Very close. I had a blast as always.

Sheffield was all over the field making plays in the passing game and made a statement by picking off Sam Darnold and taking it to the house.

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Uh, that wasn't Sheffield...

Dienhart: ‘The Big Ten made a big statement in this postseason’
Tom Dienhart, BTN.com Senior Writer via Big Ten Network

With another bowl season behind us - a highly successful one, at that - we decided to pick BTN.com senior writer Tom Dienhart's brain about the conference's 7-1 performance. Get our full Q&A inside.

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Buckeyes Roundball Roundup: Bucks Beat Miami (Ohio) to close out non-conference schedule - Waiting For Next Year
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Buckeyes Roundball Roundup: Bucks Beat Miami (Ohio) to close out non-conference schedule
Waiting For Next Year
In an eight-day span that featured both Christmas and New Year's Day, the college basketball season somewhat stalled, allowing players to go home to their families during the week and getting back on the basketball schedule during the weekend. With ...

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Dwayne Haskins makes CFP New Year's resolution - 247Sports
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Dwayne Haskins makes CFP New Year's resolution
247Sports
For Ohio State fans, the new year brought with it the realization that the Buckeyes were not in the College Football Playoff. Instead OSU players, staff and fans watched the semifinal games from home on Monday. But with only one game left in the 2017 ...
Ohio State QB Dwayne Haskins, Penn State RB Miles Sanders among ESPN's 2018 breakout playersLandof10.com

all 2 news articles »

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Big Ten Whiteboard: Michigan State at Ohio State highlights hoops slate
Tom Dienhart, BTN.com Senior Writer via Big Ten Network

The dust has settled on football season. And that means the action on the basketball court is about to heat up with full-bore conference action. Here’s a look at the week ahead.

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Final thoughts on Ohio State’s 2017 season, the Big Ten and more
Matt Brown via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Was this year a success? Is the Playoff broken? What should we expect from the Big Ten in 2018?

The 2017 season isn’t officially over-over yet, since Georgia and Alabama still have to play the SEC Championship Game, er, National Title, but for Ohio State fans, the season is finished, and the look towards next year can really begin in earnest.

It’s been a weird season, with an especially weird final week. There was another convincing victory over a big-time opponent in a major bowl, unexpected bowl dominance from the Big Ten, a controversial Playoff field, and more weirdness.

You probably have a bunch of thoughts! I do too. Let me share a few as we close the book on this year, and move into the future:

• Look, I get why an Ohio State fan might feel underwhelmed or frustrated, but let’s remember some important context first. The 2017 Ohio State Buckeyes went 12-2, winning at least 11 games for the sixth consecutive year. They won the Cotton Bowl, and beat three Top-10 opponents this season, including the Fiesta Bowl and Orange Bowl champions. They were one of the best teams in the country, on a per-play basis, and demolished nearly everybody in the Big Ten. They also beat Michigan again. I can’t tell you how to fan, but I will say that objectively, that’s a pretty darn good season!

• To me, this also underscores the importance of plain ol’ luck in college football. To win a national title, not only do you need to recruit a ton of elite players, hire good coaches, develop raw talent, etc, etc...you need to be lucky. Lucky with injuries. Lucky with avoiding meltdowns that happen with teams of 20 year old dudes on limited practice time. Lucky that those meltdowns happen during opportune weeks. If you’re consistently excellent, eventually, you hope to be a position to win it all. The Buckeyes got a little lucky in 2014, and have been unlucky the last few seasons, as far as timing their mistakes. These things happen.

• Also, it’s probably worth mentioning just one last time...how the hell did that Iowa game happen? I saw Ari Wasserman tweet last night that all things considered, the Iowa might be the worst in Ohio State history, given the margin, the quality of both teams, etc. I think he might be right. At the very least, it’s the worst loss in 20 years, and it’s going to look even weirder as time goes on.

• The Big Ten had a really impressive bowl season! That’s usually not how things work, given that the conference typically plays most of these games on the road, and has been slotted into some really terrible matchups in recent memory. That wasn’t the case this year (not having a team in the playoff probably helped, tbh), and they also caught a few lucky bounces. I don’t think that means the committee made the wrong choice with Ohio State/Alabama (why the hell should a Purdue or Northwestern game, two teams that didn’t play Ohio State, matter in that decision?), but it’s a nice accomplishment all the same. The Big Ten was the deepest league in the country this season, a welcome change from recent memory. That’s what making a bunch of good coaching hires will do for you.

• Also, Michigan. Lol.

• Okay, let’s actually talk about Michigan real quick. I’ve been a big proponent of Michigan being excellent next season, and they may very well be excellent. They’re returning nearly their entire roster, they’ve recruited at an elite level, and they have one of the best defensive coordinators in the sport. But that Outback Bowl, where the Wolverines were outcoached by...Will Muschamp, and lost to a flatly inferior squad, really gives me some pause.

• Forget the quarterbacks for a second. Michigan will probably get at least above average QB play next year. But despite all their quality recruiting, Michigan’s offensive line has not been nearly as good as it should be. Their power run game hasn’t developed like it should. And they have not been able to hold leads or maintain execution against good teams over four quarters, leading them to blow games they shouldn’t. Part of that has to be on their coaching staff. And while they’re going to have a talented 2018 team, they’re facing a really tough schedule.

• I’m not saying Michigan is going to suck, or that Harbaugh is awful (or that he’s the sixth best coach in the Big Ten even, like I saw on Twitter a few times). But perhaps my faith in the Wolverines was a bit misplaced. They need to take a big step forward next season.

• Will Ohio State? I’m not sure.

• I think this will be a fun offseason to be an Ohio State fan. You can throw whatever barbs you want at Michigan (or basically any other Big Ten rival) and there really isn’t anything they can say back, and you also have a big empty canvass to project your hopes and dreams for the offense. Frustrated with a read-option focused rushing attack that struggled to pass the ball downfield? Maybe you’ll have a team quarterbacked by strong armed Dwayne Haskins, who would force a different look. Or maybe you get Joe Burrow, or even Tate Martell, who offer different twists on what we’ve seen the last few years.

• There are question marks, for sure (defensive end depth, offensive line depth, linebackers), but there’s also oodles of young talent at wideout, tight end and running back. You can imagine whatever you’d like for the next few months.

• I imagine we’ll be talking about the Playoff this offseason a lot, too.

• I get the frustration. UCF pretty clearly got screwed, never even cracking the CFP Top 10 despite winning a good league, then bodying a good Auburn team. And now we’re stuck with an SEC/SEC title game, a scenario the Playoff was created, in part, to explicitly avoid. Some stuff the committee said it valued, like playing difficult non-conference schedules, was in fact, not so valued. That’s all a bummer.

• I don’t know if expanding the playoff to eight teams is the best solution (without expanding roster sizes or changing redshirt rules, it probably isn’t), but I get why people are clamoring for it. More than anything, I hope that before this contract ends, I hope we get some real diversity on the committee. More people with G5 ties. More stat-heads. More people who are not ADs or former coaches. Let’s get some very clearly defined criteria and then actually try to stick with it, rather than spending the season trying to dissect conflicting rationale with talmudic distinctions.

• The system we have right now isn’t fair. Maybe someday we’ll have something that is. But college football ain’t ever been fair, not since Walter Camp was trying to delay rules reform to benefit Yale. It wasn’t fair before the Sanity Code. It wasn’t fair when Texas or Nebraska could sign 50 kids a recruiting class. It wasn’t fair in the BCS. And it probably won’t be fair after tweaks are made in the future.

• I’m open to talk about those all Summer. Beats the hell out of fretting about satellite camps.

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Best of 2017-18 Big Ten Bowls: Grades, individual honors & numbers
Tom Dienhart, BTN.com Senior Writer via Big Ten Network

The Big Ten posted a glistening 7-1 mark in bowls. Only an Outback Bowl loss by Michigan on New Year’s Day kept the league from going 8-0. Bottom line: There was a lot to enjoy. Here is the Best of the Big Ten Bowl Season.

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Buckeyes in the NFL: Week 17 - 247Sports
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Buckeyes in the NFL: Week 17
247Sports
Once again, Ohio State had a number of talented players that moved on from last year's team to the NFL, including seven who got selected on draft day back in April. Those players join a large pool of former Buckeyes stars that are now playing in "the ...


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Polls: Big Ten football bowl game picks revisited
Brent Yarina, BTN.com Senior Editor via Big Ten Network

The Big Ten just wrapped up a highly successful 2017-18 bowl season, starting 7-0 before losing its final game. As we've done all season, we had BTN.com senior writer Tom Dienhart and Big Ten fans pick their Big Ten winners.

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LordJeffBuck said:

Walmart Army is all over Twitter claiming that 2017 was a rebuilding year and "2018 will be our year - All Praise to Harbaugh!" You know, same [Mark May] that we've been hearing for three years now.

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I have no doubt.

Ohio State football: Michigan ruins Big Ten's perfect bowl season; assessing Buckeyes' QB competition - Landof10.com
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Ohio State football: Michigan ruins Big Ten's perfect bowl season; assessing Buckeyes' QB competition
Landof10.com
The Buckeyes are in the post-J.T. Barrett era. And now that his Ohio State career has come to a close, one of the Buckeyes' most-pressing questions entering 2018 is who will be behind center. Dwayne Haskins, who served as Barrett's backup in 2017, is ...
Future Ohio State Buckeyes react to Cotton Bowl victoryLand-Grant Holy Land
Ohio State women's basketball | Buckeyes 85, Hoosiers 70The Columbus Dispatch
Ohio State's top-10 moment of 2017247Sports
The Herald-Times -Eleven Warriors
all 75 news articles »

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Future Ohio State stars shine in first U.S. Army Bowl practice
Dan Hessler via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Some Buckeye commits dominated in the first US Army All-American Bowl practice.

With Ohio State’s 2017 football season wrapped up following a dominating 24-7 win against USC, Columbus is likely already starving for more football. Luckily, multiple future Buckeyes are participating in this year’s US Army All-American Bowl.

The first practices for the event took place Monday, and due to inclement weather, the schedule was slightly different this year. Both teams in the event practiced indoors at different times, but the schedule change didn’t prevent members of Ohio State’s 2018 recruiting class from standing out.

Ohio State safety commit Tyreke Johnson (Jacksonville, FL/Trinity Christian Academy) might have had the best practice among all participants Monday. The four-star lined up as both a safety and a cornerback and excelled at both.

Steve Wiltfong of 247Sports attended the event and labeled the future Buckeye as his day 1 alpha dog performer.


“From 1-on-1s to the team competition portion, future Buckeye defensive back Tyreke Johnson impressed with his coverage ability and physicality,” Wiltfong said about the four-star prospect. “Johnson took reps at cornerback and safety, covered receivers and tight ends and showed a complete skill set in the secondary.”

Johnson is of prototypical size to excel at the next level. The 247Sports Composite Rankings have him listed as the No. 5 S in the class and the No. 42 overall prospect regardless of position, but he will likely play at CB for Ohio State.

Another Ohio State commit to shine at the first day of practice was inside-linebacker commit Teradja Mitchell (Virginia Beach, VA/Bishop Sullivan Catholic.) The four-star future Buckeye looked the part of an Ohio State ILB and appears dedicated in ensuring that future.

Mike Farrell of Rivals.com listed the four-star linebacker as one of the players to stand out to him throughout the first day of practice.

“Mitchell looks like he’s slimmed down a bit,” Farrell said, “and fits the mold of that inside linebacker who will fill the gap and can take on bigger blockers, as well."

Mitchell is regarded as one of the best prospects in the country and the Buckeyes have to like what they are getting with him. The 247Sports Composite Rankings have him listed as the No. 2 ILB in the class and the No. 40 overall player regardless of position.

Both Mitchell and Johnson could likely see a fifth star added next to their names when the college football recruiting databases release their final rankings.

Another future Buckeye to separate himself from the impressive field Monday was tight end commit Jeremy Ruckert (Lindenhurst, NY/Lindenhurst.)

The four-star TE found himself on the receiving end of numerous throws from some of the best incoming QBs in the country, including multiple from both Jarren Williams, committed to Miami, and Trevor Lawrence, committed to Clemson.

Adam Friedman of Rivals.com listed Ruckert as one of his top performers of the event. On top of this recognition, Keith Niebuhr of 247Sports hinted that the Buckeyes may be getting the top TE in the class.


Ruckert showed off his impressive athleticism and his sure-fire hands on Monday, which led to multiple big receiving gains. On one of those plays, the aforementioned Johnson was in coverage on Ruckert and landed a big hit on his future teammate following one of those big receptions.


Other future Buckeyes who made big plays in Monday’s practices included:

• Four-star defensive tackle commit Tommy Togiai (Pocatello, ID/Highland)

• Five-star all-purpose back Jaelen Gill (Westerville, OH/Westerville South)

• Five-star DT Taron Vincent (Bradenton, FL/IMG Academy)

• Four-star offensive tackle Max Wray (Franklin, TN/Franklin)

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Future Ohio State stars shine in first US Army Bowl practice - Land-Grant Holy Land
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Future Ohio State stars shine in first US Army Bowl practice
Land-Grant Holy Land
With Ohio State's 2017 football season wrapped up following a dominating 24-7 win against USC, Columbus is likely already starving for more football. Luckily, multiple future Buckeyes are participating in this year's US Army All-American Bowl. The ...

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Buckeyes show well in Brecksville Invitational - Athens Messenger
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Buckeyes show well in Brecksville Invitational
Athens Messenger
Nelsonville-York's Colt Yinger (right) competes in the Brecksville Invitational Holiday Tournament. Yinger finished second in his weight class. Messenger photo by Leslie Yinger. BRECKSVILLE — The Nelsonville-York wrestling team may be behind schedule ...


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Watch video clips of future Buckeyes from Army Bowl practice - 247Sports
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Watch video clips of future Buckeyes from Army Bowl practice
247Sports
SAN ANTONIO - The first day of Army Bowl practice is in the books and Bucknuts was on hand for both the East and West squad practices. Bill Kurelic - 6 hours ago; 3; Tools. Edit; Slot to 247Sports Home; Slot to Ohio State Buckeyes Newsletter; Slot to ...

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Could someone please seed BUCKDUBBS torrent? Thanks!

Could someone please seed BUCKDUBBS torrent? Thanks!

Could someone please seed BUCKDUBBS torrent? Thanks!

Grading the Buckeyes: A full-season grade card - Lima Ohio
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Grading the Buckeyes: A full-season grade card
Lima Ohio
It was a season 98 percent of the teams in college football would have been thrilled to have. But it left Ohio State wishing there had been just a little bit more. Or maybe a little bit less on one Saturday afternoon in Iowa City. OFFENSE: A-. Ohio ...
Ohio State's top-10 moment of 2017247Sports
Buckeyes blaze past Hoosiers, 85-80The Herald-Times
Five Biggest Questions for Ohio State Football Entering 2018 ...Eleven Warriors

all 74 news articles »

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Ohio State recruiting: Top targets Jayson Oweh and Tyreke Smith talk Buckeyes - Landof10.com
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Ohio State recruiting: Top targets Jayson Oweh and Tyreke Smith talk Buckeyes
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. In-state standout Tyreke Smith ...


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Tate Martell is the wild card in Ohio State’s quarterback competition
Meredith Hein via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Replacing J.T. Barrett is a tall order. Martell thinks he has what it takes to do it.

“I’m going to attack it as though I’m the guy and I’m the starter.”

-Ohio State quarterback Dwayne Haskins, via Ryan Ginn, Land of 10


With a win over USC in the Cotton Bowl, the J.T. Barrett era at Ohio State is officially closed. It seems like he has been with the program forever, having been one of the few Ohio State quarterbacks to start the majority of four seasons, which makes replacing him all the more daunting. Redshirt freshman Dwayne Haskins would seem to be the heir apparent. Haskins has seen time in several games this season, but no performance was more pivotal than his minutes in the Buckeyes’ regular season finale versus Michigan. After Barrett left the game due to injury, Haskins completed Ohio State’s comeback to give the Buckeyes their sixth-straight win over the Wolverines.

While redshirt sophomore quarterback Joe Burrow was initially regarded as the likely backup for Barrett, a broken hand kept him sidelined during the blowout wins which gave Haskins snaps early in the season. Haskins finished the season with 565 passing yards, four touchdowns and a pick. He played in eight games, mainly on cleanup duty until called into action against Michigan. Now, heading into the offseason, Haskins is poised to fill Barrett’s very large shoes.

However, while Haskins has seen more snaps this year than any other backup, those other backups are very much in the hunt for Barrett’s vacated position. Burrow has already stated that he is “leaning toward staying” in Columbus next season, but freshman Tate Martell, who was redshirted this past season, could be the one to shake things up heading into 2018. Like Burrow and Haskins, Martell came to Ohio State as a four-star recruit. He spent the majority of the season as the scout team quarterback and has earned significant praise from teammates, including Sam Hubbard, in this role. With such a high-profile player as Barrett to replace, the trio of backups will need to prove their impact early if they have hope of earning the starting role.

“Every quarterback on the Buckeyes’ roster, however, is unproven, making it far from a sure thing that any of them will be an upgrade and a very real possibility that any of them could be a downgrade.”

-Dan Hope, Eleven Warriors


As Dwayne Haskins, Joe Burrow and Tate Martell prepare for an open quarterback competition in the spring, questions remain as to what any of these players could bring to the offense as a whole. Each brings something unique to the table, especially compared to J.T. Barrett’s skill set. Entering 2017, with Kevin Wilson and Ryan Day running the offense, fans expected Ohio State to be able to stretch the field more than they had in previous seasons. Barrett, despite holding every major passing record at Ohio State, was often critiqued for his perceived issues with the vertical passing game--something that was not his natural strength. Now, with three new contenders for the quarterback spot, Wilson and Day have the opportunity to select a player who brings a new dynamic to an offense that was up and down throughout the course of the season.

While there is certainly an upside--a passer who can bring a vertical threat is definitely something Ohio State fans have yearned for--the fact remains that Barrett brought tremendous rushing ability and extraordinary game management to the field for four years as a starter. There is no guarantee that any of the replacements could match that level of talent. All have potential, but it will require a lot of work adjusting the offense as a whole to bring out those individual skill sets. As fans saw early on this year against Indiana and Oklahoma, that could mean more growing pains early in the 2018 season.

Still, a better, more complete offense is possible. Cardale Jones showed what that offense could look like in the Buckeyes’ postseason run in 2014. The offense managed to both survive without Barrett and thrive under a different quarterback. However, as the start of 2015 showed, making that offense consistent is a different, and far more challenging, task.

“I don’t think this is the time to start calling the Big Ten a mid-major. I just think it’s one of those fluke things. Just as on any given year, you can have teams surprise you in a positive direction. Basically, the Big Ten has surprised in the wrong direction.”

-ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi, via Roman Stubbs, the Washington Post


Ohio State basketball has been looking up this season under first year head coach Chris Holtmann. So far, the Buckeyes have not lost to anyone they are not supposed to. Their offensive production has been high, and Keita Bates-Diop has been outstanding. Still, they have a long way to go to get back to greatness.

Unfortunately, so does the rest of the Big Ten. The conference was an abysmal 3-13 versus ranked opponents in non-conference play. Beyond tough competition, a number of teams have already endured some ugly losses, such as Purdue losing to Western Kentucky and Indiana’s blowout loss against Indiana State. That’s not including Iowa falling to Louisiana-Lafayette and South Dakota State back-to-back. As a whole, the conference went an embarassing 3-11 in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge this season.

With such poor performance, expectations are not high for the Big Ten when it comes to early NCAA Tournament bracket predictions. ESPN’s Joe Lunardi has just four teams--No. 1 Michigan State, Purdue, Michigan and Minnesota--making the field. By comparison, last year, which was also a down year for the conference, saw seven Big Ten teams making the tournament. However, three of those teams went on to the Sweet 16.

Both Michigan State and Purdue are in the top-10 kenpom rankings. Maryland is next at No. 30, then Michigan at No. 33. Penn State, Minnesota and Ohio State are the only other teams in the top-50.

Still, there is a lot of basketball left to be played, and teams who get hot at the end of the season can be dangerous in the NCAA Tournament. The good news for Ohio State? After missing out on the big dancet for the past two seasons, Lunardi has the Buckeyes as a bubble team. Okay, not great news, but better than missing the NIT.

STICK TO SPORTS

• Here are some of the best dogs of 2017. I’m not crying, you’re crying.
• If games were predicted by mascots…
• Today is National Hangover Day. Here are some tips on how to get rid of yours.

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Lots of former Ohio State players are headed to the playoffs after NFL Week 17
Alexis Chassen via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Plus, Michael Thomas sets another Saints franchise and league record.

The 2017 NFL regular season has now come to a close, with several former Ohio State players having booked tickets into the playoffs, and others finishing the year on a high note. Before the final whistle of the regular season, one Buckeye landed a new contract, a second-year receiver out of Ohio State continued to set records, and a host of Buckeyes are vying for new contracts heading into the offseason.

Here’s a look at how Buckeyes in the NFL fared in the Week 17 season finale.

Buckeyes heading to the NFL playoffs


The New England Patriots (Nate Ebner [IR]) finished as the first seed in the AFC, with the Pittsburgh Steelers (Cam Heyward, Ryan Shazier [IR]) claiming the second seed. For the NFC, the Philadelphia Eagles (Malcolm Jenkins) wrapped up the No. 1 spot, with the Minnesota Vikings (Pat Elflein) claiming the second seed. These four teams also earned first-round byes and won’t play again until Jan. 13-14, when they’ll face the winners of the Wild Card round.

There will be eight teams vying for a spot in the divisional round of the playoffs on Jan. 6-7. For the AFC, the Tennessee Titans, Buffalo Bills (Adolphus Washington), Jacksonville Jaguars (Michael Bennett [IR]), and Kansas City Chiefs are still in the hunt. And, for the NFC, the Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers (Kurt Coleman, Andrew Norwell, Curtis Samuel [IR]), Los Angeles Rams (Jake McQuaide), and New Orleans Saints (Vonn Bell, Ted Ginn Jr., Marshon Lattimore, Michael Thomas) are still in it.

Thomas sets yet another record


Two weeks after passing the 1,000-yard mark for the season, former Buckeye and current New Orleans wideout Michael Thomas claimed additional accolades to round out the season. With his six receptions (for 94 yards) on Sunday against the Buccaneers, Thomas set the record for receptions in a single season (104) — becoming the first player in Saints history to pass 100 in a given year. With 104 nabs to add to his 92 catches from his rookie season, he’s had more receptions in his first two seasons than anyone else in NFL history.

Linsley scores new contract with Green Bay


Center Corey Linsley was one of many former Ohio State players heading into the offseason as an unrestricted free agent. As one of the most reliable stars for the Packers’ offense — especially with the injuries at quarterback — and the team didn’t want to risk letting the Buckeye hit the free agent market in a of couple months.

Instead, early in the week, Green Bay signed Linsley to a three-year contract extension, including $25.5 million in new money, for about $8.5 million per year. This should be good news for the host of other Ohio State alumni looking for new contracts in the offseason. Seven Buckeyes will head into 2018 as unrestricted free agents, although I would expect several to get new deals with their current squads (Andrew Norwell, Carlos Hyde, Jack Mewhort and Jake McQuaide).

Plays of the Week

Carlos Hyde


El Guapo was back in full force, and finished his season on a strong note heading into a contract offseason. He had 15 carries for 90 yards on Sunday, along with a pair of touchdowns in the Niners fifth win in a row. It was a tough start the year, but Carlos Hyde has always been a reliable work horse for the offense — who until they got Jimmy Garoppolo, was more than a bit lacking in the QB department.


The Buckeye running back did have a fumble on the day, but heading into an offseason in which he’ll be looking for a new contract, he at least left the Niners (and other teams) with a good impression. Being able to barrel through defenders has always been a strong suit of Hyde’s, and with finally some consistency at head coach for San Francisco — and Hyde — he could be staying on the West Coast for the next several years.

Other Notables

• In his second game back, running back Ezekiel Elliott seems to have caught his footing, and rushed for 103 yards, with an additional 38 receiving. His return from a six-game suspension proved that he didn’t miss a step and gave him some motivation heading into the off-season.
• Two Buckeyes finished the 2017 NFL season adding sacks to their resume, Vonn Bell had 10 total tackles and one sack in Week 17, while Joey Bosa notched five total tackles and a sack — capping off his career-high season of 12.5 sacks.

Injury Report and Inactives

• With the postseason in the picture for some teams, and others no longer in the hunt, several injured Buckeyes sat out in Week 17, including Kurt Coleman (ankle), Pat Elflein (shoulder), Johnathan Hankins (ankle), Rod Smith (back), and Nick Vannett (back).
• Listed as inactive, not due to injury, but to allow a little rest before the playoffs, the Steelers decided to sit Cameron Heyward. Likewise, the Eagles rested safety Malcolm Jenkins, who despite being active, didn’t see any snaps on Sunday.
• Finishing out the season the way that he’s spent most of the season in SoCal, quarterback Cardale Jones was once again a healthy scratch for the Chargers.
• Finally, this marks the last week of newsworthy drama from the New York Giants and Eli Apple. The Cornerback out of Ohio State was suspended for the season finale, with the team citing, “conduct detrimental to the team.” Things have not been going well between the team and player, and will be an interesting offseason to see how things play out with his future on the field.

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Ruckert aims for No. 1: 'I'm definitely not going to redshirt' - 247Sports
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Ruckert aims for No. 1: 'I'm definitely not going to redshirt'
247Sports
SAN ANTONIO - Lindenhurst (N.Y.) tight end and Ohio State commitment Jeremy Ruckert talks about his future at Ohio State during check-in for the U.S. Army All-American Bowl. He aims high as he would like to be the best ever to play his position for the ...


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