Skull Session: Urban Meyer Says the NCAA’s Penalties for Michigan “Will Go Down in the History Books,” Joel Klatt Picks Clemson to Beat Ohio State in the National Championship Game

By Chase Brown on August 21, 2025 at 5:00 am
Jeremiah Smith
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Welcome to the Skull Session.

This week, Ohio State's Mic'd Up series continued with James Peoples.

 ONE FOR THE HISTORY BOOKS. In the latest episode of The Triple Option podcast, former Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer expressed frustration with the NCAA’s penalties for Michigan’s sign-stealing scheme.

“This will go down in the history books. This is something in my lifetime — I have not seen this,” Meyer said. “I released a statement… I referred back to a story of when I coached a team that wasn’t allowed to play for a national championship, but they had nothing to do with it.”

Of course, Meyer was referring to Ohio State’s 2012 season, in which the Buckeyes went undefeated in the regular season but could not compete in the Big Ten Championship Game or BCS National Championship Game because of an NCAA-sanctioned postseason ban.

As the podcast continued, Meyer shared some of the conversations he had with then-Ohio State president Gordon Gee and then-athletic director Gene Smith before that 2012 season, reflecting on the NCAA’s penalties and their impact on the football team.

“I was hired in 2011 — and this is an incredible story — Gene Smith called me about coaching the Buckeyes,” Meyer said. “They had just fired Jim Tressel, which you look back now, it was nonsense why that happened. It was players exchanging memorabilia for tattoos. Think about that for a minute.”

Meyer continued: “They fired a coach, and there was a thought they might lose a bowl game and lose scholarships. I hired someone from the NCAA to look into it. They came back to me and said, ‘This looks like it’s only gonna be a probation.’ And then I asked Dr. Gordon Gee and Gene Smith, ‘Any chance that we’re gonna lose bowl games or scholarships?’ Because I wasn’t gonna take the job, that’s usually a death knell. They assured me no. 

“I take the job, contract unsigned, two weeks later, Gene Smith came into my office and said, ‘We’ve got a problem.’ I said, ‘What’s that?’ He said, ‘The NCAA just took nine scholarships.’ Nine, that’s a big hit. And also, he said, ‘Your team cannot go play in a bowl game.’ They took a bowl game, and there’s no championship game, etc. The worst thing is that every senior could leave without punishment. So I’ve lived it. The NCAA is no longer an enforcement entity. It doesn’t exist, Mark. It does not exist.”

“It doesn’t exist, Coach,” co-host Mark Ingram echoed. “You talk about gaining a competitive advantage to help you win a national title — that you are guilty of doing something that gave you a competitive advantage — and all (the NCAA) did was give a couple fines, a couple show-causes, that’s it. For a wealthy university like Michigan, you’ll write the check 10 times out of 10 to win a national title. You’ll write the check 10 times out of 10 to win the national title.”

** sighs **

As much as the NCAA’s penalties for Michigan frustrate us, there’s nothing we can do about them now. What has happened has happened. What has not happened, however, is a football game between Ohio State and Michigan on Nov. 29 in Ann Arbor. When the Buckeyes beat the Wolverines, it won't heal all wounds, but it will provide solace — and a reminder of who owns the rivalry when both sides use the same set of rules.

 “I STAYED FOCUSED ON WHAT MATTERS.” The latest episode of The Triple Option also included an appearance from Jeremiah Smith, who answered a series of questions from Meyer, Ingram and Rob Stone. At the end of Smith’s appearance, the three co-hosts provided the Ohio State wide receiver with the platform to ask one of them a question. Smith chose to pick Ingram’s brain.

“I got one for you, Mark. You won the Heisman and everything like that, had hype around you at Alabama and everything, (you were) successful. How did you block out the noise? Because I think I do a pretty good job of it, but how did you handle all of it?” Smith asked.

Kids these days will call this glaze, but I am in awe of the humility required to ask this question. Smith recognized that Ingram, a national champion, Heisman Trophy winner and 12-year NFL veteran, has been where he wants to be and done what he wants to do. So, what can Ingram teach him? The answer is a lot.

“The way my parents brought me up, I always kept what was important to me the main thing, and that was my family, that was God, that was making sure I was doing the best I could do to help my team win championships and win games,” Ingram said. “All the outside noise, it was conditional. When you did good, they praised you. When you did bad, they tried to tear you down. I didn’t want to be involved with nothing conditional. I stayed focused on what mattered to me the most. 

“I wanted to be the best football player that I could be. I wanted to be the best person to ever carry the football. As high as those expectations were, that’s what I strived for, that’s what I pushed for every single day. As long as I did that, I kept my focus on my family, God, football and being the best person that I could possibly be, then all the outside distractions didn’t matter because it was all conditional to me anyway.”

Great question.

Great answer.

I hope Smith takes the advice to heart entering what should be a sensational sophomore season for the Buckeyes.

 OHIO STATE VS. CLEMSON, PART SIX? This week, Fox Sports’ Joel Klatt predicted this season’s College Football Playoff bracket and national champion on his self-titled podcast. I’ve collected all the Ohio State #content from the 26-minute episode, including Klatt’s Big Ten Championship game prediction and his decision to send the No. 4-seeded Buckeyes to the national championship game.

On Ohio State vs. Penn State in the Big Ten Championship Game

“I’ve got Penn State and Ohio State playing for the Big Ten title. I do think Ohio State is likely gonna beat Penn State in the Shoe earlier in the season. There’s a chance, even with that other home game against Texas, that Ohio State is undefeated at this point. It would be No. 1 in the country. But remember, the pressure on James Franklin would be immense. Now, in this scenario, (the Nittany Lions) beat Oregon earlier in the year… but (the win) wouldn’t have been against a traditional Big Ten power. It would not have ever — at this point — beaten Ohio State in recent vintage or Michigan in recent vintage… so they have to get this win.

"The pressure on James Franklin would be immense. Because of that, I actually think his team would play their best football. Experienced team, with experience at quarterback, but you don’t have experience on the other side, with Julian Sayin at quarterback, and he doesn’t have the home game environment he would in the Shoe. I think Penn State actually beats Ohio State and wins the Big Ten. They were right there last year, lost to Oregon. They go back, play for the Big Ten title and they beat the Buckeyes this time to become the Big Ten champ.”

On Ohio State earning the No. 4 seed

“My No. 4 seed is actually gonna be one of the conference (championship) game losers. … Let’s say Ohio State has a great year. Let’s say they’ve even beaten Texas. In this case, Texas would be, like, a one-loss SEC champ, and they had lost to Ohio State, but then Ohio State loses that championship game to Penn State. Maybe (the Buckeyes) beat the Nittany Lions in Columbus, and they would be No. 4. I think Ohio State has a great year, but Penn State wins the Big Ten Championship Game, which means the Buckeyes would still get a bye and they would be the No. 4 seed.”

On Ohio State vs. Georgia in the CFP Quarterfinals

“I can’t get my head around Georgia. I think that Ohio State, at this point, will have its quarterback figured out. I think (Matt) Patricia will have the defense figured out. I think they have the two best players in the sport in (Caleb) Downs and (Jeremiah) Smith. I think it's a tight game. This is a coin-flip game. But I’m gonna go with the Buckeyes over the Bulldogs in getting into the semifinals.”

On Ohio State vs. Penn State in the CFP Semifinals

“I don’t think Penn State can beat Ohio State twice in the matter of about 30 days, something along those lines — maybe a little more, 35 days, 36 days, from the Big Ten Championship Game to the national semifinals. You give Ryan Day the opportunity to adjust after a loss like that, and he’s going to adjust. I’m gonna go with Ohio State over Penn State in getting into the national championship for the second straight year. That would be devastating for Penn State after what happened a year ago (losing to Notre Dame in the CFP semifinals).”

On Ohio State vs. Clemson in the CFP final

“I think we’re gonna have an Ohio State vs. Clemson national championship. I don’t think Ohio State is gonna win back-to-back national championships. I could see them win these other games in the playoff, but man, you’re talking about going back-to-back a year after having 14 players drafted. I don’t think that’s the case. Meanwhile, you got a team in Clemson that I’ve got three players in the my top-10 players overall in college football on their roster. They’ve got a coach that’s done it before. They’ve got experience at quarterback. They’ve got a defense that could be one of the better if not the best in college football along with Texas.

"I think Dabo (Swinney) wins his third national championship, proves that there is still a way to win in this era where everyone has been all over him about not adjusting to the new era and he’s gonna go out there and win again, which means Dabo Swinney would join Nick Saban as one of the only coaches to win national championships over different cycles of recruits (at the same school). That’s very difficult to do. … This is what Kirby Smart is gonna have to face. This is what Ryan Day is gonna have to face. And now Dabo would be getting another championship, his third, with a totally different cycle of recruits and in an era that is totally different than when he won his first two. That would be huge. My national champions, the official pick, the Clemson Tigers win the national championship in college football.”

Klatt picking Penn State to beat Ohio State in the Big Ten Championship Game and Clemson to beat Ohio State in the national championship game will certainly boost his approval rating in Columbus…

Not!

Just in case Ohio State faces Clemson in the national championship, I'd like to remind you: The Tiger Clown T-shirt at Eleven Warriors Dry Goods is 60 percent off! It's now just $12 (was $30), and available in S, M, L, and XL.

 JON GRUDEN SIGHTING? Folks, Super Bowl champion head coach Jon Gruden was at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center on Wednesday. The Sandusky, Ohio, native and lifelong Ohio State fan posted a few pictures and videos from his visit to X, and I’m hoping there will be more #content to follow!

And how about this video from Ohio State football where Gruden showed off the cleats the Buckeyes will wear against Texas?

 DAILY DUBCAST.  Today's Eleven Dubcast talks to Garrick Hodge about his perspective on Davison Igbinosun aiming to become a first-round NFL Draft pick by cutting down on penalties and interesting recruiting developments for Ohio State at safety.

 SONG OF THE DAY. "What I Like About You" - The Romantics.

 CUT TO THE CHASE. Scientists get a rare peek inside of an exploding star... NASA’s Webb telescope finds a new tiny moon around Uranus... Stone Age humans were picky about which rocks they used for making tools, study finds... How a ship that glides like a pelican could change travel and defense... Stop AI-Shaming Our Precious, Kindly Em Dashes—Please.

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