OSU Buckeyes

Inspired by Florida's "#ComePlayWRFortheJoker" campaign, our recruiting writers looked at other ways schools can sell themselves on the trail. Here's a look at recruiting pitches for the Big Ten:

Illinois Illini
What they’re selling: A chance to rebuild a program from the ground up, beginning with four-star quarterback Aaron Bailey, who signed in 2013.
What they’re missing: Just about all of the top prospects from their own state.

Indiana Hoosiers
What they’re selling: Indiana coach Kevin Wilson embraces the idea of a college spring break and is ready to head to Cancun with some of his players.
What they’re missing: Wilson looks like he might hold the group up in Mexico, however, as he still needs the assistance of a flotation device. Points that it is in the shape of a turtle, though.

Iowa Hawkeyes
What they’re selling: Iowa boasts one of the few staffs that can say they will be there all four years of a recruit’s career and has the history to back it up. Kirk Ferentz is the longest tenured coach in the Big Ten and it’s not even close.
What they’re missing: Out-of-state prospects tend to think Iowa is all cornfields, leaving the staff to battle that misconception countless times throughout the recruiting cycle.

Michigan Wolverines
What they’re selling: Michigan coach Brady Hoke looks like an outlaw patrolling the sideline on Saturdays without a headset.
What they’re missing: The player who graces the NCAA Football 2014 cover Denard Robinson. "Shoelace" was one of the Wolverines’ best recruiting tools.

Michigan State Spartans
What they’re selling: Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio is the man behind Little Giants, one of the greatest trick plays of the last few decades.
What they’re missing: A trip to a Rose Bowl under Dantonio would put Michigan State over the top when it comes to recruiting. There is already a significant difference in the caliber of player the Spartans are now getting compared to just a few seasons ago.

Minnesota Gophers
What they’re selling: The Gophers boast the biggest locker room in college football.
What they’re missing: They have not had a winning season since 2008.

Nebraska Cornhuskers
What they’re selling: Bo Pelini whipped out “The Bernie” in the Huskers’ Harlem Shake video. Harlem Shake equals instant credibility with recruits.
What they’re missing: A lack of a strong base of in-state talent makes it tough to recruit at Nebraska, and a Harlem Shake video can overcome only so much.

Northwestern Wildcats
What they’re selling: The new facilities are right near Lake Michigan, which, as assistant Bob Heffner is telling recruits, is a great spot for fishing.
What they’re missing: Not too many high schoolers in New Jersey have taken up fishing as a hobby. At least not yet.

Ohio State Buckeyes
What they’re selling: Urban Meyer is bringing SEC speed to the Big Ten.
What they’re missing: Has anyone actually clocked Meyer in the 40-yard dash? How fast is he really?

Penn State Nittany Lions
What they’re selling: Beaver Stadium fits more than 106,000 on Saturdays, making it the second largest stadium in the country. Inside is also one of the country’s most passionate fan bases, and ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit once listed Penn State’s student section as “simply the loudest, most supportive student section in college football.”
What they’re missing: A full slate of scholarships and a chance to play for a Big Ten title the next few years.

Purdue Boilermakers
What they’re selling: Few programs have the history Purdue does at quarterback, and former Boilermakers Drew Brees, Kyle Orton and Curtis Painter are all on NFL rosters. The Boilermakers just signed ESPN 300 QB Danny Etling, too.
What they’re missing: Brees, Orton and Painter.

Wisconsin Badgers
What they’re selling: The Badgers have been to three straight Rose Bowls.
What they’re missing: The coach who took them there.

DAYTON, Ohio -- With less than 5 seconds left in a tied game, perhaps the best pure scorer in the country came off a pair of screens that did exactly what they were designed to do: get him open.

Deshaun Thomas called for the ball -- screamed for it, waved his hands high above the 6-foot-7 inch frame that had made him essentially unguardable for the first 39 minutes and 55 seconds of his team's second-round NCAA tournament thriller -- but the pass never came.

Instead, a 6-foot-2 point guard -- who spent most of the second half turning the ball over and missing key free throws, who was being guarded by the opposing team's tallest player, who hadn't attempted a 3-pointer all afternoon and averages just 29.3 percent from beyond the arc this season -- looked him off.

To say Aaron Craft faced pressure in the final seconds of Ohio State's 78-75 win over Iowa State Sunday is to state the incredibly obvious, but that pressure wouldn't have come solely from Buckeyes fans, who would have surely blamed him for a heartbreaking second-round upset loss. Craft would have had one unhappy teammate, too.

(Read full post)

Brian Bennett discusses the Big Ten's decision to stop scheduling nonconference football games against FCS programs.

ESPN RecruitingNation has signing day covered. Follow ESPNU’s coverage, chat with analysts and get breaking news on our Signing Day Live page beginning at 7:30 a.m. ET through 7 p.m. ET. For more on what to expect on signing day, check out the Big Ten conference breakdown .

Bold prediction: Penn State will hang on to a top-25 class, even if just by the slimmest of margins. Bill O'Brien and his staff deserve all the credit in the world for having to originally put together a class after the scandal and then reshaping it after NCAA sanctions were levied in July.

Illinois
Biggest need: The Illini's offense was arguably the worst in the Big Ten in 2012, and Illinois needs help just about everywhere on offense, especially at the skill positions.
Biggest recruit: Four-star athlete Aaron Bailey is the future at quarterback for Illinois, and the coaches will expect him to be ready to take the reins once Nathan Scheelhaase moves on.

Indiana
Biggest need: To just put up a fence around Indianapolis and the state of Indiana. Kevin Wilson did that, assuaging defensive line concerns in the process by adding Indianapolis linemen David Kenney III and Darius Latham.
Biggest recruit: The Hoosiers are not accustomed to landing ESPN 150 prospects, but not only did they get Rashard Fant, but they got him all the way out of Georgia.

Iowa
Biggest need: After having several productive running backs over the past decade, the Hawkeyes are hurting in the backfield due to injuries and off-the-field issues.
Biggest recruit: The Hawkeyes were after Berkley Edwards for a while, but once that fell through they put the screws to former Boston College running back commit LeShun Daniels. He flipped shortly after an official visit to Iowa.

Michigan
Biggest need: Brady Hoke is transitioning to a pro-style offense, and he needed a pocket passer and a running back who makes his living in between the tackles.
Biggest recruit: ESPN 150 quarterback Shane Morris is that pro-style quarterback, but he is also the unquestioned leader of Team 134 and helped put together one of the nation’s top classes.

Michigan State
Biggest need: The Spartans will lose their top two rushers from 2012, including Big Ten rushing leader Le’Veon Bell, so running back is a priority. They are bringing in two.
Biggest recruit: ESPN 300 dual-threat quarterback Damion Terry is a capable thrower and runner, and he led his high school to a state title as a senior. Andrew Maxwell did not exactly lock down the starting quarterback job with his performance last season.

Minnesota
Biggest need: Donnell Kirkwood is a promising player at running back, but he struggled against some of the league’s better defenses and wore down late in the season. A complement is sorely needed.
Biggest recruit: Three-star running back Berkley Edwards is the younger brother of former Michigan receiver Braylon Edwards. Berkley is one of the Gophers’ highest-rated commitments, and running back is a position that lends itself to an easy transition.

Nebraska
Biggest need: Nebraska needs to return to its days of the Blackshirts, as the Huskers' defense was gashed on the ground all season. The Huskers need help along the defensive line.
Biggest recruit: Elite 11 finalist Johnny Stanton is a dual-threat quarterback, but he’s a much more polished passer than Taylor Martinez, who has taken his share of lumps since his flashy start in Lincoln.

Northwestern
Biggest need: Now that the Wildcats are a legitimate threat in the Big Ten under Pat Fitzgerald, the next step is to get better athletes to compete with Michigan and Ohio State. Fitzgerald is doing that with Ifeadi Odenigbo in 2012 and Godwin Igwebuike in 2013.
Biggest recruit: ESPN 300 dual-threat quarterback Matt Alviti had offers from some big programs including Notre Dame, but he chose nearby Northwestern. The Wildcats have an unsettled situation at quarterback, and as a local product Alviti could be called for by the fans if the quarterback play does not improve.

Ohio State
Biggest need: Linebacker was the biggest need for the Buckeyes, and after a shaky start Urban Meyer wrapped up a nice haul at the position with ESPN 150 products Trey Johnson and Mike Mitchell.
Biggest recruit: It’s a tie between Jalin Marshall and Dontre Wilson, who are separated by just a few spots in the ESPN 150. Both have game-breaking ability as a receiver or out of the backfield.

Penn State
Biggest need: Despite significantly improved play from Matt McGloin in 2012, the Nittany Lions have not been blessed with quarterbacks the past decade, with the exception of a few good seasons from Michael Robinson and Daryll Clark.
Biggest recruit: While the class did field its share of decommitments, the damage would have been irreparable if No. 1 QB Christian Hackenberg bolted. By staying on, he instilled confidence in several other recruits to stay or join him in State College.

Purdue
Biggest need: The quarterback situation at Purdue has been unsettled the past few seasons, which is not good when it comes to the most important position on the field.
Biggest recruit: An Elite 11 finalist, Danny Etling stuck with the Boilermakers through the coaching change. He will be looked at as the future of the program.

Wisconsin
Biggest need: While the Badgers always have a strong stable of backs, losing Montee Ball is going to hurt, especially in the red zone. Wisconsin addressed it with top commitment Corey Clement.
Biggest recruit: The loss of Russell Wilson left a major void at quarterback, but the Badgers landed quarterback Tanner McEvoy on Monday. McEvoy is ranked No. 44 among juco prospects nationally and the expectation is he will contend for a starting job immediately.

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The final unbeaten dream is dead.

Ohio State killed the last one left and in the process proved that it’s suddenly alive and well as a contender again.

Limping along without a win over a ranked opponent and a little more than a week removed from an embarrassing early loss in conference play, the Buckeyes finally rediscovered the defense-first formula that has proved to work from them so many times before. And while Ohio State would have taken a momentum-building win over any ranked team in the Big Ten to help validate itself again as a national threat, there were certainly no complaints about the collateral damage a 56-53 win on Sunday at Value City Arena caused No. 2 Michigan.

A perfect start for the Wolverines is gone. Trey Burke’s player of the year candidacy hit a minor snag thanks to the relentless pressure the Buckeyes slapped on him. And with Michigan poised to jump to No. 1 in the polls after watching the other unbeaten teams fall one by one this week, it’ll likely be heading the other direction while No. 15 Ohio State reversed its slide and put itself in position to climb again.

“It’s always in the back of your mind,” Buckeyes point guard Aaron Craft said. “We hadn’t played our best when we played the better teams that we played this year, and I think we kind of just took a step back and tried to find a way to get a big win.

“Any time you can do it against a team like Michigan or in this league [is big], and you just can’t lose at home. That’s something that you really harp on if you want to be there at the end of the season, to try to win a Big Ten championship.”

The Buckeyes checked off everything on that to-do list one by one, almost as soon as the ball was tipped.

There was no shortage of passion on the court or in the sellout crowd, and Ohio State turned that energy into a huge 16-0 run that put a young Michigan team on its heels just seven minutes into the game.

The Buckeyes also tirelessly defended their home court, harassing Burke with lockdown defense from Craft that forced Michigan’s leading scorer to take 14 shots to get his 15 points while turning the ball over four times.

And the message that it was going to take a return to a tougher brand of basketball after losses at Duke, last month at home against Kansas and in an ugly trip to Illinois was clearly delivered, putting the Buckeyes right back in the mix in the rugged Big Ten.

“Our coaches, everybody, we were disappointed in our effort [at Illinois],” senior Evan Ravenel said. “We just told the team, if we come out here like that, we’re going to get beat up and beat every game in this league.

“We know what kind of team we have and know how we’ve got to play, we’ve got to play physical, grind it out, play strong defensively and we’ve got to have a good mind to win games. That’s what we did today.”

The Buckeyes didn’t exactly do it for the entire 40 minutes, struggling through a lengthy dry spell as the Wolverines dialed up the defensive pressure themselves to completely erase a lead that had been as large as 21 points to tie the game late in the second half.

But just as Ohio State had tightened the screws defensively in jumping out in front of its rival, it put itself back in control by making it difficult for Burke to get open looks -- or anybody else, for that matter, as the Big Ten’s best shooting team connected on just 38 percent of its attempts from the floor to watch its perfect start go up in flames.

“[Ohio State coach Thad Matta’s] teams have always been this way, but this one really, the perimeter defense in particular, is exceptional,” Michigan coach John Beilein said. “Thad is a great defensive coach and they’ve got great defenders, and that combination is very good.

“Craft is as good as there is, as good as I’ve ever seen. He’s tremendous, he’s going to be good and you just have to applaud that and say, ‘OK, we’ve got to continue to get better, because they’re going to continue to get better.’”

The Buckeyes have some proof of improvement now.

And while the work is far from over with so much basketball left ahead of Ohio State in the Big Ten, it made sure there would be no need for a second crack at ending a rival's perfect season -- or another chance to claim its first signature victory.

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Quick thoughts following a 74-66 victory for Kansas in a top-10 showdown against Ohio State on Saturday afternoon at Value City Arena.

Overview: The venue apparently doesn’t make any difference. Kansas has the formula for beating Ohio State anywhere the programs play.

After beating OSU at home during the regular season a year ago and in a neutral building at the Final Four, the Jayhawks and coach Bill Self continued their mastery in the series between the top-10 programs by completing the trifecta with a convincing win in Columbus, the team's first true road game of the season.

The victory keeps the hot streak rolling for the No. 9 Jayhawks, which have won nine straight and are rounding into a dangerous contender with their blend of veteran talent and a precocious young scorer in Ben McLemore. The redshirt freshman continued his national coming-out party with a dynamic offensive performance, leading Kansas with 22 points and making it look effortless at times.

The No. 7 Buckeyes weren’t able to counter with nearly as much consistency from their leading scorer, as Deshaun Thomas was flustered by extra defensive attention from Kansas and made only four shots from the field despite leading the team with 16 points.

While their defense makes them a tough out and a threat in the Big Ten, the Bucks have come up short against both ranked opponents they’ve faced this season after dropping a close decision at Duke last month.

Turning point: After it closed the deficit to a one-possession game and got the vocal home crowd back on its feet, Ohio State’s momentum and the noise disappeared almost right away. Turning to one of its veterans instead of a high-scoring freshman, Kansas delivered a dagger with a 3-pointer from the top of the key by Travis Releford with just more than 8 minutes to play in the second half.

The Jayhawks would go on an 8-0 run shortly after that deep bomb, and Ohio State didn’t have the firepower to rally down the stretch.

Key player: The star was already on the rise, but McLemore confirmed he belongs in the conversation among the best scorers in the country by answering the biggest challenge of his young career.

McLemore was a threat from all over the court, knocking down open 3-pointers on the outside and putting back offensive rebounds on the inside to keep Kansas afloat against Ohio State’s stingy defense. It hardly seemed to matter whom the Buckeyes used to try to slow him down. McLemore used his athleticism to get in productive spots and convert.

Key stat: Just like they were late against Kansas in the Final Four and in their last big test against Duke, the Buckeyes were undone by spotty shooting on the perimeter in the second half, which spoiled an otherwise solid defensive outing. After hitting just less than 50 percent of its attempts in a competitive first half, OSU made just one of its first 13 attempts from 3-point range after coming back out of the locker room as the Jayhawks pulled away. Ohio State wound up shooting 26 percent from beyond the arc and couldn’t keep pace down the stretch.

Miscellaneous: Coach Thad Matta dropped to 76-3 in his career at Ohio State against nonconference opponents at home. ... The Buckeyes had a 39-game winning streak at home against non-Big Ten teams snapped. The last team to knock off the Bucks on their home floor was West Virginia on Dec. 27, 2008. ... Kansas leads the all-time series with Ohio State 8-3.

Next up: The Buckeyes wrap up play outside the conference with one final tuneup against Chicago State next weekend before opening up Big Ten action with a home date against Nebraska on Jan. 2. The Jayhawks return home for nonconference meetings with American and Temple over the next two weeks before starting league play against Iowa State on Jan. 9.

Ohio State quarterback Braxton Miller talks about the season, a potential Heisman Trophy invite to New York and what's next for the Buckeyes.

Brian Bennett talks with Ohio State linebacker Ryan Shazier following the Buckeyes' 26-21 victory over Michigan on Saturday.