Today's Skull Session will be served as soon as I recover from the shock/disgust that somebody is impersonating TODD BOECKMAN on Twitter.
[ICYMI: Mickey Mitchell, brother of Mike Mitchell, decommitted from Ohio State last night. He's a Top 15 SF in 2015, and whatever school lands him will get a player.]
This week's NSFW Anti-Work #Bangers:
- 1999 Backlash: Stone Cold vs. The Rock (Shane McMahon special guest referee).
- Bill Burr on lotion's utility.
- This Dontre Wilson highlight video (via WOLFofOHIO):
FIVE SOPHOMORES WITH MOST TO PROVE. Sophomore is a critical rank in a player's career. Maybe as a freshman they didn't play. Maybe as a freshman they showed flashes of greatness.
Either way, as sophomores, both players have something to prove. And it's in how they respond to that challenge that shapes the rest of their career. O-Zone's Eric Seger dropped a list of five sophomores with the most to prove, and I concur:
- Dontre Wilson
- Darron Lee
- Pat Elflein
- Tyvis Powell
- Mike Thomas
Meyer, talking about Thomas (and Corey Smith), said something interesting:
“Corey Smith has got to play. He's gained 12 pounds, he's doing everything we're asking him to do. He had a terrible work ethic when he came here. Michael Thomas is a guy that didn't have complete understanding of what we're trying to get done. A nice kid, but those two are two examples of guys who have to get going or we'll recruit right by them.”
"Recruit right by them."
Actually, if you think about it... all five of those guys (including Corey Smith) could get "recruited right by" if they don't take the next step in their projected evolution. And all six of those guys appear to be damned fine footballers. Crazy.
Recruiting is a cold, cold world... but such are the stakes of the game at which Ohio State plays football.
IT'S GOING TO BE A HARD(ER) ROAD FOR OHIO STATE. Paul Myersberg of USA Today continued his preseason ranking of the 128 FBS teams, and Ohio State checks-in at No. 11 (which is a reasonable ranking post-Braxton injury, not before it.)
Here's where it hurts: For the Buckeyes, the impossible is no longer probable – it's possible, always possible, but not probable. The Buckeyes no longer have a quarterback capable of pulling single-play victory from the jaws of defeat, for example; Miller made things happen when others would've ducked and covered, unwilling and unable.
And so the offense returns to square one at its most crucial position. Barrett has been described as a "field general," as his high school coach told The Columbus Dispatch. That helps explain a mindset shift: Barrett won't be asked to do the impossible but the mere possible, caretaking an offense with an excess of talent at the skill positions.
This won't hurt Ohio State against Maryland, Rutgers, Illinois and Minnesota, though one can make the simple case of Miller's dynamism holding the key to a win in East Lansing, for example. In short, the team-wide preseason standard has subtly changed: OSU is no longer the favorite in the Big Ten Conference.
I get that Ohio State suffered a blow in losing Braxton Miller, but Ohio State hasn't lost a regular season Big Ten game since Urban Meyer arrived in Columbus. Braxton Miller was a key cog in that run, but a cog nonetheless.
I get the gap isn't as clear-cut as it once was, but... discount the Buckeyes at your own risk.
Urban Meyer has been recruiting at a different level than the rest of the Big Ten, and it will be laid bare this fall.
OSU WANTS TO RUN 'EM INTO THE GROUND. Sports Illustrated's Pete Thamel has written some quality work on Urban Meyer's Ohio State, and his latest piece on the aftermath of Braxton's injury is no different:
The answer to replacing Miller’s production -- 24 touchdowns passing and 12 touchdowns rushing -- could lie in a phrase heard often around Buckeye camp this summer: “We want to be the Philadelphia Eagles of college football.” That’s meant everything from music blaring in practice, just like Kelly did in Eugene when he coached at Oregon, to players getting their urine tested every day to see if hydration levels are high enough. A brave Ohio State assistant strength coach, Anthony Schlegel, dressed up in a faux “nuclear suit” to collect urine Wednesday morning.
[If you want a look into some of the groundbreaking stuff Urban's friend, Chip Kelly, is into ― or at least interested in the tip of the iceberg — I recommend Chris Brown's Grantland piece.]
Does this mean Ohio State will crank up the tempo on offense?
“That’s a good question,” Meyer said. “That’s also to be determined. We’re prepared more than in the last two years. It’s the third year in the system.”
[...]
“If used properly and effectively, tempo should help our cause from the standpoint of not needing the ridiculous dynamism that Braxton Miller provided,” said offensive coordinator Tom Herman, the architect of Ohio State's no-huddle offense.
I hope Ohio State cranks the tempo, especially at places like East Lansing and State College. Not to just take the opposing players out of the game, but to wear out their fans; make those marbled, beer-battered piglets squeal for a TV timeout to catch their breath.
Running as many plays as possible is also a good way to keep your redshirt freshman from thinking too much. Bad things can happen when a redshirt freshman starts thinking too much.
DILFER PROPHESIES BIG THINGS FOR BARRETT. Say what you will about Trent Dilfer's career — yes, it's highly likely a murderer helped him win a Super Bowl — but I won't pick that bone with Trent because he's saying good things about my Buckeyes.
ESPN's Trent Dilfer said earlier on @MikeAndMike that he expects Buckeye QB J.T. Barrett to win a lot of big games at Ohio State.
— 97.1 The Fan (@971thefan) August 21, 2014
Shame on Dilfer, however, for not telling us WHAT big games Barrett will win. Are we talking "at home against Virginia Tech" big or "on the road in East Lansing" big?
Of course there was no follow up because Mike and Mike don't give a shit about JT Barrett or Ohio State football.
MANDEL/FELDMAN B1G MAILBAG. Fox Sports' Stewart Mandel and Bruce Feldman released a B1G preview yesterday. (Just think, folks, only one more week of preview pieces!!!!!!111)
On the B1G's breakout freshman:
Mandel: Jabrill Peppers, CB, Michigan. The conference’s highest-rated signee last winter has been so impressive he’s apparently displaced several veterans and moved into one of the Wolverines’ starting spots. “He's playing very well," coach Brady Hoke said of the Paramus, N.J., native after a recent scrimmage.
Feldman: Peppers. The 6-foot-1, 202-pound Peppers might be the biggest defensive recruit Brady Hoke has landed since he's been back in Ann Arbor. The Wolverines were 73rd in the nation in allowing pass plays of 40 yards or longer. Fortunately, Peppers has been as advertised and has left the normally conservative coaches very, very impressed.
"He's playing very well," ... high praise from the Hokester.
Curtis Samuel would be my Ohio State pick, but I can understand why Mandel and Feldman chose Peppers. (They both listed Hoke's seat as the hottest in the B1G.)
Mandel picked Ohio State's offensive line as the conference's top "make-or-break" unit:
1) Ohio State offensive line: Star QB Braxton Miller’s season-ending injury only increased the onus on four new starters up front. Left tackle Taylor Decker is a sure thing, but coaches are nervous about the group’s overall development.
Mandel also says Ohio State at Maryland is the conference's third best sleeper game:
3) Ohio State at Maryland and Michigan at Rutgers, Oct. 4: If the league’s two newcomers hope to make a splash, this is their best chance. Sold-out, amped up crowds at both spots figure to welcome the two traditional titans.
For what it's worth, Feldman picked Michigan State over Nebraska in the title game. Mandel chose Ohio State to beat Nebraska. (Sorry, Nebraska. Might as well not even show up this year, I guess?)
THOSE WMDs. Can't stop looking at 1920s mugshots... Good thing George Orwell is dead and can't review my book... When I win the MegaMillions, I will make this my yacht... The Last True Hermit... World's 10 most livable (and unlivable) cities... How Houdini used magic to expose con artists... Mack Brown says the Horshoe was loudest stadium he ever encountered.
