Big Ten links: Catch up on Friday’s football headlines
Tom Dienhart, BTN.com Senior Writer via Big Ten Network

Athlon ranked the top 25 football players in the Big Ten - can you guess who is No. 1? Also, Jim Harbaugh got some more attention on Twitter. One writer says Minnesota made a mistake keeping Jerry Kill involved in the program. These stories and more in Friday Big Ten news digest.

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The Oklahoma Drill, full live/hitting scrimmages, drills with tackling to the ground, goal line situations with masses of bodies hurling at each other, and more, have been staples of football at every level. Coaches have felt those kinds of things instill toughness in players, make for better tackling, and are good for overall team development.

The downside has been injuries of all kinds, and since we are in this age of concussion awareness, head injuries in particular.

The Dartmouth coach hasn't had live tackling in his practices for 5 years. They emphasize technique, avoid injuries, and the coach says there is no downside. His critics point out his less than stellar winning pct. as a head coach, but the entire league is adopting this policy.

My HS coach believed in full contact practices. We killed each other twice a day during pre-season, and 2 times a week during the season. He would back it off toward the end of the year. My college coach did about the same. I gotta admit, there were many times I was watching guys get carried off the field and thought that it was insane.

In HS (late 70s, early 80s) we played a team that never hit during the week, and those guys were the hardest hitting fellas we played. So, this idea has been around for a long time. It is just now hitting college football, albeit a minor league in CFB. It will be interesting to see if major programs and leagues will move in that direction.

Thoughts?

Anyone cut the cable cord and move to streaming everything?

I was looking at buying my own modem, HD antenna's, and Amazon firesticks for our TV's.

On top of the above I was looking at subscribing to Hulu+ & Sling TV. Only thing that sucks is I won't get all of my live sports.

Anyone have any experience with the above? Thoughts/suggestions?

Thanks!

Buckeyes in it to land two elite RBs in 2017 - 247Sports
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Buckeyes in it to land two elite RBs in 2017
247Sports
With the combine in the rear view mirror and OSU's pro day exactly one week from today (March 11), here are my predictions on what round all 14 Buckeyes that were invited to the combine will be taken in. Feel free to add your own prognostications in ...


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Great Eight: Big Ten women’s tourney quarterfinals
BTN.com staff via Big Ten Network

Eight teams compete across four games in today’s round of the Big Ten Women’s Basketball Tournament in Indianapolis. All four of today’s games are on BTN, and click the clinks for each game to watch any game live on BTN2Go: No. 9 Iowa vs. No. 1 Maryland (noon ET), No. 12 Northwestern vs. No. 4 Indiana (2:30 p.m.), No. 10 Rutgers vs. No. 2 Ohio State (6:30 p.m.), and No. 11/6 vs. No. 3 Michigan State (9 p.m.). The day 1 recap is here and the day 2 recap is here – both with video highlights from each game. Here are the tourney scoreboards: Wednesday’s results, Thursday’s results, Friday’s games. Also,

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Making The List: Nate Brooks
jcollingsworth via our good friends at Buckeye Battle Cry
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


(photo courtesy of www.cleveland.com)

How many boxers do you know from The Ohio State University?

Don’t be so presumptuous ….

The Ohio State University does have a Boxing Club. The National Collegiate Boxing Association (NCBA) was founded in 1976 as a non-profit, autonomous organization whose goal is to provide a safe, positive experience for student athletes pursuing the sport of boxing. The association falls under the auspices of USA Boxing. After 1960, the NCAA no longer sanctioned boxing.

So there!

I somehow just needed to say all that – because today I have decided to pick a Boxer for Making the List.



Early Years

Nate Eugene Brooks was born in Cleveland, Ohio on August 4, 1933. His family promoted his talents early on in his life as he had picked up the sport quickly, being called a natural. In 1950 Nate would dominate the Chicago Golden Gloves Tournament of Champions in the Flyweight division by a KO in the third against Jimmy Quinn of Los Angeles and the Inter-city Golden Gloves’ Championship at flyweight against Sharkey Lewis. The year 1951 was a big one for Nate. He won the Chicago Golden Gloves Tournament of Champions at bantamweight by decision vs. Davey Moore and the Intercity Golden Gloves’ Championship at bantamweight vs. Lulu Perez. Additionally, as a member of the Chicago Golden Gloves Team representing the United States vs. Europe he was awarded the decision vs. Jacques Dumesnil of France at bantamweight.



Olympics

Brooks would make the USA Team in 1952 and represent the United States in the 1952 Olympics held in Helsinki. In his chase for Gold he would defeat Risto Luukkonen (Finland) 3-0, moving to the next round by defeating Alfred Zima (Austria) 3-0, then Mircea Dobrescu (Romania) 2-1, followed by Willie Toweel (South Africa) 3-0. In the final (Gold Medal Event) Nate defeated Edgar Basel (West Germany) 3-0. The 1952 Olympic Flyweight Champion would be Nate Brooks of The United States of America.



Post Olympics

Nate turned professional shortly after the amateur successes that he had. But his professional career would never pan out as well. In 1956 Nate retired from boxing and enrolled into The Ohio State University where he would study Law.

Great athletes from The Ohio State University are not necessarily determined during their stay in Columbus. Nate Brooks is clear evidence of this. A Gold Medal winner in boxing “became” a Buckeye following his triumphs in the ring – understanding the prestige and honor generated in the details of moving on from one great achievement in his life to another.

Nate Brooks is an open and shut case to Making the List, primarily because he is a Gold Medal winner in boxing – a claim no other Buckeye can make. But he also deserves to be included on the list with so many Great Buckeyes because of his determination to better his life at a time when most wither away – relishing in past memories. Nate Brooks is as much of a Great Buckeye as any whom I have previously mentioned.

The post Making The List: Nate Brooks appeared first on The Buckeye Battle Cry: Ohio State News and Commentary.

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2016 Ohio State Spring Football Preview: Youth Will Be Served, Early And Often – TE Preview
Chip Minnich via our good friends at Men of the Scarlet and Gray
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here

“Almost everything that is great has been done by youth…” ~ Benjamin Disraeli

Ohio State will begin spring football practice on March 8th. Heading into the 2016 college football season, Ohio State will have 44 players on its roster designated as either a redshirt freshman (21 of the 25 players signed in February 2015), or a true freshman. For a roster that can have only 85 scholarship players, Ohio State will have around 52% of its roster with no playing time experience. As former Ohio State Head Coach John Cooper used to say, “If a dog is going to bite you, it will bite you as a pup.”.

For the next several weeks, I will be writing position group previews, leading up to the Ohio State Spring Football Game in Ohio Stadium on April 16th, 2016. These position groups will be ranked, from least to most concern, as I perceive them. It is entirely possible that my concerns, as well as the coaching staff’s concerns, will be reevaluated after the spring game.

7th – Tight End

Player Lost – Nick Vannett. Vannett exhausted his eligibility, and is preparing for the 2016 NFL Draft. Even though Vannett did not have as strong a senior season as he would have liked, Vannett had 19 receptions for 162 yards. Compare and contrast that to Marcus Baugh, who had 2 receptions for 32 yards, with the longest reception (27 yards) coming in The 2016 Battlefrog Fiesta Bowl against Notre Dame.

Returning Players/Incoming Players – Marcus Baugh (Redshirt Senior), A.J. Alexander (Redshirt Freshman), Rashod Berry (Redshirt Freshman).

A few things to keep in mind as it relates to this position group…

· Marcus Baugh is the starter, almost by default. Baugh enters the 2016 season with a career total of 3 receptions for 34 yards, and one touchdown. That is three more receptions and one more touchdown than any other scholarship tight end on the Ohio State roster. Baugh has had numerous off the field issues in the past. The coaching staff has maintained their patience with Baugh, and Baugh seems poised to conclude his Ohio State career as a starter in 2016.

· Neither A.J. Alexander or Rashod Berry played in 2015. Considering Alexander was coming off an injury sustained during his senior year of high school, and how Berry split time at multiple positions in high school, it is no surprise why Ohio State Head Coach Urban Meyer was reluctant to play either player in 2015.

· Reinforcements are on the way, but will not arrive until the summer. Ohio State signed three tight ends in Luke Farrell, Jake Hausmann, and Kierre Hawkins, but none of these players will be in the mix during spring practice. For both Alexander and Berry, the spring practices will be essential. Alexander and Berry will want to secure their positions on the depth chart, before any of the freshmen tight ends arrive on campus.

These questions, among others, will be on my mind once Ohio State spring practice begins March 8th.




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Ohio State baseball heads back down south for the Snowbird Classic
Ben Martens via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


After a good showing that included a win over nationally-ranked Coastal Carolina last weekend, the baseball Bucks will play three in the Sunshine State against Seton Hall, Illinois State, and Boston College.

One out. That's all that separated Ohio State baseball from having a great showing at the Caravelle Resort Baseball at the Beach tournament last weekend. The Buckeyes were one out away from a second victory over nationally-ranked Coastal Carolina and a three-win tournament in South Carolina, but ultimately fell short.

As it is, Ohio State had a good weekend, going 2-2 against solid competition and playing the aforementioned Chanticleers right to the brink of a sweep. Head coach Greg Beals and his squad are now 5-2-1 in 2016, and received votes in the NCBWA poll this week for the first time this season.

Senior co-captain Nick Sergakis continued to swing a hot bat, extending his season-opening hitting streak to eight games. The Columbus native is batting .455, and smacked his first home run of the season against his former school, Coastal Carolina, in Saturday's 6-4 win.

Freshman Brady Cherry also showed well in Saturday's victory over the Chanticleers, hitting the first two homers of his collegiate career and driving in three runs.

Jacob Bosiokovic, the redshirt junior who got off to a scalding start opening weekend, came back down to earth a bit in Myrtle Beach, recording just a single hit in 17 at-bats. But the one he got was huge, a two-run home run against Liberty that helped propel the Buckeyes to a comeback victory.

Ohio State was without junior center fielder Troy Montgomery for the final three games of the weekend after a collision with second baseman L. Grant Davis on Friday put him into the concussion protocol. The Buckeye leadoff man, who has been setting the table to the tune of a .316 batting average and .500 on-base percentage, should be back this weekend.

On the mound, junior lefty Tanner Tully put in a second straight solid outing to start the season, allowing two runs in 5.1 innings in the win against the Chanticleers, striking out a career-high nine batters. Freshman Ryan Feltner also pitched well against Coastal, yielding just one run and striking out six in five innings for a no-decision.

Another trip down south awaits Ohio State this weekend, as the team travels to Port Charlotte, Florida to participate in the Snowbird Classic. The Buckeyes will see Seton Hall, Illinois State, and Boston College in the Sunshine State, as they look to capitalize on last weekend's momentum.

Seton Hall Pirates


Seton Hall enters the weekend with a 3-5 record after consecutive four-game series against Missouri and Florida International to open the season. The Pirates, picked to finish third in the Big East in the preseason, began the year receiving votes in the national polls, and will be a good test for Ohio State.

Sophomore right fielder Ryan Ramiz is hitting .357 to lead a Seton Hall offensive attack that is averaging just a shade over three runs per game. Senior Derek Jenkins in center field is the leadoff man, batting .286 and already 5-for-5 in stolen bases, and juniors Mike Caputo and Mikael-Ali Mogues on the right side of the infield have been supplying the pop, as each is slugging .500 thus far.

Taking the ball for the Pirates against the Buckeyes will be sophomore Andrew Politi, who will be making the first start of his collegiate career. The right-hander has appeared out of the bullpen twice this season, allowing two runs in five innings of work.

Illinois State Redbirds


After losing three of four to nationally-ranked Oregon in Eugene last weekend, Illinois State sits 2-5 on the young season. The win over the Ducks on Saturday was the Redbirds' first over a ranked opponent in nine years.

Illinois State has averaged seven runs per game in the young season, and boasts four regulars hitting .290 or better. Freshman shortstop Owen Miller is off to a fast start in his collegiate career, leading the team with a .333 average. Senior first baseman Brian Rodemoyer anchors the middle of the order, hitting .318 with two home runs, 10 RBIs, and a .682 slugging percentage.

On the bump, senior Steve Heilenbach is coming off a great showing in earning the win over Oregon. The righty went 8.1 innings, limiting the Ducks to just two runs on four hits. For the season, Heilenbach is 2-0 with a 1.35 earned run average, sporting a WHIP of 0.75.

Boston College Eagles


Undefeated Boston College will provide the Buckeyes with a stern test. The Eagles are 7-0 and outscoring opponents 52-16 so far in 2016. Holding the opposition to a collective .193 batting average, head coach Mike Gambino leans on his pitching staff heavily.

Sophomore second baseman Jake Palomaki is the leadoff man, hitting .310 with three stolen bases thus far. Fellow sophomore Donovan Casey anchors the middle of the lineup, hitting .455 and leading the team with 10 hits, while junior catcher Nick Sciortino has hit a blazing .563, and senior first baseman Joe Cronin leads the team with seven RBIs and slashes .292/.375/.419.

Pitching for BC against Ohio State will be senior Jesse Adams. A native of Maumee, Ohio, Adams is 1-0 on the season, having allowed six runs in eight innings. The lefty has walked six, struck out six, and held opponents to a .267 batting average.

Game times and probable pitching matchups


Friday, Mar. 4, 11 a.m. ET vs. Seton Hall

Tully (2-0, 1.59 ERA) vs. Politi (0-0, 3.60)

Saturday, Mar. 5, 2:30 p.m. ET vs. Illinois State

Adam Niemeyer (0-1, 5.73) vs. Heilenbach (2-0, 1.35)

Sunday, Mar. 6, 1 p.m. ET vs. Boston College

John Havird (0-0, 5.25) vs. Adams (1-0, 6.75)

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The Buckeyes continue their non-conference part of the schedule by participating in the Snowbird Classic tournament in Port Charlotte, FL. Their opponents for this weekend will be Seton Hall, Illinois State and Boston College.

Series Preview

COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Ohio State baseball team travels to Port Charlotte, Fla., this weekend for three contests at the 2016 Snowbird Baseball Classic. The Buckeyes open the weekend against Seton Hall at 11 a.m. Friday, take on Illinois State at 2:30 p.m. Saturday and close out action at 1 p.m. Sunday against Boston College. All three contests will be played at Field No. 6 at North Charlotte Regional Park.

Game Times:

Friday, March 4
Ohio State vs. Seton Hall 11 a.m. Port Charlotte, Fla. GameTracker

Saturday, March 5
Ohio State vs. Illinois State 2:30 p.m. Port Charlotte, Fla. GameTracker

Sunday, March 6
Ohio State vs. Boston College 1 p.m. Port Charlotte, Fla. GameTracker

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Pre-Spring Outlook: Special Teams
Brandon Zimmerman via our good friends at Buckeye Battle Cry
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


With the recruits signed, sealed, and almost delivered it is officially time to look forward to the 2016 football season. While the Buckeyes are already getting ready behind the scenes, things do not start to jump into another gear until the Buckeyes begin their spring practice on March 8th. Over the next couple of weeks, I will be taking a look at each positional group for the Buckeyes and discussing who might start and how the depth chart may shake up. Today, we take a look at the special teams’ side of the house where the Buckeyes return their starting kicker and punter but have to replace their long-snapper and return men.

THE PLAYERS

The rock star of the group is Australian punter senior Cameron Johnston who enters his fourth season of playing football. Johnston had 58 punts last year which averaged 43.9


The Punting Rock-Star


yards. He had 26 punts land inside the 20 and he had 18 punts go over 50 yards. His longest punt on the season was 67 yards.

Junior kicker Sean Nuernberger was in a stiff battle all of last year with Jack Willoughby for the starting kicker job. For most of the year, Willoughby won the job before being overtaken by Nuernberger towards the end of the season. This year Nuernberger is poised to regain a stranglehold on the starting kicking job which he had when he was a freshman. For the season, he made 3 of 4 field goal attempts with a long of 38 yards.

The new long-snapper will be redshirt freshman Liam McCullough. He was rated as the #1 long-snapper coming out of high school and will be relied on heavily to replace Bryce Haynes who was so vital to Johnston’s success on punts.

Waiting patiently to get his turn at punter, Drue Chrisman joins the Buckeyes this year and will take a greyshirt waiting for Johnston to graduate. Chrisman was the #1 punter coming out of high school this year.

At returner, the Buckeyes have to replace their punt returner and possibly their kick returner with Samuel poised to start at running back. The team is loaded with athletes who


Austin Mack is one to watch at either return position.


are more than capable of taking these spots. The player with the most experience at returning is H-back Dontre Wilson. Wilson is a threat to take it to the house every time he touches the ball. Young guys such as Austin Mack, Parris Campbell, Demario McCall, and Eric Glover-Williams are some of the options of who could step up and make an impact this year.

PREDICTED DEPTH CHART

P

1. Cameron Johnston

K

1. Sean Nuernberger

LS

1. Liam McCullough

PR

1. Eric Glover-Williams
2. Austin Mack

KR

1. Dontre Wilson
2. Parris Campbell

The returners are the only real battle of the off-season and I have Wilson and Glover-Williams coming out as victorious. I think the real wildcard for both return spots is going to be McCall and how quickly he can adjust to the speed of college football. I could easily see him getting a long look at punt and kick returner. The tough thing will be whether they want to burn a redshirt to purely play special teams. I know, I know Urban Meyer doesn’t care about redshirting guys and he expects 18 true freshmen to play but we all know that isn’t entirely true. He tends to redshirt quite a bit.



OUTLOOK SCHEDULE

Quarterbacks – 15 Feb

Running Backs – 17 Feb

Wide Receivers – 19 Feb

Tight Ends – 22 Feb

Offensive Line – 24 Feb

Defensive Line – 26 Feb

Linebackers – 29 Feb

Secondary – 2 Mar

Special Teams – 4 Mar



The post Pre-Spring Outlook: Special Teams appeared first on The Buckeye Battle Cry: Ohio State News and Commentary.

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Ohio State offers standout defensive end, gains ground with former Alabama running back
Caleb Houser via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Thursday saw the Buckeyes build toward future depth while (hopefully) sticking it to the Crimson Tide.

With Ohio State in the midst of off-season workouts and just releasing their spring practice schedule, the Buckeyes certainly don't seem like a team that truly understands what a day off means. Urban Meyer and his staff lead the pack so far in recruiting for 2017, but with such momentum, satisfaction tends to take a backseat as they continue to recruit for next year and beyond.

Buckeyes offer 2018 standout


Ohio State's pursuit of elite defensive line products will never cease. In every year of Urban Meyer's tenure at Ohio State, he has never once failed to bring in a top haul of defensive line prospects. The same is likely to be true of 2017 and into the future. To keep the trend alive, Urban Meyer handed out an offer yesterday to a 2018 star defensive end from the south, hoping to bring more talent north to Columbus in the future.

Making it public via his Twitter, Xavier Thomas of Florence, South Carolina is the latest prospect to earn a Buckeye offer. Only a high school sophomore, Thomas has plenty of career left and time for his recruiting process to play out. However, the 6'3, 242-pound strong-side defensive end already has scholarship offers from many of the nation's top football programs. Schools such as Alabama, Clemson, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida State, and now Ohio State have all thrown their hat into the ring hoping for his pledge. Fortunately for the Buckeyes, Thomas made it known that Ohio State will certainly be a "top school" in his recruitment. Currently, Clemson and South Carolina lead the way for the 247sports crystal ball predictions, but with National Signing Day 2018 nearly two years away, this is anybody's race for the time being.

Latest rumblings on Akers


Yesterday, we noted that the nation's third best running back (according to 247sports), Cam Akers, would be visiting Ohio State this upcoming week. While he was an Alabama commitment at the time of that news, last night Cam made it public via his Twitter that he had in fact decided to de-commit from the Crimson Tide and reopen his recruitment. While the timing is certainly interesting, Akers was not the only highly-touted running back prospect in the Alabama 2017 class. With the top overall running back prospect in Najee Harris already in the fold, Akers may have wanted to look around at a program where he will be more of a priority.

As stated, Akers plans to visit Columbus early next week for a few days, which will include one of Ohio State's spring practice dates. The Buckeyes may have Todd Sibley already committed in the 2017 class, but that doesn't mean Urban Meyer isn't looking to bring one more running back to the fold. With the upcoming visit and Cam's second trip to Columbus on his own finances, things are beginning to look very interesting for the top overall prospect in the state of Mississippi for 2017.

2016 QB headed to OSU


Ohio State landed their top quarterback prospect in 2016 when Dwayne Haskins signed with the Buckeyes on National Signing Day. However, as of last night, there is one more quarterback that will be joining Ohio State from the 2016 class. Brendan Skalitzky of Evergreen Park, Illinois made it public that he would be continuing his academic and athletic career at Ohio State after accepting a preferred walk-on spot with the football team.

While he may be a new name to the fold, don't be fooled, he had quite the prep career in high school. A product of Marist, Skalitzky had a stellar season, throwing for over 3,000 yards and running for nearly 800 more in while accounting for 40 touchdowns during his senior campaign. While the athletics are one side to his talents, Brendan also earned a 5.0 GPA in high school showing how dedicated of a work ethic he possess. As the Chicago Tribune Daily Southtown player of the year award winner, Brendan will certainly be an added bonus to quarterback group already loaded with talent.


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Women's basketball | Buckeyes now focused on another title shot - Columbus Dispatch
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Women's basketball | Buckeyes now focused on another title shot
Columbus Dispatch
INDIANAPOLIS — During the regular season, Ohio State returned to national prominence and had high hopes of securing its first Big Ten championship since 2010 along with the top seed in the conference tournament this week at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
State of the program: Ohio State BuckeyesESPN (blog)
Creating a Path for the Ohio State Buckeyes to Make the NCAA TournamentBT Powerhouse (blog)
2016 spring football preview: Ohio State BuckeyesBig Ten Network
Land-Grant Holy Land -Eleven Warriors -The Buckeye Battle Cry
all 34 news articles »

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Buckeyes head to Texas to offer DB with 'super interest' - 247Sports
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Buckeyes head to Texas to offer DB with 'super interest'
247Sports
Late last month Port Arthur (Texas) Memorial cornerback Kary Vincent told Bucknuts.com he was happy to hear from the Buckeyes. “Yes sir, I talked to them today,” Vincent said on Feb. 25. “I talked to coach (Kerry) Coombs and coach Stud (Greg Studrawa).

and more »

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Big Ten Women’s Basketball Tournament: Day 2 Recap
Charles via our good friends at Buckeye Battle Cry
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


After a two game, sort of preview day yesterday, the Big Ten Women’s Basketball Tournament stepped things up today with a full day of action.

Things got going at noon when 8 seed Michigan took on 9 seed Iowa. The Wolverines got off to a hot start and built a 24-8 lead in the first seven minutes of the game. The Hawkeyes finally got their offense going and started to chip away at the Michigan lead while the Wolverines offense slowed down. Iowa took the lead midway through the second quarter and kept going, building a 52-42 advantage heading into halftime. The Hawkeyes would grow the lead to as much as 14 in the third quarter but the Wolverines found an answer and pulled within two early in the fourth. That was as close as Michigan would get as the Iowa offense took control and the Hawkeyes came away with a comfortable 97-85 win. The Iowa offense was impressive in this one, having 3 players reach the 20 point mark and 3 players come up with double-doubles while shooting 60% from the field and 66% from the three point line.

The second game saw 5th seeded Minnesota take on 12th seeded Northwestern. Without senior leader Maggie Lyons, the Wildcats weren’t given much of a chance but they paid no attention to the experts. Northwestern jumped out to an early double digit lead and while Minnesota would make some runs, the Wildcats always had an answer. The Golden Gophers would get as close as 1 early in the fourth quarter but Northwestern’s Nia Coffey answered with 9 straight points. Minnesota would get within two baskets in the closing minutes but the Wildcats hit their free throws to salt away an up 84-74 upset. Minnesota entered the game on the NCAA bubble but today’s loss ended those hopes, meaning that Rachel Banham, the Big Ten career scoring leader, will finish her career without ever playing in an NCAA tournament game.

Game three saw 7 seed Nebraska face off against 10 seed Nebraska. Rutgers got off to a hot start and lead 23-9 after the first quarter before Nebraska came roaring back to pull within one, 34-33, at halftime. The Cornhuskers continued their momentum in the second half, taking a lead and going up by as much as 8 in the fourth quarter. The Scarlet Knights weren’t done though as they put together a run to take a one point lead with a minute to go in the game. Neither team could score and Nebraska had a chance to hit the winning basket but threw away an inbound pass with three seconds to go and Rutgers hit a pair of free throws to get the 66-63 upset.

The last game of the day was 6th seed Purdue against 11th seed Penn State. The game got off to a slow start offensively but the Nittany Lions put together a run late in the first quarter to take a 15-6 lead. Purdue got their offense going in the second quarter while PSU cooled and the Boilermakers went into halftime up 28-25. PSU would retake the lead early in the third quarter and would stretch that lead to as much as five before Purdue scored 9 straight to go back on top heading into the fourth quarter. The Nittany Lions had a couple chances to pull ahead early in the fourth but couldn’t do so and the Boilermakers pulled away for a 70-59 win; the only win by a higher seed on the day.

Tomorrow sees the top four seeds finally hit the court in Indianapolis as the 14 team Big Ten means that those teams get a double bye. Top seeded Maryland will start things off against Iowa. The Terrapins have only lost two conference games since joining the Big Ten, both to Ohio State this season, and they easily won their only game against the Hawkeyes this season. That said, if Iowa can shoot like they did today, they are easily capable of pulling off those upset. Expect a high scoring game in this one.

Northwestern’s reward for upsetting Minnesota is a matchup against 4 seed Indiana. The Hoosiers have been hot down the stretch, winning 10 of their last 12 games which included a road win against the Wildcats. Northwestern stumbled through Big Ten season but have momentum in the tournament; the question is how well the Wildcats can keep the energy up playing their third game in three days against a rested Indiana squad.

The afternoon session tomorrow starts with #2 seed Ohio State taking on Rutgers in a game that tips at 6:30 eastern. The Buckeyes seemed to have the regular season conference title in hand before losing their last two games and falling to second place. OSU won both regular season meetings between the two schools but the game at Rutgers was a bit closer than the Buckeyes would have liked. Expect Ohio State to be fired up after how they finished the regular season and the Scarlet Knights are going to need a very good offensive performance to keep up in this one.

The final game on Friday will be 3 seed Michigan State against Purdue. A late season five game losing streak put the Boilermakers on the NCAA bubble but today’s win gives them four in a row and probably gets them into the Big Dance though one more win would make them a lock. The Spartans ended the regular season with a four game winning streak and they beat Purdue in their only meeting of the regular season. MSU’s Ariel Powers is one of the best shooters in the Big Ten and the Spartan’s strong defense will be a challenge for a Purdue team; though the Boilermakers always seem to have some sort of magic in Indy.

tBBC Predictions

As part of our tournament preview article, the staff here at tBBC made their predictions as to how the tournament would go. The large number of upsets today played havoc with many of our predictions; fortunately none of us took these picks to Vegas. Lets see where everyone stands after two days of action.

Michael: 0-0 (Michael skipped straight to the semis for his predictions)

Scott: 4-2

Brandon: 3-3

Joe: 2-4

Ken: 4-2

JC: 3-3

WVa: 4-2 (only person to correctly pick Northwestern over Minnesota)

Charles: 4-2

The post Big Ten Women’s Basketball Tournament: Day 2 Recap appeared first on The Buckeye Battle Cry: Ohio State News and Commentary.

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Memorial HS (Port Arthur, TX)
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QB Will Grier interested in transferring to Ohio State? - 247Sports
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


QB Will Grier interested in transferring to Ohio State?
247Sports
One of the schools Grier is considering transferring to is West Virginia and he visited Morgantown on Wednesday. "I've also been told he's met with plenty others, including Ohio State and Miami (FL)," Hall tweeted. What's next for the Buckeyes? Make ...
Former Florida quarterback Will Grier interested in ... Ohio State?Land-Grant Holy Land

all 5 news articles »

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Looks like Ohio State is on Grier's list to transfer to.

Thoughts?

Lamont Wade, an Ohio State DB target, writes about Buckeyes: "The funniest coach is lowkey Urban Meyer" - cleveland.com
via Google News using key phrase "Buckeyes".


Lamont Wade, an Ohio State DB target, writes about Buckeyes: "The funniest coach is lowkey Urban Meyer"
cleveland.com
But that's one of the qualities four-star cornerback Lamont Wade of Clairton, Pa., likes about Ohio State's head coach. Actually, he likes a lot about Ohio State in general. That's good news for the Buckeyes, who have identified the 5-foot-9, 185-pound ...


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Former Florida quarterback Will Grier interested in ... Ohio State?
Luke Zimmermann via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Will Urban Meyer and co. poach a former Gator?

Ohio State doesn't particularly need a quarterback.

J.T. Barrett has two years of eligibility remaining. Even if he has the kind of prolific, overachiever-type season he's capable of and leave after this year, they'll still have Dwayne Haskins, and Joe Burrow, and Stephen Collier, and heck, maybe even Torrance Gibson if one of them goes elsewhere.

The Buckeyes also have an expected 2017 freshman in Archbishop Hoban quarterback Danny Clark.

And yet, despite a log jam at the position that's anywhere from four-to-five deep (maybe three if we're being conservative), chatter surfaced today that former Florida Gators quarterback Will Grier was considering Ohio State as a possible transfer destination, amongst other places:



West Virginia and Mark Richt's Miami Hurricanes certainly make a lot more sense on paper. But is Grier legitimately in play for the Buckeyes?

Why it makes sense


Grier's super talented. Florida's undefeated season was in no small part thanks to Grier's on the field leadership, grit, and moxie; yup, he's that type of hyper stereotypical gamer. As soon as Grier was suspended -- which we'll get to -- the wheels came off on the offense and the Gators were never the same again.

A former four-star, despite being a pro style quarterback, Grier's not a total statue. In fact, his 4.73 40 times would be the fastest amongst any of the quarterbacks at this past week's 2016 NFL combine.

Though J.T. Barrett he's not, he should have enough giddy up to operate Urban Meyer and Ed Warinner/Tim Beck's offense. He'd also be a natural bridge to Dwayne Haskins, who's not as mobile as the quarterbacks Buckeye faithful have been acclimated to under Meyer.

Why it doesn't make sense


Grier was suspended for an entire season due to testing positive for performance enhancing drugs. An NCAA appeal was denied and there was a bizarre amount of scrutiny surrounding what exactly he took. Grier and his family have been adamant he unknowingly took an over-the-counter supplement without clearing with Florida's training team what was in it. What supplement it exactly was is unclear, however.

Though there was a lot of rumors and innuendo about his adding 43 pounds in lean muscle mass in less than a calendar year -- typically something telltale to the use of some kind of performance enhancing drug -- other Florida media reports painted his weight gain in a far more organic light. Grier's overall bulk gains sounds not unlike the kind you'd expect to see when a skinny high school kid starts doing college strength and conditioning workouts and then actually spends all their time being monitored by a high Power 5 level strength coach and nutritionist.

All that said, Grier's still facing a half year suspension for the infraction. It's not expected he'd be able to sit a redshirt season and count those games as time served, so even after the NCAA mandated transfer year, he'd still miss six games the subsequent year back.

Why would Ohio State take a quarterback who won't be eligible to play until the Nebraska game, Oct. 14 of 2017, especially with so many others in the stable?

Though Grier has some attributes to complete the kind of looks necessary in Meyer's offense, there's also some concern based on his time in Florida that exposing him to too many hits would lessen his efficacy.

Alligator Army's Andy Hutchins told Land-Grant Holy Land Grier had a propensity to try and steal extra yards at the expense of his body. Also well versed with Meyer's offense, Hutchins speculated that additional down the field runs could potentially expose him to further poor health sustaining decisions for only short term on the field gains.

Likelihood: 3/10


Even with all the pros and cons, Grier makes more sense at West Virginia and Miami alike. Though Miami's pro style offense is probably the best fit of all, Dana Holgorsen's shown he can make a quarterback who's not necessarily a traditional spread-run guy work like he did with Clint Trickett before concussions forced him to prematurely end his WVU career.

Grier might just be rattling off teams he's spoken with to media like Hall, but we wouldn't expect him to ever end up in scarlet and gray.

(H/T to Bucknuts for putting this on our radar)

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Dialogue heating up between Texas wide receiver, Buckeyes - 247Sports
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Dialogue heating up between Texas wide receiver, Buckeyes
247Sports
While Ohio State always aims to get at least 10 prospects from within state borders in each recruiting cycle, there are always a number of talented in-state prospects the Buckeyes are not able to take. That said, Urban Meyer's staff has done well when ...

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Ohio State's 2015 defense was loaded with talent, but how would it stack up in the NFL?
Brett Ludwiczak via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


The NFL Draft should be loaded will Ohio State defenders being taken early over the next couple of years.

"Most definitely. Basically everybody on our defense is an NFL prospect. You could take the whole Ohio State defense, put them on an NFL team and you could win a Super Bowl like that, for sure."

- Cornerback Eli Apple via Doug Lesmerises, Cleveland.com


The first round of April's NFL Draft could be littered with Ohio State defenders, but would it be possible for a team to be successful if they kept together all 11 starters from the 2015 Buckeye defense? The answer might not be as far-fetched as it first might seem. Not only do players like Joey Bosa, Darron Lee, and Eli Apple seemed destined to be picked in the first round of the draft, but last year's leading tackler Raekwon McMillan seems likely to be a first round pick when he decides to head to the NFL. Vonn Bell, Joshua Perry, and Adolphus Washington figure to be the next members of the Buckeye defense to come of the board in late April.

The 2015 Ohio State defense will likely have many similarities in terms of draft position to the Super Bowl champion Denver Broncos. The defense of the Broncos has four players who were drafted in the first round, which is likely what the 2015 Ohio State defense will have at the very least. Of course predicting how the 2015 Ohio State defense would do compared to Denver's defense isn't an exact science since the Broncos players possess different levels of experience, but nobody would debate the Buckeyes would rival them in terms of talent. Even though a team would never be able to acquire all 11 starters from the 2015 Ohio State defense, it definitely would be a good idea to try and amass as many of the 2015 Buckeyes on their defense as possible.

"Ohio State's schedule was a preseason punchline among rival fans last season, but that shouldn't be the case anymore. A Buckeyes team that has to replace more starters than anyone else in the country has to face a stronger non-conference slate and an improved cast of foes in the Big Ten this year."

- Justin Ferguson, Bleacher Report


If Ohio State has designs on making their second College Football Playoff, they'll have to navigate a very tough schedule. The Buckeyes will be tested right out of the gate, as a defense that has to replace a number of starters will be take on Bowling Green and Tulsa, who both had top-15 offenses last season, in their first two games of the season. Things don't get any easier for the Buckeyes with their first road game of the season, when they travel down to Norman to take on a Oklahoma team that made the College Football Playoff last season.

If Ohio State is able to make it through their non-conference portion of the schedule unscathed, they'll get a bit of a breather when they return to Columbus to take on Rutgers and Indiana to open up Big Ten play. The respite for the Buckeyes will be short lived though, with road games against Wisconsin and Penn State awaiting them next. Add in a late-season trip to East Lansing before returning home for their regular season finale against Michigan, and nobody is going to be knocking the Buckeyes for a weak schedule this season. The combined 2015 record of Ohio State's 2016 opponents is 95-61, which means a Buckeye team that is replacing a lot of starters can't come out of the gates sluggish. The bright side is that if Ohio State is able to rack up wins in 2016, it'll be hard for the committee to keep them out of the College Football Playoff.


"There is a lot of work to do and a very short period of time to do it, but the converse of that is I think a lot of teams on the bubble would love a chance of getting to play a team like Michigan State."

- Eamonn Brennan, ESPN.com via Adam Jardy, The Columbus Dispatch


With Selection Sunday just over a week away, Ohio State's hopes of earning an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament are slim, but they aren't non-existent. The Buckeyes can strength their case on Saturday if they are able to find a way to take down Michigan State in East Lansing. It may be tough to imagine seeing Ohio State take down the Spartans, especially after Michigan State beat the Buckeyes 81-62 in Columbus just over a week ago. The Spartans are playing their best basketball of the season, with all of their wins in their five-game winning streak coming by double-digits.

While an upset of Michigan State would help, more work will likely need to be done if Ohio State wants to go dancing this year. According to Joe Lunardi on Tuesday, no more than 24 teams are competing for nine at-large bids, so the Buckeyes will need a couple more wins next week in the Big Ten Tournament in Indianapolis. Sunday's win over Iowa helped Ohio State's case, but with early season losses to Louisiana Tech, UT-Arlington, and Memphis, it will still be an uphill climb for the Buckeyes. At least Ohio State still has a chance of making the NCAA Tournament, now they have to go and state their case that they belong in the NCAA Tournament.

"We have a great opportunity heading to Indianapolis. It's going to be a competitive tournament. We had a tough last week, but we control our destiny, and I think we can beat anybody that we are going to play if we have the right mindset and we really compete to win."

- Ohio State women's basketball coach Kevin McGuff via Nathan Rubenstein, The Lantern


Even though the regular season didn't end quite as well as they were hoping it would, the Ohio State women's basketball team is optimistic heading into the Big Ten Tournament this weekend in Indianapolis. After falling in overtime to Minnesota on Wednesday night, and in triple overtime to Michigan State on Sunday, Ohio State heads into the Big Tournament as the second seed. The Buckeyes will take the court tomorrow night against the winner of tonight's game between Rutgers and Nebraska.

Earlier this week, a few members of the Ohio State basketball team were honored when the Big Ten announced their all-conference teams. Kelsey Mitchell and Ameryst Alston were unanimous choices on the first-team, while Shayla Cooper and Alexa Hart were named as members of the second-team. Hart was also named to the All-Big Ten Defensive Team, after averaging 2.6 blocks per game this season for the Buckeyes. Even though the personal accolades are nice, the Buckeyes are focused on winning as a team. While a shot at earning a one-seed in the NCAA Tournament likely has fallen by the wayside, a strong performance by the Buckeyes in Indianapolis should solidify Ohio State's case to be a two-seed in the NCAA Tournament.

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Don’t Count out Ohio State in Big Ten Wrestling Championships
Joe Dexter via our good friends at Buckeye Battle Cry
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


It was a very special postseason for the Ohio State Buckeyes a year ago. First, they secured a share of the Big Ten Championship for the first time in 64 years. They followed that up with their first NCAA Championship in school history.

The road to defending those championships begins this weekend in Iowa City, as Ohio State brings nine seeded wrestlers to the Big Ten Championships. Of those nine, two are slated as the number one wrestlers in their bracket.

Another, who is seeded second at 285, despite winning the U.S. Open and World Championships a year ago.

While it’s true that Ohio State didn’t quite have the dual season they dreamed up, it’s way too early to count them out in an individual tournament. Penn State is going to be tough to surpass, with four number one seeds, and tons of ranked wrestlers. Iowa is always going to be tough.

Ohio State has to be counted as a contender though because of how strong a tournament team they are. The Buckeyes were 13-4-1 when the country wrote them off last year as a title contender at the conference and NCAA level.

This year, they find themselves at 11-3, with a stronger regular season finish, and more time off to get healthy for the tournament season.

Heading into the Big Ten Championships, they have more seeded wrestlers in place to accumulate team points than they did a year ago. The Buckeyes might not be the favorites this weekend, but when wrestling starts on Saturday, you can guarantee they’ll compete.

Tom Ryan has really changed that dynamic during his time as head coach. Ohio State has earned 41 individual Big Ten titles during its 95 year history in the sport. Those championships have come from 28 different grapplers.

Since Tom Ryan took over before the 2006-07 season, the Bucks have claimed nine of this 41 conference titles, with six wrestlers bringing those championships home.

The Intangibles


TV: Big Ten Network (Session 4 Finals on Sunday)

Online: BTN+ ($) | TrackWrestling

Social Media: @WrestlingBucks

2016 Big Ten Championships Schedule of Events


Saturday, March 5
Session 1: 11 a.m. ET/10 a.m. CT
Session 2: 7 p.m. ET/6 p.m. CT

Sunday, March 6
Session 3: 1 p.m. ET/Noon CT
Session 4: 4 p.m. ET/3 p.m. CT

Buckeye Outlook


Overall, the Buckeyes have nine seeded wrestlers heading into the weekend, with most weight classes guaranteeing a spot in the NCAA Championships with a a 7th place finish or better.

Of those nine seeded, six are in the top four of their weight class. Four are ranked in the top two.

Let’s break it down weight class by weight class.

125: #1 Nate Tomasello

Even though the defending national champion is undefeated and 8-0 against those seeded in the tournament — this weight class could be the toughest one in the conference.

What makes it even more important is the top three guys in the weight class will impact the team race as members of the three favorited teams.

Nico Megaludis, who dropped a 3-1 decision to Tomasello earlier in the year, is the three seed. The senior is a three-time All-American and two-time NCAA finalist. After missing last season, the #4 ranked Megaludis has only lost twice this year.

The favorite to meet with Tomasello in the finals is Iowa’s Thomas Gilman, who is also undefeated. Iowa and Ohio State didn’t meet during the regular season, but both have history against each other.

Tomasello earned a 3-2 win in the Big Ten Championships a year ago against Gilman.

The returning champ has been so dominant and his strength on the feet has put him in a strong position to repeat as conference and national champions.

The redshirt sophomore will more than likely face the winner of Megaludis/Gilman in the finals but could have a pretty tough quarterfinals with the likes of Tim Lambert of Nebraska or Elijah Oliver of Indiana. He beat Lambert 16-5 and Oliver 17-5 — both matches came in late January.

tBBC Predictions

Joe: Nate Tomasello (OSU) over Thomas Gilman (Iowa) 4-2

Patrick: Tomasello over Nico Megaludis (PSU) 3-1

133: Johnni DiJulius

Consistency is the key to success at the NCAA level. There is no doubt that Johnni DiJulius is talented. His prep and collegiate career are full of accomplishments that prove that.

His wrestling style though has proven to lead to issues with consistency.

The Big Ten seeded the senior 7th in this weekend’s upcoming championships and to be frank — that’s very generous.

A four-seed a year ago, DiJulius has an under .500 record in 2016. He hasn’t beaten a ranked opponent since the beginning of the season.

Yet, he still possesses the talent to upset nearly anyone in the 133 pound class.

Cory Clark of Iowa, who is seeded second, barely beat him last year in the quarterfinals. Zane Richards, who was the six seed last year, also dropped out in the quarterfinals.

Ryan Taylor of Wisconsin is the sixth seed this year. He has wrestled strong to end the year, made it to the finals a year ago.

All three of those guys have improved from a year ago. You can’t say the same about Johnni DiJulius.

Zane Richards is undefeated heading into the B1G Championships, and beat Clark in early January. While the Illinois program continues to grow, so has Richards.

Even Jordan Conaway of Penn State, who made the move down to 133 after being an All-American at 125, has shown major growth for the Nittany Lions.

It’s a tough road for DiJulius, and though he shouldn’t be counted out as a top 4 placer, it’s going to be a very tough road to the podium.

tBBC Predictions:

Patrick: Zane Richards (ILL) defeats Jordan Conaway (PSU) by pinfall

Joe: Zane Richards (ILL) defeats Cory Clark (Iowa) 5-1

141: Micah Jordan

It’s not very often that you see the aggressive offensive style that Micah Jordan brings to the table at this low of a weight class. It’s shown throughout the year, as he has dominated opponents in conference.

Overall on the year, he’s 14-1 and is 6-0 against the preseeded wrestlers in his class.

The four-time Ohio state champion hasn’t lost since September but also hasn’t competed yet against some of the best in the conference.

Anthony Ashnault of Rutgers and Tommy Thorn of Minnesota will more than likely battle in the semis for a right to face Jordan.

141 is a pretty weak class this year in the Big Ten, but there could be some very good matches late in the tournament.

The x-factor is Penn State’s Jimmy Gulibon, who is the eight seed. He finished fifth at the NCAA Championships a year ago.

tBBC Predictions

Joe: Micah Jordan (OSU) defeats Anthony Ashnault (RUT) 10-3

Patrick: Micah Jordan (OSU) defeats Tommy Thorn (MIN) 6-2

149: Cody Burcher

It stinks to be unseeded in a weight class that includes two All-Americans and a former national champion.

Both Brandon Sorensen of Iowa and Zain Retherford of Penn State are undefeated.

Ohio State fans might remember the top-seeded Retherford as the grappler that once beat Logan Stieber in a dual but could not duplicate that success in the post-season.

Retherford has improved drastically as has Sorensen. Neither have met this season, but could put on a show in the finals.

Jason Tsirtsis of Northwestern is the four seed. He has struggled since winning a national championship as a freshman. Even though he placed third nationally a year ago. This year has been a battle against injury. If he’s healthy though, that’s a tough matchup for the top seeded Retherford in the semifinals.

For Ohio State’s Cody Burcher, it’s going to take his a Hail Mary cradle or something of the like, to advance in the championship bracket.

I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that Tsirtsis surprises the conference by wrestling like he did two years ago.

tBBC Predictions

Joe: Jason Tsirtsis (NW) defeats Brandon Sorensen (Iowa) 3-1

Patrick: Zain Retherford (PSU) defeats Brandon Sorensen (Iowa) 11-3

157: Jake Ryan

I love Jake Ryan’s style of wrestling. I know it’s not popular with fans to see a guy use his defense to put his offensive game in a position to win, but Ryan does it flawlessly.

There is something about that style of wrestling that always gives them a chance to win marquee matches.

Unfortunately, there is no defense for a couple of buzzsaws in Isaiah Martinez and Jason Nolf.

Martinez, who went undefeated, and won a national title for Illinois as a freshman last year, lost to Nolf earlier in the year in an one of the best performances of 2016.


The Nittany Lion caught quick chest-to-chest control out of a reversal to hand Martinez his first loss of his career.

Everyone is anticipating this rematch, and wondering if Martinez can bounce back, or if Nolf is the favorite to land the top seed at the NCAA Tournament.

Both guys will probably meet in the finals at Madison Square Garden during the NCAA Championships as well.

This is the marquee of the whole event.

tBBC Predictions

Patrick: Jason Nolf (PSU) defeats Isaiah Martinez (ILL) by pinfall.

Joe: Isaiah Martinez (ILL) defeats Jason Nolf (PSU) by 6-3 decision.

165: Bo Jordan

There has been one wrestler within the conference that has given Bo Jordan trouble over the last two years.

The worst part is that wrestler is a Wisconsin Badger. Yes, that’s even worse than losing to someone you’re related to.

There have been a lot of questions about Bo at this weight, because he’s seemed sluggish over the last few weeks.

It’s a hard weight cut without a doubt, but now with a few weeks to reset things, I really like the chance that Bo has to go on a run this March.

Does that mean a win against number two seeded Isaac Jordan in the finals?

Not quite.

It’s time to get the monkey off the back though and with a strong performance, I wouldn’t be shocked to see Bo land a top-three seed in the NCAA Championships.


tBBC Predictions

Patrick: Isaac Jordan (WIS) over Bo Jordan OSU by 10-7 decision

Joe: Bo Jordan (OSU) over Isaac Jordan (WIS) by 4-3 decision

174: Myles Martin

Beyond Penn State’s Bo Nickal, Myles Martin matches up well with anyone seeded in this weight class.

I love the growth that we’ve seen from the young wrestler, and his intuitive wrestling style.

Martin always knows where he is and seems to do a good job of calculating what move or combination of moves will work best in certain scenarios.

As the four seed, he’ll have to face Nickal in the semifinals if he does wrestle to the height of his ability on Saturday.

In dual action, Martin gave the top ranked wrestler in the country a run for his money for two periods, before giving up major points in the third.

Martin might just be the sleeper of this tournament and with a solid showing, could be a key component to the Buckeyes competing for a team title.

Bo Nickal is as tough as they come though and getting past him is asking way too much.

In fact, it’s hard to believe anybody in the weight class has a chance of getting past him.

tBBC Predictions

Patrick: Bo Nickal (PSU) defeats Alex Meyer (IOWA) 7-4

Joe: Bo Nickal defeats Zach Brunson (ILL) 10-3

184: Kenny Courts

The Pennsylvania native might be the only wrestler that placed in the NCAA tournament the year before, that I have zero faith in committing to the fact that he’ll even place at the Big Ten Championships this year.

I am the biggest fan of Courts as a wrestler when he is on, but when he’s not, he’s very easy to beat.

There has been zero consistency in a weight class that is full of beasts. Michigan’s Dom Abounader came out of nowhere last year and now is owning the weight class. Penn State’s Matt McCutcheon dropped a 4-2 decision to Courts in the NCAA championships a year ago. Since then, he has really outwrestled him and improved his game.

I’m not saying I’ve lost all hope in Courts to make a run this weekend, but it’s hard to make a run in this weight class.

You cannot get behind on the scoreboard at all, or else you’ll be left in the dust.

Prediction

Joe: Dom Abounader (UofM) defeats Matt McCutcheon (PSU) 5-1

Patrick:

197: Mark Martin

I know I’ve said it before, but the sacrifice that Martin made in jumping to 197 can’t be praised enough.

He could of taken a redshirt to adjust to the weight class. He could of just competed for the spot at 174 and not cared that him at this weight class makes the team as a whole better.

To me, it’s impressive that he was even able to land the six seed in the conference tournament.

Morgan McIntosh, Brett Pfarr, Nathan Burak, Max Huntley — everyone in the weight class is much bigger than Martin.

Yet somehow, he’s 3-1 against the field. He’s built up a 16-5 record on the season and could be a contender to surprise some favorites on Saturday.

I can’t wait to watch and find out.

Fact of the matter though is this is a very deep weight class nationally, so the better Martin can place, the better for his hopes in the NCAA Championships.

Morgan McIntosh of Penn State is not just the favorite this weekend, but in late March as well. Everyone has already penciled him in as the finalist at 197 against Missouri’s J’den Cox.

Prediction

Joe: Morgan McIntosh defeats Brett Pfarr (MINN) 10-2

Patrick: Morgan McIntosh defeats Brett Pfarr 8-2

285: Kyle Snyder

As much as I believe in Kyle Snyder and the fact that he could dominate the postseason, there has to be some realization that he hasn’t wrestled all but one ranked wrestler this year.

He hasn’t gotten the mat time you’d like to see either.

The biggest concern thous is that Michigan’s Adam Coon is legit competition in the conference finals. Everyone forgets what the long heavyweight has done during his time as a Wolverine.

Down 6-4 in the NCAA Finals last year, Coon got a low leg single with less than thirty seconds to go to tie North Carolina State’s Nick Gwiazdowski at six. He ended up dropping the match in the final 16 seconds by giving up an escape.

He’s length and size might give Snyder issues.

I’m looking forward to seeing the NCAA finalist and Big Ten champion get back to tournament style wrestling though and he should be favored in Sunday’s finals.

Prediction:

Patrick: Kyle Snyder defeats Adam Coon by major decision 21-7

Joe: Kyle Snyder defeats Adam Coon by decision, 10-3



The post Don’t Count out Ohio State in Big Ten Wrestling Championships appeared first on The Buckeye Battle Cry: Ohio State News and Commentary.

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MBB Preview: Michigan State Spartans
Brandon Zimmerman via our good friends at Buckeye Battle Cry
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


Well it all comes down to this. In order to even have a shot at the NCAA tournament, the Buckeyes must win in East Lansing against the Michigan State Spartans. Even with a win, the Buckeyes would need to win at least two games in the Big Ten tournament to feel really good about their chances to go to the big dance.

If they beat Sparty and win two games in the B1G tournament, it would give them eight wins in their last ten conference games and include three top ten wins (Iowa, MSU, and #3 seed) in a two week span. So for those incredibly pessimistic people saying the Buckeyes have zero chance, you are completely wrong. The Buckeyes do have a chance to go to the big dance but they have to win on Saturday or their odds of making the tournament go to about 0%.

The first step in this uphill battle begins on Saturday as the Buckeyes go up against possibly the best team in the nation; the Tom Izzo led Spartans at noon on ESPN.

WHAT OHIO STATE BRINGS

The wild, frustrating, and mistake-filled regular season comes to an end for the Buckeyes as this incredibly young team turns their attention to the Spartans. Just one week ago, the Spartans came to the friendly confines of Value City Arena and put it to the Buckeyes shooting something like 1000% from the field. How will the youthful Buckeyes respond to the Spartans this time around?

If Sunday is any indication, these Buckeyes know they are fighting for their NCAA tournament lives and will give it their best effort. The Buckeyes are coming off of a huge win against the Iowa Hawkeyes where they knocked off the #8 team in the nation 68-64


Junior Marc Loving will have to continue his hot streak for Ohio State to keep up with the Spartans. (Photo courtesy of elevenwarriors.com)


Junior Marc Loving and sophomore Keita Bates-Diop led the Buckeyes and combined for 44 points on 15-24 shooting from the field. Sophomore Kam Williams took over down the stretch and scored 12 points 11 points (IT WAS A THREE!) and hit numerous big shots during crunch time.

On the season; Loving leads all scorers with 13.3 points per game but is averaging 22 points per game since sophomore Jae’Sean Tate went down to his injury. Bates-Diop leads the team with 6.6 rebounds per game. Freshman JaQuan Lyle leads the team with 4.3 assists per game.

WHAT MICHIGAN STATE BRINGS

It is March, so I feel like I shouldn’t have to say the Spartans are playing their best ball of the season. In their last five games, they have won by an average margin of over 22 points. This impressive margin of victory includes wins against Indiana, our Buckeyes, and Wisconsin. It is truly amazing to see Izzo get his team ready for March every season. I’ll go ahead and give you a spoiler for the tournament; the Spartans are going to be in the championship game.

In their last game, the Spartans rolled through Rutgers 97-66 as senior Bryn Forbes continued his hot streak hitting 11 three-pointers. In his last four games, Forbes is 25-40 (62.5%) from three-point land which, for those who struggle with math, is REALLY good. Senior Denzel Valentine had his normal all-around great game coming in with 14 points, 8 rebounds, and 8 assists.


Senior Denzel Valentine may be the top player in the nation.


For the season, Valentine leads the team in scoring averaging 19.3 points per game and assists averaging 7.3 per game. Senior forward Matt Costello leads the team with 8.5 rebounds per game.









PROJECTED STARTING LINEUPS

OHIO STATE

NAME YEAR HEIGHT WEIGHT POSITION
Trevor Thompson SO 6’11” 250 C
Mickey Mitchell FR 6’7” 225 F
Keita Bates-Diop SO 6’7” 235 F
Marc Loving JR 6’7” 220 F
JaQuan Lyle FR 6’5” 210 G



MICHIGAN STATE

NAME YEAR HEIGHT WEIGHT POSITION
Matt Costello SR 6’9” 245 F
Deyonta Davis FR 6’10” 245 F
Denzel Valentine SR 6’5” 220 G
Eron Harris JR 6’3” 175 G
Bryn Forbes SR 6’3” 175 G

PREDICTION

As much as I pumped up the Buckeyes chances in the first half of this article, I’m here to throw them out the window. The Buckeyes played unbelievable basketball against Iowa to put themselves in this position but I don’t think they can play at that level two games in a row against top-tier teams. Sure the Spartans may overlook the Buckeyes and the young Bucks could pull it out but you just can’t expect that from an Izzo led experienced team.

In order to have a chance, the Buckeyes are going to have to stay in the face of Forbes and Valentine. In last week’s match-up, Forbes annihilated the Buckeyes from three point land making seven of ten shots and finishing with 27 points. Valentine added four more three pointers en-route to a 17 point day. The Buckeyes have to focus on stopping those two players and force Costello and the other role players to beat them if they want to have any chance.

I think the Buckeyes will keep it closer than last week but ultimately lose by less than ten points.

Spartans win 74-67 (I hope I am completely wrong)

The post MBB Preview: Michigan State Spartans appeared first on The Buckeye Battle Cry: Ohio State News and Commentary.

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The Big Ten is serving school themed baked potatoes at their basketball tournament. We ranked them
Luke Zimmermann via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here


From palatable to unholy abomination.

The Big Ten Tournament is going all in on their, well, Big Ten-ness.

According to Finn Partners, next week's 2016 Big Ten Basketball Tournament will once again feature custom, school-centric baked potatoes, available for order at Indianapolis' Bankers Life Fieldhouse.

In full disclosure, artisanal baked potatoes are a subject I have some specific authority on. For parts of five years, I worked part-time (sometimes full-time) at a Jason's Deli.

Jason's, to the unfamiliar, is better than average quick-service food for upper middle class types. Perhaps one of the heaviest hitters on their entire menu are their abnormally large baked potatoes. Their famous absurdly big potatoes in actuality are two large potatoes strategically cut, carefully positioned, and then baked with an unreasonable amount of toppings on them until they essentially resemble one.

As I have prepared in excess of 1000 of these such potatoes, I was intrigued to learn about the Big Ten's forthcoming culinary options. Until I got around to reading their ingredients.

The best of the potato options are largely unimaginative, and well, plain, and the worst are "creative" in the worst possible ways.

Accordingly, here are all 14 Big Ten themed baked potatoes, ranked from most palatable to do-not-eat/place-directly-in-the-garbage:

1. Michigan Wolverines: Bacon & Shredded Cheddar




As much as it pains me to rank this one number one, this humble offering attacks your taste buds with an enthusiasm unknown to man. It's incredibly hard to screw up bacon and melted cheese. Sometimes less is more. This is one of those instances.

2. Penn State Nittany Lions: Jalapenos & Shredded Cheddar Cheese




Like putting names on the back of their iconic monochromatic football uniforms, jalapeños on a cheese covered potato is just bold enough to make the milquetoast natives of State College irate. This is the kind of culinary offering your boring middle aged relative would consider threatening. But it's fine.

3. Wisconsin Badgers: Shredded Cheddar & Monterey Jack Cheeses




Are you aware that Wisconsin is known for their dairy? Two varieties of cheese is better than one. It's a bit disappointing there's nothing more diverse or any other proteins available, but this is safe. And fine. Not unlike Wisconsin.

4. Northwestern Wildcats: Diced Red Onions & Shredded Monterey Jack Cheese




Whoa, whoa, whoa. Diced red onions on cheese?! Let's save some for the honeymoon, Northwestern.

NU is not exactly famous amongst those in the conference as a party destination. This barely ambitious potato may be a testimonial why.

5. Michigan State Spartans: Chopped Broccoli & Shredded Monterey Jack Cheese




Cold broccoli would be a disaster, but assuming this topping is fully cooked, the monterey is an interesting spin on a classic. The only solace in eating a potato that likely nears or exceeds a thousand calories is that you'd be eating something green on it.

6. Nebraska Cornhuskers: Tomato Corn Salsa & jack cheese




Corn salsa is mostly bad. The phrase "tomato salsa" ushers in fever dreams of disgusting, soup-y Pace salsa. These words together are frightening, but jack cheese is okay. Assuming the salsa is favorable in terms of the voluminousness, this might work.

7. Purdue Boilermakers: Smokey Black Bean Salsa & Sour Cream




"Smokey black bean salsa" is possibly written on the archway of the Mexican fast food restaurant next to the River Styx. Giving the salsa the full benefit of the doubt, and again assuming the sour cream is both quality and appropriate proportionally and this might not be so bad? Maybe?

8. Illinois Illini: Salsa & Shredded Cheddar Cheese




Not unlike Nebraska, the concept of crappy grocery store salsa on top of a cheese covered potato strikes fear in my very heart. Assuming this is even replacement level salsa, Illinois seems tolerable. The photo doesn't leave much room for optimism, though.

9. Indiana Hoosiers: Sour Cream & Salsa




The lack of salsa diversity is rapidly becoming concerning. Sour cream is extremely high variance too but a decent quality sour cream offering with a healthy but not unreasonable amount of edible salsa would be passable. Not ideal, but edible.

10. Iowa Hawkeyes: Southwest-style Corn Salsa & Corn Tortilla Strips




The tortilla chips (did you know Iowa produces corn) are an interesting mix in for variety's sake, but the blandness of corn salsa is concerning. "Southwest-style" makes it sound flavorful enough, but I'm skeptical.

11. Rutgers Scarlet Knights: Black bean relish, salsa and sour cream




We're now all but completely off the rails. One of the Big Ten's newest members is shown no favors with something called "black bean relish". You'd almost have to assume that's a very creative name for some kind of black bean salsa until you see the word "salsa" listed immediately after it. Help.

12. Ohio State Buckeyes: Chopped Bacon & Shredded Lettuce




WHO IN THEIR RIGHT MIND PUTS SLICED ICEBURG LETTUCE ON A DAMN BAKED POTATO!??!

Wendy's is the only fastfood place somewhat known for their (admittedly not great) baked potatoes. Wendy's is based in Columbus, OH. So is The Ohio State University.

Couldn't there have been some attempt at something more traditional and less, uh, lettuce-y?

13. Maryland Terrapins: Cottage cheese, salsa and red onion




Stop. Just stop. We get it: A lot of Big Ten fans didn't want anything to do with Maryland but serving this unholy abomination just seems cruel.

14. Minnesota Gophers: Salsa & Cottage Cheese




So let me get this straight: It's exactly the same as Maryland but with one less ingredient? It's been a tough year for Minnesota basketball.

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