I'm not sure what outcome I was supposed to be rooting for last night, but I ended up watching Joe Burrow thoroughly outduel the afghan hound, slice up Brent Venables' defense like a little kid with safety scissors and put Dabo in a pine box.
To top it all off, Clemson had to suffer through a couple of blown calls, a targeting penalty to one of its key defenders, and a controversial call that took a touchdown off the board – all of which you just hate to see.
Turns out, that's exactly what I needed. Thank you, college football. See you next year.
Word of the Day: Sortie.
GEAUX JEAUX. My team wasn't playing on Monday night, but I did get to watch Joe Burrow become a proper legend, and I enjoyed the hell out of it.
Here you go. Joe Burrow joins in on Neck...
— Shea Dixon (@Sheadixon) January 14, 2020
(: @Ohneaux1) pic.twitter.com/GteBVpj1Pd
Joe Burrow sucking on a cigar and blowing smoke into the air while exiting the #LSU locker room is a thing that has happened. pic.twitter.com/9B0hzqz31M
— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) January 14, 2020
5671 yards passing.
— Unnecessary Roughness (@UnnecRoughness) January 14, 2020
64 total TDs.
National championship.
Big Dick Joe. pic.twitter.com/XAQhfycoWT
When I froze my ass off watching him carve apart Toledo Central Catholic for 452 yards and six touchdowns in the Division II state championship game, I would have absolutely believed you if you told me he'd win a 'Natty one day. I just can't say I expected it to happen in this uniform.
If any team but the Buckeyes has to win the title, I'm extremely glad it was Joe's team.
IT'S NEXT YEAR TIME. We're so addicted to this damn sport that the second one season ends we're already thinking about the next season that starts in about nine months. Shit, you can even gamble on it – and the Buckeyes are looking like a popular bet on a few fronts.
Ohio State has the second-best odds to win the national title next season at +255, just barely behind Clemson's +255 Justin Fields is the runaway favorite to win the Heisman Trophy.
Odds to win the 2020 College Football National Championship (Bovada):
— Odds Shark (@OddsShark) January 14, 2020
Clemson +250
Ohio State +255
Alabama +700
Georgia +750
LSU +800
Notre Dame +2000
Florida +2500
Oklahoma/Texas/USC +3300
Texas A&M/Wisconsin +4000
Iowa/Michigan/Penn St +5000
Auburn/Nebraska/Oklahoma St +6000
Odds to win the 2020 Heisman Trophy (Bovada):
— Odds Shark (@OddsShark) January 14, 2020
Fields +175
Lawrence +550
Martinez/Rattler +1200
King/Newman/Ehlinger +1600
Nix/Slovis +2000
M.Jones/Brennan +2500
Book/Mond +3500
Costello/Howell +4000
Hubbard/Trask/Cunningham/Harris +5000
Now if we could only get one of those "Simulate Offseason" buttons they have in video games, we'd be set.
MEILLEUR JOUEUR DE LA DÉCENNIE. David Lighty got some turn-of-the-decade love on this very website yesterday when we named him to Ohio State's all-decade team, but he got even more recognition overseas, as the French hoops website BeBasket.com ranked him as the top French player of the decade.
And they also gave us an absolutely delightful little piece of French prose that Google was kind enough to translate into mostly readable English:
# 1: David Lighty
The 2020-2030 decade started with two negative games for David Lighty. What observation can be drawn from this fact, so rare? This highlights how little you are used to seeing "D-Light" go through. The Cleveland winger is also very active on both sides of the field. Star at Ohio State (NCAA) where he rubbed shoulders with Greg Oden and Evan Turner, this versatile player started his professional career in Italy before settling in France in 2012, with Nanterre. Under the orders of Pascal Donnadieu, he took off with the 2013 playoff campaign, concluded with a title of champion and MVP for the Ohioain. After a Coupe de France won in 2014, he signed at ASVEL where he had his first two-year experience, with a title won after a crazy final against Strasbourg in 2016. Returning to ASVEL in the summer of 2017, he became one of the executives of Zvezdan Mitrovic. His return to EuroLeague, at 31, is very successful. Hard worker, ready to throw himself on all the balloons, highly appreciated personality, synonymous with enthusiastic body language, David Lighty is the only player to have been three times champion of France over the decade. His regularity, his track record, his state of mind make him our No. 1 player in the decade 2010-2020.
"Ready to throw himself on all the balloons" is exactly how I want my life to be described from this day on.
STILL UP IN THE AIR. The bad news is, the Buckeyes lose Chase Young. But the good news is, Ohio State is still in play for top defensive end target Quincy Roche.
Was told last night former Temple DE Quincy Roche enjoyed his visit to UM over the weekend and is expected to decide today if he's taking visits elsewhere. Rutgers, Auburn, Ohio State all in the running. UNC would probably be his favorite if they had a scholarship for him pic.twitter.com/G3eVuQWSbo
— Manny Navarro (@Manny_Navarro) January 13, 2020
"If they had a scholarship for him" seems like quite the hangup, but looking at Ohio State's current roster situation, I have to wonder if that's a concern for the Buckeyes as well, especially if he wants to enroll sooner than later.
But hey, Ohio State's good at figuring those things like that out and Larry Johnson excels at coaching defensive linemen. So if this is meant to be, it'll be.
BACK IN QUACK. It's looking like Oregon is going to be at full strength for Ohio State's trip to Eugene next year. The Ducks had four defenders making NFL decisions following the season, and all four of them will be returning for their senior seasons.
Oregon’s defense will have both its starting cornerbacks and top two defensive tackles back in 2020.
Thomas Graham Jr., Deommodore Lenoir, Jordon Scott and Austin Faoliu all announced they’ll be returning for their senior seasons with the Ducks.
“As a coach, very grateful for those guys, their commitment to not only the program but to their own personal craft,” Oregon coach Mario Cristobal said. “I think when you make a decision like that, that’s as purpose-driven as their decision is, purpose-driven from a personal standpoint, from a team standpoint, from a program standpoint, it speaks very loudly for them as people, them as competitors, them as teammates.”
They're going to need every bit of that with Justin Fields and co. strolling into Autzen Stadium with one of the best offenses in college football. Give me the Bucks as two-touchdown favorites.
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