By: Phil Schoch, Twitter me @osuphil95

Each week Pick ’em & Tidbits risks public humiliation and mockery by predicting each B1G game, as well as a few national spotlight games, versus the Vegas spread.

I’m back, bay-bayee!!! Week 11 was the bounce-back I needed, as I soared to a record of 7-2 versus the spread and 8-1 straight up. My PM Stukenborg Fearless Prediction of Oklahoma (+3) over Baylor won convincingly.

My season tally stands at 62-62 (50%!!!) ATS and 92-32 (74.2%) SU. The goals of 50% and 75% and the subsequent fake fame and glory are at my fingertips!

But…

There are still a multitude of fake wagers to be placed. Still countless opportunities to choke (and drop to 45%) and bring fake shame upon my family. The merciless taunts my kindergarten son would suffer on the bus and the playground. No three year-old is going to share blocks with my pre-school daughter. Kids can be ruthless! Oh and the sideways looks, whispers and jeers my wife would endure in the cubicle thunder dome of the accounting department. The fake stakes are high in the world of a fake public gambler.

Disclaimer: Warning! I’m celebrating being .500. My picks are fake. Your money is real. Do not try this at home.

Saturday, November 21

Around the B1G…

Michigan is a magician with a drinking problem and a nervous twitch. Against Sparty, he sawed his assistant in half, then stood and watched as she bled-out. Against Minnesota, the rabbit went in motion for 12 seconds, then – presto – he was still able to pull the victory out of his helmet. Against Indiana, he made his own defense disappear, then – abracadabra – reappear on the final play.

Could this be Christian Hackenberg’s final home game for the Nittany Lions? Will the fans chant, “One more year!” or “Hey, it’s been nice, but you wouldn’t want to pass up an opportunity like the NFL, would you?” A word-y chant, sure, but it seems more likely than the first chant.

Pure Michigan tourism note: Colon, Michigan is the self proclaimed Magic Capital of the World. Is anyone surprised that Michigan would claim to have a magical Colon? With the massive amount of excrement percolating in Ann Arbor and Detroit, I’d think a magic Colon would be a necessity.

Pick ‘em says… Wolverines saw there assistant in two, but avoid major arteries. Michigan 28-17.

Iowa is 10-0 for the first time in program history! Kirk Ferentz agent has been burning up the phones trying to get an extension and raise for the legendary Hawkeye coach.

Pick ’em says… Purdue will scrap. Iowa will nap – but still win handily. Herky, 34-17.

A pair of limp-sworded Knights (Scarlet & Black) who have combined for an un-cavalier 5 wins this season.  

Pick ’em says… Do you have any B1G or Jersey pride, Rutgers? Enough to get the W, 27-17.

A salute to the creepiness of Tom Crean face.

Pick ’em says… Hoosiers are 4-6 with with winnable games left against Maryland & Purdue. They know that sweet Motor City Bowl swag is within their grasp – their very own city block in Detroit!

IU! PM! 34-30.

The winners of this battle of padded 8-2 squads wins $20 gift cards to The Mousehouse Cheesehaus for Wisconsin’s Finest Cheese, Sausage & Homemade Fudge! Located in lovely Windsor, Wisconsin.

Pick ’em says… The Wisconsin Curds, 24-18.

All season long, Ohio State and its fans have dined on a Michelina’s frozen entree-caliber schedule. At long last, Buckeye fans thought they were finally going to go to Bravo (I’m pretty sure they serve swell Italian food), but no, Sparty went and messed up that meal by losing to Nebraska and now were going to Fazoli’s. Sure I’ll eat a dozen greezy garlic breadsticks dipped in alfredo sauce and pay for it at 3 Am, but we all wanted more. Oh crap, next week is Michigan and I’m sure Harbaugh is going to want to go to the Olive Garden where, I’m pretty sure, the breadsticks are made from expandable foam insulation. I have completely lost track of this metaphor, cue the pick…

Pick ’em says… Once you get past the Michigan State defensive front four, it is a very average unit. Sparty’s offense does not have the playmakers and consistent running game of year’s past. Buckeyes, 38-20. 

National Spotlight games…

Just two weeks ago, both LSU and Ole Miss sported the all-important label – controls its own destiny to the college football playoff. Then stuff got real. LSU got pants’d the past two weeks by Bama and Arkansas. Ole Miss, slayer of Bama, lost to Memphis and Arkansas and now sits at 3 losses. I just want to watch to see which team completely quits on Saturday. I wish this was a night game, so I could drink celebratory Great Lakes Christmas Ale’s with a shots of Spartan tears and take in the sadness of these one-time destiny controllers. 

Pick ’em says… Don’t know. Don’t care. But there will be plenty of sad fan closeups. Ole Miss, 27-17.

Baylor finally played a decent team last week and lost. I know, without their starting QB, but it’s not like he was coming back for the playoff run. Okie State and Forever 40, Mike Gundy, avoided the mega-letdown last week at Iowa State. I’m surprised by the slim point spread.

Pick ’em says… Come after me! I’m a mam! I’m 40! Cowboys, 45-38. 

If TCU QB Trevone Boykin and WR Josh Doctson are not healthy enough to play against Oklahoma, the Sooner Schooner hype-wagon will roll on. TCU coach Gary Patterson said their status was “possibly questionable.”

Pick ’em says… Possible blowout. Sooners, 45-24.

Another week, another win for Urban Meyer and the Buckeyes, and this past week that came to the defeat of the Fighting Illini, who fought valiantly but came up just a bit short – 25 points short.

Despite the 28-3 victory, the same old frustrating offensive questions remain. JT Barrett reclaimed the starting role from Cardale Jones after serving his one-week suspension, but Barrett churned out a pretty average performance for his standards, but thanks to Heisman candidate Ezekiel Elliott, the Bucks rolled to another sloppy looking win.

The hero in a half shirt bulldozed his way for 181 yards and two touchdowns while recording his 15th straight game with 100 or more yards as well as passing Tim Spencer for third place on the all-time rushing leaders list in Ohio State history. Who are numbers one and two on that list? None other than Heisman winners Archie Griffin and Eddie George. That’s pretty good company to be in.

Urban said – “We’re certainly not in this situation without Zeke. There is some issues, back-and-forth at quarterback, then we had another issue, and he’s the one constant. Zeke will be the first one to tell you he can’t do it by himself. The offensive line is nailing them pretty good so that’s our strength, that’s our most consistent. But we also know that to win the big, big one you need to be balanced and we’re not quite there yet.”

• The Fans – Just feed Zeke, and forget the rest.
• The Media – Could we possibly be seeing another switch at quarterback against Michigan State, given Barrett’s average performance?
• The Opponent – You guys probably wouldn’t be anything at all without him. Rely on him while it lasts.

As strange as it is, former Buckeye quarterback and now ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit had a different take from Meyer’s on Ohio State’s offensive line performance against Illinois:

Despite the differing perspectives here, we’ll see how the offensive line plays against arguably the best defensive line and best team they’ve faced all year in *ichigan State.

Even though the Buckeyes won their game by the largest margin of any of the other ranked teams in the top ten this past weekend, the scarlet and gray continue to be pounded by the media for their lackluster offensive performances.

https://twitter.com/RDonnellyBG/status/666299452991385600

Urban said – “My goodness.”

• The Fans – My goodness is right. We’re the only team that could post the highest winning margin of the week and still get knocked for it.
• The Media – Are we not being fair? No, you’re right – we aren’t. We hate cause we ain’t you.
• The Opponent – You sure got by us. Hopefully you can get by Sparty next week. Good luck!

Leading up to the Buckeye’s most anticipated game of the 2015 season so far, I will take a look at the Buckeye’s most competitive match-up over the last 5 years, the Michigan State Spartans.  Below, I will highlight some of the Spartans key players whom Ohio State was at one point recruiting or have ties to the Buckeyes in some way.  During Michigan’s decade of disappointment, the Spartans have stepped up admirably on the recruiting front, often taking the Ohio kids who the Wolverines once thrived on.  With 27 players hailing from the Buckeye state, the showdown in The Shoe on Saturday will be a familiar battle for many of the Spartans.

Connor Cook: Cook is one of those Ohio kids that everyone seems to pass over but turns out to be quite a good player, ala Luke Kuechly.  Cook attended Walsh Jesuit High School and his only big time college offer was from the Spartans.  Cook is the prototype pro-style quarterback.  He has above average arm talent and his downfield accuracy has improved immensely since his early years in East Lansing.  He was known early on as a kid who could make all the throws, including the one that would inevitably cost his team the game.  He has cut down tremendously on his mental mistakes as he’s only thrown four interceptions so far this season.    Cook will undoubtedly be a high draft pick in this Spring’s upcoming NFL draft, and should continue MSU’s string of sneaky NFL quarterback success. (Drew Stanton, Brian Hoyer, Kirk Cousins & technically Nick Foles)

Aaron Burbridge:  Received an offer from the Buckeyes, but the Farmington MI product seemed to be destined for Sparty from the early stages of his recruitment.  The Top 100 player never really was a contender to sign with the Buckeyes although he would always include OSU in his list of top schools along with MSU and UM.  As it turns out this was another big win for the Spartans against not only the Buckeyes, but Michigan as well.  The senior leads the B1G in receiving ( 65 rec 1,021 yds 6 tds) and could arguably be the best receiver the Buckeye secondary has faced all season.

LJ Scott:  Scott is a player that many Buckeye fans believed would eventually be a part of the Buckeye’s 2015 recruiting class.  After Scott’s teammate at Hubbard, George Hill pledged to the Buckeyes, most assumed the two close friends would set up a package deal.  Well in a few months that may actually be the case, but Sparty could be the recipient of the dynamic duo.  There’s been some news lately that Hill has been looking to play defensive back, and the Buckeye coaching staff didn’t quite see him in their plans for the secondary, so the two have parted ways.  Scott has received some run during his inaugural season in East Lansing, but has been slowed by injuries as of late.  Still, he has seen more playing time already this year than he would have received in Columbus his freshman season.

Malik McDowell: Most of us remember the McDowell recruiting saga which extended past signing day a few years ago.  Malik wanted to be a Spartan, his mother for some reason or another, was adamant he would never attend MSU – which put the Buckeyes squarely in the thick of things alongside Michigan.  Clearly the son beat out the mother in this debate, and Michigan State couldn’t be happier.  McDowell has developed into a game changer along the defensive line, and is very similar in size and style to Ohio State’s Adolphus Washington.  Malik is coming off an outstanding performance against Maryland where he racked up 8 tackles, 4.5 tfls, .5 sack and a forced fumble, resulting in B1G Defensive Player of the Week Honors.  I would be shocked if that’s the only time we see the sophomore earn that distinction.

Ohio State fans around the country should be grateful for TMZ releasing the dash cam footage of J.T. Barrett’s arrest last week. Perhaps more importantly, we should be grateful for all the comments on Twitter, Facebook and other online message boards from internet trolls and OSU haters that followed the release of the video. It may be just the fire the Buckeyes needed at this point in the season to complete their mission to win their second straight national championship.

Like many Ohio State fans, I was disappointed, frustrated and angered by the video – more because of the timing of its release, as opposed to the content it displays. Barrett was arrested in the early morning hours of Saturday, November 1 – on a bye week – and was subsequently suspended for the Minnesota game on November 7, and has had to feel the wrath of public shaming that always accompanies the Court of Public Opinion. He plead guilty in his court appearance on November 10 and had his license suspended for six months, among other punishments – both legal and team-related in nature.

Aside from the actual boneheaded and appalling act of drinking and driving, Barrett handled the situation like a responsible adult throughout the process. He was respectful and polite to the police during the stop, went directly to Urban Meyer to explain his wrongdoing (as opposed to hiding and making excuses), plead guilty in court and will continue to feel the repercussions of his actions for a good while.

But it seemed so out of place for TMZ to broadcast the footage when they did. Punishments had been doled out, the case had been closed. Barrett was ready to move on, make amends and do whatever he could to repair his damaged persona, amongst his teammates and his millions of supporters around the country. Then the video came out – and suddenly Barrett looked just like every other stereotypical star athlete, thinking he should be entitled to special consideration and privileges. Commence Round 2 of public backlash on social media and online message boards.

I admittedly have never met Barrett and have no idea how he truly is as a person, but by all football-related accounts, he’s a good kid and a valued leader. From that standpoint, it’s a shame that he now has thousands of strangers – many of whom dislike him solely because of the university he attends – defiling his character online. To many, he is now an absolute monster – a dumb, irresponsible jock who drives drunk, gets away with stuff because of his “lenient” head coach, and thinks he should get away with it because he’s the starting quarterback at Ohio State.

And while it’s unfortunate that Barrett’s character came under scrutiny – by his own doing – all of this TMZ-related backlash does present a silver lining for the Buckeyes. The negative talk from analysts and fans of opposing schools around the country could help build a more cohesive team and provide a strong “us against the world” mentality that was lacking as top-ranked team in the country.

Given how respected Barrett is by his teammates, and how contrite he has been since the incident, the avalanche of negativity surrounding him will likely lead the team to elevate their performances and rally around him. I can see it now – on November 28, as the Buckeyes wait to run onto the field at Michigan Stadium, you can almost guarantee that Michigan fans will verbally berate Barrett with alcohol-related heckles. Moments before he steps onto the field, he’ll be mocked for everything that happened. And it will strengthen an inferno that is already raging inside of him – and to a greater extent, it will fire up his teammates to have his back in that hostile environment.

Make no mistake about it, TMZ’s release of that video has ignited a fiery “us against the world” mentality amongst this close-knit group of Buckeyes, and they’ll continue to ride that momentum en route to another national championship.

As someone who generally keeps his nose out of politics and #trendy topics, I typically wouldn’t take the time to mention this.  But maybe it’s my age or the father-to-be coming out of me… whatever it is, I felt compelled to ask something of anyone reading this.  Regardless of your political stance or your beliefs or customs or any other differences you might have – just take a minute today to look around and be thankful for the love of your family and friends and those close to you.  We as human beings often take this for granted.  What happened Friday night should be all the evidence you need to realize that all of those things can be snatched away at the slightest moment.

Okay, onto the week that was in Big Ten Football.

#1: Iowa keeps the Big Ten Championship game exciting

Iowa has little competition between now and an undefeated regular season, no question about it.  And as long as the College Football Playoff Committee keeps them ranked in the single digits, it just looks that much better for the Buckeyes in Indianapolis.

#2: Tracy Claeys is real AF

I used to say that Jerry Kill was my second favorite head football coach in the B1G.  Well much like his former position at the University of Maryland, his spot in my heart was also filled by Tracy Claeys after this press conference.

#3:  Connor Cook injures shoulder

He’s already told reporters that he will play against Ohio State this weekend.  But think about what would have happened if the Browns would have blitzed Roethlisberger this weekend on that bum foot.  Would have changed the game significantly, right?  Hmmm…

#4:  Double OT in Bloomington

My goodness what a cluster-you-know-what this was.  People were tweeting that a Big Twelve game broke out on the Big Ten Network.  Rudock lived up to the hype finally but the Michigan defense appeared very beatable.  Just imagine if the Hoosiers had the Silver Bullets.  Or Zeke Elliot.  I’m guessing there wouldn’t be a need for any overtime periods in that matchup ::dramatic pause::

#5:  Buckeye defense is just as potent as its offense

Anyone complaining about a 28-3 victory like it’s the end of the world needs to get things into perspective.  Anyone else that’s worried specifically about field goal kicking and pass protection needs to remember who coaches this team.

Oh yeah, anyone catch this beat down?  I WISH I could have watched this fight with “Money” Mayweather.

Yes ladies and gentlemen it is that time of the season we have all been waiting for. These next two games on the schedule are going to either make or break our season. They are going to show us that we are either a team that just plays to the level of our competition and that’s why we have not played great football all year OR they are going to show us that we are not quite as good as we thought we were.

Another benefit to these next two weeks is that we will finally have two wins for the playoff committee to look back on and say”ok they have definetly beaten a few highly ranked teams”. Unfortunately, it could have looked even better for us if Michigan State hadn’t laid an egg 2 weeks ago against Nebraska, but, never the less, wins agains these town schools is going to be more than enough to get us to the College Football Playoff as long as we handle our business in the BIG championship game.

There is also a very interesting underlying factor here as well coming into the last 2 weeks of the season. Thanks to that debacle Michigan State had against Nebraska. The final game of the season could determine the division champs between Ohio State and ttun. I think it is safe to say that coach Harbaugh has brought this team back from the dead much faster than expected, in doing so he has really lit a fire under this rivalry. So much so that beating ttun is the only way we can get to Indy for the championship game. On a side note, I hope all of you people that said Ohio State needs ttun to be good again to have a steady rivalry all feel good about yourselves because I for one hate the fact that I actually have to worry about playing them again! Anyway, I’m sure this week is about to be a media frenzy for both the coaching staffs and players both during the week and weekend since College Game Day has decided to attend the festivities. Hopefully Urb and the rest of the coaching staff can get our guys to that cuvited ” 9 units strong” that they always talk about because there are few in the country that would argue when Ohio State is at its best it’s doubtful anyone can beat them. Go Bucks beat Sparty!!