Welcome to the Skull Session.
Ohio State is Wide Receiver U.
Zone 6 WRU https://t.co/b2I8TKvPb8
— Ohio State Football (@OhioStateFB) September 17, 2024
Have a good Wednesday.
MOVING UP OR FALLING DOWN? Mark this as the third Wednesday Skull Session with the SP+ and College Football Power Index. After Ohio State hovered around No. 4 in the post-Week 1 and post-Week 2 polls, the Buckeyes moved up the ladder in both metrics despite being off on Saturday.
SP+
| TEAM | SP SCORE | OFFENSE | DEFENSE | SPECIAL TEAMS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OHIO STATE | 30.6 | 36.9 (12) | 6.5 (1) | 0.2 (32) |
| ALABAMA | 30.0 | 43.8 (3) | 13.7 (6) | -0.1 (91) |
| TEXAS | 29.1 | 44.1 (2) | 14.8 (9) | -0.2 (103) |
| OLE MISS | 28.9 | 44.3 (1) | 15.4 (13) | 0.1 (48) |
| GEORGIA | 28.8 | 40.2 (9) | 11.8 (5) | 0.4 (5) |
College Football Power Index
| TEAM | FPI | WIN OUT | WIN CONF | MAKE CFP | WIN CFP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TEXAS | 28.5 | 24% | 37% | 90.8% | 22.1% |
| ALABAMA | 28.2 | 11.6% | 22.6% | 84.6% | 18.6% |
| OHIO STATE | 26.2 | 19.8% | 48.9% | 78.1% | 14.5% |
| TENNESSEE | 24.4 | 5.9% | 12.6% | 71.9% | 8.9% |
| GEORGIA | 23.7 | 1.4% | 7.8% | 70.3% | 8.3 |
While Ohio State ranks No. 1 in the SP+ and No. 3 in the College Football Power Index, the Buckeyes appeared at No. 5 in ESPN's Power Rankings behind Texas, Georgia, Alabama and Tennessee, which was... interesting... to see. (For the people who think there's an SEC bias at ESPN, this could be used as great evidence — just sayin’.)
Power Rankings
No. 1 Texas, No. 2 Georgia, No. 3 Alabama, No. 4 Tennessee, No. 5 Ohio State
The Buckeyes were off Saturday with Marshall set to visit Ohio Stadium in Week 4. Through two games, Ohio State carries 1,087 yards of total offense, hasn't allowed a touchdown and has outscored its opponents 108-6, looking very much like the national championship contenders the Buckeyes were supposed to be in Ryan Day's sixth season.
Day probably didn't mind seeing Week 6 opponent Iowa struggle to beat winless Troy. Oregon's Dillon Gabriel-led offensive explosion only heightens the excitement around Ohio State's Oct. 12 visit to Eugene. And the Buckeyes' November schedule continues to look strong, even if manageable, with Ohio State's five opponents in the regular season's final month — Penn State, Purdue, Northwestern, Indiana and Michigan -- owning a combined record of 9-2 through at the end of Week 3.
No matter if Ohio State is No. 1 (SP+), No. 3 (AP Poll, Coaches Poll, College Football Power Index) or No. 5 (ESPN Power Rankings), Ohio State's mission remains the same for the rest of the season: Just win.
"THIS IS JUST THE BEGINNING." You want to see something cool?
Marvin Harrison Jr. collected four catches for 130 yards and two touchdowns on Sunday, with each of those statistics coming in the first quarter of the Arizona Cardinals' win over the Los Angeles Rams. With those numbers, Harrison became the first rookie to record four receptions and two receiving touchdowns in the first quarter of a game since 1996.
Who was that rookie in 1996?
Marvin Harrison Sr.
This is wild #B1GFootball pic.twitter.com/DC5p8rI3CH
— Big Ten Football (@B1Gfootball) September 17, 2024
Harrison Jr.'s breakout performance came after he recorded one catch for 4 yards in his debut. As Ryan Day mentioned on Tuesday, Harrison has the characteristics and traits that will allow him to become a standout performer at the next level.
"Marvin Harrison (Jr.) is a wonderful player, and he's gonna have a great career in the NFL," Day said. "Marvin is gonna be a great player in the NFL. He's such a pro. He's gonna translate very well in that league. This is just the beginning of what he's able to do."
In three seasons at Ohio State, Harrison was a two-time Heisman finalist and two-time unanimous All-American. After a three-touchdown performance in the 2022 Rose Bowl, Harrison recorded 77 receptions for 1,263 yards and 14 touchdowns as a sophomore. Then, he hauled in 67 passes for 1,211 yards and scores as a junior.
"We're proud of what he's doing," Day said, reflecting on Harrison's impact for the Arizona Cardinals and at Ohio State. "Paris (Johnson Jr.) being there as well — you know those two are gonna have a strong impact on that organization."
THE FEE-FI-FO-FUM FEE. Tennessee fans can expect the Volunteers to add a new fee to their ticket purchases soon.
In addition to the Volunteers' ticket prices, taxes, service fees, processing fees, delivery fees — perhaps even a fee-fi-fo-fum fee — Tenneessee athletic director Danny White told Andy Staples of On3 that his school will implement a "talent fee" on all ticket sales next season. The 10 percent surcharge will be added to a revenue-sharing fund between the school and its student-athletes.
"It's a talent fee. It's going directly to the talent," White said. "It's going to our student-athletes as part of this new world order in college sports. So I know our fans will embrace it."
White told Staples that Tennessee's revenue-sharing could exceed the $22 million estimate athletic directors have tossed around this year, with the actual cost being closer to $30 million. White said Tennessee hopes to recoup about $10 million of that through the surcharge, which will come in addition to a football ticket price increase of around 4.5 percent across all 101.915 seats in Neyland Stadium.
In his On3 article, Staples reported that White and Tennessee's talent fee is the first of its kind, yet he also wrote to "expect plenty of copycats." I wonder if Ohio State will be among them. If the Buckeyes are, how soon will fans learn about the new surcharge to their ticket prices? Hopefully, sooner rather than later because — as White explained to Staples — that's what the fans deserve.
"You're trying to solve a problem when you don't know a lot of details," White said, referencing the House v. NCAA settlement that would create revenue-sharing in college athletics. "We're doing different scenarios all the time, but we can't just put a 10 percent fee in the laps of our fans a month before the season starts. We have to be prepared. There are financial realities. In any scenario, it will become more expensive to compete at the level we want to compete."
That final sentence is on the nose.
It will become more expensive for Tennessee to compete at the level it wants to compete.
Substitute "Ohio State" for "Tennesee."
In the new era of college athletics, Ohio State will need more avenues to collect revenue, so expect new clubs at Ohio Stadium, "talent fees" on tickets and more. That's what it will take for the Buckeyes to be the best of the best in football, men's basketball and the school's 34 other sports.
SNACKIN' WITH THE BACK(ERS). The newest 1870 Society products have arrived at Giant Eagle stores across Central Ohio.
With Will Howard and Carnell Tate's Grippo's Hot Honey BAR-B-Q chips, Bruce Thornton's frozen pizza and JT Tuimoloau's dandruff shampoo already on shelves in 2024, The 1870 Society has announced two new products in recent weeks: Snackin' with the Backers, chocolate peanut butter sandwich cookies with Cody Simon, Sonny Styles and C.J. Hicks on the box, and Snackin' with the Back, a mix of chocolate-covered pretzels with Quinshon Judkins on the container.
1870 Society is thrilled to launch our new Snackin with the Backers! Try these delicious mini chocolate peanut butter crme cookies, featuring standout Linebackers @Cody_Simon30 @imcjhicks and @sonnystyles_ Grab yours todayexclusively at @GiantEagle stores across Ohio! pic.twitter.com/J2FAZVk6U0
— The 1870 Society (@the1870society) August 30, 2024
Introducing the Snackin with the Back Munchy Medley the ultimate game-day snack mix brought to you by @quinshon_ and The 1870 Society! Now available exclusively at @GiantEagle! Stock up for your next watch party and taste the victory in every bite. pic.twitter.com/jaUzLnXZ7e
— The 1870 Society (@the1870society) September 17, 2024
Looks like I'll have to make a trip to Giant Eagle soon. Those snacks look too good.
SONG OF THE DAY. "I Wanna Get Better" - Bleachers.
CUT TO THE CHASE. Purple place: Mets unveil the new Grimace seat at Citi Field... The Pac-12 is preparing to take a second bite of the expansion apple... Whitney Houston’s epic 1994 performance in South Africa will hit theaters as a concert film... The Masters adds two hours of weekend coverage on Paramount+.
