Good morning, Scarlet and Gray aficionados! Today's Skull Session commemorates the last day of month, and my, what a difference a couple of days make.
After the football team failed to win their last three games in November (?), including a loss to those loathsome Wolverines (??), Ohio State took a page out of Bielema's playbook and decided it was a good time to be a Buckeye.
First, the football team welcomed a new coach who incites fear in the rest of the college football world. If any other fans claim a blasé attitude towards Urban's hiring, they're lying.
Then, the basketball team thoroughly dominated Duke, the perennially "most annoying college hoops program on the planet", who last week, won the Maui Invitational and entered the Schott ranked #4.
Unfortunately for the Blue Devils, but fortunately for the rest of us, the #2 BB Buckeyes looked like the best team in the country.
The future is bright, ladies and gentlemen. And apropos of that, Happy Birthday, future Heisman winner Braxton Miller!
STAR POWER. Though many former Buckeyes and current NBA players were in attendance to watch Matta's crew hand Duke their worst loss in over two years, the real stars of the evening were on the court. Ohio State hit 59% of their shots and a season-high 57% from three-point land, leading to 47 points in the first half. In their last game against Kansas, Duke surrendered a total of 61 points.
The Buckeye defense held strong on the perimeter as the Blue Devils were only able to make 3 of 15 shots from behind the arc, far lower than their 46% average. Craft was his usual pesky self as he shut down Seth Curry and Tyler Thornton, neither of whom notched an assist.
After playing a complete game against a top five opponent, Sullinger put into words what we were all thinking: "What can I say -- this basketball team is something special."
Matta was more cautious with the praise, stressing that this is a young squad who still has plenty of room for improvement. Yet, it doesn't hurt having, as Coach Krzyzewski declared Sully, "the best player in the country" to lead the way.
CALL OUT THE INSTIGATOR BECAUSE THERE'S SOMETHING IN THE AIR. With students camping out for the game since Sunday, the energy in the Schott was palpable. Perhaps now that they finally had something to celebrate after a tough sports year, the Nut House created a rollicking atmosphere, and the team seemed to feed off their fervor.
Oftentimes, the Ohio State fanbase is accused of treating the basketball team like a redheaded stepchild, or of failing to produce an intimidating presence at home1. Speaking to Doug Lesmerises, Evan Turner noted that "people think Ohio State is a football school, but this shows it's a basketball school, too."
As evidence to support that claim, the men's volleyball team, last season's national champions, were honored at halftime, and Urban Meyer did not make an appearance. For last night's crowd, the basketball Bucks destroying the easily-hateable Duke on the big stage was enough of a reason to rejoice.
TODAY I MET THE BOY I'M GONNA COACH. Many times during this football season, especially in the second half, Braxton Miller dazzled me with his moves and playmaking ability. He committed his fair share of mistakes, but for an 18-year-old being thrust into the responsibility of carrying an offense, he impressed me far more and he improved leaps and bounds from the beginning of the season. Later today, the birthday boy should be named B1G Freshman of the Year.
Under the tutelage of Urban Meyer, though, the young QB should become an unstoppable force. Meyer, who was doodling Braxton's name in is notebook as far back as signing day last February, knows how to develop talent. If there was one moment in his introductory press conference that gave me chills, it was when, with a dopey smile usually reserved for lovesick teenagers, he referred to meeting Miller as "the highlight of my day."
John Kampf talked to Josh Harris, Meyer's QB at BGSU, about how difficult it will be for the offense to pick up the new system:
Having played two years in Meyer's system, Harris said there will be some adjustments for Miller and the Buckeyes' offensive players to make. But Harris, when asked how hard it is to learn Meyer's offense, pointed out Bowling Green went 2-9 the year before Meyer's arrival and 8-3 in Meyer's first season.
"So how long do you think it takes?" Harris said with a grin.
Raise your hand if Braxton makes you swoonUrban drooled over Braxton some more when he announced, "to tell you I'm excited to coach him, I'm not using the correct adjectives."
To tell you I'm excited to see this, I'm not using the correct adjectives.
COME ON COME ON, LISTEN TO THE MONEY TALK. At $4 million/year, Urban Meyer will earn one of the nation's top coaching salaries, but according to Bloomberg's Aaron Kuriloff, Ohio State could benefit financially from the situation. Successful seasons, particularly if a national title is involved, yield profits, and someone with the stature of Meyer only helps.
Economist Andrew Zimbalist, brother of Remington Steele's Stephanie Zimbalist2, questioned the ethicalness of not just this example, but of all college sports. After all, Urban's hiring and subsequent income, larger than what Tressel made, was set into motion when college athletes sold their own property.
However, the name of the game is winning, and at a university with deep pockets like Ohio State, that includes ponying up for assistant coaches. In Meyer's effort to assemble a Super Friends caliber of a coaching staff, money definitely matters.
LET'S GET READY TO RECRUUUUUIT! Alleging that he has not and will not use negative recruiting tactics3, Brady Hoke promised not to badmouth other programs like Ohio State and Penn State.
If he tries, he's now up against someone he credited as being "sneakier than I am" in a hypothetical fight, and as Matt Markey writes, Urban is known for being a masterful recruiter. It's an aspect of football he places a lot of emphasis on, and one needs to look no further than Twitter, where members of the '12 class like Bri'onte Dunn, Warren Ball, and Frank Epitropoulos have all mentioned talking to him.
And as reported yesterday by Bill Greene, wide receiver Shelton Gibson became Meyer's first offer for the '13 recruiting class. The man does not waste any time.
EVERYTHING BUT THE KITCHEN LINK. The undefeated women's BB team hosts Florida State tonight in the Big Ten/ACC challenge... Low's "Just Like Christmas"... Another cult show making a movie version? Yes, please... Community opening credits a la Parks and Rec... A car air freshener that goes to jail first and then becomes president... The FBI did not care for the subversive nature of aye-yi-yi-yi... Neil deGrasse Tyson is a rock star... I will neither confirm nor deny this is me.
- 1 Michigan-style.
- 2 I'm pretty sure that's not true.
- 3 Lies, lies!
Comments
**Things to do this week**
1) Hire Urban Meyer-Check
2) Give those nancies from Duke an effing good kicking-Check
3)?
4) Profit.
4-6 seconds from point A to point B and when you get to point B, be pissed off
/underpants gnome'd
Banned from ATO since June 3rd 2PMish PST
Did Coach Meyer introduce himself to the fans at the game? I didn't get a chance to see it.
Nope. The national champ men's volleyball team was honored at the half. I don't think they wanted Urban to take away from the bball team's night.
If I understand correctly, I believe they wanted to introduce Urban but he politely declined wanting the focus to instead be on Matta's team.
He just gets better and better.
You forgot to write "tl; dr".
I wish I could upvote this. WHERE IS MY KARMA SYSTEM
Post some kitten pictures. Those usually work.
Fan of bacon since 1981
OBLIGATORY:
If Denard Robinson isn't careful with spooning all that food into his mouth, he's going to end up lookin' like Whoopi Goldberg
Nice choice, LOVE IASiP!
We should strive to keep thy name, of fair repute and spotless fame...
(Also, I'm not a dude)
Fan of bacon since 1981
Last night was all about feeding the Ohio State Machine....
If you watched Ohio State vs. Duke, then Ohio State made money.
If you watched the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, Les Wexner made money.... which pretty much means Ohio State made money.
This.... is..... BUCKEYE NATION!
The VS Fashion Show = ultimate commercial killer.
Keep Calm and Ignore the Trolls.
+1
The Ohio State University, College of Arts & Sciences, Class of 2006
The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law, Class of 2009
Did anyone else notice about 1/4 of the way through the 2nd half how Coach K pulled the ref aside to tell him we were fouling? Then I think it was 5 straight trips down we got fouls called on us? I think we had maybe 2 in the first half. It was pretty blatant.
Yes. It was classic K.
Keep Calm and Ignore the Trolls.
I did... and I've generally been a big fan of Coach K, but in lieu of complaining to the officials, he should have called a timeout and told his players to play more physical. I mean we only attempted 10 free throws. I would have figured Sully would have attempted at least 15-20 on his own. Kentucky put us on the line for 22 attempts in the Sweet 16 game last year.
Inconsistent refs are the worst. If you're gonna let them play physical ball the whole first half, you can't suddenly change in the second because coach k whines.
I have met a few really nice canines at parties Sarah. They love the attention.
vacuuming sucks
WOW! First we get Urban Meyer, then we crush Duke...is there any doubt that God is a Buckeye fan.
Yes. 41-14, 35-3, MSU in 1998, Shawn Springs slipping, Tatgate. Should I go on?
Dont forget, Satan exists too....
Buckeye born and bred. Buckeye til I'm dead.
Exactly. I like to think Tatgate was our own Story of Job.
They took our Job!
Taquitos.
DEY TUK URR JURRRB.
JURRRRRRRRRRRRRB
If Denard Robinson isn't careful with spooning all that food into his mouth, he's going to end up lookin' like Whoopi Goldberg
EH DURKER DUR!
swing hard in case you hit it.
great jaerb hamstray
-The Aristocrats!
Theoretically.
Taquitos.
Well, there's Woody & Tress. Les, Vic, Hopalong, Archie x2, Eddie, & Troy.
1942, 1954, 1957, 1961, 198, 1970, & 2002. should I continue?
The hoops squad is the real deal.
The starters spent most of the night on the floor, but the boys on the bench can provide excellent relief - if we need them.
Can't say enough about the physical conditioning allowing them to spend 35+ minutes on the hardwood and not be so out of breath they can't knock down treys.
And, whatever they're feeding Craft - put it on the buffet list for all OSU athletics. He is EVERYWHERE on the floor and plays with a controlled intensity that is hard to match.
I also was thrilled the Buckeye Nation showed up and made itself heard. I've been to too many games where the stands were filled with silent scarlet and gray representatives. Last night rocked.
Not to discount their physical conditioning, but remember these are 18-22 year old kids (i.e. prime physical shape). The clock doesn't stop on made baskets. There are at least 4 media time outs per half (pretty sure there are more in the 2nd half). Each team gets five time outs per half (probably about 5 total used in first half however). There's generally one or two injury stoppages per game. Generally at least one or two clock malfunctions or 3 point reviews per game. And in terms of other sports the court is pretty small.
I'm honestly more surprised when players can't make it that long. I used to play entire halves at midfield in lacrosse in high school without coming out. And I'm not a division 1 athlete.
There are 4 TV timeouts each half (sub 16,12,8,4 minutes), and 5 timeouts per game. Still, your point is clear. I can't stand analysts like Hubert Davis who think we need more depth; the only reason we would need depth is for foul trouble, but the thing is, we do not foul very often.
35 hours to Pasadena! Go Bucks!
It killed me when he said at halftime for Ohio State to win they need SOMEONE other than Sullinger to step up. I'm like he's not the leading scorer and 2 other guys are in double figures at halftime, DO YOU WATCH THE GAMES YOU ARE "breaking down"
I thought the same thing! We had 3 players in double digits in scoring and this moron is saying we need more players to step up. Seriously, what was he watching? Cuz it couldn't have been the same game we were watching.
Fan of bacon since 1981
If you think he was annoying, how does he compare to the female and other dude announcing the Illinois game. They kept harping on this Leonard kid about maturing, and on and on, and then chastised him for mean mugging the Maryland kid on the floor after he blocked the shot. What they didn't acknowledge or somehow failed to see was that when he blocked the shot the dude laying on the ground had his feet wrapped around Leonards legs in an attempt to trip him. I think Leonard was somewhat reasonable in his response at that moment. They wouldn't get off his arse for near 5 minutes. I am not in any shape or form an Illini fan but I felt a little defensive for him.
I don't always take names when I kick ass but when I do, they most often belong to a Wolverine.
On my facebook homepage last night, a diehard UK fan I know had posted, can we all agree now that Duke is vastly over rated once again?
I replied, perhaps Ohio State is under rated.
So, with Urban taking the job and already in the hunt of the best recruits and them turning Ohio State into their first choice...are we to assume that The University knows a little more about the NCAA and the sanctions that are forthcoming? In Urban's presser he did mention on how he would have to deal with a few less scholarships, but we already know that...is there anything else we know?
"Because I couldn't go for three"
I hope to god that we hear about some OL prospects having been contacted. This is what I'm most worried about.
As of right now, I think we're going to have walk ons assigned on the 2-deep next year unless something changes. Am I right?
#fistpumpgobuckeyes
I believe Alex will have a little more info on that later today.
Interest piqued...
The Ohio State University, College of Arts & Sciences, Class of 2006
The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law, Class of 2009
(in New Zealand accent): "Sarah.....present"
"As of right now, I think we're going to have walk ons assigned on the 2-deep next year unless something changes. Am I right?"
I don't think so.
LT-Norwell- Underwood?
LG-Mewhort -Carter
C-Bobek. - Boren
RG-Linsley -Elfien
RT-Hall -Brown
Not a great depth chart there, but no walkons.
Run_Fido's favorite word is strawman.
If we have to deal with less total # of recruits per NCAA punishment, that can be offset by great recruiting and Urbz looks like he understands that well.
Kevin
OH!!!!!
Proud parent of a Senior at The Ohio State University
I graduated a couple years ago and I haven't been to Value City Arena since, did they add student seats courtside? I'm 99% sure students didn't have seating there while I was attending Ohio State. If so, I think that changes the dynamic completely. I've never seen the arena look like that.
Last year, or at the very least two years ago when I was there, students were along both baselines. It is only this year (and maybe last year) that they are courtside and along one baseline.
I'm a huge fan of the changes. (When I was a freshman (06-07), I'm pretty sure there was no desegnated student section at all).
35 hours to Pasadena! Go Bucks!
There might have been one behind one of the baskets but it was an extension of Block O. There was no "Nuthouse." My student tickets that year were in the upper bowl. Second to last row with a bunch of other students.
They were new last year. It is first come first serve for those seats, the rest of the student section is behind the baseline and in the upper deck.
Hoke confused? He tells Dan Patrick that he and Urban are "Ohio guys".
Apparently WE didnt put a beatdown on Dook, Maui did:
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/seth_davis/11/30/duke.ohio...
Buckeye born and bred. Buckeye til I'm dead.
Rule #1 of sports "journalism": Never give Ohio State credit for anything.
- 2002 National Championship: "phony" pass interference.
- 2009-10 Rose Bowl: Pryor-to-Ballard lucky catch saved game (even though we were already leading).
- 2010-11 Sugar Bowl: Arkansas player shoulda/coulda returned block punt (even though there was a bogus safety call which led to a 5-point swing and Arkansas should have never been in that position).
- 2011 Duke victory: Duke was tired (even though their last game was SIX days ago).
- Ohio is slow
We even cheat slow.
And even though Duke intentionally scheduled a ton of games ahead of Maui so coach K would break his record at home.
I believe he actually broke the record at MSG, not Cameron Indoor.
If you ain't a Silver Bullet, you're a target
right and all of the duke players are 35 and balding, not 18-22 and had 6 days of rest. we used to play full court pickups only about 7 hrs after going to bed after a night of cold beverages.
lol Doug Gottlieb said that this morning on ESPN also. The first thing that he mentioned that played into the loss was traveling back from Maui, then Ohio State is a really good team. He said they look like a title contender but have yet to play a game on the road. Ok lol . He also mentioned that they just hired a new football coach, which has nothing to do with basketball but OK again.
My question to any of these talking heads is, how many games has anyone EVER seen Duke completely dominated like that? My answer is never. Even in down years for Duke, they always seem to hang tough and compete. I've never seen a Duke team get thumped from the start of the game.
Last weekend all I heard was how Duke dominates the Maui Invitational every time they go. It's feasible to believe that in one of their trips they had to return and play a high profile game soon after.
Playing on the road might explain a close loss or a few favorable calls here and there which might swing the game. I can accept the home court advantage argument for two evenly matched teams for up to a 10 point loss (teams hitting free throws down the stretch usually widens the MOV).
But it doesn't explain away a 22-point beatdown in which the opponent NEVER lead. It was pure dominance from start to finish. They were never really in the game. Did we even press that much?
Duke got absolutely dominated 2 years ago by Georgetown in December, much like this OSU game..and then they went on to win the national championship.
If you ain't a Silver Bullet, you're a target
Gotta love his analysis of Thomas as the X-factor, though. If Thomas can consistently play like last night, this team could be "unbeatable". I agree.
Luke posted a stat on the Live Blog last night that the last 5 Maui winners won their next game. So, Duke has no excuse...especially Duke.
Whatever you say SI. Yes, we are that good. Duke probably isn't that bad. You can learn a lot about a team in a 22 point beat down.
1) Duke was totally dominated. OSU did not trail at all during the game and pieced together several large runs. Good teams do that.
2) Aaron Craft will be CBB's most hated man by year end. He's got a few things working against him. 1) He's white and scrappy and college kids hate white scrappy kids (see Reddick, JJ). 2) He is agressive so naturally that will turn to "Dirty" soon. 3) he's on a team quickly on their way to national supremecy. Add that up and combine it with eventual hustle plays that will piss off fans and Craft will get booed every time he touches the ball on the road. Whatever. He seems like he'd embrace it.
3) Buford is going to lead this team as far as they will follow. Sully is the biggest name in the bunch and nothing makes offense easy like a low post threat. He's a constant who can get you 20 from the floor or the line if he isnt hitting his shots-if Buford keeps rolling, the inside\outside\penetration game OSU can play with Buford\Craft\Sully is going to be unstoppable. DeShaun isn't too shabby either.
It is a great time to be a Buckeye, friends. Nothing the NCAA says in the next month or so will change that.
4-6 seconds from point A to point B and when you get to point B, be pissed off
The apparent hate of scrappy white kids tends to be more a reactionary response to media fawning than anything. Redick wasn't scrappy he was an asshole and a hell of a shooter. I think you're looking for Greg Paulus and Wojo before him as examples of 'scrappy' types (also: they both played for Duke). In these cases, all these guys played for Duke and had that going against them, plus the love of media-types to pump Duke up.
Nobody hates Macnamara from Syracuse for being scrappy/white - just for looking like an Uncle Cracker knockoff.
Taquitos.
I'll never forget the 98 Elite 8 game where Jamal Magloire twisted Wojo into a pretzel on the floor. The commentators were about to cry. He's hurting WOJO, what a bad man lol. He should be ejected. They ignored the fact that Wojo took a running leap on top of Magloire on the floor.
Craft is getting a lot of love from the commentators though, so he may be hated if they keep talking about him all year.
I hated that Pittsnogle guy from WVU based solely on his appearance. Watching him hurt my eyes.
Time and change will surely show how firm they friendship... O-HI-O.
You mean him?
"Don't put syrup on shit, and tell me it's pancakes"
No matter how sh*tty the tour is, it's always tough to leave.
One thing that's lost on this game is, it's a win in November. It really means nothing for Duke, at the end of the day they are probably still going to get a 2 seed and depending on how they play in conference potentially a 1. It really means nothing for Ohio State either, other than they proved they are legit. I love college basketball because the best teams actually play against eachother non conference. I love it because they actually have a playoff. I do however think too much emphasis is put on the outcomes of games like this.
If UK beats UNC this weekend or vice versa their fans are going to be touting that they are a lock for the final four. To me, last night showed where this team is, and there is no doubt they are one of the 2 or 3 best teams in America, but that means absolutely nothing if they get to the sweet 16 and miss layups and have a 1-30 Bufford(exaggeration I know)
Don't take this as me not being excited about the game last night either, it was awesome. I've never seen a Duke team dominated like that, ever. I just think announcers and annalysts and fans, don't need to make excuses for Duke. By March they'll be prepared for the tournament. Ohio State had great D, and they shot nearly 60 percent from the field. Kraft banked a 3. He got an assist to himself after bouncing a ball of a Duke players leg. The played great and every bounce went their way.
I know these guys are payed to come up with the BS they spew, it just drives me nuts that they want to crown a team in December, or make excuses for one of their darlings after a beat down etc.
The biggest thing is that they proved to ME they were legit so I put a lot of stock into this game... You gotta remember that we lost a lot last year and there were still unanswered questions. We'd been relitively untested up until last night (if you can call that a test). I actually hope the media snubs them a bit in favor of UK and UNC... gotta love an angry Sully come dance time.
Time and change will surely show how firm they friendship... O-HI-O.
Does anyone know why those four rows in four sections of seats behind the students had the black Ohiostatebuckeyes.com tarp over them?
Please, please don't let it be so that the people behind the students don't have to stand.
We should strive to keep thy name, of fair repute and spotless fame...
(Also, I'm not a dude)
Yes, that is exactly why.
Whiners, everywhere.
The Ohio State University, College of Arts & Sciences, Class of 2006
The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law, Class of 2009
Not whining, just stating why those rows are not used.
I think he was referring to the people in the rows behind the students that were whining about having to stand up to see.
Seems to be a trend with buckeye fans. Even on the road at miami these idiots told me to sit down. the guy was six rows back and he was complaining to the ushers and police. Needless to say my ass stood the whole game.
My buddy & I got asked if we were going to sit down 2 minutes before kickoff for Wisconsin... Rage!
Ugh, I can't believe the university turns down that revenue because PEOPLE COMPLAIN about standing at a sporting event.
I would have happily switched seats with anyone down there last night. I would stand the entire game, they can sit their happy ass in section 327.
Also in that vein, I
was forcedwent to the Buckeye Bash last night where JJ Sullinger spoke. He made the comment that the crowd absolutely helps and if someone asks you to sit, you should politely turn around and ask them to stand.We should strive to keep thy name, of fair repute and spotless fame...
(Also, I'm not a dude)
Yep.
The Ohio State University, College of Arts & Sciences, Class of 2006
The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law, Class of 2009
Sarah! Nice Thunderclap Newman reference! You are definitely one of the cool people. Ignore the cat from now on.
You know, in all the excitement of this week I think everyone's forgotten the death of an important member of the Ohio State Football family... I speak of course of our beloved Dave. 2001-2011. Rest in Peace, buddy. Rest in Peace.
"Anything easy ain't worth a damn." - Wayne Woodrow Hayes
Dave isn't dead. He just went and bought a shotgun.
Somewhere in the South Pacific, Dave rests atop a large floating walrus, slowly drifting off with the waves ...
Can't wait for Tom Hanks to grow a chill beard and make a film about getting lost at sea with Dave.
Taquitos.
Dave went off to bible college, but his much cooler leather jacket-wearing lady-killing beer-drinking motorcycle dare devil step-brother, "Far West Right Slot Jet 51 Y Cross" just moved in.
swing hard in case you hit it.
I was absolutely ROLLING when Dookie-V said Duke was "not athletic" and were just "good basketball players" and Ohio State was filled with "athletic basketball players". That was almost like Mark May saying tOSU was better than any team south of the Mason-Dixie Line. And us beating the pants off Duke in the B1G / ACC Challenge was effing awesome. But there is A LOT of basketball left for these guys to play. And none of the wins matter come March / April. That's when winning matters...
"We have a quarterback, obviously, that's kind of ridiculous running the ball." - Urban Meyer
This cartoon by Andy Marlette pretty much sums it up.
Instead of playing Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, LSU, South Carolina, and even Florida State. Urban now gets to play Michigan, Nebraska and Purdue.
http://www.alligatorarmy.com/
>>Implying anyone but Bama and LSU are consistently good.
The Ohio State University, College of Arts & Sciences, Class of 2006
The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law, Class of 2009
B1G is about to clinch it's 3rd straight!!!!
"Don't put syrup on shit, and tell me it's pancakes"
No matter how sh*tty the tour is, it's always tough to leave.
Hope Sparty can hold of the Noles!
Buckeye in PA purgatory