Status of OSU football players

UPDATE:
An OSU investigation found that no NCAA violations occurred at the dinner.

Original Post:
As you probably heard earlier this week, OSU is investigating possible NCAA violations for a fundraiser held in Akron. Running backs Antonio Pittman and Chris Wells, defensive end Lawrence Wilson and defensive back DeAngelo Haslam were present at a spaghetti dinner fundraiser held to raise money to help send their parents to the bowl game in Arizona. Wells Mom called OSU assistant coach Jim Bollman during the dinner and he told them it might be a violation. The families left and the group decided to donate the money to the pee-wee football teams. I'll post updates as they are released.

OSU vs. Florida Basketball

My internet access since Thursday has been limited. I am not able to post a preview for this big basketball game. I'll put up some analysis of the game next week.

 

#3 Ohio State at #4 Florida

Saturday, December 23 4:00 PM

CBS

Iowa State vs. Ohio State Basketball

Iowa State (7-4) vs. #3 Ohio State (9-1)

Tonight, Tuesday, December 19, 8:00 PM

Schottenstein Arena

Tickets still available

TV-locally in Columbus-Channel 10

 

Ohio State moved up in the polls (behind UCLA and North Carolina) with Pittsburgh's loss to Wisconsin. Ohio State travelled to Indianapolis and easily beat Cincinnati, 72-50. The game had a lot of buildup considering that it had been 44 years since the teams met, but the Bearcats were never able to get their offense and defense consistently working. Leading the Buckeyes in scoring was Greg Oden with 14. Also scoring in the double digits were Ivan Harris with 13 and Ron Lewis with 10. Oden had a double-double with 11 rebounds. He also lead the team in minutes played with 27 minutes and blocked shots with 5. He has now hit 17 of 19 shots. The team overall struggled hitting only 6 of 23 from the three point range and had a season low 43% field goal percentage.

 

Iowa State has struggled in their last five games, losing four, with two of their big men not playing. Center Ross Marsden has had mononucleosis for a few weeks. Jessan Gray had a broken nose last week and missed most of the game last Saturday. New Coach Greg McDermott starts two freshman and two junior college transfers.

 

Ohio State Likely Starters

#1 Mike Conley, Guard, 6-1, Fr., 9.2 points/game, 6.5 assists/game

#3 Ivan Harris, Forward, 6-7, Sr., 11.5 points/game

#12 Ron Lewis, Guard, 6-4, Sr., 16.1 points/game

#14 Jamar Butler, Guard, Jr., 7.3 points/game

#20 Greg Oden, Center, Fr., (three games) 14.7 points/game, 8.3 rebounds/game, 15 blocked shots

 

Iowa State Likely Starters

#3 Corey McIntosh, Guard, Jr., 5.5 points/game

#4 Wesley Johnson, Forward, Fr., 12.6 points/game

#13 Rashon Clark, Forward, Jr., 9.4 points/game, 8.9 rebounds/game

#24 Mike Taylor, Guard, Jr., 15.0 points/game, 4.5 assists/game

#31 Cory Johnson, Forward, Fr., 5.9 points/game, 15 blocked shots

 

Coming up, Ohio State at Florida, Saturday, December 23, 4 PM, CBS

OSU and Cincinnati Basketball

#4 Ohio State (8-1)  vs.  Cincinnati (7-2)

The John Wooden Tradition in Indianapolis

(#18 Butler vs. Purdue at 1:00 PM)

Conseco Fieldhouse

(Tickets still available)

3:30 or 3:45, Saturday, December 16

TV-CBS

 

Why have Ohio State and Cincinnati not played a game of basketball since 1962?

 

Is it because #2 Cincinnati defeated #1 Ohio State in the NCAA championship game in 1961 and 1962? Some have said there was a concern over losing to an in-state opponent, and the effects that might have on recruiting in Ohio. Did Cincinnati turn Ohio State in for giving $60 to a prospect that eventually went to Cincinnati? How much of an effect was the NCAA fine of $25,000 for Cincinnati's attempted extortion of Ohio State in 1992? In that instance Ohio State asked NCAA tournament regional host Cincinnati for an additional 300 tickets, and Cincinnati was willing to help if Ohio State would agree to a home-and-home basketball series. What did Ohio State coaches and administration think of Bob Huggins and his teams? This article in the dispatch touches on these points and it leaves you wondering if this historic matchup this weekend is a one-time deal or if the two schools will finally work things out.

AP All-American Teams

Ohio State Players in Bold

 

First team

Quarterback - Troy Smith, 6-foot-1, 215 pounds, senior, Ohio State.
Running backs - Darren McFadden, 6-2, 212, sophomore, Arkansas; Steve Slaton, 5-10, 195, sophomore, West Virginia.
Wide receivers - Calvin Johnson, 6-5, 235, junior, Georgia, Tech; Dwayne Jarrett, 6-5, 210, junior, Southern California.
Tight end - Matt Spaeth, 6-7, 265, senior, Minnesota.
Tackles - Jake Long, 6-7, 313, senior, Michigan; Joe Thomas, 6-8, 313, senior, Wisconsin.
Guards - Josh Beekman, 6-2, 318, senior, Boston College; Justin Blalock, 6-4, 335, senior, Texas.
Center - Dan Mozes, 6-4, 290, senior, West Virginia.
Kicker - Justin Medlock, 6-0, 197, senior, UCLA.
All-purpose player - DeSean Jackson, 6-0, 178, sophomore, California.
Ends - LaMarr Woodley, 6-2, 269, senior, Michigan; Gaines Adams, 6-5, 265, senior, Clemson.
Tackles - Glenn Dorsey, 6-2, 299, junior, LSU; Quinn Pitcock, 6-3, 295, senior, Ohio State.
Linebackers - Paul Posluszny, 6-2, 238, senior, Penn State; Patrick Willis, 6-2, 240, senior, Mississippi; James Laurinaitis, 6-3, 244, sophomore, Ohio State.
Cornerbacks - Leon Hall, 5-11, 193, senior, Michigan; Daymeion Hughes, 6-0, 188, senior, California.
Safeties - LaRon Landry, 6-2, 202, senior, LSU; Reggie Nelson, 6-1, 175, junior, Florida.
Punter - Daniel Sepulveda, 6-3, 230, senior, Baylor.

---

Second team

Quarterback - Brady Quinn, senior, Notre Dame.
Running backs - Ray Rice, sophomore, Rutgers; Mike Hart, junior, Michigan.
Wide receivers - Jarrett Dillard, sophomore, Rice; Jeff Samardzija, senior, Notre Dame.
Tight end - Zach Miller, junior, Arizona State.
Tackles - Sam Baker, junior, Southern California; Arron Sears, senior, Tennessee.
Guards - Ben Grubbs, senior, Auburn; T.J. Downing, senior, Ohio State.
Center - Ryan Kalil, senior, Southern California.
Kicker - Arthur Carmody, junior, Louisville.
All-purpose player - Ted Ginn. Jr., junior, Ohio State.
Ends - Justin Hickman, senior, UCLA; Mkristo Bruce, senior, Washington State.
Tackles - Alan Branch, junior, Michigan; Amobi Okoye, senior, Louisville.
Linebackers - Dan Connor, junior, Penn State; Ameer Ismail, senior, Western Michigan; David Harris, senior, Michigan.
Cornerbacks - Aaron Ross, senior, Texas; Ryan Smith, senior, Florida.
Safeties - Eric Weddle, senior, Utah; Michael Griffin, senior, Texas.
Punter - Durant Brooks, junior, Georgia Tech.

---

Third team

Quarterback - Colt Brennan, junior, Hawaii.
Running backs - Ian Johnson, sophomore, Boise State; Garrett Wolfe, senior, Northern Illinois.
Wide receivers - Robert Meachem, junior, Tennessee; Johnnie Lee Higgins, senior, UTEP.
Tight end - Jonny Harline, senior, BYU.
Tackles - Levi Brown, senior, Penn State; Tony Igoh, senior, Arkansas.
Guards - Kurt Quarterman, senior, Louisville; Nathan Bennett, senior, Clemson.
Center - Jonathan Luigs, sophomore, Arkansas.
Kicker - Mason Crosby, senior, Colorado.
All-purpose player - Sammie Stroughter, junior, Oregon State.
Ends - Quentin Moses, senior, Georgia; Anthony Spencer, senior, Purdue.
Tackles - Jay Alford, senior, Penn State; Eric Foster, junior, Rutgers.
Linebackers - H.B. Blades, senior, Pittsburgh; Rufus Alexander, senior, Oklahoma; Brandon Siler, junior, Florida.
Cornerbacks - Dwight Lowery, junior, San Jose State; Brandon Flowers, sophomore, Virginia Tech.
Safeties - Tra Battle, senior, Georgia; Tom Zbikowski, senior, Notre Dame.
Punter - Jeremy Kapinos, senior, Penn State.

Buckeye Award Winners

Troy Smith

- Heisman Memorial Trophy-Outstanding Player

- Walter Camp Award-Player of the Year

- Davey O'Brien Award- National Quarterback Award

 

James Laurinaitis

- Bronko Nagurski Award-Defensive Player of the Year 

 

Joel Penton

- Danny Wuerffell Trophy-for Exemplary Community Service, Athletic and Academic Achievement

Troy Smith-Heisman Winner (2006)

Troy Smith won the Heisman Trophy last night. He is the sixth person at Ohio State to win, seventh award for Ohio State (Griffin twice.) OSU is currently tied with USC and Notre Dame for most Heisman winers. Smith is the first quarterback at Ohio State to win the award, in fact he is the first Big Ten quarterback to win the award. He is 25-2 as a starter for Ohio State, including three victories over Michigan. This season he is fourth in the nation with a rating of 167.9, with 2,507 yards in the air with 30 touchdown passes. He is known for his ability to scramble, avoiding tackles to make the big pass or running up the field when a play is broken. He is looking to go 2-0 in bowl games with a win over Florida in January for the National Championship. I don't want to look too far ahead, but in a few years you will likely see the #10 retired in the stadium, joining numbers #22 (Horvath), #27 (George), #31(Janowicz), #40 (Cassady), #45 (Griffin) and #47 (Harley.)

Eddie George-Heisman Winner (1995)

Eddie George played tailback at Ohio State from 1992-1995. He set many records including 1,927 yards in one season, 314 rushing yards against Illinois, five 200-yard rushing games in his career, three 200-yard rushing games in one season, an average of 148.2 yards/game for a single season and twelve 100-yard games in one season. He is still second in OSU history with 3,768 career rushing yards. He also set a school record as a running back, catching 47 passes. In Eddie George's last three year's at OSU he had over 600 carries and only 6 fumbles.

Archie Griffin-Heisman Winner (1974 and 1975)

Archie Griffin is the only two time Heisman winner in the history of the award. He is the only Buckeye to lead the team in rushing for all four of his seasons. He set the current OSU freshman single game record, rushing for 239 yards against North Carolina in his second game. He still has the NCAA record of 31 consecutive games with 100 yards or more rushing. He was a major reason that his team had an impressive 40-5-1 record over four years, winning four Big Ten titles with no losses to Michigan in all four years (one tie in 1973.) He still has the OSU record with 5,589 career yards, which is 6th highest in NCAA history. He is the only player to ever start in four Rose Bowls.

Howard Cassady-Heisman Winner (1955)

Cassady with Woody Hayes (1986)

Howard "Hopalong" Cassady played as a halfback for Ohio State from 1952-1955. Cassady earned the name Hopalong during his first game as a freshman, when he came off the bench to score three touchdowns in the victory over Indiana. The sportswriters described him as hopping all over the field like a performing cowboy, a reference to Hopalong Cassidy, a fictional cowboy character. He was a member of Woody Hayes' first National Championship team in 1954. In that same year he finished #3 in the Heisman voting as a junior. Cassady also played as a defensive back, intercepting 10 passes for 230 yards. Hopalong also played baseball for the Buckeyes, leading the team in home runs and stolen bases. He finished his career with 2,466 career yards, a school record for 14 years. Cassady won the Heisman with 958 yards on the ground and 15 touchdowns in 1955. In that same year he was voted Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year. That award was a big deal considering that in 1954 it went to Willie Mays and in 1956 it went to Mickey Mantle.

Vic Janowicz-Heisman Winner (1950)

Vic Janowicz did a little bit of everything when he played for Ohio State from 1949-1951. He is still considered by many to be the greatest all-around athlete that ever played for the Buckeyes. He passed, ran the ball, kicked, punted and played safety. His best game in 1950 was against Iowa, in which he threw four touchdowns, ran two, and made 10 extra points. In the famous "Snow Bowl" against Michigan in 1950 he had a record 21 punts for 685 yards. He won the Heisman in 1950 with a season total of 16 touchdowns and 875 yards in total offense.

Les Horvath-Heisman Winner (1944)

Les Horvath, may not be a familiar name to today's Ohio State fans, but he has a very significant place in Buckeye history. Not only was he the first Heisman winner at Ohio State, but he was also a member of the Buckeye's first National Championship team in 1942. He played from 1940-1942 and also 1944. Horvath had graduated in 1942, and was studying dentistry in graduate school, when coach Carroll Widdoes (who was holding coach Paul Brown's position during the war) asked Horvath to return for one more year, since the team was depleted due to the war. A new rule had passed allowing him to return for a fourth year of eligibility. He came back to the team and played halfback, quarterback and defensive back. The Buckeyes went 9-0 and finished 2nd in the nation that year. OSU's undefeated record is very impressive when you consider that Ohio State was a member of US Army ASTP, which did not allow trainees to play varsity sports. Other Big Ten Schools such as Michigan and Purdue were a part of the Navy V-12 program which did allow trainees to play. Horvath led the Big Ten in rushing for 669 yards and total offense of 953 yards in his last season. His performance earned him the Heisman at the end of the season.

OSU Heisman Winners

Ohio State has had six Heisman Trophy winners. Only Notre Dame and USC have more, both tied at seven. OSU will most likely add its seventh winner this week. Troy Smith is considered by most everyone a lock for the Heisman Trophy, which will be presented this Saturday, December 9 at 8:00 on ESPN. To honor all of the winners of the Heisman Trophy at Ohio State, I will be posting an entry for each winner in the days leading up to the ceremony. Below are pictures of each of the winners, Les Horvath, Vic Janowicz, Howard Cassady, Archie Griffin and Eddie George. (pictures provided by the Columbus Dispatch)

Les Horvath (1944)

Vic Janowicz (1950)

Howard Cassady (1955)

Archie Griffin (1974 and 1975)

Eddie George (1995)

Guest Panel Games to Consider

The Guest Panel will be predicting the winners for all of the Bowl Games.

Check back for their picks and unique commentary!

Guest Panel Standings-Week 14

Guest Panel

Batman moved back into a tie for first with Ari the Greek. Cleatus McBuckeye, Old Bag of Man and SPAM Sandwichsan all moved up one spot as well. SPAM Sandwichsan was the only panelist to go 6-0, while Shady struggled, going 2-4 this week.

 

Current Standings after Week 14

1.  GREEK (59-22), Last week (4-2)

1. BATMAN (59-22), Last week (5-1) (up one)

3. FUNK (57-24), Last week (4-2)   
4. PHILLY (56-25), Last week (5-1) 
5.  CLEATUS (53-28), Last week (5-1)(up one)

6.  DEERE (52-29), Last week (3-3)
7. SHADY (49-32), Last week (2-4)

8. GUAPO (48-32), Last week (4-2)

9.  OLD BAG (48-33), Last week (5-1)  (up one) 

10. SPAM (47-33), Last week (6-0) (up one)
11. XBOX (46-34), Last week (3-3)

 

1. Arkansas vs. Florida

Arkansas (GREEK, GUAPO, DEERE, FUNK, SHADY, XBOX ) Florida (CLEATUS, BATMAN, OLD BAG, SPAM, PHILLY )

 

2. Nebraska vs. Oklahoma

Nebraska (DEERE, SHADY ) Oklahoma (GREEK, CLEATUS, BATMAN. OLD BAG, SPAM, GUAPO, PHILLY, FUNK, XBOX )

 

3. Rutgers vs. West Virginia

Rutgers (DEERE ) West Virginia (GREEK, CLEATUS, BATMAN, OLD BAG, SPAM, GUAPO, PHILLY, FUNK, SHADY, XBOX )

 

4. Central Michigan vs. Ohio

Central Michigan (SPAM, DEERE ) Ohio (GREEK, CLEATUS, BATMAN, OLD BAG, GUAPO, PHILLY, FUNK, SHADY, XBOX )

 

5. Army vs. Navy

Army (SHADY, XBOX ) Navy (GREEK, CLEATUS, BATMAN, OLD BAG, SPAM, GUAPO, PHILLY, DEERE, FUNK )

 

and the oddball game this week...

6. Louisiana Tech vs. New Mexico State

Louisiana Tech ( ) New Mexico State (GREEK, CLEATUS, BATMAN, OLD BAG, SPAM, GUAPO, PHILLY, DEERE, FUNK, SHADY, XBOX )

Bowl Schedule

2006-07 Bowl Schedule
Date/time	Bowl	Site	Conferences	Matchup
(all ET)
Tue., Dec. 19	Poinsettia	San Diego	Mountain West vs. At-large team	TCU vs. Northern Illinois
8 p.m.
Thu., Dec. 21	Las Vegas	Las Vegas	Mountain West vs. Pac-10	Brigham Young vs. Oregon
8 p.m.
Fri., Dec. 22	New Orleans	New Orleans	Sun Belt vs. Conference USA	Troy vs. Rice
8 p.m.
Sat., Dec. 23	Papajohns.com	Birmingham, Ala.	Big East or MAC vs. Conference USA	South Florida vs. East Carolina
1 p.m.
Sat., Dec. 23	New Mexico	Albuquerque, N.M.	Mountain West vs. WAC	New Mexico vs. San Jose State
4:30 p.m.
Sat., Dec. 23	Armed Forces	Fort Worth	Conference USA vs. Mountain West	Tulsa vs. Utah
8 p.m.
Sat., Dec. 24	Hawaii	Honolulu	Pac-10 vs. WAC	Arizona State vs. Hawaii
8 p.m.
Tue., Dec. 26	Motor City	Detroit	MAC vs. Big Ten	Central Michigan vs. Middle Tennessee*
7:30 p.m.
Wed., Dec. 27	Emerald	San Francisco	Pac-10 vs. ACC	UCLA vs. Florida State
8 p.m.
Thu., Dec. 28	Independence	Shreveport, La.	SEC vs. Big 12	Alabama vs. Oklahoma State
4:30 p.m.
Thu., Dec. 28	Holiday	San Diego	Pac-10 vs. Big 12	California vs. Texas A&M
8 p.m.
Thu., Dec. 28	Texas	Houston	Big 12 vs. Big East or Conference USA	Kansas State vs. Rutgers
8 p.m.
Fri., Dec. 29	Music City	Nashville	SEC vs. ACC	Kentucky vs. Clemson
1 p.m.
Fri., Dec. 29	Sun	El Paso	Pac-10 vs. Big 12 or Big East	Oregon State vs. Missouri
2 p.m.
Fri., Dec. 29	Liberty	Memphis	Conference USA vs. SEC	Houston vs. South Carolina
4:30 p.m.
Fri., Dec. 29	Insight	Tempe, Ariz.	Big 12 vs. Big Ten	Texas Tech vs. Minnesota
7:30 p.m.
Fri., Dec. 29	Champs Sports	Orlando	ACC vs. Big Ten	Maryland vs. Purdue
8 p.m.
Sat., Dec. 30	Meineke Car Care	Charlotte	ACC vs. Big East or Navy	Boston College vs. Navy
1 p.m.
Sat., Dec. 30	Alamo	San Antonio	Big 12 vs. Big Ten	Texas vs. Iowa
4:30 p.m.
Sat., Dec. 30	Chick-Fil-A	Atlanta	SEC vs. ACC	Virginia Tech vs. Georgia
8 p.m.
Sun., Dec. 31	MPC Computers	Boise	WAC vs. ACC	Nevada vs. Miami
7:30 p.m.
Mon., Jan. 1	Outback	Tampa	Big Ten vs. SEC	Penn State vs. Tennessee
11 a.m.
Mon., Jan. 1	Cotton	Dallas	SEC vs. Big 12	Auburn vs. Nebraska
11:30 a.m.
Mon., Jan. 1	Gator	Jacksonville	ACC vs. Big 12 or Big East	Georgia Tech vs. West Virginia
1 p.m.
Mon., Jan. 1	Capital One	Orlando	Big Ten vs. SEC	Wisconsin vs. Arkansas
1 p.m.
Mon., Jan. 1	Rose	Pasadena, Calif.	BCS vs. BCS	Michigan vs. Southern California
5 p.m.
Mon., Jan. 1	Fiesta	Glendale, Ariz.	BCS vs. BCS	Oklahoma vs. Boise State
8:30 p.m.
Tue., Jan. 2	Orange	Miami	BCS vs. BCS	Wake Forest vs. Louisville
8 p.m.
Wed., Jan. 3	Sugar	New Orleans	BCS vs. BCS	Notre Dame vs. LSU
8 p.m.
Sat., Jan. 6	International	Toronto, Canada	Big East vs. MAC	Cincinnati vs. Western Michigan
noon
Sun., Jan. 7	GMAC	Mobile, Ala.	Conference USA vs. MAC	Southern Mississippi vs. Ohio
8 p.m.
Mon., Jan. 8	BCS title game	Glendale, Ariz.	BCS No. 1 vs. BCS No. 2	Ohio State vs. Florida
8 p.m.

Oden Set to Play

BREAKING NEWS! Greg Oden will play in today's game against Valpraiso. He was given clearance on Friday from doctors. Tipoff is 4:00 PM.

Check back later this weekend for a review of his first college debut.

Artificial Turf in Ohio Stadium

As you remember, there was an 0-3 record in Ohio Stadium this season. You ask, how is that possible, the team went undefeated? I am referring to the turf in the Stadium, which was replaced twice during the season and was a major disappointment, not performing well in any of the three versions. As was speculated during the season, OSU will be installing an artificial turf before the beginning of next season. This of course is not the first time Ohio Stadium has had artificial turf. In fact they had it for a long period 1971-1990. Artificial turf has advanced quite a bit since then and you may have not noticed it in sports facilities that you have visited or watched on TV, because it looks and performs like real grass. There are several reasons the Athletic Department made this decision. Most importantly, it will provide a consistent playing surface all season. The turf will also allow Ohio Stadium to host additional events, such as other football games, concerts, and much more. Ohio Stadium has hosted other events in the past, but the grass has provided limitations. The turf will be installed after the Spring game and before June at a cost of $600,000. I will provide updates as the details are released.