Skull Session: Ohio State Memorializes Ohio Field, Scouting Jerome Baker, and Previewing Michigan

By D.J. Byrnes on July 8, 2017 at 4:59 am
Demario McCall reaches for the July 8 2017 Skull Session.
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In lieu of Buckeye football, let's start our day watching Nick Bosa destroy a Michigan Man.

From NFL.com draft analyst Lance Zierlein:


1800 grams of protein and zero sugars. The perfect balanced breakfast to start your day.

ICYMI:

Word of the Day: Uxorious.

 THE FIELD HARLEY RAN. Ohio State didn't always play at the iconic Ohio Stadium. Before Chic Harley convinced university sachems to erect the shrine to football we all love to fill on fall Saturdays, the Buckeyes took to Ohio Field near Lane Avenue and High Street.

Ohio Field in 1908
Ohio Field in 1908, via The Ohio State University Archives.

Walking through north campus in my day, you would have never known that. Not anymore, thanks to a new project highlighting Buckeye football's (almost) original home:

Should be a good way for people who don't poison themselves with suds on game day to kill an hour or two before the local team takes the field this fall. Hell, probably a good way for those that imbibe, too.

 SCOUTING A FREAK. Yesterday, we talked about Jerome Baker's status as a workout warrior. But ability to move an absurdly offensive amount of weights doesn't always equate to draft status.

Thankfully for Baker, he's much more than a gifted athlete. 

From Joe Marino of ndtscouting.com:

Baker’s ability to diagnose plays rapidly and take tight angles to the football are instantly noticeable when watching his film. He plays fast, moves laterally with ease and is a consistent finisher.

Taking great angles to the football and filling windows are key components of playing on the second level. Baker combines his strong reactionary skills with explosive burst to get ahead of blocks and make plays. He has a natural feel for finding the football and anticipating flow.

[...]

Baker is an outstanding athlete. His burst, long speed, physicality, lateral movements skills and ability to elevate to compete for the football are special. He will be an exciting player to watch this season and he should be even better in his second season as a full-time starter.

The only thing that will seemingly stop Baker this fall will be himself if he takes his eye off the prize before the ink on his future NFL contract is dry. That or an injury, which would be the most unfair result possible.

 LOOK AT THIS CLOWN RODEO. Some folks around here get mad when I talk Michigan or Jim Harbaugh. But being part of a rivalry—if that's what Michigan fans still insist on calling it—means checking in on your rivals.

Urban Meyer does it. Plus, it's the offseason. So we're previewing that dastardly team up north.

From Bill Connelly of sbnation.com:

Michigan has lost six games in two years, and five were by one possession each. The Wolverines’ three 2016 losses were by a combined five points. This team hasn’t been far from the promised land, and if it can overcome massive experience deficits at receiver and defensive back, it will again have a chance to make a big run.

Throughout the writing of this preview, though, I couldn’t stop thinking about 2018, when the Wolverines likely return Speight, Smith, every wideout, three to four offensive line starters, Gary at defensive end, nearly every linebacker, and every defensive back, plus probably another top-notch recruiting class.

You can’t take a “wait ‘til next year” approach when you’re still projected as a top-10 team, but if Michigan does lose a couple of late games and keep the “Never better than third in the Big Ten East!” meme alive, you should get your laughs in while you can. Because this program is probably a year away from ignition.

Don't let these Michigan fans get away with their "it might be a bit of a rebuilding year" talk. Urban Meyer won a national title in his third year, and Michigan fans swear Harbaugh resides in his realm.

So it's time for him to prove it, because there are no such things as "rebuilding years" for elite programs. Not anymore.

 SAY WHAT? Speaking of blood rivalries, the Michigan game will always be the biggest game of the year for Ohio State fans. But to a neutral observer? Well, one man thinks the Penn State–Ohio State tilt will have bigger national ramifications than Ohio State–Michigan.

From Jason Kirk of sbnation.com:

Last year's biggest game according to public interest was Michigan-Ohio State, and that could be the case in just about any year. But if biggest factors in season implications, OSU vs. the defending Big Ten champs in a rare revenge game for both teams (PSU won the game and the division, but OSU made the Playoff instead) might be the biggest game of the year, anywhere.

That's all on Michigan's shoulders. Ohio State–Penn State will be quite the affair, but there won't be any touching The Game if it becomes a de facto playoff game again.

It doesn't get any bigger than that.

 A SCOUT'S TAKE. Looks like another wave of elite NFL talent will help Ohio State secure the 2018 recruiting class down the stretch.

From Matt Miller of bleacherreport.com:

We might never see Ohio State recruiting at this level again. Let's appreciate it while we have it.

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