Skull Session: Allstate Playoff Predictor Offers Three Scenarios Where Ohio State Wins the 2024 Title, ESPN Picks Buckeyes As No. 2 Seed in Preseason CFP Predictions

A magician named Carl Michael had the Buckeyes shook this week.

The guys were SHOOK when they saw this magic from @CMMAGIC pic.twitter.com/oxRj9wm4qd

— Ohio State Football (@OhioStateFB) August 20, 2024

That text message trick was incredible.

Have a good Wednesday.

 WHAT DID I MISS? With the football season around the corner, I took Friday to Monday off to attend a friend's wedding – one of nine weddings I attended this summer... nine! – and play in Anthony Rothman's golf outing to benefit Homeless to Home, an animal rescue shelter in Central Ohio.

That said, I missed a great deal of news over the weekend: David Sanders Jr.'s committing to Tennesee; Ohio State naming Cody Simon the Block O recipient; Ohio State naming TreVeyon Henderson, Emeka Egbuka, Jack Sawyer and Simon captains; and Archie Griffin receiving a statue outside the Rose Bowl Stadium and Ohio Stadium.

To kick off the Skull Session, I'll offer some takes on each of those news items:

Let's start with Sanders' commitment to Tennesee. Geez-ow. That hurts. This summer, I discussed how the 6-foot-6, 300-pound tackle from Charlotte, North Carolina, could determine Justin Frye's future as Ohio State's offensive line coach. Now that Sanders has pledged his services to the Volunteers, that future looks bleak. If he does not unlock a championship-caliber performance from the Buckeyes' offensive line this season, Frye seems destined for a pink slip in January.

Ohio State's decision to name Simon as its Block O recipient was perfect. This preseason, linebackers coach James Laurinaitis called Simon the "unquestioned leader" of the defense, and I think all inside the Woody Hayes Athletic Center would agree with that statement. As for the captains, Ryan Day said his players nominated the correct Buckeyes in Henderson, Egbuka, Sawyer and Simon. While Day considers other players on the team to be leaders, those four have shined above the rest. 

"I think Cody, Emeka, Trey and Jack all represent Ohio State the way that everybody would expect," Day said Monday on the Ohio State Sports Network.

That they do.

And a final note: the Griffin statue outside the Rose Bowl is fantastic. It's also fantastic that Ohio State will add a statue of Griffin outside Ohio Stadium this season. Both of those honors feel long overdue, especially the latter. Now, it's time for the Buckeyes to add a Chic Harley statue to the mix. After all, we call Ohio Stadium the "House That Harley Built," so it seems natural.

 START THE SIMULATIONS. This week, ESPN released an update to its Allstate Playoff Predictor. Therefore, I decided to look at the top 12 scenarios that resulted in Ohio State reaching the 12-team College Football Playoff in 2024. (Spoiler: Three of them ended with the Buckeyes winning their first national championship since 2014!)

Here's a look at how the Allstate Playoff Predictor sees Ohio State's season looking this fall:

I like the top three scenarios. I like them a lot.

Ehhhhhhh, wait – I like the top three scenarios, save for the loss to Michigan in scenario two. I could do without that.

Of the other nine scenarios, I am curious how Penn State would manage to win the national championship in scenario four. It's hard for me to believe that James Franklin could lead his team to a win over Ohio State in the regular season. It's even harder for me to believe that Franklin could lead his team on a three or four-game win streak over some of the top 12 teams in college football.

Remember: Franklin is 12-26 versus ranked teams as Penn State's head coach, including a 3-17 record versus top-10 teams.

Also, remember: If Franklin has one million haters, I'm one of them. If he has one hater, it's me. If he has zero haters, I have died. If the world is against Franklin, I am with the world; if the world is for Franklin, I am against the world.

 NO SIMULATIONS NEEDED. After the Allstate Playoff Predictor debuted over the weekend, Heather Dinich of ESPN revealed her College Football Playoff preseason predictions and announced that The Worldwide Leader will predict the 12-team CFP each week in 2024.

Dinich's preseason edition included "the predicted 12-team bracket, who gets first-round byes, the first four out, the next four out and how the Group of Five conference champions will stack up."

Here's where Dinich placed Ohio State in her 12-team field:

No. 1 seed Georgia Bulldogs 

The Bulldogs will earn the top seed as the winner of the SEC and the highest-ranked conference champion. This is based on Georgia also being the selection committee's No. 1 team in its final ranking on Selection Day. According to ESPN Analytics, Georgia has the best chance (47%) of any team to reach the SEC title game. What separates the Bulldogs from everyone else, though, is that they are projected to rank in the top three in offense and defense. Veteran quarterback Carson Beck will lead an offense that reloaded with some help from the transfer portal, and the Bulldogs' defense has been the most dominant in the country over the past three seasons. Georgia returns three of its top five tacklers from last year.

No. 2 seed Ohio State Buckeyes

The Buckeyes will earn this seed as the projected Big Ten champs and the second-highest-ranked conference champion. The Buckeyes will have enough offensive talent around new starting quarterback Will Howard that he doesn't have to be a superstar. He just has to manage the offense and get the ball to his playmakers without turning it over. Ohio State's defense emerged under coordinator Jim Knowles last year to be one of the best in the country, and that trend should continue. Ohio State might lose to Oregon in Autzen Stadium, but the Buckeyes will snap their three-game losing streak to rival Michigan and beat the Ducks in a rematch in the Big Ten title game.

No. 3 seed Florida State Seminoles

The Seminoles will earn this spot as the ACC champs and the third-highest-ranked conference champion. FSU is a little different, though, because in this prediction, it would be No. 5 in the committee's final ranking on Selection Day -- behind SEC runner-up Texas and Big Ten runner-up Oregon. As long as FSU finishes as one of the four highest-ranked conference champs, though, it will earn a first-round bye -- even if it's not in the committee's top four on ranking day. Florida State answered the committee's top question from last season when it added transfer quarterback DJ Uiagalelei to the lineup.

No. 4 seed Utah Utes

The Utes will earn the final first-round bye as the projected winners of the Big 12 and the fourth-highest-ranked conference champion. Utah would be the most glaring change between the committee's final ranking and what the seeding looks like. This prediction has Utah at No. 8 on Selection Day -- behind all of the aforementioned teams and Notre Dame and Ole Miss. But because the Utes are a conference champion, they earn a boost in the seeding. Utah enters a wide-open Big 12 conference, but with the return of veteran coach Kyle Whittingham, quarterback Cam Rising and a perpetually stingy defense, the Utes have all of the pieces in place to win the league the first year they enter it.

From there, Dinich ranked Texas, Oregon, Notre Dame, Ole Miss, Alabama, Miami (Florida), Penn State and Boise State as the remaining playoff teams. Her first four teams out were LSU, Missouri, Tennessee and Oklahoma. Her next four teams out were Michigan, Kansas State, Oklahoma State and Clemson.

Note: For those who attended Miami (Ohio) – or know someone who attended, attends or will attend the school – the Redhawks are the No. 5-ranked team behind Boise State, UTSA, Appalachian State (please click the link) and Liberty in the Group of Five poll.

I like Dinich's selections.

Over the weekend, Eleven Warriors beat reporter Garrick Hodge posted an article that featured CFP selections for most of our staff members. I picked Ohio State, Georgia, Florida State and Utah to be the Power Four conference champions – same as Dinich. Then, I had Texas, Oregon, Notre Dame, Ole Miss, Alabama, Penn State and Boise State – same as Dinich. However, we differ on one team: Miami (Florida). Instead of the Hurricanes, I see NC State in the 12-team field.

Come on, Grayson McCall!

 TOP 3 – AND SHE'S NOT 2 OR 3. On Tuesday, Rob Oller of The Columbus Dispatch ranked the top 10 coaches at Ohio State. They were, in order, Nadine Muzerall (women's hockey), Tom Ryan (wrestling), Holly Vargo-Brown (artistic swimming), Ty Tucker (tennis), Emil Milev (pistol), Ryan Tanou (rifle), Ryan Day, Donald Anthony Jr. (fencing), Bill Dorenkott (swimming) and Ben Schreiber (spirit).

I love Coach Muzerall.

I love Coach Ryan.

But I love Coach Vargo-Brown.

She's top three, for sure — but she's not two, and she's not three.

She's one of one.

(This is all good-hearted! Please don't attack me in the comments!)

 SONG OF THE DAY. "You're The Best" - Joe "Bean" Esposito.

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