Ohio
Ohio State dominate latest power ranking as nine Buckeyes rank inside Top 50 players
The honors continue to roll in for this Ohio State Buckeyes football team.
From young players ready for another College Football Playoff run next season to players hungry for one more run starting December 31 before the NFL Draft, this Ohio State Buckeyes team is loaded with talent headed into their seventh playoffs appearance since the CFP era began in 2014.
Five defensive players and four offensive players headlined a class of extremely talented Buckeyes. Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza took the No. 1 spot to go along with his Heisman and Maxwell honors.
An offensive Ohio State Buckeye took the No. 2 spot right behind Mendoza.
Wide receiver Jeremiah Smith takes the No. 2 spot
Jeremiah Smith was ranked behind Mendoza along with his gun-slinging sophomore quarterback. Julian Sayin was the second-highest ranked quarterback on the list at No. 5.
“Smith caught 80 balls for 1,086 yards and 11 touchdowns as a sophomore, but that doesn’t really tell the story…Smith commands double-teams constantly, draws the attention of everyone’s best corner, and has every defensive coordinator he faces scheming to slow him down. And none of it has mattered.”
ESPN’s David Hale
Smith is expected to have one more dominant season with the Buckeyes next season where fans hope to see him paired next to five-star recruit Chris Henry Jr. Senior wide receiver Carnell Tate has been an impressive receiving mate for Smith the past two seasons. Tate caught 48 passes, nine touchdowns, and had 838 yards. He ranked No. 26 in the rankings.
Offensive tackle Austin Siereveld ranked No. 44 as well.
The defense takes over
All five of Ohio State’s defensive players on the list ranked inside the top-22. Junior linebacker Sonny Styles sat at No. 21 to kick things off for the defense. The Buckeyes have had the best defense in college football for the entire season and these are the names that have made it happen. Projected first round NFL Draft Arvell Reese took the No. 16 spot.
“A new set of stars emerged to lead the nation’s No. 1 defense this fall, and Reese was undeniably front and center. He has thrived under new coordinator Matt Patricia, recording 6.5 sacks and 10 tackles for loss from the edge position and finished second on the squad with 62 total tackles…Reese was named Big Ten’s Linebacker of the Year and recorded a sack in six of Ohio State’s first eight games of the season.”
ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg
Defensive linemen Kayden McDonald and Caden Curry ranked at No. 13 and No. 11 respectively. Safety Caleb Downs was the highest ranked defensive Buckeye at No. 7. Downs is a simply a lockdown player who can play corner or safety while still being able to tackle at a high level. If he chooses to declare for the NFL Draft after the season is over, he’ll be slated to go within the top 10 in most mock drafts.
Opposing quarterbacks only targeted downs 20 times for the entire season. Only nine passes were caught on his watch as the primary defender.
“The longest completion he gave up was 17 yards. A 14-yard completion in the second quarter of the Big Ten title game was the first one he’d given up in nearly two months. There is not a more lockdown corner in the country than Downs.”
ESPN’s David Hale
The Ohio State Buckeyes are waiting for the winner of the No. 10 Miami Hurricanes against the No. 7 Texas A&M Aggies in the first round of the College Football Playoffs this Saturday at 12:00pm Eastern on ABC/ESPN.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WSYX) — A Central Ohio family has filed a lawsuit against a Hilliard funeral home after their mother was accidentally cremated, despite plans for her to be buried.
According to court documents, Tidd Funeral Home cremated Nancy Anders in June of last year against the family’s wishes. The lawsuit states Anders died a week earlier in May.
The family says Anders had planned and prepaid for funeral arrangements two years before her death to be buried with her late husband. The arrangements did not include cremation because, the family says, she did not believe in the concept.
The lawsuit says the family was told a week after her death that she had been accidentally cremated. It also accuses Tidd Funeral Home of cremating her even though the proper authorization form was never signed.
The family says they have suffered physical illness and emotional trauma and are seeking $25,000 in damages. They are also asking for the case to be decided by a jury.
ABC 6 reached out to the funeral home for comment but had not heard back.
The Ohio State Highway Patrol arrested online political writer D.J. Byrnes, also known as The Rooster, at the statehouse on June 1 on a misdemeanor warrant.
A patrol spokesman said Byrnes, who posts his stories to his Substack subscribers, was arrested on an outstanding warrant. He was booked into the Franklin County Jail, records show. The patrol did not provide further details.
Byrnes’ colleague, Max Littman, said he believes the arrest is related to Byrnes texting photos of cartoon character Shrek’s penis to a state senator. “If that is in fact true, that he was arrested over that, then it’s blatant targeting a political opponent and journalist,” Littman said.
The arrest warrant for telecommunications harassment came from the city of Kirtland in Lake County. The warrant alleges that Byrnes sent two photos on May 6 to “J.C.” with the intent to harass.
State Sen. Jerry Cirino, R-Kirtland, did not return messages seeking comment.
Byrnes routinely works the halls power at Columbus City Hall, Ohio State University and the Ohio Statehouse, looking for tips and ambushing officeholders for his Substack reports. He can be both charming and confrontational.
Recently, he posted a story based on one anonymous source who told him that Republican gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy tried to get into the New York Knicks locker room after the Knicks beat the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA playoffs.
The story, and its spread, so bothered Ramaswamy that he posted a lengthy refute on X, calling it 100% fake.
State government reporter Laura Bischoff can be reached at lbischoff@usatodayco.com and @lbischoff on X.
-
Kentucky20 seconds agoBryian Duncan Jr. flips from Kentucky to West Virginia
-
Louisiana3 minutes ago
Louisiana drivers soon will say goodbye to inspection stickers
-
Maine8 minutes agoStalwart 7 in Varsity Maine baseball poll
-
Maryland15 minutes agoMaryland Governor calls out Apple over Towson Town Center store closure – 9to5Mac
-
Michigan18 minutes agoSterling Heights to consider opposing Michigan House tax policy bills
-
Massachusetts23 minutes agoGov. Healey backs bill to keep Mass. bars open until 3 a.m. this summer
-
Minnesota30 minutes agoMinnesota GOP disavows Chauvin moment of silence at convention
-
Mississippi33 minutes agoJackson mayor claims victory after water authority ruling. What he said
