Season's greetings, everyone. I don't just mean the holiday season, either, but as some snow over the weekend and an ABC Family airing of Home Alone last night reminded me, it's obviously that time of year, too.
As we all know, it's also basketball season, but it's the part of the schedule when Ohio State plays the likes of Savannah State and UNC Asheville before facing Kansas and the Big Ten slate.
Speaking of, single-game tickets for B1G games go on sale this morning at 10 and any of those matchups are worth seeing in person. And for anyone who has excellent taste in sports teams, Ohio State tickets always make great gifts.
Although it's the offseason for football, we're not without headline-grabbing news, including commitments to add to Urban Meyer's arsenal and wut? coaching changes seemingly every day. We're even finding out how some of those coaches were hired, and in the case of Bielema, it involves a much more old-fashioned form of courting than picking up his future wife at a casino.
And for the next month, college football juniors will spend a lot of time listening to The Clash as they decide if they should stay or if they should go. Johnathan Hankins, unsurprisingly, is off to the NFL, where we all hope he excels.
Naturally, I'll miss his contributions on the field and how he'd be motorin'1 in a way that seemed to defy his body type, but I'll also miss yelling "Big Hank!" during games. Hopefully Adolphus Washington is ready for a super sophomore season next year because I think "Diesel" would be a delightful successor to the DL nickname crown.
A FINE LINE. Washington is also expected to take over Big Hank's spot in the starting lineup next season. Even though every starter on this year's defensive line will need to be replaced, no one's panicking due to the talent and depth of the DL.
Doug Lesmerises outlined the younger linemen who will need to step up in 2013, and some of them have already earned playing time and shown promise, like Michael Bennett and sophomores-to-be Washington, Noah Spence and Tommy Schutt.
Given Urban's emphasis on having a formidable DL, Ohio State's class of 2013 is of course stacked with highly rated recruits at that position, so even with losing stalwarts like Hankins, John Simon, Nathan Williams and Garrett Goebel, the Buckeyes should be fine.
Ohio State wouldn't be able to handle the departure of Bradley Roby quite so well. He's not expected to turn pro this season, but until he makes his intention known one way or the other, it remains a possibility.
Lesmerises talked to CBSSports.com's Dane Brugler, and according to him, it would be in Roby's best interest to return:
"He's got speed and a closing burst, and I love the way he can make plays on the ball," Brugler said, "but he needs some technique work both as a tackler and in coverage."
If he does, he'll be one of the front-runners for the Thorpe Award2 and could very well find himself on a few more All-America teams. Then, like Big Hank this year, he'll be a first-round draft pick.
IFS AND BUTS. I've mentioned before that I'm not a big fan of what-if scenarios in real life, but because they're the only two teams who finished out the regular season undefeated, four different sportswriters from around the country tackled the question of who would win in a title game between Ohio State and Notre Dame.
Chris Dufresne of the Los Angeles Times made a valid point:
There is one huge difference, though, between Notre Dame and Ohio State. Notre Dame played every game with the pressure of the national title at stake while Ohio State was essentially playing with house money knowing it could not participate in the post season. This was a huge psychological advantage for Ohio State as there really were no consequences for defeat.
The Chicago Tribune's Shannon Ryan also picked the Irish, though her logic wasn't quite sound:
Ohio State’s defense, prone to missing tackles, would allow big days by Notre Dame running backs Theo Riddick and Cierre Wood. The Buckeyes are lucky this is a hypothetical debate.
Lane Ave's makeover via @quinntempelYeah, Ohio State's 13th-ranked rushing defense was total crap.
Matthew Murschel of the Orlando Sentinel, unlike his colleague Mike Bianchi, managed to not even mention Urban Meyer and while he was correct in saying that the Notre Dame defense would be the biggest test for Braxton Miller and the offense, he apparently didn't watch many Buckeye games:
In the end, it’s that ability to win the close contests that would give Notre Dame the edge in a battle between these two Midwest powers.
In Ohio State's corner was the Allentown Morning Call's Mark Wogenrich, who brought up the two teams' common opponents and then concluded:
Notre Dame's road wins over Oklahoma and USC hint at a slight edge over the Buckeyes, whose best road victories were at Penn State and Wisconsin. But the quarterback edge goes to Ohio State, whose all-purpose skill guys would clinch another national championship for Urban Meyer.
Personally, I wouldn't bet against that Urban fellow when it comes to national championships. Or Ohio State when it comes to facing Notre Dame in the post-WWII era.
SEVEN UP. BTN's Tom Dienhart ranked seven Big Ten teams who have had the most impressive starts to the hoops season. Keep in mind, this is not a list of the top seven B1G teams, which is why Illinois, 10-0 and fresh off a road win against Gonzaga, is at the top.
After the Illini, Michigan, Indiana and Minnesota, Ohio State comes in at No. 5. Even though their one loss is by no means a bad loss, Dienhart's issue with the Buckeyes is one the football team can relate to: they lack a high-profile win. But unlike their football brethren, the basketball team will soon encounter a much more difficult schedule.
Iowa and Nebraska, off to an 8-2 and 6-2 start, respectively, round out Dienhart's seven. Underachieving teams thus far, specifically Michigan State3, Wisconsin and Purdue, were not included.
CELEBRITY BIG BROTHER. Despite only playing in three games so far for the Ohio State women's basketball team, freshman Cait Craft receives a warm welcome whenever she sees the court because fans are so enamored with her older brother.
As a reserve, Cait is not the immediate contributor that Aaron was in his first year, but that doesn't faze her:
“A lot of people would think there’s a lot of pressure (being his sister),” she said. “But there isn’t. A lot of that has to do with my relationship with Aaron. He is the most supportive of any brother out there.
“He cares about my game and he’s helped me out a lot. I don’t feel any pressure to rise up to all the hype around Aaron. I feel that I need to go out and help my team in any way I can.”
She missed three games due to a concussion and even with a small sample size has yet to miss a shot, so if need be, she can hold that over her brother. Next up, the No. 20 Buckeyes will travel west to take on Washington State and Gonzaga.
PERSONAL CHECK. Brad Wolverton of the Chronicle of Higher Education examined the compliance improvements Ohio State has made since you-know-what, but that article requires a paid subscription, so I'll link to the Bylaw Blog's John Infante instead.
Infante points out that Ohio State has the money and resources to, for example, check out every person on every player's ticket list. Before, the compliance department would only randomly look at 10% of names. This year, everyone was investigated and over 100 of the 4,000+ names weren't given the okay.
Ohio State has taken compliance a step further when it comes to players' financial issues:
Starting this season, each assistant football coach is responsible for ensuring that every player has a checking account and a personal budget (players can’t suit up otherwise). The coaches are required to monitor players’ spending habits to make sure they don’t get in financial trouble.
While some may find that intrusive in a non-Aaron Craft Big Brother sort of way, I like the move. Way too many athletes end up filing for bankruptcy and college students in general aren't all that savvy when it comes to handling their money. So if it helps these guys make smart financial decisions now and in the future, then I approve.
UP ON THE HOUSETOP CLICK CLICK CLICK. John Simon is a finalist for the Bobby Bowden Award... For Evan Turner, not practicing makes perfect... Kosta Koufos is playing well for Denver... A "Game of Change" took place in East Lansing in 1963... An oral history of Freaks and Geeks... Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert's one-on-one conversation... The 24 types of Christmas movies on TV... A sweater for Home Alone fans.
- 1 I used to think nothing could top the use of "Sister Christian" in Boogie Nights, but an episode of Louie this past season came close. ↑
- 2 Won this year by Mississippi State's Johnthan Banks. There doesn't seem to be a consensus on how to spell Jonathan around college football. ↑
- 3 Which is pretty typical of Michigan State at this point in the season. ↑
