Don't look now, but the best part of the weekend is Thursday nights and Sunday afternoons. #JustMyTake.
URBAN WADES INTO THE SATELLITE GAME. Urban Meyer and Gene Smith are against satellite camps, actually. But if something is utilized by Jim Harbaugh — and it pisses off SEC baby-men — then it's something Urban Meyer is going to do.
And if Urban Meyer does something, he's going to do it well. Jim Harbaugh made his satellite camp headlines by being zany and taking off his shirt. Urban Meyer earned his headlines by grinding the wheels on the recruitment of the like of 2016's No. 2 overall player, Joey Bosa, and 2017's No 1. wide receiver, Trevon Grimes. I have a hunch which strategy will work out better, but we'll have to wait and see.
[Birm has your full rundown over here.]
SO YOU'RE SAYING THERE'S A CHANCE? Rashard Lewis, a 2016 five-star DT out of Louisiana, is 100% crystalballed to Louisiana State University.
But he's spending his own money to visit Columbus this weekend, so that means Ohio State is still in the mix.
From Tony Gerdeman of TheOzone.net:
COLUMBUS — Ohio State just finished hosting one of the nation's best defensive tackles in Georgia's Antwuan Jackson this week, and it looks like the Buckeyes will have to get ready to host another.
Rashard Lawrence, a 2016 5-star defensive tackle out of Monroe, Louisiana, will be flying out Thursday for a weekend visit to see the Ohio State campus.
Lawrence (6-3 305) is rated the No. 8 player in the nation by ESPN, No. 9 by Scout, and No. 11 by 247Sports. He holds offers from Ohio State, LSU, Alabama, Auburn, Florida State and everybody else who covets big, dominating defensive tackles.
In the olden days, I would've mentioned this is a helluva an opportunity for an aspiring bagman. (Disclaimer: It's my dream to be a legendary college football bagman.)
Sadly — for my dreams, anyway — Urban Meyer doesn't need a shadowy bagman syndicate to succeed.
MICKEY MITCHELL TALKS RECRUITING. Mike Mitchell, a former blue chip recruit/OSU LB, transferred to Texas Tech to be closer to his ailing father. Mickey Mitchell, Mike's little brother and then a 2015 basketball commit, severed his ties with Ohio State shortly thereafter.
In a twist of fate, however, Thad Matta hung onto Mitchell. All it took was the #teen turning against his nature.
From Bill Landis of Cleveland.com:
"I never wanted to leave (Ohio State)," Mickey told NEOMG last week by phone from Texas. "One of the toughest things I've had to do was decommitting because I love Thad Matta, all the staff. But at the same time right then and there my mindset was I need to help my family out."
It took convincing from everyone in Mickey's life that it was OK to make a decision for himself. That ran counter to everything he had done in his life up to that point. Being selfish wasn't an option.
There were truthers who insisted Mike Mitchell transferred due to lack of playing time, and that his father "wasn't really" sick. I think those people owe Ken Mitchell an apology:
"I haven't seen my kids play in over a year," Ken said. "That's probably been the toughest thing."
[...]
Ken suffers from cluster headaches, a rare disease with no known cure that debilitates sufferers with excruciatingly painful headaches up to nine times per day. It's been called the "suicide headache" because the pain is so severe that it's caused people to take their own life during an attack or in anticipation of one.
/salute to the Mitchell family, and I hope Mike registers 12 sacks in an upset win over Baylor's sorry ass.
OSU ATHLETES OF THE YEAR NAMED. I love Cardale Jones — and I would've voted for him — but it's close to impossible to argue with Ohio State's selections here.
#OhioState announces wrestler Logan Stieber and rower Ashley Bauer as its male and female athletes of the year. Now up for B1G consideration
— Jeff Svoboda (@JeffSvoboda) June 17, 2015
Those two graduated with seven national titles.
Seven. National. Titles.
(I still look back with fondness at my high school rec league championship, SMH. I should live in a dumpster.)
BOSA NAMED CFB'S SCARIEST MONSTER. It's weird for me to think of any Ohio State player as "scary," because Urban Meyer has assembled one of the most likable, jovial teams in all of college football.
Of course I am just a sad, broken man adrift on the internet. I do not have to block a guy like Joey Bosa over four quarters.
From Mike Huguenin of NFL.com's list of scariest collegiate footballers:
1. Joey Bosa, DE, Ohio State
The particulars: 6-6, 275, junior
The skinny: If I'm a quarterback, the college defensive end I absolutely do not want to see on the other side of the line of scrimmage is Mr. Bosa. (And, yes, I would call him "Mr. Bosa," as there's no reason to upset the dude.) Bosa is extremely athletic and extremely physical. He had 13.5 sacks and 21 tackles for loss last season -- and the thought here is both those numbers increase this fall.
The best news: You're now closer to Ohio State's opener now than you were when you clicked on this article.
THOSE WMDs. All is fair in love and Twitter... IPA is still the King of Beers... Baby loves acrobatic flights... Turning Athletics into a Video Game.. Is self-loathing a requirement for writers?
