It will arguably stand as biggest day in Ohio State sports for 2018. And football wasn't even involved.
The men's basketball team was in Boise playing for a trip to the Sweet Sixteen for the first time since 2013 while the women welcomed George Washington in the 1st round of their tournament.
Oh, there was more. Wrestling was trying to win a national championship in Cleveland. The men's hockey team was facing the Fighting Irish (on St. Patrick's Day) for the B1G hockey title, the baseball team was in North Carolina for a two-game series with UNC-Wilmington.
National and conference titles at stake. This is why you come to Ohio State, right?
The weekend itself didn't start off great, with the women's hockey team losing their Frozen Four matchup with top seed Clarkson, in overtime. It turned out to be an omen for what was to come:
Ohio State just lost the NCAA wrestling team title, Big Ten hockey title game, and an NCAA tourney hoops game in the space of half an hour.
— Farmer Jones (@thefarmerjones) March 18, 2018
Chris Holtmann's squad shoehorned its entire season into its final game with Gonzaga, coming up short (while shaving 21 points off the deficit from their first meeting earlier in the season) in a hard-fought loss. The wrestling team finished 2nd to Penn State, again. This one stung in particular, with the program's focus all season on taking down the defending champs:
Ohio State vs Penn State tonight! Lets go!! Who wants the @OSUPinChain broken out? pic.twitter.com/JrdpZyyWiA
— Kyle Snyder (@Snyder_man45) February 3, 2018
The Nittany Lions all but ended the team competition when Buckeye Myles Martin had Bo Nickal almost on his back, only to have their positions reversed in a matter of seconds. The men's hockey team matched the women's heartbreak, with an overtime loss in the title game - while Holtmann's players were giving their final postgame interviews and Penn State was celebrating on the mats.
Worst night ever? Losing championship opportunities and win-or-go-home postseason games are objectively lousy. But that's not all that happened.
Snyder won his rubber match with Michigan's Adam Coon for his third national title, ending arguably the greatest collegiate career in school history since Jesse Owens. The women's basketball team cruised through its 1st round tournament game. The baseball team swept its series with UNC-Wilmington on their field. The defending men's volleyball NCAA champions went into Pennsylvania and made quick work of St. Francis for their 15th win.
This all comes one year after the Buckeyes were in contention for multiple national championships in spring sports. And that's the takeaway here - Buckeye athletics are at their peak right now, competing in every area they want to. Reaching the pinnacle and falling just short shows just how far the athletic department has advanced in its Win Every Title Possible strategy.
So while it wasn't an ideal weekend, it wasn't a massacre either. There's no reason to be sad. The future is bright!
MICHIGAN WINS IT AT THE BUZZER!!!! #MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/COR9MEjX59
— NCAA March Madness (@marchmadness) March 18, 2018
Damn it, Houston. How do you not guard the in-bound pass? Well, at least we're not Virginia.
