Skull Session: Mike Weber Earns Veteran Praise, Latest on Joey Bosa's Contract, and Aaron Craft to Italy

By D.J. Byrnes on August 1, 2016 at 4:59 am
Noah Brown is already lined up for the August 1st 2016 Skull Session
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This time next week, Ohio State football will be back in our lives. Wild.

 LONG TIME COMING. Mike Weber was probably going to start at running back even before Ohio State dismissed Bri'onte Dunn. For proof of this, we turn to a fateful Mickey Marotti decision.

From dispatch.com:

To hasten that maturity, head strength coach Mickey Marotti paired Weber with center Pat Elflein in workouts this summer.

“Mike has taken the initiative, taking care of his body on his own and eating right,” Elflein said. “Once you see him doing that stuff, you notice that he’s growing up.”

[...]

“He realizes there are a lot of people counting on him to play well this year,” Elflein said. “I told him, ‘You have millions of people — Buckeye Nation — counting on you to make plays every Saturday. He goes, ‘Wow, that’s a lot of pressure.’ ”

Marotti partnering Weber with Elflein shows the Buckeyes knew they needed big things from the redshirt freshman in 2016 to hit their goals. The decision worked wonders for Weber's body, but carrying a post-workout endorsement from a team captain might be a more worthwhile achievement.

It's also somewhat hilarious Ohio State lost a talent like Ezekiel Elliott, and I don't expect the Buckeye rushing game to lose a step once Greg Studrawa finds a rotation he trusts. Sometimes I feel like being a fan of this program is cheating.

 BOSA LATEST. Most polled readers don't agree with Joey Bosa holding out of his first training camp. I get it, most people don't want to hear gripes from a guy projected to earn a $17 million signing bonus.

Regardless, Bosa and the Chargers aren't close.

From profootballrumours.com:

The contract stalemate between the Chargers and No. 3 overall pick Joey Bosa is centered around offset language and payout structure, and Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune adds a few more specifics to the dispute, reporting that Bosa and his camp want the entirety of his ~$17MM signing bonus to be paid in 2016. San Diego, meanwhile, prefers to pay a “significant portion” of the bonus next March. [Joey Bosa]

The Chargers’ offer to Bosa is similar in nature to the deal signed between the Cowboys and fourth overall pick Ezekiel Elliott, according to Acee. Elliott will receive roughly 61% of his signing bonus during this calendar year, so using the same structure, San Diego wants to delay about $6.6MM of Bosa’s signing bonus until next March. Bosa’s agent Todd France, meanwhile, made clear last month that that structure is unacceptable.

The two sides still disagree on offset language, per Acee, as Bosa wants some sort of compensation — namely, his prefered bonus payout schedule — as a reward for agreeing to negate his fourth-year guarantee if he’s released by the Chargers and signs with a new club. So while offsets aren’t a key sticking point in talks, they are inextricably linked to the structure negotiations.

Bosa's teammates may look down upon this, but I find his demands hilarious. August to March isn't that long, but on the other hand, the NFL is the richest sports league in the world... and it runs on non-guaranteed contracts. Bosa earned the payday, and I hope his gambit works. It could be a game-changer for future rookie contracts.

Besides, it's not like Bosa's teammates play for charity checks. They negotiate too. All Bosa needs to do is make sure he delivers when he finally does hit the field.

 CIAO. After failing to catch on with an NBA team during another Summer League Tour, our old friend of the program Aaron Craft is off to Italy.

From btpowerhouse.com:

According to multiple reports, former Ohio State guard Aaron Craft has signed a professional deal with Aquila Basket Trento, which is a club located in Italy. He signs there after spending last season with the Santa Cruz Warriors. Santa Cruz is the NBA D-League affiliate of the Golden State Warriors.

During his college career, Craft was widely known for his defensive intensity and ability to come up in big moments for the Buckeyes. All told, he played in 148 games in Columbus, averaging 9.8 points, 4.7 assists, and 3.6 rebounds in his final season with Ohio State.

[...]

One would guess that Craft will now spend the remainder of his professional career overseas (barring a return to the D-League), but it’s still great to see Craft getting professional time.

No, this is not going to stop the handful of Cavs fans who get drunk and seriously argue the Cavs should sign Craft to back up Kyrie Irving.

 WOODY IS AS WOODY DOES. Daily reminder nobody balled like Woody Hayes:

Hitler didn't want it.

 HAPPY TRAILS, ADIDAS' UM CONTRACT. All good things come to an end, which is what happened last night when ADIDAS' contract with Michigan expired. That school up north now belongs to Nike, but we can always remember the good laughs we shared with ADIDAS:

Outback Bowl and Mt. Dew Yellow: Can't wait to regale my mediocre son with tales about witnessing Michigan football at the height of its powers.

 THOSE WMDs. Mute and alone, he was never short of kind words or friends... The decline of the driver's license... The Harambe variations... Friendly reminder from your friends at the botanical garden... How one Colorado man disappeared while hunting for hidden treasure.

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THE SITUATIONAL: From Here to Eternity

will howard entering the IU game 2024

Across The Field: Michigan Beat Reporter Alejandro Zúñiga Says Sherrone Moore’s First Season with the Wolverines Has Been “Disappointing” but It’s Too Early to Draw Conclusions About His Tenure

Sherrone Moore
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