Eleven Warriors

Urban and Competition Psychology

Chad Peltier — Thu, 24 May 2012 20:00:00 +0000

RDS dominating in the circle drill

One of the biggest differences between the Tressel and Meyer regimes has been Meyer's increased intensity and competition - his desire to separate winners and losers in a way that Tressel never did.

Practice observers have noted the changing atmosphere, increased competiton and Urban's intensity, which apparently looks something like "he’s some sort of a cross between an evil-genius and God-like figure in Columbus; the man is so intense he may or may not breathe fire."

This has led to several new programs and traditions, including at least four "winner-loser" days of practice in which winners received gatorade while losers enjoy gassers, his three-tiered caste system and champion's club based upon classroom, weight, diet, and on-field performance, and the circle drill on display before the spring game.

The approach seems to be popular with the players, with Stoneburner, Guiton, Goebel and Hankins voicing their support for the increased competition.

Under Meyer, everything is incentive based:

Everything we try to do around here is incentive-based. You want to live off campus, I have no problem with that. But you have to earn that right. A big thing is wearing visors or changing your number to No. 1. I don't really care what you wear but don't come see me unless you are taking care of your business in all the other areas that we evaluate."

And leaders are supposed to emerge from "corporate, cut-throat" and "Darwinian" competition:

"I really want to see guys lead by not losing. You want to be a great leader? Go win. That's where we're really pushing Braxton. All the players, when you go against someone -- don't lose. There's a million excuses. Our whole focus is, go win. Winners have a tendency to stand in front of the team. Losers don't. So we're really pushing that winner-loser mentality right now."

Urban clearly believes that he is best able to motivate his players through intense competition that results in the public separation of winners and losers. Maybe due to his psychology degree, Urban's new traditions have their roots in one strain of education psychology known as achievement goal theory.

Achievement goal theory differentiates between learning goals and performance goals. While learning goals concern one's personal understanding and appreciation for what is being learned, performance goals involve increasing one's status by outperforming peers. Achievement goal theorists hypothesize that performance goals "trigger superficial, rote-level processing that exerts a stultifying influence on achievement" while learning goals favor deep processing of information and increased scholastic achievement.

Meyer at least informally recognizes this differentiation based upon the incentive structures of programs like the winner-loser days and the circle drill. The goal of these drills is not simply learning technique and football, but to increase players' competitiveness. For Meyer, competitiveness itself is a goal rather than simply a means to other goals.

While many psychologists deride performance goals within classroom settings, they clearly have a place on the instrinsically competitive football field, where everything is a relative competition at the internal level (fighting for first string, offense vs. defense winner-loser days) and external level (winning the game). Goebel demonstrated the need for competiton when he said, "You can only push yourself so far, and then you need someone else there by you with equal talent pushing you. It just makes you both that much better. It's awesome."

Some people thrive in stressful environments

Many studies have demonstrated that "public recognition for doing better than others (reinforcing of performance goals)...supports such prosocial behaviors as submission to teacher authority and a willingness to try hard." These two goals - coach acountability and competition - are the crux of Meyer's approach to coaching.

All of his new traditions are designed to publically recognize winners. It's clear why Meyer opened the spring game with a circle drill in front of all 80,000 fans - besides getting the players hyped for the game, it created easily identifiable winners and losers in front of a large audience. It's easy to miss individual battles being won and lost during scrimmages and games amidst the chaos of a play, but the circle drill focuses everyone's attention in on the outcome of just a single battle.

Furthermore, he is extremely candid about his opinions of his best players - enough to publically reward Boren and Simon (annointing Simon as a captain already) in front of the media. Simon of course responded by saying it only mattered to him if his fellow players also elected him as a captain demonstrating how Simon made captainship a learning goal rather than just a performance goal.

One of the fears with such a focus on competition is that the rewards - first string, being in the champion's club - become more about just avoiding failure. Some education scholars believe that this approach causes students who receive poor grades to feel worthless, without any alternative sources of personal satisfaction.

This is not to say that Urban never employs learning goals, but football itself naturally attracts a specific subgroup of "overstriver" individuals who are competitively and defensively motivated to avoid failure. For these overstrivers, "the direction of the impact of tension on the quality of test preparation is reversed. Instead of impairing their studies, as it does for failure avoiders, the presence of emotional tension actually mobilizes the enormous capacity of overstrivers for study, which typically takes the form of slavish overpreparation."

That is, overstrivers thrive in the intense, competitive and high-stress environments that Meyer cultivates. Meyer recognizes that the individuals he works with are different and he's adjusted his incentive structures accordingly.

All coaches implicitly incorporate these ideas to various degrees, but Meyer is clearly driven by performance goals that foster a competitive environment for overstriver players.

Forecasting 2013: Tight Ends

Alex — Thu, 24 May 2012 17:00:00 +0000

Urban is looking for the next Aaron Hernandez in 2013

In the next part of our summer series, Forecasting 2013, we take a look at the grand scheme of things at the tight end position for Ohio State's recruiting class of 2013.

While the staff under Jim Tressel and Luke Fickell under utilized the tight end in their offenses when it came to being play makers, Urban Meyer's philosophy is a bit different. If you need to learn more, you can ask a certain former player of the new Buckeye coach and see what he thinks.

With the changes to the offense and within the role of the tight end at Ohio State also comes a new strategy in recruiting the position. The cupboard certainly isn't bare with Jake Stoneburner, Jeff Heuerman, Nick Vannett, and Blake Thomas in 2012, but as the position is used as more of a weapon in the offense comes the demand of more players on the depth chart.

Today, we take a look at the tight end position for the recruiting class of 2013 to see what high school prep stars may blossom into the "next Aaron Hernandez" under the tutelage of Meyer and offensive coordinator Tom Herman. Join us after the jump to see "who's in", "who's out", and "who's left" when it comes to the Buckeyes' big board for rising senior tight end prospects.

Who's In?

As mentioned above the Buckeyes have a solid group of tight ends on the roster for this coming fall, but needed to add at least one player in the 2013 class, as Jake Stoneburner is set to graduate after the season.

Baugh committed to OSU despite having not visited

Marcus Baugh of Riverside (CA) John W. North was a player who was targeted early by Urban Meyer and quickly jumped at the opportunity to be the first tight end to commit to the Buckeyes, giving his verbal to the coaching staff on April 10, just a month after receiving his offer from OSU.

At 6-4/225 Baugh has good size for a high school junior, but is expected to get a little bigger by the time he gets to Columbus. He caught the eye of the staff through his ability to catch the football, but he also very proficient in the blocking game as well, something that would have been more valuable in the old system, but won't be a lost art in the Meyer Era.

When it comes to offers, Baugh picked the Buckeyes over scholarships from schools such as Miami (FL), Nebraska, UCLA, Washington, Florida, Cal, Ole Miss, and others. He was well on his way to having that list blow up even more, but his commitment slowed things down in that area.

He is rated as a four star prospect across the board and all services have him in the top ten at his position. He was named as the number three tight end by 247 and ESPN/Scout's Inc., the number five tight end by Rivals, and the seventh ranked tight end by Scout. Regardless of which service's rankings you prefer, it's safe to say Ohio State is getting a very good player.

Baugh is a great get for the Buckeyes and if the class ended with just one tight end, the Ohio State coaching staff would be very happy. That being said, it seems the goal is to add another dynamic play maker to the group in addition to Baugh, but as of now that mission has not been accomplished.

Who's Out?

The Buckeyes started their 2013 tight end recruitment by looking at a large group of players, but only ended up offering four of their targets.

Mike Heuerman decided to go to South Bend

One of those targets was Baugh, but two of those are already off the board in the form of Naples (FL) Barron Collier's Mike Heuerman and Camp Hill (PA) Cedar Cliff's Adam Breneman.

Heuerman was considered a lock to be a Buckeye, as his older brother Jeff is already on the roster and he long expressed his love for Ohio State. It seemed to be a matter of when not if when it came to the younger Heuerman joining his brother in the Scarlet and Gray early on in his recruitment, but as things dragged out that changed.

While Ohio State was making a strong push, other programs such as Notre Dame, Miami (FL), and LSU were also building relationships with the top ten tight end. Heuerman always kept Ohio State on the top of his list, but Notre Dame did a great job connecting with the star prospect and the program continued to rise up the board.

The Fighting Irish's hard work finally paid off, as Heuerman committed to Brian Kelly on Thursday April 26. This was to the surprise of many Buckeye fans, mainly because of the fact that as early as the weekend before, Heuerman was telling people he was planning on pledging to the Buckeyes while on campus for the OSU Spring Game.

Whether it was because of the rumored desire not to compete with his brother Jeff, or just because he truly felt South Bend was the place for him, Heuerman did ultimately decide to play for the Green and Gold, leaving the Buckeyes searching for their second tight end.

Breneman on the other hand, ended things a bit earlier, committing to Penn State over Ohio State on March 9. The nation's top tight end grew up in Penn State country, rooting for the Nittany Lions since childhood.

While he claimed his fandom wouldn't be a factor, he couldn't deny a lifetime of passion for the school contributed to his decision. Ohio State did everything they could in this battle, but came up just short and is now left moving on to the next set of prospects.

Who's Left?

With Baugh in, and both Breneman and Heuerman out, that leaves only Durham (NC) Hillside's Josh McNeil as the only remaining tight end with an Ohio State scholarship offer.

Will McNeil Roll Tide or be a Buckeye?

The 6-5/240 McNeil is rated as the fourth best tight end by Scout, eighth best tight end by 247, and the thirteenth ranked tight end by Rivals. He is a four star prospect across the board, but the thing that makes him so intriguing is that he just picked up football a couple of years ago after being a basketball star for most of his life, something that is leaving people calling him "the next Antonio Gates".

If McNeil could be half as good as Gates is that would be just fine. The raw prospect is blowing up in the meantime though, with over 25 offers at this point from some of the best programs in the nation. He currently names a top three of Alabama, Ohio State, and Georgia, in that order, and will be visiting all three schools on June 4, June 16, and June 7 respectively.

Things were looking good when it came to OSU and McNeil early on, with the Hillside star even stating a couple of months ago that he was 90% sure of where he wanted to go to school. Being that he was 2012 Buckeye signee Jamal Marcus's good friend and teammate, couple with the fact that the Bucks were recruiting him very hard, many felt he would end up in Columbus.

That changed a bit as Baugh surprisingly gave his verbal pledge to Urban Meyer despite never visiting the school. While nothing has been confirmed yet, it was highly coincidental that McNeil decided to postpone both his trip to Columbus and his announcement date at the same time Baugh committed and the Bucks seemed to throw all their eggs in the Mike Heuerman basket.

The move by the staff apparently hasn't damaged things too bad, as McNeil will be on campus next month and still has the Buckeyes in his top two. With Marcus in his ear and the charm of Urban Meyer, there is certainly a good chance the North Carolina native selects the Scarlet and Gray when he announces his decision live on television at Nike's The Opening in Beaverton, Oregon on July 5.

If McNeil chooses to Roll Tide or play for the Bulldogs, the coaches will look at a new group of players who will all try to earn an offer at Ohio State's summer camps. While it's not clear exactly who could be next in line to receive an offer if the staff chooses to add another tight end, the one name that has emerged is that of Charlie Reid.

Reid, 6-4/225, is just starting to rise on the recruiting scene as more college coaches get down to All Saints Episcopal School in Fort Worth, Texas. He already has offers from Arizona, Ole Miss, TCU, UCLA, Mississippi State, and Utah, among others, while schools such as OSU, Oklahoma, Baylor, Arkansas, and Texas A&M are all starting to show some more serious interest.

Ranked as the number 21 tight end by 247, the number 23 tight end by Rivals, and 32nd at his position by Scout, Reid will only continue to improve in the ratings. He had a successful junior season in which he caught 41 passes for 637 yards and 5 scores, numbers that he should improve upon during his senior campaign.

I'm not sure if Reid will ever end up with a scholarship offer from Ohio State, but Tom Herman is certainly a fan of his as things stand now, and depending on what happens with McNeil, he is definitely a player to watch this summer.

An Interview with Chris Brown of Smart Football

Ross — Thu, 24 May 2012 14:00:00 +0000

A must read.

Chris Brown is one of the foremost sources on football strategy outside the coaching ranks today. Regular readers of this site know that his Smart Football is a must-read and nary a week goes by that I do not link to one of his insightful posts.

We are all lucky, then, that Chris has released a new book, The Essential Smart Football, which is currently No. 1 on Amazon's best selling football books. As Chris writes:

it is a collection of pieces, roughly two-thirds of which consist of older works that have been expanded and professionally edited, and another one-third of which are new. If you’ve read every single thing I’ve ever written you will recognize the portion of the book that is not all new, though as I said I have expanded and edited each piece. But this book is my considered judgment of what I think constitutes the best and most essential of my thoughts on football — The Essential Smart Football.

Chris was kind enough to sit down and discuss the book and football strategy with me. He provided me with so much good material that I will split this into two pieces. This first post discusses overall football trends, while the second will focus on Ohio State, Urban Meyer, and the future.

RRF: What is your background and how did you decide to start a football strategy blog?

CB: Like all of us, really, I've loved football all my life. I played growing up and through high school, and while in college was interested enough in the game to stick with it. At that time I did some assistant coaching with nearby schools, and later did the real thing. I decided not to pursue that career, however, and today I am a (fairly!) happily practicing lawyer in New York City. But I wanted to stay connected to the game, and I was fortunate to have then and continue to have many, many wonderful contacts in the coaching business. The website, some form of which goes back probably eight years or so, was really an attempt to write the kinds of articles about football that I wanted to read. As it grew it -- and this goes for the new book too -- became my attempt to both write the sorts of things I wanted to read but also to hopefully contribute just a little bit in my own way to a game that has given me a great deal.

RRF: What was the impetus for you to release you new book, "The Essential Smart Football?"

CB: Sort of a confluence of factors. One was that the longer I've written and the more outlets I've written for, I've been fortunate to have a lot of new readers come to my work, and many of them ask where they should start, both with my work and with thinking more deeply about the game in general. At the same time, I'd like to imagine that my thinking on football has become more refined over time, so I wanted to revisit some of my older works and had thought a book project might provide an outlet for revising and expanding some of those older pieces, such as my discussion of Urban Meyer's offense. I also had a substantial amount of unpublished material -- which make up the all new chapters on Al Borges' offense at Michigan, the history of the 3-3-5 defense, and others -- that I thought would mesh well with the other edited material. And I thought, naively maybe, that others might enjoy seeing all of that presented in a simple, clean, concise package. And I'm happy to report so far, so good: The Essential Smart Football has spent most of the last week as the #1 bestselling football book and a top #5 overall sports book on Amazon (though being released in May probably reduced my competition).

RRF: Briefly, what does the book contain?

CB: In addition to what I mentioned above, the book is collection of pieces, organized by theme -- Characters, History, Theory and Concepts -- split roughly half and half between college and pro football, though there's more overlap between the concepts I discuss there than one would think. I discuss what I think are the best, most important, and most innovation concepts and strategies in football right now, through the stories of various players and coaches important to the game's development. Although the subjects are diverse, by the end the reader will have covered most of of the ideas driving what we see on the field every Saturday.

RRF: Lets turn to college football today. Who do you think are some of the most interesting and/or innovative coaches today?

CB: I will of course note that "interesting" and "innovative" are not always the same thing as "successful," and it's the latter that fans do and should care about most. Being a coach is about a lot more than schemes -- it's about developing men, first of all, and talent, fundamentals and techniques decide more games than do strategies. And innovative coaches don't even always directly benefit from their innovations. In a lead in to a chapter I quote Goethe: "Daring ideas are like chessmen moved forward; they may be beaten, but they may start a winning game."

But, as a cursory glance at the top of the standings will reveal, strategy clearly matters, and it matters nowadays more than ever. In that vein I think the coaches doing really interesting stuff are guys like Chip Kelly of Oregon and Dana Holgorsen, formerly of Oklahoma State and now of West Virginia, on the offensive side of the ball, and on defense I think Nick Saban of Alabama and Garry Patterson of TCU are the most fascinating to study. This doesn't mean they have a monopoly on good ideas or schemes -- except maybe in the case of Saban and his talent laden teams -- as Wisconsin has possessed another one of my favorite offenses the last few years, though with offensive coordinator Paul Chryst to Pittsburgh and offensive line coach Bob Bostad to the Tampa Bay Bucs, they will be interesting to watch. (That said, Wisconsin's new offensive coordinator, Matt Canada, from Northern Illinois, is a very good one.)

RRF: To you, what are the cutting edge innovations you are seeing on the offensive and/or defensive side of the ball?

CB: Again, I'll preface this by saying that what is most cutting edge isn't necessarily what is best. That Vince Lombardi guy did pretty well with a simple offense, I just wrote an extremely lengthy piece on how Peyton Manning's Indianapolis Colts decimated the NFL for a decade using the exact same plays over the entire period, and Leach-protege Holgorsen said the reason Leach's offenses were always so good was because "he don't change shit."

But as a scheme junkie, I do love what's cutting edge, and to me the best stuff on offense is the increased use of "packaged concepts," particularly within a no-huddle offense. This is all some pretty new and pretty killer stuff: runs and downfield pass plays combined all in the same play, where the quarterback can either throw downfield (not just a bubble screen) or hand it off to a running back, all while the offensive line run blocks. Or the use of downfield passes combined with screens underneath, both to receivers and running backs. And finally one Oklahoma State killed people with last year under offensive coordinator Todd Monken, where they combined a one-on-one downfield pass option to their stud receiver Justin Blackmon who was singled up to one side, a receiver screen to the other, or an inside run with the running back and offensive line. Each unit did their job independent of the other players on offense, and the quarterback simply decided whether to throw the slant or fade to Blackmon, throw the screen to the other receivers, or hand it off.

The further benefit to these is when they are used in the no-huddle: The offense can run to the line, line up, call a single, simple concept, and the quarterback chooses where to go with the ball, making the defense wrong, every time. This is in contrast to requiring the quarterback to make lots of complicated checks or audibles at the line of scrimmage or to do that whole everybody-line-up-no-wait-look-to-the-sideline-for-the-new-signal thing. It's run it and go, and the quarterback is the field general.

On defense the big trend is to take existing defenses, like the 3-4 or 4-3, but to begin using more "hybrid" defenders in the base defense, guys who were maybe considered "tweeners" a few years ago without a true position. These are the linebacker/safety hybrids and the defensive end/linebacker hybrids, who, when facing all these no-huddle or multiple-formation attacks, must be able to both take on a fullback or tight-end at the line, rush the passer, or drop into pass coverage. If you're going to have any hope of defending a dynamic offense like the one Urban Meyer runs -- which is spread but can use power, and can use power but still throw the ball around -- then you need to meet that dynamism with more dynamism.

Next week, Brown and I will speak more specifically about Meyer and OSU.

Gene Smith Clarifies Statements to Lantern

11W Staff — Thu, 24 May 2012 13:23:41 +0000

Link:

http://www.ohiostatebuckeyes.com/genrel/052412aaa.html

After making some comments in a Lantern article from late last night that that took fans aback a bit, Ohio State Athletic Director Gene Smith clarifies those statements this morning:

“Contrary to reports attributed to me, Ohio State Athletics is not facing any major NCAA violations,” Smith said. “There are several secondary violations being processed by our compliance office. These are similar to those released last week. Again, these are secondary in nature and consistent with our culture of self-reporting even the most minor and inadvertent violations.

“Again, to be clear, the Ohio State football program, its coaches and staff are not facing any violations.”“Contrary to reports attributed to me, Ohio State Athletics is not facing any major NCAA violations,” Smith said. “There are several secondary violations being processed by our compliance office. These are similar to those released last week. Again, these are secondary in nature and consistent with our culture of self-reporting even the most minor and inadvertent violations.

“Again, to be clear, the Ohio State football program, its coaches and staff are not facing any violations.”

Let's just hope this time Gene is right and that the football program is not facing any violations.

Thursday Skull Session

Chris — Thu, 24 May 2012 10:00:00 +0000

Time and change.

So, over the course of the last week I sold my house outside the city after a significant time on the market and took my talents (translation: all my sh!t) to the friendly confines of the corner of High and Long in downtown Columbus.

Man it feels good to be back in the city.

I feel sorry for folks that sleep on the moderately big but very chill town that is C-Bus as there is so much to see and do but at the same time I'm thankful too many haven't discovered its greatness, thus ruining its ecosystem with their derpness.

As for my landing back down in the thick of things, the only downfall of taking time out to move was that I was without cable and high speed internet for three panic inducing days. Seriously, I'm pretty sure I now know what it felt like to be a settler.

Now that I'm once again plugged in to the various media mediums that make life worth living, let's see what's happening in your Thursday Skull Session...

WHEELS OF STEEL(E). The man, the myth, the legend, Phil Steele came out with his pre-season All-B1G football squads and I must say I'm scratching my head a little which is very atypical when it comes to Steele's prognostications.

He lists Stoney, Simon and Hankins as 1st teamers which all make sense though Stoney's nod is clearly the result of only what Steele thinks he'll do this fall considering his stats havent' been overly impressive in an oppressive Tress/Bollman offense that refused to feature the TE as a pass catcher.

What I find a bit puzzling is CJ Barnett landing on the 1st team especially ahead of a guy like Kovacs in Ann Arbor. I like it - screw Kovacs - I just don't get it.

Still, the most mind-boggling issue with Steele's entire roster is the relegation of Bradley Roby to 4th team. I refuse to believe there are six corners in the league better than Roby as I look for him to have a huge season as he adapts to the new coverage scheme in which the CB's play off the receivers just a touch in an effort to bait QB's into more interceptions. Beyond his pass defense, the redshirt sophomore also showed a willingness to come up in run support and thoroughly outplayed his more season counterpart, Travis Howard, during the 2011 campaign.

break-->

TWO WORDS YOU HATE: PENDING VIOLATIONS. Gene Smith has been rapping with The Lantern a lot lately and yesterday, Smith shared that Ohio State still has 12 NCAA violations pending - this on the heels of the athletic department reporting that a total of 46 secondary violations occurred within 21 varsity sports.

Sure, a school like Ohio State with 36 sports itrying to operate with the confines of an archaic rule book is going to have its share of minor violations but you never want to hear your AD say:

“We’ve got 12 pending. It may turn out to be secondary. It may not.”

With Smith's track record of accurately predicting violations and subsequent penalties I suppose it's hard to get too riled up but with the athletic department already in the doghouse with the NCAA, let's hope these unresolved issues go quietly.

Steele missed the mark in slating Roby for 4th team

PUTTING THE 'STUDENT' BACK IN STUDENT-ATHLETE. The OSU Department of Athletics, in hopes of better positioning student-athletes to be successful in the classroom, has announced they will be providing iPads to each student-athlete over the course of the next two years.

The initial phase will rollout this fall with upwards of 500 iPads distributed to select teams. This progressively intelligent decision, unveiled by Dr. David Graham, Ohio State assistant provost for student-athlete success, lists many significant benefits. One huge benefit, as explained by Dr. Graham includes:

Improved academic productivity during team travel, as students will have easy access to email, Carmen (Ohio State’s online course management system), Ohio State library databases, Pages and Numbers for word processing and spreadsheet creation, FaceTime, Skype and other tools that will enable coursework to be completed on the road.

Pretty impressive move by the athletics department. Tip of the cap. Now, if we could just get the AD to fight for your football team's right to host a playoff game, he might earn back some street cred.

SHOULD YOU FEEL GOOD, GOOD, GOOD ABOUT HOOD? The venerable Bob Baptist noted late Wednesday that former Mississippi State Bulldog Rodney Hood, the 6'8" swingman who started 29 games for MSU as a frosh has narrowed his potential transfer destinations to Ohio State and Duke.

As Baptist notes, Hood and his three years of eligibility following a season on the shelf could choose the Buckeyes so he can play with former teammate LaQuinton Ross and also step into a system that is tailor made for allowing wings to make plays.

The reasons to attend Duke are obvious and Hood has been a Dookie fan his entire life.

After striking out on Tony Parker, landing Hood would be a much needed boost for Thad Matta's 2013-2014 squads and beyond.

JUNK DRAWER. If you click on anything external today, make it the sickest back window thinga-majiggy ever... The Buckeye baseballers took down PSU and now face #1 Purdue tonight at 7pm... Sparty's Mark Hollis is Sports Journal's AD of the Year... Andrea Cambern drops anchor... Despite their oversized brains, Stanford thought it'd be a cool idea to name the Offensive Coordinator position after Andrew Luck... Trey is plugged in... I prefer a brick through the windshield for people like this but still, props for execution.

The Tale of Rodriguez and Hoke

Jeff Beck — Wed, 23 May 2012 20:00:00 +0000

Did he ever have a chance?

I have a confession to make…I have friends who are Michigan fans. I’m not talking casual observers of the ~~sun~~ maize and blue, I’m saying die-hard, terrible, awful, no good Michigan fans. To my credit, it’s not entirely my fault. They told me too late in the friending process for me to turn back. So, I had to grit my teeth, bear it and keep them around.

One friend in particular is a complete UM disciple. The guy lives and breathes Michigan Football. As you can imagine this has resulted in more OSU-UM related arguments, taunt-fests (by this I mean me taunting him for the majority of the past 10 years) and incoherent bar babbles than I can count.

Fortunately, for a guy who could be so dumb when choosing a football team, he’s actually pretty smart. Our conversations (while riddled with creative insults and chest-thumping) are informative. We give one-another a glimpse behind enemy lines we wouldn’t have been afforded had I stuck to my strict rule of staunchly refusing the friendship of any UM fan, then egging their house for good measure.

One topic that’s come up recently is the difference between Hoke and Rich Rod. Specifically, how was Hoke able to enjoy a level of success in his first year that Rodriguez never came close to sniffing in three?

It’s an interesting question that only becomes more intriguing considering the players on the field are essentially the control group. Hoke was able to win with most of the same players Rodriguez had. So what happened?

After extensive conversation with my dumb friend and doing a little digging on my own I think Hoke’s success or Rich Rod’s lackthereof can be boiled down to three key factors:

1. Institutional Support: Hoke was Welcomed Rich Rod Wasn’t This point has been covered extensively by author John Bacon in his book Three and Out. Bacon, who was given unprecedented access to the team during Rodriguez’s tenure, arrived with the intention of writing a book on Rich Rod’s early career at Michigan. The piece ended up being a tell-all exposé on the demise of the Michigan program.

While my top-level analysis won’t do the 400+ page piece justice, the essence of one of Bacon’s themes is: Rich Rod wasn’t welcomed by UM bigwigs from the beginning. Specifically, Associate AD Lloyd Carr did everything short of holding a press conference to voice his displeasure over the Rodriguez hire.

MGoBlog does a nice job of summarizing Carr’s efforts to undermine Rodriguez including informing former players he would sign transfer papers, telling Ryan Mallett he “needed to leave” and refusing to stand-up for Rodriguez during the media firestorm following Michigan’s terrible 2008 3-9 season (Rich Rod’s first as head coach).

Michigan Man?...Gross

Carr’s displeasure with the hire, coupled with what some were calling a Rich Rod Jihad by Detroit Free Press Columnist Michael Rosenberg (over the excessive-exercising spat with the NCAA) seemingly doomed Rodriguez from the start.

In stark contrast, Hoke hasn’t had to deal with any of this backlash, largely because of the following factor.

2. Hoke is a “Michigan Man” Rodriguez Wasn’t The term “Michigan Man” is vague at best. I always thought it meant you were ugly, but apparently it’s got a different meaning to those trolls up North. Definitions of Michigan Man vary, but from what I can gather it means being like Bo Schembechler: a hard-nosed, three yards and a cloud of dust kind of guy. It’s a revered phrase and one that UM takes seriously. So, when Rich Rod arrived in 2008 with his fancy WVU spread, it was seen as less than hard-nosed and anything but “Michigan-Mannish”.

Compounding the problem was the fact that Rich Rod didn’t understand the phrase and/or was not prepared by the Michigan Athletic Department to field questions on the topic. This ultimately coalesced in RR answering in a press conference with a, “Gosh, I hope not! They hired me!”, when asked if the Michigan coach had to be a Michigan Man. As you can imagine, that didn’t sit well.

A significant amount of Michigan Man reputation management occurred after that now infamous statement. But, the damage was already done. The aforementioned author Bacon, in an interview with MGoBlog, explains:

“At the “Victors’ Rally” held in February 2010, Rodriguez wanted to show that he’d gotten the message. So, he closed his speech by saying, “I’m Rich Rodriguez, and I am a Michigan Man.” This time, he was criticized for being presumptuous…"

Then during his last speech:

“Finally, with great humility, he told the crowd at his final speech at the Bust in December 2011, “I hope you realize, I truly want to be a Michigan Man.” But this time his critics said a true Michigan Man wouldn’t have to ask.”

Rodriguez wasn’t a Michigan Man, Hoke is. From calling Ohio State “Ohio” to his “This is Michigan FerGodSakes”, everything Hoke has done over the past year was seen as fitting the Michigan Man mold. Because of this, Hoke was allowed to operate free of much of the static Rich Rod had to work around. (It also helps that Hoke beat Ohio State….even though it was in a down year with an interim head coach…but I digress)

3. Defensive Coaching Staff: Hoke Has One…Did Rich Rod? Last and possibly most important, Hoke understands you can’t win in the Big Ten without defense. This is a concept Rich Rod failed to grasp during his three years at the helm of the program.

Despite what went down at UM, Rodriguez is still an offensive guru. The problem with being amazing at the X’s and O’s on the scoring side of the ball is that you generally aren’t great at scheming on the defensive end. This is why Rodriguez NEEDED a competent defensive coordinator. Instead he chose to hire Scott Shafer who engineered these gems in 2008: gave up 45 points to Illinois, 46 points to Penn State, 48 points to Purdue, and 42 points to OSU.

Shafer was promptly fired and replaced by Greg Robinson. At no one's behest, Robinson decided to follow in his predecessor's footsteps, managing brilliant 2009-2010 defensive campaigns. In 2009 the Wolverines gave up 35 points to Penn State, 38 points to Illinois, 38 points to Purdue and 45 points to Wisconsin (these were all back-to-back). In 2010 the good times kept on a rollin’ as Robinson’s Swiss cheese boys gave up 41 points to Penn State, 48 points to Wisconsin and 52 points to Mississippi State in the Gator Bowl. Iron curtain they were not. At the end of the day I guess rubbing players’ faces with a stuffed beaver (I wish I was making this up) isn’t the best motivational tool.

On the other hand, Hoke has done his due diligence on the defensive end. To start, he’s already a defense guy. He played LB at Ball State and then went on to hold defensive coaching positions from 1981-2002. For good measure, he hired Greg Mattison, former DC for the Baltimore Ravens (who have an OK defense the last time I checked).

Ultimately this resulted in a two loss season, with both losses appearing respectable in comparison to the Rich Rod years (i.e. not giving up nearly half-a-hundred each week).

Hoke’s success and Rodriguez’s demise are in many ways linked. Hoke was given a level of institutional support that Rich Rod never received. This was largely because Hoke understood how to play nice with the brass i.e. exemplify qualities of a “Michigan Man”. Able to do his job free of outside noise (a nicety Rodriguez was never afforded) Hoke went on to do it well. Unlike Rich Rod, he understood you can’t expect to outscore opponents week-in and week-out in the Big Ten. Therefore, he put together a respectable defensive philosophy and staff to bolster an already explosive offense.

It’s hard to sum up all of this succinctly, but surprisingly my stupid friend does a decent job:

“All of this annoyed me at first, because I thought Hoke was a lackluster hire and still think Rodriguez is a great coach. But Hoke coached brilliantly in his first season…His staff adapted to the personnel on offense pretty damn well. The younger fans such as myself appreciate that, while the older guys like that he talks like Bo.”

Well there you have it. Have you ever hated Michigan more? Me neither. Keep calm and carry on.

Catching Up with Jeb Blazevich

Alex — Wed, 23 May 2012 17:00:00 +0000

Ohio State is intrigued by Blazevich

The tight end role is certainly changing under the new coaching staff and with those changes comes a renown focus on recruiting the positions.

While Jim Tressel utilized the tight end as ultimately a sixth offensive lineman, Urban Meyer and Tom Herman plan to use their weapons in their arsenal to stretch the field in a variety of ways.

The Buckeyes currently have a solid crop of tight ends, but will be looking to add more play makers in the coming years to succeed Jake Stoneburner, Jeff Heuerman, Nick Vannett, and Blake Thomas.

Already committed at tight end in the class of 2013 is Marcus Baugh out of California and other players such as Durham (NC) Hillside's Josh McNeil could eventually join the fold as well, but Meyer and the staff are also focusing on 2014 prospects.

One player in that class they have already offered is Jeb Blazevich of Charlotte (NC) Christian. The 6-5/235 four star prospect, who hails from the same school as recently departed Buckeye David Durham, already has some big time interest, racking up nine offers in the early going. One of those schools to offer is Ohio State and Blazevich is definitely interested in seeing what OSU has to offer.

We caught up with Jeb to hear the latest on his recruitment, what his early feelings are on the Buckeyes, what Durham is telling him about his former school, and more. Join us after the jump to hear more about 2014 stand out tight end, Jeb Blazevich.

How did your sophomore season go? How did your team do and how did you perform individually?

My sophomore season was a bit disappointing as our team went 5-5. That record is unacceptable for our program and we had some mistakes during the season that we have to work on fixing for next year. Our program hit a little bit of a slump, but we are definitely headed in the right direction.

Individually, I did OK. My stats were not amazing, but I had 32 receptions for 513 yards and 6 touchdowns on offense at tight end and 69 tackles and 3 sacks playing linebacker and defensive end. More importantly, I was dependable in both the receiving game and in blocking and did whatever my team needed me to do.

How is recruiting going for you so far?

Recruiting is crazy. I didn't expect the flood of people to come in so fast, but my family and friends are keeping me grounded and I'm making sure I don't get a big head or anything like that. I have offers so far from North Carolina, Duke, South Carolina, Georgia, Ohio State, Maryland, LSU, Ole Miss, and Virginia.

You mention Ohio State offered you. Who is recruiting you for the Buckeyes and how did they offer?

Coach Zach Smith and Coach Everett Withers are recruiting me for Ohio State. Coach Smith first came to my school, but wasn't allowed to talk to me so he gave my coach his card and told him to have me call him. I finally got on the phone with him and he was telling me all about what Ohio State had to offer me and at the end of the conversation he told me that they'd like to offer me a scholarship.

What are your feelings right now on Ohio State?

Ohio State is a great program. It was sad to see Coach Tressel go down like that last year, but Urban Meyer is another legendary coach which is great. The tradition there is crazy and the school is really worldwide. You can go anywhere in the world and see OSU fans.

Do you plan to visit Ohio State this summer?

Yes, I will be visiting for their camp at the end of June. This will be my first time to their campus so I'm definitely looking forward to the trip.

What other visits do you have planned?

I have already been to UNC, Duke, South Carolina, and Clemson each twice because those schools are close and the first three offered me early. I will definitely be getting to Clemson and Georgia for sure this summer, I'm just not sure when. In addition to those, I'd like to try to get to LSU and Alabama, and maybe Virginia if I can.

Do any schools stand out to you at this point?

I get this question a lot and I know a lot of people usually say no to be guarded of who their true favorite schools are, but I honestly don't feel that any schools stand out at this point.

I know it's early, but do you have an idea of when a decision might come?

I definitely want to decide before my senior season. I'm not the type that's going to wait long and play the hat on the table game, so I'd like to decide before my senior year starts.

What factors are you looking for in the school of your choice?

There are a ton of factors that go into the decision, but overall we're looking for a coach with integrity that can develop me as both a player and a student, since the education is really what the school is paying for. I'd also like to go to a school with a winning tradition, but as I said before there are a ton of other little factors that will play a role in where I choose to go.

David Durham, who just left Ohio State to go to Pittsburgh, graduated from your school. Do you know him at all and what did he say to you about OSU?

Yes, I know David. My family and his used to be close, but then they moved to Texas for a while before coming back to Charlotte. David's been coaching me up a little bit and giving me some good advice on the process in general. He told me that he loved Ohio State and that he was upset at how things shook out there, but the thing that stood out to me was that he said even if he wasn't playing football in Columbus it was a place he would have been very happy at.

Deep Threat

Joe — Wed, 23 May 2012 14:00:00 +0000

Galloway dominated the Spartans in 1993.

Some players who come to Ohio State as superstars fail to live up to the hype, often due to injury problems. Others simply cannot catch on to the complexity of the playbooks or cannot catch up to the speed of the game at the college level. But there are others who simply will not be denied, persevering through all the difficulties and sometimes even setting a whole new speed for the game. One of those players was wide receiver Joey Galloway.

Joey Galloway grew up in Bellaire OH, a small village in Belmont County on the Ohio River, just across from Wheeling WV. Bellaire is not what you call a "boom town"; it's population has been in decline for the last 90 years and as of 2010 it is less than 5000. More than a quarter of the people who reside there are living in poverty.

Nevertheless, Galloway caught the eye of college recruiters during his senior season when he caught 32 passes for 608 yards and 8 TD's. He came to Ohio State and made an impact immediately as a freshman, catching 14 passes for 255 yards (18.2 average) and a TD. The one touchdown reception gave OSU fans a taste of what was to come, as Galloway sailed past defenders for a 44-yard reception in a losing cause at Illinois.

Going into his sophmore campaign, it appeared that Galloway was on the cusp of greatness. In the opening game against Louisville, he took a reverse and sped 50 yards down the field for a TD, once again leaving defenders dazed in his trail. But in game 2, he suffered a setback. Catching a pass down the field and heading for the sideline, Galloway was hit low by a Bowling Green defender and injured his knee. He would miss the rest of the season, and helplessly watched as the team struggled to throw the football down the field without their best deep threat.

A weaker person might have been discouraged and ready to give up the game after this kind of serious injury. But having fought through hard times for much of his life, Galloway was prepared to do whatever it took to succeed at Ohio State. He worked so hard through his rehabilitation that those who observed him said he was now faster than he had ever been. In 1993, Joey Galloway was completely recovered from his knee surgery and ready to jump into the college football spotlight in a big way.

In the opener against Rice, Galloway showed that he was all the way back by hauling in a 48-yard bomb from Bret Powers to help the Buckeyes defeat the Owls 34-7. But things would get a lot tougher in week 2 as the #12 ranked Washington Huskies came to town. Washington had gone undefeated in 1991 and finished #2 in the national polls. In 1992, they won the Pac-10 again but lost to Michigan in the Rose Bowl to finish 9-3 on the season and ranked #11. Just prior to the 1993 season, long-time coach Don James, who had been a candidate to succeed Woody Hayes back in 1979, had resigned.

Still, Washington was a formidable squad and this would be the first test of the young season for OSU's new system of scripting plays and the quarterback platoon of Powers and Bobby Hoying. Starting with the football, OSU began with a pass as Hoying hit Galloway down the middle for 18 yards. Moving down the field methodically, Hoying hit Galloway again from the UW 35 and he carried it down to the 15. Raymont Harris scored 3 plays later to put OSU up 7-0. The Huskies were forced to punt on their first possession, but Galloway fumbled the punt away and set UW up for a field goal.

The two teams traded possessions for a while, but then the junior receiver had a chance to make amends for his fumble. On 4th and 2 from the Washington 35, OSU coach John Cooper decided to go for it and he called a pass play. Rolling to his right, Hoying hit Galloway on a drag route for a first down at the 25. But Galloway was not done; he turned upfield and broke a tackle, then outraced the remaining Washington defenders all the way to the end zone. The TD put the Buckeyes up 14-3 and they cruised from there to a 21-12 victory. The game was played at night and televised nationally, which alerted the entire college football world that a talented speedster was tearing it up at Ohio State.

After easy victories over Pitt and Northwestern, the Buckeyes pulled out a nervous 20-12 win at Illinois. Going home to face Michigan State for homecoming, Ohio State was now ranked #5. The 3-1 Spartans were #25 and they brought their high-flying passing game to a rainy Ohio Stadium with a vengeance. MSU QB Jim Miller took advantage of the slipping OSU defenders on his way to 360 yards passing, but on the other side was a weapon that they could not deal with.

Playing with the Bucs gave his career new life.

Joey Galloway had his best day as a Buckeye against Michigan State, hauling in 9 passes for 186 yards and 3 TD's. On the last TD, Bret Powers hit him in stride and he out-raced the Spartan defenders for a 64-yard bomb, the longest play from scrimmage that season. The nationally televised game further cemented Galloway's reputation and moved OSU up to #3 in the rankings.

The Buckeyes would go on to collect easy wins against Purdue and Penn State (!!!) but a showdown with #15 Wisconsin in Madison loomed in week 9. The Badgers had defeated OSU the previous season and in one of those conference scheduling quirks Ohio State would have to play at their place for the 2nd year in a row.

The game degenerated into a defensive struggle until late in the 4th quarter when Wisconsin, leading 14-7, pinned OSU at their own 1-yard line with only 4:34 left in the game. Hoying had been ineffective, and so Cooper inserted Powers, and he promptly moved the ball down the field. First he hit Galloway for 15 yards to the sideline, then he went deep to Galloway for 47 yards down the left side of the field. After throwing to tight end Cedric Saunders for 11 yards, Powers connected with Galloway again to the end zone to tie the score at 14. Marlon Kerner would block a Wisky field goal attempt to preserve the tie, and OSU walked out of Madison still undefeated.

Of course, the undefeated season came to an end with a resounding thud as the Buckeyes fell 28-0 at Michigan two weeks later, but Galloway had played brilliantly coming off a serious injury the previous year. He would finish the season with 47 catches for 946 yards and 11 TD's, plus he ran for 58 yards and 2 TD's on 9 carries. He would come back for his senior season, but a 2-game suspension for taking money from an agent would limit his production. Still, he finished that year with 44 catches for 669 yards and 7 TD's.

Galloway was drafted 8th overall in the first round of the NFL draft by the Seattle Seahawks, and he played there for 5 seasons. He signed with the Dallas Cowboys the next season, but he tore his ACL in the first game and once again had to sit out a year and rehab. Proving his mettle once again, he returned and played for 10 more years, with his best season coming with Tampa Bay at the age of 33. Overall, Galloway played in the NFL for 16 seasons, hauling in 701 receptions for 10,950 yards and 77 TD's. He also rushed for 496 yards on 63 carries with 1 TD. Galloway is proof that talent plus hard work and perseverence can prevail over difficult circumstances.

Wednesday Skull Session

Jeff Beck — Wed, 23 May 2012 10:00:00 +0000

Happy middle of the week everyone, if you’re anything like me you’re just now sitting down to enjoy a morning cup o’ joe as you try and forget some of the responsibilities of the day. You’ve come here to focus on what really matters: re-fueling your tank of Buckeye knowledge (it’s a lot cheaper than a trip to the gas pump AND the bathrooms are cleaner…win win.

What am I even talking about? Who knows. Let’s get to what really matters.

WHY SO SERIOUS? Adam Rittenberg recently wrote a piece outlining what he believes to be the “Big Ten’s Coaching Villains”. The three coaches that made the list were Bielema, Dantonio, and…you guessed it Urban F. Meyer.

This seems a little crazy to me, Meyer hasn’t even coached a game in the Big Ten and he’s already being called a villain? Rittenberg explains that Meyer’s baddie moniker stems mostly from what he’s done on the recruiting trail, specifically “flipping” recruits already verbaled to other schools.

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While I understand that some coaches *COUGH-HARUMPH * Bielema *AHEM* were sore when a few of their recruits decided to jump on the Buckeye bandwagon; people must understand that a lot of these flipped kids had a ton of interest in the Buckeyes until it looked like the USS OSU was sinking. Meyer wasn’t stealing recruits as much as he was trying to bring some of them back on board (see what I did there?) after the ship was righted.

Personally I don’t ever believe Meyer is going to pull a Bielema and drop 83 on the Hoosiers. But then again…he might do something close. Either way his villain status will never reach full BRET mode.

As much as fans of the Big Ten want to make it known that they don’t like Meyer, secretly deep down they’ve got to know his hire makes the Big Ten a better conference. Something we can all get behind.

WHAT DO YOU HAVE PLANNED FOR 2018? The Ozone put together a handy chart outlining the Buckeye’s full and partial football schedules until 2018. While I have absolutely no idea what I’ll be doing in six years, I can unequivocally state that even if I’m bankrupt, living under an overpass and have befriended a Funyun I will still care about Ohio State football. So naturally I was interested in what was going on.

2016 jumped out as a year that could be particularly difficult. Granted it's hard to say how the balance of power will shift in college football over the next four years, but my gut tells me playing Oklahoma, Michigan State, Penn State and Wisconsin on the road is going to be a tough climb (can I book a plane ticket to Oklahoma four years in advance btw?)

Also, taking a look at these schedules it’s hard not to gravitate toward the 2013 schedule. As we all know, ’13 will be the first year Meyer will get a crack at a post-season. Getting Wisconsin and Penn State at home is nice, but unfortunately (I can’t believe I’m about to say this) we have to play Purdue AT PURDUE. It will be interesting to see if the Ross Ade troubles will continue to plague the team in the Urban era. Hopefully this new coaching staff can shake that unwelcome tradition.

Wait till after noon for this?...DOUBTEMS.

FLAG POLE...HIGH NOON. Yesterday Buckeyextra reported the 2012 Ohio State-Michigan game will kickoff at noon on Nov. 24. In other news, the sky is blue and fish seem receptive to worms. But seriously, this just feels right doesn’t it? The Game has started at noon seven out of the past 10 seasons. In 2004 and 2005 the powers-that-be declared the war begin at 1:00 and in 2006 (#1 OSU v. #2 UM) The Game kicked off at 3:30.

I don’t know about you, but when I have to wait an extra second for this game I start to lose my mind. The extra three and a half hours in 2006 felt like listening to a cover-to-cover audiobook of Atlas Shrugged read by Lou Holtz.

This game is going to have a ton of build-up with Hoke and Meyer meeting for the first time and I suspect if both teams have respectable records GameDay will be in Columbus. While Kirk and friends usually cover the 8 or 9 pm primetime game, they certainly haven't shied away from covering a solid OSU-UM noon matchup. Which leads me to my next question, how would you feel about The Game being played under the lights?

I SEE YOU ED. Tom Dienhart of the BTN recently sat down with OSU Co-Offensive Coordinator and Offensive Line Coach Ed Warinner for a quick Q and A. A lot of what Warinner said wasn’t Earth-shattering. He stated Buckeye fans can expect to see more balance from the offense this year with the spread. He identified some playmakers on offense (Hall, Miller, Devin Smith, MICHAEL THOMAS!!!, Corey Brown, Hyde, Boren and Stoneburner) and he said the O-line is coming together nicely, even with a lack of depth.

That all sounded great, but what really jumped out was what Warinner said when asked if this offense was similar to any he's led in the past:

“It’s different. There are elements of the spread that are common. It’s about 40 percent the same as the offense we had at Kansas…There are passing concepts that are similar, so maybe it’s about 50 percent the same”

Buckeye fans who've had their hearts stopped a time or seventeen during the Tresselball field-goal friendly era should be rejoicing after this statement. If the offense even remotely resembles what Warinner was doing at Kansas, then I should consider patenting “The Show at the Shoe” tees. Don't believe me? Consider this from Warinner’s OSU bio:

"Warinner's talents as an offensive coordinator then took center stage from 2007-09 while at Kansas. The Jayhawks posted the three best offenses in terms of total yards and passing yards in those years and also had three of the top seven scoring seasons in school history… His 2007 Jayhawks were the nation's second-highest scoring team (42.8 points per game) and set a school record by averaging 479.8 yards per game."

I’m truly excited to see what three great offensive minds in Meyer, Herman and Warinner come up with over the next few years. It will be fun to watch.

LINKED IN. Hey want to rip off your ears?...Have a listen, Thank You Facebook. The number one rivalry in sports...because BuzzFeed said so. Why oh why oh why would someone do this? Sneaker freaks take note. I don't care who you are...this is funny.

The Eight Debate

David Sokol — Tue, 22 May 2012 17:00:00 +0000

Craft has already had crazy impact on the program

With Thad Matta entering his ninth season, I thought it would be a good time to take a look at the last eight years of basketball recruiting, weighing in on Ohio State's eight most impactful and influential recruits on the Buckeye program. I also listed the biggest duds.

In Thad's eight seasons, a total of thirty-two recruits have committed to Ohio State. Of the thirty-two, Thad has reeled in a total of eight "five-star" commits, twelve "four-star", nine "three-star" guys, and four Junior College players. In the years since Thad took over the Buckeyes, OSU's recruiting has been among the best in the nation, often getting comparisons to the recruiting efforts of the big few programs (UNC, UK, Kansas, etc.).

Many have come through Columbus, helped out the team, moved on to the next level and/or received their degrees from Ohio State. Many didn't work out, couldn't cut the college life, and moved on.

Let's start by counting down the top eight recruits based on their impacts and influence on the program.

8. Aaron craft (2010)

The former Tennessee commit did not originally get too many looks from Ohio State (although being from Findlay, OH) but no one plays harder for the Buckeyes than Craft. On top of playing hard, Craft has helped manufacture an excellent image for the basketball program with his stellar academic record, community service and leadership. He has, more or less, become the face of the program and will continue to do so for the next two years.

Nobody outworks Craft, nobody hustles as hard as he does, and nobody is as lovable as he is (unless you're an opponent, then you hate Craft). Craft is the Big Ten's best defender and other teams are frustrated with him. Luckily, Bruce Pearl messed up and the Buckeyes were lucky enough to land this guy. Craft's impact on the program is infinite and only trending upward.

7. Mike Conley Jr. (2006)

Conley came into his own in the 2007 NCAA Tournament, helping lead the Buckeyes to the national title game and emerging from Greg Oden's shadow. Not only was Conley part of the Thad-5, he was also from Indiana and was the top point guard in the class. By locking down Conley, Thad was able to show that the Buckeyes were going to be a recruiting force in the conference, opening up the borders between Ohio and Indiana for top recruits. Conley had the most assists in a season ever at OSU, as well.

Conley went on to become the fourth overall pick in the NBA draft and is widely considered one of the best Buckeyes in the pros (up for debate). His success on the Memphis Grizzlies also adds to his impact on the program.

6. Jon Diebler (2007)

There was not a more heralded Ohio high school scorer than Jon Diebler, who is the all-time Ohio scoring champion at 3,208 points. Diebler's influence over the Buckeyes during his four year tenure at Ohio State was much greater than often realized. Diebler was recruited to spread the floor and score. It took him some time to adjust at the next level, but he accomplished what he was recruited to do.

Diebler owns Ohio State's all-time three point record, the Big Ten's record for most three-pointers in a game, and most three pointers in a season. He also started 115 total games in his OSU career. Evidence is there and Diebler's impact was tremendous. He was definitely missed this past season, despite reaching the Final Four.

5. Will Buford (2008)

Think of Cedar Point Amusement Park. Then think of one of the many roller coasters at the park. Well, you're now thinking about Will Buford's Buckeye career as well. In reality, Buford is one of the best players in the Matta era. A former 5-star recruit and McDonalds All American, Buford was among the most highly recruited shooting guards in the nation.

A Toledo native, Buford decided to stay close to home and spent four years in Columbus where he ended his career tied third on the all-time Ohio State leading scorer list. Buford was a key member of all four teams he played on in his OSU tenure and could be an everyday player at the next level. Buford had an amazing career in the scarlet and gray and his tenure made tremendous impact on the program.

4. David Lighty (2006)

In my eyes, no one is a truer Buckeye than David Lighty. Lighty, who spent five years at Ohio State, was part of the 2006 class labeled the Thad-5 and was probably the least heralded. No one knew that he would have such a tremendous impact on the OSU program.

Lighty played in and won more games than any Buckeye in history but also played in the most games in NCAA history (157). It was often joked that Lighty should have his jersey retired in the Schottenstein rafters, but I was one to believe that they should. Lighty battled back from injuries, displayed the best leadership abilities, and locked down every opponent on defense. His impact will not be forgotten.

3. Evan Turner (2007)

Although not as highly touted as some of the others in Thad's repertoire, Evan Turner is probably the best overall player during his Ohio State tenure. Turner, from Chicago, was a consensus top-60 recruit and arrived in Columbus as an extremely raw freshman. No one had better work ethic than Turner who transformed into the best player in the country by his Junior year beating out John Wall for National Player of the Year honors.

At times, Turner carried the Buckeyes on his back. Coincidentally, Turner broke his back his Junior season, returning just a few weeks later. He averaged 20.4 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 6 assists a game as a Junior, one of the best overall seasons in OSU history. Turner's name could be hanging in the rafters a few years down the line. Turner also set the precedent for future recruits as many young prospects look to replicate Turner's success at Ohio State.

2. Greg Oden (2006)

There is not a more recognizable recruit in Ohio State history than Greg Oden. Oden was the #1 overall player in the class and instantly became the best player in college basketball. Oden was the prime example of how Thad could go into other states (specifically Indiana, again) and take the top talent.

Oden, the centerpiece of the Thad-5, dominated the paint for a bit more than half a season but really helped an emerging powerhouse reach the top. Oden helped the Buckeyes to a #1 ranking and an overall #1 seed in the NCAA tournament before being drafted as the #1 overall pick. From a PR standpoint, Oden helped Ohio State basketball into the spotlight along side with the school's football program. That's something you don't see very often in Columbus.

1. Jared Sullinger (2010)

Having Sullinger committed so Ohio State so early in his basketball career helped the program out drastically. Those that argue that Oden should top Sullinger do not see the behind the scenes impact that Sullinger had on OSU recruiting. With Sullinger as the centerpiece of the '10 class four years before enrolling, Thad had plenty of time to put great players around him and that's what he did. Thad was able to lure in recruits using Sullinger as his main recruiting tool and it was effective as ever. Thad locked down several of Sullinger's AAU teammates including Aaron Craft, Deshaun Thomas, and others (we won't name those who transferred). Sullinger even had direct affect on the classes in front and behind his as everyone wanted to play with a star like Sully.

Simply put, no one had a bigger impact on OSU recruiting and the program like Jared Sullinger. Sullinger may not be a top pick in the NBA Draft but he will go in the first round and will definitely carry the Buckeye name with him wherever he goes. Imagine the state of the program if Sullinger had gone to a Michigan State, North Carolina, or Duke instead of staying in his hometown to be a hero. Things would be quite different.

Just Missed the Cut: Deshaun Thomas (trending upward), Mark Titus (seriously, his PR has done wonders for the program)

The Duds (High expectations, no results)

4. Anthony "Noopy" Crater (2008)

Anthony Crater was a consensus top point guard and was set to take over a Conley-esque role upon his arrival. Crater contributed as a freshman but did not like his minutes. He eventually transferred to South Florida and was kicked off the team there.

3. Daequan Cook (2006)

Although Daequan Cook eventually was taken late in first round of the NBA draft, Cook never seemed to want to be in Columbus and would have most likely entered the draft from high school if he had the opportunity. Cook, a big time recruit, came off the bench and never really made a substantial impact on the Ohio State program.

2. Kosta Koufos (2007)

Kosta Koufos did lead the Buckeyes to an NIT championship (bleh, the NIT) averaging 14.4 points and 6.7 rebounds per game, however, he seemed like he never wanted to be a Buckeye either. Titus mentioned in his book that he was a ball hog and no one on the team seemed to like him.

1. BJ Mullens (2008)

BJ Mullens was the consensus #1 overall recruit but never seemed to fulfill the expectations set forth. Before enrolling at OSU, Mullens was projected to be a top pick in the following year's NBA draft and that may be all he cared about. Mullens did not even start for the Buckeyes and bolted for the NBA as soon as the season ended, despite his poor season.

Let the debate begin!