\n Welcome to the Skull Session. <\/p>\n
\n\tOhio State recruiting is still\u00a0hot, hot, hot!<\/a>\n<\/p>\n \n\tWelcome aboard, Braxton Rembert<\/a> and Brody McNeel<\/a>.\n<\/p>\n \n\tHave a good Wednesday.\n<\/p>\n \n\t\u00a0THE COMPUTERS!\u00a0It’s Hump Day<\/a>. You know what that means. For the third\u00a0straight week, Ohio State is the unanimous No. 1\u00a0team\u00a0in college football.\u00a0The Buckeyes are ranked No. 1 in the CFP, AP Poll and Coaches Poll. They are also No. 1 in both the College Football Power Index<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0SP+<\/a>.\n<\/p>\n \tCollege Football Power Index<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tTEAM<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tRECORD<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tFPI<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tWIN OUT<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tWIN CONF<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tMAKE CFP<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tWIN CFP<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tOHIO STATE<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t10-0<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t27.8<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t51%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t51.8%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t99.8%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t26.5%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tINDIANA<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t11-0<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t26.0<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t42.5%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t43.2%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t99.8%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t22.1%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tOREGON<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t9-1<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t23.8<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t46.7%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t3.4%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t86.6%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t8.2%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tGEORGIA<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t9-1<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t22.8<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t59.9%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t35.7%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t99.1%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t12.7%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tNOTRE DAME<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t8-2<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t22.4<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t92.8%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tN\/A<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t51.1%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t3.5%<\/p>\n \n\tOhio State’s future opponents in the College Football Power Index:\u00a0Rutgers (60), Michigan (18)\n<\/p>\n \tSP+<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tTEAM<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tRECORD<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tRATING<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tOFFENSE<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tDEFENSE<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tSPECIAL TEAMS<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tOHIO STATE<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t10-0<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t31.4<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t39.8 (7)<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t8.7 (1)<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t0.4 (39)<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tINDIANA<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t11-0<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t30<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t40.7 (2)<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t11.1 (2)<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t0.4 (32)<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tTEXAS TECH<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t10-1<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t28.8<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t40.8 (1)<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t12.4 (4)<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t0.4 (33)<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tOREGON<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t9-1<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t26.6<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t38.4 (10)<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t12.1 (3)<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t0.4 (37)<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tNOTRE DAME<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t8-2<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t22.5<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t39.1 (9)<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t16.6 (13)<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t0.0 (65)<\/p>\n \n\tOhio State’s future opponents in the SP+: Rutgers (61), Michigan (22)\n<\/p>\n \tMatchup Predictor<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tOPPONENT<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tDATE<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tLOCATION<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tPREDICTION<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tRUTGERS<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t11\/22<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tCOLUMBUS, OH<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tOHIO STATE 96.9%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tMICHIGAN<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t11\/29<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tANN ARBOR, MI<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tOHIO STATE 80.7%<\/p>\n \tMovements from Week 12\u00a0to Week 13<\/p>\n \t\tRutgers: 96.8%\u00a0\u2192 96.9%<\/p>\n \t\tMichigan: 79.3%\u00a0\u2192 80.7%<\/p>\n \n\tFor the ninth? 10th? 11th? straight week, FPI and SP+ tell\u00a0me it’s all about Ohio State. If the Buckeyes play like the Buckeyes, no one can stop them!\n<\/p>\n \n\t\u00a0STOP! IN THE NAME OF DEFENSE.\u00a0For the second straight week, Texas Tech and Ohio State lead college football\u00a0in stop rate.\n<\/p>\n \t\tFBS STOP RATE \u2014 BEFORE WEEK 13<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tTEAM<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tGAMES*<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tSTOP RATE<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tPTS\/DRIVE<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tTEXAS TECH<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t10<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t83.5%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t0.95<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tOHIO STATE<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t9<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t82.1%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t0.89<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tSAN DIEGO STATE<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t9<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t81.4%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t1.07<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tTOLEDO<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t9<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t79.2%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t1.26<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tINDIANA<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t10<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t77.1%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t1.09<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tOREGON<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t9<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t75.8%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t1.31<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tUTAH<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t9<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t75.8%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t1.44<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tMIAMI<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t9<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t75.2%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t1.38<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tJAMES MADISON<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t9<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t74.8%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t1.35<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tTEXAS<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t10<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t73.9%<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t1.52<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t*GAMES VS. FBS OPPONENTS<\/p>\n \n\tESPN’s Max Olson<\/a>\u00a0created stop rate to measure the percentage of a defense’s drives that end in punts, turnovers or a turnover on downs for all 136 FBS teams.\n<\/p>\n \n\tThe Red Raiders and Buckeyes lead yet another\u00a0new-look\u00a0top five, which features\u00a0Tony Gwynn\u00a0went there\u00a0San Diego State (81.4%),\u00a0The Paper is based there\u00a0Toledo (79.2%) and\u00a0They used to be good at basketball there\u00a0Indiana\u00a0(77.1%). The rest of the top 10 also experienced some shake-up, as Oregon ranks No. 6 at 75.8%, followed by Utah (75.8%), Miami (75.2%), James Madison (74.8%) and Texas (73.9%).\n<\/p>\n \n\tIt\u2019s impressive that Ohio State\u2019s defense ranks No. 2 in stop rate. It\u2019s even more impressive that the Buckeyes also rank No. 1 in total defense (212.7 YPG) and No. 1 in scoring defense (7.5 PPG), with the next-best teams being\u00a0Toledo (231.5 YPG) and Indiana (11.6 PPG). Quick math tells me\u00a0the Silver Bullets are 17.8 yards and 4.1 points better than the nation\u2019s second-best defenses in those categories. That’s pretty good…\u00a0pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty good!<\/a>\n<\/p>\n \n\t\u00a0OH, MOTHER OF PEARL!\u00a0Pamela Maldonado has doubled down<\/a>.\n<\/p>\n \n\tOne week after she said Julian Sayin was too clean, efficient and technically superior to win the Heisman Trophy, the ESPN college football writer said Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza is “defending the award, not chasing it” as Sayin has done nothing to shape “the season’s emotional spine.”\n<\/p>\n \n\t\tNo. 2 Julian Sayin; QB, Ohio State\n\t<\/p>\n \n\t\tSayin remains the second favorite because he has mastered efficiency without ever becoming the story. The numbers are clean, the mechanics are polished and the Buckeyes offense hums, but (as mentioned last week), nothing he has done has shaped the season’s emotional spine.\n\t<\/p>\n \n\t\tRoughly 900 Heisman voters mean almost no one is sitting around waiting for Week 12 Ohio State against Wisconsin to form an opinion, or even pressing for a Week 13 result. They already have a working hierarchy in their heads because they watched the season through narrative anchors, not PFF grades or EPA data. When you spread the vote across nearly a thousand people, the common denominator becomes simple: emotional imprint. Who defined the year? Who gave them the moment they’ll remember when their ballot hits the screen? This is exactly where Sayin falls short.\n\t<\/p>\n \n\t\tWith that many voters, you need a unifying storyline to cut through the noise, and Mendoza has it, Sayin does not — not yet at least. A clean r\u00e9sum\u00e9 does not carry 900 people unless it comes with a defining snapshot.\n\t<\/p>\n \n\t\tA week later, what is the highlight? Gus Johnson losing his mind over a big-time play to win a game? The moment was Mendoza rectifying the mistakes made early in the game to keep his team on track for an undefeated season.\n\t<\/p>\n \n\t\tFor Sayin, invincible excellence blends into the background.\u00a0Michigan\u00a0is now his access point to influence a group that large. Live drama is needed to force 900 minds to shift. And if there is none, and the Buckeyes cruise, then his placement is logical — second favorite.\u00a0Again, not because he’s not elite, but because 900 people don’t vote for efficiency. They vote for imprint.\n\t<\/p>\n \n\tBut wait, there’s more!\n<\/p>\n \n\tAs I predicted when Texas A&M trailed South Carolina 30\u20133 at halftime, Aggies quarterback Marcel Reed has established himself as one of the top Heisman candidates, according to Maldonado, because he led his team to a historic 28-point comeback to beat the Gamecocks benefited from one of the worst choke jobs I’ve ever seen in college football.\n<\/p>\n \n\t\tNo. 3 Marcel Reed; QB, Texas A&M\n\t<\/p>\n \n\t\tThe move to +550 is structural. Reed produced a moment that forces voters to stop scrolling. Down 27 points, two interceptions, the season collapsing with a bad first-half performance, but then … he detonates the game. You can’t manufacture that kind of narrative energy. It happens organically and violently, and when it does, it pushes a player from “value potential” to “credible contender.”\n\t<\/p>\n \n\t\tThe second half was cinematic — 9.8 yards per play, no punts and Reed erasing his own disasters in real time. That’s the kind of volatility that sticks. Voters remember quarterbacks who survive storms.\n\t<\/p>\n \n\t\tReed is now the third favorite because he crossed that psychological threshold by becoming visible. Mendoza still owns the front-runner profile, but it was a single moment you can have on repeat 10 times a day, while Sayin still owns the technical r\u00e9sum\u00e9. But Reed now owns the chaos highlight that voters latch onto when they’re looking for a December pivot.\n\t<\/p>\n \n\t\tReed’s path is still narrow, but it’s no longer theoretical. Beat\u00a0Texas, deliver a clean game, finish undefeated, and he could be the spoiler with real teeth. And right now, he’s (still, as I’ve been saying for weeks) the only candidate who just authored a Heisman-style shockwave.\n\t<\/p>\n \n\t\tHis Week 12 comeback (deservedly) moved his odds.\n\t<\/p>\n \n\tMaldonado wants story over sense \u2014 which, to me, makes no sense!\n<\/p>\n \n\t\u00a0\u201cWE WANT TO GET TO INDY.\u201d On Tuesday, veteran Ohio State beat reporter Bill Rabinowitz\u00a0asked Ryan Day if he wishes the Buckeyes could have faced more adversity to this point in the season. Day immediately responded, \u201cI hear what you\u2019re saying, but\u2026\u201d\n<\/p>\n \n\tThen Day shared an impassioned answer detailing Ohio State\u2019s intense focus in practice and its desire to reach the Big Ten Championship Game for the first time since 2020\u2026\n<\/p>\n \n\tAnd I loved every second of it.\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cThe intensity is high,\u201d Day said of Ohio State\u2019s season. \u201cIt\u2019s the coach\u2019s job to make sure everybody in the building is locked in. It\u2019s my job to make sure the coaches are locked in, and it\u2019s the position coaches\u2019 job to make sure that their units are locked in and doing their job. And we\u2019re on our game. Then practice has got to be good, too. I mean, we can\u2019t just expect not to be physical in practice and not go good on good, because we\u2019re going to need that to keep our edge. And so all those things are taken into consideration.\n<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cBut we don\u2019t take anything for granted. We don\u2019t make any assumptions. And every week, every Saturday, an opportunity to get to Indianapolis is on the line. That\u2019s the way it is here right now. I mean, we want to get to Indy, and we haven\u2019t got to Indy here. There\u2019s nobody on this team that\u2019s been to Indy right now, and they know it. And so that\u2019s the edge. Wake up in the morning every day looking to reach our goals.\u201d\n<\/p>\n \n\tWhat does Larry Johnson like to say?\n<\/p>\n \n\tEnjoy the chase. Enjoy the chase. Enjoy the chase…\u00a0Fourth day, he decides, I’m done chasing. I’m now gonna go get him. So guess what he does? In the fourth day of his chase, he grabs him and tears him apart. Why? Because he loves the chase, and he says, I am the king of the jungle.\n<\/p>\n \n\tOhio State is all about the chase!\n<\/p>\n \n\t\u00a0DAILY DUBCAST.\u00a0Today’s Eleven Dubcast brings on Dan Hope to discuss the pending multi-billion dollar private equity deal between UC Investments and the Big Ten that Ohio State appears to support while schools including Michigan and USC publicly oppose.\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \n\t\u00a0SONG OF THE DAY.\u00a0“Stop! In The Name Of Love” – The Supremes.\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \n\t\u00a0CUT TO THE CHASE.\u00a0Cloudflare (kind of) resolved\u00a0an outage that impacted thousands, ChatGPT, X and more<\/a>…\u00a0Australian prisoner sues for his “human right”\u00a0to eat Vegemite<\/a>…\u00a0Cura\u00e7ao makes history as smallest nation by population to qualify for a World Cup<\/a>…\u00a0Tackling his ADHD kept Jay Glazer in the game \u2013 here\u2019s how he helped manage symptoms<\/a>…\u00a0Callaway offloads Topgolf in $1.1 billion sale to PE firm<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Welcome to the Skull Session. Ohio State recruiting is still\u00a0hot, hot, hot! Welcome aboard, Braxton Rembert and Brody…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":301153,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[67],"tags":[399,398,396,397,99],"class_list":{"0":"post-301152","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-ncaa-football","8":"tag-football","9":"tag-ncaa","10":"tag-ncaa-football","11":"tag-ncaafootball","12":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/301152","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=301152"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/301152\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/301153"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=301152"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=301152"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=301152"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}