Life and college football never stops as less than two weeks after Ohio State won the National Championship, the Buckeyes are now replacing both of their coordinators and their offensive line coach.
Ohio State had lost defensive coordinator Jim Knowles to Penn State and now offensive coordinator Chip Kelly and offensive line coach Justin Frye will be leaving Columbus to coach in the NFL, Kelly with the Las Vegas Raiders and Frye to the Arizona Cardinals.
Kelly spent one season in Columbus after his surprising decision to resign as UCLA's head coach to serve as the Ohio State coordinator and one cannot argue with the result after the National Championship but if one report can be believed, Kelly will receive a six million dollar payday with the Raiders, which would triple Kelly's salary with Ohio State.
There is no way that Ohio State could come close to equalling that number, so one cannot blame Ohio State for not matching the Raiders offer or Kelly for accepting.
Frye was paid one million by Ohio State last season and while the terms of Frye's deal with the Cardinals are undisclosed, it's likely Frye will be accepting a healthy salary increase.
Frye's three-year tenure had its ups and downs but Frye did his best work in 2024 with an offensive line that suffered injuries to his two best linemen during the season, Josh Simmons and Seth McLaughlin.
At first glance, I think that Kelly might be the easier coach to replace than Frye with the availability of Kevin Wilson, who was fired as the head coach at Tulsa after spending six years as the coordinator with Ohio State.
Wilson would be an easy fit with Ryan Day as they had success working together in the past and now that Wilson's head coaching career appears to be finished after his Tulsa tenure (7-16, fired with one game to go last season) and his age (64 in October), Wilson could look at Ohio State as a place that he could finish his career.
Ohio State could also move to Brian Hartline, who between his recruiting and development of wide receivers is a keeper at all costs, so if keeping Hartline means giving him this job, so be it.
It's risky since Hartline has never called plays but considering his importance to the program if he wants it, it's his.
Other mentioned candidates have been Toledo head coach Jason Candle, Akron head coach Joe Moorehead, Syracuse offensive coordinator Jeff Nixon, and Oregon offensive coordinator Will Stein.
Replacing Frye could be harder when you consider the recruiting aspect of the job.
Kevin Wilson could be a candidate for this position as well but the leader in the eyes of fans appears to be former Buckeye and All-Pro center LeCharles Bentley, who is renowned for his work with college and NFL prospects.
Bentley may not be interested but if he is, he would be a huge addition to the staff.
Should Ryan Day decide to go internal, Tim Drevno spent last season on the staff as a quality control staff but has a long record as an OL coach.
Notre Dame's Joe Rudolph has had success at three stops (Virginia Tech, Wisconsin, and Notre Dame) and was once a graduate assistant at Ohio State.
On paper, PBC's Saturday night pay-per-view from Las Vegas was their best, from top to bottom, and it was a good evening of boxing.
Still, it felt like a mild disappointment despite providing some strong action and it started at the top of the card with David Benavidez winning a unanimous decision over David Morrell to make Benavidez the top contender to the winner of the Artur Beterbiev-Dmitry Bivol rematch that will occur later this month.
Benavidez-Morrell was a good fight but far from the light-heavyweight Armageddon that many thought was possible as Benavidez added Morrell's minor title to the minor belt that Benavidez already owned.
Benavidez threw more, landed more, and simply outworked Morrell, although Morrell had his moments most notably his eleventh-round knockdown of an off-balance Benavidez.
Morrell lost that extra point at the end of the same round when he hit Benavidez after the bell and had a point deducted, which was clearly a foul.
Benavidez won on the scorecards of 118-108 and 115-111 twice, the latter agreeing with my card.
The co-feature was a story of redemption and disappointment as Stephen Fulton won the WBC featherweight title unanimously over Brandon Figueroa in a rematch of their terrific 2021 matchup, won by Fulton by a majority decision.
The redemption comes from Fulton's rebounding from a knockout loss to Naoya Inoue and a controversial decision win over Carlos Castro in his recent two fights.
The disappointment part is that the fight wasn't nearly as exciting as their first fight as Fulton boxed more and Figueroa didn't punch nearly as often which gave Fulton a more conclusive victory.
The scores for Fulton were 117-111 and 116-112 twice, the same as my score.
The fight of the night was expected to be the junior welterweight ten-rounder between Isaac Cruz and Angel Fierro and that lived up to expectations as the two slugged each other for ten brutal rounds.
An absolute battle with Cruz winning on the scorecards 98-92, 97-93, and 96-94, the latter same as my card.
Cruz keeps his viability after losing his WBC championship to Jose Valenzuela but Cruz's aggressive attacking style isn't hurting junior welterweights as badly as lightweights and Cruz should consider dropping back to 135 pounds if he can make the weight.
Fierro made himself some fans with his effort and I'm sure earned himself future paydays.
In the opener, middleweight Jesus Ramos knocked out former junior middleweight champion Jeison Rosario in the eighth round after winning all seven of the previous rounds, dropping Rosario in the seventh.
Rosario has never been known for a stern chin but Ramos's win was still impressive.
Saturday afternoon from London, Peacock was expected to stream promising junior welterweight Adam Azim's latest challenge against former IBF junior lightweight champion Sergey Lipinets but the card never appeared on the streaming service for whatever reason.
Azim was deducted two points for low blows in the fight but controlled Lipinets before stopping him in round nine.
This week's Boxing Challenge is centered in Las Vegas with a pay-per-view card from PBC/Amazon peppered with interesting fights that few may see with an eighty-dollar price tag.
The main event is a much-anticipated contest between light heavyweights David Benavidez and David Morrell for the right to be the mandatory challenger for the undisputed world title currently held by Artur Beterbiev, who meets Dmitry Bivol in a rematch of their unification battle in two weeks.
Both Benavidez and Morrell were more proven as super middleweights but were forced to move to the higher weight division when champion Canelo Alvarez refused to face either man.
Neither were overly impressive in their 175-pound debut, each winning decision's (Benavidez over Oleksandr Gvozdyk, Morrell over Radivoje Kalajdzic) but they should make an exciting fight in this one.
Morrell is the more skilled boxer, while Benavidez is the bigger and stronger fighter, having faced better competition. While Benavidez is the more physical fighter, Morrell could be the harder one-shot puncher.
Placing the meaningless minor titles that each holds, the two boxers have shown legitimate animosity toward each other.
This fight could be a candidate for Fight of the Year.
The co-feature could be another candidate, as WBC featherweight champion Brandon Figueroa defends against former WBC and WBO junior featherweight titleholder Stephen Fulton in a rematch of their excellent 2021 clash won by Fulton via a majority decision that many (including me) giving Figueroa a slight edge.
Since then, Fulton has been knocked out by Naoya Inoue and won a controversial decision in his last bout over Carlos Castro, while Figueroa knocked out the same Castro in six rounds, decisioned former champion Mark Magsayo, and knocked out former junior featherweight champion Jessie Magdaleno in nine rounds last year, so it is Figueroa who is in better recent form.
Figueroa was recently promoted to full WBC champion when injury-riddled champion Rey Vargas was named Champion in Recess.
Former WBC junior welterweight champion Isaac "Pit Bull" Cruz returns for the first time after his upset loss to Jose Valenzuela against Angel Fierro.
Cruz smashed through Rolando Romero before his close defeat to Valenzuela but I thought his aggressive style didn't carry as well in the junior welterweight division as in the lightweight division which could hurt him against the heavier opponents.
Fierro is a rugged fighter who has shown toughness but is a cut below world-class although he should make an entertaining scuffle.
The PPV opener is at middleweight as touted prospect Jesus Ramos faces former WBA and IBF junior middleweight champion Jeison Rosario in a ten-rounder.
Ramos was robbed of a win last year against Erickson Lubin that he deserved and after a comeback knockout win over Johan Gonzalez, Ramos decided to move up to the middleweight division.
Rosario fought to an exciting draw last June with former WBA/IBF junior middleweight champion Jarrett Hurd but has never been known for a strong chin with knockout losses in his four defeats.
This one could be another explosive one for as long as it lasts!
In the afternoon from London, Boxxer/Peacock will present an interesting main event as unbeaten prospect Adam Azim meets former IBF junior lightweight champion Sergey Lipinets in a twelve-rounder.
Azim knocked out former world title challenger Ohara Davies in the eighth round in October while Lipinets defeated Robbie Davies Jr. (no relation) via a unanimous decision last May.
This looks like the classic veteran of the up-and-coming prospect against an aging gatekeeper.
Boxing Challenge
Light Heavyweights 12 Rds
David Benavidez vs David Morrell
Ramon Malpica: Benavidez Unanimous Decision TRS: Benavidez KO 5 Vince Samano: Morrell Unanimous Decision
WBC Featherweight Title. 12 Rds
Brandon Figueroa vs Stephen Fulton
All: Figueroa Unanimous Decision
Junior Welterweights. 10 Rds
Isaac Cruz vs Angel Fierro
R.L: Cruz KO 5 TRS: Cruz KO 8 V.S: Fierro Unanimous Decision
Middleweights 12 Rds
Jesus Ramos vs Jeison Rosario
R.L: Ramos Unanimous Decision TRS: Ramos KO 4
V.S: Ramos KO 6
Welterweights. 12 Rds
Adam Azim vs Sergey Lipinets
R.L and TRS: Azim Unanimous Decision V.S: Azim KO 6
On a day that should have been filled with celebrating a national championship among their home fans, Ohio State football was dropped for a loss with the announcement that defensive coordinator Jim Knowles was leaving for the same job and a hefty raise at conference rival Penn State.
Knowles arrived at Ohio State for the 2022 season and after an initial struggle in matching his system with personnel has helped Ohio State's defense become one of the best in the nation in the last two seasons and the best in their national championship-winning year.
Ohio State allowed only twelve points and two hundred fifty-four yards per game in 2024, leading the nation in both categories.
Knowles is rumored to have had philosophical issues with defensive line coach Larry Johnson. Johnson is the older man with more specialized responsibilities, but he is far more valuable as a recruiter than Knowles, who has made his disdain for that part of the job clear.
Knowles will make over three million dollars per season for Penn State. While Ohio State made an offer that would have made him the highest-paid assistant in the country, it's unknown if Ohio State matched Happy Valley's offer.
Penn State has upped the ante for 2025 with several players that could have entered the NFL draft returning in an attempt to emulate the success of Ohio State's returning stars in the past season.
Ohio State is losing eight defensive starters but they still have Caleb Downs and Sonny Styles returning and there is still plenty of talent for the Buckeyes, arguably more than Penn State even with the loss of eight starters.
It might not have been any of the reasons rumored.
Not the money, friction with the coaching staff, or issues with the Columbus pressure cooker.
It could be as simple as Knowles, after three years. has nowhere to go but down after this past season.
At best, Knowles's defense could keep the status quo and some of the best coaches prefer the process of building rather than maintaining, Ohio State had someone like that in Urban Meyer, so that's entirely plausible
Several coaches are rumored to be candidates, with Matt Guerrieri and Tim Walton as the leaders if Ryan Day wants to keep the position within the current staff.
From the outside, former Wisconsin defensive coordinator and current Denver Broncos defensive backs coach Jim Leonhard, former Ohio State defensive coordinator and current Green Bay Packers coordinator Jeff Hatley, and Iowa State defensive coordinator Jon Heacock would lead my list of a crowded field.
Eleven Warrior's Dan Hope details eleven coaches who could be candidates to replace Knowles here.
Ohio State is losing one of the best defensive minds in the game but several qualified men are more than capable of using the talent on campus to retain the Buckeyes' elite defensive level.
The favorites each notched victories on the card presented from Matchroom/DAZN Saturday night from Las Vegas but they did so in a decidedly different fashion.
In the main event, rising super middleweight contender Diego Pacheco overcame a slow start and a late stumble to grab a unanimous decision over previously unbeaten Steven Nelson,
I thought Nelson had won three of the first four rounds before Pacheco cut Nelson over the left eye late in round four.
The cut changed the bout's momentum as Pacheco dominated with Nelson's attack slowing with his decreasing vision and Pacheco landing his right without any problems from the Omaha boxer from the Terence Crawford stable.
Pacheco had Nelson in trouble in the tenth round and looked to possibly stop him, but Nelson showed his heart in the final two rounds. He landed several strong punches that affected Pacheco and appeared to bother the unbeaten star in the final round.
My score was a bit closer at 115-113 for Pacheco than all three judges' official scores of 117-111, but Pacheco deserved the nod.
Pacheco will bide his time for a while as he is the top contender for Canelo Alvarez from the WBO and won't wish to gamble that position but he could use some extra time to polish himself a bit for the day he would face Canelo.
Nelson fought well enough to deserve more chances against contenders but at thirty-six needs to be more active if he wishes to reach title contention.
Former Olympic gold medalist Andy Cruz continues to impress with a ten-round unanimous decision over Omar Salcido that Cruz controlled and showed a willingness to try to entertain viewers with an aggressiveness that hasn't been seen before.
Cruz boxed very well early but began to take chances in the middle rounds which opened himself up to take some shots from Salcido, who never stopped coming forward despite taking punishment.
Cruz tried to end the fight with a stoppage, pressing the attack and hurting Salcido in both the eighth and tenth rounds but Salcido showed resilience in lasting the ten-round distance.
Cruz appears ready for the next level of opposition, the top ten level, and will be a tough out for anyone in a talented lightweight division.
Salcido showed toughness and he'll have other chances after a determined outing.
I scored Cruz a winner at 99-91, which agreed with one judge, the other two scores were 98-92.
Due to an error of mine, I didn't add a third bout to the boxing challenge and missed the star of the night as junior welterweight Ernesto "Tito" Mercado crushed former two-time champion Jose Pedraza in four brutal rounds,
Mercado kept Pedraza in retreat throughout and one right hand popped Pedraza to the floor.
Pedraza rose but the referee saw his failing legs and correctly waved an end to the fight.
Mercado scored his sixteenth knockout in his seventeen wins and showed personality after the fight as he called out WBC lightweight champion Shakur Stevenson, who was in the audience, with pro wrestling style panache' threatening to "straighten the cap between Stevenson's teeth".
Mercado is a fighter to watch in 2025.
As for Pedraza, the aging veteran is 0-3-1 in his last four fights and didn't show much other than guts in losing to Mercado and retirement should be an option at this point.
The college season is in the books but we will have three more games in the NFL campaign with this Sunday's conference championship games determining who will be headed to the Super Bowl
The boxing challenge will be centered in Las Vegas for a Matchroom/DAZN card with two talented boxers knocking on the door of a title chance in action.
Unbeaten super middleweight Diego Pacheco will meet undefeated foe Steven Nelson in the twelve-round main event.
Pacheco knocked former title challenger Maciej Sulecki in six rounds in his last outing in August but was stunned by a Sulecki right-hand in an otherwise impressive victory.
The thirty-six-year-old Nelson, who is trained by Brian Macintyre from the same Omaha team as Terence Crawford, is unbeaten and knocked out undefeated Marcos Rodriguez in five last August but Pacheco will be the best opponent Nelson's met and who knows how Nelson will match up with Pacheco, who is one of the best young fighters in the sport.
Olympic gold medal winner Andy Cruz meets Omar Salcido in the lightweight co-feature.
Cruz has won his first four fights as a pro against good competition and stopped rugged veteran Antonio Moran in seven rounds last August.
Salcido has lost only once and crunched former title contender Chris Colbert in the ninth round in October, so he's not light work for Cruz, who won his 2020 Olympic gold over Keyshawn Davis in the finals but Cruz seems to be a cut above Salcido in class.
Super Middleweights. 12 Rds
Diego Pacheco vs Steven Nelson
Ramon Malpica and TRS: Pacheco Unanimous Decision Vince Samano: Nelson Unanimous Decision
Lightweights 10 Rds
Andy Cruz vs Omar Salcido
R.L and TRS: Cruz Unanimous Decision V.S: Salcido Unanimous Decision
Lightly regarded junior featherweight challenger Ye Joon Kim tried his best to win rather than survive in his challenge of the undisputed champion Naoya Inoue Friday morning in Tokyo. Still, the fight was over when Inoue landed his first strong right hand.
That right connected in round four and they would fight no further with Inoue retaining all four of his championships via fourth-round KO.
Kim was game and even landed a few right hands on "The Monster" but class showed the first time Inoue's power crashed home.
Inoue announced plans for three more fights in 2025, which is encouraging to boxing fans, and is reported to include a trip to the USA to meet the WBC's mandatory challenger Alan Picasso, a long-awaited defense against WBA mandatory Murodjon Akhmadaliev in Saudi Arabia, and then a Japanese superfight against WBC bantamweight champion Junto Nakatani.
All three will present superior opposition to Inoue than Kim and while each will be a significant underdog, each will have supporters that think their man will be the one that tames the Monster.
Nakatani's height and reach will be a difficult task against Inoue and despite his surprising loss to Marlon Tapales, Akhmadaliev has the technical skills to at least trouble Inoue for a few rounds.
It looms as a very interesting year for Inoue and should all three of those fights occur with Inoue wins, The Monster will have a major case for 2025's fighters of the year.
The boxing season begins to move out of the starting gate this weekend, starting with a Friday morning card from Tokyo with another appearance from "The Monster" Naoya Inoue.
Inoue, holder of all four titles at junior featherweight, was scheduled to face Australia's Sam Goodman in December. The fight was postponed due to a cut suffered by Goodman in training.
Goodman, the IBF's mandatory challenger, re-opened the cut in training for Friday's bout. This time, a substitute was found on a few weeks'' notice.
South Korea's Ye Joon Kim will step in for Goodman and even though his record is 21-2-2 and he's never been knocked out, Kim hasn't defeated anyone of world-class caliber and appears far out of his league, as most are, against Inoue.
Kim isn't likely to provide more than a few rounds of work for Inoue but it's a chance to see one of the best fighters in the world at work.
World Junior Featherweight Title.12 Rds
Naoya Inoue vs Ye Joon Kim
Ramon Malpica: Inoue KO 7
TRS: Inoue KO 2 Vince Samano: Kim Unanimous Decision
The Ohio State Buckeyes scored touchdowns on their first four possessions, added a field goal on their fifth, and then held off a furious late rush from Notre Dame to win the first CFP title 34-23 in Atlanta.
Quinshon Judkins rushed for 100 yards with two rushing touchdowns and a receiving score with Will Howard throwing for 231 yards and rushing for 57 more to pace the Buckeye offense.
With the national title trophy in tow, a different group of Buckeyes will start defending their title in August at home against the Texas Longhorns.
Olentangy Offerings
1) Ohio State scored touchdowns on their first four possessions and their fifth resulted in a field goal and would only score three points after that point.
However, that includes only three more possessions, the first ended on an Emeke Egbuka fumble after a big gain at the Notre Dame 24, their only punt of the game, and the final drive that resulted in the field goal that salted away the game.
2) Emeka Egbuka's fumble was the only Ohio State turnover of the game and it didn't result in any lost points as Notre Dame missed a field goal. Still, Ohio State would have likely scored on the drive, which would have helped Ohio State fans relax earlier in the fourth quarter.
3) Emeka Egbuka caught six passes during the game and became the all-time leader in receptions for the Buckeyes breaking the record of K.J. Hill.
Egbuka played in more games than the other Ohio State greats at the position and stayed for four seasons, unlike some of the recent stars at wide receiver. But hey, that's how K.J. Hill set the record, and Egbuka will have a better NFL career than that of Hill, who caught ten passes in two seasons with the Chargers.
4) TreVeyon Henderson had been the standout running back in the postseason before Monday but it was Quinshon Judkins taking over in the title matchup, scoring two rushing touchdowns, catching another one, and ripping off a seventy-yard run that set up one of his two scores.
Judkins may have scored on that run but he was concerned about someone coming from behind and punching the football away and he visibly slowed late in the run.
5) Both Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson moved over the one-thousand-yard mark in rushing during the win, which makes them only the second running back duo at Ohio State to accomplish that feat.
Archie Griffin and Pete Johnson did this in 1975 and Carlos Hyde along with Braxton Miller did the same in 2013 but Miller was the quarterback during that season.
6) Will Howard completed his first thirteen tosses and finished seventeen of twenty-one on the game but his running was perhaps even more impressive as Howard's designed runs gave him fifty-seven yards rushing on sixteen carries.
Howard came to Columbus heralded more as a runner than a passer but his running had disappointed somewhat this season.
7) Notre Dame took the opening kickoff and punished the Buckeye defense with the running game on the seventy-five-yard touchdown drive.
I thought that would change as the game played out as Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard was taking some serious hits on his nine carries on the drive.
Whether it was from the punishment or playing from behind, Leonard would run on only seven occasions after the first drive.
8) The biggest play came late in the fourth quarter with Notre Dame having scraped back into the game down only eight points with two and a half minutes to play, Ohio State faced a key third down and eleven on their own thirty-four.
If Notre Dame could come up with a stop, a touchdown and two-point conversion would tie the game.
Notre Dame decided to gamble that Ohio State would run the football to run the clock to the two-minute timeout and left their corners in man coverage.
Big mistake as Will Howard found the most electrifying freshman in the nation, Jeremiah Smith, for a fifty-six-yard gain to the Notre Dame ten as the hammer blow to the Fighting Irish's comeback hopes.
Smith finished with five catches, eighty-eight yards, and a touchdown but he's never made a bigger catch than the one he made on third and eleven.
9) Marcus Freeman had his struggles in his first game on the championship stage but of his two questionable decisions, I think Freeman is being unfairly criticized.
Notre Dame was down sixteen with just under ten minutes to go facing a fourth and goal at the Ohio State nine and Freeman sent kicker Mitch Jeter for a twenty-seven-yard field goal attempt.
Jeter clanged the kick off an upright giving Notre Dame nothing for their drive and some say even if it was good, Notre Dame still needed two scoring possessions.
My argument would be this- now two touchdowns win the game rather than needing two touchdowns and two successful two-point conversions to merely tie it.
Notre Dame needed their defense to step up to have those two possessions (they would have two but one was with only seconds remaining and out of timeouts) but Ohio State had generally kept the Irish under wraps other than the first drive and a few big gains based on bad tackling and Notre Dame needed nine yards on one play.
I'm not saying I would have kicked the field goal but I can see why Freeman decided to.
10) It's tougher to excuse Freeman for his other call, a fake punt on fourth and two on his own thirty-three, down 28-7 in the third quarter.
Notre Dame had called fake punts several times throughout the season and Ohio State was ready, keeping their defense on the field, and forcing an incomplete pass.
Under the circumstances, few believed Notre Dame was going to actually punt and Freeman may have done better with his best players on the field and trying to gain those two yards on fourth down.
11) I did wonder a bit on the final Ohio State drive before the pass to Jeremiah Smith about the decision to do nothing other than send Will Howard forward to run the clock.
It made me think that they were afraid of a turnover (justified) but gave the feeling of coaching scared that has haunted Ryan Day in big games.
Fortunately, Ohio State shrugged that aside with a courageous play call.
12) The national title is the ninth in program history with Ryan Day the fifth coach to win one along with Paul Brown, Woody Hayes, Jim Tressel, and Urban Meyer.
It was a wild ride to get to this point and it wasn't always smooth but Ryan Day and the Buckeyes managed to get through the season and the criticism of many (including myself) to earn the national title.
There are plenty of other items to explore and explain about this championship season along with thoughts on the 2025 season but those will wait until the near future (I hope in the next week or so) to write.
This is my favorite NFL weekend of the year with four games over two days and trimming the field to four teams!
Also, it's the finals of the first-ever CFP with a certain team in Columbus attempting to complete a Lazarus-like return with a National Championship going to the victor!
The flashy guard was one of the first point guards who were more than a pass-fast backcourt member and let the Seattle SuperSonics to their only NBA title in 1979.
Williams was selected in the first round by Golden State in 1975 and played his first seasons with the Warriors. However, he came into his own after joining Seattle, averaging between eighteen and twenty-three points per game in his six seasons in the Emerald City.
Williams led Seattle to two straight NBA finals against the Washington Bullets, splitting the two series. He sat out the entire 1980-81 season over a contract dispute but won the Comeback Player of the Year award after returning the following season and was named to the All-NBA first team for the only time in his career.
Williams was traded to Washington in 1984 and averaged twenty points per game in his first season. However, his average dropped to thirteen in the following season, and after thirty-three games with the Hawks in 1986-87, Williams's career was completed.
Simpson flashed on the Major League baseball scene as a rookie in 1970 for the eventual National League champion Cincinnati Reds when he won thirteen of his first fourteen decisions and made the All-Star team.
Simpson blew out his rotator cuff in July, ending his seasonal 14-3 with an ERA of 3.02, and never regained his former prowess in the final five years of his career with the Reds, Royals, Phillies, and Angels.
One of the first Puerto Rican players to make a mark in the majors, Mantilla won a World Series with the 1957 Milwaukee Braves and was part of the New York Mets expansion before being traded to Boston, where Mantilla would have the greatest career success.
Mantilla hit fifty-four homers in Boaton from 1963-54 with thirty of them in 1964 as his swing was perfect for lofting short fly balls over the Green Monster.
Boston traded Manitlla to Houston for the 1966 season where he would hit six home runs in seventy-seven games before an Achilles injury ended his career.
Bart, a mid-card wrestler for several federations, had his best run as part of a tag team with Outlaw Ron Bass, which saw him hold the United States tag team titles with Bass in Florida and the Mid-Atlantic tag team belts.
Bart would hold the Mid-Atlantic title after splitting with Bass and would briefly hold the World Class version of the world title, winning from Chris Adams in a fictitious match since Adams left the company without dropping the title.
Known for his deep speed, Braoshaw played for two Rose Bowl teams at Ohio State, winning in 1974 before being selected in round four by the Oakland Raiders in 1974.
Bradshaw would win two Super Bowls with the Raiders (1976 and 1980), catching forty of his ninety career receptions in 1978 for Oakland.
Bradshaw averaged almost sixteen yards per reception in his nine-year career (eight with Oakland and his final season with New England) and worked in the Raiders front office for almost thirty years after his playing career ended.
It's been over sixty years since the most controversial trade in Cleveland sports history,
And while the number of fans who saw him play dwindles, I'm not sure you can be a Cleveland sports fan and not be familiar with the name Rocky Colavito.
The power-hitting outfielder had everything that one needed to become a star for Cleveland fans for his career and one ridiculous general manager took it all away.
Colavito's recent passing at the age of ninety-one brought more to mind than the trade that lives on today and a career that was one of the premier home run bombers.
Colavito smashed 128 homers in his first four seasons in Cleveland, including forty-one and forty-two in 1958 and 59, the latter leading the American League. And as the team's most popular player at only twenty-six years of age, one would think Colavito would be untouchable in trade for anyone shy of Mickey Mantle.
You would be wrong.
Indians general manager Frank Lane didn't receive his nickname of "Trader" for his love of holding his cards. In spring training in 1960, Lane traded Colavito to Detroit for the reigning batting champion Harvey Kuenn.
Lane infamously explained the deal as trading "a hamburger for a steak".
Kuenn would hit .308 for Cleveland in his only season for the Tribe before being traded to the Giants for a washed-up Johnny Antonelli (who finished 0-4 for Cleveland and was out of baseball by the end of the season) and outfielder Willie Kirkland (Kirkland hit .238 and eight homers in three Cleveland seasons).
The Colavito for Kuenn trade may have been the trade that turned Indians fans ambivalent off the field but it was Kuenn for Antonelli and Kirkland that started the multiple-decade decline on the field as in only one season, the Indians had turned one of the best power hitters in baseball into Willie Kirkland.
Colavito would hit 139 homers in four seasons as a Tiger with a high of forty-five in 1961 and knock in over one hundred runs twice. But Rocky's 1963 stats declined a little, dropping to twenty-two home runs and "only" ninety-one RBI, so Detroit traded Colavito to the Kansas City Athletics along with pitcher Bob Anderson and fifty thousand dollars for Jerry Lumpe, Dave Wickersham, and Ed Rakow.
Wickersham won nineteen games for Detroit in 1964 and Lumpe made his only All-Star selection in that season, so Detroit didn't give Colavito away, however, Rocky hit thirty-four homers and finished with 102 RBI in what would be his only season in green and gold.
Meanwhile, Cleveland not only has struggled on the field since Rocky left town (no winning seasons), attendance has fallen and the rumors (which would continue until the team built Jacobs Field in 1994) of the Indians moving the franchise had started to multiply.
Returning "The Rock" to Cleveland would be an easy way to help attendance and appease a dwindling fan base was a great idea except the Indians didn't have anyone that Kansas City wanted in return.
The Chicago White Sox were interested in the Indians catcher Johnny Romano and were told to acquire Colavito and Cleveland would produce Romano.
Chicago was able to bring Colavito over, and the talks began with Cleveland, which also traded two minor leaguers with Romano: Tommie Agee, a solid outfielder who would be named Rookie of the Year in 1966, and Tommy John, who would win 288 games in the big leagues—two of them as an Indian.
Colavito's return was the story of the 1965 Indians, who finished 87-75 and temporarily derailed the talk of moving the team, led by Colavito's twenty-six homers and American League-leading one hundred-eight RBI.
Colavito hit thirty homers for the Indians in 1966, but his average plunged almost fifty points. Midway through the 1967 season, Cleveland sent Rocky to Chicago for journeyman outfielder Jim King and a player to be named later. Rocky would finish the year with a combined eight home runs.
Colavito was obtained by the Dodgers before the 1968 season but struggled and was released in July.
Colavito was signed and finished the season with the Yankees before being released after the season.
Known for his powerful throwing arm from right field, Colavito was feared by American League baserunners who rarely attempted to take liberties on The Rock.
Colavito pitched two games in the majors and in his final season, 1968, Colavito was the last position player to earn a win before Brent Mayne's win in 2000, when Colavito fired two and two/third scoreless innings against the Tigers.
However, the biggest day of Colavito's career would be June 10th, 1959 when Colavito became only the second player in American League history (Lou Gehrig was the first) to hit home runs in four consecutive at-bats against the Orioles at Baltimore's Memorial Stadium.
Baltimore was the toughest park for power in the American League in 1959.
Colavito hit homers off Jerry Walker, Arnie Portocarrero (two), and Ernie Johnson, the father of the current sportscaster of the same name in his record-setting game.
Colavito worked for the Indians from 1973 through 1978 as a coach or broadcaster. In 1976, he would work in both roles, coaching before the game and then broadcasting the game from the booth.
Colavito finished his baseball life in 1982 and 83 as the hitting coach for the Royals and was ejected along with George Brett in the famous "Pine Tar" game against the Yankees.
Rocky returned to his longtime home near Reading, Pennsylvania after baseball and suffered through diabetes-related problems that would lead to a partial amputation of his right leg in 2015.
In 2021, Colavito received a life-size statue in his honor in Cleveland but its home wouldn't be around the ballpark where the now-Guardians play.
Instead, it would be in the Little Italy section of Cleveland where The Rock would stand the test of time in the batter's box waiting to uncork his powerful swing.
Colavito was named to the All-Star team in seven seasons, and finished his career with three hundred and seventy-four home runs, and over eleven hundred RBI.
Colavito also was one of the players selected to participate in the television show Home Run Derby, appearing in two episodes against Washington's Harmon Killebrew and Boston's Jackie Jensen.
When you look at the Rock's career statistics, had his career not ended so quickly (Colavito was a thirty home run hitter in 1966 and was retired two seasons later) and had he reached four hundred homers and notched another three or four seasons close to his average years, Colavito might have been a Hall of Fame candidate rather than a Hall of Very Good member.
Sometimes in life, you can have influence beyond the norm, and while Rocky Colavito's career fell short of enshrinement in Cooperstown, The Rock created a generation of Cleveland baseball fans, who then sired another and so forth.
Rocky Colavito in Cleveland built a better legacy with the town's fans than many players in the Hall of Fame who played with the Indians.
There weren't very many Cleveland fans or Northern Ohio residents who saw him play who were going to "Knock The Rock".
The Texas Longhorns were one yard away from a tie in the waning minutes of the Cotton Bowl and had four chances to advance that yard.
Three failed plays and seven lost yards later, the game was down to one play.
Jack Sawyer made that play as he swept past his blocker, obliterated Quinn Ewers, separating Ewers from the football, and grabbed the bouncing ball taking it eighty-three yards into Buckeye lore as Ohio State eliminated Texas from the CFP 28-14.
The Ohio State running backs scored all three Buckeye touchdowns as Quinshon Judkins rushed for two scores and TreVeyon Henderson took a Will Howard swing pass seventy-five yards for a touchdown with seconds remaining in the first half.
Will Howard finished with two hundred eighty-nine yards passing with a touchdown and interception with Carnell Tate leading the receivers with seven catches for eighty-seven yards.
Ohio State will meet Notre Dame a week from Monday in Atlanta for the first CFP championship.
Olentangy Offerings
1) It's so fitting that Jack Sawyer stepped up to make the play of the season.
It was Sawyer, who stopped Michigan's planting of the flag at Ohio Stadium which in hindsight may have been the moment that allowed this team to lock things into place, and who better to run into Ohio State history than Jack Sawyer?
2) On that play, Sawyer blew past Texas tackle Cam Williams untouched and crunched Ewers to force the fumble, yet had the agility to not go to the ground by moving past Ewers, grabbing the ball on one hop and into the history books.
Sawyer has made himself move up draft boards with his late and post-season play but even more, he's made himself a Buckeye legend.
3) The play of the drive came two plays before the Sawyer sack/score on second and goal from the one after stuffing the first down run up the gut.
Texas calls a toss to Quintrevion Wisner but Caleb Downs is there almost before the pitch and while Wisner avoids Downs, he cannot elude Lathan Ransom for a seven-yard loss.
That play forced Texas to throw on third and fourth down and took away any chance of running the ball.
Downs didn't make the tackle but he made the play.
4) Texas dealt with freshman wunderkind Jeremiah Smith by always sending two defensive backs to Smith.
As a result, Smith was thrown to only three times, catching one for a measly three yards.
5) And since someone had to get the ball, if Smith wasn't, Carnell Tate was the main target, but Gee Scott was also thrown to more than usual.
Ohio State didn't complete a pass longer than eighteen yards other than the seventy-five-yard catch and run by TreVeyon Henderson.
6) Will Howard avoided the big mistake that could have kept Texas in the game, and other than one interception in the third quarter (that resulted in no damage), Howard resisted the temptation to force the ball to Jeremiah Smith in double coverage.
That's what a veteran quarterback does, avoid the big mistake.
7) The Jim Thorpe Award for the best defensive back was won by Texas defensive back Jahdae Barron, who is an excellent player, but through my admittedly biased eyes, Caleb Downs was the more deserving candidate.
Downs was all over the field against Texas and was making plays that didn't make the stat sheet as he caused Texas to try to avoid Downs at all costs.
8) The Ohio State defense did more than only turn Texas away at the end of the game.
Ohio State made Texas work for their two scores with long demanding drives and controlled the run and pass equally.
Ohio State sacked Quinn Ewers four times, knocked down six passes, and held the run game to fifty-eight yards for a two-yard per carry average.
9) Ohio State's quick strike at the end of the first half with a swing pass that TreVeyon Henderson took to the end zone shortly after Texas had tied the game at seven allowed the Buckeyes to avoid the dreaded halftime blues.
Henderson has played well recently and is living up to his five-star recruit status with his size and speed.
10) Ohio State may have played its toughest opponent considering that Notre Dame will be waiting in the finals but I'm not taking the Irish lightly.
Notre Dame's defense is rugged and they run the ball well but they aren't going to scare anyone through the air and I think the Ohio State receivers are too gifted physically for the Irish to handle.
A second-round pick by the Cincinnati Bengals in 1969 from Arkansas State, Bergey was named first or second All-Pro from 1974-78 and made five appearances in the Pro Bowl.
Bergey was traded from the Bengals to the Eagles in 1974 for two first-round picks (1977 and 78) and a second-rounder in 1978 after signing a futures contract with the WFL's Florida Blazers, making head coach and owner Paul Brown angry enough to trade away his star linebacker.
One of many great linebackers of the 1970s that have fallen through the cracks in making the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Bergey finished his career with the Eagles Super Bowl loss to the Oakland Raiders in the 1980 season with twenty-seven interceptions and twenty-one fumble recoveries.
After joining CBS in 1988 from ESPN, Gumbel began rising through the ranks at CBS and would remain with the network (other than a four-year hiatus with NBC from 1994-98) until now.
Gumbel was the studio host for the NCAA basketball tournament, called two Super Bowls, was the studio host for The NFL Today, and in recent years called NFL games usually games on the lower end of CBS's schedule.
The older brother of Bryant Gumbel, Gumbel also worked in NBA games and two Winter Olympics during his long career.
Hussey burst into prominence in the 1968 film "Romeo and Juliet" in one of the two title roles and starred in horror films such as Black Christmas, as the mother of "Norman Bates" in a 1990 Psycho prequel, and as Mary of Nazareth in a 1977 NBC mini-series.
However, it was Romeo and Juliet she will be most remembered for, including a nude scene filmed when Hussey was only fifteen, and years later along with co-star Leonard Whiting sued unsuccessfully for damages caused by the film.
A utility man who played for five franchises, Lenny Randle had some memorable moments in a career that might have been forgotten without some strange happenings.
As a Texas Ranger in a 1974 game against Cleveland, Indians pitcher Milt Wilcox threw a pitch behind the head of Randle, who later in the at-bat bunted a ball down the first base line, forcing Wilcox to field the ball.
Randle ran over Wilcox and as Randle continued to run down the baseline with Cleveland first baseman John Ellis waiting- with a two-punch combination that knocked out Randle and led to an on-field brawl.
Still a Ranger in spring training in 1977, Randle attacked manager Frank Lucchesi after an altercation, punching his manager three times, breaking his cheekbone, and resulting in a hospital stay that required plastic surgery.
Randle was suspended for a month but was traded to the Mets before the suspension was completed.
In 1981, finishing his career with the Mariners, Kansas City's Amos Otis bounced a ball down the third base line and was likely to beat out the play for a single, but Randle dropped to his hands and knees and blew the baseball foul.
The umpires declared Otis safe and ruled Randle had interfered without touching the baseball.
A long-time reporter and anchor for ABC and CNN, Brown took the lead role in reporting for CNN during the 9/11 attacks in New York City.
Brown should have been a bigger star in news media but he was a person from a different time.
A time when facts mattered more than getting something on the air first and the story was more important than the person reporting.
People say they wish people in media would be more about substance than style and then the opportunities and viewers state the opposite.
Brown did the overnight shift for ABC's "World News Now", where I discovered his work for the first time and was the original anchor for the program in 1992.
Brown had a sly sense of humor on that show as shown when his original co-anchor Lisa McRee left the show in January 1993 and used a life-size cardboard cutout of McRee in her chair until a full-time replacement was hired months later.
The bespectacled Veale spent most of his career with the Pittsburgh Pirates, winning a World Series ring in 1971 with the Buccos.
Known for hard-throwing, the southpaw was named to the All-Star team in 1965 and 1966, and led the National League in strikeouts in 1964, fanning two hundred and fifty batters.
Veale won thirteen or more games six times with a high of eighteen in 1964.
Veale holds the Pirates franchise record for strikeouts in a game with sixteen and Veale ranks second in total strikeouts in team history, second only to Bob Friend.
The Cleveland Cavaliers held off the Oklahoma City Thunder 129-122 in Cleveland in a rare NBA regular season game with a postseason feel.
The top team in the East, Cleveland, extended their winning streak to eleven games and ended the fifteen-game winning streak for the Thunder, the top squad in the West.
Jarrett Allen (25 and 11) and Evan Mobley (21 and 10) each posted double-doubles in points and rebounds to pace Cleveland's victory.
The Cavaliers have three games before a January 16th rematch with the Thunder in Oklahoma City in a highly anticipated return encounter.
Swashbucklings
1) Cleveland improved to 32-4 with the win and this game felt like an NBA Finals game.
Both teams played with the type of intensity that isn't common in a regular season game and the rematch next week should be equally fun.
2) Jarrett Allen was the dominant factor in this game as Oklahoma City center Isaiah Hartenstein, a former Cavaliers, struggled to keep Allen out of the paint and couldn't match his quickness.
If these two teams ever play for a title, Jarrett Allen might make the difference between these two excellent squads.
3) Watching the game on ESPN, Doris Burke was smitten with the improvement in Evan Mobley's game since last season.
Burke credited Kenny Atkinson's usage of Mobley, which is deserved, but also marveled at his increased aggressiveness in going to the hoop and his improved willingness to bang on the inside.
If I were going to pick one thing for the stunning leap in the Cavaliers play, it would be Evan Mobley's step into stardom.
4) Donovan Mitchell struggled throughout the game, finishing with only eleven points, on three for sixteen shooting.
Still, what I like about Mitchell is that even when the shots aren't falling, he doesn't sulk and he doesnt' stop in the other facts of the game- Mitchell just keeps plugging.
5) Cleveland also received big games off the bench from Max Strus (17 pts five assists and five of six from three-point range) and Ty Jerome (fifteen points in only twelve minutes of play).
6) Evan Mobley's offensive improvement has drawn its share of kudos but Mobley's defensive play has skyrocketed as well.
Mobley gives Cleveland a second shot disruptor around the basket and teams must account for him on the defensive end of the floor.
The PPM reaches full post-season form as the NFL playoffs begin and the college field will decide which two teams will become the first-ever CFP champion!
The boxing year kicked off in Broadbeach, Australia, with an exciting fight and a vicious conclusion. Jai Opetaia knocked out David Nyika in the fourth round to retain his IBF cruiserweight title.
The combatants swapped power shots for the first three rounds, with Opetaia having the advantage. Still, Nyika also landed his share of strong punches, notably wobbling Opetaia near the end of the second round.
Opetaia's class showed up in the fourth when he dropped Nyika and after the fight resumed, crushed Nyika with a right hand that left the New Zealander prone on the mat for several minutes.
Opetaia and promoter Eddie Hearn commented after the fight on their desire for Opetaia to meet WBA and WBO champion Gilberto Ramirez, which is expected to happen sometime this year, and a possible future trip to the heavyweight division to challenge Oleksandr Usyk in 2026.
Opetaia and Ramirez would be meeting for three of the four cruiserweight titles and are the best two fighters in the division, so a matchup would be very interesting indeed.
As for the previously unbeaten Nyika, who accepted the fight on three weeks' notice, he was impressive in his loss and could be a future force in the division, assuming he can move on after losing for the first time,
January is usually a slow month for boxing, especially in the first part of the month but the year starts in the AM with the top cruiserweight in the world defending his title.
IBF champion Jai Opetaia was originally scheduled to face his mandatory challenger, unknown Huseyin Cinkara before Cinkara pulled out of the fight with an ankle injury.
The unbeaten but thirty-nine years old Cinkara's resume is dreadful to be generous and this may be a rare case of the replacement being an upgrade over the original opponent as unbeaten David Nyika of New Zealand, a former Olympian, will be stepping in to meet Opetaia.
Nyika has two decent wins on his slate, knocking out unbeaten Michael Sietz and veteran Tommy Karpency last year, and adding the always-interesting angle of Australia vs New Zealand to the fight has improved the anticipation for this one from Australia's Gold Coast.
In his last fight, Opietaia battered England's Jack Massey into submission in October, forcing Massey's corner to toss the towel in round six.
Opetaia has made noise about moving up in weight soon. However, it's more likely to see the Australian meet WBA and WBO champion Gilberto Ramirez in a unification bout before that would happen.
IBF Cruiserweight Title. 12 Rds
Jai Opetaia vs David Nyika
Ramon Malpica: Opetaia KO 7 TRS: Opetaia KO 5 Vince Samano: Opetaia KO 2
Most fans think of Orlando Cepeda as a San Francisco Giant and Cepeda played most of his career with the Giants but I'll always think of the Hall of Famer as a St.Louis Cardinal and a long-time favorite of mine.
I think most of that is because of his 1967 Topps card but some also is due to the picture to the left, a 1968 (I think) Topps poster from a series that Topps inserted into each pack that year.
The 1958 Rookie of the Year, Cepeda was the San Francisco Giants' first breakout young star after the team's move to California. At the time, if not forever, it was Cepeda who was the most popular player on the team as San Francisco fans regarded Cepeda as "theirs" compared to Willie Mays "belonging" to the team's former home in New York City.
Cepeda would lead the National League in homers and RBI in 1961 but the Giants had a big problem in the first half of the sixties- they had two players that could play first base well and struggled in every attempt to fit both players at other positions to allow both big hitters into the lineup.
Both players were destined for the Hall of Fame-Cepeda and Willie McCovey.
Cepeda began having knee problems with the Giants and would barely play in 1965 before returning to the lineup early in the 1966 season. This showed that Cepeda was healthy enough to attract interest from the St.Louis Cardinals, who traded pitcher Ray Sadecki to the Giants straight up for Cepeda.
Cepeda hit .303 in over one hundred twenty games for the Cardinals in 1966, winning the Comeback Player of the Year award.
The stage was set for 1967, the best season in " The Baby Bull's" career.
Cepeda was unanimously named MVP after leading the Cardinals to the world championship, defeating Boston in seven games.
Cepeda hit .325 with 25 homers and a league-leading 111 RBI for the pennant winners and his numbers dipped as all batters did in 1968, "The Year of the Pitcher" but it still came as a surprise when the Cardinals traded Cepeda one for one for Joe Torre in 1969.
Both players had issues with their previous teams (Cepeda for reporting late for spring training without permission, Torre holding out for a new contract) but rarely are two terrific players swapped for each other without any other considerations.
Atlanta and St. Louis each have a case for who "won" the trade.
Cepeda gave the Braves two excellent seasons in 1969 and 1970 (.305, 34 homers, and 111 RBI in 1970) and helped them to the 1969 National League Western Division title before his ailing knees held him to only seventy-one games in 1971.
Torre played longer with the Cardinals (playing in St. Louis through 1974), and won the 1971 National League MVP but the Cardinals didn't win a division during Torre's tenure and his final three seasons in St.Louis saw a drop in performance, particularly in the power department, so I'd say the trade was pretty even.
Cepeda appeared ready for retirement after his continuing battle with his knees allowed him to play only thirty-one games in 1972, twenty-eight with Atlanta and three with Oakland but in 1973, the American League instituted the Designated Hitter and it was Cepeda who was named the top DH after he hit .289 with 20 homers and 89 RBI for the Boston Red Sox.
But Cepeda had reached the point of immobility, and it was difficult to play him despite his hitting abilities. As Bill Lee wrote in his book "The Wrong Stuff," if Cepeda singled, it would take three hits to score him because he couldn't move up two bases on a base hit.
Cepeda's career was over in 1974 after thirty-three games with the Kansas City Royals, finishing with a career batting average of .297 with three hundred and seventy-nine homers and over 1,300 RBI at the age of thirty-six.
An eleven-time All-Star, Cepeda should have been an easy selection for the Hall of Fame within a few times of appearing on the ballot. Still, a conviction for drug possession and ten months in prison hurt Cepeda's candidacy.
Cepeda would fall nine votes short of induction in 1994, his final year of ballot eligibility but was elected by the Veterans Committee in 1999.
Cepeda's number thirty was retired by the Giants in 1999 and was honored with a statue outside the Giants home stadium in 2008.
A miserable season ended Saturday in Baltimore as the Cleveland Browns were rolled over by the Baltimore Ravens 35-10 in Baltimore.
Bailey Zappe received the start as the Browns' fourth starting quarterback of a long season and threw two interceptions along with the Browns only touchdown to Jordan Akins.
The Browns finished a pathetic 3-14. The bigger news would come off the field on Sunday as the remainder of the league finished their campaigns as Cleveland announced the firings of offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey and Andy Dickerson and with the New England Patriots defeating the Buffalo Bills moved up one sport in the draft to pick second overall.
I'm planning some special Browns material over the next few weeks, so I'm saving some of that for those posts but I'll be writing just as much about the off-season in this post as recapping the final loss.
Brownie Bits
1) Bailey Zappe certainly didn't place his name in contention for the 2025 season as the starter but considering the play of Dorian Thompson-Robinson during his time, Zappe was an upgrade.
Zappe can return next year as a possible third quarterback but shouldn't be in consideration for the starting role.
2) Zappe threw a pick-six in the first quarter to Baltimore's Nate Wiggins and his other interception could have been a touchdown return by massive defensive tackle Michael Pierce, who decided to slide down rather than try to truck the ball down the sideline in what was admittedly hilarious to watch.
3) Dorian Thompson-Robinson played one series of five plays in the first half in one final attempt to "see what they have in DTR".
4) The battered running back position for the Browns forced the team to play Jacob Kibodi for portions of the game after signing him from the Saints practice squad.
Kibodi rushed five times for twenty-four yards and caught a pass for fourteen yards.
5) Jerry Jeudy caught six passes for sixty-three yards, which broke Ozzie Newsome's record, giving Jeudy the team record for receptions with ninety.
Jeudy was the main focus in the second half as the Browns attempted to get Jeudy the football to allow him to reach the record.
6) The Browns now focus on the future and while the team will retain Kevin Stefanski as the head coach and Andrew Berry as the head of the front office, the team will make other changes.
I can live with Stefanski but I am wary of keeping Berry since his drafting has been questionable and handing Berry the keys to another draft is concerning.
7) The Browns released offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey and offensive line Andy Dickerson following the defeat in Baltimore.
I think both decisions are correct.
Dorsey's preferences never meshed with Kevin Stefanski. And while any offensive line coach is going to pale compared to Bill Callahan, one of the best offensive line coaches ever, Dickerson's work was so bad that Mike Vrabel was the de facto line coach!
8) The Browns did win on Sunday without taking the field as the New England Patriots, who started rookie backup quarterback Joe Milton, surprised the Buffalo Bills, who rested several starters and tumbled from picking first to fourth with the win, moving the Browns to second in the draft.
We'll see how that works for the Browns but I'll take the higher pick every time over an insignificant final-game win with various obscure QBs.
9) In the final three games after the Browns benched Jameis Winston, the Browns scored two touchdowns.
Say what you will about Jameis Winston and his interception propensity, Winston was the one quarterback of the four starters this season that made the Browns fun to watch, and the one that gave them a chance to win.
10) Premature TRS choice for the Browns in round one, assuming they don't trade down?
Colorado two-way starter Travis Hunter or Penn State defensive end Abdul Carter would be my choices.
Why not a quarterback such as Miami's Cam Ward or Colorado's Shedur Sanders?
You'll have to wait until the future Browns series to answer those questions.
The Ohio State Buckeyes impressed when they bounced back from their season-ending defeat to Michigan with a resounding win over Tennessee but were the Buckeyes back to top form?
Or was Tennessee outgunned and Ohio State able to take advantage of cold weather and home field?
Unbeaten top seed Oregon promised a true test in the Rose Bowl/CFP quarterfinal and the answer would come early from Ohio State, who scored the first thirty-four points of the game and cruised to a 41-21 win over the Ducks, which advanced them to the semi-finals next Friday in Dallas against the Texas Longhorns.
Will Howard threw for over three hundred yards and three touchdowns, two to Jeremiah Smith, who finished with seven catches and one hundred eighty-seven yards.
Olentangy Offerings
1) Jeremiah Smith had posted on social media for Oregon to play man coverage, he would make the Ducks pay and he did just that.
Smith's first half was flawless and left no doubt that as good as Smith was when the two teams played earlier this season, his progression has shown such improvement that he's almost a different player and that says a lot!
2) What Ohio State managed to do in the Rose Bowl that they didn't dodge in their other big games (Oregon, Penn State, and Michigan) was the big turnover at the wrong time.
Ohio State never turned the ball over and committed only two penalties for fourteen yards.
When you have the talent that Ohio State possesses, most games are decided by not handing the opponent easy ways to stay close.
3) I do feel bad for Oregon and their fans, having to face the one team that had the best chance to beat them in the quarterfinals due to the CFP's decision not to re-seed following each round.
Considering the draw involved Oregon would have been better suited to lose the Big Ten title game to draw SMU at home and a rematch against Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl as Penn State did than winning the game only to face Ohio State.
It wasn't fair to Oregon after their singular undefeated season and hopefully, it will be corrected in future playoffs.
4) The Buckeye pass rush never reached Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel in the first matchup but the Ohio State defense never stopped harassing Gabriel, finishing with eight sacks.
Even Gabriel made something happen for the Ducks, it was on the run, avoiding charging defenders and throwing the ball, hoping for the best.
5) The voters for the defensive player of the game had an extremely difficult choice between Cody Simon and Jack Sawyer.
Simon finished with seven solo tackles, a tackle for loss, two sacks, and a pass defended while Sawyer sacked Gabriel twice, two of his three solo tackles were for losses and Sawyer batted down three passes.
Simon won the award but I thought Sawyer would have also been a solid choice.
6) Ohio State struggled to run the ball in the first game but even in the second half with the Ducks expecting the run, Ohio State still ran the ball well.
TreVeyon Henderson ran for two touchdowns, including a sixty-six-yard jaunt, and Quinshon Judkins pounded his way to eighty-five yards.
Ohio State averaged 5.8 yards per rush.
7) Give the oft-criticized Ryan Day and Chip Kelly credit for learning from their conservatism in the Michigan loss.
Day has always been better as an aggressive coach than a passive one and the way Ohio State has attacked both Tennessee and Oregon put both teams in reverse from the start, building a lead that was impossible to lose.
Hopefully, Day and Kelly will continue this aggressiveness against Texas next Friday night.
8) Jeremiah Smith's yardage set an OSU record for a freshman in a game, breaking a record held by Cris Carter in the 1985 Rose Bowl against USC.
Yet another erasing of Cris Carter from the Ohio State record book.
9) The offensive line was a topic discussed often during the waning weeks of the regular season but they played very well against Oregon as the Ducks were held without a sack.
Combine that with the running game and the offensive line quietly did their job after so many were concerned by season's end.
10) So it's onto Dallas and the Texas Longhorns, which doesn't seem fair but it is what it is.
From what I saw of both teams, Texas looks awfully beaten up physically and I'm not sure they can deal with the OSU speed.
Still, don't take the Horns lightly, they are more than capable of winning should Ohio State slip up.
