Winter is here. Football's last gasping breath expired with the announcement of the final pick in the NFL Draft. The offseason is upon us.
ICYMI:
- Billy Price and Denzel Ward expected to shine in their rookie seasons.
- Get to know Marcus Hooker.
- J.T. Barrett participating in Saints camp.
- How the men's basketball team might look next season.
- Marshon Lattimore and Michael Thomas make NFL's Top 100, so do Carlos Hyde and Malcolm Jenkins.
Word of the Day: Ephemeral.
VEGAS LIKES THE LOCAL TEAM. This may come as a shock to you, but Vegas oddsmakers look fondly upon the Buckeyes once again.
According to BetDSI, Ohio State has the second-best odds to win the 2018 College Football Playoff National Championship at 6/1 odds, behind just Alabama which is given 5/2 odds.
| Team | Odds |
|---|---|
| Alabama | 5/2 |
| Ohio State | 6/1 |
| Clemson | 32/5 |
| Georgia | 10/1 |
| Penn State | 12/1 |
| Michigan | 15/1 |
| Miami | 20/1 |
| Texas | 20/1 |
| Auburn | 25/1 |
| Oklahoma | 25/1 |
BetDSI also released its win totals over/under lines, which project Ohio State to have the most wins in the Big Ten, putting the over/under at 10.5 wins. The next closest is Wisconsin at 10, followed by Penn State at 9.5. Michigan and Michigan State are next at 8.5 each.
My advice: take the over on the Buckeyes. Urban Meyer has finished with under 11 wins during the regular season exactly once in his career at Ohio State, and it was last year. Folks, it's not happening twice in a row.
WHY WARD? The Browns shocked a lot of people when they chose Denzel Ward with the second pick in the NFL Draft, especially with defensive end Bradley Chubb still on the board. It turns out, the rationale is actually pretty solid and remarkably strategic.
From si.com:
Sodium pentathol, and defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, came up in the wake of the Denzel Ward pick. Truth serum. My question to Dorsey on Friday morning: “If we gave Gregg Williams sodium pentathol right now, who would he have said he wanted with the fourth pick—Denzel Ward or Bradley Chubb?” Dorsey pulled out his cell phone and rang Williams. I asked him the question. Williams: “Ward. The reason is our need for a press cover cornerback. Denzel probably plays that position as well as anyone I’ve seen in college football in some time. We probably play the most press of any team in the league. There’s another reason. I’ve got a video of 28 snaps of Myles Garrett pass-rushes last year where he gets within two steps or less of the quarterback when the ball comes out. Basically, we aren’t covering long enough to let him get to the quarterback. Myles and others—especially [defensive end] Emmanuel Ogbah—will get more chances because of Denzel.” Ogbah, Williams said, was a major reason why the Browns went Ward over Chubb. “Ogbah’s a rising star in this league,” Williams said. “He’s got a chance to be Chubb.” High praise.
My #take is that the absurd success Ohio State players have had at the next level these past few seasons contributed to this pick as well.
The Browns finally got sick of passing on guys produced in their own state like Joey Bosa or Marshon Lattimore and watching them light the league on fire somewhere else. They weren't going to let it happen again.
SEAHAWKS GOT A STEAL. As surprising as it was to see Ward go so high, it was even more surprising to see Jamarco Jones slip all the way to the end of the fifth round.
Jones was a solid two-year starter for a school that produces a ton of NFL offensive linemen. He didn't test well at the combine and didn't have impressive measureables, but dropping that low seemed criminal, and quite the gift for the Seattle Seahawks.
Allowing just 11 total pressures across 431 pass-blocking snaps, Jones tied for 11th in the draft class in pass-blocking efficiency (98.0) in 2017. He also ranked 35th run-block success percentage (92.1), which should only improve if Seattle’s coaches can correct his technique a bit and help him win the leverage battle at a more consistent rate.
It’s no secret that the Seahawks’ offensive line has received its fair share of lumps in recent years, but Jones, despite his draft status, can help put an end to a team in which ranked 30th in pass-blocking grades as a unit last year.
Jones' slip is going to be quite the head scratcher when he goes on to be a career starter in Seattle.
ALABI AND HILLIARD HEAD TO COSTA RICA. Every year, a group of Ohio State student athletes take a service trip across the globe. This year, football players Joshua Alabi and Justin Hilliard are joining 11 other student athletes on a week-long trip to Costa Rica, beginning today.
The trip is part of a partnership between Ohio State and Global Vision International, and the group of student athletes will engage in sports-related and life skills activities in Quepos, Costa Rica.
Shoutout to them for giving up the firstfruits of their summer. The most productive thing I'll do while they're gone is scoop feces out of a box.
LEGEND CLOSES DOORS. Ugly Tuna Saloona, a bar that survived in the South Campus Gateway for so long I started to think it was a money laundering front. That theory is at an end as the Saloona will close May 2nd.
BREAKING: Ugly Tuna Saloona to close its doors after Senior Crawl on May 1. https://t.co/KcRykcxk7h
— 1870 Magazine (@1870mag) April 30, 2018
The Saloona was also the scene of one of the greatest mysteries in Ohio State history: The disappearance of Brian Shaffer, who I think is still alive. Brian, if you're reading this, it's time to come home, man!
THOSE WMDs. The last testament of a former I.R.A. terrorist... Death by Instagram: Gang wars in Detroit... Russell Westbrook can't be OKC's entire system anymore... Ohio Free Fishing Days start this weekend... How bad is the labor shortage? Cities will pay you to move there.
