Thad Matta's basketball Buckeyes head to Happy Valley tonight looking to avenge a disgusting 71-70 overtime home loss to Penn State back on January 29th, a defeat that halted an 80-game win streak over unranked foes.
Since the visit to rock bottom, the Buckeyes have won six of seven with the lone loss coming at home to 1st place Michigan despite holding a six point lead with 12 minutes to play.
With three games to play, Ohio State currently sits in 4th place in the league standings (9-6) which would yield an opening round bye in the B1G tournament so winning tonight and backing that up Sunday in Bloomington is crucial especially with a season finale against Michigan State looming.
If you believe a reinvigorated Sam Thompson, who totaled 11 and 19 points respectively over his last two games after failing to reach double-figures in 11 of 13 previous conference tilts, the team is preparing with a sense of urgency:
"We're not trying to fall through the tape, we're trying to bust through it, if you will. Every one from here on out is a must win. These last three games do a lot for our seeding in the Big Ten tournament and hopefully the NCAA tournament. We look at every game from here on out as a tournament-type game."
GO GREEN. Mark Dantonio and Pat Narduzzi likely got some sugar these last few nights after their wives learned the Michigan State brass opened up the checkbook to reward last season's B1G and Rose Bowl championships.
Dantonio received an 83% raise – or $1.65 million – to $3.64 million which slots him third in the league behind Urban Meyer ($4.6) and, of course, Kirk Ferentz, who hauls in $3.875 million, or $484,375 per win in 2013.The new package also affords him an opportunity to work for the Spartan athletic department for five years upon retirement from coaching.
Narduzzi garnered just a 76% bump, to $904,583, making him the highest-paid assistant coach in the B1G and 4th-highest in the country.
I love both moves. The league needs to keep its top assistant coaches just as much as its legit head coaches though Dantonio needs to step it up on the recruiting front if he has designs on living up to his contract. Over the last five years, his classes boast an average ranking of 30th (24/7 rankings) with his best showing coming back in 2010, a modest 23rd.
SLOW YOUR ROLL, TIDE. Nick Saban and his big brother Brent Bielema – two guys that roam this Earth solely protect student-athletes – look like the odd men out according to an ESPN survey of 128 FBS coaches asking their stance on the rule proposal that would prohibit offenses from snapping the ball until at least 10 seconds burn from the 40-second play clock.
In total, only 25 head coaches support the proposal (19.5%) with just 11 of those coming from the "power-five" schools (ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12 and SEC, plus Notre Dame).
Somewhat amazingly, Will Muschamp summed things up best:
You're talking four to six plays [in a game that would be affected]. Come on. It's not that big of a deal.
"It's not about player safety. To me, it's funny that everybody wants to argue whatever their point is. It's not really about what's good for the game. It's about, 'What's good for me at the end of the day.'
"All these hurry-up guys want to snap as fast as they can snap it, and the guys who don't hurry up want the game slowed down."
And bingo was his name-o.
THE GIFT THAT KEEPS ON GIVING. Everybody's favorite hooker killer college football analyst, Craig James, lodged a formal complaint with the Texas Workforce Commission alleging his firing by Fox Sports Southwest was rooted in religious discrimination.
(You ain't got to lie, Craig, you ain't got to lie.)
The network begs to differ via a statement acknowledging a lack of proper vetting preceding the hire and a termination of employment based on "the perception that he abused a previous on-air position to further a personal agenda."
TAKES ONE TO KNOW ONE? The always-quotable favorite drunken grandpa of football, Barry Switzer, is back in the news after a wide-ranging radio interview heard him take a shot at Johnny Cursive:
"I'm gonna tell you. I said Johnny Manziel is … I don't like his antics. I think he's an arrogant little prick. I've said that and I'll say it again. He's a privileged kid, he's embarrassed himself, he's embarrassed his teammates, his program. He's embarrassed his coach. And they'll all have to defend him because they have to coach. I know that. I spent 40 years in the damn game so I know how it works."
Probably, after a swig of Lone Star, Switzer then praised Manziel as "the most dominant, dynamic college quarterback I've ever seen."
Switching to Michael Sam, Switzer said he'd rather have a gay guy with game than a straight guy without game and certainly doesn't think an owner would be swayed from drafting a gay player if he was good enough offering, "there are owners out there who would draft Charles Manson if he could run a 4.2 40."
QUICK CLICKS. Emergency Crews Attempt To Rescue Olympic Figure Skater Who Fell Through Ice... 10 Horrifically Botched Executions... That's the way I want to go... The Strike Zone During the PITCHf/x Era... Johnny Football Blows an Impressive 0.20 on the NFL Combine Breathalyzer Test... Porn stars produced by state (Spoiler: Ohio checks in at #5)... Recipe for the single-greatest school cafe product ever... Nintendo has let itself go... Report: Louisville football recruit arrested after impregnating his cousin... Mike from Phish cranked out an AMA...DO NOT do this chick dirty... Shazier and Roby appear in the 1st round of the most recent CBS Sports mock draft.
