Buckeye Talk: Ohio State Podcast By Cleveland.com

The Buckeyes move to No. 3 in the AP Poll after a season-opening win over Nebraska 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 have decided to call this Monday episode looking at the college football scene and examining what's next for Ohio State "Monday Madness." Nathan writes a column at cleveland.com each Monday of the same name and you should be reading that, too. But here, your ears can take in this Buckeye Talk episode offering an early preview of the Ohio State-Penn State matchup on Saturday night. How should OSU fans view the Nittany Lions, who are coming off an upset loss at Indiana? Plus, how good is Wisconsin and what will it mean if the Badgers lose new QB Graham Mertz to a positive COVID test for a few weeks? Might Michigan have a talent surge this season, including at quarterback? And what does the early College Football Playoff picture look like? All that and more from Nathan and Doug on this Monday Madness 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

Ohio State beat Nebraska 52-17 on Saturday, and Doug Lesmerises, Nathan Baird and Stephen Means are here to break it down. Nathan and Stephen covered the game in Ohio Stadium, while Doug watched at home, and the three of them got together after the postgame interviews to discuss the game for an hour. The passing offense looked great, the running game looked questionable and the young defense started slow. Also, a backdoor cover allowed Doug to cover the 29 points he had given to Nathan for this one, as Ohio State won by 35. Thanks for listening to Buckeye Talk from cleveland.com after Ohio State's first game of the 2020 season. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We made it, you guys. Ohio State finally kicks off the 2020 season on Saturday when Nebraska visits Ohio Stadium. We gathered virtually with our Buckeye Talk subscribers on Thursday night to preview the game and make our picks for this and other games this weekend. We took a closer look at many of the matchups in Saturday's game. Will Adrian Martinez, Wan'Dale Robinson and an offensive line that returns intact cause problems for the Ohio State defense? If so, is that a good thing because it will help the Buckeyes answer some lingering questions on that side of the ball? How long should Justin Fields play if this is a lopsided game. We'll be back Saturday with a postgame pod shortly after the game. 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

Instead of a big Wednesday podcast, it's a big Thursday podcast on this game week as the Ohio State Buckeyes prepare to open their football season on Saturday. After previewing this season for almost 10 months, Buckeye Talk is taking this one opportunity to say --- we might be wrong. On this episode, Doug Lesmerises, Nathan Baird, Stephen Means and the Ohio State text subscribers secretly admit on a popular public podcast all the ways they might be reading these Buckeyes incorrectly. Most people are anticipating a big season from the Buckeyes, so much of the pod consists of the things in the back of people's minds that could go wrong -- from the defense to the running game to the Big Ten's handling of COVID-19. But there are also some texters who are legitimately worried about some things this season, and they admit where they maybe should be more optimistic. As Nathan said, it's a last chance for everyone to cover their butts with their thoughts on the Buckeyes, so this was a fun one with lots of great texte

On this game week Wednesday Buckeye Talk from cleveland.com, Doug Lesmerises, Nathan Baird and Stephen Means continue to learn more about Ohio State's team heading into the season. A focus for this episode is the offensive line, especially starting right tackle Nicholas Petit-Frere. Plus, what's the long-term plan for intriguing OL prospect Dawand Jones? There's more talk on Marcus Hooker, the recruitment of Tristan Leigh and other pressing issues for the Buckeyes. 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

The Buckeyes are ready to open against Nebraska on Oct. 24. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

At long last, football season has arrived in the Big Ten Conference. Ohio State opens its pursuit of a fourth consecutive conference championship against Nebraska at Ohio Stadium on Saturday. Doug Lesmerises and Nathan Baird first take a spin around the college football landscape. How difficult is it to fill out an Associated Press ballot right now? Which teams and players are we buying stock in or dumping our shares of through the first six weeks? What are the storylines we are most intrigued by in the OSU-Nebraska opener? The Buckeyes opened as 23.5-point favorites over the Cornhuskers. Does that line make sense, and should OSU fans expect some higher-scoring games on both sides of the ball? What level of concern should Buckeye fans have for Saturday game -- either that an upset could come or OSU will not live up to expectations? Finally, Doug and Nathan pick their four College Football Playoff teams after other conferences have played as many as five games. NOTE: There will be no Tuesday podcast during the

We wrap up our preseason look at the important games in Ohio State football with the night that more than any other set the stage for how we measure the current Buckeyes program. The Sugar Bowl after the 2014 season, in which Urban Meyer led 4 seed Ohio State against Nick Saban's top-seeded Alabama in the College Football Playoff semifinals. It was the culmination of Ezekiel Elliott's brilliant rumble through the postseason. More than that, it was the culmination of what Meyer had been building since he arrived at Ohio State. The Buckeyes, with third-string quarterback Cardale Jones, were nine-point underdogs and fell into a 21-6 deficit early, setting the stage for history. From Evan Spencer's overlooked contributions to Michael Thomas' hints at what would come to the late decisions that almost blew up in Ohio State's face, we delve into the details of one of the most unforgettable nights in Buckeye history. Our ReTalkables will go on hiatus for a while as we focus on the 202 games yet to be played. But we'l

Ohio State is a week away from the start of its season. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ohio State football will release a depth chart the day before the Oct. 24 season opener against Nebraska. But what will the actual relationship be between starters and backups when the Buckeyes take the field? Your Buckeye Talk crew got to the bottom of that question. The conversation began with Wednesday's revelations about the safety competition from assistant coach Matt Barnes, then worked its way to the front of the defense. With defensive tackle depth questionable at best, who will rotate through those spots against the Cornhuskers? Also, what will OSU actually do with this abundance of linebacker talent? On offense, we know the first-string offensive line, we know the running back spot will be a timeshare, we know the tight end three-deep and we know the starting quarterback. How much will freshmen factor into the Buckeyes' six-man receiver rotation? Also, we delve into the breaking news regarding COVID-19 and the SEC and what Big Ten fans need to keep in mind as the season draws near. Thanks as always

On this big Wednesday Buckeye Talk podcast from cleveland.com, Doug Lesmerises, Nathan Baird and Stephen Means describe exactly what would need to happen for Ohio State to have the best football season in school history. The schedule, the opponents, the talent and the context are all there to make it possible. The distinction between best team and best season is important, but playing in the COVID-19 era has a chance to make 2020 as memorable as any OSU season. OSU text subscribers joined the conversation in a live Zoom call on this pod, and they also asked questions about Kerry Coombs, Chris Gamble, Tom Herman and other issues around Ohio State football. If you'd like to join a live zoom podcast, sign up for a free text trial by sending a message to 614-350-3315. 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 Tuesday Buckeye Talk pod from cleveland.com, Doug Lesmerises, Stephen Means, Nathan Baird and the Ohio State text subscribers take a crack at some over/unders and either/ors for this football season. How many touchdown passes will Justin Fields throw -- over or under 39? How many points per game will the Buckeyes allow (over or under 20) and score (over or under 50)? Will the leading rusher be either Trey Sermon or Master Teague? Leading receiver be either Chris Olave or Garrett Wilson? Leader in sacks be either Zach Harrison or Tyreke Smith? And will the Buckeyes score 60 on Rutgers? It's another round of predictions as the season draws closer. Thanks for joining the prognosticating fun on Buckeye Talk. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With the season's start finally closing in, Buckeye Talk delved into Mark It Down Monday for the final time in 2020. Continuing a tradition you may already know from our weekly video series, we all mark down our Outrageous Predictions for the season ahead. So did our Buckeye Talk text subscribers. They chimed in with predictions on how COVID-19 will affect the season, what numbers Justin Fields will put up, who will lead the defense and exactly how many points Ohio State will score in The Game. Doug Lesmerises, Nathan Baird and Stephen Means also made their own Outrageous Predictions covering a high-scoring offense, Justin Fields' touchdown ceiling and how many of them will go to a specific tight end. Outrageous Predictions will continue throughout the season, but Mondays will soon become about recapping the weekend in college football and previewing the week ahead. Thanks as always for listening to Buckeye Talk. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Vis

With the preseason winding down, we had to bring The Game into our discussion of the important games in Ohio State football history. So we took our little time machine back to 1968, when the Buckeyes dominated Michigan with the Super Sophs en route to the national championship. This game lives on as Woody Hayes' finest moment OSU's head coach. It also came during a time of upheaval in society. One year later, Bo Schembechler took over the Wolverines, setting off the Ten Year War in the rivalry. On this day, however, we focused on Rex Kern and a Buckeyes running game equal parts beautiful and punishing. We also paid homage to Jack Tatum and a defense that dominated much of this game and set a tone for the triumph to come in the Rose Bowl against O.J. Simpson and USC. Watch the youtube cut-up version of this Ohio State classic, then join us for this discussion. 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 mega

The Buckeyes add an offensive line recruit 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 episode from cleveland.com, the defensive line is the focus. But there's also a discussion about running backs at the end. What Nathan Baird and Stephen Means are doing is explaining the most important things they've learned from recent interviews with Ohio State assistant coaches and players, and both the running backs and defensive linemen recently spoke with reporters. With Doug Lesmerises mostly asking questions, Nathan and Stephen let you know what to expect from Zach Harrison, Tyreke Smith, Tommy Togiai, Tyler Friday, Antwuan Jackson, Trey Sermon, Master Teague and other Buckeyes you care about before the start of the season. Thanks for making Buckeye Talk part of your day. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's a rapid fire Wednesday for our biggest Buckeye Talk of the week, as Nathan Baird, Doug Lesmerises and Stephen Means take questions from text subscribers. Among the topics: • What should be expected from DBs Tyreke Johnson and Josh Proctor this season? • Is this the year that Ohio State returns a punt for a touchdown? • How large will the betting lines be for OSU games? • How far would you drive for a specific fast food meal? • Could Ohio State win a title if Justin Fields got hurt? • How does a conference develop an identity? • What's our favorite holiday story? • How much upside does new Michigan QB Joe Milton have? • Is Tom Herman on the hot seat at Texas? • Which college coaches would survive on The Walking Dead? • And then there's the last question, which is too dangerous to type out here. 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 Tuesday Buckeye Talk from cleveland.com, Nathan Baird, Stephen Means and Doug Lesmerises talk about the position changes for Pete Werner and Baron Browning and how everything will fit together in the Ohio State linebacker room this season. But first, the guys discuss Ohio State's latest 2021 recruiting commitment at tackle and what happened with the higher-rated tackle recruits they didn't get. 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

As we close in on the start of the Big Ten season -- finally -- we need to once and for all mark down our College Football Playoff championship scenarios. We tried this back in mid-August, based on what we knew about schedules, opt-outs and the sport's landscape at the time. Six weeks later, Doug, Nathan and Stephen followed through with a Mark It Down Monday on their actual playoff and national championship predictions. To set the stage, the guys discussed the Buckeyes. Does Ohio State's eight-game Big Ten-only schedule make it easier to reach the playoff, and does it also make it more difficult to claim the No. 1 seed? Has the conversation around Clemson's schedule similarly changed? How impressed are we with Alabama so far, and can the Big 12 or Pac-12 summon any sort of a challenge? Then, we revisit our earlier predictions. Have our top four teams changed, and how do we expect the four seeds to shake out? Is Ohio State still our unanimous pick to win its first national championship since 2014? Thanks as a