Skull Session: The Growth of Michael Jordan, Dwayne Haskins Settles In, and How Cincinnati's Potential Jump to the Big 12 Could Impact Recruiting

By D.J. Byrnes on August 16, 2016 at 4:59 am
Jerry Emig wants a picture of the August 16th 2016 Skull Session.
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Another day, another Noah Brown practice highlight:

Good luck to smaller DBs trying to stop that frame and those hands on a slant near the goal line.

 GOODBYE MARCUS, HELLO MICHAEL. When 2016 four-star OL signee Michael Jordan arrived on campus, J.T. Barrett refused to call him "Michael Jordan" until he proved something. So, Barrett dubbed him "Marcus Jordan."

Going from the greatest crier of all time to his idiotic son is quite the demotion, but Jordan handled it well. He started in spring camp and maintained his hold thus far, though Meyer said Sunday he might not start but will definitely play.

While some might be surprised by a freshman OL starting, it won't shock Jordan. 

From espn.com:

So, let’s just get this out of the way. He was named after his father, Kevin Michael Jordan, whom everybody calls by his middle name. Complicating matters is the fact that his mom, Jacquie Jordan, grew up in Chicago rooting for the Chicago Bulls and is the niece of former Louisville basketball star Junior Bridgeman.

So his parents knew exactly what they were getting into with their son’s name.

But Michael, Jacquie says, “was born to play football.” In fact, she gave birth to him right as Super Bowl XXXII was kicking off. By the time he was 8, Jacquie said, Michael told his parents that football was his future. Besides, Michael said that when he did try to play basketball, "I was horrible."

Here's something else revealed in the profile: Though Ohio State poached Jordan from a Michigan high school, he was born in Cincinnati and grew up a Buckeyes fan before his family moved to South Carolina (before moving to Canton, Michigan).

I liked Jordan even before he arrived on campus because he might be the first signee to choose Ohio State over Michigan and Michigan State due to OSU's international business and Mandarin programs.

He's going to be a boss representative of the university for long after he plays. Good to know we're getting in on the ground floor.

 DWAYNE HASKINS SETTLES ON CAMPUS. Freshman year can be an awkward transition for any #teen, let alone one that comes from out of state and must balance a football career with an academic one.

Four-star QB Dwayne Haskins, however, appears to be transitioning well. He already converted a senior to a fan. 

From scout.com:

"It has been a great experience, seeing my dreams come true," Haskins said at Ohio State's media day Sunday afternoon. "Right now I am just trying to enjoy the moment and live it up. I feel like I have gotten better every day. As a freshman you get limited reps because you are new. As the second week comes, I want to compete more as I learn and contribute. In (Saturday's) scrimmage I thought I did really well."

Haskins has been on campus for less than three months, but already he is turning heads. Senior H-back Dontre Wilson was asked during media day if any young players have stood out to him in camp, and Haskins was the first name out of his mouth. 

"That dude can throw. I worked out with him a lot during the summer and now to see him in camp and in pads, he can sling the pill," Wilson said. 

Shoutout to Wilson for calling a football "the pill." The only other guy I've heard call a football that is my dad, who also once blessed me with the phrase "magic diamond."

But while it's impressive Haskins caught the eye of an experienced guy like Wilson, his play hasn't saved him from quarterback hazing:

Ross Haskins sounds like a two-star Purdue commit from Southern Illinois. Let's hope he sheds the name before he takes over OSU's offense in a couple years.

 OSU's OHIO MONOPOLY OVER? Ohio State held a monopoly on big-time football in Ohio before I was born. It holds that monopoly to this day.

Sunday, Urban Meyer said he favored Cincinnati joining the Big 12.

On one hand, it makes sense. Urban Meyer graduated from Cincinnati (you might not know he holds a psychology degree) and his sister works there. On the other hand, it's rare for a college coach to invite another Power 5 school into his recruiting footprint.

From bcsn.tv:

Asked if it would affect Ohio State’s in-state recruiting, Meyer said, “Oh, sure. I bet it would. That Big 12 is big business.”

Just not enough to make a sizable dent in the Buckeyes’ bigger business. Our guess is Ohio State would be pushed by Cincinnati in the same way Notre Dame is bothered by nearby Purdue and Indiana, which is to say not much.

Ohio State is a national brand with a century’s head start on its football tradition and unlimited reserves, clearing $170.9 million in revenue last year, according to federal records. (Cincinnati earned $42.9 million.) As long as Meyer is in Columbus, Ohio State will keep signing 10 or so of the best players and recruit the country as well as anyone.

That's a reasonable take. However, it could make it harder to recruit the rare Cincinnati product because the move makes the hometown lure stronger.

Still, I hope Cincinnati gets its invite. It would be cool to see two Power 5 conference champions reside in the state. I also hope an annual series with the Bearcats could be worked out.

 HARBAUGH! Last week, Michigan freshman receiver Ahmir Mitchell, freshman running back (and former Ohio State commit) Kareem Walker, and redshirt defensive lineman Shelton Johnson all missed the team picture.

A Michigan spokesman said afterward the players had "other commitments." Last night, during one of Jim Harbaugh's rare fall camp press conferences, we found out what those commitments were.

And this concludes another free chapter of Jim Harbaugh's New York Times Best Seller, "Public Relations from a Sentient Windows 95 CD."

In other Michigan news, the BTN crew hit dusty Ann Arbor yesterday:

This is the first time non-Michigan media has praised the Wolverines since the days it propagated them as a No. 2 team in the country. Michigan fans are reacting like people who endured a nuclear winter would react to an Arby's dumpster.

Pettiness aside, Rashan Gary looks the part:

I hope Michigan is 11-0 when comes south Nov. 26. Maybe it'll bring more than four mini-vans of fans in its caravan. (It's hilarious how scared Michigan fans are to come to Columbus. Ask one about it. They'll act like it's invading a Viking village armed with a spork.)

This year will be the best Game in a while. I hope a trip to Indianapolis is at stake.

 THE DRIP OF A TRESSELIZATION BURNS FOR ETERNITY. We all know and love Tresselizations — the long, ball-controlling scam with which Jim Tressel bamboozled his enemies for the better part of a decade.

Thankfully, we never got smothered with a silk pillow by the grandpa who moments ago had offered us a warm glass of milk. 

From espn.com's article on coaches reliving their worst loss(es):

Dave Clawson, Wake Forest: Youngstown State 37, Villanova 34, 1997
1997, Villanova. We were 12-0 and the No. 1 team in the country and we played Youngstown State that year in the second round of the playoffs. We had a punt blocked. We got sacked and they picked it up and returned it for a touchdown and we lost a heartbreaking game to Youngstown, who went on to win a national championship. Even 20 years later, that one still stings. That was probably a team that was good enough to win a national championship and we beat ourselves against a very well-coached team.

Sounds a lot like what I imagine death row to be like, which is ironic because that's where Tress' enemies tried to sentence him. Praise Warren G. Harding the Senator remains at large.

 THOSE WMDs. The blue walls of Chefchaouen... Antlers Hunter S. Thompson stole from Ernest Hemingway returned to family... Video: Crazy Handball goals... A $7.4 million bank heist made for Hollywood... Finnish post office tests drones for parcel delivery.

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