The fictional character John Winger from the movie “Stripes” may have been speaking of the end of the college football season when he made this statement…At least, that is how I usually approach the end of any college football season.

Yes, I know recruiting is still going strong for Ohio State, and will culminate in another highly-ranked class coming to Columbus under Ohio State Head Coach Urban Meyer. Yes, I know that Ohio State fans, such as myself, have the spring game to look forward to on April 12th in Ohio Stadium.

Before concluding the 2013 season entirely, a few random thoughts have crossed my mind about college football in general. The motivation for this post came from watching the various bowl games, and above all…

1. The Bowl Season Proved A Playoff System Is Overdue ~ Anyone who knows me, or has read any of my posts, can easily recall how many times I have advocated for a playoff system. Yes, I know a four-team playoff will begin next season, and I am happy that it is on the horizon. I will simply argue that four teams will not be enough.

Think about what you and I witnessed this past bowl season. In the BCS bowl games, perceived underdogs all performed well – Michigan State, from the weak B1G, took down a Stanford team that was considered national championship caliber by the media. Central Florida, from the weak AAC, defeated a Baylor team that the media contemplated as a possible national championship contender. Oklahoma of the Big 12 was going to be crushed by SEC juggernaut Alabama in The Sugar Bowl…Whoops. And in a classic BCS Championship Game, Florida State rallied to defeat Auburn.

My point? These are games that were voted upon, instead of settled on the field. Does anyone out there think Michigan State would not want a shot at Florida State? Why not have a system where a champion is settled on the field?

Yes, I know…a four-team playoff is a step in the right direction. I will continue to argue that giving every conference champion a shot at the title is the proper step, not only the right one. Mark my words – the teams left out of the four-team playoff, rated fifth or sixth, will howl loudly next December about this system. It will pale in comparison to…

2. The New Playoff System Will Struggle With Ticket Sales To The Bowl Sites ~ Yes, I would be excited if Ohio State was one of the four teams selected to play for the title. I am not sure how, or if, I would go to The Rose Bowl as one of the playoff sites.

Why? I made this point back in 2012, when it was decided not to use the campus sites as playoff sites. It is too expensive for the average fan to attend.

If you think fans were reluctant to go to The Orange Bowl this season, just imagine what you will be reading next season when fans are asked to go to The Rose Bowl or The Sugar Bowl, then turn around to fly to Dallas for the national championship.

3. Get Ready For “Strength Of Schedule” To Be At The Forefront ~ As well it should be. I have been hoping Ohio State will beef up its future schedules, believing this will be the focus of the new playoff system…or at least hoping it will be.

Instead of a cupcake, Ohio State will travel to play the Naval Academy in game one of the 2014 season. Wisconsin will take on LSU in Houston. Alabama takes on West Virginia in The Georgia Dome.

Week two is just as compelling. Michigan State travels to Oregon. Ohio State comes home for its opener versus Virginia Tech.

Instead of week after week of cupcakes, teams have recognized the necessity of scheduling challenging opponents. Why was Stanford well-regarded this season, even after losing to Utah? Look at their 2013 schedule. Why was Ohio State not well-regarded this season, even after going undefeated in the regular season? Same reason – look at their 2013 schedule.

Will there still be cupcakes? Absolutely. Will there be fewer and fewer, as the playoff system evolves? Absolutely.

The 2013 college football season has come and gone, but 2014 will be here soon. Not soon enough, but soon. The new playoff system, ticket sales for the playoff games, and schedule comparisons will be the focus and topics of the new season that kicks off in late August.

Well you can chalk today up as good news and bad news….

Mike Vrabel just confirmed that he is leaving OSU to take a position with the Houston Texans in the NFL. What a wonderful opportunity for our beloved Buckeye. Although it will hurt recruiting and our Buckeye hearts it does help him and his family so much.

Braxton Miller as we repoted last weekend has confirmed that he will be back at OSU for his SR season and that is great news for OSU fans. He is needed so much to help the young QBs learn the system and give them another year in the system to learn it and prepare to take over for him when he graduates next year.

We will have more on both these stories as they progress.

Good morning Buckeye Nation. Back by popular demand and an easy schedule I am here to help you get all caught up on Buckeye news.

So Close: Last night the Men’s basketball team fell to Michigan State in OT. Our Tony Rice did a nice recap last night after the game. The game seemed like it was going to get out of hand but the Buckeyes refused to give up. I for one am going to miss the kid with the scarlet cheeks and what he brings to this team.

It was nice to see positive things being said about the team following the loss not like after the B1G Championship game against the same team that had the same result. Heres a great tweet from a female fans view that has the scarlet and gray running through her veins:

New Rivalry: I have to say and I am sure others feel the same way about the new rivalry that has been born between Columbus and East Lansing. Don Mekka lets us know how we are pretty much feeling this morning:

Controversy brewing: Not sure how many folks caught this last night but is this acceptable or did Izzo cross the line. let me know your thoughts.

Another Tool: Yup it never fails when the Buckeyes lose in football tools come out of the woodwork to get their web hits up and show their hater nation colors. Shaun Heidrick decides it the right time to drive up traffic for Yahoo and blast Urban Meyer for losing two games in a row. It says that Shaun has followed the Buckeyes for 25 years while I am sure this is true to come out and say that Urban is falling Ohio State is an overstatement. While everyone is entitled to their opinion please come out with something that isn’t so over dramatic. The Buckeyes lost 2 games in a row after winning 24 that’s big I don’t care if they didn’t play anyone or what they won those games. Michigan State and Clemson exposed the weaknesses of the Buckeyes defense and that’s what great teams do. As a fan yes it hurt to see my favorite team lose but I’m not burning everything down with hate.

Growing up: Eleven Warriors brings us the tweets from WR Michael Thomas being a child. The only reason I say this is I feel as if he kind of threw his teammates under the bus. What do you think?

Until next time Buckeye Nation…

Don’t forget drop me a line and let me know your thoughts.

So the 2015 class got underway a few months ago and top Ohio athlete Eric Glover-Williams was the first 2015 kid to commit to OSU. Now there is a report from Todd Porter saying the offer may be pulled by OSU for “off the field issues”…

Glover-Williams was offered — and verbally accepted — a football scholarship to Ohio State. However, that may be in danger of being pulled. A source with knowledge of Ohio State’s recruiting efforts said the team is looking into “off-the-field issues” and investigating Glover-Williams. The source would not comment on whether the offer has been pulled.

Ohio State is not allowed to comment on recruits until they have signed a letter of intent, which can’t happen until February of Glover-Williams’ senior season with the Bulldogs.

McKinley head football coach Todd Filtz has heard there could be problems, but he hasn’t received any concrete information. Filtz has been out of town since Dec. 12 when his wife delivered the couple’s first child, a daughter.

“I haven’t been in town,” Filtz said. “I have received text messages and I hear things as well, but I don’t know what’s official and what’s not. I haven’t been in town to really know, so I’m not going to comment.”

Also from the article was this from OSU head coach Urban Meyer..

While Meyer is not permitted to talk about recruits, The Repository asked him how important it is to the university to monitor young players’ development and behavior off the field.

“When I first started 20 years ago, you didn’t know much,” Meyer said. “You know everything now. I have people where it’s their full-time jobs … that’s what they do. They monitor Facebook and Twitter and tweets and all that stuff. We have to find out — I want to know because we’re held responsible for all those guys.

“This is an era, a generation that … 18, 19, 20-year-olds, we know everything that’s going on every day because of what goes on these cellphones. Think about that for a minute, 18, 19,20-year-olds. So it’s a big part of what we do. Huge.”

Meyer knew the question was coming from a reporter in Canton. He had a slight smirk on his face when it was being asked.

You can read the entire article by going here…

The astounding part of this article was that the B1G initially suspended Spence for a year for the Ecstasy.. You can read the entire report by clicking here…

abc27 News has learned why Bishop McDevitt grad and Ohio State football player Noah Spence was suspended for three games, including the Orange Bowl.

His father, Greg Spence, says Noah tested positive for a small amount of ecstasy.

It’s standard procedure for every player to get tested prior to the Big 10 championship game, and Spence’s family says he was shocked when his drug test came back positive.

The family says Spence unintentionally took the drug when he was given an open drink by people he didn’t know at a party.

His father says the Big 10 originally suspended Spence for one year because they consider ecstasy a performance-enhancing drug. The NCAA considers ecstasy a street drug, which carries a lesser penalty.

The family appealed and the suspension was dropped to three games.

They appealed a second time, but the three-day suspension was upheld.

The Spence family says they also plan to file a lawsuit against the Big 10.

In what should be a weekly post for every Ohio State based blog because he is just that dang awesome Aaron Craft has been named the B1G men’s Basketball Player of the Week as was reported today via twitter…

One can only imagine this will one of many he receives this year. I mean how can they not give the rosy-cheeked All American the award weekly Am I right?