Ohio State Buckeyes: Notes from Around the Athletic Department

1) You already know this, but Jared Sullinger will be taking his skills to the NBA.

It may be next season or the year after, depending on what goes on with the NBA work stoppage situation, but it will happen. In fact, DraftExpress has made him the prospect of the week, breaking down his future at the next level. They do a great job of highlighting his strengths and weaknesses, and have some pretty solid things to say about his future.

"While not possessing the same long-term upside of some of the other big men prospects in this draft, such as Perry Jones or John Henson, Sullinger is clearly not a finished product at age 18. He looks much more ready to step in and play from day one, though, which has to be deemed attractive for the worst teams in the NBA that will be picking first in the draft.

"Despite his limitations, players in Sullinger's mold, such as Kevin Love, Paul Millsap and Luis Scola have proven to be extremely effective in today's NBA. Add in his outstanding intangibles—he has a winner's mentality, is highly intelligent and appears to be an excellent teammate—and you're talking about one of the safer bets in the draft."

2) There is a ton of news on the recruiting news for the Buckeyes, who after several big name prospects.

The name everyone is talking about today is Ryan Shazier, who is campus today through Friday. He is making the trip with teammate and Buckeye commit Jeremy Cash, but you have to feel this is still a long shot. He thinks Will Muschamp was a good hire for Florida, and that was where his heart originally was. 

Besides Shazier, JUCO defensive end Cornellius Carradine has made waves this week. After giving the staff the cold shoulder and not showing up for his recruiting visit, it appeared the Buckeyes were out of the running to land him. Apparently, all hope is not lost though, and we will find out more as he announces today (update: Carradine chose Florida State as many expected).

Another JUCO named surfaced this week in defensive back Byron Moore. After redshirting at USC and playing a year at Harbor Community College, he has three years left of eligibility. He seems very high on the Buckeyes, though he still has some big visits left in January. Between him, Doran Grant, and Jabari Gorman the staff is desperate to grab a few more corners in this class.

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3) Arkansas fans (or Ar-Kansas as Les Miles called them) are openly showing their hatred for the Buckeyes like most SEC teams.

One fan, Brad Wilkerson, has one of the most ignorant articles I have ever read. In fact, I feel bad linking to it. In case you don't want to consume yourself with this garbage, here is a tiny excerpt:

"Think of the most obnoxious, D-cell battery throwing, LSU fan you have ever encountered…Now, give him a northern accent, take away any class he might have had along with all common sense and shorten his vocabulary to pretty much just the F-word, and you have a F.I.F.O. Beware of these people.

"Your southern hospitality might make you feel so inclined as to welcome these visitors to the South but I would advise against it. Any communication with an Ohio State fan will more than likely just result in a bottle of Jagermeister or Ed Hardy Vodka being poured on your head."

4) To turn the tables, you can now read a little bit about Arkansas.

EDSBS has provided a guide to understanding Arkansas, since the Buckeye players knew absolutely nothing about the state. It is very educational, and includes juicy tidbits like this:

"Currency: knucklebones from animals larger than a hog but smaller than a cow."

5) Boom is very happy with Nike's design choices for the Sugar Bowl gear.

Check it out.


6) Finally, in case you missed it elsewhere, here is the footage of Tressel's presser from yesterday where he talks about Arkansas and the Sugar Bowl.

Please, drink in the political speech brought to us by ScoutingOhio.com...