Welcome to the Skull Session.
The Predator was back on campus this week.
bucks back on campus
— Ohio State Football (@OhioStateFB) June 13, 2023
@youngchase907 | @JHarris5_ pic.twitter.com/48eRsaV5oZ
Hopefully, the Predator can catch his prey for the Washington Commanders in 2023. If not, I hope becomes a free agent and signs with the Cleveland Browns. No bias there, of course.
Let's have a good Wednesday, shall we?
WHAT'S IN YOUR WALLET? This is not a #ad for Capital One. However, I recommend Gene Smith and Ohio State's athletic department invest in some travel rewards credit cards before the 2023 college football season starts because those points would rack up fast. Like, really fast.
*Places hand on earpiece* What's that? Yes. That makes sense. I will pass that information on to the audience. *Removes hand from earpiece*
I am told the Ohio State football program flies private in its own Boeing 747, therefore, the athletic department would not need travel rewards credit cards.
Figures.
Regardless, my point is that Ohio State football has some long trips ahead of them in future seasons. To prove that point, here is a look at how far the Buckeyes will travel for each road game in their nonconference and Big Ten schedules in 2023, 2024 and 2025.
| 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OPPONENT | LOCATION | DISTANCE ROUND TRIP | OPPONENT | LOCATION | DISTANCE ROUND TRIP | OPPONENT | LOCATION | DISTANCE |
| Indiana | Bloomington, IN | 452.2 miles | Michigan State | East Lansing, MI | 496.2 miles | Illinois | Champaign, IL | 591.1 miles |
| Notre Dame | South Bend, IN | 503.2 miles | Minnesota | Minneapolis, MN | 1,521.8 miles | Northwestern | Evanston, IL | 739.4 miles |
| Purdue | West Lafayette, IN | 478.2 miles | Penn State | State College, PA | 555.6 miles | Purdue | West Lafayette, IN | 478.2 miles |
| Wisconsin | Madison, WI | 1,004.2 miles | UCLA | Los Angeles, CA | 4.522.8 miles | Wisconsin | Madison, WI | 1,004.2 miles |
| Rutgers | Piscataway, NJ | 1,060.8 miles | Michigan | Ann Arbor, MI | 369.4 miles | |||
| Michigan | Ann Arbor, MI | 368.4 miles | ||||||
| Total = 3,868 miles | Total = 7,095 miles | Total = 3,182 | ||||||
Ohio State has six road games in 2023, four in 2024 and five in 2025. However, it is the 2024 season that will include the most travel for the Buckeyes because of an over 4,500-mile trip to Los Angeles (more accurately, Pasadena) for a battle with UCLA at the Rose Bowl. In fact, that trip on its own exceeds the miles the program will travel in both the 2023 and 2025 seasons, which is insane.
When the Big Ten inevitably expands beyond the additions of USC and UCLA in the future – it will happen eventually, probably sooner rather than later – I expect the conference to look for schools to help relieve this travel burden.
As I see it, those schools will likely be on or near the West Coast. Why? Because if you think Ohio State's travel looks harsh, the Trojans and Bruins will exceed 15,000 travel miles in their first two seasons as members of the Big Ten. Sure, they have each other, but they need a few more dancing partners (i.e., Washington, Oregon, Stanford, California).
Until those expansions occur, maybe USC and UCLA could use the travel rewards credit cards. *Places hand on earpiece* What's that? USC and UCLA fly private too? *Removes hand from earpiece*
Whatever. Must be nice.
UNDEFEATED SEASON INCOMING? It's the offseason. We can all acknowledge that in the offseason, content, for the most part, is scarce when it comes to Ohio State football. We talk about the upcoming season, our expectations, players we think have breakout potential – all that good stuff – as we patiently wait for the season to start.
Well, ESPN's Greg McElroy took that idea a step further this week on his "Always College Football" podcast, examining the Big Ten football schedule for 2024 and ranking teams he believes have the best chance to end the season undefeated. For what it's worth, considering we are now firmly in the NIL and transfer portal era, McElroy picked Ohio State as the most likely team to finish 12-0 in 2024. Here is his breakdown:
“Ohio State’s schedule feels like the most gettable, right? It feels like the most attainable 12-0. They actually feel like they can do it. Potentially, if things go their way in 2024, it feels like the stars could align, they could find themselves back in the College Football Playoff mix with an 11-1, 12-1, 12-0, 13-0. They look like things are lining up for them really nicely. Want to know why? Because Ohio State isn’t on their schedule. Ohio State doesn’t play themselves. People always complain about, ‘Well, Georgia’s got such an easy pathway. Look at how easy it is. Bama’s got such an easy pathway, look at how easy it is.’ Yes, because they don’t have to play themselves. ... I do think the best teams, the perception is that their schedule is always going to be more manageable, because the best team isn’t on their schedule. So Ohio State I think has a somewhat favorable draw. But then again, I think the Big Ten did a pretty admirable job of trying to balance it out across the board."
First, I have to offer some credit to McElroy for discussing the Big Ten while on ESPN's airwaves despite the network no longer possessing media rights with the conference. Kudos to him for that. Second, this is peak offseason content, but it's a sound explanation given the strength of their schedule in two years.
mark your calendars, the buckeyes future is set pic.twitter.com/bRBDeouhXG
— Ohio State Football (@OhioStateFB) June 8, 2023
After Ohio State dropped Washington from its 2024 schedule, the Buckeyes replaced the home game against the Huskies with Marshall as the third nonconference opponent after Southern Miss and Western Kentucky. That's Cupcake Central to start the season. As for the Big Ten opponents, Ryan Day's squad will host Illinois, Iowa, Northwestern, Rutgers and Michigan at Ohio Stadium and hit the road to face Michigan State, Minnesota, Penn State and UCLA.
That schedule comes down to two contests: Michigan at home and Penn State on the road. That's it – life as it always has been for the Buckeyes in the Big Ten. That said, McElroy is spot on. Ohio State has the "most attainable" schedule for an unbeaten schedule, and fans of the program should expect nothing less than perfection.
THE GOOD OLD DAYS. Former Ohio State men's basketball star Jared Sullinger probably mumbled the words to TBDBITL's "I Wanna Go Back to Ohio State" on Monday after he saw this video from the Big Ten Network's Twitter account:
B1G regular-season champs
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) June 12, 2023
B1G tourney champs
B1G Freshman of the Year (@Jared_Sully0)
B1G 6th Man of the Year (@ACraft4)
Four All-B1G honorees
2010-11 @OhioStateHoops (34-3) was a force. pic.twitter.com/lCi8bL88jz
After Sullinger (probably) crushed the final note of the song, he quote tweeted the video and stated his desire to return to the "purity" that existed in the Buckeyes men's basketball program at the start of the 2010s.
Ill trade everything to go back to this purity https://t.co/jvQfZafHjz
— Jared Sullinger Sr. (@Jared_Sully0) June 12, 2023
That team was so. much. fun.
A coaching staff of Thad Matta, Jeff Boals (now the head coach at Ohio), Dave Dickerson (now the head coach at USC Upstate) and Brandon Miller (former head coach at Butler) lead a team of David Lighty, Jon Diebler and William Buford, along with an incredible first-year class of Sullinger, Aaron Craft, Deshaun Thomas and Lenzelle Smith Jr. to a 34-3 season that ended with a heartbreaking loss to Kentucky in the Sweet 16.
The following season, much of the same core returned as Ohio State collected a 31-8 record and made the program's most recent trip to the Final Four, where it eventually fell to Kansas, 64-62, in the national semifinal.
Those years were incredible, and I remember them like they were yesterday.
Good times.
A CHANGE OF HEART. When it comes to Ohio State football uniforms, I am a traditionalist. I want to see scarlet and gray and just a little black and white, but only when necessary (as in the white numbers on the team's home jerseys or, of course, the white base of the team's road jerseys). It's the simple stuff, really, the old-school look I love.
However, I must admit, the uniform combination Ohio State cornerback target Cai Bates had on when he visited Columbus over the weekend... was pretty sick.
#Gobuckeyes #OSU #Buckeyefans #Buckeyes pic.twitter.com/HTlFT1Qd8F
— Cai Bates 4 (@bates_cai) June 9, 2023
The four-star recruit from Edgewater High School in Orlando, Florida, wore Ohio State's road jersey on top of the scarlet pants the Buckeyes sported for their home matchup with Penn State in 2021. I think it could be worth exploring that combination for a regular-season contest in the future. What do you think?
While on the topic, I also wouldn't mind seeing Ohio State wear the all-white uniforms again in the future. Those were sick, too.
... #GoBuckeyes #Fight
— Ohio State Football (@OhioStateFB) November 24, 2020
But again, I also wouldn't mind if the Buckeyes kept it traditional for the rest of time. If ain't broke, don't fix it.
SONG OF THE DAY. "Pour Some Sugar On Me" by Def Leppard.
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