Speaker 1: Hello everybody, welcome to the Buckeye Weekly Podcast.
Speaker 2: I'm Tony Gerdeman, here as always with Tom Orr. Tom!
Speaker 3: Tom!
Speaker 2: How's it going?
Speaker 3: Tony, we had one of our patented good ideas and thought,
Speaker 3: while we're at Ohio State, we should do a show
Speaker 3: from Buckeye Grove, right on the south side of the stadium,
Speaker 3: home of a lot of lovely Buckeye trees, which will
Speaker 3: certainly cast shade on so many people. Not us, but
Speaker 3: everyone around us in the shade, not us. but also
Speaker 3: lots of cicadas and also the flight path for all
Speaker 3: of the life flight helicopters going to the hospital right
Speaker 3: over there. So it is officially a Buckeye weekly show.
Speaker 2: Also, this picnic table is operating as a pizza stone
Speaker 2: that has just been sitting here, getting warm, crack an
Speaker 2: egg on it. Just be careful with all of that.
Speaker 2: So yes, we are here and Tom, it is finally
Speaker 2: season bowl predictions time. And as we know, Nobody knows
Speaker 2: who won last year's season bold predictions.
Speaker 3: That means I won.
Speaker 2: I have not looked. Could not even possibly look. That
Speaker 2: means I won. I am not able to see my
Speaker 2: screen to even check. But before the phones overheat and
Speaker 2: everything goes, but let's start. We're doing five one point
Speaker 2: bold predictions. Nothing too crazy. I'll let you go first time.
Speaker 2: All right.
Speaker 3: Well, I have a bunch in... Mine is really clustered
Speaker 3: in a couple different categories.
Speaker 2: Non-bold categories?
Speaker 3: I'm going to say I have a lot in the
Speaker 3: milieu of freshman receivers doing stuff that hasn't been done
Speaker 3: in a while. I'm going to start with Chris Henry Jr.
Speaker 2: All right.
Speaker 3: And say that the third most receiving yards of any
Speaker 3: true freshman in Ohio State history is 450 yards. It
Speaker 3: would have been very responsible and intelligent of me to
Speaker 3: write down who it was who did that. I did
Speaker 3: not do that. That is.
Speaker 2: David Boston? Jeremiah Smith, Chris Carter.
Speaker 3: And then David Boston. Okay, so 450 was David Boston. Okay,
Speaker 3: I thought I remembered that correctly. Chris Henry Jr. going
Speaker 3: to best. He's going to eclipse David Boston's mark of
Speaker 3: 450 yards to get him on the podium for... The
Speaker 3: most receiving yards is a true freshman at Ohio State.
Speaker 2: So you're saying that he is going to do something
Speaker 2: that was done two years ago. Yes.
Speaker 3: As we all know, Jeremiah Smith does not count.
Speaker 2: Two years ago, this happened and tripled it, essentially. And
Speaker 2: so now you want to say that's bold. Of course, yes,
Speaker 2: we have to accept it.
Speaker 3: The Jeremiah Smith exception lives on.
Speaker 2: Right. And even, shoot, if you want to throw some
Speaker 2: Chris Carter exceptions in there as well, we will allow that.
Speaker 2: At this point, I don't know if that's bold anymore
Speaker 2: in terms of, like, it's acceptable for this show and
Speaker 2: your predictions. But bold has to be a little, like,
Speaker 2: surprising or... It's like, oh, wow. Is 450 yards wow
Speaker 2: for Chris Henry Jr., though, based on?
Speaker 3: Based on historical context?
Speaker 2: No, no, no.
Speaker 3: I would say yes.
Speaker 2: Based on present context. I agree.
Speaker 3: You get the point.
Speaker 2: You get the one point. But now thinking about it,
Speaker 2: without the I gotcha, without the technical truth, which, as
Speaker 2: you know.
Speaker 3: The best kind of truth.
Speaker 2: So do you think 450 yards is like, would it
Speaker 2: surprise you?
Speaker 3: Am I going to verbally say wow every time you
Speaker 3: finish a sentence on this show? If that's the standard
Speaker 3: we're setting, then that's fine.
Speaker 2: So you don't want to answer the question?
Speaker 3: I feel like... You've gotten the point.
Speaker 2: We've allowed this. It is part of record.
Speaker 3: Fantastic.
Speaker 2: Then let's move on. I'm no longer talking about Chris
Speaker 2: Henry Jr.
Speaker 3: I think it is something that would be impressive as
Speaker 3: a true freshman. So from that perspective, you would say wow.
Speaker 3: This is also something that I'm saying... I think there's
Speaker 3: a reasonable chance this happens. So, you know, I can
Speaker 3: make a bold prediction that he's going to break all
Speaker 3: of Jeremiah Smith's records, and then you would say, wow,
Speaker 3: but I don't expect that to happen. So I'm trying
Speaker 3: to pick something that would be historically anomalous, but also.
Speaker 2: Plus, it's just a one-pointer.
Speaker 3: Correct. All right.
Speaker 2: Well, instead, I'm going to go bold. Here's one for you.
Speaker 2: 13 sacks for Kenyatta Jackson. which would be more than
Speaker 2: JT Tuimalo out in 2024, a half more. One and
Speaker 2: a half more than Caden Curry last year. It would
Speaker 2: be the most for a Buckeye since Chase Young in 2019.
Speaker 2: I think this is probably a two-pointer. But it's also
Speaker 2: double what he did last year. We're only doing one-pointers.
Speaker 2: I'm just going bold.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I like this one. I think this is a
Speaker 3: good one. And it's certainly something you could certainly see
Speaker 3: this happening. Because I'm expecting them to have maybe a
Speaker 3: little bit more chaos on the defense this year. So
Speaker 3: I think, you know, you did not hear me say
Speaker 3: the word wow. So I don't know if you'd like
Speaker 3: to defend your position here. But I think this is
Speaker 3: a good one where it represents a significant jump from
Speaker 3: his previous production. But also, it's within the realm of reason.
Speaker 3: This is not, you know, he's going to have 27 sacks.
Speaker 3: Who was the guy at Arizona State who had like 19?
Speaker 3: In the 90s?
Speaker 2: Yeah, 90s. Derek Rodgers?
Speaker 3: Yeah, was it Derek Rodgers? It's not like that level
Speaker 3: where you go, wow. But I think this is a
Speaker 3: good one where you're projecting him to take a significant
Speaker 3: step forward, but a reasonable one.
Speaker 2: I mean, double. Now, granted, it's not 450 yards receiving.
Speaker 2: What's your next one? What's your next one pointed?
Speaker 3: My next one, Tony, Ohio State has not kicked a
Speaker 3: field goal of 50-plus yards since 2019, Tony. 2019, Tony,
Speaker 3: a simpler time for all of us. We were so
Speaker 3: young and innocent. We did not know. Corona was a beer, Tony.
Speaker 3: We were dancing the Lindy, not you and I together, but,
Speaker 3: you know, we as a society were dancing the Lindy,
Speaker 3: the Foxtrot. Glenn Mason was on the radio. 2019, no,
Speaker 3: Glenn Mason was a football coach.
Speaker 2: Glenn Miller.
Speaker 3: Miller was on the radio.
Speaker 2: Coach Miller.
Speaker 3: Yeah, or maybe Glenn Mason was on the radio. He
Speaker 3: was probably on the radio, too. Last time Ohio State
Speaker 3: made a kick of 50 yards or more. Was it?
Speaker 3: They're going to do it this year, Tony, for the
Speaker 3: first time since 2019. Now, have I predicted this probably
Speaker 3: almost every year over the last few years? And this
Speaker 3: is my version of the Great Pumpkin?
Speaker 2: Yes. Well, who's going to be making that kick?
Speaker 3: I think I'm going to go... I think there are... Obviously,
Speaker 3: there are two possible answers here. I think... That there is...
Speaker 3: If we had a two-pointer, I would probably have a
Speaker 3: different answer. Because I would have... I did look up
Speaker 3: the longest field goal in Ohio State history.
Speaker 2: Is it 56?
Speaker 3: It is 59.
Speaker 2: Oh.
Speaker 3: By Tom Scladini.
Speaker 2: In 1975.
Speaker 3: Longest field goal in Ohio Stadium in history. 55?
Speaker 2: 55 yards.
Speaker 3: Mike Nugent?
Speaker 2: Mike Nugent.
Speaker 3: And I believe there was someone else who did that
Speaker 3: as well. So that is... Those are the guys who...
Speaker 3: Those are the long ones. And maybe we do a
Speaker 3: two-pointer at some point. Because I... willing to do that
Speaker 3: but Connor Hawkins I'm going to say is the guy
Speaker 3: who makes the 50 plus.
Speaker 2: Yarder Connor Hawkins you want one point for saying boldly
Speaker 2: that he's going to kick a 50 yarder which is
Speaker 2: something he did three times last.
Speaker 3: Year did he do it for Ohio State he did
Speaker 3: not do it for Ohio State do you think Ryan
Speaker 3: Day is a Dave Aranda level head coach is that
Speaker 3: what I'm hearing Because Dave Miranda is on the hot seat. Now,
Speaker 3: if you think Ryan Day should be in the hot seat, like,
Speaker 3: by all means, keep pursuing this.
Speaker 2: I'm not doing this for me. I'm doing this for
Speaker 2: the people so that they understand. I'm going to allow
Speaker 2: this because it has not happened for Ohio State since 2019.
Speaker 2: But it has happened for Connor Hawkins, like, many, many times. Many,
Speaker 2: many times. A lot of times. No more times than
Speaker 2: what Connor Hawkins has done. Nobody has done it more
Speaker 2: often than Connor Hawkins of the people that we're speaking
Speaker 2: about right now.
Speaker 3: Was he kicking in Midwestern fall, late fall weather? Or
Speaker 3: was he kicking in Texas where it's just kind of
Speaker 3: like nice and warm all year round?
Speaker 2: If you take a midsection of the U.S., I'd say
Speaker 2: it's Midwestern. Tom, my one-pointer, my next one, and maybe
Speaker 2: this involves Chris Henry Jr. Maybe it doesn't. Three Buckeyes
Speaker 2: will have 100-yard receiving games this season.
Speaker 3: Not in the same game.
Speaker 2: No. This is something they've done a couple of times
Speaker 2: in the last decade and more than that. But the
Speaker 2: reason I think it's bold here is who is the
Speaker 2: third guy? You would assume Devin McEwen is the second.
Speaker 3: Yeah.
Speaker 2: Who is the third guy?
Speaker 3: Who's the first?
Speaker 2: Jeremiah Smith Jr.
Speaker 3: Oh, is he still on the team this year?
Speaker 2: He's still on the team.
Speaker 3: Interesting. Okay.
Speaker 2: This might be the third of his five seasons at Ohio.
Speaker 3: State.
Speaker 2: But....
Speaker 3: I will give you two points if you predict Jeremiah
Speaker 3: Smith to play five seasons at Ohio State. I might
Speaker 3: even give you five for that one.
Speaker 2: This did not happen last year. It happened the year before.
Speaker 2: But again, this is more of a... Who's going to
Speaker 2: be that third guy? Is it Brandon Innes? I think
Speaker 2: Saying Brandon Innes is going to have a 100-yard receiving
Speaker 2: game is also a bold prediction.
Speaker 3: Yeah.
Speaker 2: Saying Chris Henry Jr. is going to have one is
Speaker 2: also a bold prediction. Brock Boyd, Kyle Parker, none of
Speaker 2: these guys have ever done it before.
Speaker 3: Yeah. I look at.
Speaker 2: Nate Roberts.
Speaker 3: I look at the Kent State game and think there's
Speaker 3: a decent chance. Jaden Ballard, I think, maybe had a
Speaker 3: 100-yard game against Akron, right? And... This is one I...
Speaker 3: I wish I had a little more historical context. This
Speaker 3: is one where I'd be looking this up on my
Speaker 3: computer if I was, you know, on more reliable Wi-Fi
Speaker 3: and indoors and able to see my screen. The context
Speaker 3: that I've been given is that it has happened in
Speaker 3: one year and not happened in another year.
Speaker 2: Yes.
Speaker 3: Has it only happened... You said it's happened a couple
Speaker 3: times in the last 10 years?
Speaker 2: It's happened, like, Garrett Wilson, Chris Olave, and.
Speaker 2: Whoever that third guy would have been, they've done it.
Speaker 2: It's been done every other year.
Speaker 3: I'm sure. Okay. So every other year.
Speaker 1: Ish.
Speaker 3: Okay.
Speaker 2: Yeah.
Speaker 3: So you're boldly predicting Ohio State to play Michigan at
Speaker 3: home this year.
Speaker 2: I am predicting something that did not happen last year,
Speaker 2: which you are predicting something to happen three times last
Speaker 2: year as being bold. So if we want to get
Speaker 2: into the argumentative portion of the show... Did you just
Speaker 2: join us?
Speaker 3: Where have you been for the previous seven minutes? That's fine. Yeah,
Speaker 3: that's fine. I'm going to allow this in the spirit
Speaker 3: of togetherness and friendship and keeping things moving. How about
Speaker 3: this one, Tony? Ohio State's defense. Do you know how
Speaker 3: many plays of 40 plus yards they allowed last season?
Speaker 2: I want to say two, but I'll say four. Was
Speaker 2: it three?
Speaker 3: If you guess all of the numbers, eventually you will
Speaker 3: land on the correct one.
Speaker 2: I'll say two.
Speaker 3: Well, it was three. I was really trying to help
Speaker 3: you out. Eventually you'll land on the correct one.
Speaker 2: How many in the regular season?
Speaker 3: I don't know.
Speaker 2: That's a good question.
Speaker 3: Okay. Well, I can think of a long one that
Speaker 3: they allowed to Indiana. And the Charlie Becker play. And
Speaker 3: I don't remember.
Speaker 2: Okay.
Speaker 3: That's why, Tony, I am going to be boldly predicting
Speaker 3: they will allow three plays of 40-plus yards this season
Speaker 3: in the month of September. Oh, wow.
Speaker 2: Okay.
Speaker 3: You heard it. He said, wow. You heard it.
Speaker 2: It was an oh, wow. Not the same. Not the same.
Speaker 2: In the month of September. Okay. I have nothing to...
Speaker 2: Nothing to say other than wow.
Speaker 3: Literally wow.
Speaker 2: What I can say is... If I had my computer out,
Speaker 2: I'd like to have a little bit more context. Perhaps
Speaker 2: if we went to like 2018, or perhaps if we
Speaker 2: went to like 2022, how many such plays took place?
Speaker 3: 2018, I think they gave up two plays of 85
Speaker 3: yards or so in September.
Speaker 2: So you're saying this happens routinely. No, well, I mean, yeah.
Speaker 2: How many of those are against Texas, I wonder?
Speaker 3: Well... My assumption is at least two, because I'm not
Speaker 3: expecting that. I'm thinking you might get a cheapie against
Speaker 3: Kent State in the fourth quarter, or maybe Illinois gets one,
Speaker 3: or something like that.
Speaker 2: Illinois is the fourth game, so we're talking Texas-Illinois.
Speaker 3: Texas-Illinois, and then the two MAAC teams.
Speaker 2: I mean, look, if I say no, then this is
Speaker 2: me attacking Matt Patricia's defense. And we know that you're
Speaker 2: not successful when you attack Matt Patricia's defense. But, we'll
Speaker 2: say yes, and then if you're, like, if If this
Speaker 2: turns out to be true, nobody's going to care because
Speaker 2: they're just going to be mad at the defense and
Speaker 2: Matt Patricia. So I will allow that. Tom, I'm going
Speaker 2: to go with my third one-pointer, something that has not
Speaker 2: happened since 2021.
Speaker 3: Okay.
Speaker 2: Legend Bay will have a 50-50 day, a day of
Speaker 2: 50 yards rushing, a day of 50 yards receiving. He'll
Speaker 2: be the first freshman to do that since Travion Henderson. OK. OK.
Speaker 2: Bo Jackson has done it, I think, once. And I
Speaker 2: don't know that Travion Henderson has done it.
Speaker 3: Can I point out that last year, Bo Jackson was
Speaker 3: a freshman. So Bo Jackson has done this.
Speaker 2: He was also the starter.
Speaker 3: Well, you just said he'd be the first guy since.
Speaker 2: No, no, no. Bo Jackson did not do it. No,
Speaker 2: Bo Jackson came close. I checked.
Speaker 3: Okay, okay, okay. I was going to say, I feel
Speaker 3: like I'm missing something here.
Speaker 2: The second freshman since Travion Henderson, who was also a freshman.
Speaker 2: So every freshman except for Dallin Hayden.
Speaker 3: Okay, 50 and 50. Yeah, I like this one because
Speaker 3: there's some projection here involved in how much is Legend
Speaker 3: Bay going to play. I think it's entirely possible. I
Speaker 3: think this is one you've got a decent chance of
Speaker 3: checking off in the first three weeks of the season,
Speaker 3: and not necessarily the second week of the season, where
Speaker 3: you get the Mario McCall-Rutgers game, where he just sort
Speaker 3: of rips off a long touchdown run and then rips
Speaker 3: off a long screen pass or whatever, or the Michael
Speaker 3: Wiley game, or any of those. But I do like
Speaker 3: this because it is specific enough that You're trying to
Speaker 3: sort of hit a little bit of an inside straight here.
Speaker 2: It's going to take like five touches or six touches.
Speaker 2: He's not going to get like 13 or so, I
Speaker 2: don't think.
Speaker 3: Well, right. But it's going to take one long one.
Speaker 3: That's the other way he gets there. And that would
Speaker 3: be my guess as to how he gets there. All right.
Speaker 3: How about let's have some big plays on the other
Speaker 3: side of the ball.
Speaker 2: Okay.
Speaker 3: Ohio State. had four rushes of 40 yards or more
Speaker 3: in 2025, five rushes of 40 yards or more in 2024,
Speaker 3: three rushes of 40 yards or more in 2023. So
Speaker 3: they have not been above five rushes of 40-plus yards
Speaker 3: since at least 2022. I think they might have had
Speaker 3: six that year. So I'm going to say they have
Speaker 3: six this year, first time since 2022 Ohio State has
Speaker 3: six rushes of 40-plus yards.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, that would be obviously great for the fans,
Speaker 2: and we're here for the fans, and I'm not trying
Speaker 2: to downplay or dismiss or say no, because this is
Speaker 2: one of those, the most annoying of the bold predictions,
Speaker 2: where it's like, this is probably pretty likely, yet still
Speaker 2: technically bold, which, as you know, is the best kind
Speaker 2: of bold. So I will allow this, knowing that they
Speaker 2: have focused all offseason on... big runs and breaking tackles
Speaker 2: and getting past the second level with Bo Jackson and
Speaker 2: Isaiah West, but then also bringing in legend Bay to
Speaker 2: be somebody that can go the distance. And then also
Speaker 2: obviously Julian saying, keeping it on a, on a read
Speaker 2: and going 45 yards. Can I eliminate the quarterback run?
Speaker 2: Can you eliminate the quarterback run from this list?
Speaker 3: Yes. I will graciously allow you to eliminate the quarterback
Speaker 3: run from this list. Cool.
Speaker 2: Cool. Cool. That is great, then. I will gladly allow this.
Speaker 2: I can't wait. I can't wait until Julian says his
Speaker 2: first 40-yarder, and neither can everybody else, for different reasons.
Speaker 2: All right. This is going to be something that has
Speaker 2: happened twice in the past 10 years. Not three times
Speaker 2: last year, like Connor Hawkinson hitting a 50-yarder. But that's
Speaker 2: neither here nor there.
Speaker 3: I'm just glad that you're not mad about it. That's
Speaker 3: what I'm really happy about.
Speaker 2: Three Buckeyes will throw touchdown passes this season.
Speaker 3: I'm just counting. I'm counting the number of different trap
Speaker 3: doors built into this one. No, I'm still counting. There's
Speaker 3: still several more that I'm thinking through. Yeah, I mean,
Speaker 3: obviously you have what is, by all accounts, a legitimate
Speaker 3: battle for the QB2 position, so... You are presumably, if
Speaker 3: Tavian St. Clair is QB2, they're still going to want
Speaker 3: to get Luke Fahey out there. Maybe. And probably get
Speaker 3: him reasonable reps.
Speaker 2: Who knows?
Speaker 3: They could be doing everything. They could be trying to
Speaker 3: hide him from everyone else who might be trying to
Speaker 3: steal him in the transfer portal.
Speaker 2: Impossible to say.
Speaker 3: It is impossible to say. So, I think there's a
Speaker 3: very good chance you have three quarterbacks. Now, I note, Tony,
Speaker 3: that you did not say... Three quarterbacks throw a touchdown pass.
Speaker 2: Quarterbacks are players.
Speaker 3: They are players, yes.
Speaker 2: So are left tackles. Left tackle's not throwing it.
Speaker 3: That's true, yes. You mentioned Legend Bay earlier. I feel
Speaker 3: like Legend Bay could be one of these. That's my 50-50-50,
Speaker 3: my two-pointer.
Speaker 2: 50 yards passing, 50 yards rushing, 50 taters.
Speaker 3: 50 touchdowns this year, yeah. I'll give you three points
Speaker 3: for that one. This is one where this feels almost
Speaker 3: certain to happen this year. Now, the fact that it's
Speaker 3: happened twice.
Speaker 1: In the last 10.
Speaker 3: Years, I'm i'm kind of grudgingly forced to accept that
Speaker 3: but you're welcome i don't really love it now you
Speaker 3: know what else has happened twice in the last 10
Speaker 3: years what ohio state freshman receivers having five touchdown passes
Speaker 3: or receptions reception yes that was gonna be a two-pointer
Speaker 3: yeah no no not passing receiving now if i if
Speaker 3: i tried to say No, sorry, six. It would be
Speaker 3: six because they had six in 2019 and Jeremiah Smith
Speaker 3: had more than that by himself. Now, if I tried
Speaker 3: to say six receiving touchdowns for the freshmen, you would,
Speaker 3: I think, rightfully scornful. Yes, because just because it's only
Speaker 3: happened twice in the last 10 years doesn't necessarily make
Speaker 3: it a bowl prediction.
Speaker 2: There's a lot of freshmen. There's four true freshmen wide
Speaker 2: receivers on the team. I'll take Jaden Ricketts off the
Speaker 2: list and also take... Take two other guys off the list.
Speaker 3: Jerquaden Guilford off the list.
Speaker 2: No, it could be... Are you saying for total all
Speaker 2: of the freshmen?
Speaker 3: Total for the freshman wide receivers.
Speaker 2: The six touchdowns?
Speaker 3: Six touchdowns. Six receiving touchdowns. Can't do it. Oh, so
Speaker 3: the fact that it has happened only twice in the
Speaker 3: last 10 years is not.
Speaker 2: Connor Hawkins hit three 50-yarders last year. And that has
Speaker 2: happened even once in the last six years for Ohio State.
Speaker 3: I had that on my list and I just put
Speaker 3: it out there. I'm not even going to try it, Tony.
Speaker 3: You know what has not happened in 20 years? 20 years.
Speaker 2: What?
Speaker 3: Something that happens in New York City.
Speaker 2: Julian Sane wins the Heisman?
Speaker 3: Julian Sane wins the Heisman.
Speaker 2: Right. I will accept that because that was my two-pointer.
Speaker 3: I am only asking for one point.
Speaker 2: You're only going to get one point. But the reason...
Speaker 2: Then I had Jeremiah wins it for three, just in case.
Speaker 2: Hedging my bets, even though they're going to take away
Speaker 2: from each other. But we know last year... Just one
Speaker 2: year ago, not even one year ago, Tom, at this point,
Speaker 2: like nine months ago, Julian's saying if Ohio State wins
Speaker 2: that Indiana game, he's probably the Heisman winner unless the
Speaker 2: South comes in and votes for the Vandy kid. So, yeah,
Speaker 2: I mean, it's again, it's happened. Well, it happens like
Speaker 2: every 10 years ish.
Speaker 3: 2006 was 20 years ago.
Speaker 2: Right, but like 95.
Speaker 3: That was 10 years before that.
Speaker 2: That's what I'm saying.
Speaker 3: And then they didn't win it for 20 years before that.
Speaker 2: So, I mean, it's due. So is that even really bold? No,
Speaker 2: I will accept that. That's fine. I can't really say
Speaker 2: no after I said it was going to be my two-pointer.
Speaker 2: My last one, and this is something that has not
Speaker 2: happened since 2009 and 2010. Mm-hmm. Ohio State will have
Speaker 2: a kickoff return for a touchdown. And why do I say,
Speaker 2: even though this is the first time since 2009, 2010,
Speaker 2: they will have done it in back-to-back seasons.
Speaker 3: So the thing that they did last year, not even
Speaker 3: like early in the season, this is something they did
Speaker 3: in November last year.
Speaker 2: What? What's the point? What are you saying?
Speaker 3: If you had predicted this before last season, you would
Speaker 3: get credit for the fact that it's back-to-back seasons. They
Speaker 3: just did it.
Speaker 2: It wouldn't have happened yet. Like, there wouldn't be something
Speaker 2: to predict.
Speaker 3: Connor Hawkins kicks a 50-yard field goal in back-to-back seasons. Now,
Speaker 3: no Ohio State kicker has done that in.
Speaker 2: When was the last time Ohio State had back-to-back seasons
Speaker 2: with kickoff returns? That's what I'm predicting for touchdowns. I'm not...
Speaker 2: Who cares about this one singular season? This is a
Speaker 2: two-year thing. This is more than this. This should be
Speaker 2: two points.
Speaker 3: So you'd like Ohio State returns to kickoff for a
Speaker 3: touchdown this year in a year when they just did
Speaker 3: it last year. And they have a particularly explosive and
Speaker 3: interesting true freshman receiver running back. And they have a
Speaker 3: special teams coach who is now going to be focused
Speaker 3: entirely on this. And they're going to be playing better competition.
Speaker 3: So they're going to have to be looking for incremental
Speaker 3: edges like this.
Speaker 2: Yes. Okay. Well, would you accept? I'm going to say
Speaker 2: just listen. Say they had not done it last year.
Speaker 2: If I sit up here and say, Tom, Ohio State
Speaker 2: will have back-to-back seasons of kickoff return touchdowns. We've got
Speaker 2: to wait a whole other year. This, we don't need
Speaker 2: to wait.
Speaker 3: If you want to predict them to score a kickoff
Speaker 3: touchdown in 2026 and 2027, I would allow that in
Speaker 3: terms of back-to-back. You're trying to get credit for something
Speaker 3: that's already happened. So I have several others here that
Speaker 3: I would be perfectly happy to share with you. And
Speaker 3: allow you to take that are actually significantly bolder than
Speaker 3: what you just threw out there.
Speaker 2: How many times have they had a kickoff return for
Speaker 2: a touchdown?
Speaker 3: In the last.
Speaker 2: Since 2010. No, no, no. Since 2011. They've had one.
Speaker 2: So it doesn't even matter. If they were to do
Speaker 2: it again, Lorenzo Stiles is gone. Is he back? Maybe
Speaker 2: they should go back and see if he can come back.
Speaker 2: He's done. He's gone. Lorenzo Stiles is not walking through
Speaker 2: that door, folks. He's gone. So even... Tom, you've predicted
Speaker 2: stuff that happened last year. I have predicted stuff that
Speaker 2: has happened in years past. All I'm saying, hey, kickoff
Speaker 2: return for a touchdown. If you just want to take
Speaker 2: off the fact that this will be two years in
Speaker 2: a row, which has not happened since 2009, 2010. But yes,
Speaker 2: they did have a kickoff return for a touchdown last year.
Speaker 2: Is every year the same?
Speaker 3: Yes.
Speaker 2: Well, it's a fair point.
Speaker 3: I'm going to throw out three other things. I'll give
Speaker 3: you Okay, I'll give you, well, one of them I
Speaker 3: was going to take for a two-pointer, which was the
Speaker 3: 59-yard field goal by Tom Scudani, that they at least
Speaker 3: attempt a field goal longer than that. I could not
Speaker 3: find any kind of record of longest attempted field goal
Speaker 3: in Ohio State history longer than that. So they will
Speaker 3: attempt a field goal longer than that.
Speaker 2: Interesting.
Speaker 3: Brock Boyd. If he has 26 receptions, that would make
Speaker 3: him the fifth most in freshman history. I would allow
Speaker 3: you to take that over the kickoff return for a touchdown.
Speaker 3: I would also allow you to have that they have
Speaker 3: 11 interceptions this year, which would be the most since 2022.
Speaker 3: Would you like to take one of those and be
Speaker 3: less disgraceful?
Speaker 2: So you're saying I can't be disgraceful. I can keep it. Now,
Speaker 2: let me think on my feet here. Just give me
Speaker 2: a moment. I may edit this part out where I'm thinking.
Speaker 3: I will note that you are sitting down, so... I.
Speaker 2: Don't... I'm wondering if I... The whole special teams is like,
Speaker 2: I haven't done enough offensive overall, like, wow things in
Speaker 2: terms of visible predictions, which have been plenty bold, but
Speaker 2: it's like, I need something to keep an eye on
Speaker 2: this year. So how about this? Something that has never
Speaker 2: happened for Julian Sayers. And this may seem bad. I
Speaker 2: was going to say a 400-yard passing day. But I
Speaker 2: think those days are done. And if they are back,
Speaker 2: then it's probably not a good thing. So let's go
Speaker 2: with something else. And I'm really wanting to say Isaiah
Speaker 2: West rushes for 1,000 yards this year. So I'll say it.
Speaker 3: I like that one. That's a good one. I think
Speaker 3: that's good. And....
Speaker 2: I might need all 16 games.
Speaker 3: You might need all 16 games. But I think, you know,
Speaker 3: you get to 1,000 yards in 16 games, that's 60-something
Speaker 3: yards a game. 62 and a half. You definitely, definitely.
Speaker 2: That's an NFL thing.
Speaker 3: Okay, there you go. I was going to say, I
Speaker 3: don't believe for a moment that you did that long
Speaker 3: division in your head just now.
Speaker 2: Always known that.
Speaker 3: So, I like that one. That's a good one because
Speaker 3: we assume, based on what we've been hearing, that Bo
Speaker 3: Jackson is still going to be RB1. Presumably. So, yeah.
Speaker 2: This would be something that had happened twice in history before. Mm-hmm. With,
Speaker 2: of course, Travion Henderson and Quinchon Judkins.
Speaker 3: Yep.
Speaker 2: And Archie Griffin and Pete Johnson did it.
Speaker 3: Mm-hmm.
Speaker 2: Carlos Hyde and Braxton Miller did it.
Speaker 1: Yeah.
Speaker 2: But that's not the same thing.
Speaker 3: Not quite the same thing. But yes, no, there you go.
Speaker 3: That was a good one. Was it that hard?
Speaker 2: Anyway, Tom, anything else? Are you completely done now? Are
Speaker 2: you finished?
Speaker 3: Are you done? Unless we want to do a multi-pointer.
Speaker 2: All right. What do you got?
Speaker 3: I'm going to attempt the longest field goal in Ohio
Speaker 3: State history for two points.
Speaker 2: Okay.
Speaker 3: So a field goal longer than 59 yards.
Speaker 1: Okay.
Speaker 3: All right.
Speaker 2: How about this one? There are at least two players
Speaker 2: with receptions of 75 yards or more.
Speaker 3: How many players had receptions of 75 yards?
Speaker 2: I don't know that they've really had any 80-yarders since, like,
Speaker 2: Abuka had, like, the 90-yarder.
Speaker 3: Yeah, Jeremiah Smith had a long one at the beginning
Speaker 3: of it.
Speaker 2: He's had a couple of 70-yarders.
Speaker 3: Jeremiah Smith had a long one, yeah.
Speaker 2: And I would go 80, but I feel like there's
Speaker 2: going to be a couple of 77-yarders, and I really
Speaker 2: want credit for that.
Speaker 3: All right, so we'll make it 77. That's fine. That's
Speaker 3: fair enough. Listen, I'm willing to be in the middle.
Speaker 2: No, 77.
Speaker 3: You said you wanted credit for the 77 yards. I
Speaker 3: will meet you in the middle.
Speaker 2: Everybody needs something to root for, root against. Okay. Three-pointer, Tom? Three-pointer.
Speaker 3: You know, I think we should have like a 20-pointer here.
Speaker 3: I think we should have like a very, very specific.
Speaker 3: That's only half as bold as me, as usual. It
Speaker 3: would be great if I had thought of this before
Speaker 3: I said this.
Speaker 2: Do you want my 20-pointer? I'll just increase my 10
Speaker 2: by a little bit.
Speaker 3: Okay, that's fine. You go ahead. I'm formulating mine right now.
Speaker 1: Okay.
Speaker 2: So the Buckeyes will go 16-0.
Speaker 3: Uh-huh.
Speaker 2: With a playoff shutout.
Speaker 3: Interesting. Okay. I always say you never predict 16-0. Playoff
Speaker 3: shutout is another. I mean, the defense would have to
Speaker 3: be better than I'm expecting for them to go 16-0.
Speaker 3: So these are sort of paired outcomes in a certain degree,
Speaker 3: but still a shutout. Did Texas Tech get shut out
Speaker 3: last year by Oregon, or were they just... I think
Speaker 3: they scored a little bit. I think they scored a
Speaker 3: little bit. It doesn't feel like shutouts have happened.
Speaker 2: What's the last shutout? Michigan State?
Speaker 3: I mean... Michigan State was, I think, before the 31-0
Speaker 3: Clemson game, so it might be Ohio State getting shut out.
Speaker 2: Yes, Ohio State was 2016. Yeah. And Michigan State was 2015.
Speaker 3: I don't remember one more recently than that, but... No,
Speaker 3: I like this one. I think it's a good one.
Speaker 2: Yeah, Memphis is going down.
Speaker 3: Ohio State beats Battlestar Galactica. Bears.
Speaker 2: Ohio State beats.
Speaker 3: USC on a touchdown pass of at least 17 yards
Speaker 3: to Jeremiah Smith in the final minute. Those are the
Speaker 3: deciding points.
Speaker 2: And that's just a 10-pointer? That's 20. Between 17 and 34.
Speaker 2: Including 17 and 34, yes.
Speaker 3: Benevolent as always. Look, all you're doing is you're taking
Speaker 3: away the possibility of it being a 77-yard touchdown.
Speaker 2: No, well... Yeah, but I'd rather... I'm.
Speaker 3: Letting you know what's going to happen. You're taking that
Speaker 3: away from yourself.
Speaker 2: That's just a two-pointer. That's just a three-pointer rather than
Speaker 2: the whole 20-pointer. So there you go. Some bold predictions.
Speaker 2: We welcome your bold predictions. Throw them in the YouTube
Speaker 2: comments if you're watching. And if you want to throw
Speaker 2: Tom some DMs with your bold predictions on Twitter or
Speaker 2: email him or you still get regular mail to the house.
Speaker 3: I do. The best way to do it is to
Speaker 3: take an address or take an envelope. and fill it
Speaker 3: out with BuckeyeInsiders.com and then click the login button. You
Speaker 3: save yourself an envelope and a stamp this way.
Speaker 2: Just become a member at BuckeyeInsiders.com and then save yourself
Speaker 2: a stamp. And now stamps almost more than allows.
Speaker 3: You to taste our pizza. Have you seen the price
Speaker 3: of stamps today, folks?
Speaker 2: We absolutely welcome you all over there. Thank you for
Speaker 2: so many of you who have shown up, signed up.
Speaker 2: It's great to see you guys. We see you in
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Speaker 2: many of you as you want to come. If you
Speaker 2: like talking Ohio State football, you like watching it, reading
Speaker 2: about it, all that stuff, we're here for you. So
Speaker 2: that will do it from here. Thank you all for
Speaker 2: tuning in, and we will talk to you all later.
Speaker 1: This time, can what I feel be real? Well, she
Speaker 1: threw away the motel key. I wish it never meant
Speaker 1: nothing to me. Fare you well, now, fare you well.
Speaker 1: If you tell me that Des Moines's alright, we could
Speaker 1: steal a car and leave tonight.