Maryland Football: Will The Terrapins Clean House Following McNair Death?

When Maryland Terrapins offensive lineman Jordan McNair died in June, most assumed that it was a tragically random incident, the kind of thing that can be chalked up to bad luck. Maybe McNair had hidden medical problems that the team wasn’t aware of. Maybe it was an honest mistake and the medical staff didn’t take enough precautions for practicing in the heat.

Diving into the Maryland Terrapins’ Jordan McNair situation:

Now, however, we know more about the situation. The story is still developing, and there may be more twists and turns before a full conclusion is reached, but it looks like the real answers are darker than those alternative theories. An ESPN article recently shed much more light on what things may be like inside the University of Maryland football program, and if everything in the article is true, it’s quite damning for a number of people within the program.

Strength and conditioning coach Rick Court will stand out as one of the figures that will likely be axed, but head coach D.J. Durkin played just as much of a role in what happened and was placed on administrative leave by the school shortly after the article was released. Usually, administrative leave is only used when a coach is in danger of imminent firing.

It’s a complex situation, because tough coaching is something that happens all over football. In a violent game, aggressive coaching is expected. But the Maryland football staff under D.J. Durkin went above and beyond strict coaching, conducting psychological warfare against their own players as well as pushing players to continue training up to and beyond the point of injury.

Durkin’s no-nonsense approach was one of the reasons why Maryland fans were initially excited about the hire. But not many could have predicted the dark side that would come with that. “They’re joined at the hip. They’re the same. They use the same language and the same classification,” a source told ESPN, speaking about strength coach Rick Court and head coach D.J. Durkin.

Court, as well as trainers Wes Robinson and Steve Nordwall were placed on administrative leave not long before Durkin himself was. Assuming no new details come up to exonerate anyone, all of them are as good as fired. However, it’s less than a month before the season, so who should the Terrapins turn to now?

Matt Canada was on Durkin’s staff, but only arrived as offensive coordinator this year and likely didn’t have the time to pick up many habits from Durkin. He was named the interim head coach, but like all interim coaches, it’s not a guarantee that he keeps the job permanently.

Previously working as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at LSU, Pittsburgh, NC State, Wisconsin, and other schools, Canada has had mixed results but performed especially well in Pittsburgh. In contrast, he struggled more at LSU and appeared to not be a great fit for the preexisting scheme.

Most importantly for Maryland, though, Canada is already on the staff and can serve as head coach this season if the athletics department can’t bring in someone more experienced before the start of the season. However, he lacks ties to the state and that doesn’t spell good results in local recruiting going forward. It’s not easy to talk local families into sending their sons to Maryland, after everything that’s happened.

Another potential option is Navy’s Ken Niumatalolo, who already coaches in the state of Maryland and has found success with one of the toughest jobs in all of college football. Navy went 11-2 under Niumatalolo in 2015, and had a winning record in each of the last two seasons, winning the Military Bowl in 2017 after going .500 in the American conference.

It also seems that Niumatalolo isn’t averse to looking for a bigger job, as he was in the running to become the coach of the Arizona Wildcats before player protests shot that idea down. His triple option would work better at Maryland than it would at Arizona, though, and would take advantage of the athleticism of the Terrapins’ two top quarterbacks this year, Tyrrell Pigrome and Kasim Hill.

Will Maryland even make a coaching change, though? The investigation is still ongoing, and while the report from ESPN looks like the nail in the coffin for the current staff, everyone doesn’t see things the same way as the article does. A number of fans within the Maryland fanbase have accused ESPN writer Heather Dinich of having a bias against the team, and even if those claims are dismissed, there’s a statement from Will Muschamp that counters the testimonies from the article.

“There is no credibility in anonymous sources. If that former staffer had any guts, why didn’t he put his name on that? I think that’s gutless. In any football team, especially right here in August, you can find a disgruntled player that’s probably not playing. I think it’s a lack of journalistic integrity to print things with anonymous sources. I know D.J. Durkin personally. I know what kind of man he is,” said Muschamp, who was the head coach at Florida back when Durkin was the defensive coordinator.

It’s also worth looking beyond the coaching staff and examining the people who hired Durkin in the first place, regardless of if Durkin is fired or not. Durkin has coached Maryland since 2016, and Jordan McNair’s death came in June. But it’s only just now that the school is doing something. If the allegations against the coaching staff are true, it’s hard to believe that Athletic Director Damon Evans as well as others in the upper ranks of the university knew nothing about what was going on.

“The athletics director and the head coach are ultimately responsible for ensuring the safety of our student athletes. For there to be reports of purposefully unsafe conditioning practices built on the foundation of verbal abuse, fear, and humiliation, even after the death of a teenager in their care, is the definition of inexcusable,” said Ben Jealous, who is currently in the running to become the Governor of Maryland.

Whether the full coaching staff is axed over the findings of the ongoing investigation into McNair’s death or not, the entire situation isn’t a good look for Maryland football. It’s unlikely that the statements from former players are entirely fabricated, even if it turns out that some details were exaggerated. Additionally, recruiting will be much harder following the death of a player.

It seems impossible that every loose end will be tied up in this case before the season starts next month, and one can only hope that those in charge at the University of Maryland can bring about the best outcome for the ones that are the most affected by it all, the players.

Rutgers Football: Scarlet Knights Lose Linebacker To Credit Fraud Investigation

Training camp has started for the Rutgers Scarlet Knights, but all of the news out of New Brunswick isn’t the good kind. It’s hard to have a controversy free offseason, and the Rutgers team isn’t free from controversy after six players were left out of training camp because of an investigation into credit card fraud.

Diving into the details of the Rutgers’ linebacker Investigation:

Two Rutgers players, K.J. Gray and Brandon DeVera, were dismissed last month for a violation of team rules. While the specific violation isn’t known, it may be related to the investigation, which is being conducted by the university police department. Both players have the intention to transfer and continue their football careers elsewhere.

They aren’t the only ones leaving the team. More recently, linebacker Syhiem Simmons announced on Twitter that Rutgers has given him permission to contact other teams, and his plans to transfer elsewhere. An outside linebacker from Atlantic City, New Jersey, Simmons is a redshirt freshman and hasn’t yet received game time with the Scarlet Knights.

“I would like to thank Rutgers University for the opportunity this past year and thank the coaches for helping me progress as an individual on and off the field,” Simmons said in his post. “But at this point in time, I am re-opening my recruitment so that I can keep growing as an individual on and off the field to progress my skills and knowledge with the sport of football.”

Five other players are under investigation right now, but Simmons is the only one to be suspended. The players that will be suspended for training camp because of the investigation are secondary members Malik Dixon, Kobe Marfo, Edwin Lopez, and Naijee Jones, as well as defensive end C.J. Onyechi.

According to NJ Advanced Media, head coach Chris Ash can’t comment on the ongoing investigation and the training camp absence of the investigated players. It wouldn’t be a stretch, however, to predict that all or most of the players may end up leaving the program because of the incident. After all, Simmons is the third player to announce his intention to transfer since the investigation began.

Ohio State: Nick Bosa Leads The Way For Big Ten In ESPN Player Rankings

College football has always been more of a team sport than an individual one, but that doesn’t mean player rankings aren’t one of the most debated subjects for fans. ESPN released their list of the top 50 players heading into the 2018 season, and interestingly, there’s no Big Ten players in the top five. Leading the list is Houston’s star defensive tackle, Ed Oliver. Then there’s Bryce Love, Will Grier, and two separate members of Clemson’s talented defensive line.

Where does Ohio States’ Nick Bosa rank?

The first Big Ten player, Nick Bosa, comes in at number six. A junior with big potential ahead of him, Ohio State fans will gladly tell you that Bosa isn’t just on the team because of his last name. He has the talent to stand alone, and would probably be at the same spot on this list even without the famous brother.

That’s not to say that it doesn’t help to have some name recognition. His play style definitely reminds people of Joey Bosa, who also starred at Ohio State during his college football days. With Ohio State losing some talent to the draft, most notably defensive end Sam Hubbard, Bosa will get more snaps and more chances to back up his ranking this season.

While he was the first Big Ten player to show up in the top ten, he wasn’t the only one. Wisconsin’s top running back, Jonathan Taylor, is next on the list. There’s no surprise there, as one could make an argument that Taylor, who is only a sophomore, is the best back in the country. During his freshman season, he rushed for almost 2,000 yards and scored 13 touchdowns, while averaging 6.6 yards per carry. The entire nation will be watching to see if he can improve on that in 2018.

There’s two more Big Ten players in the top 20: Michigan defensive lineman Rashan Gary, and Penn State quarterback Trace McSorley. One of the favorites to win the Heisman Trophy this year, McSorley is the second highest rated QB on the list behind West Virginia’s gunslinger Will Grier. Of course, these are just preseason picks. One of the interesting parts of college football is looking back each season and seeing which seemingly safe predictions turned out to be wildly wrong.

With most college football teams opening their seasons during the first week of September, we’ll soon get to see which players rise and which ones just can’t keep up with the expectations.

Big Ten: The Maryland Quarterback Race Will Resume Where It Left Off Last Year

Maryland was in an interesting place last year. They finished with a 2-7 record in the Big Ten, but they didn’t have any help from luck. Things actually started off good for them, and devolved as the season continued for a bit. The first game of the season was a 51-41 victory over the Texas Longhorns, in Austin nonetheless.

However, the Terrapins only went three quarters before they lost their starting quarterback. After completing nine out of his twelve passes and throwing for a 75% completion percentage, along with 175 yards and two touchdowns, Tyrell Pigrome tore his ACL and ended up out for the season with that injury.

A quarterback that could change the narrative for Maryland football:

Enter Kasim Hill, the backup that would help Maryland hold onto the win despite only throwing three passes. It looked like the starting job had fallen into his lap, and Hill did good enough in the Texas game and scored a rushing touchdown to help ensure the win, but he didn’t have the best of fates either.

Hill completed 13 of 16 passes and threw for two touchdowns against in state opponent Towson in the second game of the season, but would only have a chance to complete two passes in the Terrapins’ loss to UCF. It looked like a routine hit, but it turns out Hill had torn his ACL after being flushed out of the pocket and brought down by a couple of UCF defenders.

Now, both quarterbacks that played in the upset against Texas are in the same position, rehabbing from the same injury and competing for a starting spot once again. Hill is the favorite to win the job, according to the odds from BetsDSI. While Pigrome was the starter coming into the season, he’s not necessarily the more experienced player. The Texas game was his second career start, after all.

Neither QB is going to win by just throwing the ball, even though Pigrome did get two passing touchdowns in the Texas game. He’s an option quarterback at heart and only attempted one more pass than rush. However, his use of his legs means that for him to be most effective, he needs a good offensive line opening up lanes and keeping linebackers out of the backfield. That’s something that Maryland doesn’t have, at least not when they’re facing high level opponents within the conference.

Kasim Hill is the bigger and heavier of the two, and if Maryland uses an offense this year that features designed running plays for the quarterback, it looks like he’s the better option. There’s not much reason to prefer Pigrome over the larger Hill in that kind of offense, especially when Maryland doesn’t have the blocking to keep their quarterbacks from being hit early on running plays.

Throwing the ball is what you think of when you rank quarterbacks, but they’re about even on that front. If anything, Hill showed his willingness during the Towson game to throw the ball at a variety of ranges rather than running as a first option. But Towson isn’t an FBS defense, let alone one of the better ones in the Big Ten East.

It looks like Maryland’s quarterback this year will be Hill, just because he can likely do a bit more in the kind of offense that the Terrapins might run this year. But unlike some of the other teams in the conference, Maryland isn’t one that’s ready to have a huge jump after finding their man at QB.

No, they’re on a journey rather than a sprint. This is just one piece of that larger puzzle.

Penn State Football: Linebacker Manny Bowen Offers Big Addition For Defense

The Penn State Nittany Lions have a big addition for 2018, as linerbacker Manny Bowen will return after previously being kicked off of the team.

What happened to Penn State Football’s Manny Bowen in 2017?

Bowen was suspended last season as Penn State prepared to face Washington in the Fiesta Bowl, and was then dismissed entirely without a specific reason being released publicly. Bowen “violated team rules,” and unlike some other cases in college football, the details of those violations didn’t manage to reach the press. The popular rumor is that either academics or drugs were involved.

However, Bowen is back on the team and was listed on the roster during Penn State’s media day, which was held at Beaver Stadium last week. His addition will be important for a Penn State team that loses linebackers Jason Cabinda and Brandon Smith to graduation. With those leaders gone, much of the pressure to lead the position unit will fall on Bowen, who is a senior this season.

“I don’t want any decisions that we make to be need based… I want to do things because they’re the right things to do,” said head coach James Franklin, on the topic of Bowen being allowed back into the team. “We didn’t make it easy on him. I was surprised when he said he wanted to grind this thing out. The easy thing would have been to transfer.”

Franklin also stated that Bowen’s role on the team hasn’t been decided just yet. “I can’t tell what his role on the team is going to be like… I don’t know how this whole thing is going to play out,” he said.

Whatever his role is, Penn State fans will find out on September 1st, when the Nittany Lions host Appalachian State for a mid-afternoon game on college football’s opening weekend. With past 21 starts and plenty of experience, Bowen will surely fit right into a 2018 defense that needs the veteran leadership.

Ohio State Football: Who Is Acting Head Coach Ryan Day?

Ohio State’s offseason is going very differently than expected. The Buckeyes have one of the most talented teams in the conference and were picked as the big favorite to come away with the Big Ten title at the end of the year. However, things aren’t so stable on the coaching side of things. Head coach Urban Meyer has been placed on administrative leave, which isn’t the easiest thing for a head coach to come back from.

Why is Ohio State’s Urban Meyer being investigated?

The suspension is because Meyer allegedly knew about domestic violence allegations against former Buckeyes receivers coach Zach Smith and didn’t report them, and while the matter is still under investigation, things don’t exactly look good for Meyer. Which means that Ryan Day could very well spend the 2018 season as the head coach.

Who is Day, who was named the acting head coach on August 1st? Well, Ohio State fans are already familiar with him as the quarterbacks coach and one of the co-offensive coordinators. That was his position since January of last year, and as quarterbacks coach, Day was able to get the most out of J.T. Barrett last year. Additionally, the offense that he contributed to tied Penn State for the highest points per game average in the conference.

Day has never been a head coach in his career, and is only 39, but has considerable experience working on coaching staffs. He was born in Manchester, New Hampshire, and and began his coaching career at UNH before making stops in Boston College and Florida as a graduate assistant. Interestingly, the year that Day was a GA at Florida was the first one that Urban Meyer was the head coach there, 2005.

His stint at Boston College, which lasted from 2007 to 2011, convinced Temple to bring him on as their offensive coordinator in 2012. It was his second stop at Temple, as he had already spent one year with the Owls as a wide receiver coach after moving on from Florida. It only lasted for one year before Day made his third and final stop at Boston College, spending two years as an offensive coordinator before joining Chip Kelly’s staff as the NFL.

Neither Day or Kelly could survive Philadelphia, though, and he followed his head coach to San Francisco in 2016 before joining Ohio State after Kelly was fired from the 49ers. He became co-offensive coordinators with Kevin Wilson and also became the team’s offensive playcaller in January, 2018.

Little did anyone know back when the decision was made, however, that Day could enter the season as the head coach. It’s not the best situation for Ohio State, who is relying on someone who only has very limited experience as a coordinator at a big school. There’s a big difference between Boston College and OSU, but since the season is only a month away, the Buckeyes can’t be choosy and have a head coaching search.

Still, Ohio State fans shouldn’t completely write this season off as being lost just yet. Teams have rallied under new or interim head coaches in the past, with Clay Helton of USC being a notable recent example. We’re only one month out from the season, so either way, we’ll find out soon just how competent Day is.

Rutgers Enters The Season With Options At Quarterback – Giovanni Rescigno?

It’s going to be a tough year for Rutgers football. It’s not anyone in specific’s fault, but Rutgers is still in a long rebuilding phase, and after going 3-6 in the conference, they have some ways to go in that process. Head coach Chris Ash managed to double the team’s wins last year by reaching a total of four, but even if it’s an improvement, four wins is four wins.

And the quarterback position reflects the overall status of the team. Rutgers didn’t have an ace QB last year. The player that put up the most yards at the position was Kyle Bolin, who only managed 711 yards and 3 touchdowns. Bolin is no longer on the team after graduating, and the most experienced player returning for 2018 is Giovanni Rescigno, the QB that replaced Bolin last season following a bad start.

How did Giovanni Rescigno perform in 2018?

Rescigno didn’t have the most impressive numbers and threw for 517 yards with two touchdowns. His best game of the season was at Maryland, where he finished with 107 yards, two overall touchdowns, and a 47% completion percentage on 17 attempts. One of those touchdowns was through the air, and the other one came on the ground as Rescigno kept the ball on an option run and made a mad dash around the edge.

With a full season to work with, Rescigno would certainly put up better numbers. Additionally, the returning QB has the entire offseason to work on getting better, something that Rescigno acknowledged earlier this year. “I have a good amount of film to watch of myself and just how I need to progress whether it’s fundamentally or where my eyes are on certain plays. All that stuff you can always get better at. That’s what film is for.”

But Rescigno isn’t the only quarterback that Rutgers can use this season. Jonathan Lewis was only given 38 passing attempts but had the same amount of touchdowns through the air as Rescigno, with two. On the ground, Lewis showed flashes of potential. He rushed for four touchdowns against Morgan State, and against Indiana, he rushed six times with an average of six yards per rush.

Against Michigan State, Lewis threw for the only touchdown that the Scarlet Knights recorded in the 40-7 loss. The 42 yard TD was a good play, but possibly overshadowed by the two interceptions that Lewis threw in that game. The first of those interceptions was quite the ugly one, with Lewis throwing off of his back foot and into an area that was covered by three Michigan State players.

Despite getting the touchdown, Lewis didn’t look that good against MSU. And that’s understandable, given the Spartans’ defense. However, it shows some of the things that he needs to work on. Decision making with the ball and accuracy are two of them, with the former being especially important.

There’s another player in the competition, though, and that’s one that wasn’t here last season. Despite his freshman status, Artur Sitkowski is in the running to start after having a good spring, and media outlets that follow the Scarlet Knigths have picked Sitkowski to be the number one QB come the season opener.

His three touchdown passes in the Rutgers spring game helped to confirm that even though he’s a freshman, Sitkowski’s talent is for real. He’s not the typical recruit that you expect Rutgers to pull in, either. Sitkowski flipped from Miami during his recruitment, and the fact that he was ever committed to Miami means that a more talented and successful program had enough interest in him to give him the offer.

So who will be the starter? It’s hard to tell until there’s more practices and more information about the performances of the quarterback group reaches the press. But from the looks of things, Sitkowski is either going to be the starter or will be waiting in the wings as an option to receive playing time if the more experienced Rescigno slips up when the season gets here.

You can’t quite pencil in Sitkowski as the immediate starter right now. He just doesn’t have the experience, but that doesn’t mean he won’t end up on the field by one way or another.

Big Ten Media Days: What Michigan Head Coach Jim Harbaugh Had To Say

New York Jets, Jim Harbaugh

Michigan’s Jim Harbaugh is one of the figures that everyone was looking forward to hearing from during Big Ten Media Days, but after speaking on the first day, Harbaugh left fans without any of the controversial or bold statements that the coach has become known for.

Still, Harbaugh shined some insight on the state of the Wolverines program headed into the last month and a half or so before the season starts, speaking about his team’s offense as well as other matters such as the coaching staff this year and whether or not college football should expand further to an eight team playoff system.

“I always think of Karan [Higdon] and Chris Evans as both being really great players. Both have come into leadership roles on our team as the way it’s developed over the last nine months,” Harbaugh said about the team’s running backs. “You see them working with the younger backs, we’ve got some talented younger backs. Chris Evans in particular, grabs guys and goes over pass protections with them.”

Going into the season, though, it’s the quarterback situation that Michigan fans are more concerned with. Ole Miss transfer Shea Patterson is the clear cut favorite to be the started when the season rolls around, but Harbaugh didn’t commit to Patterson one way or another and pointed out that the team’s other quarterbacks were improving.

“He went through all of spring practice with our team and got great work in there, played really well,” he said about Patterson. But he also had good things to say about the rest of the quarterbacks in the starting competition. “Brandon Peters was also improved this spring. Dylan McCaffrey probably made the most improvement of any quarterback on our roster.”

Brandon Peters’ improvement is the most intriguing, as Peters was the favorite to win the starting job before Patterson arrived on the scene and was ruled eligible to play this season by the NCAA.

When asked about what the team needed to be successful, Harbaugh chose not to go into details and instead went for a more simple explanation, one that he would repeat almost word for word when asked about the lack of success against Michigan’s biggest rivals.

“We need to improve. That’ll lead to success and that’ll lead to championships. It’s that simple.”

Big Ten: Shea Patterson Leads The Way For Michigan Quarterbacks

Michigan could compete for the conference if they had a real quarterback. That statement was believed by a lot of people in the past couple of years, ranging from Michigan detractors to the disappointed fans of the Wolverines. It was a statement that made sense, too.

While Michigan invested in a big time addition at head coach, they couldn’t change the fact that John O’Korn and Wilton Speight were their quarterbacks. Even 2015’s quarterback, Jake Rudock, wasn’t the kind of player that you expect to win the conference with. But now, the situation is different for Michigan.

The Role of Shea Patterson:

Entering the scene this season is Ole Miss transfer Shea Patterson, who will be eligible to play and is the favorite to take the starting job. It’s not that the other quarterbacks on Michigan’s roster are terrible. Brandon Peters is believed to be somewhat promising, after attempting 108 passes last season and completing 52% of them, throwing four touchdowns and two interceptions in the process.

But Patterson is already tested in the SEC, and looked good for an Ole Miss team that was trending downwards last year because of off the field reasons. Patterson isn’t just a good quarterback because of not blowing games, either. He’s the type who can take the game into his own hands by creating a big moment using his arm and legs.

Patterson has been compared to Johnny Manziel for his elusiveness, but Patterson has a better arm than Manziel and a very slight height advantage. Even in the game where Ole Miss was destroyed 66-3 by Alabama, Patterson had some of their brighter moments and was able to avoid getting sacked before fitting the ball into tight areas and getting surprising completions.

Against some of the better teams in the conference, Patterson might need to work on his discipline a bit. Teams like Ohio State and Penn State aren’t very forgiving when it comes to bad decisions in the passing game. Against the middling teams, however, it looks like Patterson should put up huge numbers with his mix of elusive pocket presence and arm strength that allows him to connect with his receivers deep down the field.

His best games versus power five opponents last season were against California, Auburn, and Vanderbilt. He threw three interceptions while only getting two touchdowns against the Golden Bears, but his performances against the other two teams featured no turnovers. Patterson threw for a combined 697 yards and six touchdowns against Auburn and Vandy, and also had a rushing touchdown in the latter game.

So what does this mean for Michigan? It means that while the other quarterbacks aren’t complete pushovers, Patterson brings something that they just don’t have. His versatility makes him a better weapon than Brandon Peters, and Patterson is more tested than any of the quarterbacks on Michigan’s roster.

He’s the clear cut starter. The big question for Michigan fans isn’t who will start, but whether or not Patterson will adapt to the different offense quickly enough to lead the Wolverines out of the extremely tough Big Ten East and into their first conference championship game appearance under coach Jim Harbaugh.

Big Ten Media Days: A Time To Evaluate The Middle Of The Pack

Big Ten Media Days are just around the corner, and all eyes will be on the star coaches and players of the conference. Urban Meyer and Jim Harbaugh will draw attention as usual. In line with his personality, Penn State’s James Franklin might steal the spotlight in a more subtle way.

Just about everyone will be interested in what Paul Chryst has to say about Wisconsin turning the corner this year, something that they’ve came so close to doing in past years. It’s not just the top teams in the conference that are worth paying attention to, however.

The teams like Ohio State, Penn State, and Michigan are being picked to contend for the title for good reason: they have more talent than they do question marks. When you dive a little bit deeper, and look into the Nebraskas and the Purdues of the world, things get a bit more interesting.

All of the coaches at Media Days will be asked about the problems facing their teams, but for the schools in the middle and bottom thirds of the conference, there’s more to be gained from solving each problem correctly. Ohio State wins a lot of games, and they just did what was expected of them. Anything less than a national title will be considered a failure by a decent number of fans.

The schools below them, though? The way that their coaches prepare for the season can potentially have a huge impact, even if they don’t win the conference or the national championship. Nobody will be surprised if Trace McSorley leads Penn State to the conference title game.

But if Nebraska fixes their defense and wins a major bowl game? Or if Purdue finds their star at QB and sneaks into a bowl that exceeds their expectations coming into the season? It’s huge news. So when Media Days come around this Monday, don’t just pay attention to the big dogs.

They’re at the top for a reason, but when it comes to answering the questions that we have going into the season, the Minnesotas and Northwesterns can be just as interesting as the Michigans and Ohio States.