Skull Session: Weber's Decision, Meyer's Conservative Play Calling, and Haskins Prepares Like the Starter

I ate an entire Bloomin' Onion yesterday at Michigan's (and my arteries') expense and spent the rest of the day wallowing on the floor, awaiting the sweet embrace of death.

Ramzy said I won't be feeling right until Thursday. Now, I have to keep track of the days of the week (not my forte) for another 24 hours.

Because I'm killing myself to provide the content you barbarians, my living will is now in order. Should my intestines wilt during these trying times, the first three commenters of today's Skull Session will divide my bank account ($5.82, currently).

The Starcat gets everything else because she has no use for such trivial human concerns like money.

ICYMI:

• Stock Up/Stock Down: 2017 recap.
• Alabama heads to the title game as Ohio State asks, what if?
• Reserve your (or your business' spot) next to the life-size statue of Woody Hayes coming to Newcomerstown!

Word of the Day: Errata.

 TICK TOCK. Every year, there are a couple of players that surprise Ohio State fans by declaring for the NFL. There's more that goes into these decisions than on-the-field play; however, as Mike Weber probably knows by now.

When we last saw the Detroit import, he looked like a man who knew a massive decision was upon him. 

From cleveland.com:

That's what Weber looked like. Sad. Like he knew in that moment that he'd never put on an Ohio State uniform again. So I asked him after the game if he had made that decision already.

"No not yet," he said.

[...]

"This year didn't play out how I wanted to, of course," Weber said. "I had a bump in the road at the beginning of the season. It was kind of hard to manage and control that, because I've never been through anything like that before. But I got around the right people. My family and coach's pressed me, did their job and got me back to where I needed to be. By the time I got healthy it was toward the end of the season and I just did what I did at that point."

I've gone back and forth on Weber's decision nearly as much as Weber has. I figured he was a lock to leave, especially considering his fickle injury history. 

But after watching the last two games, I think he comes back. If he does, that'd be like the 2018 Buckeyes finding $50 in their coat.

 YOUR EYES DIDN'T DECEIVE YOU. Ohio State beat USC by 17 points. I could have easily been 30+ (like the Wisconsin game). But Urban Meyer—and stop if me you've heard this before—went conservative in his play calling and Zone 6 went back to their old invisible ways.

From landgrantholyland.com:

• As noted, it’s pretty wild that they designed 11 quarterback runs for Barrett, while only dropping him back 22 times. Out of those 22 dropbacks, he only threw the ball 16 times. If you add the number of designed runs with scrambles, Barrett only threw the ball three more times than he ran it.
• KJ Hill, Parris Campbell (outside the handoffs), Johnnie Dixon and Binjimen Victor were completely invisible and were barely targeted as a whole. Although we’re waiting on Campbell and Dixon to make a decision regarding their futures, we’re looking at the return of #Zone6, and they should be one of the better positional groups on next year’s squad.
• It looked like Austin Mack was the only perimeter receiver who could get any separation on the outside. Mack is turning into a legitimate WR1.

Mack is turning into a legitimate No. 1 because he played receiver throughout high school and isn't an athlete shoehorned into the position. Crazy how that works.

Meyer's obsession with the QB run is why I won't rule out Tate Martell or Joe Burrow starting next year. For better or worse, he's never tailored his offense to a quarterback's specific needs since the simplified, don't-throw-it-over-the-middle-of-the-field game plans of the 2014 title run.

 HASKINS READY TO WORK. Despite being a respectable if not elusive runner, Dwayne Haskins is who I tab to start next season against Oregon State on Sept. 1, a date only 241 days hence.

Haskins is preparing like he'll be the starter too.

From 247sports.com:

“Oh yeah, that’s the mindset,” he said. “There’s multiple teammates talking to me about how fun it’s going to be next year. And it starts right now.

“I’m going to attack every day and go get that (starting quarterback) position. That’s the mindset.”

However, Haskins does think highly of the other QBs that will be competing with him: Joe Burrow and Tate Martell.

“Oh, it’s going to be ridiculous, every day starting from winter workouts all the way through spring ball and fall camp,” Haskins said. “So, it’s going to be interesting to see how it goes.”

Austin Mack is looking to expand on their chemistry developed in Ann Arbor:

Lets go to work https://t.co/zlBiruB9PH

— Austin Mack (@Austin_Mack10) January 1, 2018

Haskins to Mack could be the best QB-WR combo since Cardale Jones and Devin Smith. Is that take too hot for this early in the morning? The Bloomin' Onion has clouded my mental faculties.

 NOT SO FAST. Before you go clamoring for a playoff expansion (like I do), please ponder this take from Jalyn Holmes:

Stop talking about having a 8 team playoffs in CFB, yall dont realize the toll it puts on our body and the fact we miss out time with our families over the holidays, we dont get paid enough for all that fam!

— QB KILLA (@JayHolmes_) January 3, 2018

Meanwhile, bowl executives continue to cash those checks. 

 WHAT A PSYCHOLOGICAL BREAK LOOKS LIKE. Michigan has wallowed in darkness since Jim Tressel rode north in 2001 and splintered the Wolverine tribes into oblivion. 

Michigan losing to South Carolina may 

From the proprietor of mgoblog.com, in a post entitled "Whatever:"

I don't know how people get mad about this shit still. I just turn off, because for the last decade Michigan football has been either a disappointment or in a brief interim period that sets you up to be disappointed. But yes many many people still get fucking furious about Michigan football for some reason.

I'm tired of talking about it. I'm tired of this cycle that always seems to be at the bottom. I'm tired of this toxic-ass fanbase screaming at stuff. I could muster some takes, I guess, but I've already said them and anyway they seem beside the point. December was nice since it lacked football. 2018, so far, is bad because it had football.

In a situation like that I'd rather not talk about football. Especially because I have nothing left to say. Maybe it'll be better next year. Maybe it won't. Either way it's a meaningless distraction on the way to the grave. Eat at Arby's.

2018: The year a Michigan blogger declared his livelihood as a "meaningless distraction on the way to the grave" and ridiculed his readers for caring. The year is off to an amazing start.

The amazing thing is, as a Browns fan, I'll be the first to tell them it only gets worse. You think every year will get better. You think, surely, this is rock bottom. But then your team goes 0-16 and the criminal owner brings back a coach with one win in two years.

You think your team folding like a washcloth against a Will Muschamp-coached team is rock bottom? Please. That will look like a children's birthday party compared to the infernos that will engulf Ann Arbor when Harbaugh falls to 0-4 against Urban Meyer in 11 months.

 THOSE WMDs. Pulled over in a rental car, with a truck full of heroin... How Peter Mims spent a week hiding in a warship's engine room... Columbus' deadliest location: Hilltop apartment the focus of residents, police... Love for Lamborghinis brought this Jalpa back to life.