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You’re Nuts: What is your most unreasonable Unreasonable Expectation for the Ohio State season?

Published

8 months ago

May 19, 2024

You’re Nuts: What is your most unreasonable Unreasonable Expectation for the Ohio State season?

From now until preseason camp starts in August, Land-Grant Holy Land will be writing articles around a different theme every week. This week is all about our Unreasonable Expectations. You can catch up on all of the Theme Week content here and all of our Unreasonable Expectations here.

Everybody knows that one of the best parts of being a sports fan is debating and dissecting the most (and least) important questions in the sporting world with your friends. So, we’re bringing that to the pages of LGHL with our favorite head-to-head column: You’re Nuts.

In You’re Nuts, two LGHL staff members will take differing sides of one question and argue their opinions passionately. Then, in the end, it’s up to you to determine who’s right and who’s nuts.

Today’s Question: What Is Your Most Unreasonable Unreasonable Expectation for the Ohio State Football Season?

Jami’s Take: Will Howard will be a Heisman finalist

Will Howard saw a lot of playing time at Kansas State, and as Ohio State’s starting quarterback job is still very much up for grabs, there’s been a lot of talk about whether he can actually fill that role for the Buckeyes now that he’s transferred.

And while we probably shouldn’t throw out the tapes from Kansas State altogether, I also don’t think they’re indicative of his potential as a Buckeye. In fact, I don’t think we have any idea what he’s capable of yet.

So my first expectation for this season (a not-at-all unreasonable one), is that Howard will be the Buckeyes’ starting quarterback.

My second expectation — a far more unreasonable one — is that he will be a Heisman finalist (I know that’s pretty unhinged even for me. I’m leaning in, though).

In large part, a quarterback is only as good as the players around them, including the offensive line and the receivers. And with no disrespect to Kansas State (ranked 18th in the final 2023 AP Poll), Howard certainly didn’t have players of the same caliber around him in Kansas as he will in Columbus.

At Kansas State, he was surrounded largely by some very talented three-star players. There is nothing wrong with being a three-star player! You’re batting above average, you’re definitely better than me! I am not knocking three-star players! But in Columbus, that rating largely bumps up to four or five stars.

Not only does this mean he will be set up for more success (both in terms of the quality of receivers he needs to connect with and in terms of how much time he’ll have to throw the ball), but there’s also a strong possibility that playing with better players will force him to elevate his own game. The guys around him will make him look good, yes, but they will also make him better.

Even if, by some mystery, he plays exactly the same, we know the Heisman committee loves a quarterback, and we’ve seen finalists in recent years who weren’t even the strongest guys on their OWN offense, let alone in the country. But because the other guys on their offense were so strong, their job at quarterback looked easy. And making it look easy is very convincing to the Heisman committee.

It’s deceptive, but it happens often.

And this year, with better weapons and a higher bar, I believe Howard will have a breakthrough season that puts him in the same ballpark as Quinn Ewers at Texas (currently the preseason favorite to win the Heisman) or Carson Beck at Georgia. With receivers like Emeka Egbuka and Carnell Tate, plus an offensive line powered by guys like Donovan Jackson, expect Howard to surprise everyone.

He doesn’t have to be the best player in the country to be a Heisman finalist. He just has to be one of the best, and with the right people around him, I believe he has what it takes to nurse the Buckeyes’ wounds from last season and make an impression with the Heisman powers-that-be.

Matt’s Take: Ohio State will have the Big Ten’s Offensive, Defensive, Quarterback, Running Back, Wide Receiver, Defensive Lineman, Defensive Back, and Coach of the Year

Look, the idea for this prompt was to go way overboard, like even more overboard than normal, so I did just that. The Ohio State football program has had some dominant runs when it comes to Big Ten awards, but that was the old Big Ten when it was just a 14-team league and the Buckeyes were really the only serious team in the conference.

Now, we are coming off three straight seasons of That Team Up North winning the league title and the Corn and Blue are now the defending national champions (sorry, I just threw up in my mouth a little bit). Not only has OSU been dethroned as the league’s only dominant team, but the Powers That Be have added four West Coast-based teams with loads of football prowess and pedigree of their own. This fall, Oregon, UCLA, USC, and Washington will be Big Ten members, meaning that Ohio State will have to contend with even more competition for the conference crown as well as post-season awards.

However, in my most unreasonable of unreasonable expectations, I do think that Ryan Day’s squad can walk away with both the Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year, as well as the quarterback, running back, wide receiver, defensive lineman, and defensive back awards. And, in what might be the most unreasonable expectation of all, that Day himself will win the B1G Coach of the Year honor… outright! Day shared the award with Minnesota’s P.J. Fleck in 2019, but before that, a Buckeye coach hadn’t won the award since Earl Bruce in 1979.

Obviously, if Jami’s Will Howard prediction comes true, I will take him as the B1G QB of the year, but the beauty of this unreasonable expectation is that on all of the others, I have options. Like with the Ameche-Dayne Running Back of the Year, that could legitimately be either TreVeyon Henderson or Quinshon Judkins. The Richter–Howard Receiver of the Year could be Emeka Egbuka, Carnell Tate, or even Jeremiah Smith; Smith–Brown Defensive Lineman of the Year… J.T. Tuimoloau, Jack Sawyer, Tyleik Williams; Tatum–Woodson Defensive Back of the Year… Denzel Bruke, Caleb Downs, Lathan Ransom.

I know that the voters like to spread these awards around, but with how stacked this roster is, I could see it being a case where they have no other choice than to just give all of the awards to the boys in scarlet and gray.

Let us know who you are agreeing with:

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Who has the right answer to today’s question?

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Jami: Will Howard will be a Heisman finalist

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Matt: Practically Sweep the B1G awards

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No matter who wins between Notre Dame, Ohio State, this bettor’s positioned to profit

Published

2 hours ago

January 16, 2025

Press Room

No matter who wins between Notre Dame, Ohio State, this bettor’s positioned to profit

LAS VEGAS — Notre Dame and Ohio State winning their semifinal playoff games meant the wisdom of Tom Petty, once again, rang true.

“Even the losers / Get lucky sometimes.”

Sometimes, fortune smiles upon minnow bettors whose stacks of losing tickets provide so many bookmarks, coasters and, yes, even novel wrapping paper.

On Dec. 12, I studied the new 12-team College Football Playoff with a keen eye to newly released title-game exacta odds.

My college-pigskin rudder is points-per-play, ratios available at TeamRankings.com. The tale of teams is contained in those fractions.

On offense and defense, and overall margins, Notre Dame had sparkled since early October. “Past three games” reveals how teams are currently running.

I applied those figures to project each playoff game, best squad moving on. I played out the tournament, producing the finale exacta. I aimed to go into the championship game with a sweet ticket on both teams, guaranteeing profit.

That exercise compelled me to obtain South Point tickets on Notre Dame over Ohio State, 30-to-1 odds, and Ohio State over Notre Dame, at 25-1. Alas, the Buckeyes and Irish play for the national title Monday night.

“That’s awesome!!!” Long Island handicapper Tom Barton wrote in a text message.

“Looks like you played it 100% correct,” Southern California professional bettor Tommy Lorenzo told me. “Bull’s-eye, well done. TeamRankings is a great tool. I use a lot of its info for my power rankings.

“You’re sitting pretty, my friend.”

The two best teams

Barton entered the week 3-0 in this new playoff, and he sounded as if he’d be fine taking a pass on the championship game.

Unless the point spread ekes up to 10 somewhere. It mostly opened around 9 to 9.5 points in favor of Ohio State. Last Sunday night, it got shaved to 8. Monday afternoon, it hit 7.5 before pumping back to 8.5 by Wednesday.

“I haven’t finished my homework on the championship game,” Barton said. “I tend to lean with the points. The over looks interesting, too, but I’m not sure if I’ll play anything.”

Monday, DraftKings posted a 45.5 total. Wednesday, it hit 46.5, -108 over (or risk $108 to win $100), -112 under. Odds subject to change.

Lorenzo said he felt fortunate to be holding a title ticket on Notre Dame, at 11-1, plus Ohio State at +340.

They represented the two top teams in his power ratings, “so I pulled the trigger.” He added, “I do kick myself, however, for not attacking the championship exacta on those two, given my conviction on those two being the best teams overall.”

More maneuvering

I have more work to do, since I’ve been on Notre Dame since the summer. I’m bullish on Irish coach Marcus Freeman, so I bought a 22-1 Irish title ticket Aug. 31.

It lost early to Northern Illinois but has won 13 in a row, and I nabbed a 30-1 ducat on the Irish on Nov. 21 at the Westgate -SuperBook. So I reap more profit with a Notre Dame victory.

To even that out, I’ll stake positions with Ohio State, likely via in-game maneuvering.

Should the Irish tally an early touchdown, say, the Bucks’ moneyline will shrink closer to even (from around -380), providing an optimal situation to bet on Ohio State and ensure my dividends will be nearly equal, no matter who wins.

I did scramble for a +560 Penn State ticket on New Year’s Eve, just in case, among other moves. I had already bought into the Nittany Lions, at 24-1, on Aug. 31 at William Hill.

There are other debits, and credits. For the semifinals, I played a moneyline parlay of Ohio State to Notre Dame, turning two units into five. In sum, I’ll likely net around 55 units of playoff profit.

Howard’s Will

A lifelong Notre Dame supporter, Lorenzo said he ultimately believes Ohio State will get the victory; the figures back up that outcome.

Ohio State boasts a 0.617 points-per-play ratio over its last three games; Notre Dame’s offense, at 0.374, has been faltering.

Turnovers might be an equalizer, though, as the Irish’s ball-hawking defenders snatched an NCAA-best 32 combined fumbles and interceptions this season. Senior free safety Xavier Watts yanked down six of those picks.

All of which funnels into this column’s final words from Paul Stone, arguably the country’s finest purveyor of college-pigskin prognostications.

He noted the game opening Ohio State -10.5 at Circa Sports, which drew early action on underdog Notre Dame. Wednesday, Vegas had the Buckeyes as consensus 8-point favorites.

From East Texas, Stone said he respected those early waves of cash on the Irish, but he views Ohio State as the “more-complete team” and will back the Buckeyes on the point spread.

“They have found another gear in the playoffs and have too much firepower for Notre Dame, in my opinion,” he said. “Ohio State defeated a talented trifecta of teams — Tennessee, Oregon and Texas — all by 14 points or more.

“The Buckeyes have averaged 7.5 yards per play in those victories, while allowing only 4.2 yards per play.”

The key is Ohio State quarterback Will Howard, the 6-4, 237-pound senior who left Kansas State for Columbus.

“If [he] takes care of the ball and the Irish don’t post a defensive or special-teams touchdown,” Stone said, “I think the Buckeyes win by double digits.”

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Notre Dame vs. Ohio State: Championship history and stats

Published

10 hours ago

January 15, 2025

Press Room

Notre Dame vs. Ohio State: Championship history and stats

Jan 15, 2025, 05:27 PM ET

Notre Dame and Ohio State will be facing off in the 2025 College Football Playoff National Championship game. How did each team get here? Notre Dame — coming off playoff wins against Indiana, Georgia and Penn State — is riding a 13-game winning streak. But the Irish are a heavy underdog in the title game matchup. Ohio State — which went through Tennessee, Oregon and Texas in the playoffs — brings its top-ranked defense in a quest to capture its ninth national championship. This will be the first time Notre Dame reaches the title game in the CFP era after falling in the semifinal in the 2018-19 and 2020-21 seasons. The Buckeyes will be playing in their third CFP title game since winning the inaugural game in 2014.

Here’s a tale of the tape between the two squads ahead of Monday’s CFP National Championship game.

Established: 1890

Conference: Big Ten

Stadium: Ohio Stadium (102,780 capacity)

Head coach: Ryan Day (2019-present)

2024 season record: 13-2

2024 season leaders:

2024 AP Top 25 final ranking: No. 6

Total championships: Eight (2014, 2002, 1970, 1968, 1961, 1957, 1954, 1942)

All-time record: 977-335-53 (.744)

Bowl record: 26-23 (.531)

Heisman winners:

Head-to-head vs. Notre Dame: 6-2, 25.6 points scored per game

Established: 1887

Conference: Independent

Stadium: Notre Dame Stadium (80,795 capacity)

Head coach: Marcus Freeman (2021-present)

2024 season record: 14-1

2024 season leaders:

2024 AP Top 25 final ranking: No. 3

Total championships: 13 (1988, 1977, 1973, 1966, 1964, 1949, 1947, 1946, 1943, 1930, 1929, 1924, 1919)

All-time record: 962-338-42 (.740)

Bowl record: 23-18 (.561)

Heisman winners:

Tim Brown, 1987
John Huarte, 1964
Paul Hornung, 1956
John Lattner, 1953
Leon Hart, 1949
John Lujack, 1947
Angelo Bertelli, 1943

Head-to-head vs. Ohio State: 2-6, 17.4 points scored per game

Check out the ESPN college football hub page for breaking news, features, schedules, rankings and more.

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Ohio’s first Zaxby’s is coming to Greater Cincinnati

Published

18 hours ago

January 15, 2025

Press Room

Ohio’s first Zaxby’s is coming to Greater Cincinnati

Zaxby’s, a popular fried chicken chain, is getting its first Ohio location in Liberty Township.

A 56-seat Zaxby’s restaurant and drive-thru is planned to open at Freedom Pointe, next to Costco. The development, which was initially planned to be a hotel, will also house three other eateries: E+O Kitchen, which has locations at The Banks, Hyde Park and Loveland; Bismarck Donut and Coffee Shop and El Rancho Grande, said Christy Gloyd, Liberty Township’s marketing and events manager.

Costco opened near Interstate 75 on Cox Road in 2022. Construction on the new restaurants starts this summer, Gloyd said.

“We’re just really excited to be growing over there at Freedom Pointe,” she told The Enquirer. “Having Costco as the anchor is huge. Just to have another family-friendly restaurant and have the variety – to have the Zaxby’s and E+O and El Rancho Grande – I think it’s really going to be a nice offering for our residents.”

Atlanta-headquartered Zaxby’s has over 900 locations in 17 states, mostly in the South and Midwest. The chain is known for its chicken fingers and wings, sandwiches and salads. The closest Zaxby’s locations currently open are over an hour away, in Shelbyville, Indiana and Louisville, Kentucky.

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