\n Welcome to the Skull Session. <\/p>\n
\n\tWell, that performance was certainly something!\n<\/p>\n
\n\t\tOur World Cup journey comes to an end. pic.twitter.com\/j8fACE41hv<\/a>\n\t<\/p>\n \t\u2014 U.S. Soccer Men’s National Team (@USMNT) July 7, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n \n\tHave a good Tuesday.\n<\/p>\n \n\t\u00a0\u201cI WAS THE MISSING PIECE!\u201d Marcus Freeman appeared on Cam Heyward’s podcast last week, and the former Ohio State teammates spent much of the conversation reminiscing about their careers in Columbus. I’ll get to the rest of that in the second section, but first, their exchange about the Buckeyes’ loss to LSU in the 2008 BCS National Championship Game is too good not to single out.\n<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cWhy didn\u2019t we win a national championship in 2007?\u201d Heyward asked.\n<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cThat was the LSU year. Hm, LSU had some dawgs now,\u201d Freeman said with a laugh. \u201cHoo, that defense was crazy.\u201d\n<\/p>\n \n\t \n\t\u201cSomething happened on special teams,\u201d Freeman said. \u201cI can\u2019t remember did we block a punt and get a penalty or they blocked a punt? I think (Austin) Spitler \u2014 something happened on special teams where it started to get close in the second half, and I just can\u2019t remember. I bet you if I called (Coach Jim Tressel), he would say this is exactly what happened. I think there was special teams, something that had to do with a punt, and yeah, it was ugly.\u201d\n<\/p>\n \n\tFreeman was close.\n<\/p>\n \n\tOhio State trailed 24-10 when it forced LSU into a 4th-and-23 from its own 40-yard line with 10:44 remaining in the third quarter. The Buckeyes appeared poised to get the ball back, but Spitler burst untouched through the middle, missed the ball and instead crashed into punter Patrick Fisher, drawing a roughing-the-kicker penalty.\n<\/p>\n \n\tRather than getting the ball back with a chance to cut into the deficit, Ohio State gave LSU a fresh set of downs. The Tigers capitalized, marching down the field for their fourth touchdown of the game and extending their lead. LSU eventually won 38-24 to claim the BCS national championship.\n<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cOof, that was rough,\u201d Freeman said as he recalled more of the game’s defining moments.\n<\/p>\n \n\tThen came the best part of the conversation.\n<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cWell, as a freshman, you think, like, \u2018Oh, yeah, I\u2019ll be back in the national championship.\u2019 Never was,\u201d Heyward said. \u201cNow it just haunts me.\u201d\n<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cYou weren\u2019t there for \u201906,\u201d Freeman said.\n<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cNo, I wasn\u2019t. I watched \u201906, and I committed right after that game,\u201d Heyward replied.\n<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cYou committed to us after we got beat 41-14?!\u201d Freeman asked, stunned.\n<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cYeah,\u201d Heyward said. \u201cI thought I was the missing piece!\u201d\n<\/p>\n \n\tTo his credit, Heyward helped Ohio State return to the national championship game as a freshman in 2007, recording 33 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks and three pass breakups. While the Buckeyes never made it back to another title game during his career, Heyward developed into one of the program’s best defensive linemen, finishing with 163 tackles, 37.5 tackles for loss and 15.5 sacks.\n<\/p>\n \n\tAn All-Big Ten second-team selection in 2009 and a first-team pick in 2010, Heyward has gone on to become one of Ohio State’s greatest NFL success stories. Remarkably, he remains one of the league’s most productive defensive players entering his 16th NFL season in 2026, all with the Pittsburgh Steelers. The six-time All-Pro and 2023 Walter Payton Man of the Year has amassed 796 tackles, 142 tackles for loss and 92 sacks over his career. He’s under contract with Pittsburgh through the 2027 season, when he’ll be 38 years old.\n<\/p>\n \n\t\u00a0\u201cHE STILL TEACHES ME LESSONS.\u201d Marcus Freeman and Cam Heyward\u2019s Ohio State discussion continued beyond the 2006 and 2007 national championship games, with a conversation about the leadership he witnessed at Ohio State, what he learned from Jim Tressel and more.\n<\/p>\n \n\tNote: The \u201cand more\u201d features the story of when Heyward knocked out one of Freeman\u2019s front teeth while celebrating during the Ohio State-Michigan game in 2010. I wrote about that hilarious story<\/a> in 2025.\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \n\tAnother note: These quotes have been edited for length and clarity.\n<\/p>\n \tOn the leadership traits he learned at Ohio State<\/p>\n \n\t\t\u201cYou learn as you watch others. When I think of the leaders we had before I got there, the A.J. Hawks, the Troy Smiths, the Bobby Carpenters \u2014 and I could go on and on, there was a list of guys \u2014 but as you watched them, you watched the influence they had. A.J. really didn\u2019t speak too much, but when he did speak, you listened. But the way he went about his work, he positively influenced myself, (James) Laurinaitis, and some of us who watched the way he went about his business.\n\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\u201cAnd then I think about you and the leadership you commanded the minute you came in. You did it by example, but you were a vocal leader, too. You didn\u2019t care how old you were. You did it as a freshman and in my last two years when we were together \u2014 when you were a freshman and sophomore. I remember coming back as a graduate assistant in 2010, and you were the definition of a leader, man \u2014 by your play, the way you influenced your teammates. You spoke up when you needed to speak up. You took things personal. It\u2019s the examples that other people set, and then we have to be who we are. You can\u2019t be somebody else. There are so many great examples of leadership in our times at Ohio State.\u201d\n\t<\/p>\n \tOn becoming a coach, along with Brian Hartline and James Laurinaitis<\/p>\n \n\t\t\u201cI probably was the one who got into coaching first. Laurinaitis played so long, he didn\u2019t really want to get into coaching. I remember we hired him here to be a graduate assistant, and he fell in love. The same thing with Hartline. Hartline played for a long time, and finally he was like, \u2018OK, I\u2019m gonna get into coaching.\u2019\n\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\u201cI never wanted to be a coach. I never did. I always said, \u2018These coaches work crazy hours.\u2019 I really wanted to be an AD. I thought the world of Gene Smith. I wanted to stay around sports, but not really coach. I remember I was in Houston with the Texans, and I\u2019m like, both of my knees are hurting, I\u2019ve been cut, and I was like, \u2018Maybe I do want to coach.\u2019 I called Coach Tressel, and I said, \u2018I think I do want to coach.\u2019 He was like, \u2018Play as long as you can.\u2019 But at that point it was just that I wanted to stay around the game of football. Everybody dreams of having a career like Cam Heyward. Everybody thinks they\u2019re gonna have that type of career where you can figure life out when you\u2019re done. But it\u2019s not realistic.\n\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\u201cSo I get into coaching. I start as a GA. And you quickly learn that the gratification you get through coaching is helping other people. It\u2019s helping other people have success. I don\u2019t care if you\u2019re a high school coach. I don\u2019t care what sport you coach. It\u2019s the ability to help others have success. That\u2019s what Hartline and Laurinaitis and Ted Ginn Jr. and all these different people have realized. It doesn\u2019t matter what you\u2019re coaching; if you can help others have success and make it an occupation, it\u2019s a rewarding one.\u201d\n\t<\/p>\n \tOn the lessons he learned from Jim Tressel during his Ohio State career<\/p>\n \n\t\t\u201cI still learn lessons from him to this day. When I think back to my time at Ohio State and Coach Tress, (I think about) culture. Culture, to me, is how you feel. It\u2019s the environment when you walk into that building. When I think about that time, Coach Tress made every single person feel important. Your role didn\u2019t determine your value when we were together and when you were a part of that program. No matter what your role was, there was no role too big or too small for you to do. I remember seeing Coach Tress pick up trash, and he was just such a great example of leadership \u2014 of servant leadership.\n\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\u201cFunny story. A couple of weeks ago, I talked to Coach Tress and a couple of guys. We were like, \u2018Hey, we\u2019re gonna go support Ted Ginn in the last game of his first season with the Aviators.\u2019 We go to the game, I bring two of my sons \u2014 we went out to eat first. We\u2019re getting ready to leave, and my oldest son\u2019s name is Vinny, and (Tressel) says, \u2018Hey Vinny, you\u2019re riding with me.\u2019 And that\u2019s a Coach Tress thing to do. That might be his first or second time that he\u2019s met Vinny, but he wanted Vinny to ride with him. I still haven\u2019t talked to Vinny about that conversation, but I\u2019m intrigued to know what they talked about \u2014 whatever they talked about.\n\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\u201cAnd then we go to the suite once the game starts, and it\u2019s three former players of his: myself, James Laurinaitis, Rory Nicol. Another coach, Darrell Hazell, was there, and a couple other people. He intentionally let us all sit down, and now that it happened, I know what he was doing. He let us all sit down, and one minute later he comes walking around with six or seven water bottles. He starts passing out water to my kids, to us, to Coach Hazell, and then he comes back around with a plate full of cookies. Man, you talk about players, our kids, another coach \u2014 and he\u2019s still serving. He\u2019s just amazing. He\u2019s such a great example, man. He still teaches me lessons to this day.\u201d\n\t<\/p>\n \n\tI could unpack a lot from these quotes, but here\u2019s all I want to share: Jim Tressel is the GOAT\u2026 the GOOOAAAT!<\/a>\n<\/p>\n \n\t\u00a0\u201cNOWHERE NEAR WHERE IT SHOULD BE.\u201d Brian Hartline left Ohio State this offseason to become the head coach at the University of South Florida. In a recent interview with On3\u2019s Pete Nakos<\/a>, Hartline laid out his expectations for his new program, which include turning the Bulls into perennial contenders for the American Conference title.\n<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cThere was some success here the last couple of years, but nowhere near where it should be,\u201d Hartline told Nakos. \u201cThe expectation should be to win \u2014 the floor here should be a constant chase for the American Conference championship. \u2026 I think we\u2019ve been transparent about what those expectations are day to day, through the summer, through recruiting, and into the fall. We have 50 new guys on the roster, a completely different roster than last year. I\u2019m excited about the guys who came in and the guys who chose to stay. I think we have the right guys, and now it\u2019s our job to maximize what they\u2019re capable of.\u201d\n<\/p>\n \n\t\tNEW: USF’s Brian Hartline tells @PeteNakos<\/a> it’s “all gas, no brakes” heading into his first season as a head coach<\/p>\n “There was some success here the last couple of years, but nowhere near where it should be.”<\/p>\n Story: https:\/\/t.co\/ZvVit6BOyQ<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/CI82b1cppD<\/a>\n\t<\/p>\n \t\u2014 On3 (@On3) July 5, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n \n\tIt\u2019s an interesting quote because Hartline is the ultimate competitor who never settles, but also, USF\u2019s former head coach was Alex Golesh, who spent two years as a student assistant under Jim Tressel at Ohio State in 2004-05. Depending on which lens you wear while reading it, this could read as Hartline wanting to hold himself to a high standard, or as a subtle dig at Golesh for failing to meet a higher one.\n<\/p>\n \n\tGolesh went 23-15 with two bowl wins across three years at USF. The performance was good enough to land him the Auburn job this offseason \u2014 and, at the very least, good enough to avoid any Buckeye-on-Buckeye friendly fire about what he accomplished in Tampa.\n<\/p>\n \n\tBut I may have the wrong read on the quote.\n<\/p>\n \n\tMy wife tells me I’m wrong a lot.\n<\/p>\n \n\t(And I am.)\n<\/p>\n \n\t\u00a0THERE IS ANOTHER. The men\u2019s basketball Buckeyes have made the top eight for five-star forward DeMarcus Henry<\/a>, the younger brother of Ohio State women\u2019s basketball player Seini Henry and football player Chris Henry Jr.\n<\/p>\n \n\tA 6-foot-7, 190-pound wing, Henry is the No. 1 small forward and No. 7 overall prospect in the 2027 class. Should he choose Ohio State, he would become one of the highest-rated recruits in program history, trailing only Greg Oden, B.J. Mullens, Jared Sullinger and current freshman Anthony Thompson.\n<\/p>\n \n\t\tDemarcus Henry is down to 8 schools \u203c\ufe0f<\/p>\n Watch the latest episode of Henry Legacy on our YT for the reveal and let us know where you want to see him go! pic.twitter.com\/WkkbqFs5Bj<\/a>\n\t<\/p>\n \t\u2014 Henry Legacy (@TheHenryLegacy_) July 6, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n \n\tHenry averaged 14.8 points, 6.9 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.5 steals in 31 games last season at Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana, California. Amid a dominant run on the Nike EYBL circuit this spring and summer, he transferred to Compass Prep in Chandler, Arizona.\n<\/p>\n \n\tWith Seini and Chris already in Columbus, Ohio State appears to be in a strong position to land Demarcus. But the Buckeyes still face stiff competition, with Arkansas, BYU, UConn, Louisville, Kentucky, North Carolina and Kansas also earning a spot in his final eight.\n<\/p>\n \n\t\u00a0SONG OF THE DAY.\u00a0“Hurt” – Johnny Cash, thanks to the USMNT.\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \n\t\u00a0CUT TO THE CHASE.\u00a0MSU will keep president after Kevin Guskiewicz reverses decision to leave<\/a>…\u00a0Scratching that bug bite might feel good at first but science explains why it\u2019s a bad idea<\/a>…\u00a0Dad\u2019s viral Chick-fil-A menu order can feed 5 for $45<\/a>…\u00a0Veteran MLB umpire C.B. Bucknor to reportedly retire after the 2026 season, accepting buyout<\/a>… England\u2019s Jordan Henderson suffers injury during “Wonderwall” celebration<\/a>.\n<\/p>\n
\u201cBro, do you remember how we started the game?\u201d Heyward asked. \u201cBeanie (Wells) having that long touchdown run, and then all the air got sucked out of the building after that.\u201d\n<\/p>\n