Ohio State Has Had Plenty Of Big Signing Days

Feb. 25, 2014
Recruiting Flashback
Ohio State Has Had Plenty Of Big Signing Days
2
BSB Quickly
Feb. 25, 2014
Cover
Looking Back At 30
Years Of Recruiting
Quickly
Feb. 25, 2014
Publisher ........... Frank Moskowitz
Asst. Publisher ..... Becky Roberts
Editor...........................Jeff Svoboda
Staff Writers
Ben Axelrod
Ryan Ginn
Marcus Hartman
Designer/Staff Writer
Matthew Hager
Photographers
Sonny Brockway
Kevin Dye
Josh Winslow
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On The Cover:
Earle Bruce, John Cooper, Jim
Tressel and Urban Meyer have all
found recruiting success at Ohio
State during the Buckeye Sports
Bulletin era. (File photos)
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By Jeff Svoboda and Ryan Ginn
The unbridled joy and celebration that
Buckeye fans have grown accustomed to
under head coach Urban Meyer haven’t
always been the case in Columbus.
National Signing Day has produced plenty
of happiness and pleasant surprises, but
there have also been more than a couple
of disappointments along the way.
With that in mind, BSB set out to
examine just how the Buckeyes fared
over the course of every recruiting cycle
since the paper started covering recruiting extensively. What follows are capsules from each signing day over the past
30 years.
Newark, Ohio, and DB William White out
of Lima, Ohio.
1985
Rating: Recruiting expert Tom
Lemming put the Buckeyes either fourth
or fifth in the Big Ten, noting that the class
was “not a bad one, but not a great one
either” and saying the Buckeyes deserved
a grade of B for meeting their needs at
linebacker and in the offensive backfield.
The Big Gets: Lemming touted linemen Steve France (Lancaster, Pa.), Tim
Moxley (Barnesville, Ohio) and Bill
Smith (Middletown), not to mention instate running back Vince Workman of
Dublin and quarterback Tom Bolyard of
Orrville, a Parade All-American. The class
also included a few names that would
1984
Rating: No national services were become familiar in running back Everett
quoted in BSB, but recruiting writer Ross (Columbus), defensive lineman Joe
Doug Huff gave the Buckeyes a B-plus Staysniak (Grafton, Ohio) and linebacker
class, while Illinois led the Big Ten with Srecko Zizakovic (Toronto, Ontario).
The Story:
Ohio State
a grade of A.
missed out on the top player
The Big Gets: Earle Bruce’s
in Ohio, Michigan-bound linehaul was highlighted by firstbacker Brent White, but still
team USA Today All-American
inked six in-state linebackers
Chris Spielman. The line– a group that included Dee
backer from Massillon (Ohio)
Dee Howard (Middletown),
Washington was joined by felDerek Isaman (Fremont), Jim
low Ohioans and first-team AllPalmer (Loudonville), Paul
Americans Alex Higdon (tight
Soltis (Youngstown) and brothend, Cincinnati Princeton) and
ers John and Mike Sullivan
Tom Tupa (punter/quarterback,
Chris Spielman
(Mentor) – among its group
Broadview Heights Brecksville).
Wideout Cris Carter from Middletown, of 21 signees. Zizakovic was found when
he sent OSU a letter detailing his interOhio.
The Story: The 25-player class with est. Despite sending film against competian emphasis on offensive linemen, defen- tion recruiting coordinator Bob McNea
sive backs, linebackers, wide receivers described as terrible, Zizakovic ended up
and quarterbacks also included second- in the class.
team All-Americans Mike Bloemer (offensive lineman, Cincinnati Aiken) and Greg 1986
Rogan (defensive back, Urbana, Ohio).
Rating: None provided.
Ohio State did well in the Queen City area
The Big Gets: Offensive lineman
– in particular Middletown, where Carter Jeff Davidson of Westerville – another of
was joined by fellow Middies Sean Bell Jim’s sons – was the top offensive lineand Dwight Smith (both defensive backs) man in Ohio in Bruce’s estimation, while
in the class, while Ohio State also picked the coach was also excited to bring in
up the son of a former Ohio State captain Middletown’s John Peterson on the OL as
– linebacker Jim Davidson, whose father, well. Bruce also picked up two excellent
Jim Sr., wore scarlet and gray – as well running backs in Harrisburg, Pa., prospect
as offensive lineman Jeff Uhlenhake from James Bryant and Toledo’s Lance Price,
Cover
while Greg Frey of Cincinnati headlined
a three-man QB group. Other notable
names included offensive lineman Dan
Beatty of East Liverpool, Ohio; kicker Pat
O’Morrow of Radford, Va.; and defensive
back Mark Pelini out of Youngstown,
Ohio.
The Story: The 28-member class was
the biggest in Bruce’s tenure in order
to make up for some low scholarship
numbers, and the head coach wasn’t too
worried about missing out on some highly rated running backs. “I relate to the
fisherman,” Bruce said. “When you go
fishing, it’s kind of funny, but when you
get back, you like to talk about all the
big ones that got in the boat. You don’t
spend too much time talking about the
ones you let get away.” Tough academic
standards brought on by the NCAA’s new
Proposition 48 also made news.
1987
Rating: “With the amount of scholarships to offer, they did a real good job,”
Lemming said, noting the Buckeyes were
among the best in the Big Ten with
Michigan, Iowa and Minnesota.
The Big Gets: Lemming noted that
Cincinnati CAPE running back Carlos
Snow was his No. 1 player in the state
while also praising three other skill players – RB James Graham of Long Beach,
N.Y.; wideout Jeff Graham of Kettering
(Ohio) Alter; and tight end Jeff Ellis of
Louisville (Ky.) Male.
The Story: What would end up being
Bruce’s final recruiting class was about
quality, not quantity, to the head coach,
who inked just 19 players to letters of
intent. The head coach said the Buckeyes
signed almost half of the prospects who
visited while restocking the skill positions. The Buckeyes went without a quarterback, but running back John Spencer of
St. Clairsville, Ohio – the younger brother
of former OSU RB Tim Spencer – also
was highly thought of. OSU inked a few
linemen as well, including John Kacherski
of Milford (Conn.) Prep and Roy Nichols
out of a small western Pennsylvania town
called Jeannette.
1988
Rating: John Cooper’s first class as
OSU’s head coach, put together by hotshot
recruiting coordinator Steve Pederson,
was called a top-20 effort by Lemming,
who put the Buckeyes third in the Big Ten
behind Michigan and Purdue.
The Big Gets: Cooper raced to the
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finish to pull in a group of stars that was
headlined by a Parade All-America quarterback in Centerville, Ohio, native Kirk
Herbstreit. Cooper also won some big
recruiting victories for players such as
Zanesville, Ohio, two-way player Buster
Howe; Toledo Rogers offensive lineman Corey Pargo; Middletown offensive
lineman Paul Sherrick; Delphos (Ohio)
Jefferson linebacker Tony Closson; Girard,
Ohio, quarterback Nick Cochran; Chagrin
Falls (Ohio) Kenston linebacker Judah
Herman; and North Olmsted, Ohio, DL
Rich Frimel.
The Story: While Cooper pulled in
some solid talent, the new head coach’s
late appointment at OSU left him with a
gulf he could not breach when it came
to inking some of the best prospects in
the state. Cleveland St. Joseph quarterback Elvis Grbac and receiver Desmond
Howard, who both committed to Michigan,
and Gates Mills Hawken running back
O.J. McDuffie, a late Penn State pledge,
were among those who got away. The 21member class still included 17 Ohioans
with a particular emphasis on linebackers
(seven) and quarterbacks (three).
1989
Rating: Despite a losing season in
Cooper’s first campaign, Ohio State put
together a top-10 class according to
most experts. Lemming was particularly
impressed, putting OSU first in the Big
Ten and fourth in the nation behind Notre
Dame, Clemson and Florida State.
The Big Gets: Pederson engineered
an effort that included eight prep AllAmericans, a group headlined by linebacker Ty Morrison of San Diego (the
nation’s No. 12-ranked player) as well
as linebacker Alonzo Spellman (Mount
Holly, N.J.), defensive lineman Chuck
Jones (Chillicothe, Ohio), wideout Roger
Harper (Columbus) and center Rod Smith
(Cleveland).
The Story: The 24-player class was
considered perhaps the Buckeyes’ best
recruiting effort in two decades while
also filling a number of the team’s needs.
The talent across the board was impressive, as Spellman went on to become
a first-round draft pick and linebacker
Steve Tovar of Elyria (Ohio) West was
a two-time All-American. Other eventual
first-team All-Big Ten choices included
defensive end Jason Simmons (Akron
St. Vincent-St. Mary), defensive backs
Chico Nelson (Sarasota, Fla.) and Harper
(Columbus Independence), offensive line-
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men Alan Kline (Tiffin Columbian) and
Jason Winrow (Seabrook, N.J.), and kicker Tim Williams (Waynesville, Ohio).
1990
Rating: Most observers gave OSU high
marks for its 20-member class, with UPI
rating the Buckeyes third in the nation.
Max Emfinger had the team fifth, while
Lemming and SuperPrep’s Allen Wallace
placed the Buckeyes sixth.
The Big Gets: The Buckeyes signed
two players who were considered No. 1
in the nation by analysts. UPI had Euclid,
Ohio, running back Robert Smith as its
top player, while Emfinger said the same
of Cleveland St. Ignatius quarterback Joe
Pickens. Florida DB Larry Kennedy was
also considered one of the top 15 players
in the nation.
The Story: The class was heavy on
offensive firepower with four running
backs, three quarterbacks, three receivers and two tight ends. Best of all, Cooper
and his staff had stemmed the flow of
Ohio’s finest prep athletes signing with
archrival Michigan and elsewhere by inking Smith and Pickens. OSU also ended
up with notable names such as Cincinnati
Elder defensive lineman Matt Bonhaus;
St. Louis two-way player Butler By’not’e;
Bellaire, Ohio, wideout Joey Galloway;
Colorado wideout Chris Sanders; and
Sarasota, Fla., WR Cedric Saunders.
1991
Rating: Coming off a disappointing end
to the 1990 season and with numerous
assistant coaches leaving the program,
Lemming placed the Buckeyes sixth in
the Big Ten and No. 30 in the country
while Wallace said he would rank the
class somewhere near the bottom of his
top 50, calling it “one of the most disappointing efforts in the U.S. this year.”
The Big Gets: While Ohio State’s
class included a number of small-school
prospects from throughout Ohio, there
were some names that stood out, including St. Henry, Ohio, QB Bobby Hoying;
Youngstown (Ohio) Rayen linebacker
Craig Powell; Rowley (Mass.) Triton
Regional tackle C.J. Kelly; Kissimmee
(Fla.) Osceola defensive back Tito Paul;
and Warren (Ohio) JFK offensive lineman
Greg Kuszmaul.
The Story: Ohio State struggled in its
own state, missing out on star running
back Ki-Jana Carter of Westerville South
as well as nine of the 10 top Ohioans
overall. Ohio State signed a 19-player
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Feb. 25, 2014
class thanks to an exhaustive, 11th-hour
whirlwind tour of the country engineered
by Pederson. Still, it was a class mostly
cobbled together at the last minute, and
Cooper had trouble hiding his frustration
on signing day. “It’s the toughest year of
recruiting I’ve ever had in my life,” the
grim-faced coach told reporters. Twelve
of 19 signees figured to play defense
for the Buckeyes, including Columbus
Brookhaven DB Marlon Kerner.
1992
The Big Gets: Among the top players
in Ohio to sign were Stow Walsh Jesuit
defensive lineman Mike Vrabel, Massillon
Perry defensive lineman Raymond Harris,
defensive lineman John Day of Cleveland
St. Ignatius and kicker Mike Malfatt of
Dublin. Out-of-state stars included high
school All-America signal caller Mark
Zban of Huntington (W.Va.) East as well
as QB Stanley Jackson from Paterson,
N.J.; LB James Ross of Detroit; linebacker
Greg Bellisari of Boca Raton, Fla.; and RB
Keith Wilkerson of Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
The Story: The 22-member class
included eight linemen but was deep at
most every position, as OSU signed at
least two players at each spot except
receiver and kicker. Some of the top
players in Ohio chose to leave the state,
however, including Mentor wideout Joe
Jurevicius (Penn State), Norwood running
back Marc Edwards (Notre Dame) and
Barberton QB Scot Loeffler (Michigan).
A number of offensive linemen spurned
the Buckeyes as well, including
one-time commit Brad Jones
of Beaver Falls, Pa. Eventual
notable Buckeyes would also
include Piqua, Ohio, DL Matt
Finkes; Worthington, Ohio,
WR Dimitrious Stanley; and
Silver Spring, Md., defensive
back Shawn Springs.
Rating: Fresh off a contract extension,
a bespectacled Cooper was on the cover
of BSB after having a nice bounce-back
recruiting campaign. Lemming said OSU
had the best class in the Big Ten, rating
it sixth best in the country, while Blue
Chip Report editor Rick Kimbrel had the
Buckeyes tied for seventh nationally with
Michigan.
The Big Gets: First-year recruiting coordinator Bill Conley helped pull in
some in-state studs that included linemen Korey Stringer of
Warren Harding and Luke Fickell
of Columbus DeSales, linebacker Jayson Gwinn of Columbus
Brookhaven and defensive back
Dan Colson of Middletown.
The Story: Cooper inked
eight of the top 10 players in
Ohio as well as 19 Buckeye
1994
State natives among the 25-playOrlando Pace
Rating: On the heels of a
er class, a list that also included
offensive lineman Juan Porter of Cleveland Big Ten co-championship, Ohio State
St. Ignatius, defensive back Rob Kelly of signed a 20-person class that was in the
Newark Catholic and wide receiver Buster national top 10 of just about every recruitTillman of Steubenville. Almost everyone ing expert, topping out at second behind
was committed nearly three weeks before Tennessee in Lemming’s rankings. Even
National Signing Day, as well, and the Cooper was impressed, saying, “It’s probBuckeyes were also happy to ink such ably the best class we’ve had since I’ve
players as tailback Eddie George out of been here.”
The Big Gets: Ohio State stocked
Fork Union (Va.) Military Academy and
linebackers Lorenzo Styles of Farrell, Pa., up on line prospects, signing USA Today
and Ryan Miller from Allen Park, Mich. All-Americans Orlando Pace of Sandusky,
The only disappointment was a lack of a Ohio, and Eric Gohlstin of Cleveland St.
quarterback after missing out on in-state Ignatius along the offensive side of the
prospects Eric Boykin and Derek Kidwell ball to help replace four starters departed
to graduation. Four running backs were
and Tennessee prospect Todd Helton.
also signed, though the Buckeyes missed
out on Ohio native Curtis Enis, who chose
1993
Rating: Cooper railed against the Penn State.
The Story: The Buckeyes signed a
national experts, many of whom called the
Buckeye class good but not great. Opinion dozen players from Ohio, including eight
was divided even among the opinion mak- who would become future starters. In
ers, though. California-based Blue Chip addition to Pace – arguably the best offenReport had OSU at eighth in the country, sive lineman the Ohio State program has
while Lemming and SuperPrep placed the ever produced – and Gohlstin, Cooper
landed running back Pepe Pearson of
Buckeyes seventh in the Big Ten.
Cover
Euclid, defensive backs Damon Moore
of Fostoria and Che Bryant of Canton
McKinley, tight end John Lumpkin of
Trotwood-Madison, linebacker Jerry
Rudzinski of Kettering Alter and wide
receiver Dee Miller of Springfield South.
Ohio State was also prolific with its outof-state recruiting as well, going to Illinois
for such talented prospects as running
back Joe Montgomery and defensive lineman Winfield Garnett.
1995
Rating: As a result of limping across
the recruiting finish line, several national
services downgraded Ohio State’s efforts.
Lemming placed OSU fifth in the Big Ten
behind Penn State, Michigan, Illinois and
Wisconsin, saying, “Ohio State had an
atrocious year. They really got slammed
at the end.” Nationally, Wallace had the
Buckeyes just outside of his top 25 while
Lemming had OSU 33rd.
The Big Gets: Ohio State picked up
a highly touted JUCO quarterback in Joe
Germaine out of Arizona, while defensive
back Antoine Winfield of Akron Garfield
highlighted the in-state signees.
The Story: Wide receiver Randy Moss
of Belle (W.Va.) DuPont seemed headed to
OSU at one point to join older brother Eric
with the Buckeyes, but he opted at the last
minute to sign with Notre Dame. Ohio State
also saw a pair of running backs – Dyral
McMillan of Bradenton (Fla.) Southeast and
Nick Williams of Farmington Hills, Mich.
– get away to Miami (Fla.). Pouring salt in
those wounds were wide receiver Gerald
Williams of Tucker, Ga., and linebacker
Greg See of Radnor, Pa., each of whom had
verbally committed to the Buckeyes but
changed their minds just before signing day.
Williams instead wound up at Oklahoma,
and See signed with Florida. Ohio Mr.
Football Charles Woodson showed only
cursory interest in OSU before picking
Michigan as well. Among the 21 signees,
one was Montgomery, who had ended up
as a Prop 48 player a year prior.
1996
Rating: Ohio State was undefeated
until the Michigan game then lost to the
Wolverines as well as Peyton Manning’s
Tennessee team in the Florida Citrus
Bowl, but Ohio State was victorious on
the recruiting trail when it signed the
nation’s No. 1 class according to six out of
the seven experts featured in BSB. “There
are a lot of happy faces over here today,”
Cooper beamed.
Cover
The Big Gets: The Buckeyes inked
three consensus prep All-Americans,
including Westerville (Ohio) South linebacker Andy Katzenmoyer (USA Today’s
national defensive player of the year),
Cincinnati Colerain lineman Jefferson
Kelley and Spring Valley (Calif.) Monte
Vista tailback Michael Wiley. A fourth,
Columbus DeSales star Gary Berry, had
not made his decision as of signing day.
The Story: The Buckeyes signed eight
of the state’s top 10 prospects, including
Katzenmoyer, Kelley and Dublin Scioto
running back Nick Goings. The coaching
staff was just as aggressive outside Ohio’s
borders, going into the fertile recruiting area around Houston and landing
David Boston while nabbing Wiley from
California. No stone was left unturned
as Ohio State also got a pair of prospects from Canada – defensive end Brent
Johnson and linebacker Clinton Wayne
– and signed offensive lineman Joe Brown
and quarterback Mark Garcia out of junior
colleges in Arizona and California, respectively. Lastly, the Buckeyes stayed in the
hunt with highly rated California linebacker Na’il Diggs as well.
1997
Rating: Ohio State didn’t repeat as
national recruiting champions, as opinions from the national recruiting experts
seemed mixed with some ranking Ohio
State’s efforts as high as eighth in the
country while others downgraded the
class to only third best in the Big Ten. The
Buckeyes’ 21-member class finished 10th
nationally in the BSB consensus poll.
The Big Gets: Blue-chip signees for
the reigning Rose Bowl champs included
Winter Park, Fla., lineman Tam Hopkins
and Hazelwood (Mo.) East wideout
Reggie Germany. The Buckeyes also
signed Florida’s best linebacker, Miami
Southridge star Courtland Bullard, and
Ohio Mr. Football Derek Combs, a running back from Grove City.
The Story: Ohio State was able to sign
only two of the top six players in its home
state. That included Cincinnati Elder linebacker Jason Ott, the state’s top-ranked
prospect who had been committed to the
Buckeyes for nearly a year, as well as
Combs, the state’s fourth-ranked player.
Cooper was also happy bringing in a
pair of signal callers who weren’t nationally rated stars but did project well in
OSU’s system in California natives Austin
Moherman and David Priestley. As signing day passed, OSU waited on word from
Feb. 25, 2014
two star prep receivers in Californian KenYon Rambo and Youngstown Rayen’s Sam
Crenshaw.
1998
Rating: The Buckeyes returned 70
scholarship players from the year before
from a team that went 10-3, leaving spots
at a premium. Still, a 14-member class
landed in the top 20 of every national
expert quoted by BSB, with the Buckeyes
placing 16th in BSB’s consensus poll.
The Big Gets: Ohio State inked three
prep All-Americans on the defensive
line in Kenny Peterson of Ohio, Ryan
Pickett of Florida and Julius Yeast of
Kentucky. Cleveland St. Ignatius star lineman LeCharles Bentley also signed on the
dotted line, and Cooper was excited about
Florida quarterback Steve Bellisari and
running back Jonathan Wells.
The Story: The Buckeyes could nab
only three of Ohio’s top 10 prospects, but
they did get the No. 1 player in the state
in Peterson out of Canton McKinley. The
other two were sixth-ranked DB Nate
Clements of Shaker Heights, Ohio, and
eighth-ranked fullback Jamar Martin,
Peterson’s teammate. Nine of the 14
signees were on defense, including DBs
Willie “Cie” Grant of New Philadelphia,
Ohio; Donnie Nickey of Plain City (Ohio)
Jonathan Alder; and Derek Ross of Rock
Hill (S.C.) Northwest. Help on the defensive line was provided by tackle Ryan
Pickett of Zephyrhills, Fla.
1999
Rating: Ohio State fell just short of
both the 1998 on-field national title and
the ’99 recruiting crown, placing second in
BSB’s consensus poll, not to mention the
rankings put out by Wallace and Bobby
Burton.
The Big Gets: Thirteen players were
rated SuperPrep All-Americans, three of
whom were consensus All-Americans –
Ohio defensive lineman Tim Anderson,
Florida lineman Bryce Bishop of Miami
Killian and Park Forest (Ill.) Rich East
defensive back Richard McNutt.
The Story: Despite not offering Ohio’s
Mr. Football, running back Ryan Brewer
of Troy, the Buckeyes nearly made a
clean sweep of Ohio talent, signing 11 of
the state’s top 15 prospects. That included
each of the top seven, who were – in
order – running back Kelton Lindsay of
Lebanon; defensive back Curtis Crosby
of Columbus Eastmoor; linebacker Fred
Pagac Jr. of Dublin Coffman; linebacker
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Matt Wilhelm of Elyria Catholic; defensive back Mike Doss of Canton McKinley;
Anderson, who went to Clyde High School;
and offensive lineman Adrien Clarke of
Shaker Heights. The Buckeyes even went
into their archrival’s back yard to land
a pair of Michigan prospects – receiver
Ricky Bryant of Harrison High School in
Farmington Hills and quarterback Craig
Krenzel of Henry Ford II High School in
Sterling Heights.
2000
Rating: A 6-6 season didn’t dull Ohio
State’s recruiting effort, as a 25-man
recruiting class – Cooper’s last – placed
seventh in the BSB consensus poll. The
class was rated as high as fourth in the
nation by Burton.
The Big Gets: The Buckeyes landed
four members of the Rivals 100, including
linebacker Marco Cooper of Detroit Cass
Tech; running back Sam Maldonado of
Harrison, N.Y.; defensive end Will Smith
of Utica (N.Y.) Proctor; and defensive
end Alphonso Townsend of Lima (Ohio)
Senior. Ohio State also picked up a highly touted Floridian in wideout Michael
Jenkins of Tampa Leto.
The Story: Offensive lineman Alex
Stepanovich was the only player ranked
among Ohio’s top five who signed with
the Buckeyes. The lineman from Berea
was rated the No. 3 prospect in the state.
Offensive linemen Antonio Hall of Canton
McKinley (Kentucky) and Michael Munoz
of Cincinnati Moeller (Tennessee) were
the top rated Ohioans, while the state’s
Nos. 4 and 5 rated players – tight end Sean
McHugh of Chagrin Falls and defensive
end Sam Ruhe of Cuyahoga Falls Walsh
Jesuit – each signed with Penn State.
A lightly regarded quarterback named
Ben Roethlisberger, ranked only the No.
33 prospect in Ohio, signed with Miami
University. OSU’s signing day was saved
by pledges from out-of-state prospects,
including Cooper and four-star cornerback Harlen Jacobs of Atlanta Douglass
on signing day.
2001
Rating: Jim Tressel’s first recruiting
class didn’t exactly turn heads – he admitted to at one point wondering if the group
would even reach double digits – but the
new head coach closed with a bang. His
efforts were enough to tie with USC for
No. 14 in the BSB consensus poll, and
Kimbrel gave the class its highest rating
with a 10th-place slot.
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The Big Gets: The Buckeyes finished with four players in the Rivals 100,
as Columbus Brookhaven running back
Maurice Hall; Ironton, Ohio, linebacker
Redgie Arden Jr.; Dayton ChaminadeJulienne wide receiver Angelo Chattams;
and Upper Arlington, Ohio, defensive end
Simon Fraser all stayed home to play for
the OSU.
The Story: Tressel’s class came together at the last minute, although not by
design. The newly installed head coach
of the Buckeyes simply didn’t have much
time to piece together a full group of
recruits. He did enjoy a productive last
week, however, by receiving or reaffirming a total of eight verbal commitments
during the week leading up to National
Signing Day. Hall was one of three signing
day commitments, joining Canton (Ohio)
GlenOak defensive back Dustin Fox and
Tampa (Fla.) Gaither running back Lydell
Ross. Tressel showed he could do well
in Florida by also pulling in wide receiver Chris Gamble and defensive lineman
Quinton Thomas, who played together at
Fort Lauderdale Dillard.
2002
Rating: With a full allotment of time
to deal with the task at hand, Tressel
showed that he could be a formidable foe
on the recruiting trail. The 25-member
class ranked second nationally according
to the BSB consensus poll and was no
lower than fourth on any of the six lists
included.
The Big Gets: Among the six members of the Rivals 100, two-time Ohio
Mr. Football Maurice Clarett, a running
back out of Warren Harding, stood out.
The Buckeyes also pulled in Huntersville
(N.C.) North Mecklenburg offensive lineman Derek Morris; Avon Lake, Ohio,
linebacker Mike D’Andrea; Piqua, Ohio,
defensive tackle Quinn Pitcock; Massillon
(Ohio) Washington quarterback Justin
Zwick; and Warren (Ohio) Howland offensive lineman Doug Datish.
The Story: The Buckeyes made a
splash with prospects at the top of the
rankings but also picked up a handful
of prospects who finished outside of the
top 10 in Ohio. Among those additions
were Cleveland Glenville athlete Troy
Smith; Kettering (Ohio) Alter offensive
lineman Nick Mangold; Dublin (Ohio)
Scioto defensive end Jay Richardson; and
Centerville, Ohio, linebacker A.J. Hawk
– all of whom ranked 13th or lower in the
Buckeye State. Belle Glade (Fla.) Glades
Central wide receiver Santonio Holmes
also flew under the radar, failing to be
listed in the top 100 by any recruiting
service and cracking the top 300 of only
SuperPrep.
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out and landed some out-of-state stars.
Tressel went into U-M stronghold Detroit
Cass Tech to get defensive tackle Vernon
Gholston and also nabbed four players
from Pennsylvania thanks to a down year
from Penn State.
2003
Rating: Coming off a national champi- 2005
Rating: A smaller class didn’t prevent
onship and the No. 2 recruiting class one
year prior, Ohio State didn’t come close OSU from fielding quality talent, as it
to replicating the success of the previous finished ranked No. 12 in the Rivals rankrecruiting cycle. OSU’s average finish by ings. The Buckeyes placed third in the
recruiting experts was 24th, with a high Big Ten, trailing Michigan and Iowa.
The Big Gets: OSU landed one fiveof No. 11 and a low of No. 40 (from two
star prospect in Lakewood (Ohio) St.
different publications).
The Big Gets: OSU secured the ser- Edward offensive lineman Alex Boone,
vices of three members of the Rivals who came in as the No. 20 prospect in
100, including Cleveland Glenville defen- the country. The Buckeyes also signed
sive back Donte Whitner; Youngstown two other members of the Rivals 100 in
Cleveland Glenville defensive
(Ohio) Ursuline tight end
back Jamario O’Neal and Athol
Louis Irizarry; and Warrensville
Springs (N.Y.) St. Francis defenHeights, Ohio, defensive tackle
sive end Doug Worthington.
David Patterson.
The Story: In securing its
The Story: After a mas18-member class, Ohio State
sive 25-player haul in 2002, the
certainly took its pick from traBuckeyes raked in just 14 playditional in-state strongholds,
ers in the 2003 class. A dozen
grabbing Lancaster offensive
of those came from Ohio, with
lineman Jim Cordle, Canton
Houston Klein defensive back
GlenOak wide receiver Brian
Ashton Youboty and Hoboken,
Jim Cordle
Hartline and Akron St. VincentN.J., defensive back Ira Guilford
serving as the lone out-of-state coups. St. Mary defensive end Lawrence Wilson in
Although the class was made up predomi- addition to O’Neal and linebacker Freddie
nantly of Ohio players, that didn’t mean Lenix of Glenville. However, the Buckeyes
OSU dominated in recruiting local talent. also scooped up a handful of prospects
Of the 10 best Ohio recruits, the Buckeyes from less traditional areas, including
Piscataway, N.J., cornerback Malcolm
landed just five.
Jenkins; Plymouth (Minn.) Wayzata linebacker James Laurinaitis; and Mission
2004
Rating: OSU bounced back from a Viejo, Calif., defensive end Ryan Williams.
class whose rankings varied greatly by
inking a collection of players that rated 2006
Rating: With half the class – two fiveseventh best in the BSB consensus poll.
The Buckeyes placed in the top 10 of all stars and eight four-stars – reaching the
upper echelon of the prospect ratings,
eight lists featured in BSB.
The Big Gets: The Buckeyes landed OSU managed to lock down the No. 12
three players in the Rivals 100, highlight- class in the country for the second coned by a defensive back from Cleveland secutive year according to Rivals.com.
Glenville named Theodore Ginn Jr. who The Buckeyes trailed only Penn State for
was rated the No. 2 overall prospect in the Big Ten supremacy.
The Big Gets: Ohio State finished with
country. Ohio State also pulled in Huber
Heights (Ohio) Wayne linebacker Marcus four members of the Rivals 100, a quartet
Freeman and Erie (Pa.) McDowell offen- that was highlighted by Akron Garfield
running back Chris “Beanie” Wells, the
sive lineman Kyle Mitchum.
The Story: Starting with Ginn, Ohio No. 3 overall prospect in the country. In
State landed every in-state prospect it addition to Wells, the Buckeyes also manwanted, save for one. Toledo Rogers wide aged to go out and get Cleveland Glenville
receiver Fred Davis, the No. 19 pros- defensive end Robert Rose, Cincinnati
pect nationally, fled for warmer weather Colerain offensive lineman Connor Smith
and signed with USC. In addition to the and Cleveland Glenville wide receiver
14 prospects from Ohio, OSU also went Raymond Small from in-state programs.
Cover
Feb. 25, 2014
The Story: OSU may have stayed the top spot in the Big Ten by the thinnest
home for half its talent, but the rest of margins.
came from far and wide. Peterson, who
The Big Gets: OSU racked up eight
was now OSU’s recruiting coordinator, members of the Scout 100, but the biggest
estimated that the coaching staff easily fish remained at sea for the time being.
logged more than 100,000 miles of travel Jeannette, Pa., quarterback Terrelle Pryor,
the No. 1 overall prospect in
by land and air for this year’s
the country, was considering
class. The phrase “Go west,
OSU but did not sign his NLI
young man” was clearly taken
on Feb. 6. Still, Dublin (Ohio)
to heart by the OSU assistants
Coffman offensive tackle Mike
in piecing together this class,
Adams; Cincinnati La Salle
which included three California
wide receiver DeVier Posey;
signees in Los Angeles Dorsey
Orlando (Fla.) Edgewater cenlinebacker Mark Johnson, City
ter Michael Brewster; Klein,
College of San Francisco JUCO
Texas, offensive tackle J.B.
linebacker Larry Grant and
Shugarts; and Miami Krop midDana Point (Calif.) Dana Hills
Terrelle Pryor
dle linebacker Etienne Sabino
defensive back Grant Schwartz.
The Buckeyes also nabbed prospects gave the Buckeyes five prospects in the
from Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Michigan, top 40.
The Story: Ohio State signed its best
Pennsylvania and South Carolina.
class in years, but on National Signing
Day, not many people seemed to care.
2007
Rating: With just 15 prospects, Ohio Instead, the queries lobbied at Tressel
State finished No. 16 in the Scout.com were aimed at whether he expected Pryor
rankings. That placed the Buckeyes sec- to ultimately sign with the Buckeyes. That
ond in the Big Ten behind Michigan but made for tricky wording, given that the
ahead of another conference power in coach was forbidden to specifically reference unsigned recruits. Instead, Tressel
third-place Penn State.
The Big Gets: More than one quarter settled on this offering: “I think we had
of the group cracked the Scout 100. Among planned on having a quarterback in this
those to be listed among the national elite class, and so, yes, in a perfect world, let’s
were Cincinnati Colerain safety Eugene get a quarterback in this class, and our
Clifford; Lakewood (Ohio) St. Edward safe- plans would be further along.”
ty Nate Oliver; Canton (Ohio) South safety
Devon Torrence; and Piqua, Ohio, running 2009
Rating: With its largest class since
back Brandon Saine. Clifford was the lone
2002, Ohio State finished the 2009 recruitfive-star of the class.
The Story: Although the Buckeyes ing cycle ranked No. 1 in the country by
were coming off an appearance in the BCS Scout.com. The only other conference
title game, the momentum of a dominant schools to place in the top 30 were Penn
regular season didn’t necessarily carry State (10) and Michigan (13).
The Big Gets: The Buckeyes wrapped
over into the recruiting world. The class
was once again a mix of local and out- up the class with seven members of the
of-state players. Warren (Ohio) Harding Scout 100. That included Monroeville
running back Daniel “Boom” Herron and (Pa.) Gateway linebacker Dorian Bell;
Toledo Central Catholic wide receiver Garfield Heights, Ohio, defensive end
Dane Sanzenbacher joined the four Scout Melvin Fellows; Youngstown (Ohio)
100 athletes as talented Ohio players, Cardinal Mooney defensive tackle John
while Suwanee (Ga.) Peachtree Ridge Simon; Cleveland Glenville offensive
defensive tackle Cameron Heyward and lineman Marcus Hall; Miami Palmetto
Immokalee, Fla., linebacker Brian Rolle running back Jaamal Berry; Monroeville
showed Tressel could still recruit the Gateway defensive back Corey Brown;
and Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) St. Thomas
South.
Aquinas wide receiver Duron Carter.
The Story: The size of the class, which
2008
Rating: The Buckeyes closed out had already swelled to 25 by Sept. 1, 2008,
National Signing Day with a seventh-place threatened the comfort level of Peterson.
ranking according to Scout.com. That was That didn’t stop OSU from pursuing top
good enough for conference supremacy, talent in the final months, though, and it
as Ohio State edged out rival Michigan for paid off when the Buckeyes edged out
BSB Quickly
7
Alabama and LSU for the top spot. The
Cleveland Glenville pipeline to Columbus
continued in fine fashion, as defensive
end Jonathan Newsome pledged to the
Buckeyes and Hall followed him just two
days before pen met paper.
2010
Rating: With 18 players welcomed into
the fold, OSU finished No. 20 nationally
according to Scout.com. That placed the
Buckeyes third in the conference behind
Penn State and Michigan, which finished
10th and 12th, respectively.
The Big Gets: Ohio State landed
four players in the Scout 100, led by
Cincinnati Anderson offensive tackle Andrew Norwell, who ranked ninth
nationally. Among the other top signees
were Fort Wayne (Ind.) Paul Harding running back Roderick Smith, Fork Union
(Va.) Military Academy outside linebacker Jamel Turner and Cleveland Glenville
cornerback Christian Bryant.
The Story: Of the eight three-star
players Ohio State signed, five came
from out of state. Among those players were Detroit Southeastern defensive
lineman Johnathan Hankins, Suwanee
(Ga.) Peachtree Ridge defensive back
Bradley Roby, Charlotte (N.C.) Christian
linebacker David Durham, Wheaton (Ill.)
North quarterback Taylor Graham and
Canonsburg (Pa.) Canon-McMillan defensive back Chad Hagan. Of the more highly
rated prospects who came down to the
wire, OSU struck out on all of them. St.
Paul (Minn.) Cretin-Derham Hall offensive tackle Seantrel Henderson signed
with USC, while Cincinnati St. Xavier
offensive tackle Matt James faxed his NLI
to Notre Dame.
2011
Rating: A recruiting class that wound
up as Tressel’s last finished No. 3 in the
country according to Scout.com, putting
OSU in the top five nationally for the second time in three years.
The Big Gets: The Buckeyes continued to shine by pulling in eight members of
the Scout 100. Richmond (Va.) Hermitage
outside linebacker Curtis Grant led the
way and was followed by Huber Heights
(Ohio) Wayne quarterback Braxton
Miller; Canton (Ohio) McKinley defensive end Steve Miller; and Centerville,
Ohio, defensive tackle Michael Bennett.
Additionally, OSU also nabbed Akron
St. Vincent-St. Mary cornerback Doran
Grant; Plantation, Fla., linebacker Ryan
8
BSB Quickly
Feb. 25, 2014
Cover
offensive tackle Evan Lisle hailed from the
Buckeye State. However, Rossville (Ga.)
Ridgeland safety Vonn Bell; Plano (Texas)
Prestonwood Christian linebacker Mike
Mitchell; Fort Lauderdale, Fla., defensive end Joey Bosa; St. Louis Burroughs
running back Ezekiel Elliott; DeSoto,
Texas, running back Dontre Wilson; and
Riverside (Calif.) North tight end Marcus
Baugh also signed with OSU.
The Story: Meyer survived some
late drama in reeling in the impressive
class. The second-year coach landed a
pair of signing day pledges in Bell and
New Smyrna Beach, Fla., four-star wide
receiver James Clark. On top of that, he
also earned the services of a trio of stars
whose commitments were far from firm.
Wilson, Elliott and Lawrenceville (Ga.)
Central Gwinnett four-star linebacker
Trey Johnson all headed to Columbus on
a wild signing day for the Buckeyes.
2014
FILE PHOTO
EARLY ENROLLEE – Plantation, Fla., linebacker Ryan Shazier was a member of Jim
Tressel’s final recruiting class in 2011.
Shazier; Toledo Whitmer defensive end Dunn, Glen Ellyn (Ill.) Glenbard West
Kenny Hayes; and Palatine (Ill.) Fremd defensive tackle Tommy Schutt, Canton
center Brian Bobek.
(Ohio) McKinley defensive end Se’Von
The Story: Tressel’s final class includ- Pittman, Vandalia (Ohio) Butler offensive
ed plenty of balance, as every position tackle Taylor Decker and West Roxbury
group except running back featured at (Mass.) Catholic Memorial cornerback
least two signees. The Buckeyes pillaged Armani Reeves.
Ohio for 13 prospects, led by Miller, who
The Story: The 25-member class was
many hoped would serve as the quar- a monster haul given the circumstances,
terback of the future. While the in-state and it wasn’t made up of role players,
efforts proved fruitful, OSU also journeyed either. Of the group, four were considered
into south Florida to nab Shazier, Naples to be five-star talents while 11 more were
Barron Collier tight end Jeff Heuerman evaluated at the four-star level. Although
and Plantation defensive back Jeremy 12 of the players came on offense and 13
Cash.
on defense, there weren’t such even splits
between the positions. Meyer aggressively targeted help on both the offensive line
2012
Rating: OSU head coach Urban and at linebacker and came away with five
Meyer’s first recruiting class was a suc- new players at each.
cessful one, as the former Florida head
man came out of a one-year sabbatical to 2013
Rating: Similar to Tressel’s second
land the No. 3 class in the country accordyear in Columbus, Meyer benefited from
ing to Scout.com.
The Big Gets: Despite enduring three a full calendar of the recruiting cycle
leaders in less than a year, OSU was able and finished with the No. 1 class in the
to hold together a class that included country according to Scout.com. The
seven Scout 100 players, highlighted by fact that the rival Wolverines finished
top-10 national prospects in Harrisburg second made the top billing even more
(Pa.) Bishop McDevitt defensive end Noah enjoyable.
The Big Gets: Ohio State nabbed eight
Spence and Cincinnati Taft defensive end
Adolphus Washington. In addition to that members of the Scout 100, six of whom
duo, the Buckeyes also welcomed Canton came from out of state. Middletown wide
(Ohio) GlenOak running back Bri’onte receiver Jalin Marshall and Centerville
Rating: One year after finishing tops
nationally, Ohio State experienced a slight
drop-off to fifth place in the Scout.com
rankings. OSU still managed to outdistance every other member of the Big Ten
by a significant margin, ranking 14 spots
ahead of second-place Michigan State.
The Big Gets: The Buckeyes put
together a complete class that included
a whopping 10 members of the Scout
100, tied for most in the country alongside Alabama and more than the rest
of the Big Ten combined. That talented
group included just one five-star prospect in Cincinnati Moeller linebacker Sam
Hubbard. However, Detroit Cass Tech
cornerback Damon Webb, Cleveland
Glenville safety Erick Smith, Hinesville
(Ga.) Liberty County linebacker Raekwon
McMillan, Cleveland Glenville cornerback
Marshon Lattimore and Brooklyn (N.Y.)
Erasmus wide receiver Curtis Samuel
were all top-60 prospects nationally.
The Story: Ohio State got it done both
at home and on the road. The Buckeyes
landed the top six prospects in the state
of Ohio but also nabbed 10 four-star prospects from out of state. In addition to
Hubbard, Smith and Lattimore, OSU also
reeled in Cleveland St. Ignatius linebacker
Kyle Berger and a pair of Akron St.
Vincent-St. Mary teammates in linebacker
Dante Booker and running back Parris
Campbell. Position-wise, the Buckeyes
cleaned up at linebacker by signing the
Nos. 2-4 outside linebackers and No. 5
middle linebacker in the country.
Insider
Feb. 25, 2014
BSB Quickly
9
Ohio State 2014
Football Schedule
Aug. 30, 2014
OSU vs. Navy (at Baltimore)
Sept. 6, 2014
Virginia Tech at Ohio State
Sept. 13, 2014
Kent State at Ohio State
Sept. 27, 2014
Cincinnati at Ohio State
INSIDER
Miller Awarded Silver Football,
Undergoes Minor Surgery
No player in Big Ten history has won as
many individual awards as Ohio State senior
quarterback Braxton Miller, but Miller will
have a chance to keep adding to his trophy
case after spurning the NFL draft for one
more season in Columbus.
After finishing fifth in Heisman Trophy
voting as a sophomore, he appeared poised
for a three-year stay at OSU. However, an
early injury and late hiccup derailed those
plans. Instead, he said at no point during the
2013 campaign did he seriously consider
leaving Ohio State early.
“It wasn’t a deep thought about that,” he
said Feb. 19. “I always knew I was going
to eventually make that decision and I was
going to come back.”
Miller was speaking to the media following the presentation of his second consecutive Chicago Tribune Silver Football, an
award that predates the Heisman Trophy
and is awarded to the Big Ten’s most valuable player as voted on by the 12 coaches.
His selection marks just the fourth time
in history that a player has managed to
win the award on back-to-back occasions.
Miller joins Minnesota quarterback Paul
Giel (1952-53), Buckeye running back
Archie Griffin (73-74) and Indiana running
back Anthony Thompson (1988-89) in that
category.
He was announced as the winner on
Dec. 12 but presented the award more than
two months later at the Ohio State men’s
basketball contest against Northwestern,
allowing the Tribune’s Teddy Greenstein to
hand him the trophy at center court during
the first media timeout of the game.
The award boosted his lead atop the all-
OSU MEDIA RELATIONS
HAPPY TO BE BACK – Ohio State quarterback Braxton Miller, who received his
Chicago Tribune Silver Football award
on Feb. 19, “always knew” he would
return for his senior season.
time list of major conference awards with
seven, besting former Buckeye and College
Football Hall of Famer Orlando Pace, who
received five such honors over the course of
his storied career in Columbus. Miller collected the Silver Football, Big Ten Offensive
Player of the Year and Big Ten Quarterback
of the Year in both 2012 and 2013, while
also claiming Big Ten Freshman of the Year
honors in 2011.
Miller said that he didn’t take his decision lightly. After seeing a 24-game win
streak turn into a two-game losing streak,
Miller gave himself some time to avoid the
flood of emotions that came following the
defeats to Michigan State and Clemson.
“I just sat down with the coaches,
observed everything, made sure I was making the right decision and went over everything, and it wasn’t too hard of a decision,”
he said. “At first, I was thinking heavy about
everything that was going on at the time
– Orange Bowl, Big Ten Championship
Game, National Championship Game, but
after everything settled down I made the
right decision with Coach (Urban Meyer)
and my dad and my parents.”
His choice had the blessing of OSU offensive coordinator Tom Herman, a man who
many also thought might bolt Columbus in
the offseason for a head coaching opportunity.
“In my opinion, this was the best thing
for him because he didn’t have anything to
lose and (had) everything to gain by coming back,” Herman said. “It was very wise.”
While Miller will have a chance to
increase his accolades this fall, his quest for
improvement will be slightly delayed. Two
days after accepting the award, Miller had
Oct. 4, 2014
Ohio State at Maryland
Oct. 18, 2014
Rutgers at Ohio State
Oct. 25, 2014
Ohio State at Penn State
Nov. 1, 2014
Illinois at Ohio State
Nov. 8, 2014
Ohio State at Michigan State
Nov. 15, 2014
Ohio State at Minnesota
Nov. 22, 2014
Indiana at Ohio State
Nov. 29, 2014
Michigan at Ohio State
Dec. 6, 2014
Big Ten Title Game (Indianapolis)
minor surgery on his throwing shoulder.
According to an Ohio State release, the
senior will be limited throughout spring
practice, which begins March 7 and ends
April 12.
His absence will add intrigue to the
race to serve as his backup as sophomore Cardale Jones, redshirt freshman J.T.
Barrett and true freshman Stephen Collier
will likely see more snaps in spring practice
as a result of Miller’s operation.
Meyer Dishes On Several Topics
In Buckeye Cruise Interview
While attempting to raise more than $1
million for the Urban and Shelley Meyer
Fund for Cancer Research during the fiveday Buckeye Cruise for Cancer, Meyer conducted an interview session with Buckeye
fans on the morning of Feb. 23.
Meyer was asked about which players
10
BSB Quickly
Feb. 25, 2014
from the squad that went 12-2 in 2013 would
be toughest to replace, and he quickly credited the four starters on the offensive line
in that category. In doing so, though, he
also let out a secret about how he plans to
replace those starters despite some limited
depth.
Rising senior Joel Hale, who started 11
games at nose guard last season, will be
moved to the other side of the ball in hopes
of playing offensive guard this fall. The
move will give the Buckeyes an experienced competitor for one of four starting
spots alongside a slew of underclassmen,
including five true freshmen.
“We had the most points scored in Ohio
State history, the most yards rushing, the
most touchdowns, and a big part of that was
the offensive line,” Meyer said. “Chip Kelly,
a great friend of mine who is the head coach
of the (Philadelphia) Eagles now, sent me a
text like two weeks ago getting ready for the
combine and said it was the best offensive
line he’s seen in college football the last few
years. Those guys, (offensive line coach) Ed
Warinner did a great job. He took a group
that I think was 115th in rushing offense
and we were second last year, so we’re
going to count on him to develop linemen.
“We have Jacoby Boren, there’s a chance
he’ll play center with Billy Price, that’s
who’s competing. We have Taylor Decker,
we’ll move him to left tackle, Darryl Baldwin
at right tackle, Pat Elflein, and this is not
really news but Joel Hale is going to be
moved from defensive tackle to offensive
guard. That gives us energy, leadership and
toughness, which you need on the offensive
line. But the offensive line without question
is going to be the biggest void.”
Meyer also touched on the new format
that will help decide a champion in 2014.
With the Bowl Championship Series now
defunct, four teams chosen by a selection
committee will compete in a playoff to determine the college football titlist.
Although it may benefit the Buckeyes
by giving them more shots at playing for a
crown, Meyer is not necessarily in favor of
the new format. Coming off a game against
Michigan and then playing in the conference
title game and then having to potentially play
two more games after that is something that
Meyer isn’t exactly looking forward to.
Of course, not many coaches benefited
more than Meyer from the old system,
which crowned his Florida squad as champions in 2006 and 2008 and likely would
have given him a shot in 2012 had the
team not been ineligible and 2013 had the
Buckeyes defeated Michigan State.
“I think that’s one of the things, on all the
committees I was able to sit on and listen
to, the player welfare did not come up very
often,” Meyer said. “And the fans, imagine
being a fan and wanting to spend whatever
it costs to go to a big-time bowl game and
then you win that game and you have one
more. That’s probably a $10,000 investment
to take your family to the bowl game. But
there’s Auburn-Alabama, there’s FloridaFlorida State and there’s us and our rivals.
To finish the season against your rival, and
it’s a real rivalry game, the amount of effort
that goes into that game, you saw it, 42-41,
and then to come back and play two more
games.
“Our entire defense took a major blow
when Christian Bryant went down. So now
it becomes, if you’re lucky enough and
fortunate enough to get to the final game,
that’s the 15th game. It used to be 11 and
then you get to a bowl game, it’s 12. Now
it’s three more, and you still have the same
scholarship limits.”
The third-year OSU coach said that he
also believes players will ultimately get
a bigger stipend to offset cost of living
expenses but doesn’t think football players
will be outright paid at the expense of nonrevenue sports.
Doing so may also lead to a separation
of elite Division I teams from the rest of the
NCAA, he added.
“I do believe they should have a stipend,”
he said. “I’ve also coached at Bowling Green
and I’ve had two daughters that played college sports, and you can imagine the mess
you’d get if you paid football players and
don’t pay the other athletes, and if you pay
the other athletes, you can’t operate. I do
believe at some point you’ll see a separation between the big boys and the smaller
schools. I’m not sure when that’s going to
happen because of different issues. That’s
taking up a lot of our time, though, in meetings. I believe at some point, you’ll see a
stipend for our kids, but not at all levels
because you just can’t operate.”
Six Buckeyes Compete
At NFL Combine
Offensive linemen Corey Linsley and
Jack Mewhort opened the NFL Scouting
Combine for Ohio State on Feb. 22.
Linsley competed in only two drills, but
he made it count by completing 36 reps of
the 225-pound bench press, one of the top
marks in the combine. He also displayed a
27-inch vertical jump. Mewhort completed
the full testing battery, running a 5.37-second 40-yard dash and putting up 28 reps on
Insider
2013-14 BSB
Quickly Schedule
Aug. 30
Sept. 6
Sept. 13
Sept. 20
Sept. 27
Oct. 4
Oct. 18
Oct. 25
Nov. 1
Nov. 15
Nov. 22
Nov. 29
Dec. 6
Dec. 10
Jan. 2
Jan. 6
Jan. 10
Jan. 17
Jan. 21
Jan. 24
Jan. 31
Feb. 4
Feb. 7
Feb. 18
Feb. 25
March 11
March 25
April 8
April 22
May 6
May 20
June 17
July 15
July 29
Aug. 5
Aug. 12
the bench press. He also displayed a 28-inch
vertical jump and 101-inch broad jump and
completed the 3-cone drill in 7.79 seconds
and 20-yard shuttle in 4.64 seconds.
Linsley’s bench-press mark, which finished second among offensive linemen,
was the only top-15 performance by either
player in their position group, although
Mewhort narrowly missed that cutoff in a
handful of categories.
One day later, running back Carlos Hyde
completed 19 bench press reps and finished
with a 4.66 40-yard dash. He also displayed
a 34.5-inch vertical leap and a 114.0-inch
broad jump. His bench press total placed
him 13th among running backs at the combine.
Wide receiver Corey “Philly” Brown said
he hoped to run the 40-yard dash only once
and did so with a 4.51 official clocking. His
vertical jump measured at 33.0 inches, and
his broad jump came in at 116.0 inches. He
was timed at 7.16 seconds in the three-cone
drill, 4.22 seconds in the 20-yard shuttle and
11.94 seconds in the 60-yard shuttle. He did
not place in the top 15 of any categories.
At the time of publication, linebacker
Ryan Shazier and cornerback Bradley Roby
were still set to compete in the combine
over the final two days.
Athletics
Feb. 25, 2014
BSB Quickly
11
OSU AD Defends Amateurism Model
By Jeff Svoboda
By August, the NCAA will likely have a
different look, and the march toward providing cost-of-attendance stipends to college athletes at such universities as Ohio
State now seems as inexorable as the sun
rising in the east.
NCAA reform took a major step forward at the association’s annual convention and a special governance dialogue,
held concurrently in mid-January in San
Diego. There, a majority of the approximately 800 delegates on hand – athletics directors and other representatives
of the 351 Division I schools – agreed
with the assessment that the five major
conferences in college sports should
have greater autonomy to change the
course of college athletics to fit their
needs.
That will likely mean many things over
the coming years, but according to Ohio
State director of athletics Gene Smith, the
Big Ten, Pac-12, SEC, Big 12 and ACC
will start with issues of student-athlete
welfare, including stipends and decreased
regulation when it comes to things like
what foods schools can feed athletes and
what other benefits they can provide.
“I like it,” Smith told BSB in an interview in his office conducted Feb. 18. “It’s
very inclusive. It’s not too fast. We will get
our autonomy. Everybody agrees we have
to have it in certain areas, which I thought
was important. It’s primarily student-athlete welfare. We don’t want to increase the
number of scholarships. We don’t want
FILE PHOTO
CHANGE IS COMING – Ohio State athletics director Gene Smith is in favor of potential NCAA reform.
to increase the size of coaching staffs.
We don’t want to increase the number
of contests. We don’t want to change the
revenue distribution formulas so all 351
schools still get their revenue share.
“We’re not into that. We’re in this to say,
we have the resources to do more for our
kids, so give us the ability to do that. That’s
kind of what we’re looking for. I think we’re
going to get there. I really do.”
According to a report by USA Today, 58
percent of the delegates said they either
supported or strongly supported increasing autonomy among the major conferences, while another 12 percent were
neutral on the subject.
That seems to open the door for the
reforms the major power brokers in college sports support. How that will work in
practice remains to be seen on a number
of planes.
Will the top five conferences have
veto power, much like the UN’s Security
Council, on issues, or will the votes simply
be weighted? When it comes to cost-ofattendance benefits, will that vary school
by school, or will there be a cap on how
much extra money a student-athlete can
receive? And will the increased benefits
apply to all sports, full scholarship sports,
revenue-producing sports, or somewhere
in between?
Smith said those issues are still to be
figured out – he feels most strongly that
the increased scholarship benefits will
help all student-athletes at schools like
Ohio State, and the legislation will likely
be permissive in that schools will have the
options to apply additional benefits where
they see fit – but officially reaching the
point where schools have the ability to do
more is the next major goal.
This week, the major conferences will
meet to discuss and vet recommended
NCAA changes, then the discussion will
return to the national level for another
meeting in April. Smith is among those
who hope a new governance structure can
be agreed upon by August, at which point
new legislation can be adopted.
In fact, Smith feels that reforms cannot
come soon enough.
One simple fact is that benefits for student-athletes haven’t matched pace with
the sudden financial windfall that has hit
college sports. Television contracts and
other revenue streams have exploded, lifting OSU’s athletics revenues from $30.1
12
BSB Quickly
Feb. 25, 2014
million in fiscal year 1993 to $87.7 million
in 2003 to $142.0 million last year, a rapid
rise that administrators have struggled to
this point to share with those actually on
the field.
“(Big Ten commissioner) Jim Delany
says it best,” Smith said. “We’re behind
as an organization. We are behind. If we
had the new governance structure in place
two, three years ago when this stuff really
started (being talked about), we probably
wouldn’t have had what we had because
we would have dealt with a lot of those
issues.”
Changes to the governance structure
go deeper than finding a way to do more
for student-athletes. A proposed look at
how the NCAA would be restructured
includes keeping something similar to
the current board of directors – a group
of 18 presidents who oversee NCAA policy – to keep an eye on all-encompassing
issues while placing a council of athletics
directors and other school administrators below that to deal with the smallerscale issues.
Below that, there would be three cabinets that focus on academics, running
championships and legislation, while an
exact place to locate the Committee on
Infractions remains to be seen.
“There was some agreement on structure – not precise agreement – but one
of the big issues was we need our board
of directors, which is all presidents, to
act like a board of directors, to provide
leadership and vision and work on the
big issues and not get trapped in the
minutiae,” Smith said. “They’ve done that
in the past and it’s created problems. We
need to get them to operate at what I call
50,000 feet.”
Smith also addressed the current effort
by football players at Northwestern to
establish a union of college athletes. The
players, led by former NU quarterback
Kain Colter, met with the National Labor
Relations board last week.
The Ohio State AD professed admiration for Colter – “I’d hire him,” Smith said
with a laugh – but disagreed with the athletes’ contention.
“Do I believe our student-athletes are
employees? No,” Smith said. “They’re not
and they never should be that way.”
That effort is just the latest issue – joining the so-called O’Bannon lawsuit that
challenges the NCAA’s use of athletes’
likenesses for commercial benefit, lawsuits
about concussions and other injuries, not
to mention high-profile controversies about
Athletics
FILE PHOTO
DISAGREEMENT – Student-athletes like former Northwestern quarterback Kain
Colter are not employees of their universities according to Ohio State athletics
director Gene Smith.
jersey sales and video games – to tear at supermajority of the student-athletes in
the NCAA model of amateurism, but Smith this country know that they benefit by
doesn’t worry that the baby will be thrown participating in college sports.
out with the bathwater anytime soon.
“There’s only a small number at the top
“I feel confident we’ll keep it together,” of the pyramid that are looking to be paid,
he said. “I feel like the leadership in the so I don’t let that bother me. Most of us
NCAA and the leadership in our institu- don’t. We stay focused on what is the next
tions get that we have to make some step to do better, and that is changing the
changes. One, our governance structure governance structure and putting in new
will change. Two, I really believe that a legislation.”
Football Recruiting
Feb. 25, 2014
BSB Quickly
13
Buckeyes Receive Visit From No. 2 2015 RB
The Ohio State men’s basketball team
may have lost to Michigan on Feb. 11,
but the Buckeye football team may have
made progress in picking up a recruiting
victory over the Wolverines on that very
same day.
It was during that very game that Ohio
State received a visit from one of its top
targets in the 2015 class, Berea (Ky.)
Madison Southern four-star running
back Damien Harris. A former Michigan
commit, Harris decommitted from the
Wolverines in January and has kept his
eyes on the Buckeyes ever since.
RECRUITING
OUTLOOK
Ben Axelrod
The 5-11, 198-pounder even took a
visit to Columbus on his own dime to
check out the Big Ten basketball battle
between two of the top schools still vying
for his services. Wearing his Madison
Southern varsity jacket, Harris could be
spotted being escorted around by OSU
head coach Urban Meyer, who has clearly
made a strong impression on the nation’s
second-ranked running back.
“It was a pretty awesome visit,” Harris
admitted. “I walked in with Coach Meyer
in front of the student section at the basketball game. Everyone was cheering for
us and saying our names. I just really like
it up there. They have a lot to offer. They
will definitely will be in the tops for me
until the end.”
Harris’ infatuation with the Buckeyes
is obvious, as he sees more than just a
football program when he looks at Ohio
State. While other recruits have welcomed
Meyer’s personality with varying degrees
of receptiveness, Harris is one who’s all-in
with the third-year Ohio State head coach,
which could bode well for the Buckeyes
moving forward.
“I love it at Ohio State,” Harris said. “I
love Coach Meyer. I love the whole staff.
I really like the energy and intensity they
bring in everything they do. They’re passionate about what they do and in developing you not only as a player but a person.
Ohio State brings a family feel you don’t
get at most places. Most places are like
a business, but they bring a family feel
along with the business side of things.”
KEVIN DYE
SPECIAL GUEST – Ohio State head football coach Urban Meyer (left) watched the
men’s basketball Buckeyes battle Michigan with 2015 running back recruit Damien
Harris (right) of Berea (Ky.) Madison Southern.
But despite decommitting from Wolverines, a dark horse of sorts has
Michigan a month ago, the Wolverines emerged for Harris in the form of homestill figure to play a factor in Harris’ state school Kentucky. Whether the
recruitment.
Wildcats can actually land a player of
In fact, Harris traveled to Ann Arbor Harris’ caliber remains to be seen, but the
for a visit with the U-M coaches on Feb. Bluegrass State native has been impressed
22. Chief among Harris’ goals for the trip by what Mark Stoops has done with the
was getting to know new offensive coor- UK program.
dinator Doug Nussmeier, whom Brady
“They’re doing things the right way,”
Hoke hired away from Alabama this past Harris said of Kentucky. “The coaches
offseason to replace Al Borges in the same there definitely have the ability to turn
position.
the program around. They’re offering lot
“It is hard to fall in love with a school of things Kentucky couldn’t before. They
like I did Michigan and not think about have a shot and that’s all they’ve asked
them,” Harris explained. “I still really for. Coach Stoops sat me down and said
like it up there just as much as before I to give him a shot. He said if I don’t like
committed. I’m just evaluating all of my them he understands but just wants a
options. I thought I made my decision too chance.”
early. I was close to Coach Borges and he
Although visits are mounting for Harris,
got fired. I thought I should open it back don’t expect a decision from the blue-chip
up after that. I am developing a real close prospect anytime soon. He doesn’t plan on
relationship with Coach Nussmeier, and announcing his intentions until National
we’ll have to see how things go the next Signing Day, as he fears he’ll once again
few weeks.”
make a choice that he could eventually
In addition to the Buckeyes and regret.
14
BSB Quickly
Feb. 25, 2014
Football Recruiting
OSU Verbal Commitments
Players in the class of 2015 who have issued verbal commitments to play football
at Ohio State.
Player
Pos. Ht. Wt. Stars
High School
Jamel Dean
CB 6-1 185
Cocoa, Fla.
Ben Edwards
S
6-0 195
Jacksonville (Fla.) Trinity Christian
Eric Glover-Williams RB 5-10 165
Canton (Ohio) McKinley
Players in the class of 2017 who have issued verbal commitments to play football
at Ohio State.
Player
Danny Clark
Pos. Ht.
QB 6-3
Wt.
205
Stars
NR
“I want to wait until signing day,”
he said. “I already decommitted once.
There’s no need to rush a decision this
time around. I want to take as much time
as possible.”
In addition to Ohio State, Michigan and
Kentucky, Harris has recently received an
offer from Alabama and also holds invitations to play for Auburn, Florida, Notre
Dame, Oklahoma, Penn State, Tennessee,
USC, Syracuse and Wake Forest.
Ohio State Offers 2015 TE
High School
Massillon (Ohio) Washington
Florida, Florida State, Georgia, Georgia
Tech, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisville, Miami
(Fla.), Mississippi, Oklahoma, Penn State,
Pittsburgh, Purdue, Rutgers, Vanderbilt,
Virginia Tech and Wisconsin. Hinton, however, is hopeful that Harris will choose to
come to Columbus, and help fill a glaring
void in OSU’s upcoming plans.
“Coach Hinton has told me that they’ve
only offered three tight ends in the class,”
Harris said. “They plan on taking two tight
ends in this class according to them, and
they hope I’ll take one of the spots.”
Having not signed a tight end in the
2014 recruiting cycle, adding a player at 2015 OL Picks Up Offer
the position – or maybe even two – has
In less than a seven-day span,
become a top priority for Ohio State in Jacksonville, Ill., 2015 offensive tackle
2015. The Buckeyes have already offered Gabe Megginson picked up offers from
Avon (Conn.) Old Farms tight end Chris Ohio State, Michigan State and Penn
Clark, as well as Jefferson City (Mo.) State.
Helias prospect Hale Hentges.
Not a bad week for the four-star prosOhio State’s latest offer at the tight end posi- pect.
tion comes in the form of Columbia (Tenn.)
Megginson – the 16th-ranked tackle
Central’s Jackson Harris, who was
in the 2015 class – received his
clearly intrigued by the Buckeyes’
offer from the Buckeyes by way
invite.
of new co-defensive coordina“It’s a big offer,” Harris said
tor Chris Ash. It’s an invite that
of Ohio State. “I’m excited about
clearly intrigues the 6-5, 290it. It’s a great option to have.”
pounder, who said that there’s
At 6-5 and 240 pounds, the
a lot to like about what the
four-star prospect has the frame
Buckeyes bring to the table.
to develop into a lineman at
“I was really excited,”
the college level, although the
Megginson said. “It was a big
Buckeyes have made it clear to
offer that I’ve wanted for a
him that they see him as a tight Gabe Megginson
while. I like the coaches, faciliend in their system. As further proof, tight ties, academics – all of it really.”
ends coach Tim Hinton has served as the
Megginson was in Columbus last sum10th-ranked tight end’s chief recruiter, mer for the Buckeyes’ Friday Night Lights
and the OSU assistant has made it clear camp and plans on coming back for a visit
that the Buckeyes think highly of Harris. in the near future. The Prairie State native
“They have told me that I’m a high stated that he’d like to develop a stronger
priority in the class,” Harris said. “Coach connection with the OSU coaching staff
Hinton has been recruiting me for a long before making a decision on where he’ll
time so I was familiar with Ohio State spend his college career.
before the offer was sent.”
“I will be back there soon for sure,”
In addition to Ohio State, Harris holds Megginson said of Columbus. “And I’d
offers from a plethora of programs, like to get to know the coaches better and
including California, Cincinnati, Clemson, see a little more of the campus.”
The four-star prospect sees himself as
the type of player that Meyer and his staff
are searching for.
“The offense is an intense and tough
one,” Megginson said. “And I think I
would fit in well there.”
Aside from the latest Big Ten schools to
offer Megginson, he also holds invitations
to play for California, Illinois, Indiana,
Miami (Fla.), Minnesota, Nebraska, North
Carolina State, Utah and Wisconsin.
Kirk Coming For Visit
Named Scout.com’s Big Ten recruiter of the year, Ohio State wide receivers coach Zach Smith clearly made an
impact for the Buckeyes during the 2014
recruiting cycle, luring the likes of Jalyn
Holmes, Johnnie Dixon and Noah Brown
to Columbus. Ohio State is hopeful that
Smith’s efforts will again pay dividends
for the Buckeyes in the upcoming year,
which is why the third-year assistant has
been assigned to be the chief recruiter
of 2015 Scottsdale (Ariz.) Saguaro wide
receiver Christian Kirk.
And so far, it’s been so good for Smith
and the four-star prospect.
Kirk – the nation’s fourth-ranked
receiver in his class – will be in Columbus
on Feb. 27 for an unofficial visit with Ohio
State. The 5-10, 195-pounder pointed to
Smith as one of the main reasons he opted
to take his upcoming visit, as he’s been
impressed by what the Buckeyes wide
receivers coach has had to offer thus far
in the recruiting process.
“Coach Zach Smith and I have formed
a very good relationship,” Kirk said. “It’s
strong. He’s recruiting me very hard.”
Exactly how long Kirk will stay in
Columbus remains to be seen, but it’s
apparent that Smith’s impression has
extended beyond Christian in the Kirk
household.
“I’m not sure how long the visit is going
to be,” he said. “My mother is in charge
of that stuff, but she’s pretty comfortable
with Ohio State.”
Given his status as a four-star speedster,
Kirk would fit right in on the Ohio State
roster. But landing the Grand Canyon
State native won’t be easy as Arizona,
Arizona State, California, Florida, Florida
State, Miami (Fla.), Michigan, Michigan
State, Ole Miss, Nebraska, Notre Dame,
Oklahoma, Oregon, Stanford, Tennessee,
Texas, Texas A&M, UCLA, USC,
Washington and Wisconsin have all joined
the Buckeyes in offering Kirk a scholarship.
Men’s Basketball
Feb. 25, 2014
BSB Quickly
15
Craft Named 2014 Academic All-American
With a little more than a month remaining in his college career, Aaron Craft continues to add to his legacy at Ohio State.
The senior point guard’s latest honor,
however, comes by way of his work off the
court, as Craft was named a 2014 Capital
One First-Team Academic All-American
on Feb. 20. The Findlay, Ohio native
was also selected as the Academic AllAmerican of the year in men’s basketball,
marking the second consecutive season
that he’s won that award.
COURT REPORT
Ben Axelrod
Having been named an Academic AllAmerican in each of the past two seasons
as well, Craft becomes just the fourth
three-time Academic All-American in Big
Ten history, joining Michigan’s Steve
Grote (1975-77), Northwestern’s Shon
Morris (1986-88) and Michigan State’s
Chris Hill (2004-06). He also becomes just
the third player to repeat as the Division I
men’s basketball Academic All-American
of the Year, with only Georgia’s Alec
Kessler and Florida’s Matt Bonner having
accomplished as much.
Already Ohio State’s all-time leader in
assists and the Big Ten’s career record holder in steals, Craft has amassed an impressive resume in his three-plus seasons in
the college ranks. Averaging 9.5 points, 4.6
assists and a Big Ten-best 2.6 steals during his senior season through Feb. 22, the
Liberty Benton product has been named a
finalist for the 2014 Senior CLASS award, is
a member of the 2014 Allstate Good Works
Team and is a finalist for the 2014 Collegiate
Wooden Cup, which is given annually to a
collegiate and a professional athlete who
have made the greatest positive influence in
the lives of others.
OSU Has Interest In 2016 Star
Ohio State is currently without a commit in its 2016 class, and the Buckeyes
have extended only a few offers to today’s
high school sophomores, but Thad Matta
and his staff have made contact and
expressed interest in a number of the
class’ top players.
One player who’s heard quite a bit
from the Buckeyes but is currently with-
KEVIN DYE
SMART COOKIE – Ohio State senior Aaron Craft (4) was named to the 2014 Capital
One First-Team Academic All-America team on Feb. 20.
out an offer is Detroit (Mich.) University thinks highly of the Spartans and what
of Detroit Jesuit point guard Cassius head coach Tom Izzo brings to the table.
Winston. Standing at 6-0 and 165 pounds,
“It just tells me that I am on track and
Winston is already ranked a five-star pros- if I keep working I can go to the highest
pect and the No. 25 overall player in the level,” Winston said. “I think they have a
2016 class.
great program, and obviously they have
And although he has yet to be offered done a good job with their guards.”
by Matta, Ohio State’s interest in Winston
Winston also expects an offer from
appears to be mutual.
John Beilein and Michigan to come in the
“I like the program and how hard they near future.
play, and also it is a good area,” Winston
“They tell me that they love me and
told Scout.com, the parent network of that they would love me to come to their
BuckeyeSports.com. “Overall I just like school,” Winston said of the Wolverines.
the school.”
“I am sure they will offer me on June 15.”
Ohio State’s hand could soon be forced
In addition to Michigan State, Winston
when it comes to making an offer to holds offers from Iowa State, Colorado
Winston, who has already received an and Massachusetts. The fifth-ranked point
invitation to play for nearby Michigan guard in the 2016 class has also heard
State. As most Michigan kids do, Winston from Miami (Fla.), Georgetown and Iowa
16
BSB Quickly
Feb. 25, 2014
Men’s Basketball
2013-14 Ohio State Men’s Basketball Statistics
Through Feb. 22
Record: 22-6 (9-6 Big Ten)
Player
LaQuinton Ross
Lenzelle Smith Jr.
Aaron Craft
Amir Williams
Shannon Scott
Sam Thompson
Marc Loving
Amedeo Della Valle
Trey McDonald
Jake Lorbach
Andrew Goldstein
TEAM
Ohio State
Opponents
G-GS
28-28
28-28
28-28
28-28
28-21
28-7
28-0
27-0
28-0
8-0
2-0
Min.-Avg.
777-27.8
798-28.5
965-34.5
670-23.9
760-27.1
665-23.8
340-12.1
330-12.2
329-11.8
14-1.8
2-1.0
28
28
5650
5650
FG-FGA
135-307
108-246
86-177
88-147
78-182
78-173
39-108
39-106
22-41
3-7
0-1
Pct.
.440
.439
.486
.599
.429
.451
.361
.368
.537
.429
.000
676-1495 .452
601-1511 .398
but insists that he’s more focused on
his sophomore season than his ongoing
recruitment.
“We want to win it all,” Winston said
of his UD Jesuit Cubs squad. “We want
to win the catholic league championship
and take that momentum into the state
tournament.”
3P-3PA
40-99
46-127
14-40
0-0
19-72
21-58
13-54
23-66
0-0
0-0
0-0
Pct.
.404
.362
.350
.000
.264
.362
.241
.348
.000
.000
.000
176-516 .341
128-474 .270
Rebounds
Pct. Off.-Def. Total-Avg.
.724 48-110 158-5.6
.793 32-110 142-5.1
.748
5-90
95-3.4
.696 62-106 168-6.0
.685 22-78
100-3.6
.667 16-64
80-2.9
.774 16-38
54-1.9
.615 17-32
49-1.8
.300 22-21
43-1.5
.000
0-2
2-0.3
.000
0-0
0-0.0
36-28
64-2.3
446-635 .702 276-679 955-34.1
298-427 .698 298-653 951-34.0
FT-FTA
89-123
69-87
80-107
64-92
37-54
34-51
48-62
16-26
9-30
0-3
0-0
record in the NBA, Tuner has enjoyed a
breakout season of sorts this past year,
averaging a career-best 17.4 points to go
along with 6.0 rebounds and 3.7 assists
per game. With Philadelphia out of contention and vying for a higher draft pick in
the upcoming offseason, it best behooved
the 76ers to trade their leading scorer,
whom they declined to sign to an extension this past offseason.
Turner Traded At The Buzzer
Indiana, meanwhile, is in the thick
As Michigan knows all the too well,
Evan Turner isn’t a stranger to buzzer- of a chase for an NBA championship
beaters. And perhaps fittingly enough, the and currently lays claims to the Eastern
Conference’s best record. As
former Ohio State’s star’s latit did last season, this seaest involvement in a last-second
son’s race for the conference
shot sent him back to the place
crown could come down to the
where he sank Michigan’s Big
Pacers and the Miami Heat,
Ten tournament hopes in 2010.
and Turner could definitely proThe 2010 college basketball
vide a unique option for Indiana
national player of the year was
against the two-time defending
involved in a trade in the closing
NBA champions, as the formoments before Feb. 20’s NBA
mer Buckeye boasts a career
trade deadline, sending Turner
shooting mark of 50.7 in games
from the Philadelphia 76ers to
Evan Turner
against the Heat.
the Indiana Pacers. Along with
As for Turner personally, a change of
forward Lavoy Allen, Turner was traded
to Indiana in exchange for former All-Star scenery will certainly be welcomed by the
Chicago native who has endured losing
forward Danny Granger.
“We felt we needed to make this trade seasons in the City of Brotherly Love in
to strengthen the core unit and our bench,” each of the past two years. Slated to be a
said Pacers president of basketball operations restricted free agent for the first time in his
Larry Bird. “In Evan and Lavoy, we think we career this upcoming offseason, Turner will
got two really good players that can help us, certainly be given a national platform to put
and we look forward to what they can bring.” his talents on display, as he plays alongside
Selected by the 76ers with the second All-Stars Paul George and Roy Hibbert, as
overall pick in the 2010 NBA draft, Turner well as Lance Stephenson and another forhas enjoyed – or endured – an up-and-down mer Matta-coached national player of the
three-plus years in the professional ranks. year in Xavier alum David West.
In three seasons at Ohio State, Turner
In his three-plus seasons in Philadelphia,
Turner averaged 11.5 points, 5.5 rebounds averaged 15.0 points, 6.8 rebounds and 4.1
and 3.2 assists per game while shooting assists per game, including a junior season
that saw him post marks of 20.4 points, 9.2
42.8 percent from the field.
Albeit on a team with the second-worst rebounds and 6.0 assists per game.
PF-FO A TO BS ST Pts.-Avg.
37-1 24 38 14 19 399-14.3
45-0 44 30 1 16 331-11.8
65-1 128 68 1 72 266-9.5
74-1
8 42 51 12 240-8.6
60-1 97 51 4 58 212-7.6
42-1 24 21 22 16 211-7.5
43-1
6 18 6
6 139-5.0
24-0
6 18 5
4 117-4.3
55-0
5 16 15
6
53-1.9
2-0
0
1
0
1
6-0.8
1-0
0
0
0
0
0-0.0
4
448-6 342 307 119 210 1974-70.5
537-0 240 400 79 101 1628-58.1
Mullens Lands In Philly
While Turner is on his way out of
Philadelphia, one of his former Ohio State
teammates is now headed to the Keystone
State.
Former Buckeye center B.J. Mullens
– now known as Byron Mullens – played
for Ohio State during the 2008-09 season before being selected by the Dallas
Mavericks with the No. 24 pick in the
2009 NBA draft. Since that time, the
product of Canal Winchester, Ohio, has
bounced around the league, with the latest transaction involving Mullens sending
him to the 76ers, who acquired him from
the Los Angeles Clippers for the price of a
conditional second-round pick.
Mullens had been thought to be a key
acquisition for the Clippers last summer,
after a 2012-13 season with the Charlotte
Bobcats that saw the former McDonald’s
High School All-American average 10.6
points and 6.4 rebounds in 53 games.
Mullens, however, hardly managed to
make an impact for Los Angeles, averaging just 2.5 points and 1.2 rebounds while
averaging just 6.2 minutes in 27 games for
the fourth-place Clippers.
Landing in Philadelphia will likely mean
more significant minutes for Mullens after
the 76ers traded their starting center,
Spencer Hawes, to the Cleveland Cavaliers at
the trade deadline. In addition to the Clippers
and Bobcats, Mullens spent two seasons
playing for the Oklahoma City Thunder, who
dealt for the 7-footer on his draft day.
In his lone season at Ohio State,
Mullens averaged 8.8 points and 4.7
rebounds per game and was named the
Big Ten’s Sixth Man of the Year after
arriving in Columbus as a five-star prospect and the third-ranked player in the
2008 class.
Men’s Basketball
Feb. 25, 2014
BSB Quickly
17
Superb Second Half Pushes OSU Past Gophers
By Ben Axelrod
During halftime of Ohio State’s Feb. 22
matchup with Minnesota, Buckeyes head
coach Thad Matta delivered a very simple
message to his team.
“I just said, ‘There’s nothing I can draw
up on the board. There’s nothing we can
really talk about until we play better basketball,’ ” Matta recalled. “The bottom line
is, I said, ‘You have to play better. Play
better.’ ”
The Ohio State players were receptive,
as two very different stanzas made up
what was a strange game for the No. 24
Buckeyes, who played arguably their best
basketball of the season for at least one
half in front of a sold-out crowd of 18,809
fans, pulling away with a 64-46 victory.
What the final score showed as a gashing of the Golden Gophers, however, was
far from that in the first half, when the
Buckeyes headed to the locker room trailing by double digits.
“I think they have heart,” Matta said
when asked what he learned about his
team in its rematch with Minnesota. “This
team has not done that this season. For
whatever reason, we just didn’t have what
we needed. I like the fact that they came
back, fought and clawed and put the run
together. It shows me these guys have a
lot of heart.”
The Buckeyes’ heart was especially
apparent in the second half, when, after
the Gophers scored the first bucket of
the period, a 27-5 run erased and eclipsed
what was a 10-point Minnesota halftime
lead. Pushing a transition pace that didn’t
resemble anything that had been seen in
the first half, Ohio State scored at will and
stood strong on the defensive end of the
floor, taking a 45-35 advantage with 10:42
left in the game.
“It was a combination of everything,”
Buckeye forward LaQuinton Ross said of
his team’s second-half surge. “Big plays
spark this team, especially on the defensive end.”
Big plays were prominent in the second
half for Ohio State, thanks in large part
to the play of forward Sam Thompson,
who scored a season-high 19 points – 16
of which came in the final 20 minutes.
Scoring 10 consecutive Buckeye points to
push Ohio State’s lead to 10, the Chicago,
Ill., native scored in multiple ways during his starring stretch, connecting on
Ohio State 64, Minnesota 46
Feb. 22, 2014 • Value City Arena; Columbus, Ohio
Minnesota (17-11, 6-9)
Ohio State (22-6, 9-6)
28
18
18
46
–
–
46
64
Minnesota
Min
FG
FT
Reb. A PF Pts
King
33
4-11 0-0
1-1
0
3
9
Eliason
23
2-5 0-0
1-3
2
3
4
An.Hollins
33
3-4 4-4
0-3
0
2
13
Mathieu
36
5-10 2-2
0-3
3
0
12
Au.Hollins
25
1-4 0-0
2-2
1
1
2
McNeil
11
0-2 0-0
1-1
0
0
0
Osenieks
7
0-4 0-0
0-0
0
0
0
Walker
17
2-3 0-0
2-0
1
5
4
M.Smith
15
0-5 2-2
0-3
0
2
2
Totals
200 17-48 8-8 8-17 7 16 46
Percentages: FG: 35.4%. FT: 100.0%. 3-point goals: 417 (King 1-5, An.Hollins 3-3, Mathieu 0-1, Au.Hollins 0-1,
McNeil 0-1, Osenieks 0-2, M.Smith 0-4). Team rebounds: 2.
Blocked shots: 1 (Eliason). Turnovers: 13 (King 3, Au.Hollins
3, Eliason 2, Walker 2, An.Hollins, Mathieu, McNeil). Steals:
2 (An.Hollins, Mathieu).
KEVIN DYE
SPARKING THE BUCKS – Junior Sam
Thompson (12) scored a game-high 19
points in Ohio State’s 64-46 win over
Minnesota on Feb. 22.
free throws, a three-pointer, a layup and
of course, one of his signature alley-oop
slams.
The improved play of Thompson has
been apparent in recent weeks, with
the junior also scoring 11 points in the
Buckeyes’ Feb. 19 win over Northwestern.
Asked what’s led to his recent success,
Thompson pointed to a newfound offensive aggression that has been fueled by
his team’s collective success.
“When we’re playing defense the way
that we were playing defense in the second half, when we’re allowing our defense
to translate over to the offensive end,
it’s easy to get into a good rhythm,”
Thompson said. “It’s easy to get open
looks, it’s easy to get dunks and layups
and get yourself going.”
After taking its first double-digit lead
of the game, the Buckeyes extended their
lead to as many as 21 points in the second
half, surrendering just 18 post-halftime
points to the Gophers. Ohio State’s second-stanza success came in stark contrast
to its first-period woes, which were highlighted by a 27.3 percent shooting percentage and led to the Buckeyes heading
into halftime at a 28-18 disadvantage.
Matta said that before Saturday’s game
even started, he had a bad feeling about
his team’s prospects, thanks to a sloppy
shootaround session that carried into a
first half that saw Ohio State fall behind
by a score of 7-0 in the game’s opening
three minutes.
“At shootaround today, we started with
Ohio State
Min
FG
FT
Reb. A PF Pts
Ross
34
4-10 1-1
3-3
2
0
9
Thompson
27
7-12 3-5
1-3
0
2
19
A.Williams
27
3-3 1-1
1-3
1
2
7
Craft
34
2-7 2-2
0-6
5
2
6
L.Smith Jr.
29
4-11 4-4
1-5
1
2
13
Loving
5
0-2 0-0
0-0
0
1
0
Scott
21
3-6 4-4
3-1
3
1
10
Goldstein
1
0-0 0-0
0-0
0
0
0
Della Valle
8
0-1 0-0
0-1
0
0
0
Lorbach
1
0-0 0-0
0-0
0
0
0
McDonald
13
0-0 0-0
0-0
0
2
0
Totals
200 23-52 15-17 12-23 12 12 64
Percentages: FG: 44.2%. FT: 88.2%. 3-point goals: 3-14
(Ross 0-1, Thompson 2-5, L.Smith Jr. 1-5, Loving 0-1, Scott
0-1, Della Valle 0-1). Team rebounds: 4. Blocked shots: 6
(A.Williams 4, Ross, Della Valle). Turnovers: 7 (Craft 4, Ross,
A.Williams, McDonald). Steals: 11 (McDonald 3, Thompson
2, A.Williams 2, Craft 2, Ross, L.Smith Jr.).
Officials: Sanzere, Scirotto, Steratore. A: 18,809.
some stuff and we weren’t very sharp. I
had to raise my voice and kind of get their
attention,” Matta said. “I said, ‘We have an
odd way about us. And I don’t like it.’ ”
Matta’s halftime message, however,
appeared to make a bigger impact on
the Buckeyes, as Lenzelle Smith Jr. (13
points) and Shannon Scott (10) each joined
Thompson in double-digit scoring against
the Gophers for the game. Minnesota was
paced by Andre Hollins’ 13 points and
received 12 points from backcourt mate
DeAndre Mathieu.
The Buckeyes’ victory over the Gophers
clinched no worse than a .500 conference
record for Ohio State, which has three
games remaining before the start of postseason play, starting with a Feb. 27 trip to
Happy Valley to face Penn State.
“From what we did this year, every
game from here on out is a desperation
game for us,” Ross said. “The guys in the
locker room know that too. Going into
the NCAA Tournament, it’s always a good
idea to have a high seed in that tournament. Everybody knows what’s at stake
for us.”
Men’s Basketball
Feb. 25, 2014
BSB Quickly
19
Ejections Overshadow OSU Win Over Wildcats
said. “Getting in the offensive flow was
good for us.”
OSU’s strong second-half stretch
In the midst of one of its best stretches of play, the Ohio State basketball began with a pair of Aaron Craft free
team ran into one of the uglier sides of throws and was aided by eight points
from Sam Thompson. The Buckeyes
college basketball.
With just a little more than five min- pushed their lead to 21 on a Marc
utes remaining before the final buzzer Loving free throw with 10:46 remaining
sounded on the Buckeyes’ 76-60 win on the clock, before a 5-0 Wildcats run
over Northwestern on Feb. 19, a scuffle cut OSU’s advantage to 16 at 61-45.
The Buckeyes would go on to stretch
broke out underneath the Ohio State
basket. When all was said and done, their lead back out to 21 points on a
Wildcat forward Nikola Cerina and Shannon Scott three and Craft layup,
Buckeye forward before maintaining a comfortable disLaQuinton Ross tance from the Wildcats for the remainwere ejected from der of the game. Ross led all Ohio State
the game after scorers on the night with 16 points and
Cerina threw a was joined in double digits by a trio of
punch toward Amir Buckeyes, including Lenzelle Smith Jr.
Williams and Ross (14), Craft (14) and Thompson (11).
“We talked about having to have that
shoved
Cerina
and Northwestern killer instinct and putting teams away,”
guard
Drew Thompson said. “On both sides of the
ball, we did that.”
Crawford.
Nikola Cerina
While both teams shot identical perAs a result,
Cerina was suspended for the Wildcats’ centages from the field (46 percent on
ensuing contest – a Feb. 22 date with 23-of-50 shooting), the difference for
Indiana – for throwing a closed-hand- the Buckeyes came down to the freeed punch, which was officially deemed throw line, where they took advantage
“fighting,” while Ross was not suspend- of 23 Northwestern fouls and made 23
ed, as the two technicals that led to his of their 29 free-throw attempts. The
ejection were ultimately the extent of his Wildcats, meanwhile, attempted only 14
free throws on the night, making nine
punishment.
“We’ve got to make sure we keep our of them, and were also hampered by a
composure,” Buckeye head coach Thad 5-for-21 performance from beyond the
Matta said of the incident. “Those things three-point arc.
The first half actually
happen so fast that instincts
saw the Buckeyes trail the
or whatever it is (take over).
Wildcats by as many as nine
I thought ‘Q’ (Ross) played
points as the two teams fought
a very solid basketball game
to an 11-11 tie in the opening
tonight.”
seven minutes before a 14-5
Prior to the scuffle at the
Northwestern run gave the
Schottenstein Center, 15,878 in
Wildcats a 25-16 advantage
attendance saw Ohio State play
with 7:19 left on the clock.
some of its best basketball of
The Buckeyes bounced back
the year. Entering the second
with a 14-3 run of their own
half with just a four-point lead
LaQuinton Ross
– which included seven points
against a team that sits in the
second half of the Big Ten standings, from Ross – before ultimately closing
the Buckeyes reeled off a 24-7 run in the stanza on a 21-8 stretch to take a 37the second stanza’s opening 10 minutes, 33 lead into halftime.
With the strong finish to the first
pushing their to lead to 21 points at 6140 in what was one of their most impres- half and impressive start to the second,
sive performances since the start of Big the best basketball that the Buckeyes
are capable of was apparent against the
Ten play.
“We did a pretty good job of getting Wildcats and came at the direction of
inside the defense and attacking, and Ohio State’s head coach.
“We felt like we needed a run,” Matta
we were finishing around there,” Matta
By Ben Axelrod
Ohio State 76, Northwestern 60
Feb. 19, 2014 • Value City Arena; Columbus, Ohio
Northwestern (12-15, 5-9)
Ohio State (21-6, 8-6)
33
37
27
39
–
–
60
76
Northwestern Min
FG
FT
Reb. A PF Pts
Abrahamson
11
0-1 0-0
0-2
0
2
0
Olah
25
4-9 0-0
2-2
0
2
8
Crawford
35
8-13 2-2
0-2
1
4
22
Cobb
38
3-10 2-4
0-5
1
3
8
Lumpkin
36
1-3 0-0
1-0
0
4
2
Sobolewski
2
0-0 0-0
0-2
0
1
0
Demps
34
5-9 3-5
0-1
1
1
14
Montgomery
1
0-0 0-0
0-0
0
0
0
Taphorn
9
2-4 2-3
0-1
0
1
6
Cerina
9
0-1 0-0
0-2
1
5
0
Totals
200 23-50 9-14 4-19 4 23 60
Percentages: FG: 46.0%. FT: 64.3%. 3-point goals: 521 (Abrahamson 0-1, Olah 0-2, Crawford 4-7, Cobb 0-5,
Lumpkin 0-1, Demps 1-2, Taphorn 0-2, Cerina 0-1). Team
rebounds: 3. Blocked shots: 1 (Lumpkin). Turnovers: 12
(Crawford 4, Cobb 2, Lumpkin 2, Cerina 2, Abrahamson,
Olah). Steals: 2 (Olah, Taphorn).
Ohio State
Min
FG
FT
Reb. A PF Pts
Ross
24
5-8 4-4
2-4
0
3
16
Thompson
28
4-5 0-0
0-2
1
1
11
A.Williams
16
1-5 4-4
3-2
0
3
6
Craft
34
4-7 6-7
0-3
3
0
14
Smith Jr.
28
4-9 5-6
4-6
4
3
14
Loving
15
0-3 1-2
0-1
0
2
1
Scott
22
3-6 2-4
0-3
2
2
9
Goldstein
1
0-1 0-0
0-0
0
1
0
Della Valle
13
0-3 1-2
1-1
0
2
1
Lorbach
1
0-0 0-0
0-0
0
0
0
McDonald
18
2-3 0-0
0-1
0
1
4
Totals
200 23-50 23-29 10-24 10 18 76
Percentages: FG: 46.0%. FT: 79.3%. 3-point goals: 7-16
(Ross 2-3, Thompson 3-4, Craft 0-1, Smith Jr. 1-3, Loving
0-2, Scott 1-2, Della Valle 0-1). Team rebounds: 1. Blocked
shots: 4 (Thompson 2, A.Williams, McDonald). Turnovers:
10 (Craft 2, Scott 2, McDonald 2, Ross, Smith Jr., Loving, Della
Valle). Steals: 8 (Craft 4, Thompson 2, A.Williams, Scott).
Officials: Perone, Carstensen, Gaffney. Technical fouls: NW:
Cerina; OSU: Ross 2, A.Williams. Ejections: NW: Cerina; OSU:
Ross. A: 15,878.
said. “We did a pretty good job of keeping our composure. Guys knew during
the timeouts what they needed to do and
went out and executed.”
Crawford led Northwestern with 22
points on the night – an impressive
showing for the senior guard in his
Schottenstein Center finale. After shooting 51.9 percent in the first half, the
Wildcats went cold in the second, connecting on just 39.1 percent of their
shots.
As for Ohio State, the Buckeyes’ win
over Northwestern marked their fifth
victory in a six-game stretch. Ohio State
appears to have bounced back after
losing five of six games in January and
appears to be heading in the right direction as postseason play approaches.
“I never felt like the sky was falling,”
said Smith. “It’s a next-game mentality.
We’re not worried about that stuff. We
just know that we have a tough opponent
coming in here on Saturday in Minnesota
and we’ve got to be ready to go.”
Women’s Basketball
Feb. 25, 2014
BSB Quickly
21
Departing Buckeyes Have Been Through Much
Milestones are often many in transitional seasons, and the 2014 Ohio State
women’s basketball campaign reached
another of those Feb. 23 with Senior
Night.
DOUBLE DRIBBLE
Marcus Hartman
“I think it was really emotional,” senior
forward Martina Ellerbe said after the
Buckeyes’ 71-62 victory. “It’s been four
years that we’ve played here. We’ve had tremendous support from everybody. To know
this is the last game we’re going to have in
this gym was a crazy thought, but we played
really well and we played for each other.”
Certainly much has changed since the
class of Ellerbe, Darryce Moore, Amy
Scullion and Ashley Adams officially
became Buckeyes.
When the class of 2014 signed in the
fall of 2010, the Buckeyes were ranked in
the top 10 nationally and the defending
six-time Big Ten champions.
The program has not reached such
heights since, slipping to third in the Big
Ten the season before the quartet arrived,
finishing second when they were freshmen and falling all the way to eighth last
season.
They were part of a Sweet 16 run as
freshmen, but the two NCAA tournament
victories that season stand as the only
ones they have been a part of.
Now the Buckeyes are in danger of
posting their first losing season since
2002, but the future is bright as new
coach Kevin McGuff has signed the No.
2 recruiting class in the country for next
season.
And while some fans may be ready
to turn the page on this season and look
ahead to the arrival of the next, McGuff
expressed his gratitude for the contri-
butions of the outgoing group – which
also includes fifth-year senior Aleksandra
Dobranic.
“The thing you hope for most (when
you take over a program) is that you
have good kids, and the seniors are great
kids,” McGuff said. “I’ve enjoyed getting
to know them and coach them just to help
them along. Hopefully I can stay a positive
part of their lives and help guide them in
the future if there is anything they need
help in.”
Of the outgoing group, Adams has had
the biggest impact overall, though her
senior season has seen her role fluctuate
from start to finish.
For her career, she entered her last
home game having averaged 7.3 points,
5.8 rebounds and 2.3 blocks per game
while shooting 53.6 percent from the
floor. The 6-5 native of Siloam Springs,
Ark., also had 215 career assists in her 117
games that included 86 starts.
She blocked four shots against the
SONNY BROCKWAY
FOND FAREWELL – Seniors Darryce Moore (22), Ashley Adams (33), Aleksandra Dobranic (15) and Martina Ellerbe (23), along
with fourth-year junior Amy Scullion (25), who has opted to forgo her final season of eligibility to concentrate on medical
school, were honored Feb. 23 on Senior Day.
22
BSB Quickly
Feb. 25, 2014
Women’s Basketball
2013-14 Ohio State Women’s Basketball Statistics
Through Feb. 23
Record: 15-15 (5-9 Big Ten)
Player
Ameryst Alston
Raven Ferguson
Martina Ellerbe
Darryce Moore
Cait Craft
Ashley Adams
Maleeka Kynard
Amy Scullion
Lisa Blair
A.Dobranic
TEAM
Ohio State
Opponents
G-GS
30-29
27-2
30-24
30-28
30-30
30-8
16-0
30-29
21-0
12-0
Min.-Avg.
1097-36.6
684-25.3
971-32.4
626-20.9
941-31.4
578-19.3
251-15.7
658-21.9
142-6.8
52-4.3
30
30
6000
6000
FG-FGA
197-437
99-284
100-236
100-214
70-194
75-153
21-71
31-110
7-15
3-12
Pct.
.451
.349
.424
.467
.361
.490
.296
.282
.467
.250
703-1726 .407
677-1815 .373
Wildcats and will finish her career second
in Ohio State history in that category,
trailing only Jessica Davenport’s 384 from
2004-07.
Moore, a 6-2 product of Youngstown
(Ohio) Boardman, has replaced Adams
in the starting lineup for most of this season and through 30 games has averaged
a career-high 8.2 points per game while
pulling down 6.0 rebounds, also a career
high.
Dobranic, a 6-4 center recruited by
former head coach Jim Foster from Novi
Ad, Serbia, five years ago who redshirted
with a foot injury in 2011 has played only
12 games this season but remains a fan
favorite. Many of the 6,670 fans in attendance for Senior Night chanted her name,
hoping to see her on the Value City Arena
floor one more time. They got their wish
late in the contest, though she failed to
score or grab a rebound. She entered the
night having played 68 games for Ohio
State, including 15 starts last season when
she averaged 3.8 points and 2.4 rebounds
per game.
While Ellerbe and Scullion had a hard
time finding roles under the previous
coaching staff, both have enjoyed the
most playing time and biggest contributions of their careers this season under
McGuff.
Scullion, who sat out her true freshman
season with a knee injury and redshirted
but has decided not to use her final year of
eligibility, played only 39 games the past
two seasons but has been in all 30 so far
this season. That includes 29 starts for the
Salem, Ohio, native who was the state’s
Gatorade Player of the Year as a senior in
high school.
The 6-0 guard has not made much of a
dent on the offensive end (3.1 points per
game), but her rebounding (4.1 boards
3P-3PA
32-94
20-74
19-60
0-0
33-110
0-0
12-35
16-50
0-0
0-2
Pct.
.340
.270
.317
.000
.300
.000
.343
.320
.000
.000
132-425 .311
200-614 .326
Rebounds
Pct. Off.-Def. Total-Avg.
.837 31-71
102-3.4
.740 45-103 148-5.5
.783 52-124 176-5.9
.719 65-114 179-6.0
.653 19-59
78-2.6
.675 39-107 146-4.9
.741
9-13
22-1.4
.727 29-95
124-4.1
.000 11-35
46-2.2
.500
1-6
7-0.6
38-61
99-2.0
411-559 .735 339-788 1127-37.6
391-534 .732 437-774 1211-40.4
FT-FTA
128-153
71-96
36-46
46-64
66-101
27-40
20-27
16-22
0-8
1-2
per game) and leadership have been valuable for the Buckeyes.
“Amy plays super hard,” McGuff said.
“She gives us great leadership. She’s really bright and has great knowledge of what
we’re trying to do, so she’s kind of like a
glue player out there.”
Finally there is Ellerbe, a Teaneck,
N.J., native who has been one of the
most valuable Buckeyes this season
after averaging only 10.9 minutes per
game in her first three seasons in scarlet
and gray.
The 6-2 forward has started 24 games
this season, and her average of 32.4 minutes per game is second only to sophomore guard Ameryst Alston’s 36.6. After
averaging 2.0 points per game in her first
three seasons, she is third on the team at
8.5 this season and second on the team
with 5.9 rebounds. She is also second
with 31 blocks (trailing 57 by Adams)
and has improved her shooting dramatically from a career mark of 38.8 percent
from the field entering the year to 42.4
this year.
“Martina was a really big deal because
we wanted to start to institute a different
style of play which would be a little faster
and a little more free flowing and with better spacing, and you have to have a ‘four’
(power forward) who can do some things
on the perimeter to do that,” McGuff said.
“I think Martie really embracing that
opportunity and working hard this year
has been a big thing, not only in terms
of being successful this year but also in
starting to move to a style of play that we
would have had a really hard time doing if
she had not embraced that.”
Ellerbe is not one to talk about herself
even when prodded, but Alston took up
the cause as she shared the postgame
interview table with her.
PF-FO
59-0
72-2
59-0
100-5
65-0
59-4
34-0
39-0
18-1
8-0
A TO BS ST Pts.-Avg.
85 107 0 35 554-18.5
63 90 5 26 289-10.7
40 51 31 22 255-8.5
34 60 21 23 246-8.2
47 63 2 33 239-8.0
44 35 57 25 177-5.9
18 26 1 23
74-4.6
33 43 10 10
94-3.1
1
7 22
0
14-0.7
4
6
0
1
7-0.6
7
513-12 369 495 149 198 1949-65.0
556-0 354 500 107 198 1945-64.8
“She has really worked on her jump
shot,” Alston said. “Defensively, she gets
her hands on a lot of balls because she’s
so long. She just plays hard and doesn’t
get down on herself. If things aren’t working for her, she does something else to
contribute to the team. If it’s not working
offensively, she’ll get it defensively. She’s
been very successful her senior year, and
I’m going to miss her.”
More than numbers, McGuff appreciates the intangible ways the seniors have
helped him navigate his first season in
Columbus.
How have they done that? By being
coachable above all else.
“That’s been the biggest thing – they’ve
done anything that I’ve asked them to do,”
he said. “We’re certainly in the midst of
change and transition both on and off the
court. The seniors have done some great
things to really point this program in the
right direction, and I’ll certainly always be
thankful to them.”
Still Short-Handed
The Northwestern game was the seventh in a row missed by Maleeka Kynard,
who is out with what a school spokesman
termed a personal health issue but could
return before the season is over.
A 5-7 junior guard, Kynard has – when
healthy – provided energy and depth off
the bench for a team with only 11 scholarship players this season.
She also battled injury and illness early
in the season and through Feb. 23 had
played 16 games, averaging 4.6 points and
1.4 rebounds. Her 34.3 shooting percentage from three-point range tops the team.
She was on the bench for the
Northwestern game and a loss to Nebraska
three nights earlier after not traveling with
the team the week before.
Women’s Basketball
Feb. 25, 2014
BSB Quickly
23
Buckeyes Send Seniors Out With Victory
By Marcus Hartman
Ohio State sent its women’s basketball
seniors off victors Feb. 23 by downing
Northwestern 71-62 in Columbus.
A sophomore led the way for the
Buckeyes, as Ameryst Alston has all season. The OSU point guard scored 18
points in the first half on her way to 30 for
the game, her 28th double-figure scoring
game of the season and 14th in a row. She
eclipsed 20 points for the 10th time this
season and reached 30 for the third time.
This time it helped the Buckeyes snap
a five-game losing streak, their longest
since February 1997.
Ohio State (15-15, 5-9) cruised for most
of the second half after dominating the
first, but Northwestern (14-13, 4-10) made
it interesting late in front of a crowd of
6,670 fans at Value City Arena. The game
marked the last home date of the season
and final home appearances for seniors
Ashley Adams, Darryce Moore, Martina
Ellerbe and Aleksandra Dobranic along
with fourth-year junior Amy Scullion, who
has opted to forgo her final season of eligibility to concentrate on medical school.
Ohio State opened up an 11-point lead
early thanks to a 9-0 run featuring baskets
from four different Buckeyes and capped
by a Cait Craft three-pointer that made it
18-7 with 12:46 to go in the half.
Northwestern’s Maggie Lyon brought
that to an end with a three-pointer, but
Ohio State continued to dominate. The
Buckeyes ran off 19 of the next 25 points
to open up a 21-point lead. Alston had 10
points during that spurt, including a layup
at the 5:07 mark that capped it with Ohio
State holding a 37-16 advantage. Raven
Ferguson hit a pair of threes along the
way while Ellerbe also connected from
downtown.
The Buckeyes took a 20-point advantage into the locker room at halftime, 4121, and topped the Wildcats in every major
statistical category, most by a significant
margin. They outscored the Wildcats 1810 in the paint, 8-2 off the bench and 8-2 in
second-chance points.
They won the rebounding battle 21-16,
had 11 assists to three and forced 12 turnovers while committing only seven. They
blocked three shots to one while logging
six steals to one. The Buckeyes also shot
a higher percentage from the floor (48.5 to
32.0) and three-point range (62.5 to 25.0).
Ohio State 71, Northwestern 62
Feb. 23, 2014 • Value City Arena; Columbus, Ohio
Northwestern (14-13, 4-10)
Ohio State (15-15, 5-9)
21
41
41
30
–
–
62
71
Northwestern Min
FG
FT
Reb. A PF Pts
Cohen
15
0-3 0-0
1-2
0
2
0
Coffey
36
4-10 1-4 5-13 4
5
9
Deary
24
1-3 1-2
0-3
1
4
3
Inman
31
3-7 4-4
2-1
1
3
10
Lyon
37
7-17 3-4
2-2
2
1
21
McKeown
11
0-1 0-0
0-1
0
0
0
Douglas
29
3-16 6-7
4-5
0
4
13
Taylor
0+
0-0 0-0
0-0
0
1
0
Roser
17
3-5 0-0
1-1
0
4
6
Totals
200 21-62 15-21 18-29 8 24 62
Percentages: FG: 33.9%. FT: 71.4%. 3-point goals: 5-20
(Cohen 0-1, Coffey 0-1, Inman 0-1, Lyon 4-11, McKeown 0-1,
Douglas 1-5). Team rebounds: 4. Blocked shots: 3 (Douglas
2, Cohen). Turnovers: 23 (Coffey 6, Deary 5, Lyon 5, Douglas
4, Inman, McKeown, Roser). Steals: 2 (Deary, Inman).
SONNY BROCKWAY
FINAL HURRAH – Ohio State senior center Darryce Moore scored four points
in her last home game at Value City
Arena.
The biggest disparity of the first half
was in points off turnovers, however, as
the Buckeyes outscored the visitors 18-0
in that category.
“I thought that was the best half we’ve
played in a long time in the fact that we
put things together on both ends of the
floor,” said Ohio State head coach Kevin
McGuff. “We were good offensively and
defensively and efficient in both ways.
I think our effort stayed consistent, but
our focus kind of lacked in the second
half.”
Ohio State pushed the lead as high
as 24 in the second half and maintained
a double-digit lead until Northwestern’s
Ashley Deary converted an old-fashioned
three-point play that made it 61-52 with
2:07 left.
Later a pair of free throws by Lauren
Douglas with 53 seconds left allowed the
Wildcats to pull within five, but 64-59 was
as close as they would get.
Three Buckeyes combined to go
seven for eight from the free-throw line
to close out the game, including a pair
from Ellerbe, who scored 13 points and
grabbed six rebounds.
“We kind of lost a little bit of focus and
concentration that we had in the first half,
Ohio State
Min
FG
FT
Reb. A PF Pts
Ellerbe
39
4-9 3-4
3-3
2
1
13
Moore
20
2-7 0-0
3-2
1
4
4
Craft
34
1-3 1-2
1-2
4
4
4
Alston
35
8-15 14-17 2-2
3
3
30
Scullion
29
1-6 0-0
1-7
3
2
2
Dobranic
1
0-0 0-0
0-0
0
1
0
Ferguson
22
3-17 2-3
2-7
0
4
11
Adams
20
3-5 1-2
3-4
1
3
7
Totals
200 22-62 21-28 15-28 14 22 71
Percentages: FG: 35.5%. FT: 75.0%. 3-point goals: 6-17
(Ellerbe 2-4, Craft 1-2, Alston 0-4, Scullion 0-2, Ferguson 3-5).
Team rebounds: 1. Blocked shots: 7 (Adams 4, Ellerbe 2,
Moore). Turnovers: 15 (Ferguson 5, Moore 4, Alston 3, Craft
2, Scullion). Steals: 9 (Adams 3, Alston 2, Ellerbe, Moore,
Craft, Ferguson).
Officials: Larance, Steratore, Hallead. Technical foul: OSU:
Ferguson. A: 6,670.
but since we played super hard it allowed
us to keep our (lead),” Ellerbe said.
Ferguson was the third Buckeye to
score in double figures, but she needed
17 shots (making three) to tally her 11
points.
“I just thought we buried ourselves in
the first half,” said Northwestern head
coach Joe McKeown, whose team dropped
to 10th in the conference standings. “We
dug a huge crater hole. We tried to keep
fighting back. We needed a third 20-minute period.”
Lyon led the Wildcats with 21 points
while Douglas added 13 and Christen
Inman tallied 10. Freshman forward Nia
Coffey scored nine points and grabbed 18
rebounds.
They climbed back into the game by disrupting Ohio State with a full-court press
that took McGuff’s team out of its comfort
zone, but the Buckeyes held on by showing poise at the free-throw line late.
“It’s kind of a fine line,” he said. “You
don’t want to slow your team down too
much to where they get stagnant, but we
emphasized getting shots at the rim or
run a little bit of clock so we get a great
shot deep in the shot clock.”
24
BSB Quickly
Feb. 25, 2014
Women’s Basketball
Alston’s Heroics Not Enough Vs. Nebraska
By Marcus Hartman
In a classic game of runs, Nebraska
had the biggest and the last at Ohio State
on Feb. 20. The 17th-ranked Cornhuskers
used a 17-0 spurt late in the second half to
pull out a 67-59 victory.
“This one should hurt because we had
a real chance to beat a great team,” Ohio
State head coach Kevin McGuff said. “But
we didn’t finish it out, and to their credit
they did.”
The 4,612 fans at Value City Arena did
not have much to cheer about in the first
half, but they looked like they had a chance
to go home happy when the Buckeyes led
52-44 with eight minutes to go.
Then Nebraska star Jordan Hooper started the decisive run for the Cornhuskers
(20-5, 10-3) with a three-pointer with 7:06
left. She scored seven of her 24 points
over the next six minutes while Tear’a
Laudermill added six and Rachel Theriot
and Emily Cady each had two.
Theriot, a sophomore point guard from
Middleburg Heights, Ohio, finished with a
team-high 26 points for the Cornhuskers,
including six on free throws in the final
minute as Ohio State attempted a futile
comeback.
“Rachel was really good,” Nebraska
head coach Connie Yori said. “She made a
ton of shots in late shot clock situations.”
Nebraska overcame a dreadful start to
take a 27-25 lead into the locker room at
halftime.
The Cornhuskers made only 12 of 40
shots from the floor in the first half,
and the 30-percent mark after 20 minutes was an improvement over where the
Cornhuskers stood at the 2:30 mark.
Through 17½ minutes, the visitors
were just 8 for 35 (22.8 percent), but they
closed the half making four of five as they
were able to get inside the defense and
finish in the paint on all four makes. The
lone miss was a three-point attempt by
Brandi Jeffery.
Ohio State held a 19-15 lead after a
three-pointer by Ameryst Alston at the
4:08 mark, but Nebraska scored the next
eight points to turn the Buckeyes’ fourpoint lead into a four-point deficit.
Theriot scored the first six points on
three jumpers in a span of less than two
minutes, and Allie Havers capped it with
a layup that made it 23-19 with 1:58 left in
the half.
Nebraska 67, Ohio State 59
Feb. 20, 2014 • Value City Arena; Columbus, Ohio
Nebraska (20-5, 10-3)
Ohio State (14-15, 4-9)
27
25
40
34
–
–
67
59
Nebraska
Min
FG
FT
Reb. A PF Pts
Sample
39
0-6 1-2
3-8
3
2
1
Cady
40
3-10 0-0
8-3
4
0
6
Hooper
32
8-17 3-4
0-7
0
2
24
Laudermill
25
1-6 3-4
1-0
1
4
6
Theriot
40
9-19 6-6
2-5
4
2
26
Jeffery
16
1-4 0-0
2-1
0
0
2
Havers
8
1-3 0-0
0-0
0
0
2
Totals
200 23-65 13-16 19-25 12 10 67
Percentages: FG: 35.4%. FT: 81.3%. 3-point goals: 8-20
(Cady 0-1, Hooper 5-11, Laudermill 1-3, Theriot 2-3, Jeffery
0-2). Team rebounds: 4. Blocked shots: 2 (Sample, Havers).
Turnovers: 11 (Cady 3, Hooper 3, Sample 2, Theriot 2,
Jeffery). Steals: 7 (Hooper 3, Sample 2, Laudermill 2).
Ohio State
Min
FG
FT
Reb. A PF Pts
Ellerbe
40
2-8 0-0
0-2
2
3
5
Moore
16
1-2 0-0
1-4
1
4
2
Craft
37
3-6 0-0
0-2
3
1
6
Alston
37 12-17 2-2
0-4
0
2
31
Scullion
24
4-8 0-0
1-5
2
2
10
Blair
5
0-1 0-2
0-0
0
1
0
Ferguson
22
2-12 0-0
1-4
0
3
5
Adams
19
0-2 0-0
4-4
1
0
0
Totals
200 24-56 2-4 8-26 9 16 59
Percentages: FG: 42.9%. FT: 50.0%. 3-point goals: 9-21
(Ellerbe 1-5, Craft 0-1, Alston 5-8, Scullion 2-5, Ferguson 12). Team rebounds: 2. Blocked shots: 8 (Ellerbe 2, Blair 2,
Ferguson 2, Adams 2). Turnovers: 18 (Craft 4, Ferguson 4,
Alston 3, Scullion 3, Ellerbe 2, Moore, Blair). Steals: 3 (Moore,
Craft, Adams).
SONNY BROCKWAY
NEEDED MORE HELP – Ohio State’s
Ameryst Alston (14) scored a game-high
31 points against Nebraska, but the rest
of the Buckeyes combined for only 28
more in a 67-59 home defeat.
After another Alston three pulled the
Buckeyes within one, Cady sliced through
the defense for a driving layup, and Theriot
did much the same with 16 seconds left to
give Nebraska a five-point lead, its largest
of the half.
That was short-lived, however, as Alston
dribbled into a three from the right wing
with only three seconds left on the clock
to set the halftime score.
Alston tied the game with the first
basket of the second half, but Nebraska
scored nine of the next 11 points to open
up a seven-point advantage at 36-29.
The Buckeyes looked wobbly as the
16-minute mark approached, but instead
of wilting they took control of the game by
dominating the next six minutes.
A 13-3 run gave Ohio State a 42-39 lead.
It started and ended with Cait Craft layups
while Amy Scullion had five points and
Alston added four along the way.
After a Cady jumper pulled the Huskers
within one at 42-41, Alston scored eight in
a row on a pair of three-pointers and a
layup to push Ohio State’s lead to its largest at 50-41 with 10:44 to go.
Officials: Smith, Hall, Daley. Technical foul: Nebraska TEAM.
A: 4,612.
Hooper, a two-time first-team All-Big
Ten forward who entered the night third
in the conference in scoring at 20.0 points
per game, started the comeback with a
three-pointer to make it 50-44 with 9:42
left. That was answered by Craft’s tough
driving basket 1:40 later, setting the stage
for Nebraska’s decisive run.
“I think for 35 minutes we played well,”
McGuff said. “We really competed. In the
last five it wasn’t that we weren’t trying,
we just made too many mental mistakes
to beat a team like Nebraska.”
Alston had a game-high 31 points for
the Buckeyes, who fell below .500 at 14-15
overall and dropped to 4-9 with five consecutive losses in the Big Ten.
Despite the defeat, the Buckeyes took
some solace in their showing against a
team one game out of first place in the
conference.
“We came out with that mind-set of just
going out fighting, playing hard, especially for the seniors because they’ve only got
one home game left,” Alston said.
She was 12 for 17 from the floor while
the rest of the team went 12 for 39.
“During that run she was terrific,”
McGuff said. “But overall we need other
people to step up and help her.”
Women’s Basketball
Feb. 25, 2014
BSB Quickly
25
Junior Eager To Focus On Her Next Chapter
By Craig Merz
Amy Scullion grabbed the loose ball
and dribbled out the clock at midcourt
Sunday to finish both the victory, 71-62 for
Ohio State against Northwestern, and her
last game in Value City Arena.
There was nothing flashy about the
way Scullion, a redshirt junior, handled
the moment but there were months of
thought that went into that game before
6,670 home fans.
Scullion, a 6-0 guard, could have
returned for another season after missing
all of her freshman year after tearing her
ACL in the preseason.
But the Salem, Ohio, native already has
a bachelor’s degree in human nutrition
and hopes to enter medical school instead
of wearing a scarlet and gray uniform for
the 2014-15 season.
“It’s like saying goodbye to my second
family,” Scullion said.
The decision weighed on her for a
while.
“It’s been something I’ve been thinking
about since the beginning of the season,”
she told BSB. “It’s definitely something
I talked about a lot with my parents and
other people who have played college
sports.”
Scullion tallied the pros and cons. She
has enjoyed this season – by far her best
– under first-year coach Kevin McGuff but
felt it was time to move forward.
“It was a tough decision because I love
this university,” she said. “I love to play
basketball. I really, really enjoyed playing
for Coach McGuff, but I really wanted to
focus on the next stage of my life. I have
to hang up my shoes to do that.
“I love these guys. I put so much into it.
It’s hard to say goodbye early, but I want
to focus on getting into med school and
whatever road that takes me.”
Scullion has started applying for medical schools but hasn’t decided what field
she wants to enter.
“I don’t know but I like to work with
kids so I’m going to lean toward that I little bit,” she said. “But I’m also interested
in oncology.”
Both of her parents graduated from
Ohio State’s optometry school, and she’s
always had an interest in being a doctor.
That was amplified when she suffered her
injury.
“I think it gave me a greater apprecia-
tion for being a patient and what that rehab
is like because I never had that injury or
a long-term rehab before,” Scullion said.
“The hardest part about being in rehab
is you’re alone. You don’t get to hang out
with your team. You don’t get to practice.
You spend a lot of time by yourself thinking and working in yourself. It’s hard to
stay motivated.”
Senior teammate Martina Ellerbe said
she’s been impressed how Scullion has
handled her adversity, which also included missing two months as a sophomore
due to another leg injury.
“She always stayed positive, and seeing
that makes everyone else work harder,”
Ellerbe said.
Scullion said she didn’t allow herself to
get down over her freshman injury.
“I don’t think it was such a negative
year,” she said. “I learned a lot about
myself that year. I had a lot of time to work
on my game alone. Unfortunately I got
hurt again the next year.”
Scullion, the 2010 Ohio Gatorade Player
of the Year as a senior at Salem and an AllOhio selection in both basketball and volleyball, played 14 games as a sophomore
but was sidelined for most of the second
half of the season although she came back
for the final two games.
She played 25 games last season for
then-head coach Jim Foster, averaging 0.6
points and 0.9 rebounds in 7.8 minutes.
It has been a different story this season.
Her first career start came in the season
opener at West Virginia, and she has
started all but one of 30 games.
“Amy plays super hard,” McGuff said.
“She gives us great leadership. She has a
great brain. She has a great knowledge of
anything we’re trying to do, kind of like a
glue player out there.”
The lone time she was not in the opening five was at Cincinnati on Dec. 15. She
returned to the starting lineup against UT
Martin two days later and had the best
game of her career, scoring 19 points on
6 for 6 from the field, including five threepointers, and she made both free throws.
She is averaging 3.1 points and 4.1
rebounds while playing nearly 22 minutes
a game.
“I really appreciate Coach McGuff for
giving me a chance this year,” she said.
Yet, with her game on the upswing this
season she announced Feb. 18 her decision not to return.
SONNY BROCKWAY
PAGING DR. SCULLION – Ohio State
junior Amy Scullion (25) is concluding
her college basketball career after this
season to focus on medical school.
“She’s an extremely bright young
woman with an amazing future ahead,”
McGuff said. “She’s kind of grappled with
that throughout the year. She came in
a week, 10 days ago and wanted to talk
about it.
“I told her I think it’s a great decision.
It’s not like she’s going off to Europe for
a year to backpack. She’s got something
really special ahead of her and an opportunity that very few people get. For her
to jump on that and get going is the right
decision. Obviously she’ll be incredibly
successful.”
Scullion said she doesn’t feel cheated
that injuries cost her almost half of her
career as a Buckeye.
“I’ve had some bad luck injury-wise
and I didn’t play my best basketball ever
that I could have, but I definitely wouldn’t
change the experience I’ve had and the
teammates I’ve had,” she said.
Now her playing days are dwindling.
“It’s crazy,” she said. “When you come
in as a freshman you think, ‘I have so
long.’ At times during the different seasons you think it’s never going to end. The
end comes so fast.
“The thing I’ll miss the most is playing for these fans. I love Ohio State and
being part of this atmosphere and this
university.”
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Big Ten Notes
Feb. 25, 2014
BSB Quickly
27
Falling Metal Postpones IU-Iowa Contest
It was a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it clip.
An ESPN camera was running inside
Indiana’s Assembly Hall less than seven
hours before the Hoosiers were scheduled to host Iowa on Feb. 18. There were
only two people visible, both standing
near a scorer’s table courtside. Suddenly,
in the upper right hand corner, a quick
gray flash dots the screen.
Taking a zoomed-in look, you see what
happened. A piece of metal – an approximately 50-pound facing – fell from the top
of the arena and landed on some seats in
the northwest corner of the arena’s lower
bowl before falling in between a pair of
rows. Unsurprisingly, the battle between the
Hoosiers and Hawkeyes was postponed.
BIG TEN NOTES
Matthew Hager
“Safety is our No. 1 priority,” IU
Director of Athletics Fred Glass said upon
announcing the postponement. “Our university engineers have advised us to postpone events in Assembly Hall until it can
be determined what caused the facing
to fall and ensure the safety of everyone
attending an event in the facility.”
Jim Morris, president of the NBA’s
Indiana Pacers, offered to host the game
at Bankers Life Fieldhouse, but Glass
said the move was logistically impossible
in such a short time frame. Instead, the
game was rescheduled for Feb. 27 with a
9 p.m. tipoff on ESPN.
Glass went on to describe what happened.
“In the four corners of Assembly Hall
there is a facing of steel plating that runs
basically from each side up until the middle at a mild curve, if you will,” Glass said.
“The preliminary assessment is that with
the snow and ice accumulation, it’s settled
at the lowest point in that curve in such a
magnitude that it essentially popped that
bottom plate off, and there is about an
eight foot by one foot piece of metal – it
weighs about 50 pounds – popped off that
facing.
“So we think that the issue is limited to
the plate that is at that whatever inverted
apex is the bottom of that curve in each
one of the four corners of Assembly Hall.
Of course we’re going to be inspecting
all the plating on all that facing and not
limiting it to the three remaining pieces
of plating at those three bottom portions
of the curve. But that’s the preliminary
assessment from the engineers.”
IU head coach Tom Crean was not at
the arena at the time of the incident. He
was prepping his team for a walk-through
for the evening’s game and did not have
his phone on him. When he finally did
get a message from Glass, he went to
Assembly Hall and soon after the decision
to postpone the game was made.
The Indiana women’s basketball game
vs. Michigan was played as scheduled,
with seating limitations, on Feb. 19, and
the arena was deemed fully operational
three days later. Glass’ preliminary assessment was correct, as engineers confirmed
a buildup of ice and snow caused the
plate’s failure. Two or three others were
found to be loose, but not in danger of
falling.
“IU and outside consulting engineers
have advised that remediations have
been completed ahead of schedule and
Assembly Hall is safe for general occupancy including basketball games without
restriction or limitation,” Glass said.
Crean was just happy no one was
injured.
“What could have transpired was
unthinkable, if that same situation would
have happened that night,” Crean said.
“The most important thing is you want
everybody that’s used to being here to
continue to do that.
“It’s a great building and it had a tough
moment.”
Fitzgerald, Colter Testify
Northwestern head football coach Pat
Fitzgerald testified on Feb. 21 at the
National Labor Relations Board, which
will help determine whether college athletes can unionize.
The newly-formed College Athletes
Players Association, of which former
Northwestern quarterback Kain Colter
has served as a spokesperson, is hoping
the NLRB will rule that college football
players qualify as university employees.
The NCAA, Big Ten and Northwestern all
claim athletes do not fall in that category.
Fitzgerald, representing his alma
mater, said Northwestern makes academics the focal point for student-athletes. He
testified for more than two hours.
TWITTER.COM/JORDANLITTMAN
SAFETY CONCERN – An approximately
50-pound metal facing damaged several
seats at Assembly Hall in Bloomington,
postponing a Feb. 18 game between
Indiana and Iowa.
“We take pride in developing our men
to be the best they can be in everything
they choose to do,” Fitzgerald said. “Our
goals are simple: We want to graduate
100 percent of our players and prepare
them for life, and we want to compete for
championships.”
CAPA lawyers argued that the relationship between players and coaches is an
employee-employer one because coaches
control a player’s scholarship – pointing
out that a coach such as Fitzgerald can
strip a scholarship.
The coach responded that it is “not our
practice” to do so, despite reading a team
rule on the stand that says he is allowed to
do so if players break team rules.
Fitzgerald added that academics are
at the forefront for his program from the
start of the player’s recruitment.
“The first test is his academic credentials,” he said. “The expectations from our
admissions department are much higher
than the NCAA minimums.”
Fitzgerald’s testimony came three days
after Colter took the stand and claimed
playing college football was a full-time
obligation.
“It’s a job,” Colter said. “There is no
way around it – it’s a job.”
Colter later added that he knew of university advisers steering players toward
certain classes, a claim Fitzgerald said
he had no knowledge of. The head coach
responded by recounting a player who
had to sit out a game because of academic
issues. The unnamed player was eligible
28
BSB Quickly
Feb. 25, 2014
Men’s Basketball Standings
Team
W
Michigan
11
Michigan State 11
Wisconsin
9
Iowa
8
Ohio State
9
Nebraska
8
Minnesota
6
Indiana
5
Purdue
5
Northwestern
5
Illinois
4
Penn State
4
Conf.
L Pct.
3 .786
4 .733
5 .643
5 .615
6 .600
6 .571
9 .400
8 .385
9 .357
10 .333
10 .286
10 .286
Overall
W L Pct.
19 7 .731
22 6 .786
22 5 .815
19 7 .731
22 6 .786
16 10 .615
17 11 .607
15 11 .577
15 12 .556
12 16 .429
15 12 .556
13 14 .481
Feb. 18 Game
Iowa at Indiana, ppd.
Feb. 19 Games
Ohio State 76, Northwestern 60
Illinois 62, Minnesota 49
Feb. 20 Games
Michigan State 94, Purdue 79
Nebraska 80, Penn State 67
Feb. 22 Games
Ohio State 64, Minnesota 46
Wisconsin 79, Iowa 74
Indiana 61, Northwestern 56
Feb. 23 Games
Michigan 79, Michigan State 70
Nebraska 76, Purdue 57
Feb. 25 Games
Iowa at Minnesota, 7 p.m.
Indiana at Wisconsin, 9 p.m.
Feb. 26 Games
Michigan at Purdue, 7 p.m.
Nebraska at Illinois, 9 p.m.
Feb. 27 Games
Ohio State at Penn State, 7 p.m.
Iowa at Indiana, 9 p.m.
March 1 Games
Illinois at Michigan State, 4 p.m.
Northwestern at Nebraska, 5 p.m.
Minnesota at Michigan, 6 p.m.
Purdue at Iowa, 8:15 p.m.
March 2 Games
Wisconsin at Penn State, Noon
Ohio State at Indiana, 4 p.m.
but struggling, so Fitzgerald allowed him
to miss practice and a game in order to
study.
The NLRB hearing is scheduled to
resume on Feb. 25. There is no timetable
on a decision coming once testimony
concludes, but an NLRB hearing officer
perhaps tipped the board’s hand on Feb.
20 during a discussion over evidence.
“The record is weak on the players’
side,” Joyce Hofstra said.
Coach Returns After Collapse
Nebraska women’s basketball coach
Connie Yori was back on the sideline
when her Cornhuskers earned a 67-59 win
at Ohio State on Feb. 20.
The triumphant return was quite different from what happened to Yori on
Feb. 16 when she collapsed during the
Big Ten Notes
Women’s Basketball Standings
Team
Penn State
Nebraska
Michigan State
Purdue
Iowa
Michigan
Minnesota
Indiana
Ohio State
Northwestern
Wisconsin
Illinois
W
12
10
10
10
9
8
6
5
5
4
3
2
Conf.
L Pct.
2 .857
3 .769
3 .769
5 .667
5 .643
7 .533
7 .462
9 .357
9 .357
10 .286
12 .200
12 .143
Overall
W L Pct.
21 5 .808
20 5 .800
18 8 .692
20 7 .741
21 7 .750
17 11 .607
17 10 .630
18 9 .667
15 15 .500
14 13 .519
10 17 .370
9 18 .333
Feb. 19 Game
Michigan 70, Indiana 58
Feb. 20 Games
Nebraska 67, Ohio State 59
Penn State 82, Northwestern 73
Purdue 63, Minnesota 42
Michigan State 76, Wisconsin 66
Feb. 22 Games
Iowa 74, Michigan 70
Indiana 79, Illinois 61
Feb. 23 Games
Ohio State 71, Northwestern 62
Purdue 72, Wisconsin 54
Feb. 24 Games
Minnesota at Michigan State, 7 p.m.
Penn State at Nebraska, 7 p.m.
Feb. 27 Games
Ohio State at Iowa, 7 p.m.
Illinois at Nebraska, 8 p.m.
Indiana at Minnesota, 8 p.m.
Michigan State at Northwestern, 9 p.m.
March 1 Game
Michigan at Penn State, 3:30 p.m.
March 2 Games
Ohio State at Minnesota, 2 p.m.
Northwestern at Wisconsin, 2 p.m.
Nebraska at Purdue, 2 p.m.
Iowa at Illinois, 4 p.m.
Indiana at Michigan State, 6 p.m.
End of regular season
second half of Nebraska’s win over visiting Indiana. After medics attended to her,
Yori walked off the court under her own
power before being evaluated at a Lincoln
hospital and released.
Yori said on Feb. 18 that she was on
medication for a bacterial infection and
was dehydrated when she passed out.
“Before the game I wasn’t feeling great,
and at halftime I said to our coaching
staff, ‘I feel real dizzy,’ ” she said. “The
odd thing is that I drink more water than
any human being alive. I drink a gallon
of water a day. I always have believed in
that. So it’s just weird they’re telling me
I’m dehydrated.”
The collapse was not Yori’s first health
scare at Nebraska. Two years ago she was
hospitalized for nearly a month because of
complications from a knee surgery. Yori
developed a staph infection and a blood
Men’s Hockey Standings
Team
Pts. W L
Minnesota
32 10 2
Wisconsin
31 10 5
Michigan
23
7 6
Ohio State
20
5 6
Michigan State 19
3 7
Penn State
7
2 11
T SOW GF GA
2 0 40 24
1 0 48 34
1 1 44 44
3 2 39 36
6 4 29 37
1 0 30 55
Overall records: Minnesota 21-4-5,
Wisconsin 19-9-2, Michigan 15-10-3, Ohio
State 15-10-3, Michigan State 9-15-7, Penn
State 6-20-2.
Feb. 21 Games
Penn State 5, Michigan 4 (OT)
Wisconsin 5, Michigan State 2
Feb. 22 Games
Michigan 5, Penn State 2
Wisconsin 2, Michigan State 0
Feb. 28 Games
Ohio State at Michigan, 6:30 p.m.
Penn State at Minnesota, 9 p.m.
March 1 Games
Penn State at Minnesota, 7 p.m.
U.S. Under-18 Team at Mich. State, 7 p.m.
March 2 Game
Michigan at Ohio State*, 1 p.m.
* – at Nationwide Arena
clot in the knee that required her to be
hospitalized.
Staying, Coming, Going
• Minnesota third-year head football
coach Jerry Kill spent much of the 2013
season in the press box after a bout with
epileptic seizures. Even so, he helped lead
the Gophers to an eight-win season and
a second consecutive bowl appearance.
Because of that, Minnesota gave Kill a
raise and a one-year contract extension.
Kill will now make $2.1 million per season. He was the lowest-paid Big Ten head
coach last fall, earning $1.2 million. The
third-year Minnesota coach has a 17-21
record and now has a contract that runs
through the 2018-19 season.
• Indiana head football coach Kevin
Wilson completed his staff overhaul Feb.
20 when he announced Noah Joseph as
IU’s new safeties coach. Joseph comes to
Bloomington after spending the previous
two seasons as the safeties coach at North
Texas, which completed the 2013 season
with a 9-4 record and a win in the Heart of
Dallas Bowl.
• Longtime Penn State assistant
coach Tom Bradley is returning to coaching as senior associate head coach at
West Virginia. Bradley served under Joe
Paterno for 33 years before taking over at
Penn State when Paterno left the program
in 2011. He resigned from PSU after that
season and has worked as a television
analyst for the last three years.
Men’s Hockey
Feb. 25, 2014
BSB Quickly
29
Niddery Produces For Buckeyes In Many Ways
By Jeff Svoboda
Chad Niddery held on to the skid of the
helicopter then let go, falling 10 feet into
the Yukon wilderness. Then, as a camera
crew looked on from the chopper, someone tossed his shotgun – an essential tool
for the day’s work – down to the ground.
At that moment, only one thought went
through the mind of the Ohio State men’s
hockey forward.
“I was like, ‘Oh, that was cool,’ ” he said
with a laugh. “That looked pretty cool on
TV, I hope.”
While Niddery’s job most of the year
is to be an energy-providing center for
the Buckeyes – one whose contributions
can be measured by more than just his 12
points in 73 career games – he has spent
the past few offseasons in Canada’s northern reaches, working to stake gold claims.
The National Geographic Channel has
brought some publicity to the northern
gold hunt in its television series “Yukon
Gold,” which is why Niddery was tailed
by a television crew on one of his days on
the job.
The scenery, of course, is beautiful and
there are dangers present – yes, bears and
other forest creatures keep Niddery and
his fellow geotechs on their toes – while
the 12-hour days don’t pass too quickly
at times.
Armed with a GPS, a shotgun and
an axe, a typical day included Niddery
walking through the wilderness claiming
sections of land for the mining company
he worked for. He would also grab soil
samples that could be analyzed by the
company to see if they wanted to set up a
mine in the area, all in search of precious
metals such as gold and silver.
At the end of the day, the axe would
come in handy as Niddery would chop
down a landing pad for the helicopter to
come pick him up at the end of the day.
“It takes forever, and you hope that it’s
big enough that when a chopper comes,
it’s clear skies and he can pick you up
and take you back,” he said. “Every 373
meters, you chop down four trees and add
on tags and it says, “This land belongs to
whoever.’
“You’re by yourself all day for 12 hours.
You start going crazy. You sing a lot.
I sang John Denver. I sang ‘Take Me
Home, Country Roads’ every day for two
months straight.”
Niddery got into the job thanks to some
contacts he made in junior hockey. A
native of Penticton, British Columbia, he
suited up for Powell River of the British
Columbia Hockey League before arriving
at OSU, and some of his teammates were
from the Yukon. With Niddery majoring
in geological sciences and hoping to get
into the gold, silver or oil markets after
graduation, the job was a perfect fit.
“It keeps you in great shape,” he said.
“All I do is like hike for 12 hours a day
before I get picked up in the chopper.
The things I’ve seen were like, insane, the
coolest things ever. I’ve done some pretty
cool things.”
Niddery has earned the respect of his
teammates and coaches with his dedication to the offseason work as well.
“I give him credit,” head coach Steve
Rohlik said. “He’s doing these things for a
couple of reasons. It’s something he wants
to do in the future, but it’s also to make
money to play the game he loves and go to
school here. I give him a lot of credit.”
If it sounds like Niddery’s upbringing
was a little different from the urban atmosphere found around Columbus and Ohio
State, that would be a fair assessment. He
grew up in the Okanagan valley of British
Columbia – which has more of a sunny,
dry climate compared to the rest of the
province – and played in Powell River, a
community of only 13,000 people which
is surrounded on either side by large
fjords that make the city accessible only
by ferry.
Thus Niddery described the move to
Columbus as a shock, as was his introduction to college hockey.
“When we were in Powell River,
you literally couldn’t leave,” he said.
“I remember getting stuck on the bus
sometimes because the ferry would take
off, so you’d just sit there all night until
the morning until the next ferry. We’d
be screaming at our bus driver, like,
‘Get there, get there!’ Sometimes our
coach would call ahead. When you’re
done with a game, win or lose, it’s like,
‘Boys, we have to go.’
“It was unique, too, because it’s like
such a small base for a team. The same
people came to the games and it was
like family. It’s a little different. We
used to chop wood just to get sticks. It’s
just a totally different game, but that’s
juniors.”
In the same vein, Niddery has had
to get used to a different role on the
Buckeyes than he had with the Kings. In
juniors, he was a high scorer, including a
Powell River franchise-record 220 career
points and 150 assists in four seasons.
But at OSU, he’s been more of an
energy-line player, with this season’s totals
of four goals and five points serving as
career highs. The 5-10, 170-pound junior
does have some big moments in his career,
though, including an overtime goal as a
freshman at Miami (Ohio) and the gamewinning breakaway tally earlier this year in
the home contest vs. Bowling Green.
“I was used to putting up a ton of points,”
he said of his junior career. “Coming in,
as you get up to a new level and you get
different roles, you have to be your best
at that role. I’m not a guy right now in
college that’s putting up huge numbers,
but it definitely feels good to help out the
guys.”
That’s exactly what Rohlik is looking
for out of the junior, who has been the
anchor on OSU’s fourth line this season.
“He’s one of the unsung heroes,” Rohlik
said. “He brings it every night, plays
the same way every night – with tons of
energy. He loves the game. You notice
him every shift. There’s some guys you
can’t say that about, but Nids, you know
he’s on the ice every time he’s out there.
The team gains momentum just by him
being out there.”
Chad Niddery
Junior Forward
5-10 • 170
Penticton, British Columbia
Yr.
GP
G
A Pts.
13-14
12-13
11-12
24
26
23
4
0
1
1
3
3
5
3
4
30
BSB Quickly
Feb. 25, 2014
Briefs
Baseball Buckeyes Complete Weekend Sweep
The Ohio State baseball team bounced
back from an up-and-down opening weekend by sweeping its way through the UCF
Baseball Tournament from Feb. 21-23 in
Orlando, Fla.
The Buckeyes closed out a memorable weekend by downing 2013 Big 12
champion and Super Regional participant
Oklahoma, 6-3, after previously topping
The Citadel by a 5-4 final and UCF by a 9-3
score in 13 innings.
“It’s huge to get the sweep and finish
the weekend,” Ohio State head coach Greg
Beals said. “We didn’t finish last weekend
the way we wanted to so it was big to
make a statement against three good opponents. Zach Farmer bounced back with a
really good start today, and we were able
to use our bullpen the way we wanted. We
were able to mix and match with (Tyler)
Giannonatti, (Michael) Horejsei and then
Trace Dempsey to finish the ballgame.”
The Buckeyes benefited from four
Oklahoma errors and finished the getaway
day contest against the Sooners with just two
RBI as a team. After falling behind a run, the
Buckeyes plated three runs in the fourth,
one in the fifth and two in the eighth.
Sophomore second baseman Troy Kuhn
scored two runs from the leadoff position,
and right fielder Pat Porter also touched
home twice as part of a 2-for-4 performance
at the plate. Sophomore third baseman
Jacob Bosiokovic (2 for 5) and junior designated hitter Josh Dezse each tallied an
RBI.
One day earlier, the Buckeyes managed
to grind out a one-run triumph against The
Citadel when a bases-loaded single from
freshman center fielder Ronnie Dawson
scored Kuhn to give OSU a walkoff win.
That was a positive development for
Beals, who was happy to see his squad
display the mettle necessary to win a close
game.
“I’m excited about the character we’re
showing and the identity we’re developing
off of that,” Beals said. “The experience
we’re getting in tight ballgames is really
important for us early in the season and
should pay off for us down the line.”
The Buckeyes watched a 4-1 lead disappear thanks to a three-run fifth inning from
the visitors but rallied in the ninth inning.
Their early-inning advantage developed in
the second when Porter capped off a fourrun frame with a two-run single that scored
Bosiokovic and Kuhn.
FILE PHOTO
DENTING THE PLATE – Sophomore second baseman Troy Kuhn (left) scored two of
Ohio State’s runs in a 6-3 win over Oklahoma in the final game of the UCF Baseball
Tournament in Orlando, Fla.
Sophomore relief pitcher Jake Post day provided a big boost to the Ohio State
picked up the win after hurling four innings wrestling team on Senior Day, as the No.
of scoreless relief. He allowed just two 11 Buckeyes held off 16th-ranked Virginia
hits and also registered a career-best six Tech, 23-16, on Feb. 23 at St. John Arena.
Senior Nick Heflin, ranked fourth in the
strikeouts.
“Jake came in and gave us four really nation, finished out his last home match
good innings to give us a chance to win the with a bang at 197 pounds, turning the
ballgame,” Beals said. “It also was really Buckeyes’ two-point deficit into a four-point
good to see Pat Porter break out with a key advantage in the penultimate match by pintwo-run single in the second, but we had a ning the Hokies’ Brooks Morrison in 1:17.
Sophomore heavyweight Nick Tavanello
lot of guys contribute to this win.”
In the first night of the tournament, preserved the lead in the final match with
OSU showed what it was made of with a a 5-3 decision over Ty Walz to provide the
resounding extra-inning victory over the final margin.
With the match leading off at 125,
host Knights.
After tying the game with two runs in Virginia Tech grabbed three quick points
the ninth frame, six runs in the 13th did as Joey Dance claimed a 10-3 decision over
the trick for the Buckeyes as Dempsey Nick Roberts. However, eighth-ranked
slammed the door shut in the bottom half. Johnni DiJulius followed at 133 by pinning
“The depth really shined tonight,” Beals VT’s Dennis Gustafson and No. 3 Logan
said. “We had depth in our bullpen and our Stieber earned a 17-1 tech fall over Erik
bench. We used a lot of different pieces to Spjut at 141 to help extend the Buckeyes’
win the game tonight, and that’s the most lead to 11-3.
The Hokies regained control of the
satisfying part for me.”
Bosiokovic and senior left fielder Tim match with wins at 149, 157 and 165,
Wetzel each contributed two RBI, while but 13th-ranked Mark Martin ended that
Dawson had a monstrous day that included streak with a 5-3 decision over Austin
a 4-for-6 performance at the plate with one Gabel at 174.
run and an RBI.
Grapplers Notch
Senior Day Win
A fall in the second-to-last match of the
Women’s Hockey Records
Senior Sweep Of No. 7 UND
The OSU women’s hockey team finished the regular season with an overall
Briefs
record of 14-15-5 and 9-14-5 in Western
Collegiate Hockey Association competition
thanks to a two-game sweep of No. 7 North
Dakota at home.
Senior goalie Chelsea Knapp made 30
saves in a 3-1 win on Feb. 22, while Ally
Tarr, Kendall Curtis and Danielle Gagne
scored three unanswered goals to help the
Buckeyes climb out of a 1-0 deficit.
It marked the final career home game
for Knapp, Tarr, Becky Allis, Madison
Marcotte, Annie Svedine and Lisa Steffes.
One night earlier, Steffes posted 32
saves in a 2-0 shutout of North Dakota that
clinched a fifth-place WCHA finish for the
Buckeyes. Kari and Sara Schmitt netted
one goal apiece for OSU, while Taylor
Kuehl dished out two assists and Tarr also
managed an assist.
That win locked in a best-of-three playoff
matchup with Minnesota Duluth, which
will be held on the road from Feb. 28March 2.
Men’s Lacrosse Gets First Win
Of Season Vs. Marquette
The No. 17-ranked Ohio State men’s
lacrosse team defeated Marquette, 11-7, on
Feb. 22 to improve to 1-2 on the season.
A total of six consecutive even-strength
goals spanning the first and second quarters helped the Buckeyes turn a one-goal
deficit into a five-goal advantage.
Jesse King netted four goals and added
two assists for a career-high-tying six
points, while Carter Brown finished with
a team-high three assists and added a
goal for a four-point performance. Adam
Trombley and David Planning each scored
twice.
“We get our first win at home, and that’s
important for the men,” Ohio State head
coach Nick Myers said. “There is still a lot
to improve upon, and we will get back to
work immediately as we prepare for our
game vs. Penn State. At this point of the
season, we’re looking to get better each
week. We showed flashes, but we need
consistency in all areas. We improved in
some areas today, and it was nice to see
guys step up who haven’t played many
minutes yet this year.”
Spikers Sweep Grand
Canyon In League Play
The 14th-ranked OSU men’s volleyball team improved to 7-6 on the season
and 4-2 in the Midwestern Intercollegiate
Volleyball Association thanks to a twomatch sweep of visiting Grand Canyon on
Feb. 21-22.
Feb. 25, 2014
Driss Guessous had a match-high 11
kills for Ohio State in a 3-0 (25-18, 2521, 25-20) sweep Feb. 22. Miles Johnson
added nine kills and two solo blocks, while
Dustan Neary and Andrew Lutz had eight
kills. Setter Christy Blough contributed a
match-best 37 assists.
The previous day, Lutz led the squad
with 13 kills en route to the 3-0 (25-18,
31-29, 25-23) sweep. Johnson also reached
double digits, adding a career-best 11 kills.
Guessous and Michael Henchy finished
with nine and eight kills, respectively, and
Blough had a match-high 40 assists.
Women’s Swimming, Diving
Sets Records At Big Tens
Junior swimmer Ashley Vance compiled
44 points, broke two school records and
won an individual conference title in the
200 individual medley to lead Ohio State to
a fourth-place finish with 374 points at the
Big Ten championships held Feb. 19-22 in
Minneapolis.
Vance was the lone OSU swimmer to
bring home a conference title, touching
the wall in 1:56.91 to take top honors in the
200 IM. She also broke the school record
BSB Quickly
31
in the 100 breaststroke, clocking a time of
1:00.90. For her efforts, she was also the
lone Buckeye to be named All-Big Ten at
the four-day meet.
Two other school records fell, as senior
Kristyn Fulcher finished the 400 IM in
4:13.59 and freshman Taylor Vargo clocked
a time of 2:11.62 in the 200 breaststroke.
In addition to Vance’s first-place win,
two senior swimmers recorded top-three
finishes. Alex Norris (4:39.88) placed third
in the 500 freestyle, and Michelle Williams
(22.46) finished third in the 50 freestyle.
Minnesota won the meet with a whopping 760 points, followed by Indiana and
Penn State in second and third, respectively. OSU will host a last-chance meet
in Columbus on March 2 in an attempt to
qualify as many swimmers as possible for
the NCAA championships.
Men’s Tennis Continues
Unbeaten Start
Despite dropping the doubles point, the
No. 1 OSU men’s tennis team extended
its program-best start to a season to 14-0
with a 4-2 win at No. 10 Notre Dame on
Feb. 22.
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32
BSB Quickly
Feb. 25, 2014
After Notre Dame claimed the doubles
point and the first match of singles play,
the Buckeyes reeled off four consecutive
victories to end the match.
No. 23 Peter Kobelt gave the Buckeyes
a court one win with a 6-7, 7-6, 7-6 victory
over No. 37 Greg Andrews.
“Greg is not only a great player but a
great friend,” Kobelt said. “Every time we
play it’s always close, and I was fortunate to
come away with the win today. It’s always
exciting to clinch match point for your
team, especially against a very good Notre
Dame team.”
Playing on the second court, Chris Diaz
defeated Quentin Monoghan, 7-6, 6-4. On
courts five and six, respectively, Kevin
Metka bested Eddy Covalschi by a 63, 3-6, 7-6 margin, and Hunter Callahan
recorded a 6-4, 6-4 straight-set win over
Eric Schnurrenberger.
Women’s Tennis Completes
Upset Bid Vs. Tennessee
The Ohio State women’s tennis team
improved to 4-4 overall heading into Big
Ten play after scoring an upset 4-3 victory
over visiting No. 27 Tennessee on Feb. 21.
OSU took control of the match with a
pair of quick doubles victories, as Grainne
O’Neal and Noelle Malley defeated Joanna
Henderson and Laurence Guevremont, 8-3,
in the top spot and Miho Kowase and Ferny
Angeles Paz beat Ambika Pande and Brittany
Lindl, 8-4, while playing in the third slot.
O’Neill and Malley both dropped singles
matches while playing in the fifth and sixth
slots, but the heart of the Buckeye order
stood strong. Kowase dropped Henderson
by a 6-4, 6-3 score line, and Sandy Niehaus
bested Victoria Olivarez by a 5-7, 6-4, 6-0
margin. The deciding victory came from
Paz, who took down Guevremont by a
6-3, 7-5 final to clinch the match for the
Buckeyes.
The only other blemish for the home
team came in the top spot of singles, as
No. 79 Gabriella de Santis lost 6-4, 3-6, 6-4
to No. 63 Eve Repic.
OSU opens Big Ten play at Penn State
on Feb. 25.
Melton Earns Place On
U.S. Men’s Gym Team
Freshman Sean Melton’s trip to the 2014
Riviera Cup in Las Vegas paid off with a
selection to the U.S. Senior Men’s National
Team on Feb. 22.
Melton finished third overall in the
all-around at the USA Gymnastics event,
putting together a total score of 173.000.
He placed third on high bar (29.650),
fourth on vault (30.050) and fifth on floor
exercise (30.000). He also finished the
meet 10th on pommel horse (26.800), 14th
on parallel bars (28.100) and 15th on rings
(28.400).
Sophomore Jake Martin also represented the Buckeyes over the weekend at
the national team qualifier. He concluded
the meet eighth overall in the all-around
after compiling three top-10 results. Martin
earned a fifth-place finish on high bar with
a 29.300, eighth place on parallel bars with
a 28.650 and ninth place on floor exercise
with a 29.750. His two-day final score was
170.700.
The Buckeyes return to action on March
1, when they will host No. 2 Michigan, No.
8 Iowa, No. 11 Nebraska, Arizona State and
the Canadian National Team at the Arnold
Challenge at the Columbus Convention
Center.
Track Teams Prep For
Conference Meets
The men’s and women’s track teams
got in their final work prior to the Big
Ten championships by competing at the
Buckeye Tune-Up on Feb. 21 at French
Field House. Team scores were kept, with
the Buckeyes posting a winning effort in
each gender.
On the men’s side, senior Demoyle
Bogle placed first in the 60 meters with a
time of 6.74 seconds, fending off classmate
Brandon Blackwell who came in second.
Junior runner Josh Sabo crossed the line
first in the mile with a 4:08.83 clocking to
edge teammate Jackson Neff.
Other event champions included Joseph
Velez, who topped the weight throw with
a season-best mark of 19.05 meters, and
Justin Hines, who won the 60-meter hurdles in 7.95, fourth best in OSU history.
The women fared equally well, as senior
sprinter Ashlee Abraham continued her
hot streak by winning the 60 meters in
7.39 seconds. Alexandria Johnson (8.38)
won the 60 hurdles, Aaliyah Barnes (24.63)
won the 200 in a season-best time and SoSo
Walker (1:30.17) took home the 600 title.
Both teams now advance to the Big
Ten championships, which will be held in
Geneva, Ohio, from Feb. 27-March 1 for
women’s track and Feb. 28-March 1 for
men’s track.
Fencers Win
Epee Title
The Ohio State men’s epee squad finished first at the U.S. Collegiate Squad
Briefs
Championships, hosted by University of
Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, on Feb. 23.
The men’s epee unit, consisting of Matt
Bogard, Bill Meyer and Ryan Tomlinson,
was the only squad from Ohio State to
compete.
The Buckeyes faced Stevens Tech in
the first round, winning 45-33. In the next
round, OSU defeated Princeton, 45-37, to
move on to the finals where it triumphed
against Penn, 45-28.
The Buckeyes return to action at the
Midwest Conference Championships in
South Bend, Ind., on March 1-2.
Women’s Lacrosse
Falls To BC
Tori DeScenza tied her season high with
seven saves but was unable to hold off No.
13 Boston College as Ohio State dropped a
9-7 decision on the road Feb. 22. The loss
dropped OSU to 2-2 on the year after beginning with back-to-back wins.
Ohio State entered halftime with a 3-1
advantage, but the Eagles managed to
find the back of the net eight times in the
second half to power their way past the
Buckeyes.
Hallie Keselman, Mary Kate Facchina
and Jackie Cifarelli helped the Buckeyes
to a 3-0 lead in the early stages of the
contest. However, OSU gave up three
consecutive goals coming out of halftime,
leading to a back-and-forth game in the
final frame.
After OSU tied the score at seven
with just 1:30 remaining on a tally from
Keselman, the Eagles recorded two goals
over the final 18 seconds to produce the
final margin.
Cifarelli led the Buckeyes with five
points, the third time in four games that
she has reached that mark.
Women’s Gym Last Despite
Season-Best Performance
The No. 23 Ohio State women’s gymnastics team recorded a season-best point
total of 195.925 on Feb. 23 against No.
14 Illinois and No. 19 Central Michigan.
Illinois won the meet with a 196.775 and
Central Michigan finished second at
196.425.
Melanie Shaffer won the all-around title
with a 39.325. She posted a 9.90 on floor
exercise, 9.825 on vault, 9.875 on beam and
9.725 on uneven bars.
Ohio State’s floor exercise ended as
a season-best 49.200. Shaffer’s 9.900 tied
for second while Victoria Aepli and Alex
DeLuca each notched a 9.850.
Scoreboard
MEN’S BASKETBALL
(22-6, 9-6 Big Ten)
Nov. 3 WALSH (Exhibition), W 93-63; 9 MORGAN STATE, W 89-50; 12
OHIO, W 79-69; 16 at (17) Marquette, W 52-35; 20 AMERICAN, W 63-52; 25
WYOMING, W 65-50; 29 NORTH FLORIDA, W 99-64.
Dec. 4 MARYLAND, W 76-60; 7 CENTRAL CONNECTICUT STATE, W 74-56;
11 BRYANT (Gotham Classic), W 86-48; 14 NORTH DAKOTA STATE (Gotham
Classic), W 79-62; 18 DELAWARE (Gotham Classic), W 76-64; 21 at New York
vs. Notre Dame (Gotham Classic), W 64-61; 27 LA.-MONROE, W 71-31; 31 at
Purdue, W 78-69.
Jan. 4 NEBRASKA, W 84-53; 7 at (5) Michigan State, L 72-68 (OT); 12 (20)
IOWA, L 84-74; 16 at Minnesota, L 63-53; 20 at Nebraska, L 68-62; 23 ILLINOIS,
W 62-55; 29 PENN STATE, L 71-70 (OT).
Feb. 1 at (14) Wisconsin, W 59-58; 4 at (17) Iowa, W 76-69; 8 PURDUE, W
67-49; 11 (15) MICHIGAN, L 70-60; 15 at Illinois, W 48-39; 19 NORTHWESTERN,
W 76-60; 22 MINNESOTA, W 64-46; 27 at Penn State.
March 2 at Indiana; 9 MICHIGAN STATE, 4:30 p.m.; 13-16 Big Ten
Tournament at Indianapolis.
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
(15-15, 5-9 Big Ten)
Nov. 3 BELLARMINE (Exhibition), W 101-48; 8 at West Virginia, W 70-61; 10
FLORIDA ATLANTIC, W 91-88; 14 VCU, W 83-71; 17 at (24) Georgia, L 53-49;
22 OLD DOMINION (Basketball Hall of Fame Challenge), W 75-60; 23 MARIST
(Basketball Hall of Fame Challenge), W 62-59; 24 BOWLING GREEN (Basketball
Hall of Fame Challenge), L 64-52; 27 LEHIGH, W 93-63.
Dec. 1 vs. (1) UConn (Basketball Hall of Fame Challenge) at Springfield, Mass.,
L 70-49; 4 at (8) Maryland (Big Ten/ACC Challenge), L 67-55; 8 (24) GONZAGA,
L 59-58; 13 ARMY, W 59-56; 15 at Cincinnati, L 64-49; 17 TENN. MARTIN, W
82-60; 20 APPALACHIAN STATE, W 52-38; 29 N.C. CENTRAL, W 65-47.
Jan. 2 (17) PURDUE, W 89-78; 5 MICHIGAN, L 64-49; 11 at (22) Indiana, W
70-51; 16 at (16) Penn State, L 66-42; 19 IOWA, L 81-74; 23 at Michigan, W
61-50; 26 MICHIGAN STATE, L 82-68; 30 ILLINOIS, W 90-64.
Feb. 2 at Wisconsin, L 82-71; 6 at (25) Purdue, L 74-58; 9 (9) PENN STATE,
L 74-54; 15 at (25) Michigan State, L 70-49; 20 (17) NEBRASKA, L 67-59; 23
NORTHWESTERN, W 71-62; 27 at Iowa.
March 2 at Minnesota; 6-9 Big Ten Tournament at Indianapolis.
BASEBALL
(5-2)
Feb. 14 Snowbird Classic at Port Charlotte, Fla., vs. UConn, W 8-2; 15
Snowbird Classic at Port Charlotte, Fla., vs. Auburn, W 1-0; vs. Indiana State,
L 7-3; 16 Snowbird Classic at Port Charlotte, Fla., vs. Indiana State, L 8-6;
21 UCF Tournament at Orlando, Fla., vs. UCF, W 9-3 (13 innings); 22 UCF
Tournament at Orlando, Fla., vs. The Citadel, W 5-4; 23 UCF Tournament at
Orlando, Fla., vs. Oklahoma, W 6-3; 28 Keith LaClair Classic at Greenville, N.C.,
vs. Pittsburgh.
March 1 Keith LaClair Classic at Greenville, N.C., vs. Western Kentucky; 2
Keith LaClair Classic at Greenville, N.C., vs. East Carolina; 7-9 at Oregon; 11
at Oregon State; 14 SIENA, 5:05 p.m.; 15 SIENA, 3:05 p.m.; 16 SIENA, 1:05
p.m.; 18 AKRON, 5:05 p.m.; 19 XAVIER, 5:05 p.m.; 21-23 at Michigan State;
25 MARSHALL, 6:35 p.m.; 28 INDIANA, 6:35 p.m.; 29 INDIANA, 3:05 p.m.; 30
INDIANA, 1:05 p.m.
April 1 OHIO, 6:35 p.m.; 2 TOLEDO, 6:35 p.m.; 4-6 at Nebraska; 9 DAYTON,
6:35 p.m.; 11 PENN STATE, 6:35 p.m.; 12 PENN STATE, 4:05 p.m.; 13 PENN
STATE, 1:05 p.m.; 15 at West Virginia; 16 BALL STATE, 6:35 p.m.; 18 MURRAY
STATE, 6:35 p.m.; 19 MURRAY STATE, 1:05 p.m.; 20 MURRAY STATE, 1:05 p.m.;
25-27 at Purdue; 30 at Louisville.
May 2 IOWA, 6:35 p.m.; 3 IOWA, 3:05 p.m.; 4 IOWA, 1:05 p.m.; 6
MIAMI (OHIO), 6:35 p.m.; 9-11 at Michigan; 13 CINCINNATI, 6:35 p.m.;
15 NORTHWESTERN, 6:35 p.m.; 16 NORTHWESTERN, 6:35 p.m.; 17
NORTHWESTERN, 3:05 p.m.; 21-24 Big Ten Tournament at Omaha, Neb.
MEN’S HOCKEY
(15-10-3, 5-6-3-2 Big Ten)
Oct. 5 TORONTO (Exhibition), W 9-1; 11 (2) MIAMI (OHIO), L 6-2; 12 at (2)
Miami (Ohio), L 6-3; 15 at Bowling Green, L 4-3; 25 ROBERT MORRIS, W 5-3; 26
at Robert Morris, W 4-3; 29 BOWLING GREEN, W 5-3.
Nov. 1-2 (20) MINN. DULUTH, L 3-1, W 4-2; 8-9 NIAGARA, W 4-1, W 6-1;
15-16 CANISIUS, W 3-0, W 3-1; 29 at (3) Michigan, L 4-3 (OT).
Dec. 2 (3) MICHIGAN, L 5-4; 28-29 MERCYHURST, W 6-3, W 7-2.
Jan. 10-11 MICHIGAN STATE, W 5-3, T 1-1 (SOL 3-2); 17 at (1) Minnesota
(TCF Bank Stadium), L 1-0; 18 at (1) Minnesota, L 4-2; 24-25 at (9) Wisconsin, L
5-3, W 3-1; 31-Feb. 1 PENN STATE, W 5-1, W 5-2.
Feb. 7-8 at Michigan State, T 2-2 (SOW 2-1), T 2-2 (SOW 1-0); 14-15 (8)
WISCONSIN, W 2-1, L 4-2; 28 at Michigan.
March 2 MICHIGAN (at Nationwide Arena), 1 p.m. 7-8 MINNESOTA, 7:30
p.m., 6:30 p.m.; 14-15 at Penn State; 20-22 Big Ten Tournament at St. Paul,
Minn.
WOMEN’S HOCKEY
(14-15-5, 9-14-5 WCHA)
Sept. 28 TORONTO AEROS (Exhibition), L 2-1 (OT).
Oct. 5 at (7) Mercyhurst, W 4-3 (OT); 11-12 ST. CLOUD STATE, T 2-2 (SOL
2-1); W 4-2; 18-19 at (5) North Dakota, L 5-2; W 2-1.
Nov. 2-3 at (2) Wisconsin, L 4-1, L 3-2; 8-9 BEMIDJI STATE, L 3-2; T 2-2; 15-
Feb. 25, 2014
BSB Quickly
33
16 MINN. DULUTH, L 3-2, L 2-0; 22-23 at Minnesota State, L 4-1, L 2-1; 26 (10)
ROBERT MORRIS, L 2-1; 30-Dec. 1 at New Hampshire, W 3-2, W 2-0.
Dec. 7-8 (1) MINNESOTA, L 9-2, L 5-1.
Jan. 3-4 PENN STATE, W 8-0, W 4-0; 10-11 at (1) Minnesota, L 6-0, T 2-2
(SOW 1-0); 18-19 at Minn. Duluth, T 0-0 (SOL 1-0), T 2-2 (SOW 2-0); 24-25
MINNESOTA STATE, W 3-2 (OT), W 4-2; 31-Feb. 1 at St. Cloud State, W 4-1,
W 6-1.
Feb. 7-8 (2) WISCONSIN, L 3-0, L 3-2; 14-15 at Bemidji State, L 4-1, W 3-1;
21-22 (7) NORTH DAKOTA, W 2-0, W 3-1; 28-March 2 WCHA First Round at
Minn. Duluth; 7-8 WCHA Final Face-Off at TBA.
MEN’S GOLF
Feb. 14 Big Ten Match Play at Sarasota, Fla., vs. Nebraska, W 3-2-0; vs. Iowa,
L 2-2-1; 15 Big Ten Match Play at Sarasota, Fla., vs. Indiana, L 3-2-0; vs. Illinois,
L 2-2-1.
March 2-4 USF Invitational at Tampa, Fla.; 15-16 Seahawk Intercollegiate at
Wilmington, N.C.
April 5-6 Irish Creek Intercollegiate at Kannapolis, N.C.; 12-13 ROBERT
KEPLER INTERCOLLEGIATE; 19-20 Boilermaker Invitational at West Lafayette,
Ind.
May 2-4 Big Ten Championship at French Lick, Ind.
WOMEN’S GOLF
Feb. 9-11 Northrop Grumman Regional Challenge at Palos Verdes Estates,
Calif., 16th/16; 23-24 Westbrook Spring Invitational at Peoria, Ariz., 1st/14.
March 14-16 SunTrust Gator Women’s Golf Invitational at Gainesville, Fla.;
28-30 Bryan National Collegiate at Greensboro, N.C.
April 7-8 Web.com Collegiate at Jacksonville, Fla.; 19-20 LADY BUCKEYE
SPRING INVITATIONAL; 25-27 Big Ten Championship at French Lick, Ind.
MEN’S GYMNASTICS
(1-2, 0-2 Big Ten)
Dec. 16 SCARLET & GRAY INTRASQUAD, Scarlet wins 178.400-176.050.
Jan. 11 ALUMNI EXHIBITION, NTS; 18 Windy City Invitational at Chicago,
T2nd/6; 26 at (8) Illinois, L 428.450-425.450.
Feb. 1 at (2) Michigan, L 444.750-440.800; 14 (8) CALIFORNIA, W 443.300426.500; 20-22 Winter Cup Challenge at Las Vegas, NTS.
March 1 ARNOLD CHALLENGE, 2 p.m.; 8 at Stanford; 15 vs. TEMPLE AND
OKLAHOMA, 4 p.m.; 28-29 Big Ten Championships at Lincoln, Neb.
April 10-12 NCAA Championships at Ann Arbor, Mich.
WOMEN’S GYMNASTICS
(2-7, 1-4 Big Ten)
Jan. 11 (12) OREGON STATE, L 195.200-194.750; BOWLING GREEN, W
194.750-191.950; 19 (16) RUTGERS, L 195.275-194.775; 25 at (5) Michigan, L
197.325-195.200.
Feb. 1 (24) PENN STATE, L 196.150-195.625; 7 (15) MINNESOTA, L 196.025195.900; 14 at Iowa, W 195.275-195.075; 23 at (14) Illinois, L 196.775-195.925;
at Champaign, Ill., vs. (19) Central Michigan, L 196.425-195.925.
March 2 at West Virginia; 8 BALL STATE, 4 p.m.; 15 vs. Nebraska, Illinois
and Michigan State at East Lansing, Mich.; 22 Big Ten Championships at State
College, Pa.
April 5 NCAA Regional at TBA; 19 NCAA Championships at Birmingham,
Ala.
MEN’S LACROSSE
(1-2)
Feb. 9 at (9) Johns Hopkins, L 10-9 (3OT); 16 Moe’s Southwest Grill Classic at
Jacksonville, Fla., vs. UMass, L 12-11 (OT); 22 MARQUETTE, W 11-7.
March 1 PENN STATE, 1 p.m.; 8 at Hofstra; 15 at Denver; 21 BELLARMINE, 7
p.m.; 25 NOTRE DAME, 4 p.m.; 29 JACKSONVILLE, 2:30 p.m.
April 6 at Delaware; 12 MICHIGAN (at Ohio Stadium), 11 a.m.; 19 AIR
FORCE, 1 p.m.; 26 at Fairfield.
May 1 ECAC TOURNAMENT SEMIFINAL; 3 ECAC TOURNAMENT
CHAMPIONSHIP.
WOMEN’S LACROSSE
(2-2)
Feb. 7 DETROIT, W 18-3; 9 WINTHROP, W 17-8; 15 at (14) Stanford, L 11-9;
22 at (13) Boston College, L 9-7.
March 1 at Canisius; 4 LOUISVILLE, 4 p.m.; 9 NORTHWESTERN, Noon; 10
HIGH POINT, 3 p.m.; 15 at Hofstra; 22 FLORIDA, 1 p.m.; 26 OREGON, 7 p.m.;
29 WILLIAM & MARY, Noon.
April 2 at Michigan; 6 at Vanderbilt; 13 PENN STATE, 1 p.m.; 15 NOTRE
DAME, 6 p.m.; 26 at Johns Hopkins.
May 1-3 ALC Tournament at Evanston, Ill.
SOFTBALL
(4-6)
Feb. 7 FAU Kick-Off Classic at Boca Raton, Fla., vs. Tulsa, L 1-0 (8 innings); vs.
St. John’s, L 6-3; 8 FAU Kick-Off Classic at Boca Raton, Fla., vs. Northern Illinois,
W 6-4; vs. (19) Louisville, L 5-4 (8 innings); 9 FAU Kick-Off Classic at Boca Raton,
Fla., vs. Florida Atlantic, L 3-1; 14 Easton Desert Classic at Las Vegas vs. Cal State
Northridge, W 9-0 (5 innings); vs. Long Beach State, W 10-8; 15 Easton Desert
Classic at Las Vegas vs. (1) Florida, L 19-2 (5 innings); vs. (10) Oregon, L 9-0 (6
innings); 16 Easton Desert Classic at Las Vegas vs. Utah Valley, W 8-0 (6 innings);
28 Diamond 9 Citrus Classic at Kissimmee, Fla., vs. Bradley; vs. Fordham.
March 1 Diamond 9 Citrus Classic at Kissimmee, Fla., vs. Notre Dame; vs.
Florida; 2 Diamond 9 Citrus Classic at Kissimmee, Fla., vs. Missouri; 7 Red and
34
BSB Quickly
Feb. 25, 2014
Black Classic at Louisville, Ky., vs. UMass; vs. Ohio; 8 Red and Black Classic at
Louisville, Ky., vs. Illinois State; 9 Red and Black Classic at Louisville, Ky., vs.
Louisville; vs. UMass; 12 at California; 14 Fresno State Classic at Fresno, Calif.,
vs. Cal Poly, vs. Fresno State; 15 Fresno State Classic at Fresno, Calif., vs. Pacific,
vs. Saint Mary’s; 16 Fresno State Classic at Fresno, Calif., vs. Colorado State; 21
MICHIGAN STATE, 4 p.m.; 22 MICHIGAN STATE, 1 p.m.; 23 MICHIGAN STATE, 1
p.m.; 25 at Pittsburgh (DH); 28-30 at Indiana.
April 4-6 at Michigan; 9 OHIO (DH), 5 p.m.; 11 PURDUE, 6 p.m.; 12 PURDUE,
2 p.m.; 13 PURDUE, 1 p.m.; 15 at Wright State; 18-20 at Nebraska; 23 PENN
STATE (DH), 4 p.m.; 25 NORTHWESTERN, 6 p.m.; 26 NORTHWESTERN, 2 p.m.;
27 NORTHWESTERN, 1 p.m.
May 2-4 at Iowa; 8-11 Big Ten Tournament at Chicago.
MEN’S SWIMMING & DIVING
(10-1, 0-1 Big Ten)
Oct. 11 at Kentucky, W 176-122; 18 SCARLET VS. GRAY (Exhibition); 19
ALUMNI VS. VARSITY (Exhibition); 25 KENYON, W 186-101.
Nov. 1 CLEVELAND STATE, W 201-91; DENISON, W 202-90; VIRGINIA
TECH, W 156.5-135.5; 8 vs. (21) Iowa at West Lafayette, Ind., W 195-105; vs.
Northwestern at West Lafayette, Ind., W 231-69; at (22) Purdue, W 169-131; 9
at Miami (Ohio), NTS (Relays Only); 22-24 OHIO STATE INVITATIONAL, 1st/5.
Jan. 17-18 Kenyon Winter Invite at Gambier, Ohio, 1st/5; 25 vs. Ball State and
Eastern Michigan at Ypsilanti, Mich., postponed; 31 WEST VIRGINIA, W 177-99.
Feb. 1 (1) MICHIGAN, L 151-147; 7 WRIGHT STATE, W 159-106; 8-9 OHIO
STATE WINTER INVITATIONAL, NTS; 26-March 1 Big Ten Championships at Ann
Arbor, Mich. 28-March 2 Ohio Senior Championships at Oxford, Ohio.
March 9 LAST CHANCE MEET; 27-29 NCAA Championships at Austin, Texas.
WOMEN’S SWIMMING & DIVING
(9-1, 2-1 Big Ten)
Oct. 11 at Kentucky, W 195-104; 18 SCARLET VS. GRAY (Exhibition); 25
KENYON, W 191-99.
Nov. 1 CLEVELAND STATE, W 252-48; DENISON, W, 251.5-48.5; VIRGINIA
TECH, W 191-109; 8 vs. Northwestern at West Lafayette, Ind., W 211-89; at
Purdue, L 157-143; 9 OHIO, W 193-106; 22-24 OHIO STATE INVITATIONAL,
3rd/5.
Jan. 11 at Toledo, W 206.5-93.5; 17-18 Kenyon Winter Invite at Gambier,
Ohio, 1st/5; 25 vs. Ball State and Eastern Michigan at Ypsilanti, Mich., postponed; 31-Feb. 1 (21) MICHIGAN, W 181-172.
Feb. 19-22 Big Ten Championships at Minneapolis, 4th/12.
March 2 LAST CHANCE MEET; 20-22 NCAA Championships at Minneapolis.
MEN’S TENNIS
(15-0, 1-0 Big Ten)
Jan. 22 BUTLER, W 7-0; XAVIER, W 7-0; 25 ITA KICK-OFF WEEKEND VS.
(57) DENVER, W 4-0; 26 ITA KICK-OFF WEEKEND VS. (48) LOUISVILLE, W 4-1;
TOLEDO, W 4-0.
Feb. 4 YOUNGSTOWN STATE, W 4-0; WRIGHT STATE, W 4-0; 7 (17)
KENTUCKY, W 4-0; 9 (8) TEXAS A&M, W 4-3; 14 ITA National Indoors Opening
Round at Houston vs. (12) Florida, W 4-1; 15 ITA National Indoors Quarterfinal
at Houston vs. (10) Texas, W 4-2; 16 ITA National Indoors Semifinal at Houston
vs. (1) Virginia, W 4-3; 17 ITA National Indoors Championship at Houston vs.
(3) USC, W 4-1; 22 at (10) Notre Dame, W 4-2; 24 at (58) Indiana, W 5-2; 28
NORTH CAROLINA, 6 p.m.
March 2 PENN STATE, Noon; 7 at Oklahoma; 12 at Georgia; 21 MICHIGAN, 6
p.m.; 23 at Michigan State; 28 NORTHWESTERN, TBA; 30 ILLINOIS, Noon.
April 4 at Minnesota; 6 at Wisconsin; 9 at Kentucky; 11 TULSA, 6 p.m.; 13
at Purdue; 18 IOWA, 6 p.m.; 20 NEBRASKA, Noon; 24 Big Ten Championships
at East Lansing, Mich.
May 15 NCAA Championships at TBA.
WOMEN’S TENNIS
(4-4)
Jan. 18 at (19) Baylor, L 4-3; at Waco, Texas, vs. Prairie View A&M, W 7-0;
24 ITA Kick-Off Weekend at Coral Gables, Fla., vs. (9) Miami (Fla.), L 4-2; 25
ITA Kick-Off Weekend at Coral Gables, Fla., vs. (59) South Florida, L 4-1; 31
SYRACUSE, W 4-0; YOUNGSTOWN STATE, W 7-0.
Feb. 14 at (38) Kentucky, L 4-2; 21 (27) TENNESSEE, W 4-3; 25 at Penn
State.
March 8 PRINCETON, 10 a.m.; 12 at UNLV; 14 vs. Marquette at Las Vegas; 21
at Michigan; 23 MICHIGAN STATE, Noon; 29 at Northwestern; 30 at Illinois.
April 4 MINNESOTA, 3 p.m.; 6 WISCONSIN, Noon; 11 INDIANA, 1 p.m.;
13 PURDUE, Noon; 18 at Iowa; 20 at Nebraska; 24-27 Big Ten Tournament at
Evanston, Ill.
MEN’S INDOOR TRACK AND FIELD
Jan. 10 BUCKEYE CLASSIC, NTS; 17-18 Nittany Lion Challenge at State
College, Pa., NTS; 24-25 Ron McCravy Memorial Invitational at Lexington, Ky.,
NTS; 31-Feb. 1 Indiana Relays at Bloomington, Ind., NTS.
Feb. 7-8 Meyo Invitational at South Bend, Ind., NTS; 14-15 SPIRE NCAA
Division I Invitational at Geneva, Ohio, NTS; 14-15 Don Kirby Elite Invitational
at Albuquerque, N.M., NTS; 21 BUCKEYE TUNE-UP, 1st/15; 28-March 1 Big Ten
Indoor Championships at Geneva, Ohio.
March 14-15 NCAA Indoor Championships at Albuquerque, N.M.
WOMEN’S INDOOR TRACK AND FIELD
Jan. 10 BUCKEYE CLASSIC, NTS; 17-18 Kentucky Invitational at Lexington,
Ky., NTS; 24-25 Gladstein Invitational at Bloomington, Ind., NTS.
Scoreboard
Where To Watch
The Buckeyes This Week
Men’s Basketball
Opponent, Time
TV/Website
at Penn State, 7 p.m.
ESPN/ESPN2
at Indiana, 4 p.m.
CBS
Women’s Basketball
Date
Opponent, Time
TV/Website
Feb. 27
at Iowa, 7 p.m.
BTN
March 2
at Minnesota, 2 p.m.
BTN
Baseball
Date
Opponent, Time
TV/Website
March 2
at East Carolina*, 2 p.m.
ECUPirates.com
Men’s Hockey
Date
Opponent, Time
TV/Website
Feb. 28
at Michigan, 6:30 p.m.
BTN
March 2
MICHIGAN, 1 p.m.
SportsTime Ohio
Men’s Gymnastics
Date
Opponent, Time
TV/Website
March 1
ARNOLD CHALLENGE, 2 p.m.
OhioStateBuckeyes.com
Men’s Lacrosse
Date
Opponent, Time
TV/Website
March 1
PENN STATE, 1 p.m.
OhioStateBuckeyes.com
Men’s Swimming & Diving
Date
Opponent, Time
TV/Website
March 2
Big Ten Championships, 10:30 a.m.
BTN^
Men’s Volleyball
Date
Opponent, Time
TV/Website
Feb. 26
BALL STATE, 7 p.m.
OhioStateBuckeyes.com
* – Keith LaClair Classic at Greenville, N.C.
^ – Tape Delay
Date
Feb. 27
March 2
Feb. 7-8 New Balance Invitational at New York, NTS; 14-15 SPIRE NCAA
Division I Invitational at Geneva, Ohio, NTS; 21 BUCKEYE TUNE-UP, 1st/16; 27March 1 Big Ten Indoor Championships at Geneva, Ohio.
March 12-14 NCAA Indoor Championships at Albuquerque, N.M.
MEN’S VOLLEYBALL
(7-6, 4-2 MIVA)
Jan. 9 Outrigger Invitational at Honolulu vs. (14) Hawaii, L 3-0 (25-22, 25-21,
25-21); 10 Outrigger Invitational at Honolulu vs. (7) UCLA, L 3-0 (25-14, 25-23,
25-21); 11 Outrigger Invitational at Honolulu vs. (11) Penn State, L 3-0 (28-26,
25-20, 25-19); 17 LEES-MCRAE, W 3-0 (25-12, 25-12, 25-12); 18 GEORGE
MASON, W 3-0 (25-23, 25-22, 25-19); 24 at Quincy, W 3-0 (25-21, 25-18, 2523); 25 at Lindenwood, W 3-1 (25-18, 16-25, 25-22, 25-17).
Feb. 1 at (1) Loyola (Ill.), L 3-0 (25-15, 25-20, 25-23); 5 at (12) Penn State,
L 3-1 (29-27, 22-25, 31-29, 25-15); 9 ST. FRANCIS (PA.), W 3-1 (25-19, 29-31,
25-23, 25-17); 15 (10) LEWIS, L 3-1 (25-22, 20-25, 25-22, 25-16); 21 GRAND
CANYON, W 3-0 (25-18, 31-29, 25-23); 22 GRAND CANYON, W 3-0 (25-18,
25-21, 25-20); 26 BALL STATE, 7 p.m.
March 5 at IPFW; 7 PENN STATE, 7 p.m.; 11 at Lewis; 14 at Long Beach State;
15 at Cal State Northridge; 18 HARVARD, 7 p.m.; 23 at Ball State; 28 QUINCY,
7 p.m.; 29 LINDENWOOD, 7 p.m.
April 4 IPFW, 7 p.m.; 6 at George Mason; 11 LOYOLA (ILL.).
WRESTLING
(13-5, 4-4 Big Ten)
Oct. 17 VARSITY WRESTLE-OFF (Exhibition).
Nov. 2 NWCA All-Star Meet (Exhibition) at Fairfax, Va., NTS; 3 Clarion Knight
Point Open at Clarion, Pa., NTS; 9 Michigan State Open at East Lansing, Mich.,
NTS; 15 NOTRE DAME (OHIO), W 29-11; 23 at Duke, W 25-10; 24 Davidson TriMeet at Davidson, N.C., vs. Davidson, W 40-6; vs. George Mason, W 29-6.
Dec. 6-7 CKLV Wrestling Invitational at Las Vegas, 3rd/10; 15 at (1) Penn
State, L 31-6; 19 at Kent State, W 27-6.
Jan. 10 at (23) Wisconsin, L 22-15; 12 at (11) Illinois, W 18-16; 17 at
Cincinnati vs. (15) Northwestern, W 21-12; 24 (10) NEBRASKA, L 28-12; 31 (11)
MICHIGAN, L 21-12.
Feb. 3 at (24) Purdue, W 16-15; 7 at Massillon, Ohio, vs. Michigan State, W
39-6; 16 NWCA NATIONAL DUALS OPENING ROUND vs. HOFSTRA, W 29-10;
QUARTERFINAL vs. KENT STATE, W 32-4; 17 NWCA NATIONAL DUALS SEMIFINAL
vs. (1) MINNESOTA, L 25-10; THIRD-PLACE MATCH vs. (10) Oklahoma, W 23-16;
23 (16) VIRGINIA TECH, W 23-16.
March 8-9 Big Ten Championships at Madison, Wis.; 20-22 NCAA
Championships at Oklahoma City, Okla.
Opinion
Feb. 25, 2014
BSB Quickly
35
No Style Points Needed For Matta’s Buckeyes
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder
– an old, sometimes clichéd phrase that
nonetheless resonates now, especially
when talking about the current college
basketball season.
In some instances, you have games
artistic enough to be considered for the
Louvre. In other instances – like most
Ohio State contests – you’re more likely
to hang it on the refrigerator next to your
child’s latest creation.
just about the only way they can generate
offense.
“Big plays spark this team, especially
on the defensive end,” LaQuinton Ross
said in the aftermath of OSU’s 64-46 win
over Minnesota.
The Buckeyes scored 18 – yes, that’s
right – points in the first half and trailed
by 10. After a feel-good stretch in which
OSU went on the road to pick up a pair of
crucial victories, it all seemed to be slipping away. And the Gophers had already
beaten the Buckeyes, so a season sweep
would loom large.
But a funny thing happened on the way
Mike Wachsman
to Big Ten purgatory – OSU got mad, and
then it got going.
Fueled by Sam Thompson, the Buckeyes
No matter what you might think of the used a 17-0 run and flipped the script, leavaesthetic value, one thing is certain – it all ing the Gophers looking like road kill.
adds up to one thing, and that’s winning.
“Anytime we get a steal and we get out,
Unlike in college football, where rolling you could see everybody in the crowd up
foes is paramount because style points on their feet knowing we were about to do
matter, all you need to do on the hard- something exciting,” Ross said. “Defense
wood is survive. This time of year, espe- is what this team is based on, and it’s how
cially, is all about knocking down one we win.”
opponent then moving on to the next. If
There has been a lot of hand-wringing
you linger too long on a loss (or a win), about this year’s Buckeye team – lack
you’ll find yourself staring down the barrel of scoring, no consistency on offense,
of adversity, with the possibility
rebounding woes. You name
of not being able to get away
it, the coaches have heard it.
from it.
But until the first half against
More than any other year in
Minnesota, effort had not been
recent memory, Ohio State is
one of the problems. It may have
getting it done with defense. Oh
been only 20 minutes, but it was
sure, a few Thad Matta teams
20 too many for Matta, who let
of recent vintage were able to
his team know in no uncertain
change games with five-minterms that it was unacceptable.
ute lockdowns here and there,
“Coach Matta said it was the
but those teams had someworst half we played all season,”
thing this one doesn’t – go-to
Thompson said.
Thad Matta
offensive players. Whether Evan Turner,
With three games left in the regular
Jared Sullinger or Deshaun Thomas, the season, where do the Buckeyes stand?
Buckeyes have had someone who could
Well, they’re right there, a half-game
put the ball in the basket when they need- behind Wisconsin and in a virtual deaded a score. This year that’s not the case lock with Iowa – both squads they have
– it’s more hoping someone can step up beaten this season – battling for third
late. Sometimes it’s happened, sometimes place. While mathematically not imposit hasn’t.
sible, a conference crown looks unlikely.
Devoid of offensive consistency, the But OSU could still finish in the upper
Buckeyes have had to rely on defense. half of the conference, and with this team
Whether it’s Aaron Craft and Shannon that’s quite an accomplishment. For all
Scott up top creating problems for oppos- of its deficiencies, this unit has still won
ing ball handlers or Lenzelle Smith doing 22 basketball games. Maybe the stats are
yeoman’s work inside or Amir Williams inflated a little due to the lack of punch
stepping up to block shots, the Buckeyes of the nonleague schedule, but wins are
have been putting in extra work on the wins.
stop end. And they have to, because it’s
Being able to knock off the Wisconsins
THE FACTS MAN
and Iowas and playing right to the wire
with the Michigan States of the league
shows that the Buckeyes do have the ability to be a very good team. Consistency
has been the real bugaboo, but if that gets
ironed out then there’s no telling what
might happen in the postseason. It doesn’t
matter how well you play, just that you
play well enough to win.
Museum or magnet, victory is always
beautiful.
All On His Shoulder
The news that Braxton Miller underwent shoulder surgery should come as
a surprise to no one, at least if they
watched the Buckeyes’ Orange Bowl loss
to Clemson. From the outset, Miller was
flexing his shoulder, and you could tell
something was bothering him. It made
enough of a ripple during the game that
fans wondered why Kenny Guiton didn’t
get at least a series.
Miller will likely be shut down for spring
practice, which is good and bad. Now that
he has a year under his belt in Urban
Meyer’s system, Miller doesn’t really need
all that much practice. Where it will hurt is
in the evolution of his passing skill. There
were days he looked like Warren Moon,
firing the ball on a rope into a tight window, and there were days he looked like
Giovanni Carmazzi, unable to complete
the simplest passes or throwing one up for
grabs at inopportune moments.
The passing part can be worked on
once the shoulder heals, and Miller is
enough of a film freak that he won’t be
losing out by missing spring ball.
Besides, it will give Meyer a chance to
see who might be the No. 2 man now that
Guiton is gone.
Change For The Better
It was nice to see Evan Turner escape
the Philadelphia experiment (meaning
tanking to be the NBA’s worst team) and
finding a new home on a contending team.
The Indiana Pacers are one of the best
teams in the Eastern Conference, and
Turner will be able to be a role player
rather than the guy carrying the weight of
an entire squad and city on his back. He
will be able to experience the playoffs, and
maybe people will see just how talented
he is. Not All-Star talented, but a good,
solid player who should help the Pacers
vie for the NBA crown.