Bradley Roby, and by extension the Buckeye universe, received some welcome news yesterday as the misdemeanor disorderly conduct charge Roby faced as a result of a bouncer being a total wuss was conditionally dismissed.
Roby initially faced a misdemeanor battery charge based on eyewitness allegations he struck the bouncer (or security guard or whatever) in the chest but video evidence later showed Roby was actually pushed three times before only lunging at the paper tiger.
To have his record fully expunged, the Thorpe Award candidate just needs to keep his nose clean until August 16, 2014.
The simple fact Roby found himself in a sketchy situation means he will still miss the opener against Buffalo but it's pretty safe to say Urban will leave it at that considering his recent comments and the video evidence.
To the man who filed the false police report, cool story bro.
On a related note, rumblings persist Meyer could announce this year's captains later today and it's likely Roby cost himself a prestigious honor based on a bad decision made in a Bloomington bar. That's gotta sting a bit.
Favorites to land the honor include Braxton Miller, Jack Mewhort, Christian Bryant and Ryan Shazier with guys like Jordan Hall, Philly Brown and C.J. Barnett in the mix. Hall was a bit of a dark horse when he was named a captain a season ago and if he's selected this year, he'll become just the ninth two-time captain in school history.
SHAZIER LOVE. In what was a ridiculously blah day for college football news, Ryan Damn Shazier drew some love from ESPN's Big Ten blog, being named the 4th best player in the league.
The lofty ranking is buoyed by an impressive run over the 2nd half of last season sparked by Zach Boren's move to the Mike spot, solidifying the linebacking corps and freeing Shazier from the chains of basically playing two positions.
Shazier was a beast last year ranking in the top 10 in five different defensive categories, leading the league with 17 tackles for loss and placing 2nd with 115 total stops.
According to OSU profile, Shazier became the first Buckeye sophomore since Little Animal in 2006 to break the century mark in tackles and his 70 solos were the most by a Buckeye in 10 years.
No question, Shazier is playmaker of the highest order but even the best linebackers need a defensive line to tie up blockers and a sidekick worthy of the honor. As long as the young Buckeyes surrounding him do their job, Shazier should make a strong run at the B1G's defensive player of the year award.
In previous installments of the Top 25, Jack Mewhort checked in at #19 and Roby at #9. With Braxton Miller and Carlos Hyde still on the board, the Buckeyes should have a handle on three of the top four spots. It's just another offseason list to be sure but hey, why not dominate it?
BAD BREAK. Having already lost leading tackler Jake Ryan until at least mid-October due to a knee injury, Michigan was dealt another bad break yesterday with the news that projected starting wide receiver Amara Darboh will miss the entire season due to a foot injury.
Darboh gave the expected leading receivers some size at 6'2", projecting to team up with Jeremy Gallon (5'8") and Drew Dileo (5'10").
The Wolverines brought in a trio of tall, blue-chip freshmen wideouts in Jaron Dukes, Da'Mario Jones and Csont'e York but Al Borges says exactly none of them are likely to contribute right away:
"We have some capable replacements, thank goodness. (But the freshmen), not really. No. Not yet."
Instead, it looks like three-star redshirt frosh Jehu Chesson (6'3") will get first crack at nailing down Darboh's spot.
The Legend of Wilson continues to growKING OF PRUSSIA. Stewart Mandel (I know most of you hate him but I don't mind him) unveiled his B1G conference preview and like every other writer in the country, he sees the Buckeyes claiming the conference crown.
While he does have them losing a game which I assume must be Northwestern, Mandel is all-in on the growing legend of Dontre Wilson.
Mandel lists Wilson as his Impact Freshman in the league, throwing out some projected stats along the way. How does 750 rushing yards with 10 touchdowns sound? How about another 360 through the air along with a couple touchdowns in the return game?
True freshman totals of 1,100 total yards with 12 combined trips to the end zone – yes, please.
As for Braxton's projection on the way to being named the B1G's offensive MVP for the 2nd straight season, Mandel forecasts nearly 2,900 yards through the air with 22 touchdowns and eight picks. On the ground, he sees 1,020 yards and 16 scores. Daaaang!
UNDECIDED, UNDEFINED. It's shaping up to be another lackluster season for the University of Spoiled Children as the Trojans broke camp today without a clear-cut starting quarterback.
Max Wittek has two starts under his belt, both losses, throwing for a combined 47% completion percentage and two touchdowns against five interceptions. His competition, junior Cody Kessler, has attempted just two passes in his college career though the general thought was that he outperformed Wittek in both spring and summer workouts.
Lane Kiffin's star wide receiver, Marqise Lee seems a bit miffed about the state of things in Troy:
''This is crazy... 'It's 50-50. I know y'all don't want to hear 50-50, but that's all I've got.''
''I'm still waiting. I don't know when Coach Kiffin is going to actually decide. Hope it's by Friday, because that's when we start our (preparation), but at the end of the day, I guess I'm going to be rolling with both until he decides.''
''I'm sitting here just like you guys - lost. 'I'm going to continue to get work with both. If it's not (decided) Friday, I'm going to continue to work with both until Kiffin decides. Even if he does decide, I'm going to work with both.''
The lack of any expected consistency at the quarterback spot has both CNNSI and http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/pac12/2013/08/21/2013-pac-12-football-preview/2680285/USAToday projecting a five-loss season for the Trojans on the heels of a 7-6 mark a year ago. USC is just 34-17 over the last four years following a seven-year run in which they went 82-9. That's too bad.
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