ESPN's College GameDay and Fox's Big Noon Saturday preview shows are both going to be in Columbus for the game this week and this is how I imagine it playing out:
I like to imagine that Lee Corso has kept the props for every headgear selection and now has a damn impressive armory of weapons – muskets, swords, etc. You have to figure that would come into play.
Word of the Day: Keen.
“THERE'S NO HATE.” From his rocky recruitment and strained relationship with the Ohio State coaching staff, to his extremely public NCAA violation on Ohio State's campus, to the fact that he has a dog named after Ohio State's mascot, Micah Parsons has a rather... interesting relationship with the Buckeyes.
Parsons obviously didn't end up at Ohio State and obviously had the opposite of a delightful experience in the recruiting process, but through all of it, he has no hate for the Buckeyes, especially when it comes to the players, namely J.K. Dobbins and Chase Young. And he still thinks about what it would have been like to play for the Buckeyes.
“Those are my boys,” Parsons said of the two Buckeyes. “I have no hate for anybody in the game. I appreciate all those who add to the game.”
...
“I just talked with J.K. a couple of weeks ago on Instagram: ‘Keep ballin’, man,’ ” Parsons said. “Obviously, he went up as the third-best rusher (in Ohio State history). Things like that. We should support our athletes across the country. There’s no hate.”
Parsons said that at times he thinks what might have been had he ended up in Columbus. It’s a thought, he admitted, that even crossed his mind the day he finally signed with Penn State after taking a circuitous route from Harrisburg to Happy Valley.
“Yeah, I do think about that sometimes,” Parsons said. “At The Opening with J.K. for an internship, Chase goes, ‘You almost came here.’ And I go, ‘Yeah, that would be dope if we was together.’
“But everything happens for a reason. I thought about ‘what’s ifs’ the day I committed, you know. It’s gonna happen. I thought about everything possible (and) I felt this was the best place for me.”
If were a Penn State fan, it might sit a little weird with me that the guy who might be the top player on your roster openly daydreams about what it would have been like to play for Ohio State instead, but hey, at least he's handling this week's questions well. There are absolutely worse things he could have said.
THE SECRET WEAPON. Between the best recruiter in the nation in Brian Hartline, defensive line Yoda in Larry Johnson, and apparent football genius and top-five recruiter Jeff Hafley, Ohio State's got some superstar coaches on payroll. But one of the secret weapons to the development of Ohio State's most important player is a guy kept far from the public eye.
Meet quality control coach Corey Dennis (who also happens to be Urban Meyer's son-in-law).
“He’s young so he understands the life of a quarterback and college athlete,” former Ohio State coach Urban Meyer, Dennis’ father-in-law, told The Blade. “He has great football acumen, having been around the game his whole life. We gave him a lot of responsibility. There are limitations now because he’s not on the field, but when he was on the field and Ryan Day was the coordinator, he was knee-deep in quarterback development. The quarterbacks and receivers love him.”
...
The first-round draft pick credited Meyer, Day, and Kevin Wilson for his success, but a common name came out of Haskins’ mouth when he discussed his progression from promising prospect to All-American — Corey Dennis.
“He’s like my personal quarterbacks coach when coach Day is not around,” Haskins said last season. “I can ask him about looks, coverages and different pressures, and he has everything that coach Day teaches him. He helps me throughout practice, throughout meetings. He helps out a lot.”
By the end of this year, Dennis will likely have helped coach three Heisman Trophy finalists at quarterback before he's even 30 years old. Enjoy him, because something tells me he won't be staying in Columbus for very much longer.
NO SHAME. We had an accidental turncoat on Saturday as a Rutgers cheerleader momentarily cheered for the Buckeyes after an Ohio State touchdown before immediately realizing his mistake.
Hi yea that was me. They were both red so I was a little confused until I saw the rutgers student section not cheering. Oops https://t.co/12GDkxO6ax
— johnny g (@GonzabayJohn) November 17, 2019
As a Rutgers cheerleader who's presumably watched many Rutgers games, he should probably know better than to assume by default that Rutgers was the team scoring, but we'll give it a pass anyway. Nobody's perfect.
THE KING SLAYER. Folks, it looks like LeBron James has met his match.
EEEEEEE TEEEEEEEE
— Eleven Warriors (@11W) November 18, 2019
[ via @BleacherReport ]pic.twitter.com/Vn2d4QnoAu
Evan Turner is The King now. It's his crown. Those are the rules.
A gif of that play is absolutely going on Evan Turner's tombstone (if he isn't immortal is a big "if," to be fair).
TACKLE HUNGER. Ohio State's engaging in some friendly competition with Penn State for a good cause this week ahead of the top-10 matchup and if you're so inclined, you can help.
Basically, the two schools are competing for how many donations they receiver for their respective universities.
The #TackleHunger Giving Challenge is on!
— Ohio State (@OhioState) November 17, 2019
It's Ohio State vs. Penn State, with both of our campus food pantries winning. $5 = 25 meals. Let's do this. https://t.co/i2UA6zgdTn pic.twitter.com/uA8pTlZifD
Well-placed sources tell me that Penn State has taken a commanding lead, so the time is now.
NOT STICKING TO SPORTS. A police captain is arrested in his own department's prostitution sting... Two Arkansas chemistry professors are arrested for making meth... A Disneyland bridge breaks after a man jumped on it to show children it was safe... A cat is put in 'solitary confinement' for freeing other cats from an animal shelter... A pirate botanist helped bring hot chocolate to England...
