Have you ever had a gut feeling about something? To the point where you can literally ‘see’ the future unfolding right in front of you? Yeah, I’m there.
No, I’m not going to bore you with my master plan to get a date with Erin Andrews. I’m talking the absolute train wreck that is Ohio State Buckeye football.
First things first, let’s be honest. You cannot convince me that Tressel resigned of his own accord. That was a forced resignation. Truth be told, Tressel should have been fired, but the payout of his contract would have been way too expensive, so they went with the forced resignation.
That resignation announcement was Ohio State President E. Gordon Gee pleading to the NCAA Committee like a little brother does to his bully of a big brother.
Please, please don’t hurt me! Not the face! Not the face!
Nice try, President Gee, but no dice.
So, now we can talk actual football. With interim head coach Luke Fickell running the show for the entire season instead of just the first five games, look for the Buckeyes to disappoint.
The Buckeyes will open with two home wins against Akron and Toledo, since there are high schools that could beat those two teams. Then a big game at the Miami Hurricanes. Loss. Under normal circumstances, I would give the Buckeyes the edge on a rebuilding Hurricane squad. But Ohio State without Terrelle Pryor and company is not strong enough to win in Miami.
The Buckeyes will pull it out in Week 4 against Colorado at home. That very well could be the highlight of the year. Michigan State comes to Columbus in Week 5, and probably still reeling from that Capital One Bowl whooping, puts one on the weak Buckeyes.
Their suspended players return after that. The following four games are, at Nebraska, at Illinois, versus Wisconsin and versus Indiana. I’m expecting two wins, but the surge of getting the suspended players back could earn them a third.
They wrap up the year by beating Purdue on the road, coming back to Columbus and getting locked in a tight game by Penn State and their dinosaur of a coach; this game is too close to call. Then (bold prediction) suffering a heart-breaking loss to Michigan in the Big House.
While the Buckeyes are scratching and clawing to reach the record I predicted for them of as bad as 6-6 or as good as 8-4, they fight another battle: in the NCAA courtroom.
This is where the real blow is dealt. Sure, losing to Michigan will hurt worse than being forced to listen to a Les Miles press conference. But the NCAA has no choice here. The hammer shall be dropped on Ohio State.
After imposing such severe penalties against USC, if they want to remain a legitimate overseer of collegiate sports, they have to be consistent and put serious sanctions on THE Ohio State University (what a joke).
My next bold prediction of the day? His successor? Urban Meyer.
Now, as rebuttal, you could say that Meyer is an Ohio guy at heart, and he’s just returning home. That is true.
But would a Cincinnati alumnus willingly surround himself with the fan base of the in-state rival if not for the sake of one of college football’s biggest coaching jobs and a fat paycheck?
Future, revealed. Is it too late to say Spoiler Alert?
