ICYMI:
- With a half second left in last night's game vs. Minnesota, the No. 5 women's basketball team used a silky alley-oop to send the game into overtime. Unfortunately, the Buckeyes fell 90-88.
I guess it's a good thing they're not on the bubble.
- Combine Prep: The first installment in Joshua Perry's 11W draft diary.
I'm going to start telling people, "I work with NFL players" like phlebotomists say, "I work with doctors." Hopefully this will alleviate the always-awkward"So what do you do for money?" follow-up.
SPIELMAN PRAISES OHIO STATE'S DRAFT CLASS. Every Ohio State fan knows the name Chris Spielman, but not as many are aware his older brother is the general manager of the Minnesota Vikings. The Massillon, Ohio native is more than qualified to render #takes on the pedigree of Ohio State's draft class.
From cleveland.com:
INDIANAPOLIS -- In 25 years at the NFL Combine, Minnesota Vikings general manager Rick Spielman hasn't run across many classes like this group of 14 Ohio State Buckeyes in town for evaluation.
"I can't remember a class this deep of potential draft picks since I started way back in the early '90s, when I used to go down to Miami of Florida and they'd have 16 or 17 guys that you'd have to evaluate who were going to be very good football players," Spielman told cleveland.com Wednesday. "This is by far one of the deepest classes I've been able to evaluate at all positions across the board."
Between 1990 and 1993, for instance, Miami produced 35 draft picks (in what was a longer draft) in four years. Ohio State should have 14 players drafted in April, with maybe as many as six in the first round.
As much as I've heard people talk trash about those early Miami teams, I've never heard anybody call them untalented.
It's also crazy to realize most of these draftees were summoned to Columbus before Urban Meyer won any postseason accolades. That pipeline is going to heftier within three years.
ALL EYES ON BRAXTON... AS USUAL. The QBs and WRs arrive in Indianapolis for the 2016 NFL Combine on Thursday. (Be sure to follow our Eric Seger, who is at the Crossroads fo America, for the latest combine updates.)
Braxton Miller continues to be a hot name.
From the nfl.com's media roundtable:
Speaking of the 40, will Ohio State athlete Braxton Miller run a time that'll have people saying, "He's clearly moved himself into the first round!"? We shall soon see
[...]
Braxton Miller has a lot at stake -- fortunately, he's built for this type of event
Braxton Miller looked like the best player in the country when he debuted as a wide receiver for Ohio State last fall. The interesting question is whether he'll make as strong a first impression when he works out at the combine.
That season opener against Virginia Tech turned out to be the highlight of his season -- Miller had 140 of his 601 total yards and two of his four total touchdowns that day -- but the skill set is ridiculous. Miller has speed and quickness, and he's built for this type of event. He'll need a great showing, as well. He spent his first three years of college playing quarterback, and his rawness as a receiver means he'll have to sell teams on his high ceiling.
If Braxton Miller hits the combine like a tour de force, you might as well mark him in blood to the Cincinnati Bengals at No. 24.
Miller may still need work as a receiver, but you're kidding yourself if you think a griftlord Mike Brown is going to pass on a Dayton-area and Ohio State legend that would net him millions in merchandise, tickets, and marketing within 24 hours of drafting him.
The thing is... it wouldn't be a bad pick as long as Miller's body holds up.
BAKER SPOTLIGHT. Many people expect Chris Worley to succeed Darron Lee's vacated throne at walkout linebacker. They're probably right—Worley is expected to start during spring ball—but don't rule out Jerome Baker just yet.
From buckeyesports.com:
What Baker Has Done: Something that only three of his teammates did last season – play as a true freshman. Baker began the season on the bench and seemed unlikely to earn any playing time, but that changed when injuries ravaged the Ohio State special teams units. He made his collegiate debut on special teams against Penn State on Oct. 17, making one tackle in the game, and went on to contribute to the kick coverage units for the rest of the season. Baker played in a total of seven games, almost exclusively on special teams, and tallied three solo tackles as a freshman. Along with Denzel Ward (seven total tackles), Baker was one of just two true freshmen to record a statistic for the Buckeyes in 2015.
[...]
Why Baker’s Important: Because Darron Lee and Joshua Perry won’t be playing for Ohio State next season. Quite simply, Raekwon McMillan is the man at linebacker for the Buckeyes, but there isn’t another scholarship player at the position who has started a game at Ohio State just yet. Fickell noted that if the season started today Chris Worley would be starting in place of Lee, but Baker will at the very least need to provide depth this season. There is a ton of talent at linebacker – Baker included – but very little of it has been seen on the field so far.
Worley has logged his time in special teams, but Baker doing it as one of only three true freshmen (in a class as highly-regarded as the Elite '15) speaks to me. If Baker can play Worley to at least a draw in spring camp, then he might be able to make his move in the fall.
As mentioned in the original article, it's not as if Worley is a grizzled veteran. If it's a toss-up by the time Bowling Green rolls into Columbus then the job should go to the younger player. (You're going to want to write that tip down, Urban.)
NEW TBDBITL CZAR, SAME AS LAST TBDBITL CZAR. Interim band director Chris Hoch is no longer the interim band director. He's now the just the band director.
From dispatch.com:
Ohio State University named Christopher Hoch director of the school's marching band.
Hoch, 39, had served as the interim director since May 2015. His appointment still must be approved by the school's Board of Trustees and would become effective June 1.
If approved, Hoch would be given a four-year contract through May 31, 2020.
This is how I'd like to envision how it all went down:
If people want to use this as an excuse to post their favorite Office clips in the comments... I won't be mad about it. Just promise we'll gank the first person to hit us with, "Well, actually, I prefer the British version, which you might not know was the original..."
I won't snitch if you don't.
YIKES, TENNESSEE. Tennessee is a popular sleeper pick in 2016 because it returns the core of a team that lost to Arkansas and Florida. Yet it's suffering the worst offseason in the country, and it's only Feb. 25th.
Remember that TITLE IX lawsuit alleging a former Vols football player was assaulted by teammates after he drove their rape victim to the hospital? Shockingly, it got worse on Wednesday.
From tennessean.com:
University of Tennessee football coach Butch Jones told one of his players he “betrayed the team” after the wide receiver helped a woman who said she was raped by two other football players, according to anew legal filing in a sweeping lawsuit filed by six women against Tennessee.
Sophomore Drae Bowles “broke down and cried” after speaking with his coach, the lawsuit said.
Jones later called Bowles back to apologize for calling him “a traitor to the team,” according to the suit.
Butch Jones and Tennessee obviously denied the statement through lawyers. I don't know why they used lawyers when they could've just hired Tennessee message board posters pro bono:
Earlier this week when I said sports should be a Schedule-1 narcotic? This is what I was talking about.
But seriously, someone please make sure "Storm's comin. It may be bad for everyone involved" is on my epitaph.
THOSE WMDs. Don't dare hackers to ruin your life... Atlas robot is here, and it's terrifying... The Wetsuitman... Salt Lake City daycare is a magnet for conspiracy theories.
