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Ohio State, tabbed by some publications to be among the Top 5 teams nationally heading into the 2010-11 season, will travel to Florida State to take on the Seminoles in the 2010 ACC/Big Ten Challenge. The Buckeyes will meet FSU Nov. 30 in Tallahassee in a nationally-televised game on the ESPN family of networks with station and time to be determined.
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By Hans Hetrick
Football might be America’s prototypical team sport, one guy misses a block and any play can backfire. But according to the news coming from the Woody Hayes Athletic Center this Spring, it seems one manchild alone, Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor, controls the destiny of a football program. This Saturday during the annual Scarlet and Gray Spring Game, Buckeye fans will get a glimpse of just how much our hyped up savior of Buckeye football has progressed. [Read more…]
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Katie Witham, Ohio State reporter for the Big Ten Network, discusses OSU potential with fellow Buckeye expert Paul M. Banks
For part two of this interview click here
(PMB) The Buckeyes have been placed into my regional each of the past 3 weekends, so after spending so much quality time with Thad Matta lately, (this following a season covering two Big Ten teams: Illinois and Northwestern) I sort of feel like I’ve earned my Master’s in OSU b-ball, and I may be a doctoral candidate if they reach Indy. I imagine, due to your work with the Big Ten Network, you’re maybe in the same place?
(KW) Definitely! But we’re being paid to watch and talk about sports so can we really complain?! I consider myself extremely fortunate to be doing what I’m doing. Ohio State is known for their excellence in all of their athletic programs and Thad Matta is one of most amiable and genuine coaches I have ever had the chance to interview.
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By Paul M. Banks
With all the attention on Naismith Award favorite Evan Turner, a few Ohio State Buckeyes often go overlooked. And there are three on the current squad who have a good chance of joining Turner in the NBA in the next couple of years. So I took it upon myself to profile and interview the forgotten Buckeyes. First feature is on the big man, Dallas Lauderdale.
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Live blogging March Madness at the Washington Times.com Communities. GO HERE to join the discussion
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Paul M. Banks has an exclusive with Ohio State’s Mark Titus, founder and author of the enormously popular “Club Trillion: Life views from the end of the bench” blog.
For part two of this interview go here
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By Jeff Ghiringhelli
Two of the Big Ten’s best teams and players will clash tomorrow afternoon when Michigan State hosts Ohio State. The matchup everyone will have their eye on is between Player of the Year candidates Kalin Lucas and Evan Turner. Lucas appears to be almost fully recovered from the sprained ankle he suffered at Wisconsin, as he has averaged 18.5 points and five assists in the last two games.
[Read more…]
By Paul Schmidt and thesportsbank.net staff
This is almost like a holiday for many people, and doubles as the day that some people work the hardest.
I’m speaking, of course, of National Signing Day, when those football players who waffle all season long finally make a decision (or, as in the case of Terelle Pryor a couple of seasons ago, delay the inevitable for several days after signing day). Many schools will be disappointed after their teams lose commitments from players that they thought were in the bag, but hey, unlike basketball, this just happens in football. You go steal someone else’s recruit and move on.
All day, I will be updating news and signings from ALL of the Big Ten’s teams, so check back here throughout the day for any new news.
Also, I should have some quotes from Ron Zook’s press conference later this afternoon, plus whatever goodies might come our way!
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By Paul M. Banks
If you follow college football, you know by now that Illinois was pretty much the biggest disappointment coming out of the gate in week one. Of course, that’s another story for another post, but they did get some redemption tonight when they throttled Illinois State 45-17. And they did that pretty much entirely without their star combo of Juice Williams and Arrelious Benn.
More concerning for the Big Ten conference could be the unexpectedly impressive showing by “Directional Michigan,” who gave the conference numerous problems on Saturday. 15 point underdog Central Michigan upset Michigan State 29-27. (Usually, MSU screws up mid-to late season, and dominates in September. Guess they got started early this season)
Eastern Michigan, a 20 point dog to our hometown Northwestern Wildcats, took NU down to the final seconds before junior place-kicker Stefan Demos nailed a 49 yard field goal with 6 ticks left. And Western Michigan lost to Indiana by just four. Maybe it’s a good thing Northern Michigan is a D-II school in the GLIAC conference. And yes, I did have to look that up. And I’m not sure Southern Michigan University exists, but if they did, they’d likely be a thorn in the side of the Big Ten as well. Although other local favorites, Ohio State and Michigan, have looked impressive at times in this young season.
There’s an old football saying claiming, “you improve the most as a team from week one to week two.” If true, it could be a long year for the Big Ten, and maybe a very productive year for the MAC (Mid-American Conference).
“To win a game they way that we did is worrisome across the board. We need to execute better in all aspects. It’s easy when you see the ball run the way it was today, to point the finger at the defensive line. But I’m not prepared to do that yet. I need to watch some video. It is disappointing. We should be better than that,” Northwestern Head Coach Pat Fitzgerald said after the game. To their credit however, they were missing their top DB (CB Sherrick McMannis) and best DT (Adam Hahn). And their best overall player (DE Corey Wootton) may not even be 100% yet.
Another positive to take away is the fact that Northwestern posted its seventh straight victory versus a Mid-American Conference foe, and they avoided their traditional early season slip-up at the hands of a vastly less talented team. Beating EMU by 3 in ’09 is a lot better than losing at home to D-1 laughingstock Duke in ’07 or to D-1AA opponent New Hampshire in ’06. So, the program has shown some growth, at least in the month of September.
