Real Pod Wednesdays

It certainly hasn't been a quiet two weeks since our last episode of Real Pod Wednesdays.There was no shortage of Ohio State sports news while Dan was on vacation – headlined, of course, by the long-awaited news of J.T. Tuimoloau committing to Ohio State and becoming the highest-rated defensive player to sign with the Buckeyes in the modern recruiting era.We discuss why landing Tuimoloau is such a big win for Larry Johnson and the Buckeyes, what role we expect to see him play in Ohio State's defensive end rotation as a freshman and at the 15:40 mark, why anything less than winning at least one national championship would be a failure for Ohio State's recruiting class of 2021, which now holds the highest average composite player rating of any Ohio State recruiting class ever.Beginning at 22:50, we also talk about the three commitments Ohio State landed for the recruiting class of 2022 over the past 15 days: Terrance Brooks, Kojo Antwi and Dallan Hayden, and why each of them can also be considered big wins for the Buckeyes as they build up a 2022 class that could be as good if not even better than the 2021 class.Starting at 32:05, Colin talks about his experience in California last week at Elite 11 and The Opening, where he kept a close eye on five Ohio State commits and targets: Quinn Ewers, C.J. Hicks, Kyion Grayes, A.J. Harris and Xavier Nwankpa. We discuss what we learned about Ewers last week – and why he's not a finished product yet – as well as why Harris could be an ideal first commitment for the 2023 class, why Grayes should continue to move up the rankings and how Hicks looked the part of a five-star linebacker.In less positive news, we also talk about Brenan Vernon's commitment to Notre Dame (beginning at 46:25), why that makes Sonny Styles the most important recruit in any class for Ohio State right now and whether there's any reason to be concerned that the Buckeyes don't have any commitments for the 2023 class yet.Finally (53:07), we talk about Duane Washington Jr.'s decision to stay in the NBA draft, E.J. Liddell's decision to stay in school for another year and how both of those decisions could impact Ohio State men's basketball entering the 2021-22 season.

Ohio State has unofficially added a former five-star recruit to its roster for the upcoming season, while it's still trying to woo a current five-star recruit to become a Buckeye this fall.Although it still hasn't been officially announced by him or the program, all indications are that former USC linebacker Palaie Gaoteote is transferring to Ohio State, so we begin this week's episode of Real Pod Wednesdays by discussing why the Buckeyes are bringing him in, what we think he'll bring to Ohio State's defense and what that could mean for the rest of the linebacker depth chart.Of course, we couldn't go too long on this week's podcast without talking about J.T. Tuimoloau's official visit to Ohio State; that conversation begins at 22:14. Dan talks about what it was like to cover Tuimoloau's arrival at the airport, then we discuss our level of confidence that he will end up at Ohio State – or whether Nick Saban will be able to close the deal and get him to Alabama – as well as the possibility that Tuimoloau could join Chris Holtmann's basketball team, too.We also discuss the potential addition of Wilfredo Aybar (38:50), another defensive end who's reclassifying to the class of 2021 and is expected to choose soon between Ohio State and Stanford, and debate whether Emeka Egubka or Marvin Harrison Jr. will have the bigger freshman year at receiver (51:30).(Programming note: Real Pod Wednesdays will be off next week while Dan is on vacation. Our next episode will be published July 7.)

The College Football Playoff appears set to expand to 12 teams, and we're here for it.Even though Colin previously said on Real Pod Wednesdays that he didn't think the playoff should be expanded to more than eight teams, he's changed his mind and now believes 12 teams is the right move for the CFP. Dan agrees, and we discuss why we believe College Football Playoff expansion will be both good for the sport as a whole and a net positive for Ohio State, even though there will be pros and cons for the Buckeyes.We also discuss our one big gripe with the recommended playoff format – quarterfinals being at bowl sites rather than on-campus home games for the top four seeds – and answer listener questions about the possible impact of playoff expansion on Ohio State recruiting and Notre Dame remaining independent.After reacting in real time (35:22) to the then-breaking news that Aaron Craft is returning to Carmen's Crew for this year's TBT, we quickly shift our focus back to football to discuss the developments so far in a busy month of June on the recruiting trail. We discuss the commitment of wide receiver Kaleb Brown (37:55) and how he could fit into Ohio State's offense as a slot receiver/H-back, look ahead to J.T. Tuimoloau's official visit this weekend (44:45) and Dan shares his takeaways from covering camps (51:10).We also discuss the addition of graduate transfer kicker Noah Ruggles (55:46), plus why Ohio State also pursued graduate transfer wide receiver Daylen Baldwin (58:47) – before he ultimately committed to Michigan – and whether we should expect the Buckeyes to pursue another transfer receiver.Finally, we answer a few more listener questions (1:07:20) on what we would change about the recruiting process, who will round out the Ohio State men's basketball recruiting class of 2022 and who's the most underrated or unheralded player on the current Ohio State football team (or whether there actually is one).

With June now underway and the dead period over, all eyes are on the recruiting trail as college football teams throughout the country finally get to host visitors for the first time in over 14 months.Eleven Warriors' own Andrew Ellis joins us for the first 30 minutes of this week's Real Pod Wednesdays to help us preview the month ahead for Ohio State football recruiting. Who are the most important June visitors for the Buckeyes, who should we have on commitment watch and where do things stand with J.T. Tuimoloau? Our resident recruiting guru joins us to discuss all of that and much more.We also spend some time talking about Ohio State basketball recruiting and which players Chris Holtmann and his staff could look to add to their 2022 class (30:25) and what we learned about Kristina Johnson, Gene Smith and Kevin Warren from Ohio State's document dump last week (36:54). We wrap up the show by taking your questions (52:25) about C.J. Stroud's potential, how this year's offensive line could compare to last year's offensive line, why the rich keep getting richer in college football and how concerned you should be about Ohio State's special teams.(Programming note: Real Pod Wednesdays will be off next week while Colin is on vacation. We'll be back with our next new episode on June 16.)

With an unprecedented year in Ohio State sports nearing its conclusion and significant changes coming soon in college sports, we thought it would be a good time to invite Gene Smith on Real Pod Wednesdays.In his first-ever appearance on the show, Ohio State's athletic director spent 35 minutes talking to us about a wide variety of topics, including:2:50: Navigating the COVID-19 pandemic, what he has learned from the past year and planning for the post-pandemic future9:45: What needs to happen for Ohio Stadium to be full this fall14:30: Name, image and likeness benefits coming to college sports18:25: What College Football Playoff expansion could look like22:47: Why he chose to sign a contract extension at Ohio State rather than become Pac-12 commissioner26:33: Why the Ohio State athletic department shouldn't have to make further budget cuts28:42: Why he believes Chris Holtmann has “done an excellent job” as Ohio State's men's basketball coach33:08: Which Ohio State football players have particularly impressed him both on and off the fieldFollowing our conversation with Gene, Colin and Dan also discuss the name, image and likeness bill that was introduced in the state of Ohio this week and why that shouldn't matter much if the NCAA actually, finally passes its name, image and likeness legislation in June.

With the throes of the offseason upon us, it's time to take a look ahead to Ohio State's 2021 football schedule.That's our main topic of discussion on this week's Real Pod Wednesdays, in which we dissect Ohio State's 2021 football schedule from start to finish, identify the “most losable” games for the Buckeyes and predict whether Ohio State will have another undefeated regular season or drop a regular-season game for the first time in Ryan Day's tenure.After our analysis of this fall's regular season slate, we shift gears to another listener-suggested topic and discuss the pros and cons of potential College Football Playoff expansion for both Ohio State and the sport at large. That conversation starts at 37:30.Finally (55:25), we share our latest thoughts on how we think things could shake out at the running back position between Master Teague, Miyan Williams and TreVeyon Henderson.

The biggest news in Ohio State football over the past week wasn't good news for the Buckeyes.That news came on Saturday, when Tennessee linebacker Henry To'o To'o – Ohio State's top target in the transfer portal this year – announced he was transferring to Alabama, thwarting the Buckeyes' plans to add him to the middle of their defense.We start this week's episode by discussing the impact of To'o To'o's decision on the Buckeyes' 2021 linebacker corps and who we expect to start at linebacker now.We also took this week as an opportunity to discuss Ohio State's efforts to compete with Alabama both on the field and on the recruiting trail (starting at 19:13). After Alabama landed transfers from To'o To'o and former Ohio State wide receiver Jameson Williams in the same week, while continuing to battle the Buckeyes for five-star defensive end recruit J.T. Tuimoloau, the Crimson Tide's standing as the team Ohio State is chasing has only increased.Later in the show (33:54), we talk about two players Ohio State did land commitments from last week – three-star defensive backs Kye Stokes and Ryan Turner – and evaluate what the Buckeyes' priorities should be now as they look to continue filling out their recruiting class of 2022.Finally (42:30), we take your questions about what Tuimoloau's role could be if he chooses the Buckeyes, why we believe the stands will be full at Ohio Stadium this fall and which opponent – if any – could be the sleeper opponent on the Buckeyes' regular season schedule.

Another NFL draft is complete, and people are already looking to ahead what could be another prolific class for Ohio State next year.Before we look ahead, we start by talking about the 10 Buckeyes who were drafted last year – starting, of course, with Justin Fields, and how we expect things to play out for him as he starts his career with the Chicago Bears.We also discuss how the Cleveland Browns might have gotten a steal in Tommy Togiai (7:35), why Pete Werner landed in a great spot in New Orleans (12:15) and more on Ohio State's 2021 NFL draft class as a whole, including how it explains what happened in last year's national championship game (24:40).Our discussion on Ohio State's potential 2022 draft prospects begins at 27:35, including whether Chris Olave or Garrett Wilson will be the Buckeyes' top wide receiver prospect (29:05), why Jeremy Ruckert could be their next-best prospect (30:50), what Zach Harrison (33:45) and Sevyn Banks (34:33) need to do to make good on their early first-round projections and why Nicholas Petit-Frere (38:00), Taron Vincent (42:45) and Cameron Brown (44:27) could be Buckeyes who shoot up the draft board.We also talk about Jameson Williams' decision to leave Ohio State for Alabama (45:30) – and why we really don't think that hurts the Buckeyes' loaded wide receiver room very much – and why the Ohio State basketball might not add anyone else to their roster even after Ibrahima Diallo's decision to transfer opened up a roster spot.

The speculation is almost over.After months of debate on where Justin Fields could be selected and an exhausting cycle of rumors about why the former Ohio State quarterback might not be a top pick, we'll finally find out on Thursday night where Fields is going. We start this week's episode of Real Pod Wednesdays by discussing where we think Fields will end up when the picks are finally made tomorrow.While Fields is Ohio State's only projected first-round pick, there's plenty of other Buckeyes who also have a chance to be selected over the draft's three days, so we also make our dueling predictions for what order we believe the rest of the Buckeyes will be selected in and in which round we think each of them will come off the board.In the final 20 minutes of this week's show (beginning at 41:30), we have a quick-hitting discussion on some of the non-NFL draft storylines from the past week in Ohio State sports, including:Ryan Day's timeline for naming a starting quarterbackDay's admission that he was surprised by how well Ohio State played against Clemson – and why Colin doesn't believe himMore confirmation that the bullet is realThe impact of Dasan McCullough's flip to IndianaHow Ohio State men's basketball could replace departed assistant coach Terry Johnson

Saturday's Ohio State spring game left us with plenty to analyze and discuss on this week's episode of Real Pod Wednesdays.We finally got to watch Ohio State's quarterbacks throw passes in Ohio Stadium, saw numerous early enrollees impress in their debuts in the Shoe and learned that the bullet is in fact real among other takeaways from Saturday's scrimmage, which concludes Ohio State's spring practice season for 2021.A rundown of some of what we talked about on this week's show:3:30: 22 minutes of quarterback talk, including why C.J. Stroud looks like the frontrunner but why Kyle McCord should also get a shot to compete for the job in preseason camp25:30: The other freshmen who stood out on Saturday – Jack Sawyer, Emeka Egbuka, Marvin Harrison Jr. and TreVeyon Henderson – and why Ohio State has to find ways to get them all on the field this year37:54: The bullet is real! Why we think that new position can make a positive impact on Ohio State's defense, and what else we think about the state of Ohio State's passing defense coming out of the spring46:45: The under-the-radar players who also shined in the spring gameFor the final 15 minutes of this week's podcast (beginning at 51:30), we shift gears to Ohio State basketball to talk about the addition of Joey Brunk, what he brings to the Buckeyes and why Ohio State should have one of college basketball's most complete rosters in 2021-22 even though it settled for Brunk rather than landing five-star center Efton Reid.

It's the final week of spring practice at Ohio State, and there's still plenty happening at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center.After talking to Ohio State's offensive linemen and defensive linemen last week and then watching another spring practice on Monday, we have new takeaways on how the quarterback competition is going, how things might stack up at wide receiver, why there's a real competition happening on the interior offensive line and why Ohio State should have lots of options on the defensive line. And we're looking forward to learning more about the Buckeyes when we watch them play their spring game in Ohio Stadium on Saturday at noon (Big Ten Network).A rundown of some of what we talked about on this week's show:6:00: Why Kyle McCord can't be counted out in the quarterback competition9:24: Why Julian Fleming isn't a lock to make the two-deep at wide receiver – and why that says more about Ohio State's receiver depth than Fleming21:14: How Luke Wypler and Josh Fryar are making a real push for starting jobs on the interior offensive line31:00: What we're expecting from Taron Vincent this season48:20: Why Colin is most excited to watch TreVeyon Henderson on Saturday54:45: Who we'd each pick first in a spring game draft1:05:40: Why the move to a 4-2-5 defense wouldn't be an overreaction

We're finally about to talk about spring football observations that we've made with our own eyes.Well, Dan's own two eyes – as only one media member per outlet was able to attend the two practices that were open to the media this past week – but nonetheless, we have plenty to talk about on this week's Real Pod Wednesdays as we've learned more about how the quarterback competition could stack up, what Ohio State's 2021 defense could look, multiple Buckeyes playing new positions and more.Among the topics discussed in this week's show, which is all about spring football:1:47: C.J. Stroud looks like the frontrunner at quarterback so far12:05: How Ohio State's defense could look different in 202124:10: Lingering question marks at outside cornerback31:51: What to make of Demario McCall and Gee Scott Jr.'s position changes44:30: Taron Vincent is impressing Ryan Day at defensive tackle50:56: MVP picks for next week's spring game

With everything that happened on both the Ohio State football and basketball fronts over the past two days, we needed a little extra time to digest it all before recording this week's Real Pod Wednesdays.That's why this week's episode is coming a little later on Wednesday than usual, as we talked about the latest happenings in Ohio State sports (though E.J. Liddell's decision to test the NBA waters came after we recorded) including Ohio State's football pro day and the basketball Buckeyes' addition of Jamari Wheeler.We start with pro day, which only gave both of us more reason to believe Justin Fields should be a top-three pick in this year's NFL draft. We also talk about some of the other standouts from the event, including Baron Browning, Pete Werner and Tommy Togiai, and what we learned about the injuries Josh Myers and Wyatt Davis played through at the end of last season.Our weekly look at what's happening in Ohio State spring football (19:47) takes us to the linebackers after we talked to Teradja Mitchell, Dallas Gant and Al Washington last week. We're pretty confident Mitchell and Gant will be two of Ohio State's new starting linebackers this year, but who will start at Sam? Is Craig Young the man to beat at that position, or could a transfer addition be in the works? And does Gant's foot injury potentially open the door for another linebacker such as Tommy Eichenberg or Cody Simon to push for the starting job at Mike?We also talk (27:32) about how the absence of several other projected starters or key players due to injuries this spring, including Haskell Garrett, Harry Miller, Cameron Brown and Kourt Williams in addition to Gant, could impact the Buckeyes in their preparation for the fall.In the second half of the show (39:05), we turn our attention to the basketball Buckeyes and their latest addition, as Colin explains why Ohio State quickly moved to add a guard through the transfer portal and what Wheeler's role could be for the 2021-22 Buckeyes. We also talk (46:17) about the Buckeyes' potential options to still add a coveted big man to their roster.Additional news on the basketball front came last Friday when we learned that Indiana had made a run at trying to hire Chris Holtmann away from Ohio State, so Colin shares what he learned about the Hoosiers' efforts to poach Holtmann (51:05) while we also talk about the impact Thad Matta could make in his return to college basketball as Indiana's associate athletic director for men's basketball administration.Stay tuned until the end of the show, too, to hear why Colin is bullish about Ohio State basketball taking a step forward and being a real contender next season.

Ohio State's basketball season came to an earlier end than expected with a first-round loss in the NCAA Tournament, leaving some questions about the state of the program after Chris Holtmann's fourth year.That's where we begin this week's episode of Real Pod Wednesdays, as we discuss what happened to Ohio State basketball in Friday's loss to Oral Roberts, what we make of the Buckeyes' 2020-21 basketball season as a whole and why we think next year will be a crucial year for Holtmann and the Buckeyes – who should have their best roster yet of Holtmann's tenure at Ohio State – to take the next step and prove they can win in the postseason.We also discuss whether the Big Ten was really overrated this year (22:48), whether the Big Ten's 20-game conference schedule and late-finishing tournament hurt the conference in the NCAA Tournament and consider a listener-submitted question: Is there any number of men's basketball wins Ohio State fans would trade a football win for? (Feel free to comment with your answers.)In the second half of this week's show (32:35), we discuss our takeaways from the first week of spring football interviews, including the Buckeyes' plans to experiment on defense, Miyan Williams' rise and TreVeyon Henderson's confidence. We also play “buy or sell” (44:30) on whether Zach Harrison will live up to the hype in 2021, whether a full spring will actually make a big difference for Ohio State's defense, whether the bullet will actually exist this year and whether Ohio State will ever play two running backs on the field at once.Finally, Dan shares a parting thought (58:20) on the threatening messages E.J. Liddell received last week and what he hopes people will learn from that disturbing situation.

It's a big week for both the Ohio State men's basketball and football teams as the basketball Buckeyes begin NCAA Tournament play while the football Buckeyes begin spring practice.The men's basketball Buckeyes have momentum back on their side after making a run to the Big Ten Tournament final this past weekend, and we start by reviewing the action from Indianapolis. We liked what we saw from the Buckeyes in three wins against Minnesota, Purdue and Michigan – except for those late-game struggles – and were especially impressed by Duane Washington Jr.'s record-setting performance.Now the question is, how far can Ohio State go in the NCAA Tournament? We take a look at Ohio State's first-round matchup with Oral Roberts (21:00) and potential second-round matchup with either Florida or Virginia Tech – and why the Buckeyes really should make it to at least the Sweet 16 – and then consider whether Ohio State can make a run all the way to the Final Four. Are the Buckeyes good enough to beat Baylor? Could Arkansas or Texas Tech trip them up in the Sweet 16? Do their Final Four hopes hinge on Washington playing like an All-American? We discuss that all.Then, with just two days to go until the start of spring football at Ohio State, we take a look at the biggest questions surrounding the Buckeyes' defense and what we'll be watching for on that side of the ball this spring. (ICYMI: We previewed the spring for Ohio State's offense on last week's episode.)We debate whether personnel or scheme is the bigger area where Ohio State's defense needs to improve this spring (42:07), discuss the need for players other than Haskell Garrett to emerge as stars and focus in specifically on the concerns Ohio State must address their spring at all three levels of their defense.

Spring football is (hopefully) on the horizon, and the Big Ten Tournament is on tap this week.Ohio State is scheduled to start spring football practices on March 19, though a bit of doubt was cast over that start date when Ohio State announced Tuesday it had paused football activities for one week due to a rise in COVID-19 cases. We don't believe that pause is anything to panic about, though, and we discuss why for the first 10 minutes of this week's Real Pod Wednesdays.The plan is still for the Buckeyes to return to the Woody Hayes Athletic Center next week and hold their first practice of the spring two Fridays from now, so we begin our two-part spring football preview this week with conversation on what we'll be watching for from Ohio State's offense this spring.What will each of the three potential starting quarterbacks bring to that competition, how could a crowded running back competition shake out, is there room for anyone new to break into the wide receiver rotation, who will be the No. 2 tight end behind Jeremy Ruckert and who's likely to be the new starters on the interior offensive line? We discuss all of that and more.We also preview this week's Big Ten men's basketball tournament (48:50), where the Buckeyes will play their first game against either Northwestern or Minnesota on Thursday afternoon. After Ohio State lost four straight games to end the regular season, we discuss whether the Buckeyes can get back on track in Indianapolis, how many games we actually expect them to win there and whether that will enough to secure a No. 2 seed when the NCAA Tournament bracket is set on Sunday.

This is March, which means two things are coming soon: The NCAA Tournament and spring football.Ohio State basketball fans might not be quite as excited for March Madness as they were a couple weeks ago because the Buckeyes have lost their last three games, including losses to Michigan State and Iowa since our last podcast, but we don't think Ohio State fans should give up hope of a deep tournament run yet.We spend the first half of this week's Real Pod Wednesdays discussing basketball once again, as we analyze why Ohio State's offense struggled in its last couple of games, why the Buckeyes can't afford any bad offensive days in March and which Buckeyes other than E.J. Liddell and Duane Washington Jr. most need to step up in March – but also why Ohio State still isn't out of the conversation for a No. 1 seed, and why the expectation for the Buckeyes should still be to make it to at least the second weekend of the tournament.In the second half of the show (28:28), we begin looking ahead to spring football, which we now know will start in just over two weeks. Each of us draft four players who we're most intrigued to see this spring and discuss why.At the 44:44 mark, we also spend some discussing the ongoing debate about Justin Fields as an NFL draft prospect and make our cases – after a week where Fields dropped as far as the 24th pick in one mock draft – for why Fields should be one of the draft's top picks and why the concerns some have about his ability to make reads and go through progressions are overblown.

Ohio State couldn't beat Michigan, but the basketball Buckeyes still look like one of the nation's best teams.With less than three weeks to go until Selection Sunday, that's where we start on this week's Real Pod Wednesdays, discussing the outlook for Ohio State basketball following Sunday's 92-87 loss to the Wolverines.Although there's been a lot to like about this year's Buckeyes, particularly how explosive they've been offensively, Sunday's loss exposed some problems – Ohio State's not great defensively, and Hunter Dickinson exploited the Buckeyes' lack of size – and we discuss whether the Buckeyes can fix those issues and how problematic it will be if they can't. We also make our predictions for how the Buckeyes will finish out the regular season, how far they'll go in the Big Ten Tournament, what seed they'll earn in the NCAA Tournament and how deep they'll ultimately go in the Big Dance.(Note: This podcast was recorded on Tuesday afternoon, prior to Michigan State's win over Illinois, so that was not factored into our discussion about the Spartans and Illini.)In the second half of this week's episode (beginning at 39:30), we shift gears to football for a discussion on the Buckeyes' second-year players. Which members of the class of 2020 do we expect to make the biggest impact in 2021, and who are we most intrigued to watch this fall? Kourt Williams, Cody Simon, Lathan Ransom, Ty Hamilton and Mitchell Melton are among the Buckeyes we discuss.Also, at our listeners' requests, we select some of our favorite non-superstar Buckeyes from the past decade – Amedeo Della Valle, BB Landers and Kenny Guiton all make appearances – and remember some of the most impactful walk-ons in recent Ohio State history.

The Ohio State football program got some good news last week, and the Ohio State basketball team is entering a huge week.We start this week's episode of Real Pod Wednesdays by discussing the football news of the week, led by Al Washington's decision to stay at Ohio State rather than become the defensive coordinator at Tennessee. We also discuss the three new hires Ohio State made last week – Todd Fitch and Paul Rhoads as analysts and C.J. Barnett as director of player development – and why each of those hires make sense for the Buckeyes.In the second segment of this week's show (beginning at 24:45), we shift over to the hardcourt to discuss a massive week ahead for the men's basketball Buckeyes, which starts with a Thursday night game at Penn State but is headlined by a hugely anticipated rivalry game on Sunday afternoon, when Ohio State will host Michigan in a matchup of two teams currently ranked in the top four nationally. What must the Buckeyes do to beat Michigan, and could the looming threat of the Wolverines lead to a letdown in State College? We discuss all of that as well as what the Buckeyes must still do to earn a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.We then shift gears back to football for the third segment of our show (40:55) for a discussion about the mostly unproven group of 14 five-star recruits on Ohio State's roster. Not including the two established stars of that group, Garrett Wilson and Nicholas Petit-Frere, we discuss which five-stars we are most confident will start playing like five-stars in 2021 and which ones the Buckeyes most need to step up this year.Finally, we answer a pair of listener questions (54:20) about the importance of recruiting vs. player development vs. X's and O's and about what creates the elite culture that is so often referenced in Ohio State's football program.

Ohio State's defensive struggles in 2020 shouldn't be blamed solely on Kerry Coombs, and there's reason to believe he can fix the Buckeyes' defense in 2021.Eleven Warriors' own Kyle Jones joins us on this week's episode of Real Pod Wednesdays to explain that, as we spend about 30 minutes talking with our X's and O's expert for a deep dive on what went wrong with Ohio State's defense in 2020 and how Coombs and the Buckeyes could get things back on track.As Jones also wrote about in his most recent Film Study, the problems with Ohio State's defensive scheme that opponents exposed this past season can be traced back to 2019, when Jeff Hafley was still co-defensive coordinator and Coombs was still with the Tennessee Titans. While Coombs has been in the crosshairs of Ohio State fans since the team's defensive issues culminated with the Buckeyes allowing 52 points to Alabama in the national championship games, Jones discusses why Ohio State's existing defensive structure and an offseason impacted by COVID-19 also led to the problems on that side of the ball.Jones also shares his thoughts on Ohio State's decisions to promote Matt Barnes and Parker Fleming – which is what we open this week's show discussing before Jones joins at the 15:10 mark – as well as what changes he believes the Buckeyes are likely to make to their defensive scheme in 2021, why they relied on the 4-4 defense as much as they did in 2020 and why Bill Belichick is who he'd most like to sit down and watch film with.Later in this week's show, we also discuss the continued rise of the Ohio State men's basketball team (44:35) – and whether the Buckeyes could really make a Final Four run – and answer some more listener questions (51:37) about Ohio State football, including what Zach Harrison must improve upon to have a breakout junior season, why the Buckeyes need to work on their offensive scheme this offseason too and whether the mythical “bullet” position will actually exist in 2021.

Even though it's been an uneventful National Signing Day, there's still a lot to like about Ohio State's 2021 recruiting class.While the Buckeyes would have liked to land a commitment from four-star linebacker Raesjon Davis on Wednesday – and they certainly still want to land a commitment from five-star defensive end J.T. Tuimoloau, who isn't making his decision for another two or three months – they already have a loaded class of 21 signees, including 15 who are already on campus as midyear enrollees, that they can feel good about.In the first half of this week's show, we take a closer look at the new class of freshmen. While we'd already talked some on Real Pod Wednesdays about the five-star trio of Jack Sawyer, TreVeyon Henderson and Kyle McCord, we dive deeper into the class this week to talk about some of the other new Buckeyes you need to about, including Jakailin Johnson, Jordan Hancock and four more defensive backs (10:20), defensive tackles Mike Hall and Tyleik Williams (19:20), guard Donovan Jackson (21:55), the wide receiver trio of Emeka Egbuka, Jayden Ballard and Marvin Harrison Jr. (24:00) and running back Evan Pryor and linebacker Reid Carrico (27:20).We also provide our answers to the following five “Call Your Shot” questions posed by Colin:Will Sawyer make Larry Johnson's Mount Rushmore of defensive ends? (33:00)Who will be the highest NFL draft pick from this class among the prospects ranked outside the top 100? (35:15)Which defender from the class not named Sawyer or Tuimoloau will start first at Ohio State? (36:35)Which member of the class will make the most money from name, image and likeness reform? (37:00)Which player in this class will Ohio State fans fall in love with? (39:20)After that, we spend the second half of this week's show answering your questions about a wide variety of topics, including:Is promoting Parker Fleming to replace Greg Mattison an underwhelming hire? (41:00)Ranking the assistant coaches, Mickey Marotti and Mark Pantoni in order of their importance to Ohio State (49:20)Is there reason to be concerned about Quinn Ewers flipping back to Texas? (1:03:20)How deep a run can Ohio State men's basketball make in the NCAA Tournament? (1:09:30)What are your go-to snacks for the Super Bowl? (1:17:15)(Note: This episode of Real Pod Wednesdays was recorded on Tuesday, before Parker Fleming's hire was made official on Wednesday morning.)

Ohio State has a vacancy to fill on its coaching staff, it just might have a frontrunner at quarterback and we're ready to discuss how the Buckeyes' depth chart could stack up in 2021.We begin this week's episode of Real Pod Wednesdays by discussing our takeaways from Ryan Day's recent press conference, led by the news that co-defensive coordinator Greg Mattison is retiring at the end of the month. How will the Buckeyes replace Mattison? We discuss why this could be Day's most important hire yet, why you probably shouldn't get your hopes up for a splashy hire and how that could make 2021 a true prove-it year for Kerry Coombs.Although Day didn't divulge any insight into who might have the upper hand in Ohio State's quarterback competition, we still find ourselves believing that the starting job could be C.J. Stroud's to lose, so we spend some time discussing why we think that beginning at the 22:40 mark.From there, we continue with a discussion about how the rest of the Buckeyes' 2021 depth chart could stack up at every position on offense and defense and which starting positions could be most up for grabs this offseason.Finally (1:02:50), we answer your listener questions about where the Buckeyes should be ranked in the preseason polls, which players are entering make-or-break offseasons, whether Ohio State will win a national championship while Urban Meyer is coaching in the NFL and more.

Now that we know which key players will and won't be back, it's time to start looking ahead to Ohio State's 2021 season.The Buckeyes' 2021 roster took shape over the last few days as Justin Fields, Tommy Togiai, Josh Myers, Wyatt Davis and Shaun Wade all announced they'd be leaving early for the NFL draft, but Ohio State also got some great news as Chris Olave, Thayer Munford, Jeremy Ruckert and Haskell Garrett – among others – all announced they'd be back for another season in Columbus.We spend the first 26 minutes of this week's show discussing those developments, including just how loaded Ohio State's receiver room will be with Olave's return, why Munford and Nicholas Petit-Frere could be college football's best offensive tackle pairing and how the Buckeyes can survive the somewhat surprising departure of Togiai. (Note: This podcast was recorded before Garrett announced his decision to return on Tuesday evening.)Then, we dive into the three-way competition Ohio State will have between C.J. Stroud, Jack Miller and Kyle McCord to replace Justin Fields at quarterback, including why we believe Stroud is a slight frontrunner to win the job and why we're certainly not ruling out McCord as a true freshman.Beginning at 35:40, we discuss our other big questions for 2021 as the offseason begins, including what the running back rotation could look like next season, why we are concerned Ohio State's defensive struggles could continue next year (41:00) and why we still believe the Buckeyes will be back in the national championship hunt next season (50:00).Finally, we answer a handful of listener-submitted questions (54:25) including your questions about which freshman could make the biggest immediate impact, which returning player has the most to prove in 2021, what the Buckeyes could look to accomplish through the transfer portal this offseason and reasons to be encouraged about Ohio State's returning defensive backs.

The national championship game didn't go well for Ohio State, but there are still plenty of positives we can take away from the 2020 season.Ohio State was blown out by Alabama, 52-24, in Monday night's national title game, and we start by discussing our takeaways from the Buckeyes' disappointing performance against the Crimson Tide. Of course, much of that discussion centers around their struggles on pass defense – naturally leading to additional discussion about what changes Ryan Day and Kerry Coombs might need to make in 2021 to get the defense back on track – though Colin argues that the Buckeyes' subpar performance on offense was actually the biggest reason why they lost to Alabama.At the 30-minute mark, we pivot to a more positive conversation by talking about the impact Justin Fields made on the program during his two years as Ohio State's starting quarterback. Then, we review the 2020 season as a whole and discuss why we think the season should still be considered a success (36:00) and name our offensive MVPs (other than Fields), defensive MVPs and biggest surprise players for the season (46:12).We also answer your questions about potential offseason staff changes, Shaun Wade's season and NFL future and more.

Ohio State proved us wrong.Yes, we both picked Clemson to beat Ohio State in last week's Sugar Bowl, and we're here to admit we whiffed on our predictions. The Buckeyes didn't just beat the Tigers, they rolled to a 21-point victory, as Justin Fields had the performance of his career, Trey Sermon continued his Ezekiel Elliott-esque postseason run and Ohio State dominated both sides of the line of scrimmage.We spend the first half of this week's episode going over all the highlights from the Buckeyes' 49-28 win, how Justin Fields furthered his case for being Ohio State's best quarterback ever, how Brent Venables' Clemson defense looked completely overmatched and which other players and units impressed us most in New Orleans.Then, around the 36:30 mark, we turn our sights ahead to the national championship clash with Alabama, which both of us expect to be a shootout between two great offenses and two suspect defenses. And this time around, we're believes in the Buckeyes' potential to win even though they're once again an underdog by more than a touchdown.There's reason for confidence that Fields, Sermon and the rest of Ohio State's offense can keep things rolling, but there's no question the Buckeyes' defense is in for its toughest test of the season against Heisman winner DeVonta Smith, Mac Jones, Najee Harris and the rest of Alabama's offense. What does Ohio State's defense need to be able to do for the Buckeyes to have a chance to win, and what does Ohio State's offense need to do to overcome the likelihood the Crimson Tide will put a big number on the scoreboard?We discuss it all, and answer your listener-submitted questions about the matchup, before giving our best bets for the game (we're taking the over and the points) and taking our best guesses at how the game will play out.

The game we've been waiting for all year long is finally here.This week's Real Pod Wednesdays is all about Friday's College Football Playoff semifinal at the Sugar Bowl, starting with an interview with Brad Senkiw, who covers Clemson for 105.5 The Roar and Clemson SI. We get Brad's insight on why Clemson fans are so confident entering this game, where the Tigers are better and worse than last season and what the biggest areas of concern for the Tigers are entering their matchup with Ohio State.After that, we embark on a wide-ranging discussion about the game from Ohio State's perspective, including: How important this game is for the Buckeyes to remain alongside Clemson and Alabama as one of college football's elite teams (22:00)How Ohio State has to play its best football in this game, and what that actually means (28:00)Why Ohio State could have the edge in passing offense, rushing offense and rushing defense, and why Clemson's passing offense vs. Ohio State's passing defense could outweigh those three combined (33:40)Why Clemson's offense will present a different test than Indiana – and why that might be one Ohio State is better equipped to handle (35:42)What to expect from Trey Sermon and Justin Fields against Clemson (51:40)Brent Venables' sign-stealing and what Ohio State could do to counteract that (59:30)The single most important things Ohio State must do to beat Clemson (1:07:50)All in all, you get an hour and 20 minutes of Ohio State vs. Clemson talk on this week's Real Pod Wednesdays before we wrap up the show with a brief Three Things We Think on why Ohio State should stop recruiting H-backs, how Kerry Coombs is rolling on the recruiting trail and why it could be important for quarterback recruiting for Justin Fields to change the narrative about Ohio State quarterbacks in the NFL.

Ohio State is the Big Ten champion for the fourth year in a row, and is heading back to the College Football Playoff for the second year in a row, but it might not be if not for Trey Sermon.We had to start there on this week's episode of Real Pod Wednesdays, as we broke down Sermon's record-breaking performance against Northwestern, how he improved so much after a disappointing start of the season and why we believe his success can continue in the College Football Playoff.Then, we look at the big reason why Ohio State needed Sermon to step up in its 22-10 win over the Wildcats, in which Justin Fields had his worst game as a Buckeye. Should we be confident Fields will get back on track next week against Clemson, or is there real reason for concern about Ohio State's passing attack? We consider the factors that led to his struggles against Northwestern and what Fields and his coaches will need to do to be better prepared for Brent Venables' defense.We also question why Ryan Day waited so long to commit to the run against Northwestern – and why that might not matter against Clemson, as the Buckeyes are probably going to have to be able to both pass and run effectively to beat the Tigers – and discuss our takeaways from Ohio State's defensive performance against the Wildcats (with the acknowledgement that Ohio State is about to face a much tougher offense next week).In the second half of this week's show (41:30), we dive into the matchup with Clemson with a look at how Dabo Swinney became Ohio State fans' most hated villain, which Tigers you should know about other than Trevor Lawrence and Travis Etienne and how Ohio State stacks up against Clemson position-by-position.For this week's Three Things We Think (1:03:15), we discuss why Ohio State doesn't have as many national award candidates this year as it usually does, why Haskell Garrett deserves to be an All-American and highlight how Cormontae Hamilton and Miyan Williams have flashed over the past two games despite very limited action.Finally, we answer your questions (1:12:49) about Indiana getting the shaft from playing in a New Year's Six bowl, which seniors could come back for a bonus year and how the Big Ten's return-to-play protocol ensures anyone who tests positive for COVID-19 has ample time to practice before playing in a game.

There's a lot happening in the world of Ohio State football this week.Today is Signing Day for the recruiting class of 2021, which means the Buckeyes have now officially inked another star-studded crop of players who will join the team next season. Typically, that would take center stage this week, but because of this year's modified college football schedule, Ohio State is set to play in the Big Ten Championship Game on Saturday, with the College Football Playoff set to be chosen on Sunday.We start this week's episode by previewing the matchup with Northwestern and sharing our thoughts on why we believe the Buckeyes should stack up well in that matchup.Then, we make our predictions of what we expect the College Football Playoff field to look like on Sunday – and reiterate why we're confident Ohio State will make the CFP just as long as it beats Northwestern, regardless of whether the game's close or a blowout.In the second half of this week's show (31:20), we bring in Eleven Warriors recruiting analyst Zack Carpenter to get his thoughts on the class that Ohio State signed on Wednesday, as all three identify some of the players in the class who we're most looking forward to seeing play for the Buckeyes.Finally, in Three Things We Think (50:20), we talk about the potential for Haskell Garrett to return to Ohio State for another year, how Big Ten Offensive Lineman of the Year Wyatt Davis might not have even been Ohio State's best offensive lineman this year and how Kyle McCord adds to a quarterback room that's going to be loaded even after Justin Fields leaves Columbus.

Although there's reason to be disappointed this week, there's still plenty of feel good about.The disappointment is obvious – Ohio State won't be playing Michigan this year for the first time in over 100 years – and we couldn't start this week's episode of Real Pod Wednesdays anywhere but there as we reflect on what we'll miss as we don't get to watch the Buckeyes play the Wolverines this weekend.The good news for the Buckeyes, though, is they're still sitting a good position to make the College Football Playoff, especially now that they are locked into the Big Ten Championship Game. Ohio State could certainly help its cause by dominating Northwestern, and we discuss why we think that should be the expectation for the Buckeyes next weekend (17:40), but also why we're not sure that will necessarily even matter (23:50), as we think there's only one scenario – Florida beating Alabama in the SEC Championship Game and Clemson beating Notre Dame in the ACC Championship Game – that spells any real trouble for Ohio State's playoff chances, if it even does, as long as Ohio State wins next weekend's game.At the risk of sounding like a homer or a hypocrite, Dan explains (38:05) why he changed his mind from last week about the Big Ten's decision to remove the six-game minimum, and why he ultimately believes the Big Ten got it right by changing the rules to allow Ohio State to play in the Big Ten Championship Game over Indiana.Then, we share our takeaways from the 52-12 win over Michigan State, including the impressive performance by Max Wray and Ohio State's other fill-in starters on the offensive line (49:50), how impressive Justin Fields was given the circumstances (56:10), Trey Sermon having a breakout performance (58:55) and Haskell Garrett's emergence as a stud defensive tackle (1:03:25).In Three Things We Think (1:11:00), we talk about how it looks like Jim Harbaugh is actually going to get a contract extension at Michigan, how it helps Ohio State the longer Harbaugh stays at Michigan and Tom Herman stays at Texas and why this year has made the case for the College Football Playoff to expand to eight teams.Finally, we answer your questions (1:27:05) about Zach Harrison's development, whether Miyan Williams could be a factor at running back and the proper way to eat French fries.

Just a few hours after we published last week's episode of Real Pod Wednesdays, 2020 struck again.That's when the news started to leak out that Ohio State was battling positive COVID-19 cases within the program, and by the end of the week, the Buckeyes had to cancel their road trip to Illinois, marking the second time in three weeks that Ohio State has had a game canceled.So that's what where we start on this week's episode of RPW, as we discuss why Ohio State made the decision to cancel (7:50) – and why that might have, hopefully saved this week's trip to Michigan State – followed by how that could impact Ohio State's chances of making the College Football Playoff (18:00). Is Ohio State a sure bet to make the playoff if it plays the remainder of its three scheduled games and wins out, and do the Buckeyes need to play all three of those games to make the CFP? We discuss the various scenarios that could help or hurt the Buckeyes, whether they need to win impressively or just win out and why we're both putting Ohio State's chances of making the playoff at just over 60 percent right now (40:50).With hopes that we will see the Buckeyes play the Spartans on Saturday, we briefly discuss our expectations for that game (43:00), how the absence of Ryan Day and players who tested positive could impact Ohio State in that game and why we're still both mostly confident Ohio State will win convincingly in East Lansing despite the uncertainties at play.In Three Things We Think (50:00), Colin talks about why he's glad to see Larry Johnson finally get his head coaching opportunity and Tuf Borland finally getting some respect, and Dan rants about why the Big Ten shouldn't change the six-game minimum for the conference championship game, why the conspiracy theories about teams ducking out of games need to just stop and why we need to appreciate every game we get to watch Ohio State play this year.Finally, we answer your questions (1:15:55) about who Ohio State's next recruiting commitments could be (with an assist from recruiting analyst Zack Carpenter), who impressed us most in the first two Ohio State basketball games and more.

We had no shortage of ground to cover on this week's episode of Real Pod Wednesdays.The initial College Football Playoff rankings were revealed on Tuesday night, Ohio State just landed a pair of five-star recruits from Texas and the Buckeyes are set for an unconventional Thanksgiving weekend matchup with Illinois. But we had to start this week's episode by talking about the Buckeyes' pass defense, which has been the topic of the week after Ohio State gave up 491 passing yards against Indiana.What's wrong with Ohio State's pass defense, and can the Buckeyes fix it? We talk about what we believe the issues are, what changes we would make to Ohio State's secondary and why there might not be a sure-fire solution – though we don't believe that's reason to give up your championship hopes and dreams.After about 25 minutes of discussion on that, we share our other takeaways from the Buckeyes' 42-35 win over Indiana, including why we think Justin Fields suddenly become mistake-prone against the Hoosiers, why we don't have any concerns about lingering issues for the Ohio State quarterback and how we believe the offensive line and running backs stepped up their games to help lead the Buckeyes to victory.We share our thoughts on Ohio State's initial College Football Playoff ranking around the 48:40 mark, and why we don't believe the Buckeyes are in a position to complain about being ranked behind Clemson, but why Ohio State is just fine at No. 4 anyway, as it appears to have a clear path to the playoff if it can win out.Because we both expect that the Illinois game should be a fairly easy win for Ohio State, and there isn't anything that particularly stands out about the matchup with Illini, we spend just a few minutes previewing the Buckeyes' next game (beginning at 54:30).Then, we shift our focus to the recruiting trail to talk about the commitments of five-star quarterback Quinn Ewers and wide receiver Caleb Burton, the eye-popping start that Ohio State is off to in building its recruiting class of 2022 and how Ohio State has emerged as the new QBU in the eyes of top quarterback recruits.In Three Things We Think (1:08:30), Colin shares his preseason takes on Ohio State basketball and why he'll be focusing on the backcourt, Justice Sueing and defense as the season begins, while Dan explains why he's ready to grade the Al Washington hire as an “A” and how he believes fixing the pass defense is a new kind of test that Ryan Day has to deal with for the first time as Ohio State's head coach.Finally, Colin discusses his controversial stance on Thanksgiving food (1:26:20) as we wrap up the show by answering a couple food-related questions from listeners.

Let's hope this week's episode of Real Pod Wednesdays has a longer shelf life than last week.Just a few hours after we published last week's episode, aptly titled “What's Actually Worth Worrying About?”, we got a harsh reminder of the threat that everyone has to worry about this season when Ohio State's fourth game of the year was canceled due to a spike in positive COVID-19 tests at Maryland. We begin this week's episode by discussing the fallout of that cancellation and whether it has any effect on the Buckeyes' College Football Playoff hopes.We don't spend too much dwelling on that, though, since the Buckeyes have what looks to be their biggest game of the regular season against Indiana – currently the only team with a winning record that Ohio State will play in the regular season – on Saturday at noon. What's enabled the Hoosiers to start the season 4-0, and are they actually a threat to Ohio State, or will the Buckeyes' superior talent enable them to win comfortably? We discuss all of that and answer your questions about the Hoosiers.In a season where Michigan is now 1-3 and Penn State is now 0-4, we also weave in a conversation (around the 40-minute mark) about how unusual this Big Ten season has been so far and how the gap between Ohio State and the other traditional powers in the Big Ten East appears to be wider than ever.Finally, in Three Things We Think (53:05), Dan talks about why the narrative that Maryland didn't want to play Ohio State is foolish, why James Franklin's seat should be starting to warm up and why it's gotta be the end of the line for Jim Harbaugh, and Colin talks about how chaotic he expects college basketball season to be, why Roddy Gayle's commitment is a big win for the basketball Buckeyes and why it's difficult to figure out how the extra year of eligibility will impact college football rosters beyond this season.

Even though Ohio State was never in jeopardy of losing against Rutgers, most of the discussion following the Buckeyes' 49-27 win over the Scarlet Knights has been about their imperfections rather than their 3-0 start to the season.So as we started this week's episode of Real Pod Wednesdays with our look back at the Buckeyes' 22-point win against Rutgers, we spent much of the first 35 minutes of the show talking about how much Ohio State fans should actually be worried about some of the areas that have been raised as concerns, including the running game, the interior offensive line and the defense as a whole, particularly the secondary.Dan explains why he thinks the panic over the Buckeyes' subpar second-half play against Rutgers is mostly unnecessary overreaction after a game Ohio State still largely dominated, while Colin explains why he's actually more confident in Ohio State's chances of winning a national championship now than he was three weeks ago.After sharing our takeaways from the Rutgers game and why the Scarlet Knights ran so many trick plays, we shift our focus to Maryland around the halfway point of the show to discuss how the Terrapins' offense could be the biggest test yet for the Buckeyes' passing defense and what could make the difference between a competitive game and a blowout.We also spend a few minutes talking about Ohio State basketball (56:30), including the news that Jimmy Sotos and Meechie Johnson will be eligible to play this season but Abel Porter won't, before turning our focus back to football for our Three Things We Think (1:05:30), including how Tuf Borland has legitimately become one of the best players on an Ohio State defense with limited star power, why Colin's back on the Demario McCall bandwagon and how Antwuan Jackson has quietly started to make an impact at defensive tackle.

For the most part, Ohio State looked like a team capable of contending for a national championship on Saturday night at Penn State.Justin Fields, Chris Olave and Garrett Wilson continued to shine, the running game took a step forward and the defensive front seven broke through in a big way to lead the Buckeyes to a 38-25 win in what might be their toughest test of the regular season. So there were plenty of positives from the trip to Happy Valley for us to discuss on this week's Real Pod Wednesdays, and that's how we started the show.The one major area of concern still lingering for the Buckeyes after that game is their secondary, as Penn State passed for more than 250 yards in Saturday night's second half and cornerback Cameron Brown is now out for the remainder of the season. So at the 22:30 mark, we pivot to talking about the defensive backs and what needs to happen there for Ohio State's secondary to be good enough to win a national title.We don't spend a lot of time breaking down the upcoming game against Rutgers, considering that the Buckeyes are favored to win by 38 points, but we do talk about what we're most looking forward to watching on Saturday night (for one, freshman quarterbacks C.J. Stroud and Jack Miller likely throwing their first collegiate passes) and what we think Greg Schiano can realistically accomplish over the course of his tenure with the Scarlet Knights.In Three Things We Think (49:00), Colin talks about why he thinks Ohio State is a College Football Playoff lock and why he thinks all five of the Buckeyes' offensive linemen will be selected in the first three rounds of the NFL draft, and Dan talks about the Big Ten backing itself into a corner with its schedule and why he thinks Pete Werner will block a field goal this season.

“Some guys are walking around the locker room like, man, what happened? 52-17, that's a pretty good day, boys.”That's what Ryan Day said Tuesday regarding the expectations surrounding his Ohio State team right now – which caused some Buckeyes to be displeased by their performance despite a 35-point win over Nebraska in Saturday's season opener – and we're sharing a similar message on this week's Real Pod Wednesdays.While much of the narrative following Ohio State's first game has been about its shaky defensive start and its underwhelming running game, some growing pains in the Buckeyes' first game shouldn't have been unexpected – especially considering the unusual offseason and the fact they were opening the year against a conference opponent – and there were plenty of positives to take away from the game, like Justin Fields' almost perfect performance and Ohio State scoring 38 of the final 41 points.So we spend the first 30 minutes of this week's show by talking about why you should be happy with how the Buckeyes started the season and what our biggest takeaways were from Saturday's opening game.In the show's second trimester, we look ahead to what should be a tougher test this week at Penn State, where the goal for Ohio State should be just to get a win in its first road game of the year against the Big Ten team that's given the Buckeyes their most consistent competition for the past four years. We discuss what Ohio State must do to contain Penn State quarterback Sean Clifford and tight end Pat Freiermuth, why we're looking forward to the matchup between Ohio State's offensive tackles and Penn State's defensive ends and much more about Saturday night's showdown in Happy Valley.In Three Things We Think (47:20), Dan argues that Ryan Day shouldn't have apologized to Scott Frost and considers the dose of reality that comes with Wisconsin quarterback Graham Mertz testing positive for COVID-19, and Colin shares his thoughts on Nicholas Petit-Frere's strong debut at right tackle, the continued wait for Tyreke Smith to break out and why he disagrees with the notion that Ohio State is playing the wrong linebackers.Finally (1:05:00), we wrap up the show by answering a large batch of reader questions about why Justin Fields will likely continue to run the ball often, whether Ohio State will have a 1,000-yard rusher or receiver this season, who the Buckeyes' No. 3 receiver will be and whether Pete Werner should move back to Sam.

We made it.Ohio State will finally play its season opener on Saturday at noon against Nebraska, so we spend this week's show talking about our expectations for the first game and what we're most intrigued to see the Buckeyes as they play an actual football game for the first time in 10 months.In the first 30 minutes of this week's show, we hit on why a mostly-empty Ohio Stadium shouldn't have much impact on the actual game but will make for a weird environment, the top matchups to watch in Saturday's game (10:30) and what could actually allow Nebraska to keep this game close (17:00). We also discuss how we'd bet on the game (25:30 – take our advice at your own risk) and come to the conclusion that the current spread is right where it should be but the over could be in play – both because of Ohio State's offense and because of Ohio State's defense.In Three Things We Think (31:30), Dan discusses how much Georgia would benefit from having Justin Fields right now, why Ohio State's secondary absolutely must be good for the Buckeyes to have a chance to win in the College Football and why we're still not exactly sure what Greg Mattison's role will be this season. Colin talks about the Ohio State players he's most fascinated to watch on Saturday, including offensive tackles Nicholas Petit-Frere and Thayer Munford, wide receiver Garrett Wilson and safety Marcus Hooker.Finally, we answer your questions (54:10) about why you shouldn't read into C.J. Stroud and Jack Miller still having their black stripes, how confident we are that Ohio State will actually get to play all of its games this fall, which running back should be in the game on third-and-long and why Jameson Williams may or may not be a factor in the return game this year.

We discuss why this season is national championship or bust for Ohio State, who the Buckeyes' most indispensable players are and more in our Season Preview episode of Real Pod Wednesdays. We also discuss our takeaways from Ohio State's most recent press conferences and turn on the "BS Meter" for some of the coachspeak we're just not buying.

After we finally got to watch the Buckeyes practice in person for the first time in seven months, we share our takeaways from a brief glimpse into the team's preparation for the 2020 season as well as what we've learned from the team's most recent press conferences, including why we're increasingly excited about Ohio State's offense, why we're concerned about the Buckeyes' defensive tackle depth and how Pete Werner's move to Will linebacker could impact the defense.

Dan and Colin draft players from Ohio State's 2020 football roster with the objective of building the best lineup to beat the other host's team in a hypothetical game. They also discuss their takeaways from Ohio State's most recent press conference, including how the running back rotation could shake out, why there could be as many as three freshmen in the receiver rotation and what Justin Fields' decision to become a vegan says about his commitment to getting even better.

We break down Ohio State's new(est) schedule for the 2020 season and discuss the impact of Shaun Wade announcing he'll return to Ohio State (again) and how the rest of the Buckeyes' secondary could stack up around him.

Big Ten football is returning in October, and Ohio State will have the chance to compete for a national championship after all. We discuss how we got here and what our expectations for the Buckeyes are now that we know we'll actually get to watch them play football this fall.

Ohio State's season opener should have been last Saturday, so we begin this week's episode by reflecting on what we miss about covering games at Ohio Stadium. Then, we look ahead to which new NFL Buckeyes we're most excited to watch this weekend and which current Ohio State draft prospects could be hurt the most if there's no fall season. Finally, Colin gets some frustration off his chest and rants about the Big Ten's continued indecisiveness.

After another week full of twists and turns, we discuss whether we should actually expect the Big Ten to play at some point this fall and whether that will come with a chance for Ohio State to make the College Football Playoff. We also share our thoughts from attending our first high school games of the year, why the Big Ten is still failing to be transparent and why watching other teams play college football right now just feels weird.

We talk about the continued unrest surrounding the Big Ten's decision to postpone fall sports, what the conference's plans for winter football are looking like and the ramifications of the NCAA giving everyone an extra year of eligibility. We also bring in Eleven Warriors recruiting analyst Zack Carpenter to discuss how recruiting has been impacted by the season postponement and who he expects to be the next Buckeye commits.

We assess the Big Ten's decision to shut down fall sports, consider how that affects Ohio State in the short and long terms and discuss what needs to happen for spring football to work.

After a busy 24 hours for Ohio State football and college sports, we break down the Buckeyes' new schedule for 2020, preview Thursday's start of fall camp, take a look at Ohio State's captains for the 2020 season and weigh in on the NCAA's decision to deny C.J. Saunders a sixth year of eligibility.

After a week off, we're back to talk about the commitments of Jordan Hancock and Malaki Branham to the Ohio State football and basketball teams and to discuss where things stand for the 2020 football season as we still have more questions than answers entering the last week of July.

After the Big Ten canceled non-conference games and Ohio State temporarily shut down workouts, we discuss what must happen if college football is going to be played this fall. We also wrap up our State of the Position series with a look at Ohio State's present and future at safety.

We discuss our expectations for Shaun Wade and the rest of Ohio State's cornerbacks in 2020, consider which Buckeyes we overvalued and undervalued a year ago and answer your questions about the basketball team's potential, which other Big Ten coaches we think would do best at Ohio State and more.

We take a look at which members of Ohio State's recruiting class of 2018 the Buckeyes will be counting on breaking through in 2020, weigh how the Buckeyes can best utilize their seven upperclassman linebackers this season and debut Three Things We Think, a new segment in which we banter about some of our Ohio State football thoughts from the past week.