Hello once again Buckeye football fans. I have a plethora of bits to share with you today — unfortunately, not all of them good — but nevertheless, the bits are the bits — and away we go.— The biggest bit of news today involves the arrest of Ohio State senior TE, Jake Stoneburner, for obstructing official business, whatever the heck that means exactly. Details are still sketchy, but it appears Stoneburner may have been intoxicated and was arrested after briefly fleeing from police. It was later revealed that junior O-lineman Jack Mewhort and a third man were also arrested with Stoneburner. Most likely, Stoneburner and Mewhort, both of whom are facing misdemeanor charges, will each probably get slaps on the wrist barring any further-damning revelations, but surely this will not sit well with head coach Urban Meyer.
— Ohio State had hoped to land 5-star LB recruit Jaylon Smith, brother of Ohio State RB Roderick Smith, but earlier today, Smith somewhat surprisingly opted against joining his brother in Columbus, and instead gave his verbal commitment to Notre Dame. While Smith would have made a nice addition to the 2013 class, Ohio State, as always, has plenty of talent and depth at linebacker, and that may have been a factor in Smith's decision.
— Ohio State recently nixed a proposed 2020-2021 home-and-home series with the Georgia Bulldogs, purportedly because of future scheduling conflicts regarding their Pac-12/B1G scheduling deal that is in the works. Also, it can't be ignored that schools in the-now 12-team B1G may soon be playing nine conference games instead of just eight.
— ESPN B1G blogger Adam Rittenberg discussed some keys to the Buckeyes' 2012 season and what to expect from Ohio State this fall.
— 2013 Buckeye verbal and dual-sport star, Jalin Marshall became the 2012 DI Ohio high school state champion in the long jump Saturday. Marshall plays QB for Middletown HS, but early speculation points to him playing WR when he arrives in Columbus next year. With his speed and jumping ability, it certainly would make sense.
As Lee Hudnell of The Buckeye Times recently reported, Athlon Sports has released its' 2012 preseason rankings, and they have Ohio State ranked at No. 6, while college football guru Phil Steele has Ohio State ranked at No. 11. Obviously, the combination of Ohio State's talent and Urban Meyer's coaching prowess has led to some lofty expectations. For what it's worth, I think both are right — kind of. Phil Steele has the preseason ranking dead-on, and Athlon's ranking is closer to where the Buckeyes could find themselves in the final rankings at seasons end.
— And finally, if you're into recruiting and interested in keeping tabs on who the Buckeyes are targeting in 2013, look no further. And since you asked (or not, but just go with it), you can also glimpse even further into the future and track the recruits Ohio State is targeting for 2014 as well, thanks to the great work by our good friends over at ScarletBuckeye.
See you next time, around the Block — HD
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Details are sketchy at this point, but it appears Buckeye linebacker Tyler Moeller could miss part or even all of the 2009 season.
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