BuckeyeBiz said:

Id rather not have that network pumping up expectations for our squad. Stay out of the spotlight, focus and take care of business.

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I agree. Ohio State just lost a coach who coached the team to a 0.900+ winning percentage over 7 years. I'm confident in my guess that no one else has coached Ohio State to a 0.900+ winning percentage over that amount of time. Ohio State just lost their best coach ever. Plus, they lost probably their best quarterback ever.

I'd be pleasantly surprised if Ohio State can finish the season in the top 10.

brodybuck21 said:

Replacing CJ Jackson and keyshawn woods with DJ Carton and CJ Walker next year.....

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Best Buckeye said:

Not saying we can't get in. But Illinois has won 4 of the last 5 and just beat MSU with quickness. Northwestern maybe 2 , maybe only one. If we play like we did today against the others we will be hard pressed to win.

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Hate to say that I called it but they beat us with quickness.

Ohio State is churning out NFL talent like nobody else in the country
Gene Ross via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


LBU? DBU? The Buckeyes might just be College Football U.

“The Scarlet and Gray are one of the most successful teams in college football and have put together quite a run of form over the first 18 seasons of this century. While it’s hard to call any one program College Football U, based on these numbers, Ohio State is certainly in the conversation.”

- Patrick Murphy, 247sports.com


Fans of college football love to boast about their teams ability to get guys into the NFL. Some schools are known for being very good at getting specific positions into the league, whether it be at linebacker, defensive back, quarterback, etc. Ohio State has gotten more than its fair share of players into the NFL over the last two decades, and while they don’t claim to be “DBU” or “Linebacker U” like some programs out there, they may very well own those titles — and more.

In a few recent posts from Pick Six Previews, named the most accurate Power Five preview for the last six years, they took a look at players taken in the NFL Draft at certain positions since 2000 and the schools that produced the most players at those positions. It was no shocker to see Ohio State listed toward the top of a few of these lists.

When it came to defensive backs, the Buckeyes were at the very top of the list, with 28 DBs drafted since 2000, ahead of Virginia Tech (24), Alabama (22) and LSU (22). When it comes to defensive backs, they aren’t just getting a large amount of guys into the league, but guys that are taken in the early rounds as well, as Ohio State has had a DB taken in the first round of four of the last five NFL drafts. Notable OSU DB’s include Malcolm Jenkins, Bradley Roby, Marshon Lattimore and Denzel Ward.

Ohio State is also at the top of the list when it comes to producing linebackers, where they are tied with Georgia at 19, ahead of USC (17) and Alabama (16). The Buckeyes have churned out big name LB’s among the likes of A.J. Hawk, James Laurinaitis, Ryan Shazier and Raekwon McMillan.

What may be a bit surprising is how high the Buckeyes are in terms of getting wide receivers to the NFL, especially as they are not usually a pass-first offense. However, OSU ranks second with 17 receivers drafted behind only LSU (18). Notable names include Santonio Holmes, Ted Ginn Jr., Brian Hartline and Michael Thomas.

“As the roster currently stands, the Buckeyes have one available scholarship for the 2019 class after signing a three-member class in November. That trio, featuring point guard DJ Carton and forwards Alonzo Gaffney and E.J. Liddell, is rated as the No. 10 class in the nation.”

- Adam Jardy, The Columbus Dispatch


Ohio State men's basketball finished up an abysmal month of January, and has now won each of its last three games to improve to 6-6 in the Big Ten and 16-7 overall. The Buckeyes have another very winnable game ahead of them when they take on Illinois, before embarking on an extremely tough stretch of four ranked opponents in five games. While this Ohio State team is still very young and continuing to learn the ropes of the college game, there are reinforcements on the way for next season.

While Carton, Gaffney and Liddell are the centerpieces of the 2019 class, and the reason the Buckeyes have their first top-10 recruiting class in seemingly forever, they still have one remaining scholarship for next year. That potential final piece could be four-star shooting guard Lester Quinones, who this weekend listed Ohio State among his final seven schools. The 6-foot-5 Quinones is the 64th overall recruit in the 2019 class and the No. 6 shooting guard.

The 2020 class, currently with no commitments, got a potential addition as well this week, with forward Che Evans listing the Buckeyes among his final six schools. Evans, a four-star prospect out of Maryland, is the No. 147 recruit in the nation and 30th overall small forward. Evans made an unofficial visit to OSU in October of last year, leaving with a scholarship offer.

“Elsewhere in the Big Ten, Indiana keeps losing, Ohio State and Illinois each has won three straight and only three games separate the bottom six teams in the conference. The Big Ten isn’t going to get 10 teams in the NCAA Tournament, as has been widely speculated, but the depth of the league continues to impress.”

- Adam Jardy, The Columbus Dispatch


It has been a wild season of Big Ten basketball this season, with no clear favorite as to who will come away with the conference title. With a couple big upsets in last night’s games, there has been another shakeup in the Big Ten power rankings, with Michigan State coming out on top.

After losing three straight games, and Joshua Langford going down with a season ending injury, the Spartans have somehow found a way to rally, defeating a pair of NCAA Tournament teams in Minnesota and Wisconsin by an average of 11 points. Following behind MSU is Michigan, who moves up a spot from a week ago despite losing to Penn State on the road. Iowa comes in at No. 3, with Maryland up next ahead of Purdue after the Terrapins outscored the Boilermakers 40-18 in the second half to secure the upset on Tuesday night.

Ohio State comes in at the middle of the road, No. 7. The Buckeyes are 6-6 in conference play after starting off 2-0, and have done most of their damage by beating up on the struggling teams in the Big Ten. They don’t have many bad losses outside the defeat at the hands of Rutgers, a team they have since beaten, however they are 0-5 against Big Ten teams ranked higher than them in the KenPom national rankings.

Around Campus

Wrestling


No. 2 Ohio State (9-2, 5-2) fell to No. 1 Penn State (11-0, 7-0) in front of a capacity St. John Arena crowd in their last meet, losing 28-9 to the Nittany Lions. The Buckeyes got three bout victories by Malik Heinselman, Micah Jordan and Myles Martin. OSU will wrap up its Big Ten dual slate this weekend with a road match at Purdue on Friday and their last home contest of the season on Sunday against Nebraska.

Baseball


Three Buckeyes were named to the Big Ten Preseason Watch list on Wednesday afternoon. Juniors Dominic Canzone and Connor Pohl as well as sophomore Dillon Dingler received the preseason honor for an Ohio State team picked to finish fifth in the Big Ten. The Bucks will begin the 2019 season at the Snowbird Classic Friday against Seton Hall in Port Charlotte, Florida.

Synchronized Swimming


Ohio State swept two competitions in Virginia last weekend against the College of William and Mary and University of Richmond. They topped Richmond 77-55 on Saturday before taking down William and Mary 101-77.5 on Sunday. The Buckeyes will now head to Wheaton, Illinois to take on Wheaton University as they continue to prep for North Regionals.

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Ohio State’s 2019 recruiting class is really good, but still step down from recent years
Chad Peltier via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Box plots help show how the 2019 class is skewed more than the total composite ratings or mean player average suggest.

The narrative for the Ohio State Buckeyes’ newly-signed 2019 recruiting class depends on how you look at the recruiting data.

If you just casually look at the 247 Composite rankings, the Buckeyes’ 14th ranking isn’t very impressive.

But, as Morgan and Richard have written, that ranking probably isn’t a big deal, and looking at the class using a different metric — average player rating — shows the Buckeyes with a top-3 class.

That’s because the 247 Composite rankings uses both quality (a player’s rating) and quantity (number of commits) to determine the rankings. Ohio State’s small class of just 17 players was far smaller than anyone else in the top-25. In fact, the smallest class in the top-10 had 24 players, or 41% more players than the Buckeyes’ class. If you look only at recruit quality — using the average player ranking — then Ohio State’s class ranks third with an average rating of 91.87, behind Alabama’s 94.38 and Georgia’s 93.32.

But even ranking classes using the mean player rating can still hide the fact that classes may be skewed in one direction or another.

For example, a 20-player class with a mean player rating of .9000 could mean 10 players at 1.000 and 10 players at .8000, or it could mean all 20 players are ranked at .9000. You don’t know whether a class is skewed by a few awesome players (and/or by a few lower-ranked recruits) without looking at the full distribution of player ratings.

Box plots can help with that. I took Ohio State’s last five classes, removed any special teams signees (who skew the class’s player rating because they’re all ranked relatively low), and created box plots for each class.

The lines off each box show the upper and lower range of each class – the highest and lowest ranked recruits. The box’s top and bottom represent the upper and lower quartiles of player rankings – the top and bottom 25% — so the box itself represents the interquartile range (IQR). The line in the middle(ish) of the box shows the median player ranking – the middle player rating in the full distribution of player rankings. Finally, the “x” shows the class’s mean, or average, rating.

Box plots can help us identify whether recruiting classes are skewed by a few super-highly ranked or super-lowly ranked recruits. A skewed class can be seen by the length of the lines coming out of the box and whether the median line is higher or lower inside the box.

Also, the full range of player ratings (i.e., from .99 to .85) doesn’t tell us a whole lot here – every OSU class has some players rated as five-stars and some rated around .85 (three stars). The range doesn’t say a lot about where most players in the class rank. But the size and position of the interquartile range – the box – does tell us a good bit about how the class is distributed. A bigger box means a larger IQR, and therefore a wider distribution of player ratings for the middle 50% of the class.

OK — here are the box plots:



Here are my immediate takeaways:

• Without knowing anything about box plots, you could look at the chart above and see that the 2019 class is a solid step down from the 2017 and 2018 classes, which were absurdly good.
• It’s also easy to see that the 2019 class most resembles the 2015 class in overall quality and the distribution of player ratings. For example, the 2015 third quartile is .9536 and 1st quartile is .8694 for an interquartile range (IQR) of .0842. 2019’s 3rd quartile is .9554 and 1st quartile is .8755 for an IQR of .0799. Those are the two largest IQRs of the last five years. They’re also the two lowest IQRs — 2016 is pretty close, but has a significantly higher floor than 2015’s or 2019’s.
• It’s pretty easy to tell which classes are skewed. The 2017 class has a crazy skew towards the top, with the median near the top of the box and a short top line and long lower line. The 2019 class is also skewed, but in the opposite direction, and less extreme. The median is only .0276 points from the 1st quartile, but .0523 points from the 3rd quartile.
• The 1st quartile (the bottom of the box) is a good way to look at the class’s floor — better than just looking at the low end of the range (all but 2018 are around .85). That’s because, without a box plot, we have no way of telling whether there’s just one recruit ranked at or near .85, or if most of the class is actually ranked near there. So, one of the main things that jumps out to me is just how (relatively) low the 2015 and 2019 1st quartiles (.87 and .88) are compared to the absurd 2017 and 2018 classes. In those latter two classes, 75% of the recruits were rated .92 or better.
• Similarly, in 2019, half of the recruiting class is rated .9031 or worse — that is, a low-four star or below. In comparison, in 2017, half of the class is rated .9712 or better.
• In fact, just looking at the class medians says a lot. From 2015 to 2019: .9003, .9294, .9695, .9517, and .9031. Medians are really helpful because they’re not affected by outliers or skewed data.
• The larger the difference between the mean and the median, the more the class is skewed. You can see the difference between the mean and median here, which again shows how skewed the 2017 and 2019 classes are, but in opposite directions.

TL;DR: The 2019 class is good, but its rating is still skewed by a few highly rated recruits. Most of the class is lower ranked than in the previous few classes.


As multiple articles have pointed out, Ohio State’s 14th ranking in the 2019 247 Composite doesn’t do justice to the level of talent in the class. If you instead look at the average player rating, Ohio State jumps up to third in the country, behind only Alabama and Georgia.

But the mean player rating doesn’t indicate how skewed Ohio State’s 2019 class is, with most recruits rated lower-than-usual, but with three five-stars. Those three five-stars — Zach Harrison, Garrett Wilson, and Harry Miller — were more than all but four other schools, and of those four, only Georgia (5) had more five-stars than Ohio State.

The three five-stars raised the player average enough to mask the fact that most of the class was a little lower rated than normal. The median player rating (and box plots even more) shows this better than the mean:



If you remove Ohio State’s three five-stars, the average recruit is rated .9034 — a lower-rated four-star. If you remove the three highest rated players from the 2017 class, the average player is still rated .9439.

This definitely doesn’t mean that this is a bad class. The 2019 class is still phenomenal, and could absolutely win a championship under Ryan Day. The three five-stars look like no-brainer sure-things, and I’m really excited to see what other guys like Marcus Crowley, Cormontae Hamilton, and Jaden McKenzie do in Columbus.

But it’s also worth noting that the class as a whole is still a step down from the recent standard for Ohio State recruiting under Urban Meyer. It’s only a slight step down, and one class usually doesn’t mean much in the grand scheme, but it’s still worth noting.

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Ohio State offers 2020 defensive end, crack top 6 for 2020 small forward
Patrick Mayhorn via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


The Buckeyes are in the running for an elite 2020 basketball player

Early Tuesday morning, the Ohio State Buckeyes sent out a pretty huge offer. With quite a few targets at defensive end still on the board, Ohio State has a ton of options in the 2020 class up front. However, the Buckeyes are apparently very confident in a bit of a lesser known prospect, because they extended an offer to three-star defensive end Deontae Craig.


Deontae’s skills, and ultimately, the reason he picked up this offer, are evident immediately on film. Firstly, he has an excellent frame. At 6-foot-4, 240 pounds, you won’t many recruits more physically ready for college football than Craig. On top of his great size, Deontae is an excellent athlete, as is evident by his impact not just on the football field but also on the basketball court, where he serves as an excellent forward. That takes a ton of athletic ability, and Craig is certainly that.

Ultimately, while he doesn’t have the lofty ranking quite yet (sits at 519 currently), Ohio State sees the same thing that Craig’s nine other offering schools have seen. This recruitment is ready to explode, and if Deontae Craig can develop his technical skill under someone like Larry Johnson, he can be a star.

In the running


While we’re still not super far into the 2020 college basketball recruiting cycle, Ohio State’s top targets for the class, and the generally picture of what this group might look like for the Buckeyes is becoming clearer by the day. We may have gotten a big hint as to who the first member of the class may be yesterday, as four-star small forward Che Evans included the Buckeyes in his top six schools.


The Buckeyes are joined by TCU, Texas Tech, Boise State, UCLA and Florida in the running for the Maryland product, and I think the Buckeyes have as good a shot as anyone here if they go all in for Evans. Now, does that happen? I’m not sold on it. Ohio State has either two or three available spots in 2020 depending on what they do with the open scholarship left by Micah Potter, and the Buckeyes have several prospects I think they’d take first, including Dom Penn, Zach Loveday, Brandon Boston, Nimari Burnett, and perhaps Ethan Morton.

However, only one of those players (Morton) is a forward, and my expectation is that the Buckeyes want one guard (likely Penn), one combo guard or forward (Morton, Boston, Burnett, Evans) and one big man (Loveday, John Hughley). Neither Boston nor Burnett seem likely at this point, so I’m guessing this one comes down to preference for the Buckeyes between Morton and Evans. If Evans wins that, he could be a member of the 2020 class sooner rather than later.

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What exactly will Ohio State’s offense be like this season?
Justin Golba via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Will a Big 12 style offense be what the Buckeyes show this season? If it is, that brings another question: what exactly is a Big 12 offense?

“In fact, the past few seasons have seen some of the most innovative spread offenses contracting — finding more ways to run the ball against defenses that adjusted to the pass-happy attacks by getting faster and more athletic but smaller.”


-Marcus Hartman, Dayton Daily News

When Ryan Day hired Mike Yurcich from Oklahoma State to join his staff as the passing game coordinator and the QB coach, many Ohio State fans were excited to see a new face. Yurcich had been with the Cowboys from 2013-18 as their offensive coordinator and QB coach.

The air raid offense is a fun and enjoyable way to watch football and many Buckeye fans will be excited to see how Yurcich and Day can adapt it to fit newcomer Justin Fields. The offense was created by Mike Leach and Hal Mumme and then after working for both of them, Dana Holgorsen brought it to Oklahoma State where Mike Gundy and later Mike Yurcich both adapted it.

It is a much more complex system now and in the three years Ryan Day has been at Ohio State, he has been the driving force behind the adaption of the Ohio State passing attack. Many people feel that Mike Yurcich will bring the high-flying Big 12 offense to Ohio State, but Yurcich has made it a point to say that every offense is different and also that a Big 12 offense is not as easy to define as many think. He says that a lot of it comes down to spreading the field and throwing the ball vertically to create space for the offense. It will be interesting to see what part of the Oklahoma State and Big 12 offense that Yurcich brings to Columbus.

“Last weekend, Miller went to Los Angeles and competed against some of the West Coast’s best quarterbacks in an attempt to win a spot in the Elite 11 Finals. And he wound up punching a ticket.”


-Jeremy Birmingham, Lettermen Row

Jack Miller is one of the best recruits in the 2020 class, but that has not come without overcoming some obstacles. Miller attends Scottsdale Chaparral High School in Arizona and has quickly shot up the recruiting rankings. Unfortunately, Miller tore his MCL in Mid-October halfway through his junior season and has spent hours each day trying to rehab it and get it back to 100 percent. He has just finally gotten back to full speed and he just was recently named the MVP of the Los Angeles regional of the Elite 11 and will move onto the finals that will take place this summer.

The 6-foot-4, 210-pound quarterback is currently ranked fourth among pro style quarterbacks in the 2020 recruiting class and is a four-star recruit. He committed to Ohio State back in late July and even though he did take a visit to LSU in December, and the recent transfer of former five-star Georgia recruit Justin Fields had many speculating, Miller has stayed committed to the Buckeyes. He is the type of quarterback that has a mountain of potential and can flourish in the Ohio State and Ryan Day system.

For him to come into the Elite 11 regional coming off of an injury and still be named MVP shows just how talented and resilient the young quarterback is. He still has another year of high school and barring a setback, he will have many opportunities to improve and fine tune his game before he gets to Columbus. He will also likely sit his first year and learn the offense and the team before he becomes the main shot caller for Ohio State. Tune into the Elite 11 finals this summer to see exactly where Miller stacks up against the country’s best high school quarterbacks.

“Ohio State fans watching likely were thinking, “That’s what happens when you play freshmen!” And future Buckeyes wide receiver Garrett Wilson was watching and thinking to himself, “I can do that.”


-Ari Wasserman, The Athletic

Freshman (and underclassmen) that can play have done well in recent years on the big stage.

Justyn Ross totaled 12 catches for 301 yards and three touchdowns in the College Football Playoff with the Clemson Tigers; Tee Higgins added two big touchdown catches, too. Ross was especially important after he made a couple acrobatic catches against Alabama that helped the Tigers seal the deal and hoist the college football playoff trophy. So with one of the highest ranked receiver recruits Ohio State has had in recent years coming to Columbus, many Buckeye fans were left wondering if they will see their young freshman have a similar impact in the big moments.

Wilson looks to make an immediate impact on the Buckeyes offense and with the losses of Parris Campbell, Terry McLaurin and Johnnie Dixon, head coach Ryan Day will surely look to get Wilson some serious reps in game situations. The five-star recruit has said that he feels like he will get some minutes this year because he is a “confident kid” who will “answer a question like that with a yes every time”.

Wilson has had many opportunities on the national stage recently to show of his hands and has not disappointed. He is not the tallest as he is only listed at 6-foot-1, but with his incredible length and athleticism, he has made a name for himself by pulling off some spectacular and athletic catches. He will look to do the same this coming season for Ryan Day and Brian Hartline.

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5-star OLB lists Ohio State among top schools
Dan Hessler via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Five-star OLB Sav’ell Smalls lists Ohio State in his top schools and 2020 Buckeye QB commit Jack Miller earns prestigious honor.

With the 2019 recruiting class now behind us, Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day is hard at work ensuring his first true recruiting class as head of the program is one of the best in the country come National Signing Day 2020.

The class is off to a tremendous start as the program has already earned verbal commitments from seven of the country’s top prospects, good for No. 4 in the country in the 247Sports Class Rankings. However, Day and his new coaching staff are far from finished and have moved one step closer in securing a verbal commitment from another elite prospect.

Five-star OLB Sav’ell Smalls (Seattle, WA / Garfield) announced his top 12 schools last weekend on Twitter and Ohio State was listed among the group.


Along with Ohio State, Smalls listed Florida, Texas, Clemson, Miami, Washington State, Oklahoma, Oregon, Florida State, Texas A&M, Washington and Alabama.

Obviously, the Buckeyes have stiff competition in earning a commitment from Smalls and the blue-chip prospect is nowhere near making a final decision. Currently, Florida State is viewed as the favorite to land Smalls but we will learn more insight into what he is thinking in the spring when he is allowed to take early official visits to the schools he is interested in.

Expect Ohio State to continue pursuing Smalls in hopes of getting him on campus soon.

Ohio State 2020 QB commit heading to Elite 11 Finals


One of Ohio State’s most important commits in its 2020 recruiting class is four-star QB Jack Miller (Scottsdale, AZ / Chaparral).

Unfortunately for Miller, his junior season ended early after suffering a torn MCL. However, Miller is back on his feet and it appears as if he hasn’t lost a step while rehabilitating his knee.

Miller participated in two camps this past weekend and passed the eye test with flying colors, one of those events being the Elite 11 in The Opening L.A. Regional.


Not only did Miller look good throwing the ball in the weekend events, he was named the MVP at the QB position at The Opening L.A. Regional. On top of this, Miller locked in a spot in the Elite 11 Finals, where he will compete against the top QB’s in his class this June.


Miller is the No. 4 pro-style QB in this year’s class and is the No. 65 overall prospect in the 247Sports Composite Rankings.

And on a side note, Miller was also spotted recruiting more elite talents to join him next year in Columbus.

Quick Hits:

• The Basketball Buckeyes received good news on multiple targets Monday when 2019 four-star SG Lester Quinones listed the team among his top ten schools and 2021 five-star PF Caleb Furst announced he will be taking an unofficial visit to Ohio State in early March.
• Five-star LSU CB commit Elias Ricks announced he will be taking an official visit to Ohio State later this year and that the Buckeyes are the most aggressive team recruiting him right now.

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Assistant DB Coach

This dunking science teacher is the coolest
He’s using dunks to teach science

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Like most teachers, Clark has a second job — it just so happens that his is “professional dunker”. Clark is a member of “Team Airstrike”, a professional dunking team that puts on exhibitions, and recently supplied entertainment during halftime of a Fresno State game.
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He’s pretty much the coolest teacher.

Entire article: https://www.sbnation.com/lookit/2019/2/14/18224983/dunking-science-teacher-jonathan-clark-video

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https://www.golfdigest.com/story/th...d-might-be-this-middle-school-science-teacher

Anybody have a midle school science teacher as cool as that guy?

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AJHawkfan said:

Ok. But Harbrau still has Germany, right? Or was is Austria? Holland? The Netherlands (not to be confused with the nether-regions)

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I think he was going hard at Liechtenstein: population of 37,810.

OHSportsFan said:

Agree on the fog, though I'm guessing some of it may have been some herbal smoke?

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Herbal smoke?! Huh...

*shrugs shoulders*

Not sure if it's a 'firstie' but, would like to see tOSU equal Meatchicken's win streak over the good guys prior to 1938. Things equal out eventually, so this would be an equal to that. And all of us were alive for this one. We'll let the team up north recreate history (like tOSUl did in the above), eg. 'post 1938'. Go Bucks!

BUCKS GOING NORTH. The CFL is going to have some Buckeye flavor this season as both DeVier Posey and Dontre Wilson inked fresh Canadian Football League contracts yesterday.

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This is Wilson's first CFL contract since he was on the BC Lions' practice squad in 2017, but Posey is a seasoned CFL veteran, and a former Grey Cup MVP.

Entire article: https://www.elevenwarriors.com/skul...devier-posey-dontre-wilson-sign-cfl-contracts

Ohio State survives another nail-biter, defeats Indiana 55-52
Geoff Hammersley via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


It’s never easy with the Buckeyes.

The winning ways are back. The Ohio State Buckeyes pulled off a big road victory against the Indiana Hoosiers behind a 15-point performance from Andre Wesson.

Ohio State, who appeared as a No. 9 seed in Jerry Palm’s (CBS Sports) bracket projection, now ride a three-game winning streak. After a 1-6 January, the Bucks seem to be back on the right track.

After collecting only six points in the last game against Penn State, Kaleb Wesson scored 10 points against the Hoosiers. Working shots inside, the Buckeye big man was 5-of-9 from the field. Wesson, a regular in foul trouble, was only whistled three times.

Luther Muhammad secured nine points along with two assists. The leading scorer last time out, he had the fourth most points on the team behind Andre (15), C.J. Jackson (10) and Kaleb (10).

Let's take a look at how this one went down in Assembly Hall.


In front of a packed audience of 17,222, the Buckeyes won the opening tip. Muhammad missed the first shot of the game, and moments after that, Kaleb Wesson committed the first foul of the game. On the brightside: Andre Wesson made the first basket with 18:43 left on the clock.

Thanks to an Andre turnover, Justin Smith capitalized with a bouncing shot off the rim from the free throw area to tie the game at 2-2.

An all-around attack from OSU paced them on a 9-0 run, and a very early 11-2 lead. Muhammad connected on a three, and a layup thanks to a Juwan Morgan TO; Kaleb took a basket via layup; and Andre Wesson, like his brother, made a two-pointer via layup.

Romeo Langford broke up the OSU scoring spree with a three-pointer. Then, following a bad pass from Kyle Young, Langford dunked the ball home. Another turnover—this time by Duane Washington—led to to a Devonte Green bucket. At the under-12 media timeout, OSU held the slim advantage at 11-9.

Ohio State pulled their lead to as many as nine, but the Hoosiers came clawing back—a theme of the first half. Turnovers from Kaleb Wesson, Jaedon Ledee and C.J. Jackson were part of the reason for OSU’s offense going stale for a few minutes, and coupled with IU baskets, made the game within a possession at the break, 23-21.

Another reason for why OSU’s lead shrunk: the Buckeyes closed out the first half with five missed shots.

To begin the second half, Kaleb committed another TO; Smith made the Bucks pay, as he took advantage of a second-chance opportunity. Wesson would atone for his mistake on the other end with a layup on the next possession.

Ohio State would get hot, though, as a pair of missed three-pointers by IU led to Kaleb making a layup, and Muhammad knocking down a three of his own. Andre and C.J. would make shots too, and at the under-16 media break, OSU was back up by nine.

But like the first half, turnovers helped give the Hoosiers life. A bad pass from Jackson led to De’ron Davis capitalizing for two. However, with IU within four, Jackson popped a three from the center of the arc to give Ohio State a seven-point, 39-32, lead.

Washington Jr. would then make a three to give OSU 42 points. That’d be all the scoring Holtmann’s squad could muster for four minutes. In that timespan, Langford made a layup and the Hoosiers close the gap (again) heading into the under-8 timeout.

Right out the mini break, Langford went up for a layup on Kaleb, and the result was a knee to Kaleb’s lower midsection as Langford drove to the basket. On the same sequence, Andre got the rebound, but injured his hand in the process as the Hoosiers tried to swipe the ball. Young subbed in for Kaleb Wesson, as Andre stayed in the game.

Keeping Andre in the game was huge, as he drained a three from the far wing. In the rebuttal possession, Langford connected on a wide open three on the near wing to bring the score to 47-41 in favor of the visitors.

The next two series were unkind to Andre. He missed a three, and then was called for traveling. In response, the Hoosiers made two deep three-pointers—tying the game at 47-47. IU strung together a 9-0 run in just under 90 seconds.

After another travel—this time on Muhammad—the Hoosiers had a chance for their first lead of the game. Langford’s layup attempt didn’t go swish, and on the opposite end, Musa Jallow went for a circus, underneath-the-basket layup that was way off target. The comedy of mistakes continued as the Hoosiers’ Green turned the ball over to Andre Wesson.

Wesson and the Bucks got a timeout on the steal. After the commercials aired, OSU took the ball up the floor, and thanks to a second-chance effort by Andre after a Keyshawn Woods miss, the Buckeyes had the lead at 49-47. The lead was short lived; Rob Phinisee had a layup that kissed the high part of the glass before dropping in.

Phinisee wasn’t done making plays just yet. After a steal, Green hit a three with the shot clock ticking away to give IU their first lead of the game, 52-49. On the rebuttal, and with the shot clock down to two, Jackson uncorked a triple from what seemed like the parking lot. He nailed it—tying the contest at 52-52.

IU called a timeout, and on the ensuing inbound, Morgan turned the ball over to Andre Wesson. After Holtmann burned a timeout and made a substitution, Andre dunked the ball. Ohio State held the 54-52 advantage with 20 seconds remaining.

Langford attempt a deep (and contested) three with 12 seconds left—missing it. Muhammad got the rebound before being fouled. He made one of two free throws, and a desperation three from Green at the buzzer was off the mark.

Up next for OSU will be Illinois. The Bucks won the earlier matchup this season 77-67 on Dec. 5, 2018. The grudge match is scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 14 at 7 p.m. ET.

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Ohio State men’s basketball vs. Indiana: Game preview, prediction
Gene Ross 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 stay undefeated in February when they take on the Hoosiers.

For the first time in the Chris Holtmann era, the Buckeyes (15-7, 5-6) were finally able to get a win against Penn State, coming away with a gritty 74-70 win on their home floor. Now having won two of the last three games, Ohio State will travel to Indiana to take on the Hoosiers (13-10, 4-8) at Assembly Hall. The game is scheduled to tip-off at 1 p.m. ET and will be broadcast on CBS.

Preview


Ohio State finally defeated the Nittany Lions on Thursday night after not doing so in all three tries a season ago. In a game that came down to the final buzzer, the Buckeyes were led by Luther Muhammad. The freshman finished with 20 points to go along with five rebounds and four assists. Once again, Kaleb Wesson struggled to stay on the floor, hurting himself with foul trouble the majority of the night before fouling out with 1:45 remaining. The sophomore forward would finish with just six points.

One of the biggest stories of the game was the surprise return of forward Kyle Young, who had missed the team’s previous four games with a stress fracture in his leg. Especially with Wesson in foul trouble, Young was an essential part of the Buckeyes victory. The sophomore played 25 minutes, scoring six points to go along with six rebounds and two blocks, helping to clog the paint when Wesson was forced to sit. Young also scored the go-ahead basket with 63 seconds remaining that would put OSU on top for good.

Despite his fouling woes and low scoring output on the night, Ohio State continued to be a much better team with Kaleb Wesson on the floor. Playing only 19 minutes in the game, Wesson finished with a team-high plus/minus of +16. Even when he isn't putting up 20 points a night, the 6-foot-9, 270-pound Wesson is a physical presence that has to be dealt with on both sides of the floor. As a big scoring threat inside, he almost always draws a double that provides an open shot for a teammate. At the other end, his huge frame makes it incredibly difficult to get good looks inside. If Ohio State wants to continue to find success, Wesson must be able to stay on the floor.

The Buckeyes got the job done in the first act of this three-game stretch of very winnable contests. A loss to Penn State would have certainly put their tournament odds in jeopardy. Now, they head on the road to take on an Indiana team also fighting for its tournament life before returning home to face a 9-15 Illinois. Ohio State must continue to handle business over this stretch of games, because the road ahead does not get any easier, with four of five games against ranked opponents following the bout with the Illini. For now, OSU just has to focus on getting a road win against the Hoosiers.

Indiana started off the season 12-2, but it all came crashing down upon entering conference play. After a 74-63 loss to Michigan in the beginning of January, the Hoosiers went on to lose seven straight games before a shocking 79-75 overtime upset win over Michigan State in East Lansing. The win over Sparty has really been the only bright spot for Indiana in 2019, as they are currently losers of eight of their last nine games, falling to Iowa 77-72 in their last time out.

Despite shooting nearly 50 percent in the game, the Hoosiers fell just short of the Hawkeyes on Thursday night in Bloomington. Romeo Langford did his best to try and will his team to a win, dropping 22 points and five rebounds, but it was not enough to counter Jordan Bohannon’s takeover in the final minute of the game for Iowa. The junior scored the last 11 points for the Hawkeyes, including two deep three-pointers with time winding down on the shot clock. Juwan Morgan also had a really good night for Indiana, scoring 17 points on 7-of-9 shooting, but it wasn’t enough to stop Iowa from getting its first win in Assembly Hall since 2015.

Langford, a freshman, has been the Hoosiers leading scorer all season long, averaging 17.6 points per game and over five rebounds. It is no surprise the young 6-foot-5 guard is having a stellar first season, as he was the seventh overall player in the 2018 class (247sports), just two spots behind Zion Williamson, and the No. 1 player out of the state of Indiana. Just behind him on the roster is Morgan, as the senior is averaging 15.9 points per game to go along with almost eight boards and 1.4 blocks per game.

Despite their struggles, the Hoosiers are not a team that Ohio State should take lightly. Given their current situation, this game is as much of a must-win for them, if not more, than it is for the Buckeyes, as each additional loss pushes them farther and farther away from a chance at making the tournament. Indiana showed flashes of great basketball against Iowa, and even outplayed them during large stretches of the contest, but were unable to put together a full 40-minute performance to get the win. If they learn from their mistakes against the Hawkeyes, the Hoosiers will be a tough opponent, especially with the crowd on their side.

Prediction

ESPN BPI: Indiana 62.8%

Vegas Line: Indiana -2


The Hoosiers have had the Buckeyes’ number throughout the history of this Big Ten matchup, leading the all-time series 105-79. While Ohio State owns a 53-36 record in Columbus, Indiana is a whopping 63-26 in Bloomington against the Scarlet and Gray. C.J. Jackson is OSU’s leading scorer against the Hoosiers, averaging 13.7 points in three career appearances in the matchup. Kaleb Wesson averaged 13 points in both meetings between the two teams a season ago, with Ohio State winning both contests.

Langford is going to be a lot to handle for the Buckeye defense, but it will be an exciting freshman-on-freshman matchup between himself and Muhammad. Speaking of Muhammad, it is looking more and more each game like he will have to become Ohio State’s go-to scorer in times of need, especially when Wesson is not on the floor. He will have to have another high-scoring outburst if the Bucks want to escape with a win in this one.

Ultimately, as it usually does, the game will come down to Wesson and managing his fouls. Ohio State was able to get away with it against a spiraling Penn State team, but they will not survive against the Hoosiers with their best player on the bench. They will need his defensive presence inside to limit the damage by Langford and Morgan. As was the case for both teams in their last time out, we will have another gritty, down-to-the-wire Big Ten matchup on our hands. When the final buzzer sounds, it will be Ohio State emerging victorious, thanks in part to a good shooting performance by Keyshawn Woods.

LGHL Final Score Prediction: 69-67 Ohio State

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Gene Smith steps down from CFP committee
Patrick Mayhorn via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


After three seasons, Smith is no longer on the committee.

“It is imperative for me to have 100% focus in helping our new coach with his transition at The Ohio State University this fall.”

- Gene Smith via Jerry Emig


After three years of serving on the College Football Playoff committee, Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith is stepping down a year before his contract is up, according to Ohio State SID Jerry Emig. It’s pretty easy to understand why Smith wouldn’t want any extra responsibilities this year, as he focuses on the transition from Urban Meyer to Ryan Day, and that’s reflected in his quote.

While Ohio State fans may not be delighted with the decisions made by the committee for the past few years, Gene Smith was, by all accounts, a valued member of the group.

Smith will be replaced by Gary Barta, Iowa’s athletic director, on the selection committee. The term for Barta will be three years, and begins this spring.

Local man has a bad take


Folks, you’ll never believe this, but professional take haver Stephen A. Smith had a take today, and as you may have seen, it was a real doozy. This morning on his show ‘First Take’, during a discussion about Kyler Murray and former Buckeye Dwayne Haskins, Stephen A. Smith showed his hand a bit by declaring Dwayne Haskins “more of a runner than a thrower.”


I think my favorite part of this is the “I could be wrong about that” afterwards, which is, for my money, the absolute best way to follow up the statement of an opinion.

All of this is, of course, absurd. Folks that watched Ohio State at all in 2018 know that Dwayne Haskins went to the Cardale Jones school of running like a haunted downhill shopping cart, and not in any way a better runner than he is a thrower.

However, this is a good chance to remind Buckeye fans that shows like this, and people like Stephen A. Smith exist to get you riled up. Their job is to have strong, often incorrect opinions, because it drives interest and generates more money. It’s fun to dunk on them (I did my fair share), but ultimately, they’re getting what they want when you spend all day owning them online.

Wrestle Bucks set for massive matchup with Penn State


Looking for something to do in Columbus tonight? Look no further than St. John Arena, where the second ranked Ohio State Buckeyes are taking on the No. 1 team in the country, Penn State, at 8:30 p.m. ET. This is obviously a massive match for the Buckeyes, as they look to be in the running for a national title once again this season.

The road to the national title, as usually, runs through Penn State. The Nittany Lions have probably the most consistently dominant program in the country, and Ohio State has a huge opportunity to take them down tonight. You can watch the match in person, obviously, or on the Big Ten Network.

In case you missed it on Land-Grant Holy Land

• Justin Fields will be ready to play for the 2019-20 season.
• A quick review of last night’s OSU basketball win against Penn State.
• Another edition of Hangout in the Holy Land has dropped.

Stick to sports

• 105.7 is no longer “The Zone”, has gone back to playing bad music.
• The best games of 2019 so far.
• Facebook doesn’t understand “The Teens”.

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Report: Justin Fields ruled immediately eligible to play in 2019
Patrick Mayhorn via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


The former five-star recruit will more than likely be OSU’s starting QB this fall.

Per a report from The Athletic’s Brian Hamilton, newly transfer Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields will be eligible to play for the Buckeyes this upcoming season. The former five-star recruit spent one season at the University of Georgia, but will not have to sit out a year before he plays for OSU.


There was never too much doubt that Fields would be granted his waiver, due to an encounter that he had at Georgia with a baseball player using a racial slur, but the official announcement is still a relief for the quarterback, and obviously for the Buckeyes, who almost certainly have their next starting quarterback thanks to the decision.

Fields played sparingly for Georgia as a freshman, completing 27 of his 39 passing attempts for 328 yards and four scores, while adding another 266 yards and four scores on the ground in 12 games played. For more on what Ohio State is getting from their new quarterback, you can check out our in-depth film study from January.

Following the announcement, Fields issued a statement in which he thanked the NCAA, and said that he had no regrets or hard feelings about his time at UGA.


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Just like the ocean under the moon, Ohio State’s transition to the Ryan Day era has been smooth
Colton Denning via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Our latest podcast talks Signing Day, and Ryan Day.

*Hits Carlos Santana guitar rift*

For the first time in a long time, there wasn’t much to talk about on National Signing Day for Ohio State. With most of its 17-player class already in tow, the Buckeyes secured a couple of offensive line commitments, and kept it moving towards the 2020 cycle. While there wasn’t the big “BOOM” Urban Meyer made us accustomed to, Ohio State’s small 2019 class is loaded with top-end talent, and shows that things are more than just fine in Columbus after losing a legendary coach.


On this episode of the Hangout in the Holy Land, Patrick Mayhorn and I discuss Ohio State’s ‘quality over quantity’ 2019 recruiting class, how Ryan Day has aced his first couple months, the differences between him and Meyer, and more.

Show notes


:30- It was weird having such a calm signing day

2:35- It’ll be a while before we see Dawand Jones and Enokk Vimahi play, but Day and his staff did a hell of a job bringing them in

5:45- Doug Nester’s de-commitment was set in stone once Meyer was out

7:10- This class defines ‘quality over quantity’

9:37- No concerns about Ryan Day’s recruiting + how his style is different from Meyer’s

13:20- The era of signing top-two classes is probably over, but we’ll take top-five and better personnel decisions.

19:10- Not many schools can lose someone like Meyer and keep it rolling + Gene Smith appreciation

21:30- Basketball’s important three-game stretch (which started with a wild 74-70 win over Penn State last night)

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Well, they are the Fighting Irish...

Mike Mitchell Overcame Setbacks On Journey From Five-Star Ohio State Recruit To The NAIA

Mike Mitchell is a prime example of the unpredictability of how the career of a top recruit, or any recruit, will turn out.

Entire article: https://www.forbes.com/sites/tomlay...-ohio-state-recruit-to-the-naia/#5323bf7c2d55

Mitchell balled out in the NAIA last season and plans to attend pro days at Southeastern and possibly UCF to show NFL scouts what he can do.
https://www.elevenwarriors.com/skul...s-mike-mitchell-naia-nfl-dreams-2019-rankings

going back to the previous page, ahmad and mitchell were linked... but not in the way that's immediately obvious.