Welcome to the Skull Session.
Between 1 p.m. and 4:35 p.m. Wednesday, several BOOMs were heard in Columbus.
- (1 p.m.) Four-star defensive end Zahir Mathis, the No. 37 overall prospect in the 2025 class, committed to Ohio State.
- (1:58 p.m.) All-Big Ten cornerback Denzel Burke announced he will return for another season with the Buckeyes.
- (2:10 p.m.) Ohio State fired special teams coordinator Parker Fleming.
- (2:10 p.m.) Ohio State hired Matt Guerrieri as its safeties coach.
- (3:10 p.m.) All-Big Ten offensive lineman Donovan Jackson announced he will return for another season with the Buckeyes.
- (4:35 p.m.) All-Big Ten cornerback Jordan Hancock announced he will return for another season with the Buckeyes.
I worked a lot in those three-and-a-half hours.
You probably didn’t.
No worries, I won’t tell your boss.
Have a good Thursday.
UNFINISHED BUSINESS. Question: When did the Wolverines take control of the Ohio State-Michigan rivalry? When Connor Stalions was hired.
When NFL prospect Aiden Hutchinson returned to Michigan for his senior season in 2021. The All-Big Ten defensive end then became an all-time villain for “That Team Up North,” collecting three sacks in The Game, as the Wolverines defeated the Buckeyes, 42-27, in Ann Arbor.
We all know how the next two editions of The Game went – and how Michigan's 2023 season ended.
Pardon the comparison to a Michigan Man, but I believe it's apt: Next season, Ohio State will have several Aiden Hutchinsons. Chief among them will be Denzel Burke, a potential first-round pick in 2024 who decided to return to Columbus for another year with the Buckeyes. Cody Simon, Tyleik Williams, Jack Sawyer, Donovan Jackson and Jordan Hancock have also chosen to ”reload that mf clip,” while JT Tuimoloau and TreVeyon Henderson are still on the fence.
Editor's Note: After this article was published, Emeka Egbuka announced that he will return for another season with the Buckeyes.
That assortment of Ohio State players has zero Gold Pants, zero Big Ten championships and zero national titles. And like Hutchinson in 2021, they lack of hardware will drive the Buckeyes in 2024.
With a three-year starter in Burke at the forefront, those Buckeyes are coming for all three of those prizes next fall. Call it unfinished business.
THAT’S INTERESTING. Someone once said, “Numbers never lie.”
I believe it was Billy Beane or Peter Brand (the fictional name for Paul DePodesta) in the 2011 film, “Moneyball.”
“Billy, this is Chad Bradford...”
“He gets on base...”
Apologies. Tangent.
This week, on X (formerly Twitter), I saw an argument: Kyle McCord had the best performance from a quarterback vs. Michigan in 2023.
That’s not an opinion. That’s a fact – a rather remarkable one, at that.
Of the 15 quarterbacks the Wolverines faced in 2023, McCord had the best QBR (89.7) with the most passing yards (271) and touchdown passes (two).
| PLAYER | TEAM | QBR | PASSING | YARDS | TD/INT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MASON GARCIA | ECU | 30.0 | 11/18 | 80 | 0/1 |
| DOUG BRUMFIELD | UNLV | 33.2 | 10/19 | 100 | 0/0 |
| CAMDEN ORTH | BGSU | 65.2 | 8/11 | 91 | 0/0 |
| GAVIN WIMSATT | RUTGERS | 84.5 | 11/21 | 180 | 1/1 |
| HEINRICH HAARBERG | NEBRASKA | 48.2 | 14/25 | 199 | 0/1 |
| ATHAN KALIAKMANIS | MINNESOTA | 7.4 | 5/15 | 52 | 1/2 |
| BRENDAN SORSBY | INDIANA | 68.5 | 6/15 | 44 | 0/0 |
| KATIN HOUSER | MICHIGAN STATE | 39.1 | 12/22 | 101 | 0/1 |
| HUDSON CARD | PURDUE | 34.5 | 12/28 | 144 | 1/1 |
| DREW ALLAR | PENN STATE | 63.6 | 10/22 | 70 | 1/0 |
| TAULIA TAGOVAILOA | MARYLAND | 57.5 | 21/31 | 247 | 0/2 |
| KYLE MCCORD | OHIO STATE | 89.7 | 18/30 | 271 | 2/2 |
| DEACON HILL | IOWA | 27.8 | 18/32 | 120 | 0/0 |
| JALEN MILROE | ALABAMA | 48.0 | 16/23 | 116 | 0/0 |
| MICHAEL PENIX JR. | WASHINGTON | 63.0 | 27/51 | 255 | 1/2 |
McCord’s two interceptions tied three quarterbacks – Minnesota’s Athan Kaliakmanis, Maryland’s Taulia Tagovailoa, and Washington’s Michael Penix Jr. – for the most thrown vs. the Wolverines. And those two interceptions proved costly in Ohio State’s 30-24 loss to Michigan.
None of the other 14 quarterbacks who played against Michigan this season did any better against the Wolverines, though.
GOT A BRAND? The 2023 college football season is over, which means the four-team College Football Playoff has also reached its end. With that in mind, Brandon Gall of Athlon Sports ranked the most-watched CFP national championship games of the past 10 years.
Spoiler: Ohio State-Oregon ranked No. 1 overall.
TV ratings for CFP title games:
— Braden Gall (@BradenGall) January 10, 2024
1. Ohio St-Oregon, 2014: 34.1 mill
2. Bama-UGa, 2017: 28.4
3. Bama-Clem, 2015: 26.1
4. LSU-Clem, 2019: 25.6
5. Clem-Bama, 2016: 25.2
6. Clem-Bama, 2018: 25.2
7. Mich-Wash, 23: 25.1
8. UGa-Bama, 21: 22.5
9. Bama-OSU, 20: 18.6
10. UGa-TCU, 22: 17.2
The Buckeyes’ brand remains undefeated.
Of course, the fact that 2014 was the CFP debut helped the Ohio State-Oregon viewership number. But remember, numbers never lie! Therefore, the Buckeyes’ brand remains undefeated! No asterisks! No caveats!
While we are still discussing the four-team CFP, I wanted to share some #content from Paul Myerberg of USA TODAY. This week, Myerberg and Smith ranked the 10 CFP champions of the past decade:
- 2020 Alabama (13-0)
- 2022 Georgia (15-0)
- 2019 LSU (15-0)
- 2018 Clemson (15-0)
- 2021 Georgia (14-1)
- 2023 Michigan (15-0)
- 2016 Clemson (14-1)
- 2015 Alabama (14-1)
- 2014 Ohio State (14-1)
- 2017 Alabama (13-1)
In the article, Myerberg credits Ohio State for “winning it all despite losing two starting quarterbacks in Braxton Miller and J.T. Barrett.” The reason he ranked the Buckeyes lower than other champions is because Ohio State lost to Virginia Tech and needed double overtime to top Penn State at Beaver Stadium.
That's a fair assessment. Still, I'll take an Ohio State team with Cardale Jones, Ezekiel Elliott, Michael Thomas, Joey Bosa, Eli Apple, Von Bell and several other stars seven days a week – and twice on Championship Monday.
Note: According to Myerberg's rankings, Ohio State lost to the No. 1-ranked champion (2020 Alabama) in the CFP final, the No. 2-ranked champion (2022 Georgia) in the CFP semifinal and the No. 6-ranked champion (2023 Michigan) in its final regular-season game. That's a tough scene.
BRANHAM *HANDSHAKE* WEMBY. The San Antonio Spurs have a 6-30 record in 2023-24. Not great, Bob! But what is great is the potential for former Ohio State men’s basketball star Malaki Branham and Victor Wembanyama, a 7-foot-4 rookie from France, to lead the franchise with five NBA Finals championships back to its former glory.
Last week, the Spurs faced the Cavaliers at Rocket Mortage FieldHouse. Before the game, the Cleveland-based franchise welcomed Braham, an Akron native and St. Vincent-St. Mary’s graduate, home to the Buckeye State.
.@MalakiBranham back in the Buckeye state pic.twitter.com/ZO0zhqNyBt
— San Antonio Spurs (@spurs) January 7, 2024
After the Cavs handed the Spurs a narrow 117-115 defeat, Branham discussed several topics with Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal. Among them were Branham’s relationship with his Hall of Fame head coach Greg Popovich and his future running pick-and-rolls with Wembanyama.
On Popovich
Branham said he's a more physical defender than he was last season as a rookie. He's also playing point guard more lately, which he considers an encouraging sign of his development under Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, who was enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame last August.
“It's a little adjustment because I wasn't thinking about playing point guard at the beginning of the season, but with Pop believing in me, I'm all ears,” Branham said. “Him believing in me to put me at the point guard position full time is very good. ... [Popovich is] one of a kind. He's a Hall of Famer. He's going to get on you, especially on the defensive side. You've got to have tough skin, for sure. … He can see the potential [in me], and if he sees the potential he's going to be hard on you.”
On Wenbanyama
Branham said stern coaching has “made me become a better” player. He and Wembanyama are just 20 years old, so there is plenty of room for them to grow into what the Spurs envision. Branham explained he and Wembanyama are “still learning each other — the chemistry on the court.” Branham can see great value in observing the center with a unique combination of size and ball-handling skills.
...
It didn't take Wembanyama long to detect a strength of Branham while they practiced together for the Summer League.
“His mid-range [shot] was incredible at practice,” Wembanyama said. “After pick and roll, if he wasn't guarded he would score four or five straight mid-ranges, jump shots, and I think in today's NBA it's having a reliable and signature shot [that allows players to thrive]. It's a great thing, and he could probably build off that for his career. He's very young. He's almost the same age as me, so it's a guy who has a great future.”
I am excited to see Branham evolve in the NBA.
Branham was a late bloomer in his lone season at Ohio State. He came on in January, February and March and ended the year 13.7 points, 3.6 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game across 32 appearances with the Buckeyes.
As of Wednesday, he's averaged 8.7 points, 2.1 rebounds and 2.4 assists per contest in his second season with the Spurs. Perhaps we will see the same year-long improvement in San Antonio as he did in Columbus.
SONG OF THE DAY. “Remember The Alamo” - Johnny Cash.
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