Who says all the Yankees are bad guys?
(via Pat Kindig on Twitter)
Nick Swisher is a funny guy
June 2, 2009 by 3 Comments
Quick hits
May 6, 2009 by 3 Comments
I had all these plans to watch a DVR’ed spring game, break down positions, comment on things like how good Boom Herron looked in the first half or how improved Brandon Saine looked in the 3rd quarter. And how Terrelle Pryor could be scary good this year and we actually see the potential Ray Small is full of. Or maybe how the defense is looking good while the offensive line still needs work.
But, as it turns out, I ran out of time and had to travel for two weeks for business. So you get that condensed version.
I did just recently read this article by Andy Staples and it’s got me even more excited about #2.
Also, in my readings, I came across this little piece by Bruce Hooley. He certainly could stand for some paragraph breaks, so if you make it all the way through I’m interested to know what you guys think. While I don’t always agree with Hooley, I hate to admit he’s got a point.
A snippet:
That’s six straight years without a single winning post-season record, meaning only three of the league’s coaches (Tressel, Iowa’s Kirk Ferentz and Penn State’s Joe Paterno) were in the conference when it last won more bowl games than it lost.
What do you think? Do you agree, or has the Big Ten had enough “moral victories” to still be part of the conversation?
Proudest Dad
May 2, 2009 by 2 Comments
I’m working on a Spring Game post (yeah for being a week late to the party) but before we get to that, I need to take a moment to show off.
There are moments, as a parent, when your kid does something completely unprovoked that makes “it all worth it.” For some, it’s their kid’s first steps or the report card with straight A’s or maybe becoming a doctor. For me (and hopefully, to a certain extent, Mrs. Kaiser) one of those moments was the morning before the Spring Game. My oldest was painting pictures with her brother in the basement. She asked me how to spell “Buckeyes” and “Michigan” for a couple posters she was painting. Innocent enough.
The results, as they say, brought a tear to my eye.
Here’s my daughter and her brother holding up her “signs”:
(They read “Boo Mich” and “Go Bucks” respectively. Yes, my daughter was aware that we weren’t playing Michigan. She also knows that Michigan is the team you boo. My parenting is good like that. She’s also a little miffed she didn’t get to hold the “Go Bucks” sign)
Get your football fix Open Thread
April 25, 2009 by 3 Comments
We’re planning on taking the kids to their first Spring Game today, so I doubt I’ll be able to watch much of it before they get bored, but the DVR will be working overtime so I can catch it on my own. Are you planning on going?
We’ll also be watching the NFL draft with interest when we get back!
Update: Spring game (the half I’ve seen already was great) but I just came in from some yardwork and saw that Beanie fell all the way down to the 31st pick? That was unexpected, to say the least.
Compare and Contrast
April 10, 2009 by 5 Comments
As we are wont to do from time to time, we like to take a couple articles, clip a little nugget out of each and compare the two. Today’s articles look at the physical development of a couple of the future and present signal callers for the Michigan and Ohio State football teams, respectively.
First, we have Tate Forcier, commenting on his development, strength-wise, under the tutelage of Mike Barwis:
“Coach Barwis has definitely showed me a little bit of a different life,” Forcier said. “He’s doing a great job with it, and I’ve got to give a lot of credit to him. He’s trying to bring me along as fast as he can. … Coming here, you’re [bench-pressing] a 45-pound plate on each side, it’s kind of pathetic. He’s gotten me a lot stronger.”
To be fair, Forcier is a freshman and probably hasn’t had access to facilities or coaches like he will at U of M. But seriously? Benching one-hundred-and-thirty-five pounds? At 6′ 1″ and 187, he should certainly be stronger than that.
Compare that to what’s being said about Terrelle Pryor’s progress and growth:
“He’s been in there every day, and I am talking about two and three hours at a time,” Hall said. “What I see is how much bigger he’s gotten under Ohio State’s strength and conditioning program. He told me he weighs 238 pounds and, kidding him, I said, ‘You better watch it. They might make you a defensive end.'”
Again, we’re not exactly comparing apples to apples here. Pryor is a bigger guy with a year under his belt and an off-season with some of the best trainers in the country. So it’s to be expected that he’d not only get bigger, but stronger.
That being said, if Forcier does get any playing time of consequence, Big Ten linebackers are going to be licking their chops. I can hear Thaddues Gibson’s stomach growling already.
The Face of the Team
April 9, 2009 by 9 Comments
A real quick check-in post so we don’t fall completely off the radar.
As we hear the reports coming out of spring camp, I got to wondering how was going to be the poster boy of the 2009 Buckeyes. It’s no secret that a certain Mountain of a Man was our man-crush for 2007 and a particular Stiff Arm was the face (hand? arm?) of the Buckeyes of 2008. So who will it be this year?
I present two candidates. The first was an emerging beast of a man last year, one Thaddeus Maximus. He’s already on people’s radar with lines like “Destroy everything moving” and “You just have to know when to be aggressive”.
The other nominee, via The Silver Bullet, is incoming freshman Dominic Clarke who, as Drew says, certainly passes the “Look Test”.
So who is your nomination for the 2009 MotSaG man-crush Face of the Buckeyes?
Spring is in the air
April 2, 2009 by Leave a Comment
As often happens around these parts around the end of the NCAA tournament, things have slowed to a crawl in terms of posting frequency and snarkacy. We don’t officially go into hibernation mode, but past performance has pointed to a reduced number of posts.
This year may change that, however, as I have a travel assignment that will have me on the road for extended periods of time for the next 5-6 months. That frees up a lot of time for reading and writing, so hopefully i’ll be able to keep things going at a decent pace around here.
In the meantime, we are vigilant of all things Buckeyes, especially now that Spring Practice has started. I’m already getting a vibe of excitement around the Buckeye camp. What things have you excited? Besides the obvious (Terrelle Pryor’s sophomore effort) I’m anxious to see the new look of the defense, especially how the linebacker corps is looking.
We also didn’t comment much about the sad state of affairs that was the basketball team’s sole tournament game. What a horrific display that was. Here’s to hoping for something better next year.
And because we can’t end on a sour note, here is your Ohio State NFL Pro Day Vernon Gholston Shot:
You can’t see the pipes, but they’re there. They’re always there.
Quick Hits
March 13, 2009 by Leave a Comment
Ohio State beats Wisconsin 61-57 in the Big Ten tournament. I didn’t get a chance to catch the game on TV (due to a nasty habit of working from nine to five) but thanks to 97.1’s streaming of their broadcast, I was able to listen in on Paul Keels calling the game. Things didn’t look good with five minutes left, but all’s well that ends well, so we’ll take it.
We’ll see Michigan State tomorrow at 1:40 PM. Three times a charm, right?
Beanie Wells is fast. The internet is atwitter with the performance of one Chris “Beanie” Wells at Ohio State’s pro day today. Word is that he pretty much killed it, running at least forty yards in under four and four-tenths of a second. Those in the know seem to think that is rather rapid. From what we hear, this speed is unheard of north of the Mason-Dixon line.
Some Swedish dude took off almost all of his clothes to hit a shot out of the mud at the WGC-CA Championship at Doral yesterday. He’s getting a lot of credit for his dedication to his craft. I’m not impressed. I’ll show you dedication: I’ve written well over half of the MotSaG posts in my skivvies. Even when the heat is turned off and it’s 50 degrees in the house. That’s dedication.
Finally, Delonte West showed teammate Ben Wallace and the rest of the world how to rock ‘fro.
In Case You Missed It
March 10, 2009 by 2 Comments
Here are some of the stories and what-not we wanted to talk about in the past week or so but never got around to it. Hope you enjoy.
[Football] – College Football News looked at the top 50 non-conference games coming up in 2009. Ohio State makes two appearances: USC’s visit to the Horseshoe comes in at #1 (duh) and Navy’s visit the week before as #42. I can’t wait to see the triple option in the ‘Shoe. (via UWeekly.com)
[Football] – We figured this already, but JB Shugarts was also cleared of drug charges. Phew.
[RUMOR] – Terrelle Pryor was seen walking around campus in a walking boot. THIS IS A COMPLETELY UNSUBSTANTIATED RUMOR. I just felt the need to get it out there. Not sure why. Do not run for the hills. It’s only March
[Basketball] – Evan Turner says he’s coming back. Bring back Buford and Mullens with you, ET and we’re sitting mighty pretty.
[Basketball] – Lots of recognition for Buckeye Ballers — Evan Turner was All-Big Ten (and could have arguably been Big Ten Player of the Year), along with William Buford as Freshman of the Year and BJ Mullens as Sixth Man.
[NCAA Tournament] – We’re planning on another MotSaG Tournament Bracket contest again this year, complete with real prizes. Stay Tuned.
Anything you thought was interesting lately?
