Friday's Buckeye Bits

Welcome to your morning bits. Things are beginning to heat up on the football front as Spring practice continues and the Spring game is only a couple weeks away. It's a welcome change from the constant media attention concerning Urban Meyer and Ohio State.

I'm sure other schools feel the same way but you would be hard pressed to find another that gets drawn through the mud as much as Ohio State. It's just something you have to deal with I guess. Lets get to the links.

Bri'onte Dunn looking good - Dunn is beginning to turn heads this Spring. He is catching the attention of Meyer as well as his fellow teammates with his solid work on the practice field. OSU has a deep backfield and competition will be tough. Dunn looks like he's throwing his hat in the ring early for playing time behind Braxton. Something to watch.

Urban is a little salty - Urban seems to be quite annoyed with this latest "story" to come out about his Florida days. I read the article and it really didn't tell us anything of substance. It was a bunch of speculation and "unnamed sources". I'm no journalism major or anything but that doesn't sound like credible information. The whole article just felt like sour grapes.

Monday's Buckeye Bits

Good morning Buckeye fans. Are you feeling the excitement and sheer giddiness that I'm feeling this morning? Thanks again to the Buckeyes for knocking off the 1-seed in the East region, Syracuse, on their way to a Final Four appearance.

This marks the first time since the 2006-2007 season that Ohio State has reached the Final Four. That was back when we had Oden and Conley as they went on to the National Championship game, something that this basketball team can accomplish just as well. Let's get on to the Bits!

The Jayhawks Stand In Our Way. It's time for a rematch and this game has quite a bit more riding on the outcome then last time. Back in early December, the Buckeyes played at Kansas against Thomas Robinson and Tyshawn Taylor. Up to that point, OSU was a perfect 8-0 and ranked 2nd in the country. Then, the Jayhawks were ranked 13th and were able to knock off Ohio State with a deceiving 78-67 victory.

The key point in this rematch: Jared Sullinger did not play in December vs. Kansas. Sullinger was sidelined due to an injury with his back, forcing him to sit the bench and watch the Buckeyes fall. Now there is nothing in Sullinger's way. This should be a great game to watch, as Kansas is really starting to hit their stride  after defeating the Midwest 1-seed, North Carolina. Both Robinson and Taylor play very well together and should cause problems for Ohio State all night, setting up an awesome combination of basketball talent.

Monday's Buckeye Bits

Good morning Buckeye fans, welcome to the Monday edition of our Buckeye Bits! The first weekend of March Madness concluded last night, with teams finally punching their tickets to the Sweet Sixteen.

Unfortunately the two #15-seeds in the tournament, Lehigh and Norfolk State, could not maintain their Cinderella run to the Sweet Sixteen falling to #10 Xavier and #4 Florida.

That makes the Ohio Bobcats the lowest seed in the Sweet Sixteen, sitting in at #13. It's been a crazy ride so far and it's only going to get more intense from here.

Let's get on with the Bits!

Bring On The Queen City. The #6 Cincinnati Bearcats upset #3 Florida State late last night taking out the Seminoles 62-56. The Bearcats move on to the Sweet Sixteen to face the Ohio State Buckeyes for the first time since 1962.

The Buckeyes will face the Bearcats on Thursday, at 9:45 P.M. The winner moves on to the Elite Eight where they will face either Syracuse or Wisconsin.

Tuesday's Buckeye Bits

Hello again fellow Buckeye fans. Welcome to another edition of "Buckeye Bit's". We are here to scour the Internet in an effort to pick out some interesting tidbits for you, our loyal reader. Hopefully you find our efforts worthwhile in this barren wasteland we call the offseason. Let's get to it. 

Armageddon? While wasting away at my office on Monday, I came across this scary little article. I am a total space, history and sports buff so anything that falls within those categories quickly catches my eye. What does it have to with the Buckeye's you might ask? 

Hell, I don't know but it's interesting nonetheless. If scientists just found this thing last year, imagine how many other threats exist out there in space. I'm going to need at least 2 championships from Urban before we all die in a hail of asteroids so let's get to it coach! Oh, looks like he has. 

Monday's Buckeye Bits

Good morning Buckeye fans. It was another long weekend for our Buckeyes as yesterday they fell to Wisconsin for another loss at home this season.

After the Senior Day loss, the Buckeyes look to finish out the regular season with one more match up against Northwestern (at home) and Michigan State (at Michigan State).

Soon after that it's on to tournament madness! Let's get on with the Bits.

NFL Combine Is Surprising, At Least. Former Buckeyes Mike Adams, Michael Brewster, Dan Herron and DeVier Posey completed their work at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis over the weekend.

Adams, produced one of the most disappointing performances, with 19 reps on the bench press to go along with a terrible 5.40 mark in the 40-yard dash, even though it might not mean too much, being an offensive lineman. Brewster put up 29 reps on the bench and clocked a 5.35 40 at 6'2", 312.

Herron clocked a 4.66 in the 40, which is not as good as he was hoping for as a running back.

Posey turned in a 4.50, which doesn't really seem to be accurate in my opinion. Interestingly enough, Posey's unofficial time was a 4.37 40. You have to wonder which is his real true speed.

Wednesday's Buckeye Bits

Good morning, Buckeye fans!  I certainly hope this version of the basketball Buckeyes left a better impression than the one that faced TSUN over the weekend.  The Buckeyes welcomed Brandon Paul and the Illini into Columbus, and quickly sent them on their way, cruising to a 83-67 victory. 

After Paul went for 43 against the Buckeyes in Champaign, he was held to just 9 points on 2-9 shooting this time around.  Deshaun Thomas and William Buford led the Buckeyes with 19 and 17, respectively.  Next up for Ohio State is Wisconsin on Sunday in Columbus.  The Buckeyes beat the Badgers in Madison earlier this month, 58-52.

Now, on to the bits!

Zach Smith a good fit in Columbus.  Smith, the new wide receivers coach for Urban Meyer, has plenty of ties to Meyer and the Ohio State football program.  This is a nice article about how Smith shares his passion for Ohio State with his grandfather, Earle Bruce.  Yes, that Earle Bruce.  The 27-year-old has worked with Meyer for five years and has also spent time coaching at Marshall and Temple.

Tuesday's Buckeye Bits

Surprise, Buckeye fans! You've got me again today. We've got a good round of Bits coming your way this morning but I first just wanted you all to take notice of a new house on the market that looks pretty damn nice. If you want to buy me a present for all of my hard work, I would gladly take our coach's former house. Anyways, back on to the task at hand. Let's get on with today's Buckeye Bits!

You Thought That Was The Only House Today? Ramzy over at Eleven Warriors continues to dominate the writing game, this time with a piece on a different view of Ohio State and Michigan. Also, he continues the house-theme today, with Tom Brady's super mansion. Also, if you haven't seen the fight of the century, it's way better than anything Pacquiao and Mayweather could do.

"The reason that Michigan has been isolated instead of, say, Northwestern (most Wildcats, like Buckeyes, are Communications majors) is because with Rich Rodriguez no longer in Ann Arbor, Michigan is back to recruiting the same players as Ohio State once again. There simply is no offseason in college football's greatest rivalry.

The likely reverberation will be Michigan coaches having to explain, again, why so many of its players end up as General Studies majors. It's an extremely answerable question that passes the red-face test without any challenges. That's not really the intent, though. This is a simple, short-attention span rebuttal to Michigan's value proposition."

To echo Ramzy, this rivalry really doesn't have an offseason. Let the hate flow.

Monday's Buckeye Bits

Good morning Buckeye faithful, and Happy President's Day! Just like last week, our men's basketball team is coming off of a loss to a team from That State Up North.

This time around, it's THE team, and it might hurt a little worse, considering that our Buckeyes now have a 2-game losing streak against teams from Michigan. Hard to believe. Let's see if today's Bits can ease some of the pain away.

It Might Not Be Our Basement, But It's A Basement. While we're nowhere near super-size buckeye blog Eleven Warriors level, we all started our blogs with the same ideas: To share our thoughts and opinions on everything about our favorite scarlet and gray-clad team. That being said, to give you guys the latest and greatest news on OSU, it takes a lot of effort and time.

Sometimes that time is hard to come by when you're working or are in school. 11W is doing the best they can to try and bring Buckeye Nation a beat writer for their site so they can bring even more great coverage, and I suggest you head on over and do the right thing: Make a donation to their hard working site. If ten reasons aren't enough, here's the 11th: They're the best.

Monday's Buckeye Bits

Another week has arrived Buckeye fans, and the last bits of recruiting in the 2012 class have come to a close. Let's pretend that there wasn't a basketball game this weekend. As you know by now, Stefon Diggs chose Maryland over Ohio State, Florida, and Auburn. What's interesting is that he's the second top 10 receiver in this recruiting class to stay home over so many great other offers.

The other, Dorial Green-Beckham, chose Missouri over many different schools including Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, and Florida. I guess I can't say I'm surprised about these top receivers staying close to home, but it is a bit curious as to why they wouldn't want to take their talents to an even bigger school. Oh well, let's get on with the Bits!

Time For 2013. The 2012 recruiting class ended with 25 members, with 6 of them being enrolled. Urban was really able to turn this class around with only a couple of months to do it. Now, 2013 will solely be Urban's recruits. He's started off very well, with two commits that both come from the Buckeye state in 5-star QB/ATH Jalin Marshall and 4-star cornerback Cameron Burrows.

Urban is upping the ante as he's already proved in 2012, but is continuing to do so in the 2013 class. Often times, Jim Tressel and Jim Bollman would not get too ahead of themselves when it came down to offering athletes in future classes, but Meyer has already started with 55 total offers as it stands.

Friday's Buckeye Bits

Good morning Buckeye Nation!  I really wanted to do  that in the Robin Williams "Good Morning Vietnam" voice, but it doesn't really translate well to the written word...

I digress. We are finally starting to see something resembling winter here in Columbus. So imagine a warm September Saturday in the Shoe, surrounded by thousands of your sweatiest friends, and that will take the chill out of this weather.

What, recruiting season's still open? Yep, for players who want to have the spotlight to themselves can't make up their minds in time, there's still time.  Stefon Diggs is one highly rated recruit still on the table, for now. Deciding between Ohio State, Auburn, Florida, and...Maryland? Really, Maryland? Hometown team, for certain, but the Terps don't have a particularly stellar track record for producing either winning teams or lots of high draft picks. Randy White, Boomer Esiason, and Shawne Merriman are the only ones I can think of.

Thursday's Buckeye Bits

Recruiting. February 1, 2012 a day which will be marked in the continued rebirth of the Buckeyes. With all of the turmoil that has occurred in the last 12 months, I know I along with many other Buckeye fans was a bit concerned that all of the NCAA issues along with coaching issues would put a damper on National Signing Day. 

However that uncertainty began to dissipate in late November when OSU made the huge Urban Meyer signing. It seemed that as soon as he became head coach, the recruits started coming. Players who said they were coming, reaffirmed, and others made the switch to OSU. 

Yesterday confirmed everything. OSU got a huge class. According to ESPN Ohio State has the #6 rated class in the country (#1 in the B1G), with 24 recruits receiving 3 stars or higher. ESPN has DE Noah Spence out of Harrisburg Pa as the big win as the lone 5 star signee. The Buckeyes were once again strong, and they seem to be rebuilding that fence around Ohio. However, as great as we are in Ohio, Urban Meyer and OSU are national names. OSU received commitments from Indiana, Florida, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Colorado, and California. That is a great map and OSU’s footprint is apparently everywhere.

Wednesday's Buckeye Bits

Depsite being seven months away from the first game of the 2012 season, today is one of the most important days in college football. It is national signing day, the day where recruits can officially sign a Letter of Intent to play at their school. 

Urban Meyer has added several high-profile recruits since his hiring in November, and is looking to add at least one more today in Kyle Dodson.

At least 23 will commit the next four years to Ohio State.  As of this morning, Ohio State had 23 commitments, with 15 players being from Ohio.  The Plain Dealer made an interactive map where you can see where the recruits are from.  In a landmark move, all players signing with Ohio State will be given four-year scholarships, rather than the renewable one-year scholarships that had been handed out in the past. 

B1G Commissioner Jim Delany encouraged all conference schools to offer the four-year scholarships. The four-year grants were made possible in October by a rule change by the NCAA, but are not required.

Tuesday's Buckeye Bits

Good morning Buckeye fans. Welcome to your Tuesday Buckeye Bits. Unfortunately we are entering the worst month on the sporting calendar tomorrow. February is the worst.

College basketball is still weeks away from the greatest tournament on earth, the NFL will be coming to a close with this weekend’s super bowl, pitchers and catchers are still a couple weeks away from reporting and it’s COLD.

Don’t fret Buckeye fans! I am here to scour the internet in hopes of finding some interesting tidbits for you to read. Let’s get to it.

Buckeyes continue their hot streak- National signing day is only a few days away and the Buckeyes continue to pull in the blue chippers. The latest commit was corner Armani Reeves out of West Roxbury, MA. Depending on what recruiting site you look at, Reeves is listed anywhere from the 17th to 8th best corner available. It came down to OSU and Michigan in the end and I think we all know he made the right choice. It probably didn’t hurt that his high school teammate Cam Williams signed on last week but we’ll take them any way we can get them.

Monday's Buckeye Bits

Good morning Buckeye faithful, and welcome to your Monday edition of the Buckeye Bits. It's National Signing Day week, and that means the last couple of pushes, nudges, and full on shoves from coaches to recruits to sign with their school. As for the Buckeyes, they sit with 23 commitments, and hope to add to that number with a couple of big players.

I personally love the recruiting game. It's an interesting thing to watch a kid toy with coaches and fan bases with a simple tweet or even rumors that are started about said recruit which aren't true. Now all of that comes to the boiling point Wednesday, but might continue on for a couple of the recruits seriously enjoying the recruiting process.

Anyways, on to the Bits.

23 You Say? Not So Fast My Friend. As I mentioned above, the 2012 class stands at 23 commitments, but as we told you yesterday, wide receiver commit Roger Lewis is no longer a verbal to the Buckeyes, after not meeting the entry grade on his test. This opens up another scholarship, yes, but also puts on some serious pressure for Urban Meyer and his staff to lock down a commitment from another receiver. That can come in the form of Stefon Diggs or Davonte Neal.

Thursday's Buckeye Bits

Good morning Buckeye fans! Welcome to your Thursday edition of the Buckeye Bits. Let's jump right in!

Non-Revenue Sports Update. Another week of Buckeye sports in the books. Let’s take a look around campus and see what we have. Let’s take a look at the Men’s Gymnastic team. The top 5 Men’s gymnastic team has had a strong start to the season. In their first meet of the year, they knocked off several top 10 teams and won the prestigious Windy City Invitational. This win secured their #2 ranking. 

However, they couldn’t ride that momentum to a win in their first dual meet of the year, losing in a tight battle to #3 ranked Oklahoma in Columbus. They will try to rebound at the Winter Cup in Las Vegas next week, followed by a dual meet against TSUN on 2/18. The Lady Buckeye Gymnasts are 2-1 on the year and currently ranked #11. They are a tough squad with their only loss coming by less then 1 point. In other sports, the Wrestling team is off to another great start. Already this year they have knocked off perennial super power Iowa, and won the always tough Cliff Keen Invitational. 

Wednesday's Buckeye Bits

Good morning, Buckeye fans!  It’s Wednesday.  This is a good thing.  It means the week is almost half over, and, of course, the basketball Buckeyes take the court again tonight, taking on Penn State in Columbus.

Mike Adams Impresses at Senior Bowl.  Mike Adams was one of the top prospects at offensive tackle for the upcoming NFL Draft before Senior Bowl practices started, but it seems that he is doing even more to help his cause.  The 6-foot-8-inch Adams has the height to be a successful left tackle in the NFL, but scouts would like to see him add a few pounds to his frame. There is a good chance he will be a first-round pick in April.

Tuesday's Buckeye Bits

Happy Tuesday Buckeye fans! Glad to see you made it through another Monday. I know it’s still the dead of winter but we’re another week closer to Buckeye Football. Sure, we’re still closer to the last game of the 2011 season than the first game of next season but this is my column so leave me alone!

I’m sorry for yelling. As a token of good faith, I give you this. No need to thank me. The increased page views for ITS will suffice. I figured I already crossed into the “creepy old guy” zone last week with my comments about Urban’s daughter so might as well go all in right? Right. OK, enough of that. Let’s get to the bit’s baby!

Wismar: Recruiting Wizard. I often think about attempting to write a recruiting column but the sheer volume of research and pure insanity needed to do it right scares me off every time. The recruiting world is a dark and murky place where obsessive dudes hover over their laptops while perusing YouTube for the latest bits of shaky high school footage. I just can’t be one of those guys. Don’t get me wrong, I love those guys. I just can’t become one if I want to stay married.

There are many good bloggers out there with their finger on the pulse of this niche area of college football but none better than Dan Wismar over at The Cleveland Fan. The guy wrote a great piece the other day detailing the amazing turn around for the 2012 recruiting class. His writing is succinct, easy to read and has loads of information. If you can get past the serial killer profile picture (I kid Dan, I kid), I recommend you check out his stuff on a regular basis.

Friday's Buckeye Bits

It's the end of another week here at ITS, and we plenty to catch up on.  In other words, it's FRIDAY! Time to dress casually for work (if at all), leave early, play that awful Todd Rundgren song, and sit in traffic for hours since everyone forgot how to drive in snow.  Yay!

Leading off, as we told you yesterday, Cameron Burrows is Urban Meyer's first recruit for the 2013 national championship team. The number two CB in the nation hails from Dayton's legendary Trotwood-Madison program. Landing a high-profile commitment 13 days before the prior year's signing day is a major coup for the new coach. Burrows announced his decision at a press conference in his school's auditorium. We just wish he'd said "I'm taking my talents to High Street."

Thursday's Buckeye Bits

Happy Thursday, everybody.  It is one day closer to the weekend and, more importantly, one day closer to Buckeye football.

David Perkins is a Buckeye.  The Class of 2012 added more firepower on Wednesday as the Urban Meyer and the Buckeyes got another commit, this time a four-star linebacker/running back from South Bend (Ind.) Washington.  Perkins was originally committed to the Fighting Irish, but changed his mind during the season before picking Ohio State.  Perkins was a key member of the Washington team that went to the 4A state finals for the first time in nearly 40 years.

The Fall Continues for the Hoosiers.  This time, Indiana lost on the road to Nebraska 70-69, despite leading 63-52 with about six minutes remaining.  I can’t say I feel bad for the Hoosiers, especially considering some of the recent comments by Tom Crean.  Crean went on a rant on his weekly radio show, making statements seemingly aimed at the Ohio State coaching staff, as well as the players.

“We don’t have a team of guys that are out wearing their Beats headphones as they’re warming up,” Crean said, “Our guys are out there working with them.”

I really do not understand that quote from Crean. Are you saying that your team is working before the game, the other team is just fooling around, and you still got manhandled by a closer-than-it-looked 17 points? Do the B1G a favor, Tom Crean, and just keep your mouth closed. It’s better for you, it’s better for your school, and it’s better for us, so we don’t have to hear you.

Tuesday's Buckeye Bits

Good morning Buckeye fans. Congratulations! Why am I congratulating you? It’s because you survived the most depressing day of the year yesterday. That’s why!

Personally, I think all Monday’s are depressing (especially in the dreaded off season) but apparently the third one on the calendar takes the cake. That’s what some crazy British Scientist says anyway. Have no fear though. Another edition of “Buckeye Bits” is here to help ease the pain of the work week. Let’s get to it.

Urban Meyer Has Entered The Building. Urban Meyer, along with his coaching staff, was officially introduced at the last home Basketball game against Indiana. Obviously Urban has been heading the program for the last month+ but it was nice to give a formal introduction to the fan base. I’m sure you have seen the video by now but if by chance you just emerged from a cave, here’s the link to check it out.