Category: Buckeyes Wire

Ohio State Wrestling falls to No. 1 Iowa, Sasso upsets top ranked wrestler

The Ohio State wrestling team went to No. 1 Iowa and battled hard, but still lost the dual-meet.

It was always going to be an uphill battle, and the Iowa Hawkeyes showed their might in a dual-meet match against Ohio State Friday night. The Buckeyes battled, but the depth and talent on the Iowa side was just too relentless and too much to overcome.

Iowa got out of the gate quickly by winning the first three matches with relative ease to go up 9-0. Kollin Moore was able to get the Buckeyes on the board finally at 197 lbs. to make it 9-3, but Iowa struck back in the first session at Heavyweight to go up 11-3, losing a point because of a dress infraction.

The thriller of the night was at 149 lbs. Ohio State’s Sammy Sasso showed some unbelievable defense and scrambling ability against the No. 1 ranked Pat Lugo. The match went to double-overtime and then a tiebreaker where Sasso was able to pull off the upset by getting an escape in the first :30, then riding things out in the second :30.

But that would be the highlight of the night. Iowa pressed on with some major bonus points, winning seven of ten matches and a 24-10 team victory.

 

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Ohio State football NFL Draft eligible players and likely landing spots

The 2020 NFL Draft is still almost three months away, but it’s never too early to look at where Ohio State football players will maybe go.

Since the advent of the modern-day NFL Draft, Ohio State has seemingly always been a monster when it comes to churning out players at the next level. And it’s not just the draft in general, but at the top end as well. In fact, the Buckeyes lead the country in the number of first-round draft picks in the history of the annual spectacle.

But players of varying degree and promise continue to walk across the stage with a scarlet and gray swagger. This year is no different. We know the 2020 NFL Draft is still nearly three months away, but it’s time to turn the page and look ahead to what OSU players are eligible and what round they might go in.

So let’s get going with our potential first-rounders.

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Ohio State wrestling with a chance to make a statement Friday night against No. 1 Iowa

The Ohio State wrestling team is traveling to Iowa City to take on the No. 1 ranked Hawkeyes. Opportunity knocks.

The Ohio State wrestling team is quietly putting together another solid season, but in a break from previous years, it’s not considered one of the top two teams in the Big Ten. That goes to Penn State (as usual), and the No. 1 ranked Iowa Hawkeyes.

That’s right. Iowa was once the model program of college wrestling, showing up at No. 1 on an almost yearly basis, but has been a bit out of sight over the last few years. After going on a ridiculous run beginning in 1975 and winning a staggering 23 national titles, it slipped beginning in 2010.

Ever since then, Penn State has taken the baton as the country’s best program with Ohio State a close second. In fact, the Nittany Lions have won eight of the last nine national titles. The Buckeyes are the only other team to win one in that time period (2015).

But now, Iowa is back on top — at least ranking wise. The Hawkeyes are 7-0 overall in dual-meets and 4-0 in conference. And it’s been total domination. The closest any team has come in a dual-meet setting is when Nebraska lost 26-6. That in itself is a blowout, but the other six have been even worse.

Iowa’s individual talent is overwhelming. It has the No. 1 ranked wrestler according to Intermat at 125 lbs (Spencer Lee) and 149 lbs (Pat Lugo). Every other weight class is in the top-ten — often in the top five. The Hawkeyes’ weakest link is at 141 lbs with Max Murin (dripping with sarcasm).

That means a couple of things for the No. 4 ranked Ohio State wrestling team as it prepares to do battle Friday night. The challenge of staying with the Hawkeyes is a daunting one, but it’s also a great opportunity.

The Buckeyes have had to struggle through the season with injuries and competition to see who’s going to be the No. 1 at several weight classes. OSU has somehow found a way to fight through it all and lose just one close dual-meet against Virginia Tech earlier in the season. If it can find a way to take out a loaded Iowa team in the overall dual-meet points, it would obviously be huge.

But here’s the problem. The Buckeyes will be favored in only two of the team’s matches. Even with bonus points that would be nowhere near enough to pull off the upset. It’s going to need guys like Ethan Smith and Sammy Sasso to pull off a shocker or two while holding serve with Luke Pletcher and Kollin Moore to have a chance.

Either way, if you want to see some good wrestling, tune into BTN at 9PM Friday night.

 

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Mel Kiper has two Ohio State players in top three of first NFL Mock Draft

Mel Kiper has come out with his first official 2020 NFL Mock Draft. Guess which two Ohio State players he has going in the top three?

It’s time. The man with the hair and fast and abbreviated scouting reports is back. We’ve seen a few 2020 NFL Mock Drafts already circulating, but for some, it’s like Christmas morning when ESPN’s longtime draft expert Mel Kiper enters the chat.

He has just come out with his first real 2020 Mock Draft and there are some noteworthy Ohio State players high up on the board. Yeah, it’s the same two you’ve probably been hearing about all season, but now that we’re officially on the clock and all, we’re here to tell you that Kiper has defensive end Chase Young going No. 2 to the Washington Redskins, and cornerback Jeff Okudah going right after him at No. 3 to the Detroit Lions.

You can catch the entire first-round mock draft by clicking on the below link in the Tweet Kiper shared via Twitter below.

Now before you celebrate, Kiper doesn’t have any other Buckeyes projected in the first round, but two of the top three is worth beating your chest about.

We’ll keep an eye on any changes as Kiper continues to do his thing leading up to all the fun in April.

 

 

Ohio State and Texas swap home dates on future football schedules

Ohio State and Texas have announced a change in which team will be home for each year of their future football matchup.

‘Tis the season for off-the-field news in college football, and we’ve got such a thing for you. According to a release from an Ohio State spokesman, the home-and-home series between the Buckeyes and Texas Longhorns in 2025 and 2026 have a minor change. No, the Longhorns aren’t backing out in fear, but rather something a little less noteworthy.

According to the release, the two programs have decided to flip which team is home for each year. So, instead of the game in 2025 being in Austin, it will now be in Columbus. That of course means the game in 2026 will now be an away contest for Ohio State in Darrell K Royal — Texas Memorial Stadium.

So, if you’re extremely motivated and organized, you might want to change any plans you’ve made. As for me, I’m just hoping to be alive when it all goes down.

Not much of a reason is given other than the fact that it benefits both teams, so we’ll go with that. So, it’ll be Ryan Day taking his team to play whoever is leading Texas out of the tunnel at that time.

We kid because we can. Please don’t send us hate mail Texas fans. Ok Cool, Hook ’em?

Ohio State in bubble territory in latest NCAA Tournament projections

After another loss, Ohio State has slid down most NCAA Tournament projections. It is near bubble territory in the latest ESPN Bracketology.

It’s hard to believe, but the Ohio State basketball team is getting dangerously close to not making the NCAA Tournament. With each passing loss, the Buckeyes slide further and further down the tournament seed line when it comes to projections.

The good news is that somehow OSU is still in the field in almost all projections after losing six of its last nine games. The bad news is that it has slid all the way down to a No. 7 seed in the latest Joe Lunardi Bracketology piece that gets updated as results happen.

It has been as surprising to see this team fall all over itself the last few weeks as it has been watching it rise to the pinnacle of the college basketball world nine to twelve games into the season. And if it doesn’t find some way to right the ship from here on out, we might be talking about an NIT appearance as opposed to a dance in March.

This will all change, but right now Lunardi has Ohio State in the Midwest region playing St. Mary’s in Cleveland. Kansas, Dayton, Michigan State, and Villanova are the top four seeds projected in that region.

 

 

Ryan Day vows to use Fiesta Bowl loss to Clemson as motivation

Ohio State football head coach Ryan Day spoke to the Value City Arena crowd Thursday night and vowed to use the Clemson loss as motivation.

The Ohio State football team accomplished an awful lot this past season. It went undefeated during the regular season, won the Big Ten Championship, beat its arch-rivals for the seventh straight time. and appeared in the College Football Playoff. That’s a good year no matter how you slice it.

But it ultimately finished short on the goal of winning a national championship. Making the final four in any season is great, but when you get there, there’s still work to do. The Buckeyes laid it on Clemson early in the game and raced out to a 16-0 lead, but then some breaks and momentum plays went the wrong way.

At the end of it, Ohio State was left asking “what if” as celebration ensued on the Clemson sideline after a flukey interception in the end zone to seal it. The Buckeyes outgained, out possessed and outplayed the Tigers for a majority of the game, but the final score of 29-23 is all that mattered in the end.

If you think it was a turn the page type of affair, then you were sadly mistaken. Head coach Ryan Day and the football team was honored at halftime of the game against Minnesota on Thursday and Day made it clear how he felt about what happened in the desert night out in Arizona.

“That game out there in Arizona didn’t sit well with any of us,” said Day to the Value City Arena crowd. “I just want everybody to know in the room right here — that game did not sit well with us. And you have my word we’re not going to forget about that game. And our guys have already been working hard, working hard with coach Mick (Marotti), and we’re going to do everything we can to keep that game in the back of our minds so next year we come back even stronger.”

You can get a listen to his comments to the crowd below thanks to the Twitter feed of Colin Hass-Hill.

You tell ’em Day. Sometimes there’s nothing like failure to spur a team on to greater heights. Some of our best lessons in life are learned through defeat. Not only is Day preaching about remembering what happened in the Fiesta Bowl, but the staff has also installed a sign in the weight room with the final score emblazoned on it.

Hopefully it all works as motivation towards an even bigger year in 2020.

 

Ohio State head coach Chris Holtmann Minnesota postgame press conference

The Ohio State basketball team lost another one, this time at home against Minnesota. Watch what Chris Holtmann said after the game.

Ohio State dropped another one in the Big Ten, this time to Minnesota at home. The team played perhaps a little better, but in a league that has given up road victories like Armageddon rationing, losing — even a close one — can’t be seen as a positive.

As he does after every game, Chris Holtmann met with the media to discuss the game. He took more time with reporters after this one than what he did after the last loss at Penn State, but he still seemed to be searching for answers.

In case you didn’t catch all of his comments, you can catch them here thanks to the YouTube Channel of the Columbus Dispatch. Click on the below, and listen to Holtmann discuss Kaleb Wesson’s effort, his team’s mistakes, where he thiks this team is going, and more.

Ohio State gives up halftime lead, loses again to Minnesota

Rather than getting a much-needed win, the Ohio State basketball team continued its poor play, losing to Minnesota by three at home.

It’s official. This Ohio State team is in the valley, and it’s hard to see a way out of it. After looking like one of the best teams in the country, it has shown a lack of toughness, turned the ball over far too often, and have had a real problem with shot selection. It was much of the same in a 62-59 loss to the Golden Gophers.

Before, it was more of a problem on the road, but now it appears Ohio State can’t even hold serve in front of the home crowd. In a year in which road wins are hard to come by in the conference, the Buckeyes have lost two out of four Big Ten home games to date.

Once again, the Buckeyes failed to show the toughness needed to win in the Big Ten. It allowed Minnesota to get back in the game after leading by nine at halftime by not coming out of the locker room motivated and focused. It didn’t take long for the Gophers to reel the game back in, and from there it was anybody’s ballgame.

But it wouldn’t be Ohio State’s ballgame.

Ohio State big man Kaleb Wesson was neutralized — only scoring two points for the entire game. OSU’s guard play was able to compensate in the first half, but that’s not how this team is built. There just wasn’t a great scoring option in the last twenty to find a way to win.

Still, the Buckeyes had a shot to win with under a minute to play. Kaleb Wesson got a good look from beyond the arc but missed, and then Marcus Carr made OSU pay at the other end by nailing a three of his own with just three seconds to play to seal the deal.

At the end of the day, it’s another loss and a turn towards the real possibility of not making the NCAA Tournament. That’s hard to believe with how hot this team started, but it’s the reality of where this team is.

Where do things go from here? I’d say they can’t get any worse, but we keep seeing that they can.

Kerry Coombs visits Ohio State target Cameron Martinez

New Ohio State defensive coordinator Kerry Coombs spent time visiting with four-star 2020 target Cameron Martinez Wednesday.

New Ohio State defensive coordinator Kerry Coombs is wasting no time working on priorities. The Buckeyes are looking to keep four-star Michigan athlete Cameron Martinez committed, so that’s where Coombs spent time “planting flags” Wednesday.

You had to believe that paying a visit to the lone holdout from the early signing period would be one of the main things Coombs would jump on right away, and it took him all of two days on the job to get it done. How’s that for letting Martinez know how much he means to the program?

In fact, Martinez seemed to enjoy getting to know the new defensive coordinator and replacement for Jeff Hafley — with whom he developed a great relationship with. The two-time MLive Michigan football player of the year shared the visit on his Twitter feed.

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Martinez recently told the Detroit Free Press that he’s still planning on signing with Ohio State, and this sure looks like a good move towards that. We’ll all find out on February 5 when the traditional signing day comes around.

 

Contact/Follow us @BuckeyesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Ohio State news, notes and opinion.

We have a forum and message board now. Get in on the conversation about Ohio State athletics by joining the Buckeyes Wire Forum.