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One of the first articles I ever wrote for Eleven Warriors (in the grand scheme of things, it was really something like the 23rd article I had written on this site. As an addendum, the actual first thing that I ever wrote was about the kicking game) was about one of my all time favorite players to suit up for the Ohio State Buckeyes, Brian Rolle.
The reason why Brian Rolle intrigued me was that this was a guy with some pretty obvious athletic abilities, but because of his size, he didn't fit the mold of the traditional Big Ten linebacker. Maybe twenty years ago he might not have even seen the field for the Buckeyes. But he did, and he was great, playing in more of a hybrid system that included a "Star" position (Tyler Moeller) that in the brain of Jim Heacock represented a bridge between the super old school three LB system designed to stop I-formation and a more flexible system designed to stop... well, more than just I-formation teams.
That's my theory anyway. So we were really lucky to have Brian on to talk about his time at Ohio State, how he sees the evolution of the linebacking position and defense in general, and, AND, a confirmation of a super deep cut Jim Tressel story that I forgot that I had always wondered about. It's a great interview, so check it out!
Also: Andy and I ruminate on the NCAA championship, lowering Ohio State basketball ticket prices, and all kinds of fun stuff in Ask Us Anything (which you can do via e-mail or Twitter)! It's a cool Dubcast, so if you're a fan go ahead and rate and subscribe on iTunes while you're at it!
0:00 We didn't know it at the time, but Michigan lost the NCAA championship! Hooray! Conference pride is stupid! Also, basketball ticket prices might go down, which is nice (and a smart move).
9:32 Brian Rolle talks about the changing position of linebacker, and also drops a really great Jim Tressel story from the Penn State game in 2010.
23:56 Ask Us Anything wants to know what the Dubcast theme song should be, and I talk about why and how I completely misinterpreted Holy Buckeye.
And that'll do it! A big, big thanks to Andy for filling in for the past couple of weeks, he was awesome. Also thanks to you for listening and checking out our Dry Goods Store, thanks to Travis for our sweet logo, and we'll see you all next week!
