ICYMI: Terrelle Pryor is a Cleveland Brownie, and I haven't been this excited about a Browns prospect since they drafted Johnny Manziel. (No, I don't want to know what this says about me.)
Terrelle Pryor-to-WR storyline was mildly intriguing. Now heading to WR-needy team where he knows terminology, it'll be really interesting.
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) June 22, 2015
Also: Urban Meyer was spotted last night wearing blue at a Chicago Cubs game, which makes me wonder if I even know that guy anymore.
LEE AND PRICE SAID "ENOUGH IS ENOUGH." Things used to not be so swell for the Ohio State football program. This time last year, Ohio State was coming off a season-ending two game skid. Its gaping defense had lost its two best defenders, and the offensive line had lost four out of five starters.
Questions were abound, but according to two redshirt sophomores, the course of Ohio State history had already been changed. So is the story of Darron Lee and Billy Price's post-Orange Bowl conversation on a Miami hotel balcony.
From Andy Staples of SI.com:
Next, the two redshirts discussed what they could do to ensure Ohio State’s next season didn’t end the way that one had. They promised to police one another during the off-season program and make sure they were putting in the work necessary to earn a spot in the 2014 lineup. This was no small feat. Lee signed as a 195-pound high school quarterback, but when co-coordinator Luke Fickell and strength coach Mickey Marotti talked Meyer into signing Lee, they projected him as a linebacker in the 225-pound range. “I thought he would grow into a linebacker,” Fickell said this spring. “But who knows? … It’s an educated guess.” Still, Fickell saw two critical traits in Lee that gave him faith Lee would find a way to contribute. “It’s intelligence and passion,” Fickell said. “People who are intelligent find a way to be successful. If you have passion, you find a way to be successful.”
Price, meanwhile, had signed with Ohio State with the opportunity to play on the offensive or defensive line. He chose defense. Then, during preseason camp in 2013, Price went to Meyer and asked if he could move to offense. By the time he and Lee had their talk in South Florida, Price was still getting comfortable with the playbook. With Andrew Norwell, Corey Linsley and Jack Mewhort headed to the NFL—where all would start for playoff teams—starting jobs would be open. Price just had to win one. But Price and Lee agreed on that balcony that becoming starters wasn’t enough. They had to do more. “It was to become the leaders on the team,” Price said. “It was to become a vital part of the team.”
Price and Lee had hinted at this conversation before, but if I didn't know any better, there's no chance in Hell I would've guessed Billy Price as the teammate Darron Lee sought out for a post-L heart-to-heart. I guess that's part of what makes sports so much fun to watch.
OSU WILL WIN 12 GAMES OR MONEY BACK. Ohio State could be double digit favorites in every regular season game this year. If there were a gun to my head, I'd bet the over here.
CFB win totals from Vegas book @CGTechnology_: Alabama 9.5 (-135o) Fla St 8.5 (-130u) Texas 6 (-130o) Ohio St 11 (-165o) Notre Dame 9 USC 9
— David Payne Purdum (@DavidPurdum) June 22, 2015
(Note: Florida State's win total is actually set at 9.5.)
I'm not a betting man, but it's hard to see Ohio State losing more than one regular season game, if they lose one at all. If you don't hit the bet, there's a better chance you get your money back in a wash than losing it outright.
RUSSELL: "I'D BE GOOD IN THE TRIANGLE, ACTUALLY." Mike Young broke down potential landing spots for Patient 0. He, like most rational people, doesn't think the Knicks would be a good fit for Russell, but it looks like the former Buckeye disagrees with the #take, at least publicly.
From Ian Begley of ESPN.com:
"Now that I look at it, Kobe had great success in it. The shots that he took, the shots that he made were in the same areas, all from the offense. So I think I can definitely thrive there," Russell said in a phone interview on Friday.
[...]
"It was great, just to be in the mecca," Russell said of the Knicks workout. "It was my second workout. Just being in New York was a great feeling and getting the opportunity to work out for one of most well-known teams in the NBA was just a blessing."
[...]
"They did a great job of opening the doors for me and letting me ask anything I needed," Russell said. "I asked them what’s one thing I can do to separate myself and they gave me some great knowledge on that. They’ve seen the greatest of the greats come through this league. So they know what it takes."
- The Triangle — an offense that only won championships with Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant — is dead.
- I don't know why New York City should be considered a basketball mecca in 2015 either.
- Keep it real, D'Angelo! The Knicks are trash, and outside of marketing opportunities, they don't have anything positive to offer your career. Look at Marbury; he got out of New York and now the Chinese built him a statue.
- I think I've accepted the fact Russell is headed on a one-way-trip to a horrific no-win situation.
- I love this commercial/video thing:
@Dloading with the assist to @espn. pic.twitter.com/lHMOp6KwWQ
— Austin Brown (@adbrown15) June 22, 2015
COACHES: THAT BOSA IS DANG GOOD. Bruce Feldman of FoxSports.com talked to some coaches about Joey Bosa, and the Big Bear is so good he's even above anonymous reproach!
"He's as good as advertised as you see on film," one Big Ten O-line coach told me. "He's very explosive. He's physical at the point of attack in the run game, and he's a very skilled pass rusher."
[...]
"It starts with him being very talented. He's big, strong and very athletic for his size, and he has a very quick first step. The biggest thing that he changed that made him great (last season) was the use of his hands. He's violent with his hands and does a great job of defeating blocks. He's really improved his pass-rush technique this past season also."
For more on the Big Bear: Kyle Jones broke down why Bosa may have a frustrating season (by his standards) in 2015.
SHELLEY RESPONDS TO TUBE TV POSSESSION CHARGE. Internet commenters erupted yesterday when it was discovered — through a picture of his flooded basement — that Urban Meyer owned one of the world's last tube TVs.
Some people noted rich people don't get rich by replacing things that work, and it looks like they were right:
@HitShow @FakeUrban yes I think so. Needed a new one anyway. I don't throw anything away until it doesn't work
— Shelley Meyer (@spinnershells) June 22, 2015
Besides, I doubt a family like the Meyers spend a lot of time lounging around watching TV.
OSU REFUSING TO IMPRISON YOUTH FOR DEVIL'S LETTUCE. What sort of anarchy is brewing in OSU dorms?!?!?
From Joshua Lim of Dispatch.com:
- During the six-year period, Ohio State has had less than a third of the number of drug arrests in residential halls that Kent State recorded in 2013 alone.
- Ohio State recorded only four arrests resulting from drug-law violations at residential facilities in 2013. That was the fewest number of arrests among the universities studied, though with close to 58,400 students in 2013, Ohio State is twice the size of the next-largest, Kent State, with about 29,200 students, according to data from the Ohio Board of Regents. Ohio University had 51 arrests; Miami University, 45; Kent State, 82; and Bowling Green State University had 62.
Yes, it would appear the OSU police are even working in league with dorm kingpins:
The officer reported the student admitted to purchasing about an ounce of marijuana for $300 each month. The student said he sells it to Ohio State students for $15 a quantity, likely a gram, from which he makes about $100 a month.
"He stated he buys his marijuana on campus, and sells it on campus. He said he saves the money from his sales and has approximately $2,000 total in his bank accounts.
“I confiscated the jars, scale, rolling papers, grinders and marijuana … Refer to student conduct. Closed.”
Parents: Text your #teen right now to make sure they're not flipping ounces to their criminal friends. You know what they say: It's better to be safe than grieving over your kid's tombstone.
THOSE WMDs. Don't you dare invite me to your bro-dal shower... In China, illegal drugs are sold on an unbridled market... Only 21% of free proxies aren't shady... The plague is back... Amazon reviews of laxative tea... Stanford researcher declares sixth extinction is here.
