Ohio
New Ohio State offensive lineman Seth McLaughlin ready to put snapping issues behind him
COLUMBUS, Ohio — After Seth McLaughlin’s last time on a football field, he became the subject of nationwide criticism.
McLaughlin struggled repeatedly with low snaps to Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe in the College Football Playoff semifinal against Michigan, sometimes essentially ending a play as it began. The Crimson Tide lost in overtime after being stopped on a fourth down play that featured, again, a low snap.
That was on Jan. 1.
Just a few days later, he was in Columbus for a visit after entering the transfer portal. And five days after the game, he was committed to Ohio State. Life changed quickly for the born-and-raised southerner.
And now, he’s ready to put his bad snaps behind him.
“There’s a lot that goes into it,” McLaughlin said Tuesday in his first media availability as a Buckeye. “Once you have a bad one, you kind of start thinking about, ‘OK, I got to get this right.’ I don’t think I was really struggling from a mental standpoint, it was just a matter of, it would just happen. I can’t really explain what was going on and what went into it. That’s really in the past. I’m looking to moving forward from that.”
When recruited by Ryan Day and Justin Frye, McLaughlin said that there’s indeed a plan to fix those snaps over the next few months.
In order to do that, though, he’ll have to get back into a rhythm that he’s been in for nearly his entire life. He said that he’s been snapping since he was seven years old, and that it was a bit like shooting free throws.
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“When you go through something like that, you have to sit down and look at yourself and be like, ‘OK, who am I as a person? What am I?’” McLaughlin said. “I just kind of sat down and said, ‘OK, where can I go from here? I can’t control the past. I can’t control what happened in that game, I can’t control the public reaction to that. But I’m here now. I’m in a great place to continue my development, play for an incredible program and play for incredible coaches. Really, I’m very positive. I have no negative feelings about what happened. It is what it is, type of thing.”
And while the plan is for him to fix the snapping problems, which plagued him all season long, he was recruited to Ohio State as an offensive lineman, not specifically a center. He’s played tackle (in high school) and has reps at guard, but is comfortable playing wherever he’s asked.
The blowback on McLaughlin was fierce, as the entire college football world saw his issues present themselves at the worst possible time.
But now, in Columbus, he’s ready to put that behind him.
“It doesn’t really affect you,” McLaughlin said of social media commentary. “That’s kind of the thing about social media, I’ve heard that if somebody pats your back, you can’t listen to them. If somebody’s knocking you down, you can’t listen to them. At the end of the day, nobody out there really knows exactly what goes into it unless they’ve been in the position.”
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Brian Hartline is expected to be hired as the next head coach at South Florida, according to multiple reports published on Dec. 3.
Hartline has been the wide receivers coach for the Buckeyes throughout coach Ryan Day’s tenure and the primary offensive coordinator and play-caller this season.
A former wide receiver for the Buckeyes who went on to play seven seasons in the NFL, most of them with the Miami Dolphins, he first joined the staff as a quality control coach in 2017 before taking over as the position coach.
Hartline has been well regarded for his development of wide receivers as the Buckeyes have seen five of them taken in the first round of the NFL draft over the last four years.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
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.
Michigan football’s shot at a playoff bid is virtually over.
The Wolverines fell four spots to No. 19 in the penultimate rankings from the College Football Playoff selection committee on Tuesday, three days after losing, 27-9, to No. 1 Ohio State.
A win over the Buckeyes and Michigan would have had a case to make the 12-team field. Sherrone Moore’s team, now 9-3, was ranked 15th last week.
Michigan will not play another game before the final CFP rankings are unveiled on Sunday, making it nearly impossible to reach the playoff this year. The Wolverines fell to 18th this week in the Associated Press Top 25 and US LBM coaches’ polls.
Meanwhile, the Buckeyes held on to the No. 1 spot this week, followed by Indiana at No. 2. Georgia jumped up to No. 3 after Texas A&M lost to Texas.
Also moving up one spot this week is Texas Tech (No. 4), Oregon (No. 5) and Ole Miss (No. 6). A&M fell to 7.
There was also some movement at the bottom of the top 10, where Alabama rose one spot to No. 9. Notre Dame fell to No. 10.
On the bubble, BYU is holding serve at No. 11 with Miami at No. 12.
A fifth Big Ten team, Southern Cal, was also ranked this week at No. 16. But like the Wolverines, USC is 9-3 and without another game to play.
This weekend is championship weekend, a pivotal stretch of games to determine the five automatic qualifiers. Under the 12-team format, the five highest-ranked conference champions will be admitted, with the seven highest-ranked teams next in line.
The top four ranked teams, regardless of league champion status, will receive first-round byes.
As for the postseason, Michigan is projected to play in the Dec. 31 Citrus Bowl, the Big Ten’s highest-profile, non-playoff game.
This week’s College Football Playoff rankings:
- Ohio State
- Indiana
- Georgia
- Texas Tech
- Oregon
- Ole Miss
- Texas A&M
- Oklahoma
- Alabama
- Notre Dame
- BYU
- Miami (Fla.)
- Texas
- Vanderbilt
- Utah
- Southern California
- Virginia
- Arizona
- Michigan
- Tulane
- Houston
- Georgia Tech
- Iowa
- North Texas
- James Madison
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Here are some stories you may have missed on BeaconJournal.com and in the Akron Beacon Journal newspaper.
A winter storm continues to cover Northeast Ohio roads the morning of Dec. 2, forcing numerous school districts to close.
Some areas of Summit County may get up to 3 to 7 inches of snow. A winter weather advisory has been issued for until 7 p.m. Tuesday alerting residents of slippery road conditions and poor visibility.
In the face of all the expected snow today, the Summit County Sheriff’s Office has declared the county is under a Level 2 snow emergency. County sheriffs have the authority to issue snow emergencies that can either close roads or limit travel within their jurisdictions to help ensure the public’s safety.
What do the different snow emergency levels signify? Here’s what we know.
What is an Ohio Level 1 snow emergency?
In a Level 1 snow emergency, roadways are hazardous with blowing and drifting snow, and roads may also be icy. Motorists are urged to drive very cautiously.
What is an Ohio Level 2 snow emergency?
In a Level 2 snow emergency, roadways are hazardous with blowing and drifting snow, and roads may also be very icy. Driving is discouraged, and only those who feel it is necessary to drive should be out on the roads. Residents should contact their employers to see if they should report to work. Motorists should use extreme caution.
What is an Ohio Level 3 snow emergency?
In a Level 3 snow emergency, all roadways are closed to non-emergency personnel, and no one should be driving unless it’s absolutely necessary to travel or a personal emergency exists. All employees should contact their employers to see if they should report to work. Those traveling on the roads may also be at risk of being arrested.
How can I view current weather-related road closures and restrictions?
To see the latest road closures, visit the Ohio Department of Transportation’s traffic website at ohgo.com.
Former Beacon Journal reporter Emily Mills contributed to this report.
Reporter Anthony Thompson can be reached at ajthompson@gannett.com, or on Twitter @athompsonABJ
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