BM5: Biggest concern offensively: WRs or O-line? - 247Sports
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


BM5: Biggest concern offensively: WRs or O-line?
247Sports
Patrick Murphy joins Dave Biddle to discuss that, talk about the biggest concern defensively for the Buckeyes, look ahead to Jaelen Gill's announcment on Wednesday, and take a quick look at OSU women's basketball (which might be a first on the BM5).

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Buckeyes finish with 5-1 loss to Oregon State

SURPRISE, Ariz. – The Ohio State baseball team concluded action at the 2017 Big Ten/Pac-12 Challenge with a 5-1 loss to No. 5 Oregon State Sunday morning in Surprise, Ariz. The Beavers chalked up three runs in the fourth, one in the sixth and one in the eighth to improve to 7-1 on the year.

The Buckeyes (3-5), who took down the tournament host on Friday night, were limited at the dish vs. right-hander Jake Thompson who tossed eight innings and gave up one run on two hits to improve to 3-0. Ohio State starting pitcher Jake Post received the loss to drop to 0-1. He allowed three runs on four hits with three walks and two strikeouts in four innings of work.


Nice work, Beavers

Which redshirt freshmen Buckeyes are ready to break out? Ohio State spring football burning questions - cleveland.com
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Which redshirt freshmen Buckeyes are ready to break out? Ohio State spring football burning questions
cleveland.com
With Ohio State starting spring football in eight days, we're exploring a burning question for the Buckeyes every day leading up to March 7. Next up is a look at the players who redshirted last year: Who are the redshirt freshmen Buckeyes ready to take ...
No. 12 Ohio State 73, Rutgers 45 | Buckeyes clinch Big Ten regular-season women's titleColumbus Dispatch
Spring Football Preview: Tight End247Sports
Florida State making a move on Taron Vincent, Ohio State still on mind of 2019 WR and moreLandof10.com
Rutgers Scarlet Knights -The News Center -Eleven Warriors
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Alabama is handing out offers in Ohio State’s backyard
Caleb Houser via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


The Crimson Tide are making moves on Buckeye prospects.

It’s always refreshing to have a relaxing weekend for most people. However, even when Urban Meyer is away from town on the Buckeye Cruise Against Cancer, the rest of the Ohio State staff remains hard at work recruiting for the Buckeyes—an event which never stops. Whether being on the road or hosting top prep prospects from Ohio and around the country, the Buckeyes seem to have the formula for success, and as long as Urban Meyer is in charge, that won’t change.

Forcing OSU’s hand?


It’s no secret how talented the 2018 class is in the state of Ohio. There are plenty of options the Buckeyes can go to, but with their national presence in the recruiting scene, they may have to be selective on who they take when it comes to in-state players.

However, when Alabama offered Dayton Dunbar running back Tavion Thomas, Ohio State wasted no time in sending an offer. Could it have been because of Alabama’s offer OSU felt pressured to also offer the in-state back? Maybe.

Well, that looks to be happening again and again.

Only a week after the Thomas offer via Alabama, the Crimson Tide and Nick Saban are at it again as they not only offered one Ohio prospect without an Ohio State offer to this point, but two prospects alike. The latest, Dayton Dunbar receiver Joseph Scates, a current Michigan State commit, and Fairfield defensive end Malik Vann.


The two were in Tuscaloosa, Ala. this weekend visiting the Crimson Tide and were given their respective “good” news concerning the Crimson Tide offers. Scates, a four-star receiver is currently ranked as the sixth best prospect in Ohio and Vann, also a four-star, is ranked as the 12th best prospect in the Buckeye state.


The two may not currently hold Ohio State offers, but the situation is identical to Tavion Thomas’. Offers from the Buckeyes would not be too surprising considering rival programs are hunting hard in their very own backyard. While Scates is currently committed to Michigan State and Vann still on the market, it’s unknown whether or not a Buckeye offer would change the mind of Scates, but any time an in-state prospect receives the prestigious offer from The Ohio State, it’s something to consider—and consider very strongly.

Upshaw checks out OSU


This past weekend may have been somewhat quiet in Columbus, Ohio concerning football recruiting, but that didn’t stop at least one visitor from making the short trek to Ohio State to see what the Buckeyes have to offer.


In-state Ohio tight-end, Keaton Upshaw (Lima, OH / Lima Senior) made the drive south to Columbus and was able to take in the Woody Hayes Athletic Center as well as meet the coaching staff while Urban Meyer was out of the office.

Ranked as the 29th best prospect in Ohio for the 2018 class and the 26th best tight end in the country, the 6-foot-7, 200-pound three-star has the size to really turn some heads at the next level. Currently, Upshaw does not have an offer from Ohio State, but does hold offers from Pitt, Toledo and Bowling Green.

It’s relatively early in Upshaw’s recruitment, but if an Ohio State offer were to come his way, it would certainly be the “biggest” offer that he would have to this point. With Keaton starting to visit more and more schools, look for his recruitment to increase as more programs from around the country look to throw their hat into the ring for the Upshaw sweepstakes.

Matta hits the road


The basketball Buckeyes had an off weekend, but that didn’t mean it was an off weekend for everyone. As the team remained hard at work in Columbus, head coach Thad Matta hit the road on the recruiting trail in pursuit to find the next great talents to head to Columbus and suit up in the Scarlet and Gray.

Heading to Tennessee, Matta and Ohio State were on hand at Brentwood Academy to see Darius Garland. Garland, a 6-foot, 155-pound point guard is considered to be the top point guard in the country as well as the top player overall in Tennessee for the 2018 class, according to 247sports. Not only is Garland a top prospect at his position, but he also grades out as the seventh best player at any position in the nation.


As things stand right now, the five-star holds 12 offers, but Ohio State may have their work cut out for themselves as all signs right now have Darius heading to Duke. Of the nine predictions in the 247sports crystal ball, all but one vote has Garland going to Duke; the lone non-Duke prediction has Garland suiting up for home state Vanderbilt.

The Buckeyes currently have three commits in their 2018 class, but there’s not one doubt that they’d love to add a fourth in Garland. If so, it would easily have Ohio State right at the top of the country for 2018.

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Women's lacrosse: Buckeyes rebound quickly, beat California 14-8 - OSU - The Lantern
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Women's lacrosse: Buckeyes rebound quickly, beat California 14-8
OSU - The Lantern
Fritts would get lost behind the Buckeyes defense, netting her third goal of the day at the 14:16 mark in the second half. Then the Golden Bears would pull to within four of OSU when freshman midfielder Noelani Murayama fired in her second of the game.


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Jaxbuck said:

I will always hate Wisconsin

Click to expand...

I knew I mispronounced it. I thought it would be done with Bo Ryan and Brett Bielema...I was sorely mistaken.

Buckeyes' Shayla Cooper scores 1000th career point - 247Sports
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Buckeyes' Shayla Cooper scores 1000th career point
247Sports
Kelsey Mitchell added to her fantastic season with 21 points, five rebounds and three assists, but she was not the only member of the Scarlet and Gray to have a big night. Although senior forward Shayla Cooper only scored 12 points, she also reached a ...
Ohio State women's basketball standout Shayla Cooper scores 1000th pointLandof10.com

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Elite Texas prospect narrows field, Buckeyes make the cut - 247Sports
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Elite Texas prospect narrows field, Buckeyes make the cut
247Sports
The Buckeyes struck gold in Texas with their 2017 recruiting. They continue their relentless work when it comes to the Texas class of 2018. And tonight, Alief (Texas) Taylor wide receiver Brennan Eagles narrowed his choices to ten schools and the ...

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The Hurry Up: Alabama Continues to Offer Elite Ohio Talent While Buckeyes Focus on Out-of-State Prospects - Eleven Warriors
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


The Hurry Up: Alabama Continues to Offer Elite Ohio Talent While Buckeyes Focus on Out-of-State Prospects
Eleven Warriors
They'd ideally like to hold off on offering in-state prospects until later in the process, but Scates and Vann would likely assume the Buckeyes aren't truly interested if they don't in the near future. It's up for debate whether the offers are ...

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WIAH: Jackpot in Georgia? D-tackle talk; Thomas visits; more - 247Sports
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WIAH: Jackpot in Georgia? D-tackle talk; Thomas visits; more
247Sports
What Bill Kurelic is hearing on the Buckeyes perhaps hitting the jackpot with group from Georgia? More D-tackle talk; Tavion Thomas visits and more… Bill Kurelic - 97 minutes ago; VIP; 9; Tools. Edit · Slot to 247Sports Home; Slot to Ohio State ...


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Ohio State Buckeyes basketball knocked off No. 1 Wisconsin 10 ... - 247Sports
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Ohio State Buckeyes basketball knocked off No. 1 Wisconsin 10 ...
247Sports
It was 10 years ago this week when Ohio State edged Wisconsin 49-48 in a rare one-versus-two game. Greg Oden and Mike Conley led OSU to the Big Ten title ...
Like that Wisconsin win? Here are the other best moments of the ...Land-Grant Holy Land

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Ohio State earns No. 1 seed in 2017 Big Ten women’s basketball tourney
BTN.com staff via Big Ten Network

No. 2 Maryland and No. 12 Ohio State both won Sunday to claim a share of the 2017 Big Ten women’s regular-season crown. [ MORE: View the full 2017 Big Ten Women’s tourney bracket] The Terrapins took care of Minnesota, to claim their third straight Big Ten title, while the Buckeyes rolled Rutgers, to pick up their first Big Ten trophy since 2010. With Sunday’s victory, Ohio State earns the No. 1 seed in the Big Ten tourney, by virtue of the head-to-head win vs. Maryland, which is the No. 2 seed. Here’s how the seeds shake out: 1. Ohio

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No. 12 Ohio State claims share of first Big Ten title since 2010
Brent Yarina, BTN.com Senior Editor via Big Ten Network

Kelsey Mitchell scored 21 points to help No. 12 Ohio State win its first Big Ten title since 2010 with a 73-45 victory over Rutgers on Sunday.

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Senators Reportedly Kicking Tires on the Rental Market
T6S via our good friends at Buckeye Battle Cry
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


NEW YORK, NY – JANUARY 19: Patrick Sharp #10 of the Dallas Stars skates against the New York Islanders at the Barclays Center on January 19, 2017 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. The Islanders shutout the Stars 3-0. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

With Wednesday’s trade deadline just a few days away, it’s not surprising to see the NHL’s rumour mill kicking into gear as more and more teams fall out of the playoff picture and become categorized as sellers.

One team that isn’t in that sellers category are the Ottawa Senators, who according to Bruce Garrioch, have reportedly kicked tires on Jiri Hudler, Patrick Sharp, Martin Hanzal, Thomas Vanek and P.A. Parenteau.

What do all of those players have in common?

They’re all impending unrestricted free agents.

It’s hard to imagine the Senators being competitive in the rental market, considering how earlier in the week, the Anaheim Ducks set the bar by acquiring impending UFA Patrick Eaves from the Dallas Stars for a conditional second round pick. (Read: the conditions of the pick allow it to become a first round pick if the Ducks reach the Western Conference finals and Eaves meets a specific games played threshold.)

No one should blame Pierre Dorion for doing his due diligence and finding out what the asking prices are for these aforementioned players, but it’s hard to imagine the Senators getting too heavily involved in these negotiations considering the team has already moved their 2017 second rounder last year’s Dion Phaneuf trade and their 2018 second round pick in this past summer’s Derrick Brassard deal.

Through these trades, I have a hard time believing the organization has the appetite to delve too much into the rental market knowing that the absence of these picks has already cost them a significant chunk of their future, but that’s easy for me to say, I’m not the rookie general manager and I don’t have to answer to Eugene Melnyk if his playoff mandate isn’t met.

NHL.com‘s Mike Kelly addressed the predicament facing Ottawa succinctly in two tweets:




I’d go a step further and say that if the team’s penalty killing takes a hit, they will be in tough, but Kelly’s right in pointing out the reality of the situation: if the team’s record to this point in the season is inflated and the team’s underlying numbers are a more accurate reflection of the true talent of this team, will it serve this team’s short and long-term interests to be throwing future assets at a rental?

Probably not.

It would be one thing if the opportunity cost involved was a middling pick, but it’d be hard to stomach seeing the Senators flip valuable future assets for players who won’t be long for this organization. This obviously isn’t palatable for the fans who yearn for the instant gratification that comes with seeing their favourite organization make a splashy signing or trade, but dumpster diving on modest upgrades or moving assets to acquire controllable assets might serve the team’s interests best here.

Keeping that in mind, adding a player like a Parenteau makes sense, assuming he’s the player that Ottawa’s scout went to see at last night’s game versus the Rangers . He’d be the cheapest upgrade of the names listed above and hell, he might be the most effective of the lot.

The problem facing Dorion is that his situation is complicated by the fact that: 1) a lull could push his team out of the playoff picture; 2) the Eastern Conference and Atlantic Division are so winnable, that management and ownership could be persuaded to think that this could be the team’s best opportunity to go for it; 3) if he acquires a forward with term, it means the Senators could be faced with the position, barring a separate trade in the offseason, of exposing a forward like Dzingel, Smith or Pageau in the expansion draft.

Most trade deadlines are pretty anticlimactic, but with the Senators also being linked to the Colorado Avalanche’s Matt Duchene and you have a trade deadline that can go in a number of different ways. (As an aside, if Dorion can talk the Avalanche into a package based around Cody Ceci and Logan Brown, I’m game.)

Even if the deadline lacks the splash that many are looking for, this offseason could be even more bountiful in regards to the kinds of talents that will be available.

It’s an exciting time of year that offers the opportunity for a lot of player movement, but more than anything, I’m looking forward to getting more insight into how the organization and its brain trust view this team’s chances. I’m wagering that the Senators will follow their recent pattern of behavior that favours its short-term interests, but hey, I’d happy with being pleasantly surprised as well.









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No. 12 Ohio State 73, Rutgers 45 | Buckeyes clinch Big Ten regular-season women's title - Columbus Dispatch
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


No. 12 Ohio State 73, Rutgers 45 | Buckeyes clinch Big Ten regular-season women's title
Columbus Dispatch
Rutgers (6-23, 3-13) entered the game on a nine-game losing streak and didn't figure to pose much of a threat to the Buckeyes. But Ohio State remembered the feeling of squandering a chance for a Big Ten title last season when it lost its final two ...
ESPN: Biggest question for Buckeyes is DBs247Sports
Men's swimming: Ohio State places second at Big TensOSU - The Lantern
Urban Meyer Has Followed Each of His Bowl Losses With a ...Eleven Warriors
Land-Grant Holy Land -Scout -cleveland.com
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No. 12 Ohio State hockey shut out by Michigan, 1-0
Matt Torino via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


The Buckeyes were shut out for the first time this season despite dominating the game otherwise.

If you were Ohio State hockey’s coach and were given the option of outshooting your opponent by 19, having your goalie have a .957 save percentage and have the other team limited to one powerplay, you’d take it every day of the week. Coach Steve Rohlik took that option last night and Ohio State still lost 1-0 to Michigan.

Ohio State registered a total of 42 shots on goal to Michigan’s 23. Each team had only one powerplay and Ohio State hasn’t been shutout this year. So of course it happened now when the team sits perilously on the NCAA tournament at-large bid bubble.

One slip up isn’t going to cost them that bid, and the team will have an opportunity next weekend to further make their case as they host the Big Ten’s last place team, Michigan State, in Columbus.

But an overall season split with a team in Michigan that is 3-11-2-2 in conference play is not exactly going to give No. 12 Ohio State the best case for getting into the tournament. Furthermore, Ohio State is only 8-7-1-1 in conference play overall in one of the NCAA’s weaker power conferences. This ain’t Hockey East, folks.

The regular season ending series at Wisconsin will probably go a long way toward making or breaking Ohio State’s chances of getting into the tournament as it is fairly reasonably that only three Big Ten teams will be taken, with Minnesota and Penn State at the top. Wisconsin currently sits at 11-5 in conference play, so OSU has thier work cut out for them.

The lone goal in Saturday evening’s affair was Nick Pastujov’s first of the season for Michigan at 9:39 of the first. It came on a redirection, because of course it did. Zach Nagelvoort stopped all 11 Ohio State shots in the period, while Christian Frey stopped 10 out of 11. That’d be all that Michigan needed.

OSU outshot Michigan 11-5 and 20-7 in the second and third period, respectively, and still couldn’t find a way to get one in past Nagelvoort. Ohio State, which ranks first nationally on the powerplay at 29.8% after this game, had one opportunity in the second but couldn’t get one home.

Tanner Laczynski and Mason Jobst had six shots on goal each. Matthew Weis and Kevin Miller had five each. Nick Schilkey, Josh Healey, Janik Moser and David Gust all had three each. Only Dakota Joshua, John Wiitala and Luke Stork were held without a shot on net for Ohio State. And yet, the team couldn’t put one past Nagelvoort.

It’s the first time Ohio State was shutout at home since January 13, 2012 against...Michigan. Because, of course.

On the bright side, Ohio State dominated, and if they play like this every game, they can beat anybody in the conference on any given night. They started attacking and they kept attacking. They were unlucky for a night, but there’s a reason they haven’t been shutout yet this season before Saturday. Their offense is too good for this to happen again.

They’ll play their final regular season home series next weekend against Michigan State, before going to Madison to play Wisconsin the week after to close out the regular season.

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Ohio State-Rutgers 2017 final score: Women’s basketball clinches share of Big Ten championship with 73-45 win
Ben Martens via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


The Buckeyes claimed their 15th conference title with a big win over the Scarlet Knights

The Ohio State women’s basketball team clinched a share of the Big Ten regular season title on Sunday afternoon with a 73-45 win over Rutgers in Piscataway. The Buckeyes, currently ranked No. 12 in the country, finished the conference slate with a 15-1 record, tying Maryland atop the standings. This marks the 15th conference championship in program history, and the first since 2010.

Because of its head-to-head win against the Terrapins last Monday night, Ohio State has also claimed the top seed in the Big Ten tournament, which will run from Wednesday through Sunday at Banker’s Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The Buckeyes’ first game will be played Friday at noon against the winner of the 8/9 matchup on Thursday.

The win gave head coach Kevin McGuff and his squad their 11th win a row and improved the overall season record to 25-5. The Scarlet Knights, conversely, fell in defeat for the 10th consecutive game.

In a turn of events that was not the least bit surprising, Kelsey Mitchell led all scorers. The All-American from Cincinnati had 21 points, and also added five rebounds, five assists, and a steal.

Shayla Cooper reached a milestone by scoring her 1,000th career point at Ohio State. The team’s lone senior scored 12 points on the day, also grabbing seven rebounds and coming up with two thefts of her own.

Rutgers was led by Shrita Parker, whose 16 points made her one of only two Scarlet Knights in double figures. Aliyah Jeune contributed 10.

The first two minutes of the game saw just three combined points and five combined turnovers between the two sides. But Ohio State ripped off a 10-0 run, punctuated by a Cooper triple and a steal and layup from Mitchell, to take a 10-3 lead and prompt a Rutgers timeout.

The Scarlet Knights shot just 2-for-13 during the first quarter, turning it over nine times, and enduring a more than seven-minute scoring drought. The Buckeyes weren’t much better, going more than three minutes without a point and shooting just 33 percent in the frame.

Mitchell knocked down a foul line jumper and an elbow three to jumpstart the Ohio State offense, and Asia Doss found the bottom from beyond the arc as well, concluding the first ten minutes with a 18-6 lead.

Doss knocked down her second three-pointer of the game to get the Buckeye scoring started in the second, and Cooper followed right after with her second, extending the lead to 24-8. Rutgers once again went through a scoring drought, this time lasting nearly four minutes.

Ohio State went nearly three minutes without a field goal, though, and the score was 26-11 at the midway point. Sierra Calhoun ended that with a three-point make, but the Buckeyes continued to struggle from the floor. A Kiara Lewis three-pointer and a layup off a steal by Cooper sent the scarlet and gray to the locker room with a 37-17 lead.

Cooper had a team-high nine points in the first half, to go along with five rebounds, while Mitchell, Doss, and Calhoun had seven apiece. The Scarlet Knights, who shot 22 percent in the first 20 minutes, were paced by seven from DaChe Williams.

Rutgers began the third quarter hitting three of its first six shots and forcing three early Ohio State turnovers, good for a 6-0 run that cut the lead to 14. An and-one for Linnae Harper and a Mitchell jumper got the momentum back in the Buckeyes’ favor, though, and the Scarlet Knights experienced four miscues of their own in quick succession.

Mitchell knocked down her second three of the game and got a circus layup to fall, giving Ohio State a 49-34 lead at the media timeout. A floater in the lane for the Big Ten’s leading scorer right after the stoppage and a pair of free throws gave her 11 points in the quarter, and another Rutgers scoring drought, this one lasting three minutes, sent the game to its final ten minutes with the Buckeyes in front 53-36.

The Scarlet Knights missed their first four shots in the fourth quarter, and Mitchell just kept scoring, connecting on a deep three-pointer from the right wing. Cooper followed with her third from deep, and halfway through the final frame, Ohio State had its largest lead of the game at 61-38.

Calhoun hit a deep three, giving the Buckeyes four shooters with at least two makes from deep, and McGuff started pulling his starters as the team went on a 6-0 run and rolled to victory.

So all attention now turns to the postseason for Ohio State. The Buckeyes put together one of the finest regular seasons in program history, but this team has much higher aspirations.

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Spring Football Preview: Tight End - 247Sports
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Spring Football Preview: Tight End
247Sports
Redshirt senior Marcus Baugh is by far the most experienced of the group and is coming off his best year as a Buckeye. After playing behind Jeff Heuerman and Nick Vannett, Baugh finally got his chance to be at the top of the depth chart. He responded ...

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Tavion Thomas discusses Alabama visit; Buckeyes; leaders; more - 247Sports
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Tavion Thomas discusses Alabama visit; Buckeyes; leaders; more
247Sports
What's next for the Buckeyes? Make sure you're in the loop -- take five seconds to sign up for our FREE Buckeyes newsletter now! Justin Kinner sat in for Mark Neal and we and we chatted about all that more for 90 minutes today at the Fricker's in ...

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OSU women's basketball plays for Big Ten title at Rutgers - 247Sports
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


OSU women's basketball plays for Big Ten title at Rutgers
247Sports
2 Maryland was the Buckeyes first over a No. 1 or No. 2 ranked team since March 7, 1993. Kelsey Mitchell has scored 2,442 career points and is third all-time in OSU history and sixth all-time in Big Ten history in scoring. Mitchell has scored 20 or ...
Urban Meyer Has Followed Each of His Bowl Losses With a National Championship the Next SeasonEleven Warriors
Like that Wisconsin win? Here are the other best moments of the Thad Matta era at Ohio StateLand-Grant Holy Land
Women's basketball: No. 12 Ohio State shooting for conference championship at Rutgers on SundayOSU - The Lantern
Landof10.com -Scarlet and Game
all 13 news articles »

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Buckeye commits and recruits talking on Twitter - 247Sports
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Buckeye commits and recruits talking on Twitter
247Sports
What's next for the Buckeyes? Make sure you're in the loop -- take five seconds to sign up for our FREE Buckeyes newsletter now! The thread below will be for just that purpose. And it will be updated numerous times during the day and night. Check now ...

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Ohio State-Oregon State 2017 final score: Baseball Bucks fall to No. 5 Beavers, 5-1
Ben Martens via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


A dominant pitching performance kept the Buckeyes’ bats in check.

Ohio State baseball wrapped up the Big Ten/Pac-12 Challenge in Surprise, Arizona on Sunday afternoon with a 5-1 loss at the hands of Oregon State, the fifth-ranked team in the nation according to the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association.

The Buckeyes managed a 1-3 record in the desert, though that one win was a big upset of Oregon State on Friday night. For the season, the squad now sits at 3-5.

Junior righty Jake Thompson took the ball for the Beavers and was dominant. In eight innings pitched, he allowed just a run on two hits, walking three and racking up seven strikeouts.

Oregon State used Thompson’s performance and one big inning to claim its third victory of the weekend and run its season record to 7-1.

Jake Post looked sharp early on in his second start of the season for Ohio State, but ran into trouble and ultimately made an early exit. The right-hander allowed three runs on four hits in four innings of work, walking three and striking out two in suffering his first loss of the season.

Junior center fielder Tre’ Gantt hit his first career home run, but that was the extent of the offensive highlights for the scarlet and gray.

Thompson and Post were in command early on, putting zeroes on the board back and forth through the game’s first three and a half innings and never really running into any danger.

Oregon State finally broke the stalemate in the bottom of the fourth. KJ Harrison singled to center with one out, his team’s first hit of the game, and was followed by a seeing-eye single through the right side from Jack Anderson. A chopper down the first base line by Adley Rutschman eluded Bo Coolen, and made its way into short right field to score Harrison. Michael Gretler then collected the Beavers’ fourth straight hit, a double down the left field line to score Anderson and make it 2-0.

With two runners in scoring position, Jalen Washington couldn’t handle a grounder off the bat of Cadyn Grenier and Rutschman came plateward for the third run of the inning.

Post’s day ended the next inning when he walked the leadoff man and hit the second batter. Reece Calvert relieved and managed to work out of the jam without allowing Oregon State to tack onto the lead.

The Beavers made it 4-0 in the sixth when a leadoff walk to Grenier by Calvert resulted in a sacrifice fly by Christian Donahue three batters later.

Thompson entered the eighth inning having only allowed the bunt single, and quickly struck out the first two Buckeyes he faced. But Gantt put a jolt into a 1-2 offering and knocked it over the wall in right to break up the shutout.

An insurance run in the bottom of the eighth against Ohio State reliever Dustin Jourdan extended Oregon State’s lead to 5-1. Gretler led off with a single and advanced to second on a passed ball. He scored two batters later on an Andy Atwood double to right-center.

Max Engelbrekt came out of the bullpen for the Beavers in the ninth. The senior lefty allowed the first two hitters he faced to reach base, but he rolled a double play ball off the bat of Coolen and got a groundout from Tyler Cowles to end the game.

Next up for Ohio State is a trip to Buies Creek, North Carolina for a three-game series with Campbell. Game one will take place Friday evening at 6:00 p.m. ET against the Fighting Camels.

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Bucknuts 90: Feeling a 5-star? - 247Sports
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Bucknuts 90: Feeling a 5-star?
247Sports
Could Florida State take another of the Buckeyes' prime targets? Will Ohio State be favored in every football game of the 2017 season? Should we be hopeful about hoops after the win over Wisky? What's next for the Buckeyes? Make sure you're in the loop ...

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I went to Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Lichtenstein when I was younger. My favorite place would have to be Germany for the beer and scenery. Visited Neuschwanstein castle (pictured below.) It was amazing.



I'll look for the photos I took and edit later.

Edit: A few photos I took. Wish I took more but I was 17 (Spring 2001) at the time.












(Taken from a bus)


(Went to the top of Mt. Pilatus here, which was also awesome. At the top, all you could see was clouds below.)

This picture I didn't take but shows where I went up to.

Ohio State and Alabama are easily the top playoff contenders
Chad Peltier via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Surprise!

The data suggests that teams have to recruit at a certain baseline to contend for the national title. The blue chip ratio puts that at about 50% -- that is, at least 50% of a team’s roster has to be blue chip talent.

Every year, only 10-15 teams have a blue chip ratio over 50%. So despite 128 teams, the champion will likely come from a pretty short list every year. Last year only 13 teams met the criteria. The championship was between Alabama (77% ratio) and Clemson (52%), while Ohio State had a 70% ratio as well. Washington, the final playoff team, was 24th in blue chip ratio at 26%.

Bud hasn’t calculated his blue chip ratios for 2017 yet, but I decided to do a rough estimate and include the top 16 teams from Bill’s S&P+ recruiting rating. The chart below takes those teams, organized by recruiting (the chart goes from Stanford at 16th in recruiting impact to Alabama at 1st), and compares the three components of the 2017 projected S&P+: returning production, 5-year S&P+ performance, and recruiting.

The Playoff Race



This chart makes it easy to identify the relative strengths and weaknesses of the top recruiting teams — which should then be our top projected playoff contenders.

UCLA, Tennessee, Texas A&M, Notre Dame, and Georgia have all recruited well, but have poor returning production. Those five teams average 42nd in returning production, due to a combination of poor play on one or both sides of the ball last year and losses to graduation or the NFL. Excellent recruiting is needed to counteract poor returning production, and while all are top-16 recruiters, it remains to be seen whether any have the stockpiled talent necessary to really challenge for a playoff spot.

Of those five teams, Notre Dame and Georgia stick out. Many are high on Georgia for next season (and it’s not like they lost a ton to graduation or the NFL, with just a single NFL Combine invite), but their S&P+ ratings last season were very poor. Notre Dame should rebound from a 4-8 season that included seven losses by eight or less points (their second order win total was 3.2 higher than their actual total).

Eight teams have a weighted 5-year ranking lower than 10th: Texas A&M, Clemson, USC, Michigan, Florida, UCLA, Auburn, and Tennessee. So these teams have had obviously had a ton of success, but only Clemson has reached the playoff from that group.

Only seven teams are ranked in the top-15 in all three metrics: Alabama, Ohio State, Florida State, LSU, Oklahoma, Clemson, and USC. If I had to put money down on a playoff top-4, it might just be four of those seven. Only Alabama and Ohio State rank in the top 3, or even top-5, of the three metrics.


So, surprise! Ohio State and Alabama should have a great chance of making the playoff next season.

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