IT'S GAME WEEK Y'ALL. Call it a hankering from my bones, but it's a bad week to be a Midshipman.
The sweetly-named Van Jefferson, a 2015 four-star wide receiver from Tennessee, will be committing this afternoon. His current crystal ball status is 34% Georgia, 34% Tennessee and 29% Ohio State. (The Lord of Whispers has him pegged for the good guys.)
Braxton Miller will also be undergoing surgery this morning in Florida. The surgery will be performed by the world-renowned Dr. James Andrews. Hopefully Braxton comes back with both arms encased in metal like Jax Briggs.
HOPES HEAL FASTER THAN QUARTERBACK. Apparently our beatwriter is moonlighting in The New York Times these days!? (I assume my invite got lost in the mail.)
From 11W's Patrick Maks in The New York Times:
Ticket prices at Ohio Stadium had dipped 10 percent by Wednesday afternoon, two days after the injury, according to the website SeatGeek. And while the Buckeyes will play three night games at Ohio Stadium this fall under new, permanent lights, Miller’s absence appears to have blunted the hoopla.
[...]
“The mood of the people in Columbus is far different than that of the people nationally,” Bishop, the sports anchor, said. “The vast majority of the people who called in were like: ‘No, I think we’re going to be better. We won’t miss a beat.’ It’s like, Wow. I think there’s a real lack of appreciation by some for what exactly Braxton Miller did.”
I wouldn't go as far to say Ohio State "won't miss a beat," without Braxton Miller, but I don't think it's a lack of appreciation to say the goals and expectations will remain the same. Braxton Miller is an electric footballer, but Ohio State football remains much bigger than even that playmaker from Huber Heights.
Of course, my opinions are subject to change the second JT Barrett leads OSU to a three-and-out.
BYGAWHD THAT'S KENNY G's MUSIC. Kenny Guiton threw 134 passes in his OSU career and left Ohio State as a legend. Could you imagine if Braxton went down last year and Guiton led Ohio State to a title? I may have single-handily demolished Ohio Stadium and erected a Kenny Guiton statue capable of blotting out the sun in its place.
Anyway, I liked this article from Austin Ward of ESPN.com, featuring the Smooth Sensation:
"It definitely is more pressure," Guiton, who spent the season playing for the LA Kiss in the Arena Football League, said. "You're backing up a guy who is a Heisman hopeful, a guy that has all the awards and everything, and that's something that you love, you cherish that.
"I felt blessed because I got to go in for a guy that the world looks at as a Heisman guy, a world-class quarterback. There will be pressure, but if you go into the game not thinking about anything else, focused on his offense, his team, his coaching staff, you'll be just fine."[...]
"I feel like J.T. is in a great situation," Guiton said. "He's a young guy who has a year of college football and now he's actually getting reps. It's not just mental reps, he's getting real reps. He's actually in there, actually seeing himself on film, and he's in there running it with the ones. I think he's actually in a better position.
In other news, Kenny Guiton is still a boss among bosses.
TORRANCE GIBSON: OSU COMMIT? Torrance Gibson wore some sick Ohio State cleats during his nationally televised game yesterday, and he did the Block O justice.
The No. 1 dual-threat quarterback in 2015 and Ohio State lean completed 7/11 passes for 298 yards and five touchdowns. Gibson's team rolled over Johnnie Dixon's Rude Boys in the process.
Then there was his teammate calling Gibson "an Ohio State commit."
Gibson announces on October 20th, and given Urban Meyer's ability to close.... let's just say it's looking good for the good guys.
COREY LINSLEY IS ON DECK. We last saw former Ohio State lineman, Corey Linsley, paying it forward. He is now in line to be the opening day starting center for the Green Bay Packers.
Bummer for JC Tretter. But I think the #Packers will be just fine w/ Corey Linsley. GB stole him in the 5th round
— Dane Brugler (@dpbrugler) August 24, 2014
For what it's worth, Corey Linsley has graded out as the third-best center in the NFL this preseason (via @PFF). 117 snaps.
— Zach Kruse (@zachkruse2) August 24, 2014
Don't care for the Packers one bit, but I will be cheering for Linsley; a quality dude if there ever was one. (You know who was also a draft steal? Carlos Hyde as the third running back off the board. I'm still mystified by that one.)
PURDUE FANS DESERVE ALL THE BOOZE. Selling alcohol at college football games is a no-brainer to anybody who likes to make money. Sure, there are people who seem to think selling cups of suds will lead to multiple parking lot stabbings, but there hasn't been a single problem for any school that's done it.
Purdue — whose fans could use a drink or twelve — will be the latest to enter the money-making frenzy.
From our old friend (and my old college roommate) Kyle Rowland of The Fort Wayne Journal Gazette:
“This is not meant to be a moneymaker this fall,” Purdue athletic director Morgan Burke said. “It’s not a beer garden.”
For $5, season ticket holders and students who buy a $250 VIP card can buy 16-ounce beers and 5-ounce glasses of wine. It must be consumed in the 16,000-square-foot patio, which can be accessed from Gates A and N and sections 101 and 129.
Unless Purdue is paying $6 for 16 ounces of beer/wine, I fail to see how this won't be a money-maker for Purdue.
Also, a 16,000-square-foot patio on which alcohol can be sold/consumed sounds exactly like a beer garden, Mr. Burke. Why not just own the reality? BEER GARDENS ARE AWESOME.
PREDICTION: Purdue makes money and West Lafayette doesn't turn into more of a decadent abyss than it already is.
THOSE WMDs. Final Cut Steak & Seafood named Columbus' only four-star restaurant... The bumpy rise of SNL's first star, Chevy Chase... How Ernö Rubik created the Rubik's Cube... This is how every hangover of mine starts... Virginia Tech's freshmen class already making an impact.