Buckeyes Close The Week vs. Maryland Saturday Night​

Ohio State completes its two-game home stand on Saturday evening by hosting Maryland in the teams’ lone meeting this season. Tip-off is set for 4 p.m. and the game will be televised on FS1. Chris Vosters and Nate Bahe will call the action.

• This will be just the 22nd all-time meeting between the two teams. Maryland leads the series 11-10 and also holds a 9-6 advantage since the Terrapins joined the Big Ten Conference prior to the 2014-15 season.
• Last year, the teams met twice during the regular season, and each would hold serve on its home court. The Terrapins won 80-73 on Jan. 8 in College Park behind 30 points from Jahmir Young. Brice Sensabaugh led the Buckeyes with 22 points. In the meeting in Columbus on March 1, the Buckeye seniors celebrated Senior Day by combining to score 37 of the 73 points in a 73-62 victory. Justice Sueing led all Buckeye scorers with 16 points. The Buckeyes were also a program record 20-of-20 from the foul line in that win.
• Tuesday night’s loss to Indiana was another tough setback in a string of tough games for the Buckeyes. Ohio State surrendered an 18-point lead and fell to the Hoosiers 76-73. Jamison Battle and Roddy Gayle Jr. each had 19 points in the game while Evan Mahaffey finished with eight points, a team-high six rebounds and also had two assists and two steals.
• Despite recording his first game this season without an assist on Tuesday, Bruce Thornton continues to lead the country in assist-to-turnover ratio at 4.22. He has 97 assists and just 23 turnovers.
• On top of leading the league in three-point shooting, Jamison Battle has also been sharp from the free throw line, having made his last 34 attempts. That is the best stretch of his career, and in fact, he attempted just 32 free throws in 29 games all of last season.
• Roddy Gayle Jr. is right there with Battle, having made his last 30 free throw attempts. The Niagara Falls native has had his struggles shooting this season but is 22-of-44 (.500) over his last four games, while averaging 16.5 ppg.
• Maryland enters Saturday’s game at 13-10 overall and 5-7 in the conference. Starting on January 2, the Terrapins have been on a little streak of two losses, followed by two wins, two losses, two wins and now two losses. The Buckeyes are hoping to buck that trend on Saturday. Jahmir Young leads the Terrapins and is second in the Big Ten at 20.6 ppg.

Ohio State vs. Maryland Predictions & Picks: Spread, Total - February 10​

Saturday's game between the Ohio State Buckeyes (13-10, 3-9 Big Ten) and Maryland Terrapins (13-10, 5-7 Big Ten) going head-to-head at Value City Arena has a projected final score of 71-67 (based on our computer prediction) in favor of Ohio State, who is listed as a small favorite by our model. The game will start at 4:00 PM ET ET on February 10.

Maryland Terrapins vs Ohio State Buckeyes Prediction, 2/10/2024 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds​

Who will win tonight's NCAA basketball game against the spread?
Tony Sink's Pick: Take Ohio State

Winners and Whiners: Prediction, Preview, and Odds​

You look at the talent that Ohio State possesses and it makes no sense that they are 3-9 in the Big 10. This is a team that beat Alabama in non-conference play on a neutral site and started the season out at 13-2. There is still time to turn things around and when you look at Maryland, they are not going to get much better. If you can slow down Jahmir Young and fatigue is hampering his game since he's playing over 35 minutes in every game. When you have no bench, there's only so much you can do on the road and the Buckeyes are the better team here. If they get a big lead this time, they will hold on.
Prediction: Ohio State -2.5
Entire article: https://winnersandwhiners.com/games/ncaab/2-10-2024/maryland-vs-ohio-state-prediction-7650/

Per sources, he will be the next Offensive Coordinator of THE Ohio State University.

Final at the meadowlands

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ALL-AMERICAN BOWL NOW ALLOWING JUNIORS TO PARTICIPATE​

The yearly All-American Bowl traditionally reserved for the top high school seniors in the nation to showcase their talents is making a significant change starting with next year’s game.

Per the All-American Bowl, high school juniors will now be allowed to participate in the event in addition to the seniors selected for the game. The change was implemented in hopes that more juniors would announce their commitments during the live broadcast on NBC and to mitigate opt-outs of the bowl from seniors who enroll in their college of choice in December.

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Buckeyes and Hoosier Meet for 200th Time on Tuesday​

Ohio State vs. Indiana
Date: February 6, 2024
Time: 7 p.m.
Venue: Value City Arena – Columbus, Ohio
Watch: Peacock

Ohio State is back home to host a pair of home games this week, starting with a Tuesday evening matchup against Indiana. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. and the game will be streamed exclusively on Peacock. Jac Collinsworth and Robbie Hummel will call the action.

• This will be the 200th all-time meeting between Ohio State and Indiana. Officially, the Hoosiers lead the series 109-84 after taking into account vacated games.
• The teams met exactly one month ago, on Jan. 6 in Bloomington, and the Hoosiers came away with a 71-65 victory. Indiana built a 10-point lead with less than four minutes to play. A three-pointer by Jamison Battle and four points from Felix Okpara helped cut the deficit to just two at 67-65 with 1:44 left. But Indiana made enough plays down the stretch to hold on. Battle led the Buckeyes with 17 points on 5-of-10 from long range.
• Ohio State battled Iowa in a back-and-forth game but fell on the road 79-77 last Friday night. Battle led four Buckeyes in double figures with 17 points on 3-of-5 from long range. Big man Felix Okpara tied a career-high with 14 points to go along with a game-high eight rebounds and two blocks. Bruce Thornton also had 14 points and five assists.
• Thornton leads the country in assist-to-turnover ratio, dishing out 97 assists and committing just 21 turnovers. He has had at least two assists in every game and has had 18 assists and three turnovers over the last four games.
• Okpara is one of two players in the country (with at least 15 games) to have one or more blocked shots in every game they have played. He is third in the Big Ten and 11th in the country with 52 blocked shots this season.
• Freshman Devin Royal has come off the bench and provided a start over the past month. He has scored 35 points in roughly 52 minutes of action since Jan. 15 on 14-of-23 (.609) shooting. Royal is coming off of playing a season-high 17:21 at Iowa and finished with nine points and three rebounds.
• Battle’s shooting 45 percent from long range, which is sixth-best in the country and tops in the Big Ten. The 6-7 forward is also the only Big Ten player on the Julius Erving Award late season watch list.
• Indiana enters the game having lost four of its last five games, including an 85-71 loss at home to Penn State on Saturday. The Hoosiers are led in scoring by Malik Reneau at 16.0 ppg. Big man Kel’el Ware, who had a solid game against the Buckeyes in Bloomington, is averaging 15.3 points and a team-best 9.5 rebounds per game.

Just sayin': I did see that Ohio State was actually a 6 point favorite over Indiana.

Silicon Valley billionaire Peter Thiel is throwing his financial muscle behind an “Olympics on steroids” — whose organizer boasts that athletes will dope “out in the open and honestly.”

Thiel, who made his fortune as an early investor in tech startups like PayPal and Facebook, is backing the Enhanced Games, which will actively encourage athletes to use performance-enhancing drugs.

The venture — aimed at aiding research into nutritional supplements and biohacks that push the boundaries of human performance — is the brainchild of Dr. Aron D’Souza, a lawyer by training who famously conceived Thiel’s lawsuit against Gawker Media.

He plans to provide more details on April 17 and promote the controversial concept in Paris during the Summer Olympics, which begin in July.

Thiel is among several high-profile venture capitalists who have backed the project, including billionaire Christian Angermayer of Apeiron Investment Group and Balaji Srinivasan, the former chief technology officer of cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase.

D’Souza would not reveal how much money was raised, telling The Post it was in the “high single-digit millions” — a sum that is “enough to produce the first games.”

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Mike Jacobs
LS, C, OG
Height: 6'2"
Weight: 285
Birthday: 5/9/1979
Hometown: Maumee, OH
High School: Maumee
Current Team: Ohio State
Seasons: 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001

Major: Sport & Leisure Studies (1998-01), Unknown (1997)

2001 Media Guide: Mike Jacobs is a former walk-on who was converted to scholarship prior to last year … currently listed as the Buckeyes’ No. 2 center … also snaps for field goals and extra points … has worked hard to earn a spot on the depth chart … his father, Mike Jacobs, is a former Ohio State assistant coach and offensive coordinator.

2000 Season: Fulfilled a lifelong dream when he was awarded a scholarship at the start of the season … played in all 12 games, primarily as the long snapper, but did see action at center against Fresno State and Iowa.

2000 Media Guide: Everyone could learn a lesson in attitude from Mike Jacobs. Now in his fourth year in the OSU program, Jacobs has learned a number of positions and, in the words of the OSU coaching staff, “has done everything we’ve asked of him.” Jacobs has stood out as a long-snapper n the past and may get a chance to excel at that position with the departure of Kevin Houser to graduation. “Mike is a young man with a lot of willingness and a lot of want. He wants to do things really well,” George Belu, offensive line coach, said.

1999 Season: Played in three games … logged a total of five minutes, including a season-high three minutes against Iowa.

1999 Media Guide: Mike Jacobs is a hard-working young man who is entering his third full year with the Ohio State Buckeyes. He has learned a number of offensive line positions, but has stood out as a long snapper and backup center. Jacobs made the travel squad last year as a backup long snapper when Kevin Houser’s wrist was still in question.

1998 Season: Managed to see his first collegiate action, playing in three games for a total of five minutes.

1998 Media Guide: Entering his second full year as a member of the team … learning a number of offensive line positions, but stood out this spring at center, where he also displayed some long snapping capabilities … could become a valuable backup to Kevin Houser in the area of snapping.

1997 Season: Redshirted the 1997 season as a true freshman.

Personal: Is the son of Ohio State offensive coordinator and offensive line coach Mike Jacobs and Judy Jacobs … played high school football at Maumee High School … born May 9, 1979.

Just sayin': He deserves his own thread.

What say you, league members only please.

The only good thing here is that it isn't on Peacock.....

Spread & Total Prediction for Ohio State vs. Iowa​

• Computer Predicted Spread: Iowa (-4.6)
• Computer Predicted Total: 153.0

Iowa vs. Ohio State Score Prediction​

• Prediction: Iowa 79, Ohio State 74

BASKETBALL PREVIEW: ILLINOIS’ SCORING PROFICIENCY, REBOUNDING DOMINANCE WILL MAKE IT DIFFICULT FOR OHIO STATE TO STOP ITS SKID​

Preventing a second three-game losing streak within a seven-game span isn’t going to be an easy task for Ohio State on Tuesday.
The Buckeyes’ opponent coming off of back-to-back losses is No. 14 Illinois, a 15-5 team tied for third in the Big Ten. Ohio State is tied for third-to-last in the Big Ten.

It’s a matchup that comes three days after the Buckeyes suffered their most lopsided defeat of the season, a 25-point blowout loss to Northwestern on the road that was even more lopsided than the final scoring margin.

Regardless of any negativity surrounding his team or the daunting nature of playing a top-15 team, Chris Holtmann remains committed to keeping his squad’s focus internal and centered on improvement.

"Our only focus is today," Holtmann said. "Even though it is a quick turnaround against a really good Illinois team, I think, in some ways, that can be a good thing, and we're excited to see how our guys respond. So much of athletics is about how you respond and we have an opportunity to respond."
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HOW IT PLAYS OUT​

LINE: ILLINOIS -3, O/U 150.5​

It’s hard to see Ohio State’s losing skid stopping in this one. The Buckeyes have struggled defensively of late, giving up 83 points to both Nebraska and Northwestern and allowing those teams to shoot a combined 53.3% from three-point range. That doesn’t bode well against an offense as prolific as the Fighting Illini’s.

Prediction: Illinois 84, Ohio State 71

Prediction​

Stephen’s pick: OSU’s problems have often come on the road regardless level of the opponent. But it’s also just not a better team than the Fighting Illini which is enough reason to think it’ll get its sixth loss in tight games. 78-70, Illinois.

Illinois vs Ohio State Betting Prediction​

Ohio State comes into this game after losing five of their last six contests and they have allowed 83 points in each of their last two games. The Buckeyes will look to turn things around in conference play and they will be at home for this game. Illinois has won three of their last four games, with the one loss coming on the road in overtime against Northwestern. Illinois is the much better team in this matchup and they are scoring over 82 points per game. I know Ohio State is at home and it’s never easy to win on the road in conference play, but I can’t trust this Ohio State team at all. Take Illinois here.

LGHL score prediction: Illinois 80, Ohio State 71

Just sayin': I couldn't find any site that predicted Ohio State would win this one. Hell, I was even thinking of putting a few vDollars on the Illini (-3); but I couldn't find the game on Buckeye Planet's "Sportsbook".

This team really needs to step up with another "Matt Sylvester moment" game:

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winners meet in superbowl

Road Swing Continues at Northwestern Saturday Night​

Ohio State at Northwestern
Date: January 27, 2024
Time: 8:30 p.m. ET
Venue: Welsh-Ryan Arena – Evanston, Ill.
Watch: BTN

Ohio State heads to Northwestern for a Saturday evening tilt with the Wildcats. Tip-off is set for 8:30 p.m. ET and the game will be televised on the Big Ten Network. Dave Revsine and Shon Morris will call the action.

• Ohio State has dominated the all-time series with Northwestern 123-49. The Buckeyes are 51-33 at Northwestern and 38-17 inside Welsh-Ryan Arena.
• The Buckeyes have won six of the last 10 meetings with the Wildcats. Prior to that, the Buckeyes won 31 of 33 meetings dating back to 1999.
• Last year, the teams split a pair of meetings with each winning on the other's home floor. The Buckeyes raced out to a 20-2 lead and dominated throughout in a 73-57 victory at Northwestern on Jan. 1, 2023. Brice Sensabaugh scored a team-high 18 points while Sean McNeil made three three-pointers and finished with 15 points. In the meeting in Columbus, the lead went back and forth 10 times with neither team leading by more than nine before Northwestern pulled-out a 69-63 victory. Justice Sueing led the Buckeyes with 19 points.
• The last Buckeye road victory was the win at Northwestern on Jan. 1. That is a span of 13 road games.
• Ohio State is coming off an 83-69 setback at Nebraska on Tuesday night. Bruce Thornton led the Buckeyes with 16 points. He also had six assists and zero turnovers and two steals. Jamison Battle made three three-pointers and finished with 11 points while sophomore Bowen Hardman also made three triples and finished with a career-high 11 points.
• The Buckeyes have taken care of the basketball recently. They had a streak of double-digit turnovers in six consecutive games but his since had single-digit turnovers in four consecutive games. That includes their two lowest turnover games of four (at Michigan) and six (vs. Penn State).
• Roddy Gayle Jr. dished-out a career-high eight assists at Nebraska on Tuesday night. Starting on Jan. 3, he had a three-game stretch with five combined assists and 12 turnovers. In his last three games, he's flipped that with 13 assists and just three turnovers.
• Sophomore guard Bowen Hardman sprung off the bench late in the game vs. Nebraska on Tuesday night and knocked-down 4-of-8 shots, including three three-pointers to finish with a career-high 11 points. He had scored just eight points up until that point this season and just 20 points in his career.
• Northwestern enters the game at 14-5 overall and is coming off a thrilling 96-91 overtime victory over No. 10 Illinois on Wednesday night. Boo Buie leads the team and is fifth in the Big Ten at 18.5 ppg. He also has a team-high 100 assists. Ty Berry has made 44 three-pointers and is shooting better than 42 percent from beyond the arc.

Is Ohio State a must-win game for Northwestern men’s basketball?​

The expectations for this ‘Cats team have undoubtedly been raised.
The first step in controlling that destiny is to beat Ohio State when it comes to the Welsh on Saturday. Coming off a loss to Nebraska, the Buckeyes will look to return to the win column as they reach a pivotal moment in their season. Yet, Welsh-Ryan Arena has proven to be a fortress for the ‘Cats, especially when the students are present.

So, is this game a must-win for Northwestern? I’ll say yes, simply because every home game should give the ‘Cats an edge at this point. Their sole loss at Welsh-Ryan came against Chicago State in potentially one of the worst losses in program history. However, while inexcusable, there were no students, barely any outside fans, and an utter lack of confidence. Flash forward to the New Year as January nears a close, and that narrative has completely flipped. With six home games remaining on the docket, the ‘Cats have given me no reason to believe they shouldn’t be the team that emerges victorious in every single one of those matchups.

Ohio State vs Northwestern Odds​

Ohio State: +1.5, O/U 138.5

Michigan announces Sherrone Moore as full-time head coach​

Michigan has its man.

Two days after Jim Harbaugh bolted to the NFL and the Los Angeles Chargers, the national champion Wolverines promoted offensive coordinator/offensive line coach Sherrone Moore to head coach, the school announced Friday.

Moore went unbeaten during the four games in which he replaced Harbaugh last season. Now, he replaces him as Michigan's head coach on a full-time basis.

On the same day that Harbaugh bolted for the NFL and the Chargers' head coaching job, Michigan's All-America guard Zak Zinter tweeted: "No interviews needed. It's Papa Moore's time."

And now, officially, it is.

Members of the College Football Playoff (CFP) Board of Managers have agreed to begin the newly-expanded 12-team playoff during the 2024-2025 season.

"We're delighted to be moving forward," said Bill Hancock, Executive Director of the College Football Playoff. "When the board expanded the playoff beginning in 2026 and asked the CFP Management Committee to examine the feasibility of starting the new format earlier, the Management Committee went right to work. More teams and more access mean more excitement for fans, alumni, students and student-athletes. We appreciate the leaders of the six bowl games and the two future national championship game host cities for their cooperation. Everyone realized that this change is in the best interest of college football and pulled together to make it happen."

The first round of the playoff in 2024 will take place the week ending Saturday, December 21, at either the home field of the higher-seeded team or at another site designated by the higher-seeded institution. (No. 12 at No. 5, No. 11 at No. 6, No. 10 at No. 7, and No. 9 at No. 8.) The specific game dates, likely late in that week, will be announced later.

For the 2024 and 2025 seasons, the four quarterfinal games and two Playoff Semifinal games will be played in bowls on a rotating basis. The 2024 quarterfinals will take place in the Fiesta Bowl, Peach Bowl, Rose Bowl and Sugar Bowl, while the Cotton Bowl and Orange Bowl will host the Playoff Semifinals. The 2025 quarterfinals will take place in the Cotton Bowl, Orange Bowl, Rose Bowl and Sugar Bowl, while the Fiesta Bowl and Peach Bowl will host the Playoff Semifinals. Specific dates for all quarterfinal and semifinal games will be announced at a later time.

The national championship games will be played January 20, 2025, in Atlanta, and January 19, 2026, in Miami.

College Football Playoff officials will introduce a 12-team playoff bracket next season, expanding from the current four-team format.

How CFP teams are selected under new format​

The new 12-team College Football Playoff field will include the six highest-ranked conference champions, which will receive automatic bids. The top four teams will receive a first-round bye to the quarterfinals.

The six highest-ranked teams remaining will round out the 12-team format.

Bowl games

CFP officials stated that the four quarterfinal games and two Playoff Semifinal games will be played in bowls on a rotating basis.

2024 quarterfinals: Fiesta Bowl, Peach Bowl, Rose Bowl and Sugar Bowl
2024 semifinals: Cotton Bowl and Orange Bowl
2025 quarterfinals: Cotton Bowl, Orange Bowl, Rose Bowl and Sugar Bowl
2025 semifinals: Fiesta Bowl and Peach Bowl

The CFP schedule for the 2024 and 2025 seasons:​

2024 CFP Schedule
2025 CFP Schedule
In the new 12-team CFP, the field will likely include the five highest-ranked conference champions plus the next seven highest-ranked teams, which means any team that does not win its league will need to have an impressive résumé to earn an at-large bid.

Just sayin': Anyway the top 4 teams get a 1st round bye.

BIG TEN STICKING WITH 20-GAME CONFERENCE SCHEDULE, TOURNAMENT GOING TO 15 TEAMS WITH ADDITIONS OF OREGON, UCLA, USC AND WASHINGTON​

Changes are coming with the Big Ten's expansion to 18 teams, but one thing that will remain the same is the number of conference games played by the league's teams.

With Oregon, UCLA, USC and Washington all joining the Big Ten basketball ranks starting in the 2024-25 season, each Big Ten team will continue to play 20 conference games each year, per College Hoops Today.

One thing that is changing, however, is the Big Ten Tournament, which will move to a 15-team bracket starting with the 2025 tourney.

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A 15-team bracket would mean that the bottom three teams in the conference are excluded from conference tournament action. No seed lower than the No. 8 Michigan State men's team in 2017 has ever won the Big Ten Tournament.

Just sayin': With 15 teams only the #1 seed gets a bye in the 1st round.

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School: Durham(NC) Southern
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