Welcome to the Skull Session.
Methinks Sonny Styles will be a star in the NFL.
"Theres no limit to what I think this guy can be....
— SiriusXM NFL Radio (@SiriusXMNFL) April 29, 2026
Dan Quinn on first round pick Sonny Styles and how well Ohio State prepared him for the NFL.
https://t.co/ROaoooLr1I@Commanders I #HTTC I @OhioStateFB pic.twitter.com/P3VDW9mULp
Have a good Friday.
EVERYONE’S A BUCKEYE. Ohio State made headlines last month when fans purchasing items from concession stands at the Horseshoe were asked to round up to Ohio State athletics.
In an interview with The Lantern’s Jack Diwik, Ross Bjork shared where the idea came from and how the Buckeyes created and executed the innovative fundraising plan, which will continue this fall.
“I frequent Nutter Ace Hardware in Upper Arlington, and when I check out there, I can round up to Children’s Miracle Network, so this concept is not new,” Bjork said. “In this era, people want to invest. They want to invest in our players, they want to give directly to our athletes, and now we have avenues (to do that). That money that was raised and generated — and this was kind of the first time we did it, and we’ll do it going into the football season — that money will just go into our Champions Fund and the Buckeye Club. That offsets any sort of revenue-sharing that we’re going to provide to the athletes.
“It’s not a one-on-one NIL deal that an individual fan will do with an athlete by rounding up, but hopefully they see value in helping the cause. Hopefully they see value in driving more and more revenue to the bottom line of our athletic department. We generate a lot of revenue for Ohio State athletics, but we also spend essentially every penny. The more that we generate, the more that we can invest back.”
Bjork said rounding up could become “difference-making money” for the school. He wants fans to feel like they have more than one way to invest in Ohio State’s success and shared a new mantra for the endeavor: “Everyone’s a Buckeye.”
“We want all fans to feel like they can do their part,” Bjork said. “Whether it’s 50 cents because they rounded up, or whether it’s $50,000 at a Saddle Up event or $5 million to give to a facility project or an endowment. Those are the things we want people to sink their teeth into is that ‘Everyone’s a Buckeye’ and let’s try to capitalize on this new era and these new conversations we can have.”
TL; DR — A message from Ohio State athletics:
FINANCIALLY MEANINGFUL, TASTEFULLY DONE. Fans will have mixed opinions on the round-up option at Ohio State football games. The same cannot be said about jersey patches. From what I can tell, those opinions are almost entirely negative.
Based on Bjork’s comments to Diwik on the matter, the jersey patches are happening, so get used it!
“We can have Nike, we can have the Ohio State logo, and we can have up to two additional sponsor logos,” Bjork said. “We are active in the marketplace. We don’t have anything announced yet. We don’t have anything across the finish line. We’re working with various companies right now to try to land something that would be meaningful financially but also be tastefully done. We want to make sure it’s integrated (well).”
To those who oppose jersey patches, Bjork said it’s simply the reality of modern college athletics.
“Those are, again, new opportunities that are in the field right now that we have to capitalize on,” he said. “Some people may not like it, but they also expect us to win and have the resources. Those are all the things that are going to this new era.”
In other words, winning has a price — and it might soon be stitched onto the uniforms.
Who do you think the sponsors will be? AEP? Safelite? Wendy’s? Whoever it is, they’d better back up the Brinks trucks.
LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON? This week, RJ Day received a scholarship offer from his father’s mentor.
On Wednesday, the Columbus DeSales quarterback announced on X that he received an offer from Northwestern after a conversation with Chip Kelly, Ryan Day’s coach at New Hampshire and later his assistant at Ohio State.
Wow. After a great throwing session and conversation with Coach Kelly and @jerryneuheisel I am excited to announce that Northwestern offered!!@BradMaendler@AllenTrieu @SWiltfong_@petenakos @247Sports@TheUCReport @On3@FootballSFD pic.twitter.com/GQIJLOi6pi
— RJ Day (@rj_day1) April 29, 2026
Northwestern is RJ Day’s 18th Division I offer and fifth from a Power school, along with Boston College, Cincinnati, Purdue and Syracuse. He also received an offer from Brian Hartline and South Florida on April 7.
Thank you@brianhartline for offering me a scholarship to The University of South Florida!!@BradMaendler@AllenTrieu @SWiltfong_@petenakos @247Sports@TheUCReport @On3@FootballSFD pic.twitter.com/eM9YDueY6P
— RJ Day (@rj_day1) April 7, 2026
Day has been prolific at DeSales. Last fall, he set single-season school records with 2,710 passing yards and 25 touchdowns, while also breaking the single-game mark with 482 yards in a Division II, Region 7 playoff win over Ashland. Entering his senior season in 2026, Day owns career program records with 5,710 passing yards and 54 touchdowns.
Kelly, who helped Ohio State win a national championship in 2024, left for the Las Vegas Raiders in 2025 but lasted just 11 games before being fired. He resurfaced at Northwestern a month later.
If Day ultimately chooses the Wildcats, he would become the second Day quarterback Kelly has coached. Ryan Day played under Kelly at New Hampshire and later worked alongside him in the NFL with the Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers. That would be quite the story!
WHO’S CUTTING ONIONS?! Kayden McDonald had some unforgettable moments at the NFL Draft. Here’s another one.
After the Houston Texans selected him with the No. 36 overall pick, McDonald received a surprise FaceTime call from his friend Elijah Hallum — the first friend he made after moving to Suwanee, Georgia, as a child.
“So proud of you. There’s no one that deserves it more than you,” Hallum said through tears.
“I miss you. I’m coming back to see you, bro,” McDonald replied.
In an interview with ESPN, McDonald said Hallum used to help him when he didn’t have enough money to buy lunch at Parsons Elementary.
“I never had lunch money in my account because I was struggling a little bit, the family,” McDonald said. “But he always had an open hand for me and, like, we’d just go to recess and play football, kickball… Our relationship grew each year and after that just became best buddies.”
NEW DUBCAST. The final Eleven Dubcast of the week welcomes back Kyle Jones to discuss Kirby Smart commenting on how the recent shift in the college sports landscape has made the Big Ten a "more competitive conference" than the SEC. Browns fan Jones also laments Cleveland passing on Caleb Downs.
SONG OF THE DAY. "Making Good Time" - Old Dominion.
CUT TO THE CHASE. Chonkers the sea lion draws crowds to San Francisco’s Pier 39... The iconic kiwi bird returns to New Zealand’s capital after a century-long absence... Tom Holland opens up about his social life, sobriety and recent success... Former Chick-fil-A worker accused of $80K mac and cheese refund scheme
