Ohio State Football: News, Rumors, Injuries and Updates
The Ohio State football program has been under a gigantic NCAA microscope since December, when the case of the Suspended Five was announced.
While the football program is likely going to deal with some serious sanctions stemming from the scandal, this isn't the only bit of news out of Buckeye land.
Obviously, the news of the problems surrounding the program including the departures of Terrelle Pryor and Jim Tressel are dominating iPad screens everywhere.
Here are some of the lesser stories and rumors from the last few weeks relating to OSU football.
Luke Fickell Promises Effort, Toughness During 2011 Season
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In yesterday's press conference, the college football world got to meet interim coach Luke Fickell, the young man who will succeed Jim Tressel as the Buckeyes' football coach for at least this season.
Fickell's first address revealed quite a bit about his personality. He seemed very passionate and intense in his choice of words.
Among the things that he emphasized were that he didn't want to make excuses for his team if they have a poor showing due to the NCAA investigation and pending sanctions.
He still has high expectations for his team, and he wants them to emulate his personality of being a hard worker and being both mentally and physically tough.
Fickell Made Little to No Contact with Terrelle Pryor After Tressel Resigned
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The announcement of Terrelle Pryor's departure from Ohio State seemed like a foregone conclusion since Tressel's resignation.
An interesting theory at the start of the Luke Fickell regime seems to suggest that the new coach wanted no part of Pryor.
Whether Pryor left of his own volition or if Fickell kicked him off the team (which Pryor's agent Drew Rosenhaus claimed happened), it seems now like an interesting dilemma.
Fickell getting rid of Pryor, whether it was to send a message to his team or to shake loose a major distraction, is a serious possibility which speaks some volumes of who he will probably be as the current coach.
Sleeper Recruit Dazzles at Camp, Commits to Ohio State
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While most of the big-time recruits will likely be gun-shy about committing to Ohio State under their current circumstances, Ohio State brought in a breakout player from one of their prospect camps.
Defensive Back Najee Murray of Ohio high school power Steubenville was the defensive MVP at a senior camp Saturday and impressed Fickell enough to earn a scholarship offer, which he has officially committed to.
Murray's offer list is not very strong at the moment, consisting of mostly MAC schools and a couple other universities.
However, Murray fits the typical mold of Ohio kids that want to be Buckeyes, and those are the type of players that Jim Tressel wanted to have at Ohio State, and whom Fickell wants to have as well.
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In-State Offensive Tackle Spurns Ohio State for Wisconsin
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The story of Kyle Dodson is almost a complete 180 of Najee Murray's tale to becoming a Buckeye.
Dodson, a very talented OT from the Cleveland area, had been hoping to get an Ohio State offer for the class of 2012,. He finally got his sometime yesterday.
Later in the day, however, he shocked Buckeye fans by committing to Wisconsin over the home-state team.
That alone speaks volumes about the cloud of uncertainly looming over the OSU program, and from a recruiting standpoint points to why they need things to be settled one way or another as soon as possible.
Good or bad, OSU needs a solid, definitive path for the future to keep these talented players in-state, which OSU has done well in the 2000s.
Curtis Grant Will Stay with Ohio State Despite Uncertainty
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Even though it wasn't too much of a surprise, Ohio State will keep a hold of top-flight LB Curtis Grant who was the final committed player of Jim Tressel's final recruiting class in 2011.
The concern for some was that Grant would not come to Columbus and possibly opt out of his NLOI with the cloud of uncertainty hanging over the program.
Grant has shown tremendous loyalty to the program and to Luke Fickell, sticking with his commitment to the Buckeyes.
For a player of Grant's caliber to keep his commitment in the face of swirling controversy is very good news for OSU fans, especially since he could see the field at times this year.
OSU Insider Says NCAA Has Cleared 8 of 9 Bucks from Dohrmann Article
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The "bombshell" article from Sports Illustrated writer George Dohrmann might be losing some steam since its publishing over two weeks ago.
According to Scout.com's Bill Greene via Twitter, eight of the nine players listed in the article have been cleared and the ninth could be cleared soon.
Dohrmann's article followed the resignation of Jim Tressel on Memorial Day, which seemed to be a sign that his investigation would have to be a massive game-changer.
Unfortunately, based on the recent revelations by OSU insiders, it seems like the article's impact is getting weaker as time goes on.
WR Prospect to Decide Between Ohio State and Auburn Wednesday
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Georgia WR prospect Jaquay Williams will announce a commitment Wednesday afternoon and it's down to just Ohio State and Auburn.
Williams admitted to being a big Ohio State fan, but like everyone else has been paying attention to the situation that could put Buckeye football down for a couple of seasons.
It's likely that Williams will stay in the south and commit to Auburn despite the commitment of blue-chip prospect Ricardo Louis out of Miami.
Auburn is currently off the hook with the Cam Newton situation although some people believe the situation is far from over.
However, Auburn fans should feel pretty comfortable that they will land Williams because of the uncertainty around Ohio State and the talent the Tigers have continued to bring in the last two recruiting years.
Rosenhaus Thinks Terrelle Pryor Can Be a First Rounder
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Terrelle Pryor's choice of agent was an interesting one, bringing in super-agent Drew Rosenhaus to represent him.
In their press conference Tuesday, Rosenhaus stated that Pryor could be a first-round pick in the NFL supplemental draft.
His statements come after some NFL general managers indicated that Pryor could be a liability due to the problems he had to end his Ohio State career, along with his injury history.
It's very unlikely that Pryor will go where Rosenhaus thinks he should be taken, especially if Pryor stays in the supplemental draft.
Ohio State, Jim Tressel Working on Exit Terms
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Sunday, OSU President E. Gordon Gee made it clear to The Columbus Dispatch that Jim Tressel was not forced out of his job by the university.
The school and the former coach are working on a final settlement as to whether or not the school will still pay him some money as he still owes the NCAA a $250,000 fine from the penalties resulting from the tattoo scandal.
Tressel's contract was supposed to last through the 2014 season, meaning he had four more years at about $3.6 million per season.
He might not get all of the money he was still owed in his contract, but odds are that the Senator might still get a small financial settlement from his resignation.
For more college football news and updates, visit The BCS Blitz and follow me on Twitter @bielik_tim.
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