Lost in Dwayne Haskins Heisman odds skyrocketing after his record-setting debut start is the fact that Nick Bosa's odds absolutely tanked, falling from 150-to-1 to 200-to-1 after two sacks, two fumble recoveries and touchdown.
Good lord, what more do you want from him?
ICYMI:
- The Situational.
- Rutgers game poster.
- Mic Check: Rutgers.
- Rutgers game trailer.
- Malcolm Pridgeon: From JUCO, to Ohio State starter.
- Michael Jordan getting comfortable as Ohio State's center.
- While Michigan has been atrocious on the road, Ohio State has been exceptional.
- After a record-setting debut, Dwayne Haskins' Heisman odds soar.
- Nick Bosa named Bednarik Award National Player of the Week.
- Buckeye defensive line looks to be dominant again against Rutgers.
- Ohio State finds success with two tight end sets.
- Josh Proctor, Jaelen Gill and Sam Wiglusz shed black stripes.
Word of the Day: Zetetic.
'CROOTIN THROUGH THE STORM. We all waited tirelessly for over two weeks to find out Urban Meyer's fate, but the coaching staff didn't really have that luxury. They still had a job to do, and part of that job was recruiting through the uncertainty.
Incredibly, not one player reopened his recruitment in the midst of the investigation and only one, linebacker Kane Patterson, has since decommitted. The key to it all was open communication, constant contact and, well, the prospects themselves.
From Bill Landis of Cleveland.com:
"For me, and I think this goes with most people in the class, when you commit to Ohio State, you commit to more than just one person," said Wilson, a five-star 2019 receiver from Austin, Texas. "This is a program that whoever has been at the helm, they've had success and put players in the league. You gotta get an education, and they set you up for stuff after football. This is bigger than just one person at Ohio State. Coach Meyer has a huge impact of course, but it's more than just one person."
...
"The communication has been, 'Hey, listen, you can ask questions, we may not have he the answers to them, but ask the hard questions,'" Day said last week. "So there's been open communication with all of them. They have all stuck together and I know that they all communicate with each other. So that's been a positive."
That last part is key.
It worked out well that Day recruited the top two players in the 2019 class -- Wilson and five-star center Harry Miller -- and quarterback Dwan Mathis. That class as a whole is a bit quiet, especially compared to the 2020 group, but that Day has strong bonds with players who can be labeled leaders in that class matters.
It's crazy how recruiting has evolved to the point that the recruits do a lot of the heavy lifting themselves. Do you think Woody Hayes ever kept a commitment from a five-star lineman in Georgia because said lineman is close with a committed five-star wide receiver from Texas?
GET STACKS TO GET WAXED. I've always appreciated the hustle of low level programs scheduling opponents they know damn well are going to roll through them like a freight train hitting a stray dog, just so they can get a fat check.
Hell, there have been programs that exist solely for that purpose, and I honestly can't knock it at all.
However, it is a little odd to see Oregon State – a Power Five team – going that route as they did this weekend, accepting a $1.7 million cash bag in return for a 77-31 mauling.
But the Beavers aren't trying to make that a habit.
From OregonLive.com:
Barnes said the $1.7 million pay-day game that the Beavers played at Ohio State in the season opener -- a 77-31 loss -- isn't how he wants to do business.
"We won't do it this way," Barnes said. "This game was scheduled several years ago... it was a one-off, payday against a perennial top-five team. That's not our philosophy. Our philosophy is that we'll play the middle of the Big Ten, the middle of the Big 12, we'll play a group of five team and a FCS team... building momentum means everything right now."
I get it, it's a guaranteed loss when every win counts in the uphill fight towards bowl eligibility. But that payday has to feel at least moderately nice.
TRIED AND TESTED. Marshon Lattimore had probably the best rookie season of any Urban Meyer-produced Buckeye, but he's going to be put through an absolute gauntlet to start his second season.
From TheAdvocate.com:
If there are any questions about the authenticity of the standout’s rookie season, his credentials will be put through an extensive and thorough examination over the next month. His first four games will feature matchups against (Mike) Evans, Cleveland’s Jarvis Landry (or possibly Josh Gordon), Atlanta’s Julio Jones and the Giants’ Odell Beckham Jr.
Going through that list of receivers is like picking up a controller to play “Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out!” and having to fight Tyson every single stage. There's no getting into the swing of things against Glass Joe and Piston Honda. It will not be easy, but Lattimore is ready for it.
“You want to be the best. You got to play the best and be good against the best,” Lattimore said. “I measure myself against them, of course. If they’re the best in the league and I’m shutting them down, that has to say something about my game.”
Lattimore was legitimately one of the most dominant players in the league last year as a rookie, playing a position that's all about experience.
I don't think they'll be much drop off this year. It's not like he wasn't having success against some of these same guys last year.
HARBAUGH GETS VOTE OF CONFIDENCE. Great news, folks! Jim Harbaugh (allegedly) ain't going anywhere!
.@DrMarkSchlissel on @CoachJim4UM: "He's not on the hot seat. He's under contract for four more years." #econclub
— Detroit EconomicClub (@deteconomicclub) September 5, 2018
I wish it were true – he's been by far the most hilarious failed Michigan coach – find this a tad hard to believe.
First off, no program waits until a contract expires to fire their head coach. If they did, it wouldn't be firing their head coach, it would just be not retaining their head coach.
Second, receiving a vote of confidence from your boss is effectively a kiss of death. Nobody ever means it, and you don't really issue a vote of confidence unless the coach is, in fact, coaching for his job.
Point illustrated:
— RedditCFB (@RedditCFB) September 5, 2018
LSU GETS TO KNOW JOE. Joe Burrow media is a quirky dude, and now that he's proven his worth on the field, it seems the LSU media is ready to embrace Burrow's odd side.
Why does he like caramel apple suckers so much?
— Jacques Doucet (@JacquesDoucet) September 4, 2018
Why does he wear one sock inside out?
Who does he look like?#LSU Joe Burrow entertains. pic.twitter.com/fssPxfQGYP
Just wait until they find out the other Ohio State quarterbacks called him "John" for three years.
THOSE WMDs. The man who walked backward... Vanilla Ice trapped on a quarantined flight... 7,000 insects, arachnids and lizards stolen from Philadelphia museum... Orioles to become first professional US sports team to wear braille lettering on their jerseys...
