Michigan
Ohio State football instant opinions: Why didn’t Buckeyes use this offense vs Michigan?
Well, well, well. Look what happens when Ohio State does what it does best – gets the ball to its pass catchers.
Saturday’s 42-17 win against Tennessee in a first-round playoff game in an energized Horseshoe – thanks to a home crowd that drowned out the exceptionally large turnout of Vols fans – was in reverse of what happened against Michigan last month. Instead of running it up the gut over and over and over, Ohio State coach Ryan Day and play caller Chip Kelly went with what works.
The No. 8-seeded Buckeyes went in with a pass-first game plan, and guess what? It worked.
Duh.
Now it’s on to the Rose Bowl for a rematch against No. 1 seed Oregon. If Ohio State plays like it did Saturday, the Ducks, who defeated OSU 32-31 Oct. 12, will be in for a fight.
Where was this Ohio State offense against Michigan (or anyone else)?
Here’s a novel idea: Get the ball to your playmakers and get out of the way. Who woulda thought it?
Repeat after me, “Wide receivers are the strength of OSU’s offense.”
But for some reason, the offensive play calling against Michigan went against that strength. The neighbor’s dog could have, and probably did, scream at the TV, “Stop running the ball up the middle.” But the Buckeyes kept trying to pound the rock, and UM made them pay.
And let’s be honest, it wasn’t just Michigan. Ryan Day and offensive coordinator Chip Kelly hesitated to go all-in on the “pass to set up the run” philosophy all season, and an offense that was supposed to be out of this world did not leave orbit as often as it should have.
Then lift-off happened Saturday against Tennessee, when Day and Kelly finally went airborne. Result: a 21-0 lead after one quarter that gave OSU enough cushion that ultimately became a comfy sofa.
The Buckeyes showed their hand out of the gate, throwing on four of their first five plays and scoring on their opening series for the first time since the Oregon game.
No team can abandon the run completely, but when your offensive line is a patchwork product, it behooves you to play to your strengths. And Day finally did.
It took being shamed and embarrassed by Michigan to become the Ohio State offense everyone thought it would be.
Ohio State defense is the real deal
OK, enough about the offensive face lift.
The defense never needed plastic surgery in the first place. Talk all you want about Jeremiah Smith, Emeka Egbuka and the sexier side of the ball, but for my money the defense deserves MVP for the season. It again was stellar against the Vols, recording four sacks and generally making life miserable for a UT offense that came in ranked eighth nationally in scoring offense (37.3-point average) and ninth in rushing offense (232 yards). The Buckeyes limited the Vols to 17 points and 152 yards on the ground.
Memo to Ohio State QB Will Howard: Don’t throw interceptions
I know, I know, easier said than done. But still it should not be that hard to avoid when you have wide receivers like OSU does. All Howard has to do is let Egbuka and Smith make plays. And preferably relatively easy plays. Howard did that on two perfect passes to Smith; a 37-yard strike in the first quarter and a 22-yarder in the third quarter that made it 28-10.
But he forced a pass to Smith in the first half that Tennessee defensive back Will Brooks picked off at the back of the end zone, ruining a scoring chance that could have made it 28-0, or 24-0 with a field goal. The risky pass simply was unnecessary, given the score.
The momentum shift led to Tennessee pulling to within 21-10 at halftime, with the Vols getting the ball to begin the second half. But Howard redeemed himself with the beautifully-thrown ball to Smith early in the third quarter.
Howard otherwise played a heck of a game, finishing 24 of 29 for 311 yards and two touchdowns. This was the QB who can take OSU all the way. That said, maybe it’s nitpicking to point out a potential game-changing interception, but when OSU’s receivers are this good, there is no reason to make easy plays more difficult.
Knoxville North as Tennessee fans invaded Ohio Stadium
Whether due to Ohio State season ticket holders reselling their seats to Tennessee fans or Vols Nation gaining access to a promo code that allowed UT fans to buy up more than their 3,500-seat allotment, there was a lot of orange in the Horseshoe. Estimates had the crowd breakdown as 65% OSU fans, 35% UT fans, but regardless of the exact numbers it almost certainly was the largest attendance for a visiting fan base in stadium history.
Many Ohio State fans watching at home were not happy with the large Tennessee turnout, but there was a bright side to Ticketgate. The smaller OSU crowd was louder than when the Shoe is clothed in 90% scarlet and gray.
What gives? My guess is those Ohio State fans who sold their tickets on the secondary market are the same ones who sit on their hands during games. Replacing them with loud and proud Buckeyes fans made a big difference.
My suggestion for OSU athletic director Ross Bjork is to configure future fan seating so that those who actually care about making noise get some type of preferential treatment. Challenging, I know, given that big-money donors want the prime real estate between the 50s. But if you really want to change the atmosphere, then do what it takes to change it.
Along those lines, the playoff opener felt more like a college football game than a minor-league baseball game, thanks in part to the College Football Playoff people taking over game-ops from Ohio State. There were fewer in-game announcements on the video boards and fewer on-field presentations. Refreshing.
roller@dispatch.com
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Porter Martone becomes first teenager to score game-winning goals in his first two NHL playoff games.
Porter Martone becomes first teenager to score game-winning goals in his first two NHL playoff games.
Three Michigan State recruits will represent Team USA at the world U18 hockey championships in Bratislava and Trencin, Slovakia.
The U.S. opens against Czechia on Wednesday (10 a.m., The Hockey Network).
The future Spartans are: defenseman Nick Bogas (Royal Oak), defenseman Tyler Martyniuk (Washington Township) and forward Brooks Rogowski (Brighton).
Other local commits include: defenseman Abe Barnett (University of Michigan) and goalie Luke Carrithers (Western Michigan).
Team USA’s head coach is Nick Fohr (Dexter) with Kevin Porter (Northville) and Dan Darrow (Livonia) among the assistant coaches.
The tournament features 10 countries with the final scheduled for May 2.
Bruins tie series with Sabres
The visiting Boston Bruins scored three second-period goals and held off a late Buffalo Sabres rally to post a 4-2 win on Tuesday and even their Eastern Conference quarterfinal playoff series at one victory apiece.
Viktor Arvidsson scored in the last two periods, giving the Bruins 1-0 and 4-0 leads. Morgan Geekie and Pavel Zacha also lit the lamp for Boston, which heads home for Game 3 of the best-of-seven series on Thursday.
Jonathan Aspirot, Casey Mittelstadt and David Pastrnak each dished out two assists for the Bruins, and Jeremy Swayman made 34 saves.
Bowen Byram and Peyton Krebs scored as Buffalo climbed within 4-2 in the closing minutes.
Sabres goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen allowed four goals on 19 shots before Alex Lyon entered in relief following Arvidsson’s second marker, which came just 16 seconds into the third period.
Buffalo had a 36-26 shot advantage, including 20-8 in the third period, but its power play went 0-for-5. Boston finished 1-for-6 on the man advantage.
The physical contest featured 47 penalty minutes for each team.
Following a scoreless opening period, the Bruins took over in the second, scoring on three of their 11 shots against Luukkonen.
Arvidsson broke the deadlock 4:54 into the middle frame, taking Aspirot’s lob pass in ahead of the defense and beating Luukkonen five-hole with a backhander from the left circle.
A gaffe by Luukkonen helped Boston double its lead with 3:31 left in the period, as Geekie’s high backhanded dump from the far side of center ice eluded him over the glove.
The Bruins’ power play got in on the action 1:41 later. After Geekie’s one- handed keep-in at the blue line extended the play, Zacha tipped in Pastrnak’s shot from the top of the right circle while stationed in the bumper position.
Arvidsson made it 4-0 early in the third, prompting Sabres coach Lindy Ruff to change goaltenders. Aspirot banked a long feed off the boards to set up the play, leading Arvidsson down the left wing to score on a 2-on-1 rush with Zacha.
The Sabres struck twice in a 1:14 span to make things interesting. Byram accepted Beck Malenstyn’s back pass for a wrister from the top of the right circle to break Swayman’s shutout bid with 6:06 left.
Krebs soon made it 4-2, batting down and scoring the rebound of a Rasmus Dahlin point shot that caromed off the post and back into the crease.
Detroit Red Wings received six A’s in The Detroit News’ final grades for the 2025-2026 season.
Grades and key takeaways for Finnie, Gibson, Seider, Larkin, Raymond and DeBrincat after the Wings’ late collapse.
Michigan mother of three talks about how she broke her kratom addiction
Melanie Clark, 35, of Kincheloe in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, has fought a four-year-long addiction to kratom, the so-called “gas station heroin.”
Michigan lawmakers are debating a complete ban on the sale of kratom products in the state, citing cases of addiction and instances of death from people consuming the herbal supplement known as the “gas station heroin.”
Here is what to know about this unregulated herbal substance commonly sold in convenience stores, gas stations and tobacco shops across Michigan:
What is kratom?
Kratom is a tropical tree native to Southeast Asia whose leaves contain compounds that can produce stimulant effects at low doses and opioid-like effects at higher doses. It is manufactured and sold in different forms: liquid tonics, tablets, gummies, powders and capsules.
What is kratom used for?
Kratom is marketed as a herbal supplement for energy, mood, pain relief or opioid withdrawal, though the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has not approved any of those uses. Some kratom users take it to get off heroin or fentanyl, according to University of Michigan researchers.
How is kratom pronounced?
Kratom is pronounced KRA-tum. The letter “a” takes a short “a” sound, as in crab or crack.
What is 7-OH?
7-hydroxymitragynin, or 7-OH, is an alkaloid found in kratom leaves. It is manufactured in a synthetic form to produce an opioid-like sensation of pain relief or sedation. It is more potent than pure leaf kratom and sometimes referred to as the hard liquor version of kratom (if pure leaf kratom were considered beer, which typically has a much lower percentage of alcohol by volume compared with distilled liquor).
Is kratom an opioid or addictive?
Kratom users, substance abuse counselors and doctors report symptoms of dependence and withdrawal from the substance, particularly when users exceed the recommended serving size.
The Drug Enforcement Agency has warned that kratom has “sedative effects” that “can lead to addiction.”
On July 29, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration moved to declare certain 7-hydroxymitragynine synthetic kratom products a Schedule I controlled substance, the same class of drugs as heroin, ecstasy and peyote. As of April 9, the substance had not yet been formally added to the list of Schedule I drugs, which would effectively ban 7-OH nationwide.
Does kratom have side effects?
The FDA has warned that kratom use can lead to liver toxicity, seizures or substance use disorder.
Withdrawal from the substance can lead to increased anxiety, insomnia and psychiatric episodes, according to University of Michigan researchers.
Dr. Eliza Hutchinson, a family physician based in Ann Arbor who is a clinical instructor at UM, said her substance abuse patients describe withdrawal from kratom as “the worst influenza of your life — times 10.”
CARE Southeastern Michigan, a recovery advocacy group, has reported some individuals experiencing psychotic episodes after taking 7-OH, the synthetic form of kratom.
The FDA has also said kratom is “not appropriate for use as a dietary supplement” and unsafe as an additive to food. The powder and liquid forms of kratom are sometimes marketed as an additive to shakes and smoothies.
Does kratom show up on a drug test?
Yes, if it’s part of a specialized screening of narcotics and other substances that looks for active ingredients in kratom products.
Some substance abuse clinics in Michigan are starting to test for it, said Madison Lauder, a counselor at The Guidance Center in Southgate.
“We see you so often, we have added into our (drug test) panel,” Lauder said.
Is there any age restriction on buying kratom in Michigan?
No, Michigan has no laws governing the sale of kratom and related synthetics, such as 7-OH.
But retailers set their own rules. Some stores won’t sell to anyone under age 21.
Some of the 7-OH kratom products on the shelves of stores are labeled “21+.”
But there’s no law on the books in Michigan requiring buyers to show a photo ID when buying kratom, as is required to purchase alcohol, tobacco or marijuana.
Which states have bans on selling kratom?
Alabama, Arkansas, Indiana, Rhode Island, Vermont and Wisconsin have outright bans on the sale of kratom.
In December, Ohio’s Board of Pharmacy used the state’s controlled substance laws to ban the retail sale, distribution and possession of 7-OH and other synthetic forms of kratom, board spokesman Cameron McNamee said.
The Ohio Board of Pharmacy has a separate proposal to ban natural kratom products that remains in the rulemaking process, McNamee said.
Some cities and counties across the country have imposed varying local sales bans, including Anaheim, Calif., Spokane, Wash., and the New York City suburbs of Nassau County on Long Island, according to published reports.
What’s the status of legislation to ban kratom in Michigan?
On March 18, the Republican-controlled Michigan House voted 56-48 on legislation that would completely ban the sale of kratom products in Michigan. All 46 Democrats and two Republicans opposed the legislation.
Democrats cited a lack of any committee hearings on the legislation.
“There is no question of the growing concern around this product, and no one is saying, with this vote or otherwise, that the concern isn’t justified,” the House Democratic caucus said in a statement. “What we are saying is an outright ban, without any testimony or dialogue, is not the solution.”
The bill moved to the Democratic-controlled Senate, where Majority Leader Winnie Brinks, D-Grand Rapids, assigned it to her Government Operations Committee.
Some kratom industry interests and individual users have advocated for a ban on just the 7-OH synthetic form of kratom.
Sen. Kevin Hertel, the St. Clair Shores Democrat who chairs the Senate Health Policy Committee, said the House’s passage of a total ban on kratom has changed the debate toward prohibition, which he favors until the FDA can further study the substance and its impact on the human body.
clivengood@detroitnews.com
Staff Writers Anne Snabes and Beth LeBlanc contributed.
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