Welcome to the Skull Session.
Ohio State is all about the Swoosh.
Our guys are locked in with the swoosh. @ChrisHenryJr x @Jr2Maine x @BoJackson2025 pic.twitter.com/3sCMzhmtBc
— Ohio State Football (@OhioStateFB) July 16, 2026
Have a good Friday.
BATTLE POSTAL SERVICE. Remember the Jeremiah Smith and Battle Sports ad with This Is SportsCenter vibes? The apparel company released another hilarious ad featuring a Buckeye this week — this time, cornerback Devin Sanchez:
Another Ohio State + Battle Sports ad with Devin Sanchez running the Battle Postal Service. These videos are too good. pic.twitter.com/AZfVIaTkuG
— Chase Brown (@chaseabrown__) July 16, 2026
These videos are too good.
Battle Sports’ creative marketing team deserves a raise!
YOUNG BUCKS. Ohio State will enter the 2026 season as one of the youngest teams in college football.
RotoWire’s Thomas Leary shared an interactive widget this week that allows college football fans to sort teams based on their average roster age. Across all 138 FBS programs, the average roster is just over 20.3 years old, with UTSA owning the oldest roster (21.02 years) and Georgia the youngest (19.81 years).
Ohio State ranks No. 128 nationally with an average roster age of 19.95 years old. The Buckeyes’ roster ranks 63rd out of 67 Power Four teams and 17th out of 18 Big Ten programs.
Average Age of Every College Football Team, Ranked (2026)https://t.co/gN6OqaRNap
— RotoWireCFB (@RotoWireCFB) July 10, 2026
Ohio State’s status as one of college football’s youngest teams isn’t necessarily surprising. The Buckeyes had 25 players selected in the 2025 and 2026 NFL drafts and lost 31 scholarship players to the transfer portal this offseason, while they added 28 scholarship freshmen.
Ryan Day and his staff did well to raise the roster’s average age with 18 transfer additions, including 16 players who will be entering their fourth season or later in 2026.
Even with that influx of veterans, Ohio State remains one of the youngest teams in the country — which could be cause for concern until you remember the Buckeyes have experience where it matters most: at quarterback and in the trenches. Julian Sayin has already made 14 career starts, while Ohio State’s offensive line features more than 125 combined career appearances.
THE GREATS OF THEIR GENERATIONS. Earlier this month, Eleven Warriors readers voted for the best player from every decade since Ohio State became college football’s only recession-proof program. The result is a collection of Buckeye legends who defined their eras, from the hard-hitting defenses of the 1960s to the explosive offenses of the 2020s.
The list begins with one of the most feared defenders college football has ever seen. Readers selected Jack Tatum as the face of the 1960s before turning to the only two-time Heisman Trophy winner in college football history, Archie Griffin, as the greatest Buckeye of the 1970s. Chris Spielman earned the nod for the 1980s after becoming the heartbeat of Ohio State's defense, while Orlando Pace represented the 1990s as arguably the greatest offensive lineman in college football history.
The 21st century is represented by three Buckeye icons and one player who is still building his legacy. Troy Smith, who ended Ohio State's 27-year Heisman Trophy drought, claimed the 2000s. Ezekiel Elliott's legendary three-game postseason run to the 2014 national championship helped him earn the honor for the 2010s. And despite still having one season left in Columbus, Jeremiah Smith received readers' votes as the defining Buckeye of the 2020s after one of the most dominant starts to a career in program history.
- 1960s: Jack Tatum
- 1970s: Archie Griffin
- 1980s: Chris Spielman
- 1990s: Orlando Pace
- 2000s: Troy Smith
- 2010s: Ezekiel Elliott
- 2020s: Jeremiah Smith
What stands out most about these selections is how they tell the story of Ohio State football across seven decades. Each player didn't just excel individually — they became synonymous with an era of Buckeye football. And while the names from the past have long since cemented their legacies, Jeremiah Smith is still writing his story, giving him a chance to strengthen an already remarkable résumé before the decade comes to a close.
RALLY HOUSE! RALLY HOUSE! The owners of Rally House have pitched a plan to the city of Columbus that would more than triple the size of their Lane Avenue store.
According to preliminary site plans obtained by The Columbus Dispatch’s Emma Wozniak, the sports merchandise retailer wants to demolish its current location and replace it with a significantly larger store. The existing building sits between Ohio Stadium and the Schottenstein Center, and the proposed rebuild would expand the footprint to 12,100 square feet.
The proposal includes illuminated signs, decorative banners, a “selfie wall” and a 400-square-foot electronic billboard mounted on the side of the building. Rally House plans to use the display for advertisements, community messaging and Ohio State game day and event content.
“The goal of the display is to create an active, high-quality visual element that supports the energy and character of the Lane Avenue / Ohio State University campus area,” the plans state. “This site is located in a highly visible corridor surrounded by campus activity, football game day traffic, pedestrian movement, and OSU-related events.”
In a preliminary site compliance letter dated July 13, Columbus officials raised dozens of questions and requested revisions related to traffic management, fire safety, zoning and site engineering requirements. One reviewer specifically noted that the proposed graphics and signage would require a separate permit process and should be removed from the current submission.
Assuming those questions are answered, revisions are made and the necessary permits are approved, Rally House could soon become the biggest destination for Ohio State fans looking to gear up on game days. (I’d still be partial to College Traditions, but that’s because I was born and raised in their apparel!)
SONG OF THE DAY. “Halfway Up” - The Brook & the Bluff.
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