Wednesday Skull Session

By D.J. Byrnes on July 16, 2014 at 6:00 am
Pole Vaulting, 1886 via The Ohio State University Archives
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Via Nick: Andrew Wiggins has a cat named Lugia? He's now my favorite athlete in the world.

LESSONS LEARNED IN OHIO ABOUT THE RIVALRY. Hmmm.

From Brian Champman of CBS Detroit:

I know Michigan fans. I lived with them all of my life and I grew up a huge maize and blue boy. I know Michigan fans don’t like Ohio State. As a matter of fact, they hate Ohio State. When it comes to football the vast majority would rather beat Ohio State than Michigan State, despite what any Spartan fan will tell you. But their hatred for the Buckeyes pales in comparison to the Ohio State fan base’s hatred for Michigan.

[...]

The other factor is that there is only one major football school in the entire state of Ohio. In Michigan, there’s Michigan and Michigan State. In Ohio, there’s nothing besides Ohio State. Down in the Cincinnati area some will cheer for the Bearcats or the Fighting Irish and in Toledo about a third of football fans are Michigan fans (no Spartan fans in Toledo), but everywhere else in the Buckeye State is Buckeye country. And in Buckeye country, everyone is in lockstep against Michigan.

The second lesson I learned from living in Ohio is that the Ohio State fan base’s hatred for Michigan is so strong and they see themselves as so much better than the Wolverines that lately their number one rival seems to be Alabama and/or the SEC, not Michigan. In fact, I believe that based on their actions over the past few years their number one rival right now is Alabama and/or the SEC, not Michigan. I see this as both a sign of where their program is on the college football landscape and a sign of disrespect toward Michigan.

I don't know when Mr. Chapman lived in Ohio, but if it was during this millennium, then Ohio State fans thinking their team is better than Michigan's wasn't a matter of opinion.

I also see the point on Ohio State fans' hatred not being diluted by "other" rivalries. Although, to me, that's what makes The Rivalry special, but I'm an Ohio State fan.

I do find myself comparing Ohio State to SEC teams more and more, but that's because I want championship-level football from Ohio State.

Michigan hasn't been close to championship-level in a long, long time. I don't think that's changing as long as Dave "Fireworks" Brandon is calling the shots in Ann Arbor. 

But hey, ThatsNoneOfMyBusiness.JPEG. 

MIKE THOMAS IS A FAN OF DEREK JETER. Did you guys know that rich, successful men do a lot of sex with attractive women? I didn't, until I saw this:

#THEREALMVP #JETER #GOAT

Take a bow, World Wide Leader.

Is this the creepiest graphic ever put together on ESPN? I think it is. "Hey, graphics dude, put me together a list of women Derek Jeter has slept with... but like... put them into baseball positions. We're a respectable sports network, after all."

THE SPORTS... SO CLOSE, BUT SO FAR.. Here's a highlight video from Ohio State's 2013-2014 football and men's basketball teams, courtesy of BTN. They're still working on their embed code, it'd appear:

AARON CRAFT IS HANGING TOUGH. Aaron is toiling for the Golden State Warriors Summer League team, and using his #grit, #grind and #hustle, he's made quite the impression on head coach Steve Kerr:

Jeff Boals, are you surprised by Craft's Summer League performance?

DANIEL GIDDENS IS ON THE MOVE. Ohio State's 2015 center, Daniel Giddens, has transferred from his Georgia high school to basketball powerhouse/school Oak Hill Academy in Virginia.

From ZagsBlog.com:

“Daniel will be a major presence on the defensive end with his ability to alter and block shots as well as rebound,” Oak Hill coach Steve Smithtold SNY.tv. “He scores inside with both hands and has developed his face-up game and range on his jumper. He is a player who continues to get better and better on a daily basis.

“He joins other newcomers in 6-6 Dwayne Bacon, 6-3 Josh Reaves, 6-7 Joe Hampton, 6-4Andrew Fleming and 6-1 Lindell Wigginton. Returners are 6-11 Rodney Miller, 6-9 Khadim Sy, 5-11 Terrence Philips and 6-7 Tony Anderson.”

Oak Hill is a premiere high school program in the country, so good to see Giddens will receive top of the line coaching before making the move to Columbus.

ROLL DAMN TIDE. Have I told you guys how much I'm looking forward to the day Nick Saban announces his retirement? It will be the first day in my life in which I say, "Man, I wish I was in Alabama right now."

DIRECTOR'S CUT OF THE GAME. This was posted to YouTube back in December, but I hadn't seen it, and I thought this was pretty cool.

To steal a line from BuckGuyFan1:

Been a long time since someone from TSUN has been that close to a Rose.

THOSE WMDs. The building of Central Park... New 24/7 rankings drop later today... I've heard of Comcast's legendary customer service... 35 writers who run the literary internet... A day in the life of an NYC taxi driver... Winners of the first "Dronestagram" photo competition... Deion Sanders ran a school like he tackled... Texas under "NCAA scrutiny" because an agent bought some meals... Tennessee fans: still the worst... TE CJ Conrad refuses to camp at Ohio State...

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