Ohio
After loss, Green Bay coach Doug Gottlieb impressed by Ohio State’s defense, physicality
Green Bay coach Doug Gottlieb breaks down Ohio State after loss
Green Bay coach Doug Gottlieb’s full press conference after Ohio State’s 102-69 win on Nov. 25, 2024.
Doug Gottlieb had a lot to say about Ohio State.
Monday night, the first-year college coach brought his Green Bay Phoenix into Value City Arena and took a 102-69 loss. The Buckeyes never trailed, built a lead as high as 35 points and closed the game with a 44-18 run in the final 12:12 to improve to 5-1.
Stronger challenges lie just on the horizon for Ohio State, which hosts Pittsburgh on Friday to begin a home-and-home series before playing at Maryland and hosting Rutgers next week. First, though, was this game against Green Bay, and Gottlieb said there was plenty that concerned him about the Buckeyes.
It started on the defensive side of the ball.
“They don’t have any weaknesses defensively,” Gottlieb, a longtime sports broadcaster who played collegiately for Notre Dame and Oklahoma State. “Everybody else we’ve played, we try and attack the weak link. Usually it’s a five-man, and we thought when Sean Stewart played, ‘Oh, we have more of a traditional big, we can expose them a little bit by spacing them out,’ but he just recovers so quickly and plays so hard.”
Playing their fourth road game in their last five games, all in the span of 12 days, the Phoenix finished with their lowest adjusted offensive efficiency rating of the season. According to KenPom, Ohio State limited Green Bay to 94.8 points per 100 possessions despite starting 6-9, 220-pound Sean Stewart at center. Gottlieb credited the versatility of not just Stewart but starting power forward Devin Royal (6-6, 220) and primary rotation player Evan Mahaffey, a 6-6, 200-pound wing.
“Look, that’s a really well-coached team,” he said. “If you watch on tape and you look at the analytics, their defense is outstanding. Outstanding. It’s really, really connected, physical. We played Oklahoma State and they were physical, but it was kind of to the point of ridiculous where you could call a foul every time. They’re just physical but with really good intention.”
Ohio State committed a season-low 14 fouls against the Phoenix, out-rebounded Green Bay 37-23 and shot a season-best 64.9% from two-point range (24 for 37). Gottlieb credited that to Ohio State’s players buying into their specific roles under first-year coach Jake Diebler.
“They’ve got (Evan Mahaffey) dialed in to, ‘All you’re going to do is rebound and defend and drive to the basket or cut to the basket,’ ” Gottlieb said. “They got Sean Stewart, ball screen roll or just be a big guy in the middle and they drive off him. They use him almost like a goalpost in the middle you’ve got to avoid. They are accepting their roles and they’re flourishing. Their perimeter players, all those guards can just go get buckets, and they’re allowed to take a couple chances defensively because they’ve got good anchors inside. They are elite, elite defensively.”
Gottlieb, who hosts a daily national sports talk show on Fox Sports Radio, saved his most effusive praise for junior guard Bruce Thornton, who had a season-high 25 points and nine assists in 29:36. Gottlieb described him as his favorite Ohio State point guard since Scoonie Penn or Jay Burson.
“Bruce was really the story,” he said. “Bruce and Meechie (Johnson Jr.), Meechie just with confidence and Bruce … he leads, shoots, scores, passes. He’s a big-time basketball player. The rest of the guys just defend and feed off his energy.”
ajardy@dispatch.com
Get more Ohio State basketball news by listening to our podcasts
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio State’s defense has been nothing short of dominant this season, but what’s scary for future opponents is that it might be on the verge of getting even better.
The latest episode of Buckeye Talk revealed two fascinating developments that could transform an already-elite unit into something truly unstoppable.
The first involves what Stephen Means described as “the ultimate good problem” at the nickel position. While Lorenzo Styles has been solid, Jermaine Mathews has shown flashes of being an elite playmaker who can dramatically change games with his ability to create turnovers.
“This is, I think, the ultimate good problem that a defense could have — where the guy who’s doing a job isn’t doing it poorly, but there just might be a guy who is elite, elite, elite at it,” Means said.
The option between Styles and Mathews represents the luxury Ohio State now has – two excellent players for one position, with Mathews offering a specific skill set that addresses one of the few areas where the defense could improve: creating more takeaways.
Co-host Stefan Krajisnik emphasized Mathews’ impact:
“I just think he’s such a difference-maker for you that if that’s the one thing you feel like this defense is lacking… I would continue to give Jermaine Mathews some snaps there in the slot.”
But perhaps the most intriguing revelation came from defensive end Kenyatta Jackson, who approached defensive coordinator Matt Patricia about being allowed more freedom as a pass rusher.
Jackson, who has been disciplined in his containment responsibilities against mobile quarterbacks, wanted permission to use his full arsenal of pass-rush moves.
Means highlighted the significance of this conversation:
“I also love the fact that he said that Matt Patricia’s response was like, ‘Yeah, just don’t go past quarterback… You can do whatever you want as long as you don’t put us at a disadvantage.”
This context explains why Jackson hasn’t been as statistically productive as many expected. Against more traditional pocket passers, Jackson could now be unleashed, complementing Caden Curry (who’s putting up numbers comparable to Chase Young’s Heisman campaign start) and creating a truly terrifying pass rush.
What we witnessed against Wisconsin – where Jackson registered three pressures and a sack after this conversation with Patricia – might just be the beginning. Ohio State’s defense is already allowing a minuscule 5.9 points per game, but these adjustments suggest the best is yet to come.
Here’s the podcast for this week:
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Halloween safety tips for fun and safe trick-or-treating
Safety is key to enjoying Halloween festivities. The FDA and CDC offer these tips for costumes, candy and trick-or-treating to keep you safe this year.
Why do central Ohio communities trick or treat on nights other than Halloween?
This week’s What’s Up With That? is a personal one, as it’s a query I’ve had since I moved to Columbus nearly seven years ago. What’s the origin of central Ohio’s complex (to outsiders) tradition of holding trick or treating (or Beggars Night, as some call it) on nights other than Oct. 31?
It is a question that has been asked and answered by The Columbus Dispatch before. But to save you a journey through our archives, I’ll recap the history here.
Why does central Ohio schedule trick-or-treating on nights other than Halloween?
Up until 2005, when the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission adopted the current system for recommending when communities should hold trick-or-treating, Columbus hadn’t held the event on Halloween itself in 90 years, according to past Dispatch reporting.
Columbus historically held a raucous Downtown Halloween party on Oct. 31, according to our archives, prompting the preference for Oct. 30 as the day kids could collect candy. That party was discontinued in the 1950s over too much revelry, but Oct. 30 trick-or-treating persisted.
MORPC took on its role as trick-or-treat scheduler in 1993 and adopted the current system it uses to choose the date in 2005. MORPC’s recommendation is just that; communities are still free to set their own trick-or-treating days and times.
When is central Ohio trick-or-treating in 2025?
Here’s MORPC’s system: When Halloween falls on a Friday, Saturday or Sunday, trick or treat typically takes place the Thursday before Oct. 31 in central Ohio. When Halloween falls on a Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday, expect costumed kids on the day itself.
In 2015, a MORPC spokesman told the Dispatch the system was meant to increase convenience for families. Friday or Saturday night trick or treating could conflict with football (as could Sunday, for that matter, although in central Ohio it’s largely the first two putting a dent in people’s calendars).
Since Halloween falls on a Friday this year, the recommended trick-or-treat date is Oct. 30, and cities and towns have official candy-calling hours of 6-8 p.m.
But there are exceptions. Here’s a look at which Franklin County communities are going their own way:
- Bexley: 5:30 to 7 p.m. Oct. 30
- Grandview Heights: 6 to 8 p.m. Oct. 31
- Groveport: 5:30 to 7 p.m. Oct. 30
- Madison Township: 5:30 to 7 p.m. Oct. 30
- Worthington: 6 to 8 p.m. Oct. 31
You can see other communities’ hours in this list we published in early October.
Have a question about Columbus? I’ll find your answer
What other weird central Ohio traditions would you like to have explained? I’m happy to track down the information. Or just curious what that development is, or why the traffic pattern you hate is the way it is?
Email ekennedy@dispatch.com and I will see what I can do.
Eleanor Kennedy is the senior digital director of the Columbus Dispatch. She can breached at ekennedy@dispatch.com.
Ohio State showed no sign of loosening its grip on the No. 1 ranking this weekend.
The Buckeyes routed Wisconsin in a 34-0 win that marked the third time in four weeks that they prevailed on the road in the Big Ten to preserve their unblemished record.
At 7-0, they are one of only six unbeaten teams left in the Football Bowl Subdivision.
Below is their ranking in the major polls after Week 8:
Ohio State football rankings after Week 8
US LBM Coaches Poll
The Buckeyes are the consensus No. 1 among the coaches, receiving all 65 first-place votes following Miami’s loss to Louisville on Oct. 17.
The Hurricanes, who were previously unbeaten, had two first-place votes last week prior to the upset.
The rest of the top-five includes Indiana at No. 2, Texas A&M at No. 3, Alabama at No. 4 and Georgia at No. 5.
AP Top 25
Ohio State received 60 out of the 66 first-place votes in the AP poll with second-ranked Indiana getting the remaining six.
Joey Kaufman covers Ohio State football for The Columbus Dispatch. Email him at jkaufman@dispatch.com and follow along on Bluesky, Instagram and X for more.
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