Skull Session: Desmond Howard is At It Again, Michigan and Notre Dame's Message Boards Were Locked Into Ohio State's Spring Game and Let's Welcome the Cleveland Browns to Columbus

By Chase Brown on April 18, 2023 at 5:00 am
James Laurinaitis
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Welcome to the Skull Session.

Ohio State's future at wide receiver is very, very bright.

Let's have a good Tuesday, shall we?

 HE'S AT IT AGAIN. Archie Griffin ran for a touchdown on Saturday in the Buckeyes' spring game. It was an incredible moment for Ohio State fans in attendance at Ohio Stadium, watching on television or listening to what I am sure was a beautiful word picture from the legendary Paul Keels on 97.1 The Fan.

However, Desmond Howard didn't see it that way.

I hesitated even to include Howard's tweet in the Skull Session, as it almost feels like the article enables the former Michigan wide receiver’s troll-like behavior to continue. Although, from his "if they play a team with a pulse" comment to his remark that Gene Smith should "go over there to FOX and snatch Urban Meyer" to replace Ryan Day, I don't think he has to plans to stop his behavior toward Ohio State now or in the future.

Reminder: Ohio State has three checkboxes it needs to fill in 2023. They are to beat Michigan, beat Michigan and beat Michigan. When that happens, the Buckeyes will have the last laugh, and Howard will have to swallow his pride, at least for a little while. Let's make it happen, Coach Day.

 GOT SCOUTING REPORTS? Ohio State football is one of college football's most successful programs. That makes the Buckeyes a must-watch for many who love the sport, including fans of the team's archrival Michigan.

On Saturday, a user on Michigan's 247Sports site, The Michigan Insider, created a thread for other VIP members to comment as they watched the Buckeyes' intrasquad scrimmage. As of Monday, the thread had over 20,000 views and nearly 200 comments that detailed the performances of Kyle McCord, the offensive line, the defensive secondary and other developments from the exhibition.

Some commenters even wrote that they created personal scouting reports of the Buckeyes. They plan to continue that kind of work in 2023, keeping a close watch on how Ohio State performs in its season opener with Indiana, its nonconference road matchup at Notre Dame and its home battle with Penn State.

Speaking of God, Country, Notre Dame, the blue and gold's 247Sports site, The Irish Illustrated, had a similar thread for Ohio State's spring game. It didn't have as much traction as Michigan's board, collecting over 12,000 views and 100 comments as of Monday, but it still had impressive numbers nonetheless.

I don't know if the Eleven Warriors Forum had a thread for Michigan's spring game, but if we did, I would ask, "Why?" And if anyone wants to watch Notre Dame's spring game, I would also ask, "Why?" and follow that up with, "Go outside. That's Sickos Committee behavior."

While Ohio State's spring game was fun in many different ways, the Buckeyes showed a diet version of its offensive and defensive plans for the 2023 season. There was little to write down and remember schematically or from a depth chart perspective. After all, it's an intrasquad scrimmage that's really a glorified practice.

Still, the fans of Ohio State's enemies frantically watch that glorified practice like it's their job. Talk about the power of a Brand – the best brand in college football, that is.

 THE COLUMBUS BROWNS? Ohio Stadium could be the home of Ohio State and the Cleveland Browns soon, as Jimmy and Dee Haslam have plans to renovate Cleveland Browns Stadium to the point that it would force the franchise to relocate temporarily for multiple seasons.

Where would the Browns relocate? "Columbus is a likely option," Ken Prendergast of NEOtrans wrote on Monday.

In his article, Prendergast cites the Haslams' ownership of the Columbus Crew and its stadium, Lower.com Field, which seats 20,371. Should the Browns play in the Crew's venue, it wouldn't be the first time an NFL team temporarily occupied an MLS stadium, the most recent example being the Los Angeles Chargers in the LA Galaxy's Dignity Health Sports Park as it awaited final construction on SoFi Stadium.

However, the probable scenario is that the Browns would play in Ohio Stadium, which seats 102,734 with room for more. Cleveland has familiarity with the Horseshoe dating back to its Orange and Brown Scrimmage at the stadium in 2015. Attendance for that scrimmage topped out at 49,734.

Now, I'll admit. I am a Browns fan, so I am incredibly biased, but if Cleveland played its home games in Columbus for multiple seasons in the near future, I would be thrilled. To swap a two-and-a-half-hour drive to the shores of Lake Erie for a short drive to Ohio State's campus would be unbelievable.

The best part about this potential deal – remember, none of this is based in fact as of now, only theory – would be that Ohio Stadium would need to be winterized. If the Browns foot the bill for that process, Ohio State would have no cost associated as it opens up a future of College Football Playoff matchups at Ohio Stadium and, of course, the long-awaited outdoor hockey games for Ohio State and the Columbus Blue Jackets at the Shoe.

That sounds awesome.

And another note: Cleveland Browns Stadium features a grass surface. Maybe the Haslems would want to pay Ohio State to remove the FieldTurf for a while? Save me the water table of the Olentangy River nonsense spewed about Ohio Stadium requiring turf and not grass. The Shoe is the mecca of college football. It needs grass, darn it!

 THE JAMES LAURINAITIS EFFECT. On an appearance of B1G Today on the Big Ten Network, Joshua Perry spoke about James Laurinaitis's impact on the Buckeyes since he became a graduate assistant with the Ohio State program in January.

I agree that there have never been so many articles written about a graduate assistant before. However, and Perry knows this full well, you'll be hard-pressed to find a graduate assistant with as many accolades and as much knowledge of football as Laurinaitis.

He's a dude. Plain and simple.

Oh, and Ohio State fans love him. He may be one of the most beloved players in program history. Is that too outlandish a claim? It's not in my book.

A three-time first-team All-Big Ten honoree, three-time All-American, two-time winner of the Jack Lambert Award, a Bronko Nagurski Trophy, a Lott Trophy and a Butkus Award. That trophy case is stacked. And by all accounts, he is a Good Dude™. For those reasons, let's do more articles and keep 'em coming.

 SONG OF THE DAY. "Oh, Pretty Woman" by Roy Orbison.

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