the pocket and his experience allows him to have some pocket presence.
• The skill players didn’t seem as focused against Wisconsin with O’Korn at quarterback, dropping a few passes.

Brandon Peters

• If Peters passes concussion protocol, it would give Michigan a much better chance to win the game.
• Even though Peters has only started a few games and hasn’t completed more than 10 passes in a game, he has a much better feel for the offense and it runs much better with him at quarterback.
• Peters throws a catchable ball with good velocity and a tight spiral.

• Has little pocket presence — which makes sense given his lack of experience — but possesses some mobility that allows him to extend plays.
• Michigan was only down 14-10 to Wisconsin and had some life on offense before Peters exited the game.
• Overall, Michigan could be really competitive if Peters suits up. If not, they’re going to have a really tough time against Ohio State’s defense to move the ball with O’Korn at quarterback.

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Week 13’s college football slate is headlined by the rivalry between Alabama and Auburn
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 Iron Bowl will not only decide the SEC West, but it’ll help to start shaping the College Football Playoff picture

Last week ATS: 5-7 (3-2 National, 2-5 B1G)

Season ATS: 78-84-4 (35-34-2 National, 43-50-2 B1G)

Last week’s record would have been a lot better if it wasn’t for some fourth quarter shenanigans. Ohio State, Penn State, and Michigan State were all covering in the fourth quarter before they let their foot off the gas. If those three games had gone MC&J’s way, our record would be sitting at 81-81-4 right now.

Hopefully there are plenty of winners to be thankful for this week. Enjoy the turkey and the football!

National games (All games Saturday unless otherwise noted):


No. 2 Miami (FL) (-14) v. Pittsburgh - Friday 11/24 12:00 PM EST - ABC

There’s no denying what Miami has done so far this year. Earlier in the year I thought the Hurricanes were overrated, but I am now believing in Miami. Funny what a turnover chain can do. The Hurricanes have forced 19 turnovers over the last five games, and their 27 turnovers this year is third-best nationally.

Pitt hasn’t done very much right this year, but at least they are playing tough. The Panthers won’t be able to go to a bowl game this year, but at least they’ll get to play spoiler in their regular season finale.

Between possibly looking ahead to next week’s ACC title game against Clemson, as well as some colder temperatures than they are used to, I’ll take Pitt with the points here. The Hurricanes will win but I could see them being a bit sluggish.

Miami 31, Pittsburgh 21

South Florida v. No. 15 UCF (-10) - Friday 11/24 3:30 PM EST - ABC

On Friday afternoon the American Athletic Conference will take center stage in Orlando with “The War on I-4”. Both these squads are feeling disrespected by the CFP committee, with a one-loss South Florida not even being ranked, and an undefeated Central Florida squad ranked behind a three-loss Mississippi State team.

Not only will these two teams be trying to impress the committee, but they’ll be battling for the right to play Memphis in next week’s AAC Championship Game. South Florida quarterback Quinton Flowers has not only thrown for nearly 2,100 yards and 17 touchdowns, but he has also added 870 rushing yards and nine touchdowns.

Quarterback McKenzie Milton and the Golden Knights have cleared every hurdle thrown in front of them this season, and I don’t think Friday will be any different. The Bulls will give Scott Frost’s team their toughest test of the season, but Central Florida earns a second meeting with Memphis this year.

UCF 34, USF 31

No. 7 Georgia (-11.5) v. Georgia Tech - 12:00 PM EST - ABC

“Clean, Old Fashioned Hate” has been one of the most hotly contested rivalries over the past few years, with the last four meetings being decided by seven points or less, and two of those meetings going to overtime. I don’t see this year’s game following the recent trend.

Saturday’s game in Atlanta will feature three 1,000 yard rushers. Georgia Tech quarterback Taquon Marshall has rushed for 1,074 yards and 17 touchdowns, while “B-Back” KiVonte Benson has rushed for 1,009 yards and six touchdowns. Georgia counters with Nick Chubb, who passed the 1,000 yard mark last week, and Sony Michel, who sits at 818 rushing yards this year.

Unlike the past few years, I think Georgia’s defense will be too much for the Yellow Jackets to crack. The Bulldogs will put a few touchdowns on the board early and put Georgia Tech in a hole that they can’t dig out of with their limited offense.

Georgia 33, Georgia Tech 17

No. 1 Alabama (-5) v. No. 6 Auburn - 3:30 PM EST - CBS

After dealing with some injuries over the past few weeks, at least Alabama was able to rest up a big with a 56-0 over Mercer. Auburn didn’t have much of a contest either last week, taking down Louisiana-Monroe, 42-14, but they won’t have running back Kamryn Pettway back, who hasn’t played since the Arkansas game in October.

A lot of people are saying Alabama can’t pass the football, but with Jalen Hurts and Calvin Ridley, that isn’t true. Nick Saban just doesn’t need to pass the football much with the damage Damien Harris, Bo Scarbrough, and Hurts can do on the ground. If the Crimson Tide want to stay undefeated, they’ll need to slow down running back Kerryon Johnson, who has rushed for 1,172 yards and 16 touchdowns.

The winner of Saturday’s Iron Bowl will go on to face Georgia in next week’s SEC Championship Game in Atlanta. After looking so dominate all year, I just keep seeing Auburn tripping up Alabama on Saturday. I know Sabanbot 3000 will likely make me regret my pick, but I just have a little more confidence in the Tigers, especially at Jordan-Hare.

Auburn 28, Alabama 24

West Virginia v. No. 4 Oklahoma (-23) - 3:45 PM EST - ESPN

Just a few weeks ago it was looking like this was going to be a fun quarterback matchup to close up the regular season for both these schools. Then last week happened.

West Virginia quarterback Will Grier was injured in last week’s loss to Texas, leaving sophomore Chris Chugunov to take the snaps against the Sooners. I’d say West Virginia fans might “Chug-a-lot” for Chugunov, but they’d probably do even if Grier was healthy.

Oklahoma has their own issues at quarterback, especially since Baker Mayfield got a little handsy with himself against Kansas. Texas A&M transfer Kyler Murray will start for the Sooners, and it’s not known how long Mayfield will be sentenced to the sidelines.

With all the quarterback questions, I like the points here. Chugunov has played enough to where he knows what he has to do. Oklahoma might be a little distracted with all the attention paid to what Mayfield did and the benching. This just seems like a few too many points, especially if the Sooners build a lead, since they’ll want to stay healthy with the Big 12 title game on the horizon.

Oklahoma 42, West Virginia 24

No. 3 Clemson (-14) v. No. 24 South Carolina - 7:30 PM EST - ESPN

South Carolina has put together a strong year in Will Muschamp’s second season in Columbia. The capper for Muschamp and company would be if they could spring the upset on Clemson and destroy the College Football Playoff hopes of the Tigers.

Clemson has rebounded nicely from their loss to Syracuse earlier in the year, winning their last four games. Even with the wins, I still have some questions about the Tigers. It’s obvious Kelly Bryant isn’t on the level of Deshaun Watson (but who really is). The Tigers still have an amazing defense, which could propel them to the playoff, but they’ll need more to win it all.

Even in their losses, South Carolina has been competitive, with their biggest loss of the year coming by 14 points to Georgia. The Gamecocks will have revenge on their mind after Clemson thrashed them 56-7 last year. South Carolina won’t pull the upset, but they’ll certainly put a scare into Clemson.

Clemson 27, South Carolina 20

No. 8 Notre Dame (-2.5) v. No. 21 Stanford - 8:00 PM EST - ABC

As if this game wasn’t tough enough to figure out with questions about the status of Bryce Love, the uncertainty of the Pac-12 North adds to the difficulty. Washington and Washington State kick off at the same time, and if Washington wins, Stanford faces USC next week in the Pac-12 Championship Game. If Washington State wins, the Cougars face the Trojans next week.

Love has been hampered by an ankle injury over the last few games, so even if he plays who knows how effective he’ll be. The same can’t be said about Notre Dame running back Josh Adams, who is healthy and ready to roll.

If Love was healthy for Stanford, I’d take the Cardinal here, especially after how the Fighting Irish struggled last week. I don’t think Notre Dame is as good as their ranking, and wouldn’t be mad if they lost. Having said that, I’ll take the team that is healthier at running back right now. Adams has another big game, as he looks to punch a ticket to New York City for the Heisman Trophy ceremony.

Notre Dame 24, Stanford 20

No. 13 Washington State v. No. 17 Washington (-10) - 8:00 PM EST - FOX

Since 2009, Washington State has only won The Apple Cup once, and just two of those meetings have been decided by less than 10 points. Washington doesn’t instill a lot of confidence right now, but I think they show up big time in Seattle to ruin Washington State’s Pac-12 title game hopes.

Washington 38, Washington State 21

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Ohio State: Breaking down Buckeyes' bowl projections, postseason possibilities - Landof10.com
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Ohio State: Breaking down Buckeyes' bowl projections, postseason possibilities
Landof10.com
All week long, our Land of 10 reporters following the Buckeyes will address pressing questions on the minds of the Ohio State fan base with our new daily feature. To ask Austin Ward a question, follow along on Twitter and suggest a topic right here.
Wolverines, Buckeyes feelings are 'in your DNA'Quad City Times
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cleveland.com -Sharonherald -MyDaytonDailyNews
all 433 news articles »

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Buckeyes to honor Terry Glenn with helmet stickers - 10TV
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Buckeyes to honor Terry Glenn with helmet stickers
10TV
Ohio State officials confirm the Ohio State football team will honor former Buckeye Terry Glenn by wearing stickers on their helmets this Saturday. Terry Glenn Jr.: The bucks are rocking these helmet stickers for my dad when we play this weekend.
Buckeyes wearing helmet stickers against TTUN to honor Terry GlennNBC4i.com
Ohio State Buckeyes to wear helmet sticker to honor the late Terry Glenncleveland.com
Ohio State to wear helmet stickers vs. Michigan honoring former All-American WR Terry GlennLandof10.com
Campus Sports
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Buckeyes wearing helmet stickers against TTUN to honor Terry Glenn - NBC4i.com
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Buckeyes wearing helmet stickers against TTUN to honor Terry Glenn
NBC4i.com
COLUMBUS (WCMH) — According to Terry Glenn Jr. the Ohio State Buckeyes will be wearing helmet stickers to honor his day when they play TTUN, Saturday. Glenn Sr. was killed in a crash Monday, in Dallas County, Texas. Glenn played for the Buckeyes ...
Buckeyes to honor Terry Glenn with helmet stickers10TV
Ohio State Buckeyes to wear helmet sticker to honor the late Terry Glenncleveland.com
Ohio State to wear helmet stickers vs. Michigan honoring former All-American WR Terry GlennLandof10.com
Campus Sports
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Ohio State football podcast: Wolverines are stuck behind Buckeyes but close enough to catch up - Landof10.com
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Ohio State football podcast: Wolverines are stuck behind Buckeyes but close enough to catch up
Landof10.com
Despite Michigan's record against the Buckeyes since Jim Tressel took over at Ohio State in 2001, how the Wolverines aren't as far from the Buckeyes as it seems at first glance. Whether the Buckeyes will run against Michigan as well as they did in 2015 ...
Wolverines, Buckeyes feelings are 'in your DNA'Quad City Times
Beating the Buckeyes could be springboard Michigan needsToledo Blade
Ohio State football | Buckeyes expect Michigan to rely on power-run gameThe Columbus Dispatch
Sharonherald -MyDaytonDailyNews -Akron Beacon Journal
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Report: Buckeyes to wear helmet sticker honoring late Terry Glenn - ABC6OnYourSide.com
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Report: Buckeyes to wear helmet sticker honoring late Terry Glenn
ABC6OnYourSide.com
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WSYX/WTTE) — Terry Glenn Jr. shared on Twitter that the Ohio State Buckeyes will be wearing a helmet sticker to honor his late father, Terry Glenn. "The bucks are rocking these helmet stickers for my dad when we play this weekend," ...
Ohio State Buckeyes to wear helmet sticker to honor the late Terry Glenncleveland.com
Ohio State to wear helmet stickers vs. Michigan honoring former All-American WR Terry GlennLandof10.com
Ohio State Football: Buckeyes To Honor Terry Glenn With Helmet DecalCampus Sports

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Comparing the 2017 Miami Hurricanes to the 2002 Ohio State Buckeyes - State Of The U
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Comparing the 2017 Miami Hurricanes to the 2002 Ohio State Buckeyes
State Of The U
The 2002 Buckeyes were coming off a 7-5 season and were ranked 13th in the pre-season polls. The Miami Hurricanes entered 2017 coming off a 9-4 season and a pre-season 15 ranking. OSU's quarterback was Craig Krenzel entering his first season as a ...

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Bill Kurelic: More on Tyreke Johnson and Ohio State Buckeyes; 16 ... - 247Sports
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Bill Kurelic: More on Tyreke Johnson and Ohio State Buckeyes; 16 ...
247Sports
More on Tyreke Johnson and Ohio State; 16 sacks DE wants to be a Buckeye; OL intrigue after official visit.
Around the Oval: Swimming Holds Ohio State Invitational While ...Eleven Warriors

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Former Ohio State LB target Payton Wilson decommits from UNC
Bret Favachio via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Will the Buckeyes take another swing at locking him up now that he's uncommitted?

As the majority of us spent our Wednesday preparing for Thanksgiving, the Ohio State coaching staff was reminded of one thing: recruiting never stops.

Wilson back in play?


Back in February of this year, Ohio State set their sights on ‘18 LB Payton Wilson of Orange (NC) when they dropped an offer to the four-star prospect. The 6'4, 225-pounder even took an unofficial visit to the Buckeyes' campus in April and would ultimately place the Ohio State in his top four along with Clemson, North Carolina, and Virginia Tech.

However, in May, Wilson would announce his pledge to the local Tar Heels and their head coach Larry Fedora. After about five and a half months of being a member of the Carolina blue and white, Wilson backed off of that commitment on Wednesday. The decision comes fresh off of official visits to both NC State and Notre Dame.


Now, the question is, will Ohio State be back in the mix for the Hillsborough native? As of now, all indications are that Wilson is planning on making an official visit to the Buckeyes so it will be interesting to see where things go, if that visit ultimately does happen.

It is worth mentioning that along with Wilson, Ohio State is also still in pursuit of guys like Christopher Oats of Winton Woods (OH), USC commit Palaie Gaoteote of Bishop Gorman (NV), and Solomon Tuliaupupu of Mater Dei (CA) at the linebacker position. Among the players already committed to the Buckeyes this cycle that are expected to play at the linebacker spot at the next level are Dallas Gant, Teradja Mitchell, and K’Vaughan Pope.

New walk-on pledge


According to Mike Dyer of WCPO.com, Ohio State added a new walk-on commit on Wednesday as two-star defensive tackle Zaid Hamdan of William Mason (OH) pledged to the Buckeyes. The news was actually announced by Hamdan back on Sunday via his Twitter account.

From what we know, Hamdan, a 6'0, 263-pounder, acquired offers from Air Force, Army, Buffalo, and Navy throughout the recruiting process. However, he did reveal to Bill Greene of Scout.com that he actually had north of 15 offers to his name a few days ago. Either way, the Comets standout determined that the opportunity to become a Buckeye and play in the Scarlet and Gray was too much to pass up.

To check out the newest Buckeye in action, look no further than below, courtesy of Hudl.


Ed’s note: Land-Grant Holy Land would like to wish you and your family a very Happy Thanksgiving!

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Gonzaga reloads, enters loaded PK80 against Buckeyes (Nov 23, 2017) - FOXSports.com
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Gonzaga reloads, enters loaded PK80 against Buckeyes (Nov 23, 2017)
FOXSports.com
The Buckeyes are expected to be at full strength after center-forward Micah Potter was injured in the second half of an 80-55 win over Northeastern on Sunday. “We think he will be available to play,” Holtmann told The Columbus Dispatch on Tuesday.
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OSU - The Lantern
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Ohio State recruiting: Justin Rogers continues to love on Buckeyes, 2020 QB impressed by visit - Landof10.com
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Ohio State recruiting: Justin Rogers continues to love on Buckeyes, 2020 QB impressed by visit
Landof10.com
Recruiting never stops, and if you take a day off, you fall behind. Join us every night for a daily recap of Ohio State recruiting news, insight on what's happening behind the scenes and a glimpse at what's coming next.
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Men's basketball | Ohio State emphasizing focus on each game to avoid slip-ups - The Columbus Dispatch
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Men's basketball | Ohio State emphasizing focus on each game to avoid slip-ups
The Columbus Dispatch
Showing up for big early-season nonconference games hasn't really been an issue for the Buckeyes in recent years, either, even as the program slipped toward the abyss. Two years ago, Ohio State knocked off No. 4 Kentucky in the CBS Sports Classic.
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Ohio State football: Buckeyes aim to continue dominance over Michigan - News-Herald.com
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Ohio State football: Buckeyes aim to continue dominance over Michigan
News-Herald.com
The Buckeyes need to win and beat No. 5 Wisconsin in the Big Ten championship game to keep their hopes alive to earn a spot in the College Football Playoff. The Wolverines are playing for pride, after losing five straight and 12 of 13 to their rivals ...

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Can't wait until more games get televised, I think it's going to be fun watching our young Buckeyes this year. Expectations are reasonably tempered but I like the effort and young talent.

Ohio State makes it a point to educate out-of-state players on The 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


Also, Cardale Jones drops some knowledge on the Maize and Blue.

“It’s farfetched to think that for a player to understand what The Game is about, he has to be from Ohio or Michigan.”

- Tim May, The Columbus Dispatch


In his weekly press conference, Urban Meyer was asked multiple times about the importance of the Ohio State-Michigan rivalry, and how the requisite passion can be achieved when the Buckeye roster is increasingly national; Meyer credited previous coaches Woody Hayes, Earl Bruce, and Jim Tressel for providing the blueprint (notice a name conspicuously missing?).

As May rightly points out, some of the most important figures in Saturday’s game for the Buckeyes were out-of-state recruits; J.T. Barrett, Mike Weber, J.K. Dobbins, Jalyn Holmes, Tyquan Lewis, Nick Bosa, just to name a few.

However, it is clear from their passion and understanding of the rivalry that those players have been indoctrinated from even before they stepped on campus. Holmes talks about watching the game on TV, Barrett discusses seeing a video posted online of a Michigan commit burning his Ohio State recruiting letters, and Jones talks about growing up in the Midwest with the rivalry all around him.

“It’s the biggest rivalry in college football,” the Chicago-native said. “There’s a lot of trash talk between (the) two states, not even just the teams. There’s a lot of bragging rights on the line. Being from the Midwest, I know all about this rivalry. It means a lot to a lot of people.”

However, Meyer’s efforts to get all players on board, regardless of where they are from, not only involves banning the wearing of the color blue and requiring players to refer to the Wolverines as “The Team Up North,” but it also involves Michigan-specific workouts throughout the year, the clock counting down to The Game, and the regular reminders that the Buckeyes have only lost to UM twice in this millennium.

If the understanding of, and the buying in to, the Ohio State-Michigan rivalry is vital to a team’s on-field success, it is difficult to imagine a coaching staff doing a better job of educating its out-of-state players than this one has over the last six years.

“Looking for the next J.T. Barrett? Look no further than J.K. Dobbins.”

- Doug Lesmerises, Cleveland.com


It’s often said that quarterback is the most important position in all of sports, and no matter how you feel about J.T. Barrett’s perceived strengths or weaknesses, there is no denying that he has been the most productive quarterback in the history of the Ohio State football program. And, because of that production and the value of his position, the Buckeyes have been wildly successful during his tenure in Columbus.

The fact that he’s had the ball in his hands for the vast majority of plays over the past four years has also made him the unquestioned leader of the team; which is evidenced by the fact that he is the first-ever three-year captain in OSU history. However, Texas bloodlines or not, that is what has me hesitant to bestow the mantle of team leader on J.K. Dobbins too early.

My reluctance isn’t in the freshman running back’s ability to give a fiery speech in the locker room, or to lead a team to on-field success, but instead it is in the Ohio State coaching staff’s willingness to let him be the dominant playmaker that the first few games of the season indicated that he could be.

Urban Meyer has said on multiple occasions that Dobbins has earned the right to start, but when it comes to carries, redshirt-sophomore Mike Weber has become more and more the focal point of the offense; even if the Buckeyes could probably stand to run the ball a bit more still.

Now don’t get me wrong, Weber has been excellent, so this isn’t a Dobbins vs. Weber debate, but rather a question as to whether or not the playcallers next year (Kevin Wilson, Ryan Day, Tony Alford, or whomever else might be brought in) will allow Dobbins to get enough touches to assert himself as a leader from a production standpoint.

Given his late season success, I think that there is a legitimate chance that Weber exits for the NFL draft at season’s end, which should give Dobbins a larger percentage of the team’s carries in 2018, but there’s no guarantee that he will get a large enough share to be the teams unquestioned heart and soul.

So, until the offensive coaching staff proves that they are able to put their trust in anyone not named J.T. Barrett, I will have to be convinced that anyone can assume the leadership position that he has earned.


There is very little better in this world than Cardale Jones dropping truths on Twitter, especially during Michigan Week. However, for those of us that suffered through the heartbreaks of the John Cooper era in Columbus, we might be a little more hesitant to rub Jim Tressel and Urban Meyer’s successes in the faces of our Wolverine friends than 12 Gauge is.

But that’s what’s so great about sports. Trash talking is part of what makes the experience so much fun. If you don’t actually have to get yourself worked up to go out and bang bodies for sixty minutes on Saturday, then there’s no reason for the smack talk to ever be taken too personally.

That’s why every year in the week leading up to Thanksgiving, I am very comfortable saying that I “hate” Michigan, because in the context of a college football rivalry, for level-headed fans, there should be a difference between “sports hate” and “you poisoned my dog, stole my car, and stood up my little sister for the senior prom hate.”

Two years ago this week, I tried to define “sports hate” for a very different audience than that here at LGHL, but my ultimate takeaway from writing that piece was that as long as your head understands the context, there’s nothing wrong with letting your heart hate whom it wants to hate.

STICK TO SPORTS

• Forget the NFL. Thanksgiving TV is all about The National Dog Show!
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• Check out these Thanksgiving-themed podcasts to ease your holiday travel.
• So, you know how you can turn off “location services” in Google? Yea, Google just ignores that.
• “Lady Bird” is the perfect Thanksgiving movie if you want to see something about a family more messed up than yours.

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Ohio State's Keita Bates-Diop is the difference maker the Buckeyes needed all along - Sporting News
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Ohio State's Keita Bates-Diop is the difference maker the Buckeyes needed all along
Sporting News
The 6-7, 235-pounder played just nine games in what would've been his true junior season a year ago before missing the Buckeyes' last 18 tilts with a stress fracture in his leg. Back, and, most importantly, healthy Bates-Diop is averaging a double ...

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Wolverines, Buckeyes feelings are 'in your DNA' - Quad City Times
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Wolverines, Buckeyes feelings are 'in your DNA'
Quad City Times
Ohio State and Wisconsin will play for the Big Ten championship in another week, but Saturday's annual grudge match between the Buckeyes and Michigan still carries the same fervor it had when Woody Hayes and Bo Schembechler patrolled the sidelines ...
Ohio State football: Why the Buckeyes have owned Michigan since 2001Landof10.com
Beating the Buckeyes could be springboard Michigan needsToledo Blade
Barrett: Buckeyes' best?Sharonherald
The Columbus Dispatch -News-Herald.com -cleveland.com
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Beating the Buckeyes could be springboard Michigan needs - Toledo Blade
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Beating the Buckeyes could be springboard Michigan needs
Toledo Blade
The 13-9 victory over the undefeated, second-ranked Buckeyes changed the complexion of the Wolverines' fourth consecutive four-loss season and acted as a springboard for the following year when Michigan won its first national championship since 1947.
Michigan can knock off Ohio State, experts say — if they follow these 5 stepsLandof10.com
Jack Looks Back: Buckeyes aim for sixth straight Michigan win under MeyerThe Columbus Dispatch
Barrett: Buckeyes' best?Sharonherald
News-Herald.com -247Sports -cleveland.com
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Payton Wilson, Ohio State linebacker target, decommits from North Carolina: Buckeyes football recruiting - cleveland.com
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Payton Wilson, Ohio State linebacker target, decommits from North Carolina: Buckeyes football recruiting
cleveland.com
Payton Wilson, Ohio State linebacker target, decommits from North Carolina: Buckeyes football recruiting. Updated November 22, 2017 at 4:59 PM ; Posted November 22, 2017 at 4:55 PM. Four-star linebacker Payton Wilson, and Ohio State target, ...

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Fun with Ohio State College Football Playoff math: 12 different scenarios - cleveland.com
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Fun with Ohio State College Football Playoff math: 12 different scenarios
cleveland.com
So here are 12 results of what I think are the most common scenarios that include the Buckeyes winning out, and what fivethirtyeight.com calculates their playoff chances would be. It's all guesswork to some degree, because as I've written before, the ...
Buckeyes stay at no. 9 in playoff pollWHIZ
College Football Playoff 2017: How Top Teams Outside the Top 4 Can Get InBleacher Report

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LitlBuck said:

I do not know what the Commodores are selling but Simi says hello Jake Diebler

[Mark May]tu, a 6-foot-9 forward from Canada who plays at Vermont Academy (Vermont), is ranked No. 6 in the ESPN 100 for the Class of 2018. He slots in as the No. 2 power forward in the country.

Committed to Vanderbilt.

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Crazy whatever Bryce Drew is doing down there. If they get Romeo (who had 48pts in his opener)...

Guess better them than a BigTen team or UK.

Thank you!