Welcome to the Skull Session.
A home-and-home with Dan Hurley and the UConn Huskies?
An Ohio State and UConn home-and-home series is around the corner https://t.co/3o7G5FNdhr pic.twitter.com/HizD2TgCph
— Eleven Warriors (@11W) May 6, 2026
Yeah, that'll do!
Have a good Thursday.
NO, I AM NOT OK. Dwayne Haskins Sr. is ready to speak about his son’s tragic death and hopes his newfound voice will help others.
In an interview with USA TODAY’s Jarrett Bell this week, Haskins discussed the grief he has experienced since his son, former Ohio State quarterback Dwayne Haskins Jr., died more than four years ago. Haskins Sr.’s grief comes “with a purpose,” Bell wrote, “to add depth to the legacy of the former NFL quarterback’s complicated life with compassion that he is certain will help others.”
Following the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) community walk in Maryland on May 16, Haskins Sr. will host a talk-back discussion on mental health at the Gaithersburg Arts Barn. The event will honor Haskins Jr. and launch an awareness campaign for undiagnosed mental health conditions.
“Bro, it’s personal to me,” Haskins Sr. told USA TODAY on Sunday, which would have been Haskins Jr.’s 29th birthday. “I’ve never said anything about Dwayne publicly.”
Bell gave him the floor.
“We knew our son had some mental health challenges,” Haskins Sr. said. “As a family, we recognize that it’s very hard for us to communicate that when a professional athlete is pursuing his dream, that he has mental health issues. There’s a stigma with that. … We started to recognize warning signs, that we knew something wasn’t right with Dwayne. Now we’ve become advocates to make people aware of that. There’s mental health that manifests over a period of time, then all of a sudden something will trauma a person, where they won’t be able to have effective decision-making. And it continually gets triggered and triggered.”
At the upcoming event, Haskins Sr. will use the acronym “NINO” — No, I am not OK — to emphasize the importance of heeding warning signs. He hopes it will ultimately be recognized as a distress signal for those in need.
“We believe that if we can get this acronym in place, we’ll be able to save more lives, or get people the attention or assistance from mental health organizations like NAMI to provide solutions,” Haskins Sr. said.
Even if NINO can save just one life, Haskins Sr. knows his son would be proud.
“Dwayne is looking down at us right now,” Haskins said. “And it’s, ‘I’m proud of you mom and dad. You’re bringing awareness on my behalf.’”
As Bell described it, that’s “quite the noble purpose.”
It is. Indeed.
Rest in peace, Dwayne.
Though you are no longer with us, your spirit lives on.
"THE TEAM HAD A GREAT MINDSET." Julian Sayin is the latest great Ohio State quarterback under Ryan Day, following Dwayne Haskins, Justin Fields, C.J. Stroud and Will Howard. He carries on that legacy with a California-cool vibe — you know, the Maroon 5-playing-in-his-AirPods kind of vibe.
Sayin’s laid-back demeanor was on full display this week during his appearance on The Triple Option with Rob Stone, Mark Ingram and Ohio State national championship head coach Urban Meyer.
The interview started with a conversation about surfing (during which Meyer joked for Sayin to “get your ass out of the water”) before transitioning into discussions about Arthur Smith’s playbook, his decision to leave Alabama for Ohio State, learning from the Buckeyes’ 2024 national title run and more.
I’ll focus on the “and more” portion of the interview in this Skull Session: specifically, Sayin’s memories of Ohio State’s win over Team Up North in 2025.
“I think the team had a great mindset going into it. We weren’t really feeling a ton of pressure. We know how much it means to the state of Ohio and to our fanbase, but walking into that stadium was a ton of fun, and we had a bunch of juice,” Sayin said. “Obviously, off the bat I threw the interception, but after that it felt like we were in control.”
That Team Up North game will forever be Ohio State’s toughest regular-season matchup, even in 2026, when the Buckeyes could face as many as six ranked opponents in Texas, Iowa, Indiana, USC, Oregon and TTUN. Sayin said he’s looking forward to more big games during his third season, especially after experiencing one like last year’s showdown in Ann Arbor.
“A lot of the guys are excited. It’s exciting playing in those big games,” Sayin said. “Going down to Austin Week 2, going out to USC, playing Oregon at home, playing Up North at home. It’s gonna be a lot of fun. I think a lot of the guys are excited, and it’s making us prepared this summer and keeping that chip on our shoulder this summer and making us grind because we have a big season ahead of us.”
No kidding.
This season is going to be cinema.
NO YEARS OFF. Ever wonder what it’s like to be an Ohio State hater? One Florida Gators fan explains what it’s like watching the Buckeyes dominate as perennial national championship contenders from the outside looking in.
It’s one of the best videos I’ve seen in a while — and absolutely worth three minutes of your time.
@joshpray239 #ohiostatefootball original sound - Josh Pray
“I need y’all to have an off year, man! Just one!”
That’s hilarious.
One, because it’s a great line.
And two, because what he wants won’t happen.
Sorry, Josh. Thanks for the laugh, though.
MOST MARKETABLE ROOKIES. Five former Ohio State players will soon travel to Los Angeles for the 2026 NFLPA Rookie Premiere: Caleb Downs, Max Klare, Arvell Reese, Sonny Styles and Carnell Tate.
The quintet of Buckeyes are among 42 players ESPN’s Adam Schefter called “the most marketable rookies” in the 2026 class. As such, Downs, Klare, Reese, Styles and Tate will head to Southern California to connect “with the commercial power of the union and its partners.”
Heres the official list of players for the 2026 NFLPA Rookie Premiere. The annual event in LA serves as the first professional business trip for 42 of the most marketable rookies, connecting them with the commercial power of the union and its partners. pic.twitter.com/aBSLZaKrzb
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) May 6, 2026
Don’t ask me what that business jargon means.
I have no idea.
What I do know is that those five Buckeyes are popular as can be, and I’ll never complain about former Ohio State players receiving positive publicity. Every bit of it gives Ryan Day and Mark Pantoni more ammunition to attract the nation’s best talent to Columbus.
SONG OF THE DAY. "Gone Too Soon" - Daughtry.
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