The Eleven Warriors Web Report comes to you weekly from the Spectrum Sports studios in downtown Columbus, featuring our own Beau Bishop, Dan Hope, Andrew Lind and former Buckeye wide receiver Evan Spencer.
This week's show comes with a double dose of Ohio State football discussion, as Bishop, Hope and Spencer discussed the Buckeyes' memorable, 39-38 win by Ohio State over Penn State, while Lind joined the show to talk about the latest developments in Ohio State recruiting.
Spencer, who attended Saturday's game as a fan, said he felt the inner player coming out of him as he watched the Buckeyes' fourth-quarter comeback and enjoyed having the opportunity to catch up with some of his former teammates after the big win.
"It was the most fun that I've had in a very long time," Spencer said. "Getting to rush the field and giving Sam Hubbard a big old hug and then seeing another former teammate out there, Reid Fragel, and the three of us getting to sing Carmen Ohio, it was special. It was a special Saturday.
Hope, who covered the game, talked about how the storyline of the game unfolded rapidly.
"You couldn't have scripted a game like that," Hope said. "For J.T. Barrett to complete 16 straight passes ... those are the type of things you just don't expect to see against a team like Penn State, but certainly an instant classic, a game that's going to be remembered a long time by Ohio State fans."
Bishop said he believes that because of the nature of the game, with Penn State losing by only one point, the Nittany Lions could still be a factor in the playoff race – along with Ohio State – depending on how the rest of the season unfolds.
"Penn State is not eliminated in any way, shape or form," Bishop said. "They played a great game, and Penn State to me afforded themselves as one of the top five teams in the country. Depending on how the attrition goes over the next month, they are very much still in play for the College Football Playoff."
After that, the guys turned their attention to the Buckeyes' upcoming game against Iowa. Bishop noted that the game stands out as a potential "trap game" on the Buckeyes' schedule. The panel also agreed that Ohio State should be able to win convincingly because of its talent advantage over the Hawkeyes, but Spencer said the Buckeyes still need to respect their opponent.
"We can't ever forget that Kirk Ferentz is the football coach that's coaching that team, and he does a phenomenal job of putting a team together and being competitive and a lot of football games," Spencer said. "So there's going to be a lot pressures like that."
Lind, meanwhile, provided updates on some of the recruits who were in Columbus for the Penn State game, including Emory Jones, Kamryn Babb, Justin Rogers and Jack Miller.
Jones has made headlines lately for continuing to flirt with Alabama despite being committed to Ohio State. Lind said it is hard to tell which way Jones is leaning right now, but he ultimately still expects the class of 2018 quarterback to end up in Columbus next year.
"The whole time, all he's talked about is just wanting to make sure that Columbus was the place for him," Lind said. "And really, if you have Nick Saban and Alabama coming after you, that's hard to say no. [You have to] at least look into it."
The Eleven Warriors Report airs Tuesday at 7 p.m. on Spectrum Sports Mid-Ohio.
