Our lady full of … surprises.

An Ohio churchgoer says she captured a divine “miracle” on camera when the eyes of a statue depicting the Virgin Mary suddenly appeared to shut.

Connie Liptak was at the Basilica of St. John the Baptist in Canton Friday when she says an Our Lady of Fatima sculpture that had been on display during a world tour closed and reopened her pious peepers, according to FOX 8 Cleveland.

“I knew it was a miracle because I’d been looking at her all morning,” said Liptak, who snapped a photo of the moment. “They’re really closed. I mean, you can really see her lashes are down.”

A digital photo of the supposed phenomena appears to show Mary with her eyelids shut and mouth slightly more agape than the statue in its original form.

True believers have long attributed miracles to the same sculpture — the International Pilgrim Virgin Statue of Our Lady of Fatima —  including healings and astral phenomenon.

“We know that she’s wept 15 times,” said the statue’s handler, Larry Maginot, told the station

But Rev. David Misbrener, the pastor of the Ohio church, said he didn’t think it was an act of God.

“I’m a little bit skeptical of such things, and the church is very cautious with such things,” Misbrener told the Canton Repository. “Anything can happen with a camera.”

But he added,  “My take is that if anyone benefited spiritually or physically, it did its job.”

The statue, which depicts Jesus’ mother praying near a small village in Portugal, was commissioned in 1947. It now travels the world wide and is showcased in Catholic churches.

Liptak’s image of the apparent blink has yet to be analyzed by a digital photography expert.

C.J. Hicks didn’t play a defensive snap as a true freshman at Ohio State. Hicks played only 75 of them last year as a sophomore.

And, yet, the former five-star linebacker and top-15 overall prospect is set on leading the Buckeyes in sacks this season.

Why?

Because he has his confidence back.

“I feel like when you need a play, when it’s 3rd-and-long and you need somebody to get to the quarterback, I’m that guy, no matter who the D-Ends are,” Hicks said. “I love our D-Linemen, but I feel like I’m the best when it gets to [rushing the] quarterback.”

“I don’t stop,” he later added.

The last Ohio State linebacker to finish a season atop the team’s sack leaderboard was A.J. Hawk in 2005 when he tied defensive lineman Mike Kudla for that honor.

While Hicks hasn’t recorded a single sack in a promising Buckeyes career that’s been slow to get off the ground, he’s had a breakthrough offseason, particularly as a pass rusher.

That’s not all talk, either. It was especially evident in the Woody Hayes Athletic Center on Student Appreciation Day back in the spring. The late March practice — which was open to students, players’ families and the media — saw Hicks wreak havoc in the backfield.

And that wasn’t a one-off performance from the Dayton, Ohio, native, who piled up 18 tackles for loss in his senior year at Archbishop Alter.

“I think he’s probably the best blitzer in our room,” first-year Ohio State linebackers coach James Laurinaitis said Wednesday. “C.J. just makes stuff happen when you send him.”

Laurinaitis noted how Hicks has a natural ability to “reduce the surface” when he blitzes.

Hicks is competing for the starting WILL linebacker spot with fellow third-year defender — but first-year linebacker — Sonny Styles, who moved down to the second level from the safety spot this offseason.

Styles played 12 snaps in the Peach Bowl College Football Playoff semifinal against Georgia two seasons ago and started several games, both at “nickel” and at strong safety last season. He has the experience advantage over Hicks and has taken the majority of first-team reps in the training camp practices open to the media.

But the Buckeyes aren’t crowning a starter right now, and it doesn’t seem to really matter because they want both Styles and Hicks to play.

They each have unique traits, Laurinaitis said. Where Hicks shines the most is as a pass rusher, a disruptor.

“I’ve just got a knack for getting to the quarterback,” Hicks said. “You put anybody in front of me, I’m going to do my best to get to the quarterback, and nobody’s going to stop me.”

So, when asked if he’s throwing himself in the ring to lead the Buckeyes in sacks this season, Hicks smiled.

“For sure,” he said. “That’s my thing.”

CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) – Low pressure in far southern Ohio this morning will track south into Georgia by this evening. An extension of this low pressure is in our area and is forecast to spark scattered showers and storms this afternoon. A good deal of cloud cover today, warmer, and more humid for sure. Afternoon temperatures will hit the lower to middle 80s.

A humid night ahead with a few showers around. Overnight temperatures dip to around 70 degrees.

The East Coast will see flooding rains today and tomorrow from Tropical Storm Debby. There is a cold front that tracks through our area tomorrow morning. It looks like all of the rain from the tropical storm will stay east of us. We actually have our are mainly dry tomorrow. Clouds in the morning will give way to some sun during the afternoon. It’ll turn breezy tomorrow afternoon as well.

We trend cooler this weekend.

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