Hello everyone and welcome to another Sunday Skull Session. We are officially four weeks from game week and it can't get here quick enough. Until then, we'll do our best to stay entertained.
Unfortunately, it will take things a little more entertaining than the opening ceremony of the London Olympics.
Man, what a yawner. I don't think I understood what was going on for four of the five hours. After 20 minutes, I was surely passed out in my seat only to awaken at about 10:30 pm EST to the smooth sounds of Pink Floyd and Sir Paul McCartney. That was great and made everyone forget about the previous onslaught of pretend Industrial Revolution enacting boredom.
Hey, I guess I could have just turned the channel, but I didn't want to miss anything.
If NCAA rules didn't prohibit camp broadcasts, Friday Night Lights would have been the main channel with the Olympics on the flip.
FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS. Based on the reactions of those in attendance, the first Ohio State edition of the event was a success, despite an early 20-minute storm that quickly passed.
Derek put together a quotebook in the forum and here are highlights from some of the top Ohio State targets who attended:
2014 quarterback Drew Barker (Burlington, KY):
"It was nothing like any other camp I had ever been to. It was a very unique experience and I'm glad I had a chance to take part in the 1st FNL at OSU. I got a chance to talk to some of the top 2014 guys which was great and I thought I threw the ball really well."
2014 linebacker Raekwon McMillan (Hinesville, GA):
"This was a trip for me to really soak in all the OSU atmosphere, build a relationship with the coaches, and meeting potential teammates. It was an awesome experience and I'm starting to feel like I'm apart of Buckeye Nation."
2014 linebacker Davonte James (Springfield, OH):
"It was very intense and a lot of help to me and my team to be a leader and to work harder for my team. Overall it was a wonderful camp."
MORE FNL. The love spilled over to Twitter after the event. It seems as if Meyer is the ultimate football coach, recruiter, and event planner.
Meyer brought out his arsenal, inviting past Buckeye greats such as Orlando Pace, Mike Doss, Joey Galloway, LeCharles Bentley and more, to help coach the campers and they responded afterward.
I swear #FNL was so live!
— Drew Barker (@D_Barker7) July 28, 2012
Barker, one of the top 2014 QBs, seemed to really enjoy his time, obviously. He was even posting pictures like this of him and "The two best coaches in football". He's definitely wanted all over the county.
Joey Bosa:
I LOVE BUCKEYE NATION!
— Joey Bosa (@jbbigbear) July 28, 2012
Defensive tackle commit Billy Price:
Had fun tonight in shoe #FNL #BuckeyeNation
— Billy Price (@b_price54) July 28, 2012
Finally, one of the top '14 OL recruits out of Florida, Mason Cole:
man playing in the horseshoe was raw! #buckeyes
— Mason Cole (@MasonCole52) July 28, 2012
In terms of early rewards, Tim Gardner (6-5/320), an OL from Indianapolis, committed to Ohio State Saturday afternoon.
Now, we wait for more commitments to come in. These prospects got a great taste of Ohio State and what is to come for the program.
Still want more? Here's a photo gallery from Josh Winslow.
GRIDIRON KINGS. More Buckeye commits are camping this weekend at the extremely exclusive Champions Gridiron Kings in Florida. The event, put on by ESPNHS features five future Buckeyes and hopefully one or two future Buckeyes that just haven't announced that they'll become future Buckeyes yet.
'13 Commits Cam Burrows, Jalin Marshall, Ezekiel Eliott, Jayme Thompson, and Eli Woodard are representing Ohio State with 64 of the best players around the country.
Burrows even had high hopes heading into the evnet:
The Midwest team bouta win it all
— Cam Burrows (@CB2ERA) July 27, 2012
Unfortunately the Midwest team went 1-2 on Saturday, losing 27-21 to West and then 20-7 to Southeast before topping Southwest 20-14 in their final game, thanks to a 65-yard bomb from future Wolverine Shane Morris in the game's final minute. The pool play standings through Saturday: Southeast 3-0, Midwest 1-2, Southwest 1-2 and West 1-2. Maybe ESPN is on to something with the regionally skewed rankings...
At least a Buckeye was involved in the quote of the day:
The line of the day came from Georgia commit Shaquille Wiggins following a ball that was just out of the reach of Ohio State pledge Jalin Marshall: "Urban Meyer's gonna take away your scholarship. Just going to take it right away." Marshall and several others got quite a kick out of the line.
Ouch.
Buckeye target LB Mike Mitchell (Plano, TX), who was rumored to once be a Buckeye lock and also said he would end his recruitment at the Gridiron Kings, has decided to push back his decision to a later date ($). He will still decide between Ohio State, Florida State and Texas A&M.
GET YOUR LINKS HERE. New Ohio Stadium scoreboard coming in nicely..All HD! The funny haters guide to the London Summer Olympics... Weird divorce settlement that involves Syracuse going to the 'Ship... More FNL notes from 11W contributor GeneStarwind... Montee Ball's name contributing to his football talents? Is this even funny anymore: replacement for Paterno Statue on eBay... Randy Moss wearing his college "rivals" hat...Sports Agent accuses Saban of cheating. Who hasn't yet? This can't be legit: Louisville has the highest team GPA in the Big East.
