When the Skull Session pitches an item, you can take your bottom dollar to the bank that I received no endorsement money to do so.
Soldiers of the Standing Desk: Allow me to introduce your new best friend, the TerraMat from CubeFit ($97 for Amazon Prime members). You'll never sit at a desk again.
ICYMI:
- Antwuan Jackson: Finally where he belongs.
- Taking Shape: The 2019 QB Big Board.
- In his last stint in Columbus, Taver Johnson excelled at his job with less talent than he'll have now.
- Reserve your (or your business’) spot next to the life-size statue of Woody Hayes coming to Newcomerstown!
Word of the Day: Ethereal.
LONG LIVE RUTGERS. You can always count on Rutgers to come into Columbus and take an ass whooping without causing too much of a fuss. The Scarlet Knights performed their duty last night in a 27-point loss.
From LeDan Hope of Eleven Warriors:
Ohio State ended its two-game losing skid with authority on Tuesday night, defeating Rutgers, 79-52, to get back in the win column in its final home game of the season.
On a night where Jae'Sean Tate, Keita Bates-Diop, Kam Williams and Andrew Dakich were honored for their contributions to the program, C.J. Jackson led the Buckeyes with 18 points while Kaleb Wesson scored 14 points and Williams scored 13 to lead the way to a dominant victory.
Ohio State started all four of its Senior Night honorees on Tuesday, as Williams started for the first time in six games and Dakich started for the first time in his career. Freshman center Kaleb Wesson was the only non-senior or graduate to start the game for the Buckeyes, as regular starting point guard C.J. Jackson and Andre Wesson, who has been starting in place of Williams, began the game on the bench.
Cardale Jones attended the game. The Iron King remains as a benevolent overlord:
Cardale with some young fans. pic.twitter.com/SZD8LsJgHD
— Tony Gerdeman (@TonyGerdeman) February 21, 2018
Ohio State heads to Bloomington, Indiana on Friday night. Unfortunately it can only clinch a share of the Big Ten championship — and it's going to need some help from Wisconsin on Sunday to do so.
Sparty clinches!
— NCAA March Madness (@marchmadness) February 21, 2018
With the 81-61 win over Illinois on Senior Night, No. 2 Michigan State locks in at least a share of the Big Ten regular season title. pic.twitter.com/Pp5Ls6Mdgj
In typical Tom Izzo fashion, the Spartans appear to be peaking at the right time. I'd still rather Ohio State play Michigan State than Penn State. If I'm wrong, so be it.
ADAPTING TO HASKINS. A February forecast of Dwayne Haskins starting this fall riles the feathers of certain Ohio State fans. I understand but willing to #long-bet anyone on it.
Urban Meyer could do what he probably wants to do in his heart, which is run the exact offense he has been running for the last six years. He could also listen to Kevin Wilson, who showed how Haskins could be used during his heroic performance in Ann Arbor.
From rivals.com:
Fortuitously, Haskins’ second half performance against Michigan provided a controlled sample – both for how the Ohio State offense offense may adapt with Haskins – as well as how opponents may adapt to defend the Buckeye offense.
Offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson actually previewed last fall how a spread offense can adapt to a less mobile quarterback. To Wilson, an offense can:
- Use an additional tight end to account for the unblocked edge defender,
- Use different blocking schemes to avoid those defenders, or
- Read those unblocked defenders, using run-pass options instead of read plays.
People say the Dwayne Train can't run the read-option. It's a fair nitpick of his performance against Michigan.
That doesn't mean he can't run it. "Practice makes perfect" is one of the world's oldest clichés because it's true. It's foolish to say Haskins can't run the read-option based on a redshirt freshman season in backup duty.
That said, I'd much rather see more RUN PASS OPTIONS — or "RPOs" as we in the biz love to call them — more incorporated into the offense. Meyer obsesses over ways to eliminate the defense's blocking advantage (seems to be working out for him, yeah?). RPOs offer an avenue to do that without running a quarterback 15 times a game.
And make no mistake, Haskins is far from immobile. He's a more agile than Cardale Jones. He won't win a track meet but he's sgoing to make defenses pay every game.
They're going to have to respect the threat.
BREWSTER STILL LOOKING FOR A BREAK. Former Ohio State offensive lineman Mike Brewster wants to coach college football so bad he hung his résumé above the urinals at a coaching convention in Charlotte.
I figured a guy with his credentials could pull down a graduate assistant job with that ingenuity. The market seems to be a tougher nut to crack than that.
From Sports Illustrated:
So far, the placement hasn’t landed Brewster a GA job, but plenty of coaches saw his résumé. Three told me about it within a few minutes of walking into the convention last month. And the move should help Brewster’s case. Everyone else pegged their resumes to a board their targets probably wouldn’t read. Brewster quickly improvised and put his in a place where they were guaranteed to be seen by everyone. That’s the kind of ingenuity that can help a coaching staff, and it’s the kind of thing that helps separate a job seeker in a crowded field.
But improvisational skill isn’t the only trait Brewster will need as he embarks on his college coaching adventure. The field is tough to break into, and it has gotten tougher as the salaries at the highest level have risen. Everyone wants to make Jimbo Fisher money—or Dave Aranda money for the aspiring coordinators—but the path to those millions is littered with low-paying, heavy-workload jobs that chew up and spit out those who just want to get rich. The ones who make it are the ones who don’t plan to make any money but know they’ve found their calling.
Brewster and the other job-seekers like him can take some advice from those who have already climbed the ladder. One of the best pieces of advice? Coach because that’s what makes you happy, not because it might pay well.
Coaching is a lot like blogging in that regard. It ain't for the faint of heart and you can only succeed if you eat, breathe, and sleep the game.
What separates coaching is the multimillion dollar pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.
#JUSTFACTS. Say what you want about Tim Brewster. The man is acutely aware of who signs his paychecks.
... pic.twitter.com/9AMGqU8tkm
— Cale Gundy (@OU_CoachGundy) February 20, 2018
Easy to see why the line of coaches wanting to fight that guy would reach around the block.
FAT ASS RINGS. The NCAA denied Papa John's appeal yesterday, which means Louisville must vacate the 2013 men's basketball championship.
Rick Pitino's fall from grace will humor me until I die. I'm not about to let Michigan claim a ghost championship, though. We all remember what happened:
Still got this fat ass ring which means my guys definitely won a chip, if Im not mistaken of course.
— Kevin Ware (@AirWare5) February 20, 2018
What's funny is that "fat ass ring" is a $400 hustle from the same company that profiteers on idiots buying high school class rings.
Wake me when Pitino and Louisville have to return the millions they made off that championship. Maybe then I'll think about considering it vacated.
THOSE WMDs. How to handle a relationship argument... Biohacker regrets publicly injecting himself with CRISPR... KFC has a problem in Britain: Not enough chicken... Lack of All-Stars make L.A. tougher sell for LeBron, other pending free agents... Why doesn't Earth have rings?
