2024 Ohio State- Looking back

    It was a rockier ride than many expected with two bumps that could have derailed the train but the Ohio State Buckeyes won the 2024 National Championship as many also expected. 

And while losses to Oregon and especially a mediocre Michigan team caused doubts in the minds of some people (including me) about where the season would end, the national championship was achieved.

Ohio State was often tagged as the twenty-million dollar team for the cost through NIL, but what isn't always mentioned is that most of the financial planning involved keeping players already on the team rather than adding players from other schools.

To be fair, Caleb Downs was likely expensive to add, but Downs almost picked Ohio State out of high school as the second choice to Alabama and would have likely stayed in Tuscaloosa had Nick Saban not retired. Will Howard wasn't cheap either, but Ohio State's philosophy on transfers has consistently spent most of its budget on its current roster rather than throwing money around raiding others.

Ohio State made its share of mistakes against Michigan, mainly by playing to the strengths of its undermanned opponent. Still, the Oregon loss was a result of several oddball events coming together in one road game, allowing an excellent team to escape with a one-point win.

It was tough to see the coaching mistakes against Michigan, but I was optimistic about the playoffs because I thought Ryan Day coached so well in their almost win over Georgia in 2022. After a similar defeat against Michigan, I gave Ohio State a good chance of winning the tournament based on talent alone.

My concern was the first-round matchup with the Tennessee Volunteers.

Following a traumatic loss, it was unknown how the Buckeyes would respond but if they could rebound against Tennessee, they would immediately return as one of the favorites to win.

After watching the win over Tennessee, I had the feeling that this would be a title-winning run but while I picked Ohio State to win, I would be lying if I was positive before the game!

Watching the effort that Ohio State had against Tennessee answered my questions and while I wouldn't say I was cocky, I was certainly confident that the Buckeyes would be the final team standing.

Other than a late rally by Notre Dame, only the Texas Longhorns pushed Ohio State, and when Jack Sawyer hit Quinn Ewers to send the football careening away to be grabbed by Sawyer for the game-clinching score that will be the lasting memory of the season, I had the feeling that the title was decided then.

In a season that saw a national championship return to Columbus, the Jack Sawyer return was the most memorable play, but surprisingly, it wasn't filled with plays to be remembered.

Other than spectacular catches by Jeremiah Smith, the most memorable play from the regular season was in a loss: the Will Howard scramble, which ended with Howard sliding just as the clock ended the game in the defeat to Oregon.

The loss to Michigan was (and is still) so devastating to the program, its perception, and Ryan Day himself but as in life, sometimes it takes an unexpected step back to move forward.

It's impossible to know if that defeat spurred Ohio State to the National Championship or if the Buckeyes won over Michigan. Would they have had the same motivation to up their game in the postseason?

In the end, it was a memorable season without an overwhelming amount of memorable moments ending with the end goal being accomplished.

It's hard to argue with that.

PPM

     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

Last Week: 4-1

Overall: 176-94

Bills over Chiefs 27-25

Eagles over Commanders 36-31

Redemption Accomplished! Ohio State wins National Championship!

    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.

PPM

 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!

Last Week: 6-2 

Overall: 172-93

College

Ohio State over Notre Dame 24-14

NFL
Chiefs over Texans 27-17

Bills over Rsvens 34-31

Lions over Commanders 41-33

Eagles over Rams 24-20 

Sawyer Hooks the Horns- Ohio State Tops Texas!

      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.

PPM

   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!

Last Week: 4-2

Overall: 166-91

College

Ohio State over Texas 30-23

Notre Dame over Penn State 24-17

NFL

AFC

Chargers over Texans 24-20

Bills over Broncos 34-17

Ravens over Steelers 20-13

NFC

Eagles over Packers 31-27

Commanders over Buccaneers 36-34

Vikings over Rams 30-24

Browns whipped by Ravens, Fire Ken Dorsey

     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.

PPM

  Football's regular season finishes in the NFL as the college season moves on in the CFP. 

need two CFP and Gator

Last Week: 12-9

Overall: 162-89

College 

First Responder Bowl 

Texas State over North Texas 28-24

Duke's Mayo Bowl

Virginia Tech over Minnesota 27-24

Bahamas Bowl

Liberty over Buffalo 31-21

NFL

Ravens over Browns 27-7

Games of the Week

Lions over Vikings 35-32

Bengals over Steelers 24-14

Ohio State roasts Oregon 41-21, Texas next

     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.

Sad Browns sunk by Dolphins 20-3

       After some of the worst football that you'll see over sixty minutes, the Miami Dolphins, who are somehow still in the playoff chase, scored two second-half touchdowns to pull away from the Cleveland Browns for a 20-3 win in the Browns final home game of the season.

Dorian Thompson-Robinson finished with 170 passing yards with an interception and a lost fumble.

Jerry Jeudy caught twelve passes and ninety-four to lead the position players.

Cleveland floats to a 3-13 record in a hopeless universe and will travel to Baltimore next Saturday to conclude a dreadful campaign.

Brownie Bits

1) Enough of this nonsense that Dorian Thompson-Robinson needs to play to "see what he has"!

I wrote last week about this but the fact was driven home again against the Dolphins.

They know what he has.

2) All of that said, it doesn't hurt anyone to start him in Baltimore.

The Ravens have a division title to lock down and are motivated to crush the Browns after losing to them in Cleveland, and it doesn't matter who the Browns start at this point.

The Browns can start DTR, Jameis Winston, or Bailey Zappe (who lit up the Browns in 2022), you can make a case for starting any of the three, and the Browns still aren't winning although I would rate Winston, Zappe, and then DTR if making a list of most likely to shock the world.

3) I complained last week about Jerry Jeudy's lack of looks (three targets, two catches for twenty yards) during the loss to Cincinnati.

In typical Browns fashion, DTR threw to Jeudy eighteen times, completing a dozen, which seemed a bit much but credit for trying to get Jeudy the ball at least.

4) The Browns look like the same listless team that dug a deep hole with DeShaun Watson.

No one gets down the field, and the quarterback can't get them the ball if they did and you get this weird offense that throws the ball a lot (47 attempts in the loss) yet never seems to get anywhere with the Browns longest passing gain of the day, a mere eighteen yards to Jerry Jeudy.

5) The loser in the passing game with the increased Jeudy use?

Elijah Moore caught one pass of five thrown to him for one yard.

6) The Browns tried fourth down on four occasions and failed on each of them.

7) Miami didn't light the scoreboard up but it had to be rewarding for their winning quarterback Tyler Huntley, who the Browns released following training camp to keep Dorian Thompson-Robinson.

Huntley completed twenty-two of twenty-six passes and threw a touchdown in a win.

8) Myles Garrett sacked Tyler Huntley twice and became the first player to have fourteen or more sacks in four straight seasons.

It's quite an achievement for Garrett but I could have done without the dancing considering the Browns were down ten points when Garrett dumped Huntley.

9) Entering the season, cornerback Martin Emerson was seen as a possible franchise cornerstone with an extension offering as a formality after the season.

Instead, Emerson has struggled and is easily the team's biggest disappointment on defense.

Emerson intercepted a pass against Miami but grabbed the ball by committing one of the worst pass-interference penalties, as he just eliminated Jonnu Smith from the play in the second quarter.

In the third, Emerson grabbed Tyreek Hill's facemask in another ridiculous penalty, indicative of his regression this season.

10) Good news department- Dustin Hopkins made a kick! Hopkins made his only attempt with a twenty-five-yarder in the second quarter.

Who says I am always negative? 

11) I think the Browns have a bright spot in recent weeks as Isaiah McGuire has shown potential as a pass rusher.

McGuire played well against Kansas City two games ago and has collected sacks against Cincinnati and Miami.

It'll be interesting to see if the Browns give the 2023 fourth-rounder a chance for a starting position at defensive end in 2025.

12) This was an awful football game and I'm torn about which will be better to watch- the ineptness but reasonably close game as this one (the game was ten points or less until the middle of the fourth quarter) or the likely blowout game this Saturday vs Baltimore in which the game will be lopsided but you'll see some strong play from the Ravens? 

PPM

 Another week in the PPM as the college bowl season winds down and the jockey for NFL playoff position continues!

Last Week: 9-8

Overall: 150-80

College

CFP

Ohio State over Oregon 34-31

Boise State over Penn State 23-20

Texas over Arizona State 33-24

Notre Dame over Georgia 21-17

Fenway Bowl

North Carolina over Connecticut 32-19

Pinstripe Bowl

Nebraska over Boston College 27-17

New Mexico Bowl

TCU over Louisiana 45-28

Pop Tarts Bowl

Miami Fla over Iowa State 27-21

Arizona Bowl

Miami Ohio over Colorado State 41-35

Military Bowl

East Carolina over N.C. State 23-20

Alamo Bowl

Colorado over BYU 39-36

Independence Bowl

Army over Louisiana Tech 40-21

Music City Bowl

Iowa over Missouri 20-17

Reliaquest Bowl

Alabama over Michigan 35-17

Sun Bowl

Louisville over Washington 39-28

Citrus Bowl

South Carolina over Illinois 36-17

Texas Bowl

LSU over Baylor 29-24

Gator Bowl

Ole Miss over Duke 49-28

NFL
Dolphins over Browns 24-10

Games of the Week

Packers over Vikings 34-31

Commanders over Falcons 27-21

I Tell Ya' Herbie

    Wrapping up the first week of the College Football Playoff with I Tell Ya' Herbie.

I Tell Ya' Herbie:

                             None of the first-round games were competitive, which might lead some to think that there aren't twelve teams capable of winning the national title, and they would be correct.

However, sixty-eight teams aren't capable of winning the NCAA basketball tournament either, and that hasn't stopped the tournament from expanding in size or popularity.

I Tell Ya' Herbie:

                            In fact, the next change in the field won't be shrinking the field, it will be increasing it to sixteen and will open the door to a change that would be great for the CFP.

The field would stretch to sixteen with the first and second rounds played at home with rotating bowl games hosting the semi-finals and the championship.

Moving the first two rounds to home sites would spice up the games and give teams an advantage in having better regular seasons.

It also would be easier for fans to travel to fewer games on the road as most of the home teams would be favored.

I Tell Ya' Herbie:

                             The biggest chuckle that I received from Bill Belichick's hiring at North Carolina (besides the joke of Belichick going to UNC because he was looking for an older woman, the coach is dating a young lady in her mid-twenties) came from the rumor mill after the Tar Heels fired Mack Brown and were rumored to be looking for a younger coach.

Belichick is one year younger than Brown.

I think UNC hiring Belichick would have been a massive coup before NIL began but Belichick's rings won't have the effect on high school players looking for the NIL number that it would have in the past.

Plus, Belichick is making a huge mistake in bringing Michael Lombardi as the general manager in charge of personnel for recruiting both high schoolers and transfer candidates.

Long-time readers may remember my opinion of Lombardi from his failed tenure with the Cleveland Browns.

I don't think Belichick will be a total failure and I wouldn't be surprised to see him take North Carolina (depending on the length of his stay) to the CFP but I don't see them as a true title contender.

I Tell Ya' Herbie:

                             I know the first-round games weren't close and I wonder how close the quarter-finals will be.

Arizona State finished the season red hot but drawing Texas might be more than they can handle and while I think Boise State could surprise Penn State, the Broncos will be underdogs as well.

Boise State did take Oregon to the wire on the road, so I could see Boise State surprising the oddsmakers but they will have to play with few mistakes to do it.,

Ohio State will be motivated to beat Oregon and talent-wise are capable of doing so but their inconsistency makes them dicey to count on.

Notre Dame is being touted as perhaps dropping Georgia but they seem one-dimensional to me and that might play right into the Bulldogs hands.

I think chalk will play predominately again in this round but I think at least one, if not two underdogs will win this week.

Bengals claw Browns 24-6

     Jerome Ford raced sixty-six yards on the Cleveland Browns' first offensive play to the Cincinnati Bengals eleven-yard line.

Alas, Don'ta Foreman fumbled before he reached the end zone to end the drive and the Browns would finish the first half with a little over twenty yards of offense (other than Ford's run) for the first half in a 24-6 loss to the Bengals.

Jerome Ford finished with ninety-two yards rushing and the Browns only touchdown to lead the Cleveland offense, which started Dorian Thompson-Robinson and was rewarded with a Watsonesque one hundred fifty-seven passing yards and two interceptions.

Cleveland slips to 3-12 in defeat and will play their final home game next week against the 7-8 Miami Dolphins.

Brownie Bits

1) During the CBS broadcast, sideline reporter Aditi Kinkhabwala reported that she had spoken with Jimmy Haslam before the game and that Haslam was overwhelming in his praise towards Kevin Stefanski and Andrew Berry and that the Browns won't be making any front office changes.

2) When you watch something this dreadful in such a painful season and that's the news that breaks?

It's just head-shaking in how utterly lost this franchise currently is.

3) Myles Garrett's sack of Joe Burrow was number one hundred for his career, which gave Garrett the honor of being the youngest player to reach that number.

Earlier this year, Garrett became only the second player (Lawrence Taylor) ever to finish with over ten sacks for five consecutive seasons.

4) I'm not against the Browns starting Dorian Thompson-Robinson in the final two games of the season.

The Browns need to earn draft position and then pray that Andrew Berry is somehow unable to reach the draft room in any capacity to do anything smart but the first step of the journey is be as bad as you can 

5) Can we please dispose of the narrative that the Browns "Need to see what they have in DTR" now?

It's not hard to see what they have- a strong runner without a good arm, slight frame, gets knocked around easily, and tries to make plays with his legs which often results in turnovers.

DTR is the type of player that dazzles in pre-season against lesser talented opponents but his shortcomings are glaring when he plays in regular season games and with his style, I'm fine with him as a third quarterback if your wagon is hitched to a DeShaun Watson type passer.

If you don't use that type of quarterback, DTR, I hear Winnipeg is lovely at this time of the year.

6) The Jerome Ford run on the Browns first offensive play for sixty-six yards was over three times the number of yards the Browns would gain for the remainder of the first half.

7) Don'ta Foreman fumbled the football inches away from crossing the goal line to ruin the first Browns drive.

Interesting note on Foreman, he's been healthy and Cleveland had used him on the inactive list for the previous five games.

8) The constant talk about Jerry Jeudy's leap in production should now cease as Jeudy finished with only two catches for twenty yards but the takeaway for me was that Jeudy was only thrown to three times.

The common thread? No Jameis Winston.

9) The off-season extension to Dustin Hopkins continues to age poorly.

Hopkins, who was given last week off to work on his mechanics, had one attempt in Cincinnati and he missed an extra point.

10) The Browns did have one chance to get back into the game as Dorian Thompson-Robinson scored a touchdown on a scramble but Jordan Akins was called for holding to negate the score.

Thompson-Robinson was hit as he threw later in the drive, tossed up a floater that softly fell into the waiting arms of the Bengals Jordan Battle.

11) I'm looking for positives and I found one in the Browns pass rush as they sacked Joe Burrow four times but the real positive was the play of Michael Hall and Isaiah McGuire, who each collected a sack.

Hall had personal problems after Cleveland drafted him in round two this past draft and only now reaching the field with regular snaps while McGuire was a player I really liked after the Browns took him in round four of the 2023 draft.

Hopefully both will receive lots of playing time in the final two games.

12) Finally from the That's So Browns department.

The Browns have stopped the Bengals late in the first half and the Bengals are running the punt team onto the field, figuring Kevin Stefanski will call a timeout.

Stefanski doesn't and runs the time down to a few seconds.

Now the Bengals have nothing to lose on the last play of the half and send in Cade York (Yes, THAT Cade York) to attempt a fifty-nine yard field goal, which of course York nails.

That's so Browns when Cade York connects from fifty-nine yards and the guy the Browns extend misses his only kick on an extra point.

Ohio State hammers Tennessee in CFP Opener

        The Ohio State Buckeyes may not receive a second chance to defeat the Michigan Wolverines this season. Still, they will have a revenge opportunity against the Oregon Ducks, as Ohio State dusted off the Tennessee Volunteers in the first round of the CFP 42-17  at the Horseshoe in Columbus.

Will Howard threw for over three hundred yards and two touchdowns to Jeremiah Smith (six catches for 103 yards) to lead the passing attack and TreVeyon Henderson ran for two scores and eighty yards on ten carries.

Ohio State will meet Oregon in the "Rose Bowl"/ CFP Quarter-Final on New Year's Day.

Olentangy Offerings

1) This game wasn't as close as the final score which says a lot.

Ohio State scored touchdowns on their first three possessions for a 21-0 lead and were on their way to another score before Will Howard's only interception of the game in the end zone. 

2) I wasn't worried even as Tennessee closed the gap to 21-10 at halftime.

It took a few bad calls and breaks for Tennessee to score those points and their drives were so long that I didn't think the Volunteers were capable of multiple drives to cut into the lead further.

3) The call on the end zone interception by Tennessee's Will Brooks was questionable on two fronts.

The first is that Jeremiah Smith was clearly interfered with and should earned a penalty for pass interference.

The other is that I don't think Brooks had full control of the football when he landed with his foot in bounds.

Those are minor quibbles after a 42-17 win but they didn't feel minor at the time.

4) Tennessee's only touchdown drive of the first half, Ohio State appeared to have snuffed out the drive on an interception by Davison Igbinosun before a very light roughing the passer penalty on Kenyatta Jackson allowed the drive to continue.

Just a terrible call on that one.

5) Ohio State played looser and with abandon and it was easy to see from the start as the play calling was aggressive and kept hammered on Tennessee, no matter the situation.

Ryan Day coaches better when he is aggressive rather than timidly and it's my biggest complaint with Day.

6)  Jeremiah Smith became the first Ohio State freshman to exceed one thousand receiving yards in the win.

More players will achieve this goal as seasons lengthen, so it was nice that Smith took this in twelve games.

7) Ohio State's offensive line had been maligned throughout the season but they bullied a Tennessee defense that was expected to stuff the Buckeye ground game.

Ohio State outrushed Tennessee 156-152 beating the Vols at the game that was expected to be their best chance at victory.

8) TreVeyon Henderson ran for eighty yards and caught four passes for fifty-four yards as he continued his late-season push to surpass Quinshon Judkins as Ohio State's lead back.

Henderson's career started with so much promise but injuries caused a downturn in production.

Henderson's late-season play has revitalized his career and I bet he will be starting for someone in the NFL next season.

9) Jack Sawyer and J.T Tuimoloau dominated the Tennessee offensive line with Tuimoloau and Sawyer combined for three and a half sacks.

These two are playing the best football in their career at the right time for both the Buckeyes and the players just as they are ready to move to the pros.

10) Tennessee brought an estimated 30,000 fans to the game as Ohio State's ticket department had their discount code leaked early. Volunteers fans scooped up tickets happily as disgruntled fans from the Michigan loss were too slow to get started.

That combined with a drivable distance (357 miles) gave the visitors a major presence in the Horseshoe.

Give Tennessee's crew credit for their craftiness and for coming out but OSU caused much of that.

11) As happy as I am with the win, it's frustrating to think of just how easily this team could have cruised past Michigan had they played half as well on offense as they did vs Tennessee.

As hard as it is to accept that, the title is in reach and the Buckeyes will be motivated against Oregon.
Should be a good one.

PPM

 The bowls continue, the CFP begins and the NFL hits the final stretch as teams jockey for playoff berths and seeding position.

Last Week: 6-3

Overall:141-72

College

CFP Playoffs

Ohio State over Tennessee 24-14

Notre Dame over Indiana 31-21

Penn State over SMU 24-17

Texas over Clemson 41-24

Cure Bowl

Ohio over Jacksonville State 33-26

Gasparilla Bowl

Florida over Tulane 24-21

Myrtle Beach Bowl

Coastal Carolina over UTSA 37-32

Potato Bowl

Fresno State over Northern Illinois 27-21

Hawaii Bowl

San Jose State over South Florida 29-21

Game Above Bowl

Toledo over Pittsburgh 27-23

Rate Bowl

Kansas State over Rutgers 38-19

Ventures Bowl

Bowling Green over Arkansas State 28-17

Armed Forces Bowl

Oklahoma over Navy 24-21

Birmingham Bowl

Georgia Tech over Vanderbilt 33-24

Liberty Bowl

Texas Tech over Arkansas 44-37

Holiday Bowl

Syracuse over Washington State 29-24

Las Vegas Bowl

Texas A&M over USC 35-21

NFL

Bengals over Browns 24-10

Games of the Week

Ravens over Steelers 20-14

Eagles over Commanders 33-27

Browns dropped by Chiefs 21-7

     The Cleveland Browns turned the football over six times. Only through the surprising ineptness of the Kansas City Chiefs offense was the game remotely close as Kansas City won a 21-7 decision over the Browns in Cleveland.

Jameis Winston threw three interceptions and was benched in the final quarter in favor of Dorian Thompson-Robinson.

Only a sixty-two-yard rushing touchdown by Jerome Ford dented the scoreboard for the Browns with Ford finishing with eighty-four yards on the game.

Jerry Jeudy caught eleven passes for one hundred-eight yards to lead the offense.

Cleveland dropped to 3-11 with the defeat and will travel to Cincinnati to play the also-unwinding Bengals next Sunday.

Brownie Bits

1) Starting with the worst news of the day, Nick Chubb suffered a broken foot on a play that saw Jameis Winston fake a handoff to Chubb and then turn to make a pitch only to find no one available.

Chubb broke his foot without contact and will miss the remainder of the season, not that he'll miss much in time or quality.

2) Nick Chubb finishes the season with three hundred thirty-two yards on one hundred and two carries with three touchdowns.

Chubb averaged 3.3 yards per carry and never seemed to find his stride after returning from his knee injury. While that was expected, it puts the Browns in a position to make one of many key decisions before the 2025 season.

Do the Browns re-sign Chubb and gamble that he returns to form with the money he will cost to please the fanbase?

Or do they risk allowing the most popular player on the team in years to leave town when he states he wants to stay and perhaps reverts to his past performance elsewhere?

It's a tough call and I don't envy it.

3) I think the Browns are going to start Dorian Thompson-Robinson at quarterback for the final three games, and while I don't have an issue with it in a lost season, I do disagree with the narrative that "The Browns need to see what they have in DTR."

They should know what they have because it's apparent to most that his slight frame and lack of arm strength makes him a backup at best, a situational gimmick QB at worst and if they think he is more than that, the Browns really need to reevaluate their talent evaluators.

4) Jerry Jeudy continued his fine play and moved past one thousand receiving yards for the first time in his career.

What will be interesting is if Jeudy's numbers drop off when Dorian Thompson-Robinson takes over at quarterback after he didn't perform well until Jameis Winston took over from DeShaun Watson.

5) The Browns released Kadarius Toney last week after he fumbled a punt against Pittsburgh.

Of course, his replacement, James Proche. fumbled the first punt of the game, which led to the Chiefs first touchdown.

6) The Browns turned the ball over six times, the Proche fumble, three interceptions by Jameis Winston (one wasn't his fault), another interception by Dorian Thompson-Robinson, and a Nick Chubb fumble.

Simply awful.

7) Kansas City didn't play well despite their easy win, and the Browns defense didn't play poorly and managed to keep the game close enough to not be humiliated.

8) The Browns made a silly decision on a fourth and one by going for it with a pass.

I could understand trying that but I can't understand why Jerry Jeudy, the only true weapon, is in the backfield as a decoy.

That alignment sticks the offense in a hole before the snap and the throw is going to anyone but the best pass catcher.

9) The Browns did have one big play, the long run by Jerome Ford, which was aided by several holds that weren't called but such is NFL life.

Ford will likely have the bulk of the carries now that Nick Chubb is finished for the season.

10) The worst news for this team came well before this game as Jimmy Haslam announced that Kevin Stefanski and Andrew Berry would return next season.

I still wouldn't think it is written in stone that either or both are sure to be back but if that is the case, I'm not sure there is hope for this franchise.

PPM

  The PPM starts the bowl season and the NFL continues its run to the playoffs.

The schedule isn't as large on the college side but it will boom for the next few weeks!

Last Week: 8-4 

Overall: 135-69

College

Army over Navy 31-20

Veterans Bowl

South Alabama over Western Michigan 34-24

Frisco Bowl

Memphis over West Virginia 44-38

Boca Raton Bowl

James Madison over Western Kentucky 33-29

LA Bowl

UNLV over Cal 25-21

New Orleans Bowl

Georgia Southern over Sam Houston 31-24

NFL
Chiefs over Browns 28-17

Games of the Week

Packers over Seahawks 34-28

Lions over Bills 38-35

Steelers KO Cleveland 27-14

   The Cleveland Browns missed on opportunities and it was costly as the Pittsburgh Steelers gradually pulled away until a meaningless late touchdown in a 27-14 Steelers win in Pittsburgh.

In the defeat, Jameis Winston threw two touchdowns, one each to Jerry Jeudy and David Njoku, along with two interceptions.

Njoku led the Browns in catches with seven while Jeudy led in receiving with sixty-four yards.

Cleveland fell to 3-10 after the loss and will host the powerful Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday.

Brownie Bits

1) I didn't see the game live as I was on my final road trip in 2024 (I'll be writing about it eventually) and I scanned it quickly last night, so this is less detailed than a normal recap.

The biggest downer of this game?

George Pickens sitting out with an injury, two weeks after his fight with Greg Newsome and after both had built a bit of interest in a showdown between two talented but immature players, nothing happened.

2)  The struggles of Dustin Hopkins continued as he missed two more field goals and is making the decision of Andrew Berry to give him a contract extension look extremely questionable.

Hopkins was a solid kicker for Washington and Los Angeles (Chargers) but Browns followers are seeing both the ceiling and the floor for Hopkins, who was never better than he was in 2023 and has never been worse than he has been this season.

3) The mantra of Kevin Stefanski has always been 'Smart, tough, and accountable', and rarely has it been taken seriously.

The Browns moved to the Steelers sixteen yard line for the first play of the final quarter for a third and one.

Jack Conklin moves too soon for a five-yard penalty, Jameis Winston is sacked to lose three more, and Germain Ifedi gets nailed with a roughness call to lose fifteen more to force the ball back to the thirty-nine and a punt.

4) The Browns used former first-rounder Kadarius Toney as the punt returner and Toney was hit with a taunting penalty and muffed a punt, so Kevin Stefanski didn't seem likely to try Toney again next week against his former team in Kansas City.

It's too bad those two mistakes happened because Toney was doing well before those errors, finishing the day averaging eleven yards on his four returns with a long of nineteen.

5) I hated mentioning Jack Conklin's penalty because the veteran has been playing so well of late.

Conklin again held T.J. Watt without a sack and Watt was motivated to do well after the media narrative from the Browns win in Cleveland.

6) After the defeat, the Browns were officially eliminated from playoff contention.

As the late Peter Tomarken used to utter on the game show "Press Your Luck"- Whammy.

I Tell Ya' Herbie

    Last week "Herbie" enjoyed Thanksgiving but our favorite long-range kicker returns for his thoughts on college football as we enter conference championship week.

I Tell Ya' Herbie:

                            One of the things speculated about Michigan's upset over Ohio State is where it ranks in the rivalry's history.

I'm not going to answer that in detail (I'd rate it second to the 1969 loss) but I will pick the upset that it most resembles and it's not one against Michigan.

The 2015 home loss to Michigan State was the only blemish on the record of the defending national champions and cost the Buckeyes a chance to defend their title.

It reminded me of this loss as in both cases, the coach (Urban Meyer then, Ryan Day now) stubbornly refused to allow his best players (Ezekiel Elliott then, the wide receivers now) to decide the game, deciding instead to play into the opponent's strengths, losing a home game to an inferior opponent.

I Tell Ya' Herbie:

                             I wonder just how things are going to play out at North Carolina, which fired Mack Brown after finishing 6-6 and has several big-name coaches reportedly interested including Steelers offensive coordinator and former Falcons head coach Arthur Smith, UNLV's Barry Odom, Tulane'a Jon Sumrall, and wait for it... Bill Belichick?

I would have thought Belichick was mentioned by a writer attempting to grind out a column but it's being reported that Belichick has actually interviewed with the Tar Heels!

North Carolina has often been mentioned as a football-sleeping giant, if Belichick actually wants to coach college football (and I'm not sure he really will), UNC would make sense as a place where Belichick could be successful quickly and wouldn't have the expectations that many schools would.

I Tell Ya Herbie:

                               It will be interesting to watch who will earn the fourth seed and the first-round bye between Group of Five qualifier Boise State (assuming they defeat UNLV in the Mountain West Championship) and the Big 12 championship winner between Arizona State and Iowa State.

For now, Boise State would earn the bye but I look for plenty of lobbying from the Big 12 for that position because it would be humbling for the conference to be surpassed by the G-5 entry in the first-ever playoff.

Will this be decided on the field or in the boardroom, where there really wasn't a lot of interest in a G-5 automatic bid to start?

I Tell Ya' Herbie:

                             I was asked earlier this week how I felt about Michigan signing the top-rated quarterback in this recruiting class, Bryce Underwood. My answer was that I felt great!

First, if Michigan paid the rumored fifteen million for Underwood, good for Underwood and his family, and Michigan is playing by the rules, how often can I say that of late!

As much as I'll love responding to Michigan supporters about the "Michigan way" regarding NIL spending, what I am excited about is this- Michigan signed the top-rated quarterback in the class and he is a homegrown product, Ohio State inked the second-rated passer in the class, Tavian St.Clair, who is an Ohio resident.

For the first time that I can remember, Ohio State and Michigan will have two home-state players leading their team at quarterback, while Underwood could be the starter at Michigan as early as next season and St. Clair will be behind Julian Sayin for a while, that matchup could be very special when it happens.

I Tell Ya' Herbie:

                             I noted a few weeks ago that Neal Brown faced two games that could decide his future with West Virginia against Baylor and Texas Tech.

Two wins might get him an extension, a split could go either way, and two losses might mean his job.

WVU lost both, including a thirty-seven-point loss to Texas Tech and Brown is leaving Morgantown.

Former head coach Rich Rodriguez and West Virginia native Jimbo Fisher are being mentioned as potential replacements should the Mountaineers take a big swing but a Group of Five coach that I might think about hiring is Marshall's Charles Huff, who knows the state from his Marshall tenure, would not cost West Virginia a buyout since his contract is expiring, and has led the Herd to the Sun Belt title game this weekend.

I'm not saying Huff gets the spot but if the bigger names aren't in the picture, he would be a good choice to consider.

                            

PPM

 It's time for the conference title games in college football and finally, decide who will comprise the first twelve-team field in playoff history.

Last Week: 9-5 

Overall: 127-65

College

Conference USA 

Jacksonville State over Western Kentucky 38-29

Mountain West

Boise State over UNLV 24-17

American

Tulane over Army 23-20

Big 12

Iowa State over Arizona State 34-31

MAC
Ohio over Miami Ohio 24-20

SEC
Georgia over Texas 38-31

Sun Belt

Marshall over Louisiana 31-23

Big 10

Oregon over Penn State 42-23

ACC
SMU over Clemson 29-24

NFL

Steelers over Browns 21-13

Games of the Week

Chiefs over Chargers 20-16

Cardinals over Seahawks 34-28