Buckeye Talk: Ohio State Podcast By Cleveland.com

Ohio State's 49-28 victory over Clemson in the Sugar Bowl pushed the Big Ten's bowl record to 3-1. That one loss came courtesy of the one team -- Indiana -- that felt it had been shoved into a lower bowl slot than it deserved. Nathan Baird, Doug Lesmerises and Stephen means discuss the Hoosiers' late-season whining and what the Big Ten's bowl performance says about 2021. Also, the Buckeye Talk crew discusses Cincinnati's bowl loss to Georgia and the Ohio State's early position as an 8-point underdog to Alabama in the national championship game. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this Buckeye Talk episode from cleveland.com, Doug Lesmerises, Nathan Baird and Stephen Means take 10 rapid fire questions from texters who were celebrating in the aftermath of Ohio State's Sugar Bowl win over Clemson. Plus, there were a couple drunk texts and some swear words aimed at Doug and Nathan for picking Clemson to win. Beyond that, texters asked about what a later Heisman date may have meant for Justin Fields; if Fields is the best OSU QB ever; how Ryan Day now ranks among head coaches in college football; if Ohio State has passed Clemson in the college football hierarchy; whether the Buckeyes will have any emotional energy left for Alabama; and if the Buckeyes can beat the Tide. Plus, some travel stories getting home from New Orleans and talk about Tom Herman getting fired at Texas and Jim Harbaugh nearing an extension at Michigan. Thanks for listening to Buckeye Talk. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome to this Buckeye Talk episode from cleveland.com. It's very late, and Doug Lesmerises, Nathan Baird and Stephen Means are very tired. But Ohio State played an excellent game to beat Clemson 49-28 and set up a national title matchup against Alabama, and you care about all of that and know what the deal with this podcast is, so listen. Thanks as always. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this Thursday Buckeye Talk Podcast from cleveland.com, Doug Lesmerises, Nathan Baird and Stephen Means dive into a live Zoom with text subscribers to preview Ohio State vs. Clemson in Friday's Sugar Bowl and to make their game picks for the Buckeyes vs. the Tigers. Tyler Shoemaker, the officially unofficial bookmaker of Buckeyes Talk, joins to talk about the 7.5-point line that has the Buckeyes as underdogs. Doug, Nathan and Stephen also make their picks for Alabama-Notre Dame and Cincinnati-Georgia. And everyone discusses which players, other than Trevor Lawrence and Justin Fields, could be the key to the game, with the nominations including Haskell Garrett, Marcus Williamson, Josh Proctor, Pete Werner and Trey Sermon. The game is almost here. The next Buckeye Talk Pod will be a postgame episode after Friday night's game. Thanks for listening to Buckeye Talk all season. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this Wednesday Buckeye Talk podcast episode from cleveland.com, Doug Lesmerises, Nathan Baird and Stephen Means run through what they learned from Tuesday's Sugar Bowl interviews with Ohio State's defense and Clemson's offense. What does Clemson think of Pete Werner? Will the Clemson receivers have a better game against the Buckeyes this time? Is this a big test for first-year OSU defensive coordinator Kerry Coombs? And is Clemson the No. 1 recruiting rival for Ohio State? Plus, the guys run through ways in which the competitive balance in college football might be fixed, and whether they agree or disagree with some ideas on how to do it. The picks and preview pod is coming Thursday. Thanks for listening to Buckeye Talk. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ohio State and Clemson meet Friday in the Sugar Bowl. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this Tuesday Buckeye Talk episode from cleveland.com, Doug Lesmerises, Nathan Baird and Stephen Means run through what they learned after interviews Monday with Ohio State offensive players and Clemson defensive players as both teams continue to prepare for Friday's Sugar Bowl. Are the Buckeyes really ready to play their best game of the year against Clemson, and have they been playing down to competition? Did Dabo Swinney's ballot explanation about ranking Ohio State 11th actually make sense? How much did Garrett Wilson miss having Brian Hartline on the sideline at the Big Ten Championship and what will it mean that Hartline is back? How is Justin Fields' thumb and what does he think of how he has played lately? And do Ohio State and Clemson players view each other as rivals or not? All that and more on the latest Buckeye Talk. Thanks for listening. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Back in the summer and early fall, we discussed whether any college football national championship should come with an asterisk due to the coronavirus pandemic. As we enter the final week of preparations for the College Football Playoff semifinals, we are asking the opposite question. If Ohio State falls short of a national championship, should the COVID-19 experience put an asterisk on an otherwise great season? Nathan Baird and Doug Lesmerises also delved into a text subscriber poll on what aspects of the Clemson offense concern OSU fans the most. And Doug summons up one final rant on Group of Five ultra-sympathizers and those who think they belong in the four-team playoff structure. Thanks as always for listening to Buckeye Talk. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mark It Down Monday was a new addition to the daily Buckeye Talk rotation in 2020. We made our predictions on the outcome of the season, stat leaders, national awards, the Big Ten's coronavirus decisions -- basically every aspect of what could happen during the fall. We were wrong more often than we were correct, as you'll hear as we recap all of those decisions. Some were more wrong than others. For instance, Baron Browning fell a bit short of that 10-sack prediction. Justin Fields will not win the Heisman Trophy. On other topics, though, we had a good grasp on how the Buckeyes would perform. We're taking a small break from the pod, but come back bright and early for Monday Madness as we kick off a week of previewing the Buckeyes' playoff semifinal against Clemson at the Sugar Bowl. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this Wednesday episode from cleveland.com, Doug Lesmerises, Stephen Means and Nathan Baird break the pod into three parts. First up, a discussion on the news of freshman slot receiver Mookie Cooper entering the the transfer portal. What does it mean for the OSU receiver room? Plus, why is Michigan firing assistant coaches and not the head coach? Then, Doug, Nathan and Stephen offer their opinions of Clemson, and where they think the Tigers could give the Buckeyes the most trouble. Finally, Matt Connolly, the Clemson beat writer for www.thestate.com, joins Doug to break down Clemson position group by position group and to analyze where the Tigers are better and worse compared to the team that beat Ohio State in the Fiesta Bowl last year. Thanks for listening to Buckeye Talk from cleveland.com. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Way back on Aug. 3, the Buckeye Talk crew used an edition of Mark It Down Monday to predict that Ohio State's Justin Fields would win the 2020 Heisman Trophy. Unanimously. Well, like a lot of things in 2020, that did not go according to plan. Doug Lesmerises, Nathan Baird and Stephen Means all gave their top three choices for the balloting, which ended Monday, and none of them have the Buckeyes' star in their top three. So who should win? Your hosts debate the contenders and how much career achievements and accolades should factor into the single-season award. Also, please take our survey at https://www.cleveland.com/buckeyetalksurvey/ to help us make the podcast an even better listening experience. Thanks as always for listening to Buckeye Talk. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ohio State to face Clemson in a College Football Playoff semifinal. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nathan Baird and Doug Lesmerises open the week with another Monday Madness. They open with the hot topic of the day -- Clemson coach Dabo Swinney voting Ohio State No. 1 in his USA Today coaches poll. Unlike most fake "bulletin board" material, could this actually backfire on Tigers' coach? In addition to the usual Monday Madness categories we also talk about the angst many people have in the wake of the final College Football Playoff rankings. Why are people upset that the same four teams keep getting picked? What system or ranking method would possibly produce a better result? Thanks as always for listening to Buckeye Talk. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Doug Lesmerises, Nathan Baird and Stephen Means break it down as the No. 3 Ohio State Buckeyes were matched in a College Football Playoff semifinal against No. 2 Clemson in New Orleans. Here's the reaction to the revenge rematch, the latest news about whether Chris Olave will be able to play, and questions about how much the Buckeyes should fear the Tigers. Plus, undefeated Cincinnati didn't get much of a look from the playoff selection committee. Was that unfair to the Bearcats or just the way it is? There's reactions from the guys and from text subscribers. Thanks for listening to Buckeye Talk from cleveland.com. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this postgame Buckeye Talk from cleveland.com, Doug Lesmerises, Nathan Baird and Stephen Means break down Ohio State's 22-10 win over Northwestern in the Big Ten Championship Game. There's the good (Trey Sermon's record-setting rushing game), the bad (the OSU passing game) and the questionable (Ryan Day waiting too long to get to the run game.) But the Buckeyes are assured a spot in the College Football Playoff. The guys will be back with another pod Sunday afternoon after the playoff teams are announced, so this postgame pod isn't as long as usual. But thanks for listening to Buckeye Talk. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this Friday picks and preview pod, Doug Lesmerises, Nathan Baird and Stephen Means are joined by the unofficially official bookmaker of Buckeye Talk, Tyler Shoemaker, to talk about what the betting lines would be if the Buckeyes played playoff contenders like Alabama, Clemson, Notre Dame, Cincinnati and Texas A&M. Then, with 40 text subscribers joining them in the zoom room, the guys update what they know about any potential COVID situation with Ohio State and how it might affect the team. Then there's a discussion on how the playoff committee is viewing the Buckeyes, and then finally, their picks for the Ohio State-Northwestern Big Ten Championship Game on Saturday, as well as the ACC Championship between Clemson and Notre Dame and the SEC Championship between Alabama and Florida. Thanks to the text subscribers who joined live, and thanks to everyone who listens to Buckeye Talk from cleveland.com. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone

On this big Thursday Buckeye Talk, there's about one hour and 45 minutes of recruiting talk and 25 minutes of football talk at the end. Just so you know. Wednesday was National Signing Day, so Stephen Means, Doug Lesmerises and Nathan Baird are here to break down everything about the Buckeyes' class of 21 players, which was ranked No. 2 in the nation. From Jack Sawyer to Denzel Burke, from Mike Hall to Kyle McCord, Stephen, Doug and Nathan answer a load of texter questions on the class after talking to Ryan Day and Mark Pantoni about what they described as a drama-free class. Then at the end, there was time for a little more talk about Saturday's Big Ten Championship between Ohio State and Northwestern. Thanks for listening to Buckeye Talk from cleveland.com. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this Wednesday Buckeye Talk episode, the focus is the Big Ten Championship game between No. 4 Ohio State and No. 14 Northwestern on Saturday. To break down that game, Doug Lesmerises welcomes two guests. The first is Dan Olinger, a Northwestern football reporter for InsideNU.com who also happens to be a Northwestern student, an Ohio State fan and a listener of Buckeye Talk. Dan and Doug go over all the matchups on both sides of the ball, from Northwestern quarterback Peyton Ramsey to the Wildcats' back seven on defense that should be the best the Buckeyes have faced this season. Then Doug is joined by longtime Big Ten football writer Teddy Greenstein, who recently took a job with PointsBet.com after covering Big Ten football for well over two decades. Teddy talks about his career change, the challenges and successes of betting Big Ten football this season, how he thinks Saturday's game will go and the long-term future for Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald. Thanks for listening to Buckeye Talk from clevela

The Buckeyes prepare for the Big Ten Championship Game against Northwestern. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Big Ten will announce its all-conference teams and players of the year beginning Tuesday through Thursday. Nathan Baird and Doug Lesmerises talk about which Ohio State players will be first-team selections and which deserving players might get overlooked. Nathan also discloses some of the tougher choices on his ballot. First up, though, on this rare Tuesday episode of Buckeye Talk -- we take you behind the scenes of one of the long-standing traditions on cleveland.com's Ohio State beat. Every year we prepare for the open locker room at the Big Ten championship game by holding a draft of the players we will interview. These are never the obvious stars of the team, who we have regular access to throughout the year. These are the players who either are not playing much and we want to know why, or are true freshmen poised for bigger roles in the following season. There will be no open locker room after this year's game due to COVID-19, but we held the draft anyway to give you a peek inside how we approach the