As last season faded into memory and the cold world revolved into the dark abyss that is the off-season, Buckeye fans could wake up each morning content in the fact that, at the very least, we were so solid in the running game for the upcoming year that the school probably should have been mandated to issue daily formal apologies to all other institutes of higher learning and/or football playing.

But as we all know, the off-season is a cruel, dastardly beast that not only robs us of our Saturday afternoon religion but regularly and randomly spews its acidic bile across the college football landscape, wracking our hearts and wrecking our depth charts in its wake.

Yeah. It totally sucks.

Well, not totally. At least not for Ohio State. Not this year. Probably.

Despite suspensions that will keep our top two RBs on the bench in week one (and #1 rock-toter Carlos Hyde riding pine for two more), we still look pretty decent in the Moving The Ball Forward The Old-Fashioned Way department. This is primarily due to…

Key Losses:

Zero. I mean, the suspensions are “losses,” technically, but those will have little impact, due to the incredibly weak schedule we play that you probably haven’t heard anything about.

Last Year’s Performance:

I’m hesitant to use 2012 to draw many conclusions about 2013. First, by all accounts, the training wheels will be off the offense this fall and that means a much different-looking rushing attack. I don’t expect Meyer and Herman to entirely abandon the power running game they leaned on last year, but I won’t be surprised to see it take a back seat in favor of speed from the Pivot (or “Percy Harvin”) position.

It also remains to be seen who will step up now that suspensions have messed with the presumed depth chart. That said, it should be noted that all four primary running backs averaged over 5 yards a carry last year, as did leading rusher Braxton Miller, who adds another layer of complexity to projecting this position.

Expectations for 2013:

High to Extremely High.

Maybe there are some fans with reservations now that Hyde is out for the first three games, but for most of us, that has just meant looking a little more closely at some of the younger guys and thinking about the new scheme and getting really freaking excited. The source of a lot of this excitement is true freshman Dontre Wilson, who will be operating out of the aforementioned Pivot spot. Originally expected to be a backup here, Wilson is likely to start with Jordan Hall sliding back over to RB to fill in for Hyde.

The Wilson talk is more than just fan hype. I don’t think I’ve heard or read a player/coach interview in the past two weeks that didn’t mention his name. Just yesterday morning, Tom Herman appeared on Tim Brando’s SiriusXM show and let out an audible chuckle at the mere mention of Wilson’s name.

Still not convinced? Watch this:

In addition to Wilson, count on returning sophomore Bri’onte Dunn and incoming freshman Ezekiel Elliott to take advantage of early opportunities as well.

RB Depth:

As of right now, we should be looking at something like this for the opener:

RB1: Jordan Hall
RB2: Bri’onte Dunn
RB3: Ezekiel Elliott
Pivot: Dontre Wilson/Ezekiel Elliott

In week two, we can add Rod Smith back in somewhere on that list and then when Florida A&M comes to town, Carlos Hyde should return, and who knows what we’ll be looking at by then. Needless to say, we’re still pretty deep, and that lineup shouldn’t cost anybody any sleep.

Nice try though, off-season.

Good Morning Buckeye Nation.

So It Begins: Ohio State’s Women’s Soccer team started their regular season last night. The 23 ranked Buckeyes played their home opener versus Morehead State. The Buckeyes fell behind in the 14th minute with a goal from the Eagles. Jade Flory played a cross from the right wing and found Macy Cobb for the header from six yards. That didn’t deter Ohio State from coming up with head coach Lori Walkers 200th career victory.

“I’ve been here for a while and it’s a pretty special feeling to reach this milestone,” Walker said. “It isn’t something I think about but it was good to come away with the win to open the season.”

Senior Kristen Niederhaus headed in a Megan Fuller corner shot from six yards for the Buckeyes first goal to tie it in the first half.

In the second half the Eagles went up 2-1 but the Buckeyes scored two more goals one from Nichelle Prince who tied it when Ellyn Gruber played a beautiful ball to the freshman who finished from 10 yards. Lindsey Agnew put the Buckeyes ahead playing a ball from the wing to Michela Paradiso who slotted the perfect ball.

Congratulations to head coach Lori Walker for her 200th victory and to the Lady Buckeyes on their season opening victory.

Gymnastics Schedule: Ohio State men’s gymnastics has announced the schedule for the up coming season.

“We have a tough schedule this year,” Ohio State head coach Rustam Sharipov said. “We’re competing against defending national champion Michigan twice during the regular season, and we’re also traveling to Stanford. The team is really excited and they’ve worked hard to reach the next level toward our goal of becoming a national contender.”

The team opens its regular season schedule on the road at the Windy City Invitational Jan. 18 for the fourth consecutive season.

Big Ten New Looks: Big Ten Network breaks down the new uniform looks for Big Ten teams this season. I have to say I think Penn State’s alternate uniforms look terrible in my opinion. The Buckeyes only change will be adding the seven leafs to honor the seven National Championships.

Scrimmage Victory: Ohio State’s field hockey team shutout Miami. 18 players hit the field for the Buckeyes in their tune up before their season opener on Aug 31st in Philadelphia. Sophomore Emma Royce, senior Maria Swartz and sophomore Anni VonederBrink all scored for the scarlet and gray while Swartz and freshman Paige Hamilton both had assists.

Seven: Exactly one week , 7 days, till the Chase for Eight begins. I will leave you with a video of Ohio State’s number 7 scoring a TD vs TTUN.

Until next Time Buckeye Nation…

A few weeks back it was reported that Najee Murray was kicked off the team. A few days later Coach Meyer made it known that Najee was “Suspended Indefinitely”. Word has come out tonight through our friends at Eleven Warriors that Najee has been granted his release from the team.

Kyle Rowland with the full report on his dismissal had this to say…

Ohio State sophomore defensive back Najee Murray has been granted his release from the football program, sources told Eleven Warriors. An Ohio State spokesman confirmed the report.

Murray had been suspended for a “training camp issue,” according to head coach Urban Meyer. Sources indicated Murray’s departure was a mutual decision.

Last season, the Ohio State secondary (especially safety) seemed to be under siege much more than in years past. Some of that can be credited to the lack of tackling by the linebackers or abysmal and inconsistent pressure from the defensive line. While fingers can definitely be pointed, the safeties main responsibility is to minimize big plays and keep the ball in front of them. Unfortunately at times, neither of these things happened. As the season progressed though, so did the quality of play. The Buckeyes should be stout at safety this season behind Seniors Christian Bryant and C.J. Barnett. They will look to follow in the footsteps of former Buckeyes greats such as Jack Tatum and Mike Doss.

Last Year Performance

The safeties came into the season with experience under their belts. Both Christian Bryant and C.J. Barnett had already garnered starting experience before the season began. While neither impressed on a regular basis during the 2011 campaign, they knew their play had to improve coming into 2012. For the most part, it did. The secondary as a whole gave up 243.5 yards per game (78th in the nation) and a whopping four passing plays of 70 yards or more (led the nation). However, much of this came in the first half of the season. As the Saturdays continued to pass, the safeties continued to get better. Urban Meyer even started to praise Bryant and Barnett during his weekly media briefing. Barnett led the secondary in tackles per game (6.2). Bryant ended the season as a 2nd Team All-Big Ten coaches selection and Barnett was an Honorable Mention for the coaches and media.
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Let’s admit that last season the position of the Tight End was under utilized. The Buckeyes tight ends combined for 17 receptions for 217 yards.

Key Losses: This is a position that didn’t have any key players lost from last season. I know Jake Stoneburner was a tight end but he moved over to wide receiver for Ohio State last season. This last week there was a Buckeye tight end that was unfortunately lost to a career ending injury. Urban Meyer confirmed that redshirt freshman Blake Thomas suffered an injury that ended his football career.

2013 Starters: Jeff Heuerman a 6 foot 6 inch junior from Naples Florida is a tall and athletic target for Braxton Miller. He played in 11 games his freshman season and all 12 last season. Being the most experienced tight end is apt blocker and route runner. Jeff said he feels more comfortable playing in Tom Hermans offense this training camp compared to last season and expects big things.

The other co-starter Nick Vannett who is another large body coming in at 6 foot 6 inches and weighing 255 pounds. A redshirt sophomore who finished fifth in receptions last season. Vannett played in all 12 games last season.

Other Tight Ends: True freshman Marcus Baugh is Urban Meyer’s first tight end recruited for Ohio State. He comes to Columbus from Riverside, CA, and is going to be another large target for Miller possibly. Baugh stands 6 foot 4 inches and weighs 233 pounds. Marcus is going to have to work extremely hard to get on the field this season. He got himself into some legal trouble this summer and has landed square in Meyer’s dog house. He will be suspended for the first game of the season and still hasn’t yet (at the time of me writing this post) had his black stripe removed.

Charles Kinzig from Gates Mills is a walk on this winter. Like Heuerman and Vannett, Kinzig is a beast standing at 6 foot 6 inches and weighing 235 pounds. It is too early to tell what type of player he might be for the Buckeyes.

Former defensive lineman J.T. Moore was just announced as moving from the defensive line to the tight end position this last week by Urban. Moore is 6 foot 3 inches and weighs 262 pounds and is a junior. Not sure what to make of this move just yet but Meyer and company must see something in him.

Expectations: This season everyone is expecting all offensive positions to step up and be more of a threat. We all know that Meyer and Herman expect better play from their tight ends and know how to use them properly. This big strong guys will be a great help blocking for the running game and their height should be an advantage in the end zone for Braxton this year.

Here is a highlight of Jeff Heuerman catching the two point conversion against Purdue this last season to help the Buckeyes tie up the game sending it into overtime where the Buckeyes pulled out the tight win.