Category: Buckeyes Wire

Jim Tressel says Ohio State potential national title wouldn’t mean as much with loss to Michigan

Former head coach Jim Tressel said that Ohio State’s season, if they won the championship, wouldn’t mean as much if they lost to Michigan.

Former head coach Jim Tressel said that Ohio State’s 2019 season, if it goes on to win the national championship, wouldn’t mean as much if they lose to Michigan on Saturday.

This is quite the claim.

We all know The Game, which kicks off tomorrow at noon EST, is meaningful. Although technically it may not matter for Ohio State’s Playoff aspirations, it has all the importance in the world to the players and respective fanbases.

The third-most winning head coach in school history took that to the next level, saying Ohio State’s first championship season since 2014 wouldn’t quite be the same if it didn’t win Saturday.

Here’s exactly how the 2002 Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year phrased his thoughts.

Tressel does have some room to talk here though. He was an impressive 9-1 in his time against Michigan so it’s difficult to say that he’s incorrect. It’s also difficult to say an entire season could be ruined by The Game. But, that’s what you live in with this rivalry and with being the head coach of Ohio State.

And … one could argue putting such an emphasis on this one contest has been why OSU has been so dominant over the last couple of decades.

The No. 1-ranked Buckeyes will line up as one of the only three Power 5 teams still undefeated at 11-0. The dominance that they’ve shown this season has made them a double-digit favorite, meaning Michigan, even at home, is a a significant underdog.

The Buckeyes should win, and if they don’t, it could be one of those rivalry-defining games in Ann Arbor.

This will be the Buckeyes last regular season game. They’ve already locked up the Big Ten East and will be playing in Indianapolis on December 7. But that doesn’t diminish The Game.

WATCH: Ohio State hype video for Michigan. The Game.

It’s time. The Ohio State creative team has put out the hype video for The Game against Michigan. You can watch it here. Be prepared.

It. Is. Time.

That’s the tagline of this week put out by the Ohio State creative team. We’ve seen a few teasers of The Game on social medai, and now we have the hype video put out weekly by the official Twitter feed of Ohio State Football.

They are all good, but this one is a little longer, with a little more production around it. And that makes sense because of the rivalry. It starts out slow with TBDBITL kicking things off, then gets going with iconic moments and scenes of the rivalry with Michigan throughout the years.

If you like to watch these trailers every week great, you won’t be disappointed. If you haven’t watched any of them, now might be a good time to get knee deep into it and prepare yourself for some goosebumps.

Click on the below and enjoy!

Ohio Sate and Michigan kick off at Noon on FOX.

Ohio State releases depth chart and availability information for Michigan game

Ohio State has released its player availability, injuries, and depth chart for the big one against Michigan Saturday.

Every Friday Ohio State releases information on the depth chart and player availability for the upcoming game. Next up is The Game on the road in The Big House against Michigan.

Ohio State has quite a few players out of action as you would expect this time of year, but look fairly healthy and almost everyone that’s been a part of this thing so far looks ready to go — including Justin Fields.

Somewhat surprising is Shaun Wade being listed as a game time decision, but who thinks he’s not going to be ready to go for the one he likely game to Ohio State to play.

Here’s what we’ve been told by the fine folks at Ohio State.

Game-time decision

SAF Shaun Wade

Unavailable

WR Kamryn Babb

RB Marcus Crowley

OG Gavin Cupp

DL Noah Donald

WR Ellijah Gardiner

SAF Ronnie Hickman

OL Matthew Jones

SAF Josh Proctor

WR C.J. Saunders

DT Taron Vincent

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Next … Ohio State Depth Chart – offense, defense, and specialists

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Ohio Sate vs. Michigan Buckeye Battle Cry: What’s your fondest memory of The Game

In our latest Buckeye Battle Cry roundtable, we ask our writers what their favorite memory of Ohio State vs. Michigan is.

One of the things we like to do here at Buckeyes Wire is debate. We’re good at it, even when we’re wrong. Each Friday, we’ll throw out a topic that seems to be in the news or is a hot topic of discussion and provide a round table forum of discussion. Sometimes it’ll be two writers, sometimes more. Sometimes it’ll be hotly debated, sometimes more civil.

Heck, sometimes it’ll be outlandish, but it’ll fun nonetheless.

You can even get in on the act by going to our Facebook or Twitter page (at the bottom of this article) and providing your own input, but beware — we do like to respond and hash it out, so be ready for some debate yourself.

This week, in honor of Ohio State vs. Michigan week, we’re asking our writers what their fondest memory of The Game is. There are sure to be plenty to choose from, but what sticks out more than any other.

Mark takes us down memory lane first.

Next … Mark remembers

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Week 14 College Football Bowl Projections

With two weeks left in the college football season, let’s look at where each team currently stands in the bowl picture.

Welcome to the second set of bowl projections that I will be providing. Make sure not to miss Phil Harrison’s projections. Every week, Phil projects to the end of the season and gives you where he thinks the Big Ten teams will end up.

I, however, will not be predicting who will win games. Instead, these projections are based on where every team sits now. Meaning, if the season ended today, where would every team be heading to bowl games? That way, readers can know what their team needs to do to move up or down in bowl selection order.

Now, I do have to admit that a small bit of prognosticating is necessary. There are currently only 74 bowl-eligible teams, but there are 39 bowl games. So, only for the purposes of determining who will reach bowl eligibility, I am forced to predict some games. To avoid bias as much as possible in the process, I will assume that the favored team wins each remaining game, and I will use FPI, SP+, Sagarin, and a few others to determine who is “favored.” As of today, these projections say there will be 79 bowl-eligible teams. That number includes Missouri. The Tigers’ appeal has finally been denied by the NCAA, so they will not be appearing in a bowl game.

Also, remember that nowadays, bowl projections are more of an art than a science. Most conferences no longer allow the bowls to select teams in order, but instead provide “pools” of teams for certain tiers of bowls. The Group of 5 conferences often have no selection order preference. The conferences then work with the bowls to determine which team goes where. Anything can be the cause for this–geography, fan interests, matchup quality, whether the conference thinks its team is more likely to win, or any other reason. Therefore, at the end of this article, I will provide a list of which conference pools would be tied to which bowl. That way, you have as much information as possible when figuring out where each team could be headed.

Finally, keep in mind that these are based on what would happen if the season ends today. The season does not end today, though, so things will change between now and Selection Sunday. However, this is where each team stands right now. (As we approach Selection Sunday, we will be able to hear rumors and whispers as to which team is headed where. I do my best to keep track, and my projections the morning of Selection Sunday will be based mostly on those. For now, though, all we know is that BYU has accepted an invitation to the Hawaii Bowl.)

So, without further ado, here are this week’s bowl projections:

College Football Playoff

Peach Bowl Sat, Dec 28, 8:00 PM LSU vs Clemson
Fiesta Bowl Sat, Dec 28, 4:00 PM Ohio State vs Georgia

This is simple enough. No. 1 plays No. 4, and No. 2 plays No. 3. The committee will ensure that the No. 1 team is not given a geographic disadvantage, so Ohio State will not be forced to play Georgia in Atlanta.

The times for these matchups are flexible and not yet set, but given that Ohio State vs Georgia will likely be the bigger draw, I expect that to be the game given primetime billing.

Next… NY6 and other Big Ten bowls

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Ohio State vs. Michigan: 5 reasons the Buckeyes win The Game

The Game between Ohio State and Michigan is getting closer and closer. Here’s five reasons the Buckeyes beat the Wolverines Saturday.

It sure seems like we’ve said this on more than one occasion, but Ohio State is most likely about to meet its greatest challenge of 2019. The turnover bug hit a little bit last week against Penn State to keep things close, but the Buckeyes have still beaten every opponent on the schedule by two scores.

Now comes the big one, the annual grudge match against Michigan. And even though Ohio State has rented out the Wolverine program like a cheap timeshare over the last couple of years, Jim Harbaugh seems to have this team playing its best football of the season.

Still, there’s no denying that OSU is the more talented and deep team across the board. Here’s five reasons the Buckeyes beat the Wolverines on Saturday at high Noon.

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Next … Athlete on athlete

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Five reason to be thankful as Ohio State fans

Ohio State fans might be spoiled, but that’s because of the success the Buckeyes have had over the years. Here’s 5 reasons to be thankful.

It’s Thanksgiving and we all have reasons to be thankful… food on the table, family and friends, health, and of course our Ohio State Buckeyes. We thought, on this day of thanks, it would be nice to share five things were thankful for concerning the Scarlet and Gray.

Only five reasons to be thankful? There’s plenty more, but we know you only have so much time before the tryptophan kicks in fast asleep in your La-Z-Boy.

Let’s give thanks.

No. 5 – The Transfer Portal

Let’s give thanks for the transfer portal. Without it, no Justin Fields. That’s not a knock on Tate Martell, but let’s be honest, Fields has been better than anyone could’ve expected.

Maybe Tate Martell could’ve been the guy for the Buckeyes this season. But Justin Fields has shown poise and maturity far beyond his years. His numbers aren’t as gaudy as some other QBs on nationally ranked teams, but he has been one of the best in college football all season long.

And without the transfer portal, Buckeye fans would have had to wait a year or maybe he never even transfers with the old rules of having to sit out a year.

Maybe the portal comes back to bite OSU in the future and we lose a prize recruit, but for now, we give thanks for the transfer portal that brought us Justin Fields.

Now about Joe Burrow … well – there’s that.

Next … the new head man in charge

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Big Ten Football Week 14 Rooting Interests

With one week left in the college football season, bowl pictures are beginning to shape up. Here is what every Big Ten team should root fo.

We have already looked at what Ohio State should root for this week. As the Buckeyes have gone undefeated until now and the Playoff picture is clearer, Ohio State’s interests are becoming simpler. There is plenty for the rest of the Big Ten to root for, though, especially as the bowl picture becomes clearer. There isn’t much for the lower Big Ten teams to root for, so I’m only going to deal with those teams that are (potentially) bowl-eligible. I will go more or less in reverse order of the current Big Ten standings, but Indiana is by far the most interesting, so I’ll deal with them before Illinois.

Michigan State Spartans

This is simple for the Spartans. Win this week and go bowling. Depending on what fans want in a bowl game, other rooting interests can be different. Do you want to face another 6-6 P5 team? Root for North Carolina and Boston College to win this week. (And I guess for Clemson to lose to South Carolina to potentially free up another ACC bowl spot.) If you’d rather see Michigan State play a more winnable game against a replacement team, then root against North Carolina and Boston College instead.

Indiana Hoosiers

The last time Indiana was in anything approximating a major bowl game was the 1990 Peach Bowl. Well, due to a weird confluence of circumstances, the Hoosiers are looking at an Outback Bowl bid this year. How and why could the Big Ten’s seventh-best team end up in a New Years’ Day (and the conference’s third/fourth-best) bowl game? Let’s break it down.

The Big Ten’s current six-year bowl contract states that each bowl must have at least five different teams over the six year. The only Big Ten bowl partner that has to worry about meeting this criteria is the Outback Bowl. The Outback Bowl took Iowa both last year and after the 2016 season, and therefore has only had four Big Ten teams in the last five year. The other three teams were Wisconsin, Michigan, and Northwestern. Northwestern won’t be in any bowl game this year, obviously. However, this means that Wisconsin, Michigan, and Iowa cannot be selected for this year’s Outback Bowl.

So, what other teams would be selected in front of Indiana? The other top-level options are Ohio State, Penn State, and Minnesota. It seems nearly impossible for Ohio State to not make an NY6 Bowl. So all Indiana needs is for Penn State and Minnesota to be selected for NY6 bowls or the Citrus Bowl, and Indiana is the only real choice left for the Outback Bowl.

What should Indiana fans look for to get this outcome?

First of all, Ohio State should beat Michigan to keep the Wolverines out of the NY6 and Citrus Bowl pool. Then Minnesota should beat Wisconsin. If those two happen, Indiana is a near-lock for the Outback Bowl. The Ohio State-Minnesota winner will make the Playoff and the loser heads to the Rose Bowl; Penn State will either be in the Orange Bowl or Citrus Bowl. And even if Big Ten bowls slide up a slot or two (say, if both Ohio State and Minnesota make the Playoff and/or if Penn State gets the Cotton Bowl), Indiana will still get the Outback Bowl. Michigan and/or Wisconsin would move up into the next NY6 bowl or Citrus Bowl, which still leaves Indiana as the best option for the Outback Bowl.

In fact, even if Indiana loses to Purdue, the Hoosiers are possibly headed to the Outback Bowl. Illinois would be competition for the spot, though, so Northwestern taking out Illinois would be important. Of course, there is a chance the Outback Bowl would request a 6-6 Michigan State team (or Nebraska) over Indiana, so Indiana should just take care of business and beat Purdue.

If, however, Wisconsin beats Minnesota or Michigan beats Ohio State, then things get complicated. As long as Penn State or Minnesota doesn’t get pushed out of the NY6 and Citrus Bowls, Indiana will get the Outback. If, however, one of those two falls far enough, that team will almost certainly get priority for the Outback Bowl over Indiana.

Illinois Fighting Illini

Illinois is very likely locked into the Pinstripe Bowl (very slight change at the Redbox Bowl). While the Big Ten bowl pool doesn’t officially have any real hierarchy, in reality those are the two lowest. And it makes sense–those will also have the weaker opponents, which will provide better games. The Pinstripe Bowl will have a middle-of-the-pack ACC team, while the Redbox Bowl will feature a middle-of-the-pack Pac 12 team. Either should be a good opponent for this Illinois team.

If Illinois fans want a more prestigious bowl, though, just look at everything in the last section about Indiana. Root for all of that, plus an Indiana loss to Purdue. If that happens, 7-5 Illinois might just be the Outback Bowl’s (and the Big Ten’s) preferred choice.

Next… Iowa, Wisconsin, and Michigan

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Ohio State football rooting interests for Week 14

What should Ohio State Buckeye fans root to happen this weekend? Let’s go through the schedule, including major rivalry games.

There are just two weeks left in the college football season, and one of those is just conference championship games. Ohio State looks to be closing in on a College Football Playoff spot. Now it’s time to look at what the Buckeyes should root for to ensure they get in, even if they don’t win their last two games. And, maybe, we can touch on what to root for to get a preferred matchup in the semifinals.

At this point, we first have to figure out exactly what case Ohio State is rooting for. The Buckeyes are a Playoff lock with a win next week in the Big Ten Championship Game, even if they lose to Michigan. So, basically, Ohio State is rooting for the scenario that can allow it to get into the Playoff with a Big Ten Championship Game loss.

We’ll touch on it more later, but an important starting point for Ohio State is Wisconsin beating Minnesota. If the Golden Gophers win out, they’re in the Playoff. A Wisconsin win means that the Buckeyes, at worst, will be the Big Ten’s only one-loss team, so Ohio State should stay ahead of Wisconsin even with a loss to the Badgers.

Improving the resume overall will be important if a 12-1 non-Big Ten champion Ohio State team wants in the Playoff, so wins by Miami (Oh) and FAU will be useful. A win by Cincinnati over Memphis is even more important, as that would likely lock up a year-end ranking for the Bearcats, and keep alive their chances of ending in the Top 15 or better.

Ultimately, though, for Ohio State to get in the Playoff in this case, it needs there to not be four other contenders with better resumes. Right now, the teams with potentially better resumes are:
1. LSU
2. Clemson
3. Georgia
4. Utah
5. Oklahoma
6. Baylor
7. Alabama

Little things might matter, because if it comes to splitting hairs between a 12-1 Ohio State or a 12-1 Clemson (or a 12-1 Alabama), the more points of contrast in Ohio State’s favor, the better. We’ll focus on that later. For now, let’s get the big things out of the way. At least four of these teams need to have a resume worse than a 12-1 Ohio State (with a loss to Wisconsin) will have. Let’s break them down.

Next…Looking at these seven resumes

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Chase Young should be one of two Heisman Finalists according to CampusLore

Former Georgia quarterback and CampusLore personality Aaron Murray believes only Joe Burrow and Chase Young should be Heisman finalists.

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We’re getting closer and closer to the Heisman ceremony which means we’re running out of games and moments for players to make an impression. So who will get the invite to New York?

According to former Georgia quarterback and current CampusLore personality Aaron Murray, everyone should be looking at two guys. It’s no secret that LSU’s Joe Burrow has almost lapped the field, but if there’s another guy voters should be taking note of, it’s Ohio State defensive end Chase Young.

“It needs to be Chase Young,” said Murray when discussing who else should be a finalist. “I know Chase Young missed two games, but still — right now, Chase Young is the best player in college football. This award goes to the best player in college football. Chase Young needs to be in New York. In my mind right now it is Joe Burrow and Chase Young. And don’t invite anyone else — just let those two guys go.”

What do you think? Do you think Chase Young will be in New York? Should he win the Heisman?

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