OSU Buckeyes

BIG TEN

Buckeyes not softening schedule

June, 18, 2013
Jun 18
5:20
PM ET
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Presented with perhaps an easy way out, Ohio State instead is reinforcing its emphasis on beefing up its schedule heading into the playoff era.

The move to a nine-game slate in the Big Ten means everybody in the league will have to be a bit choosier with its opponents outside the league, and for teams such as the Buckeyes who already had four squads lined up to fill slots in 2016, that also means casting one game aside.

[+] EnlargeBob Stoops
Justin K. Aller/Getty ImagesOhio State chose to keep its meeting with Bob Stoops and Oklahoma in 2016.
It could have worked to cancel a series with Oklahoma, a home-and-home arrangement that starts with what figures to be a difficult road trip to visit the perennial power. That would have left three games which would seemingly be far more manageable in the Horseshoe against Bowling Green, Tulsa and Central Michigan ahead of conference play. But the Buckeyes instead kept the high-profile matchup intact with the Sooners, and according to the Columbus Dispatch on Tuesday, they have sent a letter to Central Michigan informing the program that its services are no longer required.

Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith has made it clear recently that strength of schedule is a priority for him, particularly with its likely importance in determining playoff participants as college football shifts away from the Bowl Championship Series. He's recently added future meetings with Texas, TCU and Oregon, and the Buckeyes also have dates lined up with North Carolina, Cincinnati and Boston College as part of an effort to eventually play teams exclusively from the power conferences.

The Buckeyes aren't quite to that point yet. But Ohio State has proved again that the shift in approach for the Big Ten schedule won't change its approach to adding marquee games -- or keeping them.

Video: Roby nation's No. 2 corner

June, 18, 2013
Jun 18
4:45
PM ET
videoRod Gilmore breaks down his top-five cornerbacks heading into the 2013 season, and Ohio State junior Bradley Roby grabs the No. 2 spot.
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Urban Meyer needed only a season to restore Ohio State to the top of the Big Ten and among the elite programs in the nation.

But the Buckeyes aren't all the way back to where they want to be yet, at least not until there's some company for the last crystal football that was claimed more than a decade ago now.

Meyer's quick work a year ago in guiding Ohio State to a perfect record has put his team directly in the middle of any conversation about national title favorites this fall, and the momentum is seemingly only building after signing two banner recruiting classes to lay the groundwork for the coming years. The combination of facilities, existing talent, the coaches around him and a relatively manageable path to the BCS or the four-team playoff that is on the way all point to the Buckeyes remaining in the hunt for trophies with Meyer around.

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With Monday’s release of the ESPN 300, here’s a look at 10 of Ohio State’s top targets in the 2014 recruiting class, ranked in order of how likely they are to commit to the Buckeyes.

1. ILB Raekwon McMillan (Hinesville, Ga./Liberty County)

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The ESPN 300 was released Monday, and it is evident Ohio State has to make up some ground.

Last year, Ohio State debuted at No. 7 when the first 300 was released behind a core group of six ESPN 150 selections and five other top pledges.

This year, the Buckeyes have just one ESPN 150 senior in cornerback Damon Webb (Detroit/Cass Tech) and two other 300 selections in outside linebackers Dante Booker (Akron, Ohio/St. Vincent-St. Mary) and Kyle Berger (Cleveland/St. Ignatius), though it should be noted that Booker is just six spots out of the 150.


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