I am switching the Voice of the Skull Session from "Herm Edwards Whisper" to "Idris Elba Cockney."
Thank you for clicking... and be sure to check Luther on Netflix, except for Season 4.
ICYMI:
- Urban Meyer receives two-year extension that includes possible future administrative role, makes him highest-paid B1G coach in 2018.
- Ohio State investigating sexual assault claims against deceased former wrestling team physician.
- Billy Davis expects injured linebackers Dante Booker and Tuf Borland to contribute this fall.
- Reserve your (or your business’) spot next to the life-size statue of Woody Hayes coming to Newcomerstown!
Word of the Day: Efflorescence.
THE MARKET WILL HAVE ITS SAY. Here was Gene Smith, exactly two months ago to the day (image via The Paul Finebaum Show):
Saban netted $11 million from Alabama last year, and the Prince of Darkness rewarded his shareholders in kind. Texas A&M oil freaks guaranteed $75 million to lure Jimbo Fisher from the backwoods crime family that is Florida State.
Smith didn't shell out that kind of money, but he still payed the iron tax.
From LeDan Hope, whom every Buckeye fan should follow on Twitter:
With Urban Meyer's new salary of $7.6 million, Ohio State's coaching staff is now set to make a total of $14.66 million in 2018. pic.twitter.com/pVGYTIkTsR
— Dan Hope (@Dan_Hope) April 5, 2018
We've come along way from the days of Woody Hayes eschewing money because investments would weaken his coaching constitution. That doesn't mean Meyer is overpaid. It's the opposite, actually; like all employees, Meyer is underpaid when weighing his contribution to the company bottom line vs. salary.
A majority of workers would crawl through broken glass for that compensation package. I would do the same while also be willing to murder a man.
None of that means Meyer isn't underpaid.
2017 GROWS UP. The Super Sophomores won the 1968 national championship and bequeathed a perennial preseason storyline on local writers. Could this year's sophomores, like the fabled sophomores of past, help lead the local team to a national crown?
The vaunted 2017 class is a prime suspect to repeat the feat.
From theozone.net:
The 2014 Ohio State Buckeyes would have never won a national title without the 2013 recruiting class. Up and down the offense and defense, names like J.T. Barrett, Ezekiel Elliott, Jalin Marshall, Billy Price, Joey Bosa, Darron Lee, Eli Apple, and Vonn Bell played integral parts in securing a championship.
Urban Meyer has been speaking highly of the 2017 recruiting class since the day they all signed. Last season we saw some of them make an impact on the team, including J.K. Dobbins, Chase Young, Jeff Okudah, and Thayer Munford. According to Young, however, last year was just the start. The class of 2017 is going to be felt much more heavily in 2018.
“We bust our butt every day just like Zeke and them did. Eli, all of them,” he said. “Isaiah Pryor — it’s his time, it’s my time. Our whole class, it’s our time, so we’re ready to go.”
Seize it now, fellas. Because you blink and suddenly it's not your time and everybody relays their feelings through a kaleidoscope of Sponge Bob memes.
If the local team did win the title, it'd set the stage for a return of future NFL talent unseen since 2015. Still gotta beat Oregon State in 148 days, though.
A DIFFERENT KIND OF 12. The Iron King, Cardale Jones, First of His Name, Poacher of Badgers, Controller of Tides, Slayer of Ducks, Troll Sultan, and 12th Son of Ohio has a new title: Special Deputy of Ottawa County.
From chargers.com:
“How do we bridge the gap between our youth and law enforcement?” Jones pondered as his mission’s focus. “I looked up to Shaquille O’Neal growing up and I knew he was a special deputy. It was always a cool thing and I looked at it as a way to bridge the gap between the (youth) and law enforcement.”
While he admits he’s not looking for a career in law enforcement post-football, Jones said he chose to pursue the special appointment after his experiences growing up.
“Coming from inner-city Cleveland, (we) didn’t always have the utmost respect for officers. I just remember being a kid and just running whenever I’d see a police officer. That was the norm for us. That was the stigma. Just being young and a product of my circumstances and environment, that was something that we did for no reason.”
But now, he’s trying to change that narrative. After meeting Ottawa County Sheriff Stephen Levorchick through a mutual friend, the two hit it off and Levorchick swore the QB in.
“This community loves any time he’s in town and I take him anywhere,” mentioned Levorchick. “His stature, having won a National Championship as an Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback, has him elevated way beyond any sheriff. But with the youth, they don’t want to listen to some 55-year-old sheriff. They could care less what I have to say. But when Cardale Jones speaks, they’re on the edge of their seats. They’re listening. They want photos taken with him. They will listen to that message from him.”
Yeah, you're damn right Ohio values national championship quarterbacks more than sheriffs. Can you name the sheriff of your county? Probably not.
We know the Iron King. That is the kind of immortality offered to the Super Sophomores and any Buckeye brave enough to secure the the throne.
[In federal prison: Art Schlichter reads the Skull Session on a smuggled cell phone and shakes his head wistfully while wondering what could've been.]
WELP. Yesterday, Ohio State announced an investigation into allegations against a deceased former wrestling team physician.
One former wrestler alleges university officials ignored the crime, and some are still cashing paychecks.
From dispatch.com:
“I am pleased to see that the university has finally taken the steps to address the systematic sexual abuse which occurred over a 20-year time frame and was ignored at the highest levels of the university,” DiSabato said of Ohio State’s investigation. “I am hopeful that the university will take immediate steps to remove all those who had knowledge and or have knowledge and did nothing.”
DiSabato, who advocates for the rights of current and former college athletes to pursue their worth on the open market, has a history of business disagreements with Ohio State dating back to 2006, when the university cut ties with his licensing company after contracting with Nike.
DiSabato said Strauss’ behavior was “normalized by the university,” and that he has spoken with other teammates who said they had similar experiences with the doctor. He said the recent conviction of Michigan State and USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar, and the bravery of the young women who spoke out against him, have led to other athletes coming forward.
If DiSabato is right—yikes. People need (and will) go to jail over this. Even if the suspected perp is dead, the victims deserve to have the truth put on record.
MAKES YOU THINK. Every Ohioan will look at this tweet and say, "Damn, it's true."
ohio is literally a pothole pic.twitter.com/jgeDABouzj
— brax10 (@BraxtonLaBarge) April 4, 2018
Damn, it's true.
THOSE WMDs. How to discover a new cloud species... Island of Skye was once a Dinosaur playground... Best science fiction and fantasy books out this month... How companies draw on science fiction... Apple lost its place in the classroom... Can the octopus teach us how to hide?
