Morning Wrap: Ohio State Down Alabama in Sugar Bowl

((ht: espn.com))

There was little question at the end of the so-called "SEC Era". Especially when the SEC's best went down to the best of the Big 10.

Ohio State used the feet of Ezekiel Elliot and the arm of freshman Cardale Jones to run away from the much-hyped Crimson Tide 42-35 late Thursday night.

As expected, the game went down to the wire with the Buckeyes taking the lead late in the 4th quarter on an 85 yard TD run by Elliot. Elliot finished with 230 yards rushing and 2 TD's on the night. His score put tOSU up 42-28.

Bama did come back. Blake Sims hit Amari Cooper with 1:59 left in the game closing the gap to 7, but it would be as close as the Tide would get. 

Nick Saban's team did get the ball back with well under a minute left in the game. Sims threw a hail mary pass into the end zone at the buzzer, but it was picked off. Game over.

Ohio State moves on to face Oregon in the National Championship game on Jan. 12th in Dallas. It should be one heck of a game.

Ohio St QB Barrett Being Investigated by Police in Dispute

((ht: buckeyextra.dispatch.com))

Well, it's never a good thing to have to report on an athlete being investigated by police. And while injured Ohio State QB J.T Barrett has yet to be charged with anything, he is being investigated and the evidence doesn't sound so good.

Police were called to Barrett's apartment Tuesday night after 9-1-1 calls from both him and his ex-girlfriend. Needless to say, the two accounts of what was going on differed a bit.

Barrett's call was him basically saying he wanted his 19-year old ex-girlfriend out of his house. While her call she claimed she had a domestic violence account. She said Barrett choked her and threw her across the room and that she was pregnant.

Barrett apparently told police later in the evening that she ran at him, pushed and swung at him and he just pushed her away.

Uh oh...

We hope this is much ado about nothing. Barrett was a revelation to the Buckeyes this football season. But this does not sound very good.

With the attention given to domestic violence issues, if indeed Barrett did what he is accused of by his ex-girlfriend, he's in a lot of trouble. And he should be.

But the investigation is not compete.

The Columbus Dispatch has the 9-1-1 Calls. Listen and decide for yourself...

College Football Playoff Choices: The Most Popular Four Get Picked

Oh boy, the College Football crazies are going to be doing them some arguing today (Sunday).

The College Football Playoff committee announced the four teams that will be competing for the National Championship.

None of those four teams will come out of the Big 12.

Alabama, Oregon, Florida State and Ohio State will play a game January 1st in different locations to determine who will get a shot at the title a week later.

The surprise is Ohio State, 6th in the playoff rankings and most polls going into Championship Weekend, the Buckeyes leapfrogged both TCU and Baylor, who were ranked above them.

Playoff Committee chair Jeff Long cited a few reasons for this; among them Co-Champs in the Big 12 and Ohio States domination of a probably overrated Wisconsin in the Big 10 title game. Long was adamant that it was about what Ohio State did this week, not about what TCU or Baylor did.

We'd argue Kansas State would beat Wisconsin.

Long spoke at length about "Strength of Schedule", though we'd prefer to call it "Higher Publicity" or "Larger Traditions"...but we aren't on the committee.

The state of Texas is likely to get a bit angry about this and they've got a good argument. In OUR opinion, Ohio State winning "Big 10" games is not the same as TCU or Baylor winning "Big 12" games.

The Big 10 is much better known and represented, but the football...outside the Buckeyes, was abysmal or any other overrated adjective you can think of.



In the long run, no, it really doesn't matter what we think. College Football has never been a game that settled arguments on the field and is not set up to determine a true best team.

It's never been.

College Football is and always has been a popularity contest. No, this season did not provide anything clear cut. There were no real dominant teams. Very little separated them.

But in this scenario, Ohio State losing to a horrible Virginia Tech team meant nothing. And the Big 12 was penalized for not having a conference title game. Long admitted as much.

Anyway, enough ranting on our part.

Here's your semi-final matchups:

Sugar Bowl: Alabama vs. Ohio State

Rose Bowl: Oregon vs. Florida State....

Good luck fans, you have the 4 most popular teams in all the land to cheer for. May the best....or most popular team win.

Morning Wrap: Ohio St Makes Playoff Push by Dominating Wisconsin

((ht: espn.com))

So the Ohio State Buckeyes sent a message about the inaugural College Football Playoff.

The want in.

The Buckeyes took care of business Saturday night in a big way, slaughtering the Wisconsin Badgers 59-0 for the Big 10 title in a game that wasn't that close.

Third string QB Cardale Jones was every bit as impressive as his predecessors, winning game MVP honors after throwing for 257 yards and 3 TD's, leading his team to the win. RB Ezekiel Elliot chipped in 220 yards and 2 TD's running the ball.

tOSU's defense shut down Badgers star RB Melvin Gordon, holding him to 76 yards. And they picked off 3 Joel Stave passes, shutting the allegedly powerful Wisconsin offense down.

The win moves Ohio State to 12-1 overall and likely 4th place in this weeks final College Football Playoff poll. Mind you they shouldn't get that berth, to do it, they'll leapfrog both Baylor and TCU who are more deserving.

But, the TV pundits and network that holds the rights have already been playing up the Buckeyes, saying they'll do it. Which means it's highly likely to happen.

Enough of that, let's check out the game highlights...most of which belong to Ohio State.

Thanks ESPN.com:

DEVELOPING: tOSU's Karageorge Found Dead

((HT: NBC4i.com, WCMH-TV/Columbus))

Columbus, Ohio police have confirmed that the body found near Ohio State University this afternoon was that of walk-on senior lineman Kosta Karageorge. He had been missing since the early morning hours Wednesday and was last known to have sent a disturbing message to his family about how concussions have impacted his time on campus.

Susan Karageorge told NBC4 her son sent her the following text: "Sorry if I am an embarrassment, but these concussions have my head all (expletive) up."

11Warriors reports that Columbus PD Sgt. Rich Weiner said Karageorge died from what's believed to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Karageorge was honored along with his fellow seniors on game day at The Horseshoe
NBC4: Columbus, Ohio News, Weather, and Sports (WCMH-TV)

Karageorge's body was found less than half-a-mile from his apartment.

More when we know more...

Morning Wrap: Ohio State Runs Away from Michigan State

((ht: espn.com))

So goes the thought of the Michigan State playoff run.

The Ohio State Buckeyes behind 3 passing and 2 running TD's by rising star QB J.T Barrett took care of business Saturday night, pounding the Spartans 49-37.

The game may have been a Big 10 playoff game. The winner has smooth sailing to the Big 10 title game and a likely College Football playoff berth.

Barrett was without a doubt the best player on the field. He's gotten better each week. The 300-yards passing and 86 rushing yards were impressive, but the 35-points he accounted for were by far the most impressive stat.

The performance still doesn't explain how tOSU managed to lose to a crappy Virginia Tech team at home, but it all but erases the memory for most. There is still a game at scrappy Minnesota and the rivalry game with mediocre Michigan in Columbus, but the path has become a lot easier for Urban Meyer's team.

Let's see if they can avoid any hiccups.

Your highlights from ESPN.com:

ICYMI: Miami Embarrasses Sloppy Va. Tech

It wasn't exactly a prime time performance for the Virginia Tech Hokies at home.

The University of Miami came into Lane Stadium Thursday night and pounded the hapless Hokies 30-6 behind Duke Johnson's 249 yards rushing and 2 TD's.

Va.Tech fumbled on their first three possessions of the 2nd half, already down 24-0, which means they pretty much never had a chance.

Really there isn't much else to add about this game. The ACC, outside of Florida State isn't much of a playoff factor. The win did move the Hurricanes to 5-3 overall and 2-2 in the ACC, while Tech falls to 4-4 overall and 1-3 in the ACC.

The only impact may be to Ohio State who the Hokies inexplicably were able to beat earlier in the season. The worse Va. Tech plays the worse the loss looks to the Buckeyes who are trying to overcome their horrible Big 10 schedule and slip into the playoff.

Here are your highlights from ESPN.com:

Virginia Tech Does The Hokie-Pokie At The Horseshoe - Hokies Stun #8 Buckeyes 35-21

Virginia Tech head coach Frank Beamer said back in July that he looks forward to playing games like
Ohio State.  Games like that let's you know where your program is.

Judging from Virginia Tech's 35-21 win over Ohio State at the horseshoe the Hokies are looking good.

"When you play good teams like we play, you’ve got about a 50-50 shot of winning and when you go on the road, it probably goes down a little bit." Beamer said.  "I think this is a big, big win for the program and for the status of our program.”


Not only was it a heart breaker for Ohio State many streaks went out the window.

It's the first time the Buckeyes had lost a home opener since 1978 ending a streak of 35 consecutive home openers.

It's the first time Ohio State has lost at home to an unranked non-conference opponent since 1982 when Florida State defeated the Buckeyes 34-17.

The loss to Virginia Tech also snaps Ohio State's 25 game regular season winning streak, the nations best.

"I'm a little bit surprised. I thought our skilled guys would perform better, I thought we'd protect a little better," Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer said. "Coaches don't get surprised, we get disappointed. Obviously, we've just got to work a little harder."

Virginia Tech quarterback Michael Brewer completed 23-36 passes for 199 yards and two touchdowns.

Ohio State quarterback J.T. Barrett was 9 of 29 passing for 219 yards, one touchdown and 3 interceptions.

Barrett could not escape the Hokie defense who sacked him seven times.

Dadi Nicolas and Derek Di Nardo each sacked Barrett twice.

55 Schools Under Title IX Sexual Assault Probe

This can't be good...

A Department of Education probe went as far as releasing the names of 55 colleges and universities currently being looked at for their handling (or lack thereof) of sexual assault cases on campus.

Just because the school was named in the report doesn't mean there is a violation. But is does mean that the DoE is looking into something on campus...

“We hope this increased transparency will spur community dialogue about this important issue,” said Catherine E. Lhamon, assistant secretary for civil rights. “I also want to make it clear that a college or university’s appearance on this list and being the subject of a Title IX investigation in no way indicates at this stage that the college or university is violating or has violated the law.”

President Barack Obama created a task force to look at the issue after hearing complaints about the treatment of rape victims on college campuses. The results were released this week.

Title IX itself, as part of its language, prohibits discrimination in schools that get federal funding. Funds can be withheld if serious violations of Title IX are found by these investigations. But that really hasn't happened as a consistent by-product of digging...

A website is now up, notalone.gov, offering information to victims about past enforcement actions on campuses. Their lead paragraph:

Information for students, schools, and anyone interested in finding resources on how to respond to and prevent sexual assault on college and university campuses and in our schools.

Ohio State University is trying to stay "ahead of the curve" (their words) when it comes to sexual assault on campus
((HT: WBNS-TV))


Here is the list of schools that are under open investigation as of May 1:

•Arizona State University

•Butte-Glen Community College District

•Occidental College

•University of California at Berkeley

•University of Southern California

•Regis University

•University of Colorado at Boulder

•University of Colorado at Denver

•University of Denver

•University of Connecticut

•Catholic University of America

•Florida State University

•Emory University

•University of Hawaii at Manoa

•University of Idaho

•Knox College

•University of Chicago

•Indiana University-Bloomington

•Vincennes University

•Amherst College

•Boston University

•Emerson College

•Harvard College

•Harvard University Law School

•University of Massachusetts at Amherst

•Frostburg State University

•Michigan State University

•University of Michigan at Ann Arbor

•Guilford College

•University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

•Minot State University

•Dartmouth College

•Princeton University

•CUNY Hunter College

•Hobart and William Smith Colleges

•Sarah Lawrence College

•SUNY at Binghamton

•Denison University

•Ohio State University

•Wittenberg University

•Oklahoma State University

•Carnegie Mellon University

•Franklin and Marshall College

•Pennsylvania State University

•Swarthmore College

•Temple University

•Vanderbilt University

•Southern Methodist University

•The University of Texas Pan-American

•College of William and Mary

•University of Virginia

•Washington State University

•University of Wisconsin at Whitewater

•Bethany College

•West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine

The Art Of The Zinger: Dayton Daily News

Here's their headline...

And it's well-played...

How 'bout that...???

Bison And Flyers Help Thursday Be Thursday

((HT: ValleyNewsLive))

Just so you see what it as like in these two towns after the fact...

Here's the late live shot from Fargo/Spokane
Valley News Live - KVLY/KXJB - Fargo/Grand Forks

And Dayton
((HT: WDTN-TV))


So let Friday be Friday...

Your First Bracket Buster: Dayton

((HT: NCAA/CBS))

Dayton, in all probability, knocked a lot of you from winning your billion dollars from Warren Buffett...

But it won't stop all the spam messages...

Here's how Aaron Craft didn't either get fouled or make the final lay-up of his college career...


Now, why as it that Thad Motta wasn't interested in playing Dayton, again...???

5 Top 25's Go Down In One Night...

It was not a night to be a ranked team in the world of college hoops...

Indiana fans wore hard hats at Assembly Hall as Indiana took care of 20th ranked Iowa 93-86
Will Sheehey scored a career-high 30
((HT: BTN))


And Penn State swept Ohio State with their win over the Buckeyes 65-63... and they stormed the court...
Surprising no one...
((HT: BTN))


Arkansas also got their season sweep over Kentucky with their overtime win IN LEXINGTON!!!

Which, the HQ is sure, has sent the entire Big Blue nation into some kind of histrionics
((HT: SEC on ESPN))
Houston's Danuel House scored 19 off the bench as the Cougars knocked off #21 Memphis 77-68 Mark Followill and Chris Walker discuss ((HT: CBS Sports Network))
And, finally, St. Louis' 19-game winning streak came to a screeching halt with their loss to Duquesne...
It was Duquesne's first over a Top 10 team since a 72-68 win over #9 Xavier on February 7, 2009, and it was DU's first road win over a Top 10 team since a 73-72 win at #6 Bradley on March 5, 1962...

Does Sparty Get Excited About National TV...??? YES! YES! YES!

Okay, the HQ will stipulate that occasionally we're a mark for good wrestling...

It comes today in more fits and spurts than it did in our impressionable years, but sometimes they can catch lightning in a bottle... and they seem to have done that with Daniel Bryan...

The little engine that could is near the top of the card and can have the crowd in the palm of his hand because of a simple three letter word these days...

Evidence below... although it is a bit stunted because it was a hometown crowd...
((HT: WWE))


So, last night at the Breslin Center on the Michigan State campus, the football team's center, Travis Jackson, allowed for the cheapest pop in that place in a long time during half time of the Ohio State game. The football Spartans were being honored for their Rose Bowl win...

What followed was gold...
((HT: ESPN))


How awesome is THAT...???!!!

OSG High: Raekwon Chooses Ohio State

((HT: SouthernPigskin.com))

The HQ has seen Liberty County (GA) High School LB Raekwon McMillan up close- and he is a beast...

Today, he decided on his next place to attend, enroll early, and become one in the pile of all the other 5-star recruits heading to the next level...

So...
From Hinesville...


McMillan will be an interesting add for tOSU...

The HQ will be even more interested in how he would integrate

Sparty Upsets The BCS Plan In Defeating Ohio State 34-24, Wins Big 10 Title

All you Ohio State haters got the result you wanted Saturday in the Big 10 Championship Game.

Michigan State pulled it off with a 34-24 win over the Buckeyes and thus ending the nations longest winning streak at 24 games.

Are they rolling the trees at Toomers Corner in Auburn celebrating Michigan State's win over Ohio State?  That win may have put Auburn in the BCS Championship Game.

It took a nine yard touchdown pass from Conner Cook to Josiah Price to put Michigan State up for good.

Thanks Big Ten Network/Fox Sports


Late in the game the Spartans Jeremy Langford's 26 yard touchdown run was the icing on the cake.

Thanks Big Ten Network/Fox Sports



 "Our players, I'm so happy for them."  Michigan State head coach Mark Dantonio said.  "They made a lifetime moment tonight for all of us - all of us had that moment, our fans, our players. It will be a moment that we'll never forget."



Michigan State is headed to Pasadena, California to play in the Rose Bowl.

A win over Michigan State and Ohio State would be playing Florida State in Pasadena in the BCS Championship Game.  Now the Buckeyes are in limbo.

"You know it's going to haunt all of us, I imagine, for a little while," Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer said. "But that's part of the game."

“I’m just at a loss for words." Ohio State linebacker Ryan Shazier said. "I haven’t lost in a while and it kind of hurts. We worked so hard and it just slipped out of our hands. We’ve just got to keep working and try to get ready for the next game.”

Michigan State is now 12-1, it's first 12 win season in school history.  

Ohio State falls to 12-1 and might have nothing to show for it.

CFB Recap: Breaks Go Ohio State's Way: Beat Michigan and Alabama Loses

Will it be enough to get one of the less impressive undefeated teams in the country in the title?

We don't know.

But it raises a heck of an argument.

Ohio State did what was necessary, got lucky and walked away Saturday afternoon with a 42-41 win over Michigan. The win puts them at 12-0 and probably #2 in the upcoming week's BCS poll.

But will it get them to the title game?

The game, which was pretty crazy unto itself, sort of got overshadowed by Saturday evenings craziness. But it had some strange twists and a whole lot of juvenile behavior which now seems to overshadow what should be a traditional college football rivalry.

The game kicked off with a fight on the field early in the 3rd quarter. OSU starting guard Marcus Hall and kick returner Dontre Wilson were tossed along with Michigan backup linebacker Royce Jenkins-Stone. Punches allegedly were thrown and Hall in a moment of total class flipped off the Michigan crowd as he was escorted from the field.



The game itself was a back-and-forth game with a bunch of lead changes. Michigan scored with just over 30 seconds to go to close to one point. Michigan coach Brady Hoke, apparently feeling greedy, decided to go for the two point conversion, which ended with Tyvis Powell picking off Devin Gardner's pass.

The loss drops a mediocre Michigan team to 7-5, 3-5 in the mediocre Big 10. Ohio State is now 12-0, 8-0 in the conference and hasn't lost a game in now 2 years.

The Buckeyes square off with Michigan State this Saturday in the conference title game. The challenge is to be convincing in that game. If Ohio State wins, and wins comfortably, they should end up in the title game vs. FSU. Squeeze one out and the arguments over whether they are more worthy than the SEC champ will begin.

Here are your game highlights from ESPN:

Ohio Tries to be Funny By Banning M's This Weekend

((ht: sbnation.com))

Apparently, well, at least acc-rding t- a res-lution passed in the state -f "HI" (ohio), every-ne living there is str-ngly enc-uraged not to use the letter "M" when speaking...-r writing this weekend.

Why?

Because it's their bizarre way -f standing behind the -nly University that any-ne in the state -f HI is supposed to -r all-wed t- care about, "HI State".

The G-vern-r of -HI- even Tweeted ab-ut the res-luti-n, taking pride and -wnership of his pr-clamati-n.

And the reas-n f-r this banning -f letters?

This week is their annual rivalry game with "Ichigan".

S-, while we respect traditi-n and understand that pe-ple often d- stupid things when it comes to f--tball rivalries, this -ne -ay be the silliest thing we've ever heard. It even t-ps "HI State cach Urban Eyer" banning media c-vering the team fr-- wearing blue shirts. -ade even m-re ridicul-us earlier this seas-n when he didn't tell any-ne he was d-ing it.

Having a little fun with THE rivalry. To*orrow, Ohio goes without a letter in the alphabet. #Buckeyes pic.twitter.com/eXzLhcS7z9
— John Kasich (@JohnKasich) November 29, 2013

And the reas-n f-r this banning -f letters?

This week is their annual rivalry game with "Ichigan".


N-w, bef-re y-u say we have n- sense -f hu--r, we say t- y-u "read this st-ry....cl-sely. You'll see -ur sense of hu--r has never been better.

Reality Check: Baylor Humbled By Okie State

So much for the BCS bound Baylor Bears.

Baylor ran into a buzz saw Saturday night in Stillwater, Oklahoma and walked away losers after Oklahoma State dropped a 49-17 smack down on them.

And no, the game was never that close.

The Cowboys rode 370 yards passing and 3 TD's by QB Clint Chelf and stout defense that created 3 turnovers to hand Baylor the loss.

The Bears came in neck-and-neck with Ohio State for the #3 spot in the BCS and were a heavy favorite in the game despite Okie State only having one loss.

The win puts the Cowboys in the drivers seat to get to the Big 12 Championship game. Win that and they'll be the team playing in a BCS bowl game.

Your highlights from EPSN:

Ohio St. WR Talks Smack on 'Bama/Florida St.--UPDATE: Meyer Ranks Team Over FSU

Guess there's a reason they play the games, but it's still interesting to hear.

Ohio State backup wide receiver Evan Spencer was asked an innocent question about how he thought his Buckeyes would fare against #1 Alabama or #2 Florida State.

It was his answer that's getting him much more attention than his job performance.

Spencer told Cleveland.com that; "We'd wipe the floor with both of them". Perhaps an honest answer to an honest question. But not one that Twitter or Sports Bloggers will let slide.

And no, we don't believe that Ohio State would beat, nor wipe the floor with either of the two aforementioned teams.

But it does make for some amusing conversation.

On a somewhat related note--OSU coach Urban Meyer took time on Monday to explain why he picked his team #2 over Florida State.

Something scant few others did….

Courtesy: Cleveland.com