-  Steve Stanard, who served one season as Ohio’s Defensive Line coach, will be named the new defensive coordinator at Tulane, TroopSports.com has learned.

-  A former coordinator at Colorado State for five seasons and New Mexico State for three seasons, Stanard spent 11 months as the D-Line coach with the Bobcats.  When reached by phone Saturday, Stanard declined to comment.

-  More to come.

* December 24th

-  Just a quick note on former Ohio forward Maurice Pearson (6-9, 220).  Jeff Goodman of FoxSports.com reports Pearson is transferring to Georgetown College in Kentucky.  The Tigers (10-1) are currently ranked the 9th best NAIA team in the nation.
 

* December 21st

-  A four hour flight delay from Columbus to Chicago (and then hopefully St. Louis) allows me to catch up on some Bobcat news and notes.

-  I’m hearing the chances Armon Bassett commits to John Groce and Ohio are looking “very good” right now.

-  “Haven’t decided anything yet but Coach Groce is like family,” Bassett told me earlier today without getting in to specifics.  Expect a decision to come within the next 10 days, he added.

-  “The Sears SportsFan” is off for the rest of 2008.  Brian and I will be back Monday, Jan. 5.

-  I quickly asked Nelsonville-York H.S. football coach and A.D. Dave Boston about junior tailback Derrick Arnold on Friday night.  Boston said it is still early, but a few schools have become interested in Arnold, including a ring from Cincinnati.  Arnold is a good athlete, but probably too small to stay at running back.

-  Listening to the Dan Patrick show podcast, he brought up an interesting question surrounding college football.  Does the sport need a “Rooney Rule” just like the NFL, requiring programs to interview minority head coaching candidates?

-  Ohio could hit a home run with its 2009 quarterback recruiting class.  After getting Iowa State transfer Phillip Bates, Willoughby South H.S.’s Patrick Nicely, the state’s top high school gunslinger, will visit Ohio the first weekend in January.  Nicely de-committed from Bowling Green following the firing of head coach Gregg Brandon who is now the new offensive coordinator at Virginia.

-  More to come.

* December 18th

Bates Officially a Bobcat

Ohio has received a commitment from former Iowa State quarterback Phillip Bates.  After a standout prep career at North High School in Nebraska, Bates (6-2, 190) saw action as a wide receiver as a true freshman for the Cyclones.  He left the team mid-season of his sophomore year after being delegated to the backup quarterback role.  He will sit out the 2009 season per NCAA transfer guidelines and will begin taking classes Jan. 5.

“It seems like a pretty good fit overall,” Bates told TroopSports.com Thursday afternoon. “I just like coach Solich and everything he is doing there. I thought I could fit into his offense and help out a lot.  I thought it was a really nice campus actually.”

Bates’ decision came down to Central Michigan and Kent State, but he says a visit to Ohio helped sway his mind.  He noted an open quarterback position following the 2009 season made his choice easy.

Labeled a quitter by Cyclones fans after bailing on ISU this past season, Bates tried to clarify what went wrong in Ames, IA.

 “The thing that happened at that point was a business decision. I thought I had to make a decision early so I could get my name out there to other schools. From my freshman year to that point, I felt like it was time for me to leave and go somewhere else.”

Does Bates feel he handled the situation with the Cyclones well?

“Yeah.  All the guys, we are all good friends. We still hang out and everything, so I think I left on good terms.”

A Rivals.com three-star recruit out of high school, Bates was ranked as the 16th best dual-threat QB in the nation and reportedly runs a 4.48 40-yard dash.  He was offered and heavily recruited by Ohio while in high school but chose ISU over Kansas, Kansas State and Nebraska among others.

-  Tonight on “The Jim Schaus Show on The Sears Sports Fan” the Ohio A.D. and I will talk with Associate A.D. for Compliance and Student Services Tricia Turley and former Ohio hoops coach Danny Nee will join us.  Shoot your comments and questions to ctroop@TroopSports.com.

-  Want to know a big difference between John Groce and Tim O’Shea?  On one hand, Groce refuses to play Thad Matta and Ohio State, and did not enjoy facing off against his friend in Sean Miller at Xavier.  Tim O’Shea, meanwhile, was chatting it up with Al Skinner before a recent contest against Boston College.  Click Here to read the article in the Providence Journal.

-  Bryant, by the way, played some really good basketball against B.C., and O’Shea appears to be doing a solid job jump starting that program.  As I’ve said before, his new gig is a win-win opportunity for him with low expectations.

-  Speaking of O’Shea, his Bulldogs square off against Rutgers this Saturday.  Nee is the Director of Player Development for the Scarlet Knights.

-  I’m still up in the air about Ohio recruiting former Indiana Hoosier Armon Bassett.  I get the impression the ‘Cats see Bassett as more of a combo guard, not a point guard.  While I understand the Bobcats probably feel they need to increase the talent level at the shooting guard position—especially given the fact that freshman Stacey Waters hasn’t surfaced as a reliable player thus far—I just hope Groce and company don’t begin to start to stoop to the recruiting level of a Kent State.

-  As for the chances fans will see Bassett in Green and White in 2009, I’d say it is way too early to tell.  Let’s just hope Groce and his staff do their homework on Bassett and any other transfer that might make his way to Athens.

-  More to come.

* December 17th

-  As first reported by Jeff Goodman on FoxSports.com, it appears the Bobcats have interest in former Indiana point guard Armon Bassett.  The 6-1 junior transferred from IU to UAB this season, but has now left Alabama where he was sitting out in 08-09 per NCAA transfer guidelines.

-  In 2005, Bassett committed to Missouri under then-head coach Quin Snyder in August.  He backed out two months later, citing a desire to be closer to home in Indiana.  He then signed with the Hoosiers in 2006 after a standout prep career at South Vigo High School in Terre Haute, IN., and one year at Hargrave Military Academy (VA). 

-  In Bloomington, he averaged 9.4 ppg and 3.0 apg his freshman campaign.  Last season under Kelvin Sampson and then interim head coach Dan Dakich his numbers increased to 11.4 ppg and 3.1 apg.  He led the Big 10 in three-point field goal percentage and was a third-team All-Big Ten selection.

-  His departure at Indiana is cloudy. He was suspended three games during his sophomore season for a violation of team rules.  Bassett was later dismissed Mar. 31 by Dakich following a missed appointment then a failure to show up to run laps as a punishment.  All of this was just days before Tom Crean was hired to take over the program.  When hired, Crean chose to not retain Bassett.

-  What’s the connection to Ohio head coach John Groce and Bassett?  Travis Steele was Bassett’s Indiana Elite AAU coach in high school and a former video coordinator at IU.  He and Groce are stepbrothers.  Steele, once a student manager at Ohio State, is currently the Director of Basketball Operations at Xavier.

-  Much more to come.

* December 12th

-  Former Ohio Bobcats football player Josh Abrams, who just signed with the Packers and joined their practice squad, will be a guest on “The Sears Sports Fan” Friday night.

-  That was Frank Solich, Jim Schaus and President Roderick McDavis and his wife sitting behind Ohio’s bench Wednesday night at Xavier.

-  Swimming and diving coach Greg Werner and former Ohio hoops great Walter Luckett were great interviews during “The Jim Schaus Show on The Sears Sports Fan” last night.  Definitely worth a listen.

-  I’m told ‘Cats assistant Chris Holtmann went to check out Cincinnati State Community College ’09 forward prospect Marquis Mathis on Wednesday before the game against Xavier.

-  After four games in five days, including two blowout losses to Top 10 teams, what was in store for the Bobcats during practice on Thursday?  A game of wiffleball.

-  My co-host Brian Boesch tells me ‘Cats forward Asown Sayles practiced for the first time Thursday.

-  2009 wide receiver prospect Travis Reynolds (6-0, 156) from Boyd Anderson High School (FL) took an official visit to Central Michigan Dec. 5, and is set to visit Western Michigan Jan. 16.  He says Ohio is not recruiting him even though Rivals.com reports the ‘Cats have offered him.  Buffalo has also offered.

-  More to come.

* December 8th

-  Checking in with 2009 hoops signee James Kinney out of Centennial H.S (IL):  “Just came off a 15-point win Friday night—15 points, 4 boards, 10 assists versus Bloomington H.S.  We are ranked #5 in Class 3A. We’re 6-0 with wins over the top 2A team (Peoria Manual) and the 10th ranked 4A team (East St. Louis).”  Kinney is averaging 21 points, four rebounds and eight assists per game through those six wins.

-  Ohio University is recruiting 2009 JUCO tight end Matt Carter from Butte Community College in California. Carter was on campus this weekend.  View a video highlight package on Carter by Clicking Here.

-  The ‘Cats are not going after Rivals.com three-star Hutchinson Community College DE Tyran Melvin (6-2, 240).  Rivals.com reports offers from Ohio and Arizona, but Melvin says that is not the case.  “I was getting some calls from them, but they didn’t offer me,” he said.  Arizona, N.C. State, S.C. State and Middle Tennessee have offered Melvin, among other programs.

-  Says HuskersIllustrated.com and WOWT/KOLN-TV’s Sean Callahan out of Lincoln, Nebraska on recent ’09 offensive line commits Jon Lechner and James Davis:  They are both Big 12 good, but a lot of people were hesitant to offer for academic reasons. However, I’m told both should qualify.  I wouldn’t be surprised if they were key players for Ohio by their second years in the program.”

-  ’09 football prospect, Oakton H.S. (VA) quarterback Chris Coyer (6-3, 208), will be in a neck brace for the next six weeks after suffering a posterior fracture in his C-7 vertebrae in a playoff football game, Rivals.com reports.  Coyer has offers from Temple and Ohio.

-  To basketball recruiting quickly.  Rivals.com released their Top 20 mid-major signing period rankings a few days ago.  Ohio did not make the list, but three other MAC teams did—Akron (8th), Miami (17th) and Western Michigan (20th).

-  The one thing people thought might hold down the talented Kent State Golden Flashes this season has, as David Carducci explains.

*  December 4th

-  Ohio University is recruiting 2009 Vincennes Community College (IN) forward DeAntre Jefferson (6-8, 225).  Rivals.com reports offers from Valparaiso and Eastern Kentucky.  ‘Cats assistant Jamall Walker was in Indiana visiting Jefferson on Tuesday night. 

-  Jefferson played his prep ball at Bloomington H.S. in Illinois.  Somewhat of a mystery, he has attended four junior colleges in the last two years.

-  Last week Ohio University offered 2011 Gahanna Lincoln H.S. point guard Stevie Taylor (5-7, 150), his dad said Wednesday.  Hoop Scoop claims Taylor is the 17th best prospect in the nation, coming in second in the state of Ohio.  As a freshman starter last year, he averaged 12.1 ppg, 3.5 apg and 2.5 spg.  “We really like OU, so (the) bigger (offer) is not always better,” his father, Robert, said Thursday. “Right now, of the offers he has, OU is right there. Good school, good coach and close to home.”

-  Taylor has also been offered by Akron and James Madison, with interest from Virginia Tech, West Virginia, St. Joe’s, Dayton, Tennessee, Xavier, and Cincinnati among others.

-  The Bobcats are in the process of finalizing a deal to play a guarantee game at Pittsburgh in 2009, Ohio A.D. Jim Schaus said earlier this week.  It is not known how much the Panthers would pay Ohio.

-  In terms of scheduling for men’s hoops, Xavier and Cincinnati won’t play home and home games with the ‘Cats, but Ohio should take a look at possibly getting one-and-one deals with Dayton and Cleveland State.

-  It was a lot of fun to get to chat with broadcaster and Ohio alumnus Thom Brennaman tonight on The Jim Schaus Show on The Sears Sports Fan.  You can tell Brennaman truly cares and still follows his Bobcats.

-  More to come.

-  There is a Rivals.com three-star tailback looking for a home.  Walnut Ridge  High School (Columbus) RB Brandon Rice (5-8, 176) is rated as the 44th best prospect in the 2009 class for the state of Ohio and is the 25th best all-purpose back in the country.  “Hopefully Ohio offers me,” Rice said Saturday.

-  Rice had offers from Miami (OH) and Eastern Michigan, both schools who are now looking for new head coaches.  “And due to differences in our schedules I did not have the opportunity to get over to Ball State, and they had two running backs commit,” Rice added.

-  Will the ‘Cats go after Rice?  Or is his lack of size going to keep the talented tailback away from Athens?

-  Ohio University is recruiting Roger Bacon H.S. (Ohio) TE Cody Parker (6-4, 240).   “Yeah, I hope Ohio is still in the mix,” Parker said Sunday.  “I enjoyed my visit at Ohio. I have not officially made visits yet but I plan on doing so really soon.”  Parker noted he has not received any D-I offers yet, but hears from Louisville every week.

-  What a horrific day for MAC basketball yesterday.  Eleven teams were in action and just one (Buffalo over Temple) came away victorious.  Let’s break down some of the MAC teams.

-  Akron, one of the younger teams in the nation, just does not have any fire power.  And despite some size in the front court, their inability to rebound has hurt them thus far.  In their loss to Eastern Kentucky yesterday the Zips had 17 rebounds, and they have continually gotten pounded on the offensive boards.

-  Ball State shot a pitiful 30% as a team in a one-point loss to Arkansas State yesterday—a game in which freshman forward Jarrod Jones went 0-8 from the floor.

-  Northern Illinois freshman guard Mike Dinunno matched Jones’ 0-8 shooting in a four-point loss to Western Carolina.

-  Speaking of the Catamounts, Newark High School product Greg Avery is off to a nice start (8.4 ppg, 4 rbg) as the sixth man in his freshman campaign.

-  If you are a Bobcat fan, here’s to hoping Kent State’s free throw shooting woes hurt them once conference play opens up in January.  The Golden Flashes are shooting 56% from the charity stripe as a unit (322nd nationally), though it did not cost them the game against Texas A&M yesterday.

-  Sticking with free throws, Tim O’Shea’s Bryant University Bulldogs are 339th of 344 D-I teams averaging just 51.8% from the foul line through four games.

-  Teams in the East need to start paying attention to Buffalo, the best rebounding team in the league.  Much like the undersized Jerome Tillman, 6-3, 225-pound guard/forward Calvin Betts (10, 8.4) is physical down low despite his size disadvantage.  Plus, guard Andy Robinson is back from a suspension, and maybe having him come off the bench is an ideal spot for the Bulls.

-  Miami (OH) is still somewhat of a mystery in terms of how good they really are.  They’ve lost three road games to Top 25 teams (UCLA, Pitt and Xavier) but played well in all three.  They nearly upset the Bruins out on the west coast and had to travel out to Pitt four days later earlier this month.  All the traveling showed against the Panthers as the Redhawks, who were down just five at the break, simply wore out in the second half of that game.

-  What has to be disturbing for Miami fans is the production from G/F Michael Bramos.  It is not so much the scoring output (14 ppg thus far compared to 16.3 ppg last season) but more so how he is scoring.  Bramos is shooting just 30% from the floor compared to nearly 44% last year.  Granted, some of that may be due to the level of competition and how much more defenses are squaring in on the senior.

-  On to the Bobcats.  First-year head coach John Groce came in to this season promising an offense that would attack and really try to run the floor.  True to his word, that has played out thus far in three games.  Ohio is 39th in the nation averaging nearly 74 possessions per 40 minutes.  The ‘Cats averaged about 9 less possessions per contest last year (244th nationally).

-  The ‘Cats knew rebounding would be a problem, and it has been and probably will continue to be.  Ideally Ohio should find a way to pound the offensive glass, but they just don’t seem to have the personnel or depth to do so.  It’s hard to really go after second chance points with a true playing roster of only about eight guys.

-  I’m told three of the following schools will probably be at the same site for Ohio volleyball when the tournament bracket is revealed tonight on ESPNU: Louisville, Kentucky, Western Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan, or Purdue.

-  2009 signee James Kinney led his Champaign Centennial H.S. team to a Thanksgiving Tournament title.  He scored 23 points in the final over host Lincoln High School and was named to the All-Tournament team.

-  More to come.

* November 26th

-  There are some pretty cool photos of Ohio Volleyball’s MAC Tournament win up at matchpointohio.com.  Check it out.

-  Central High School (Neb) two-star quarterback Daryle Hawkins (6-4, 190) is still being recruited by Ohio but no offer has come his way.  “I got an offer from Northern Iowa, and I’ve also been talking to schools like Yale and North Dakota, and I also sent some tape to a couple places and got a call from the Florida Gators,” Hawkins said.

-  North High School (Neb) two-star offensive lineman James Davis (6-2, 310) took an official visit to Athens earlier this week and came away impressed.  “I really loved it, I had a great time,” David said.  “The coaches were cool (and) so (were) the players. I really felt welcomed and comfortable.  As to where I’m standing at right now, I still got just a little bit left to decide but Ohio is very much at the top and I am just about ready to commit.”

-  Davis is ranked as the 6th best prospect in the state of Nebraska.

-  Keep an eye on in-state three-star DT prospect Trae Tiller (6-2, 255).  Ohio Dominican is the only school to offer Tiller, but Ohio is on the radar.  Rivals.com ranks Tiller as the 68th best prospect in the state, but I get the feeling grades have caused a few schools to back off.

-  Brian and I are off for “The Sears Sports Fan” this week.  We’ll resume on Thursday, Dec. 4 with “The Jim Schaus Show on The Sears Sports Fan.” where broadcaster and Ohio alumnus Thom Brennaman will join us.

-  To hold you over while we are away, check out a new podcast just posted on thesportsfan.mypodcast.com.  You’ll hear the Bobcat Take 5 interview Brian had with backup quarterback Brandon Jones in truly one of the best off-the-wall interviews we’ve had all season on the “Bobcat Insider” pre-game show.  It’s definitely worth a listen.

-  ‘Cats head coach Frank Solich will probably have a grueling next couple of weeks as a voting member for the USA Today Coaches Poll.  Solich is good friends with Oklahoma’s Bob Stoops and Texas’ Mack Brown and will play a part in deciding which one of his buddies gets a shot at the national championship.

-  Kent State’s overtime win over St. Louis University a week ago looks even more impressive after Rick Majerus’ squad handed Boston College a three-point loss on Saturday.

-  Speaking of BC, new women’s hoops coach Sylvia Crawley is off to a 3-1 start with the Eagles.  BC, however, lost to Notre Dame 102-54 on Sunday.  Like Ohio, her squad will be in Cancun for a separate tournament over Thanksgiving.

-  How many new MAC football coaches will there be next fall?  Eastern Michigan’s Jeff Genyk has already been fired, Miami (Ohio)’s Shane Montgomery is the lowest paid coach in the FBS and isn’t exactly getting a strong backing from his A.D., J.D. Brookhart may need to beat Temple on Friday to keep his job at Akron and Buffalo’s Turner Gill is destined for a new job (possibly Syracuse) after what he has done with the Bulls program.

-  I wouldn’t be completely surprised if the MAC West Player of the Year in hoops is a freshman.  Sure, returning scorers like Toledo’s Tyrone Kent, Western Michigan’s David Kool and Ball State’s Anthony Newell will be there, but don’t count out 6-8 frosh Jarrod Jones (18 ppg, 10.7 rbg) from the Cardinals or NIU’s Mike Dinunno (21 ppg).

-  Among the schools that have shown interest in former Bobcats hoops forward Maurice Pearson include Tennessee Tech, Georgetown College in Kentucky, American University and a few other DII and NAIA programs.

-  More to come.  Happy Thanksgiving!

* November 19th

-  Ohio hoops has offered a scholarship to 2010 Rivals.com three-star forward Griffin McKenzie (6-9, 205) out of Moeller High School in Cincinnati.  McKenzie, who is currently out until January with an injury, said he has offers from Miami (OH) and Cincinnati and is still wide open in his recruitment.

“I talk to (assistant) coach (Chris) Holtmann often.  I will probably take a visit to Ohio at some point, not exactly sure yet,” McKenzie said.  “The recruiting process certainly slowed down from me after the spring when I suffered a stress fracture in my back. At the moment I’m still recovering from it, but there is no permanent damage or surgery necessary.”

-  More to come.

* November 18th

-  Frank Solich has added a pair of Fork Union Military Academy (VA) athletes to his 2009 football recruiting class.  Defensive back Jamil Shaw (6-1, 184) and Rivals.com two-star offensive lineman Skyler Allen (6-4, 265) both gave their verbal word to Ohio this weekend.

-  Shaw, who reportedly runs a 4.5 40-yard dash and is rated by Scout.com as a one-star recruit, chose Ohio over Eastern Michigan after taking an official visit to Athens this weekend.  Allen chose Ohio over offers from Eastern Michigan, Alcorn St. and Gardner-Webb.

-  Shaw was recruited as a corner, but with his side he could make the switch to safety much like true freshman Travis Carrie did earlier this season.

-  Kadre Pinder (6-3, 310), who signed with Ohio as part of its 2007 class, will now be a part of the ‘Cats’ ’09 class after attending Fort Scott Community College, he confirmed Monday.  As a senior at Everglades High School (FL), Rivals and Scout ranked Pinder as two-star recruit.  Pinder recorded 18 tackles and one sack at FSCC in ’07.  He is currently attending Ohio.  After redshirting this season, he will have three seasons left to play for the ‘Cats.

-  John Groce and the ‘Cats are recruiting 2010 Rivals.com three-star prospect Jordan Manuel (6-8, 190) out of Pike High School in Indiana.  Manuel has offers from Dayton and St. Bonaventure and is getting looks from Xavier and Southern Illinois among others.  He has not been offered by Ohio.

-  I had a chance to watch the Xavier-Toledo contest on FSN Ohio last night.  The Bobcats will have to find a way to effectively double down on Musketeers 7-0, 265-pound reserve freshman center Kenny Frease, who ran the floor and dished it out well during 16 minutes in the Musketeers’ 81-65 win over the Rockets last night.

-   Kent State transfer Tyree Evans is academically ineligible for his first semester at KSU, which obviously hurts the depth of the Golden Flashes’ back court but it should not prevent them from still being the clear front runner in the MAC East.

-  Our apologies in regards to the “Sears Sports Fan” podcast.  The website is having some downloading difficulties, but we hope to get the last couple of shows up here shortly.

-  Tonight, Russ Eisenstein and Rob Cornelius will join us on the program.

-  More to come.

* November 14

-  New 2009 Ohio hoops signee D.J. Cooper said he will be in Athens this weekend and will take in the Bobcats’ game against William and Mary.

-  Cooper will be accompanied by his buddy Jordan Walker (6-6, 175).  While a Division I prospect, Walker is not being recruited by the ‘Cats.

-  Fork Union Military Academy 2009 cornerback Jamil Shaw (6-1, 184) will visit Athens this weekend after taking in Eastern Michigan last week.

-  Dublin Scioto High School defensive back Deji Olatoye (6-2, 180) committed to Colorado yesterday.  ESPN.com reports Olatoye had an offer from Ohio.

-  Expect to see something different this season inside The Convo for hoops games.  The Ohio athletics marketing department has knocked off the dust to the old white Bobcat blimp, which will be flown around inside the arena during games starting back up this winter.  Dan Hauser, Associate A.D. for External Operations, said he hopes to have first launch this Sunday against William and Mary, but technical issues and flight lessons could push back its re-installment to the Dec 3 game against Tulsa.

-  More to come.

* November 12th (4:45 p.m.)

-  Three of Ohio’s four 2009 recruits (combo guard James Kinney, F Marquis Horne and PF Reggie Keely) signed their National Letters of Intent already today.  PG D.J. Cooper is expected to sign at an event this afternoon at his high school.

-  Cooper was rated the top point guard while Horne was rated the top small forward in the Mid-American Conference for the ’09 class.

-  Waterford High School big man D.J. Cunningham (6-9, 250) from the 2009 class is still looking for a college home.  He has to be on Ohio’s radar at this point.

-  One player Ohio does not seem to be looking at is Middletown’s Bill Edwards (6-5, 240).  According to his All-Ohio Force AAU coach Gregg Brown, Edwards recently picked up an offer from Penn State, but is being advised by his parents to sit on it and wait for a better offer.  Edwards, though, is running out of options at this point, and it doesn’t look like being a Bobcat is one of those options.

-  In case you missed it: 2009 Illinois hoops prospect Conrad Krutwig (6-6, 210) committed to South Dakota State in late October.  Krutwig had interest but no offer from Ohio.

-  Sticking with hoops, 2010 swing player Josh Sewell out of Trinity High School in Louisville, Kentucky, appears to be on the Bobcats’ radar.  Sewell picked up an offer from Ohio in mid-July and recently took an unofficial visit to Athens a few weeks ago.  “I really enjoyed my visit,” Sewell said Sunday.  “They have a really good coaching staff, and that’s a place where I could possibly mature as a player right away.” 

-  Sewell has eight offers to his name right now (Akron, Bradley, Western Kentucky, Marshall, Miami (FL), Wright State and Virginia Commonwealth).  Sewell is hearing from bigger schools as well, but he said he doesn’t have a top list right now and appears to be nowhere close to a decision.  He did note that his home state school Kentucky isn’t recruiting him hard, but he frequently goes up to Wildcats games.

-  It appears Sewell is going to wait it out and hope to land a big time offer.

-  WBNS radio broadcaster and recent Ohio grad Tony Castricone has founded a charity called Music Loves Ohio.  Check it out at www.musiclovesohio.org

-  To football now.  The ‘Cats should start recruiting this high school kicker right now.  Sophomore Tanner Wright plays for Division VI River High School out of Hannibal, Ohio.  He is perfect on PATs this season and hit a 32-yarder as a freshman in 2007.  He was seen kicking a 45-yarder in warm ups Friday night.  He takes care of the punting as well for the 12-0 Pilots, who beat Trimble H.S. 45-15 Friday in the playoffs.

-  Had to of been a nice weekend for Ryan Theis and the volleyball squad.  A five-set thriller over Miami (OH) on Friday, a four-set win over Bowling Green on Saturday, and a commitment from 2010 prospect Marah Farage.  Farage (6-2) plays for the ACE Volleyball Club out of the Akron area.

-  We’ve got a solid “Jim Schaus Show on The Sears Sports Fan” lined up tomorrow.  Bobcat basketball great Walter Luckett will join us, as will Assistant A.D. for Academic Services Jason Kelly.  Again, send the questions and comments to ctroop@TroopSports.com. E-mail the show live at 740-592-6646.

-  More to come, hopefully sooner rather than later.

-  Ohio University women’s basketball coach Semeka Randall and Marching 110 Band Director Dr. Richard Suk will join Jim and me on “The Jim Schaus Show on The Sears Sports Fan” tonight at 6 p.m.  Sends comments and questions to ctroop@TroopSports.com or call us live.  We’d love to hear from you.
 

* October 29th

-  Kent State basketball making headlines for all the wrong reasons…again.  http://www.ohioverticals.com/blogs/kent_state/2008/10/29/new-basketball-recruit-got-ovi-in-august/

-  Ohio center Zach Nagtzaam (knee) is not expected to play in the ‘Cats’ exhibition on Saturday against Wooster.

-  More to come.

* October 24th

-  Good lineup for the “Sears Sports Fan” tonight.  We’ll talk more Ohio football.  Plus, Brian had a chance to sit down with Athens high school football coach Ryan Adams, and I’ll share an interview I had today with World Series broadcaster Joe Buck.

* October 23rd

Mooney Out, Hoops Notes

-  A few hoops notes after catching the men’s basketball practice under first-year head coach John Groce on Wednesday afternoon:

-  But first, ‘Cats senior tight end Andrew Mooney will miss the rest of the season, head coach Frank Solich said at his Thursday press conference.  Solich had not heard the official word from doctors, but said he believed it to be a torn MCL and maybe some PCL damage on Mooney’s knee.  More to come on that in the following days, I’m sure, but Mooney’s career at Ohio University appears to have ended on a bad note.

-  Now to basketball.

-  Yesterday redshirt-freshman Zach Nagtzaam participated in most of practice for the first time since official workouts began.  He ran the floor with a slight limp, but nothing too noticeable.  He still is not participating in contact drills, but is set to see the doctor on Monday and could be fully cleared for next week.

-  It baffles me—and I’m sure those within the program as well—why he is not 100 percent by now.  I honestly have no idea what to expect from the Canadian this year. 

-  Assistant coach Jamall Walker is working with the point guards this season—a group that includes senior Mike Allen and freshmen Frankie Dobbs and Steven Coleman.  Coleman though, will be used at the 2 and 3 spots this year.

-  Dobbs, by the way, looks to be that true high school point guard that Tim O’Shea seemingly never recruited during his tenure with the ‘Cats.  Four years from now Ohio fans may owe him an apology if Dobbs develops the way it looks like he will.  Having a year under Allen will do a lot for Dobbs, too.

-  Speaking of coach Walker, he got involved in some drills during the early portion of practice on Wednesday.  This team is thin, there is no way to beat around that.  More on that in a second.

-  Assistant coach Dustin Ford is working with the big men this year.

-  The most noticeable change in the limited action I’ve seen and from who I’ve talked to thus far between the coaching staffs?  Two things: First, while O’Shea played more of the CEO role in practice, Groce is definitely more vocal and probably the most positive speaking coach I’ve heard in a while.  It felt like a fifth grade practice with all of the “good job” and “that-a-boy” speak going around.  But that’s understandable zero games in with a young, inexperienced club.

-  Secondly, the pure enthusiasm by the entire staff seems to have permeated throughout the program.  The young coaching staff will help the transition be smooth.  That’s not to say O’Shea and Co. weren’t energetic, but anytime you have a changing of the guard there is a renewed passion.  Ohio is going through that right now.

-  Freshman guard Stacey Waters looks to be talented, but just too scrawny right now for the college game.  He could use some added meat and he will need it to excel at the D-I level.  I’m told his competitiveness needs to be stepped up a notch as well.

-  Senior off-guard Justin Orr still has the slowest shooting motion on the team.  If Orr wasn’t 6-6 it would absolutely kill him, but his high release and long frame makes up for the slow shot.

-  Sticking with shots, the pure fundamentals of Steven Coleman’s shot are flawless in the limited shots I saw him take Wednesday.  Whether it is a made or missed shot, the release is quite smooth.

-  Groce has added one walk-on to the squad as of right now.  Junior Adetunji Adedipe (6-4, 212) is working with the forwards right now.  “Tunji” as they call him, averaged 9.7 ppg, 12.6 rbg and 3.7 bpg his senior season at Orange High School up near Cleveland.  Orange is a prominent Division II school in the area.

-  Tunji was a walk-on this spring with the football team as a wide receiver but was not kept with the squad.  He’s an interesting story.  He learned to play with the round rock his freshman year of high school after persistent pressure from his gym teacher to give it a try.  While a natural athlete, he will go through the growing pains of playing the college game.  At the very least, though, it will be a plus for Groce to have another body to work with, and Tunji’s attitude appears to be one ideal for a walk-on spot.

-  In case you are wondering, here’s your pronunciation guide for Tunji:  (Add-A-Tun-G Add-A-D-Pay).  The O-Zone ought to have fun with that one.

-  Ohio will hold its first live scrimmage with referees today at practice in a closed session.

-  Don’t forget, tonight’s the “Jim Schaus Show on the Sears Sports Fan.”  Would love to hear some of your thoughts and comments following what has been a rough fall season in Ohio athletics thus far.  ctroop@TroopSports.com or 740-592-6646.  Russ Eisenstein is expected to join us on the program, plus more on the Bobcat Rep program.

-  Yesterday’s “Sears Sports Fan” with Brian Boesch, Tom Hodson and me is a can’t miss episode.  We vented for 45 minutes about the loss.  It was an episode that probably took a few years off all our lives.  Thesportsfan.mypodcast.com

-  More to come, hopefully in the near future.

* October 15th (9:15 p.m.)

-  ‘Cats redshirt-freshman running back Donte Harden will miss the remainder of the season after undergoing surgery on his injured shoulder Tuesday in Columbus.  Head coach Frank Solich made the announcement Tuesday night on his weekly radio show, Ohio Director of Media Relations Jason Corriher confirmed.

-  More information to come shortly on what is a huge loss for the ‘Cats.

* October 12th (8:30)

-  Ohio linebacker Lee Renfro will join Brian and me in-studio on Tuesday’s “Sears Sports Fan” at 6:30.  Renfro was named the MAC East Defensive Player of the Week after a career-high 11 tackles.  There are few nicer individuals at Ohio University than Lee Renfro, as this recent article from The Post can confirm.

-  Speaking of the show, over the next couple of weeks Brian and I will be asking nightly Cleveland Browns trivia questions  to qualify people for the grand prize drawing of two Browns tickets for their Thursday night game against the Denver Broncos on Nov. 6.  The tickets are third-row seats in the Dawg Pound, courtesy of our friends at Sears of Athens.  You must call-in live with answers to the trivia question to be eligible for the drawing on Friday, Oct. 30.

-  We will also be giving away Bengals tickets later on in November.

-  A worthwhile podcast to listen to from Monday’s show as well.  www.thesportsfan.mypodcast.com.  Forty-five minutes of Ohio football talk –it doesn’t get much better than that, does it?

-  Just a heads up.  Ohio University President Dr. Roderick McDavis will join Jim and me in-studio on “The Jim Schaus Show on The Sears Sports Fan” this Thursday night.  Send your questions to ctroop@TroopSports.com, or call us live at 740-592-6646.

-  A reminder—Ohio basketball begins practice this Thursday, Oct. 16.  Expect a ton of hoops coverage over the next month or so leading up to game number one in the John Groce era.  I, for one, am very excited.

-  He doesn’t stop.  Groce is still on the recruiting trail this week.

-  Due out Tuesday will be the NCAA Graduation Success Rate.  It will have data from those student-athletes who would have been freshman anytime from 1998-2001, essentially most athletes up to 2005.  This will present the graduation success of student-athletes at the end of the Larry Hunter era and the beginning of the Tim O’Shea era, for example, along with every football player pre-Frank Solich.

-  News nuggets from Monday’s press conference with Solich:

-  Ohio QB Theo Scott is recovering well from his collarbone surgery, and the ‘Cats head coach said there was still a possibility that Scott could return this season.

-  True freshman Brandon Weaver was moved to rush end against Kent State on Saturday for third down situations and produced five tackles.  Solich said that could be a permanent move for Weaver, a change similar to the though process behind moving now-injured Stafford Gatling to the position this spring.  The key is making Weaver more of a full-time defensive lineman, instead of just passing downs.  Weaver’s future looks very bright right now.

-  Solich said WR Terrance McCrae was even given a look at the DE spot last week in practices.

-  As my co-host pointed out tonight on show, Chris Garrett—who had career highs in carries (14) and yards (62) against the Golden Flashes—ran like a back wanting more playing time.  And after the fumble early on, he was productive and much more of a north-south runner.

-  Most of the ‘Cats should be healthy come the Temple game a week from Tuesday, Solich said Monday.  CB Julian Posey, DE Kris Luchsinger, RT Chris Rodgers, WR Taylor Price and others hopefully will be good to go.  NG Ernie Hodge and DE Curtis Meyers will still be questionable for that game, though, according to Solich.

-  It’s hard to believe Ohio DE Jameson Hartke is fifth on the team with 33 total tackles from predominately the tackle spot on the defensive line—a position that sees far more double teams.

-  RB Donte Harden’s 23 carries on Saturday was a career-high. 

-  More to come later on this week.

* October 12th

-  ‘Cats fans must simmer down about a seven-point win over Kent State.  Yes, a win is a win, but in the fourth year under Frank Solich, this program should have be far beyond being pleased about beating a program like Kent State.

-  The facts are ugly:  Ohio committed another 12 penalties for 102 yards on Saturday at KSU.  Unnacceptable.  In seven games this season, Ohio is averaging 69 penalty yards per game, good for dead last in the MAC.  The 51 total penalties ties the ‘Cats for the 8th most in FBS.  In 2007, Ohio had the 13th most penalties in the nation.

-  I don’t know the answer to reducing penalties, but I do know it is an increasingly frustrating trend in Solich’s four years in Athens.

2005: 62.5 yards per game, 83 total penalties in 11 games.  7thin the MAC

2006: 57.4 yards per game, 92 total in 14 games.  8th in the MAC

2007: 70.5 yards per game, 97 total in 12 games. Last in MAC

2008: 63.3 yards per game, 51 total through 7 games. Last in MAC

-  The 36:50 time of possession for Ohio against KSU is the biggest since the Northern Illinois game in 2006 when the Green and White held on to the football for 37:20.

-  Who is the best quarterback in the Mid-American Conference?  The first name that pops out is probably Ball State’s Nate Davis, and understandably so because of the Cardinals’ success and his consistently impressive numbers.  But right now, I might have to go with Western Michigan QB Tim Hiller.  After tearing apart the ‘Cats last week, Hiller was 42/63 for 345 with four TDs in the Broncos’ come-from-behind 34-28 OT win over Buffalo yesterday.

-  The ‘Cats will take today and Monday off.  Players will lift on Tuesday, and then the program heads back to the practice field on Wednesday. That should give plenty of time for a lot of the injuries to begin to heal and for coaches to get on the road early this week to recruit.

-  Speaking of recruiting, Ohio should look at Chillicothe H.S. (OH) junior kicker Drew Basil, who kicked a 40 and 50-yard field goal on Friday night in a win over Sheridan.

- Elder H.S. offensive lineman John Anevski told Rivals.com a week ago his top three are Miami (OH), Louisville and Vanderbilt.  Anevski is a three-star recruit, and Rivals ranks him as the 60th best OL prospect in the nation.  Ohio has offered Anevski.

-  If there was ever a year to play Cal Poly in football, 2009 will be it for the ‘Cats.  Cal Poly will graduate one of the nation’s top receivers in Ramses Barden (6-6, 230) who could be a day-one draft pick.  Standout quarterback Jonathan Dally is a senior as well. The Mustangs are currently 7th in the FCS Top 25 poll.

-  More to come.

* October 9th (4:45 pm)

-  Just a couple of quick notes before heading over to the station:

-  “The Jim Schaus Show on the Sears Sports Fan” is on tonight from 6-7.  You can listen live on OhioBobcats.com.  Ball State A.D. Tom Collins and ‘Cats volleyball outside hitter Ellen Herman are our guests.  Calls and e-mails are encouraged.  sports@970WATH.com, or call the show live anytime at 740-592-6646.

-  Tom Hodson will be filling in for Rob Cornelius alongside Russ Eisenstein on this weekend’s radio broadcast for the football game at Kent State.

-  2010 shooting guard prospect Aaron Cosby was on campus for an unofficial visit this past weekend.  Cosby is one of the top 2010 prospects in the state of Kentucky.

-  Northland High School high-riser J.D. Weatherspoon from the 2010 class will visit Keith Dambrot and Akron this weekend, according to Rivals.com.

-  In today’s Athens NEWS, Garrett Downing reports the ‘Cats will be without cornerback Julian Posey (ankle) this weekend against the Golden Flashes.

*October 6th (8:30 pm)

Kinney is a ‘Cat

The Ohio Bobcats men’s basketball team has received a verbal commitment from 2009 Illinois combo guard James Kinney.

“I’m really excited,” Kinney said.  “I’m with a bunch of my family right now.   I just announced at the school.  Everybody’s excited.”

Kinney, who will major in sports management, is a 6-1, 150-pound scorer from Centennial High School in Champaign, Illinois.  Kinney picked Ohio over George Mason, Penn State and Evansville among others.

“Coach Groce recruited me well.  He took care of me on my visit.  It came to down to relationships.  I felt comfortable with the whole staff.”

Kinney joins Chicago PG D.J. Cooper, Cleveland F Reggie Keeley and Cincinnati SF Marquis Horne in Ohio’s 2009 class.

Kinney fills the last scholarship available for Groce’s first recruiting class.  However, current allegations against redshirt-freshman forward Maurice Pearson could lead to his dismal from the team.  Pearson has been suspended indefinitely on charges of assault, aggravated menacing and inducing panic.

* October 2nd

-  “The Jim Schaus Show on the Sears Sports Fan” returns tonight.  In the first half hour, we will discuss Jim’s opinion on whether or not Ohio can and will ever bring back the sports that were cut in January of 2007.  Bob Kappes and Rob Cornelius will be our guests in the second half hour.  We’d love to hear from you, so feel free to call-in live at 740-592-6646, or shoot me an e-mail.  if you have a question you’d like us to ask Kappes or Cornelius, we’d love to hear that as well.  ctroop@TroopSports.com.

* October 1st

-  A statement from Ohio Athletics regarding the Maurice Pearson story:  “We are aware of the situation, but are not at liberty to discuss the issue because it is a private matter.”

-  More to come.

-  Redshirt freshman forward Maurice Pearson has been suspended indefinitely from the men’s basketball team at Ohio University following an altercation last Wednesday, Sept. 24.  Public records show Pearson was charged with assault, aggravated menacing and inducing panic.  He has plead not guilty to all three charges.

-  Pearson had an Ohio University Judicial Hearing yesterday, and is due in Athens City court on Oct. 16 at 8 am.  The ‘Cats begin practice on Oct. 17, and Pearson has not taken part in team activities since the incident.  No other basketball players were involved, and details of the incident have not been released.  Stay tuned for more.

-  Ohio University is recruiting forward T.J. Hall (6-6) out of Gainesville High School (FL) from the 2010.

-  Combo guard James Kinney (6-1, 150) enjoyed his homecoming visit to Ohio University this past weekend.  The Champaign, Illinois, native has an official visit set with Evansville set this weekend, with a trip to George Mason in mid October.

-  Much more to come.

* September 25th

-  “The Jim Schaus Show on The Sears Sports Fan” is on tonight.  You can listen live online via OhioBobcats.com.  I’ll share an interview with former Ohio and current Wake Forest head football coach Jim Grobe.  If you have a question you would like me to ask Grobe, e-mail it my way.  ctroop@Troopsports.com

-  We will also have volleyball coach Ryan Theis on the program, who is always a joy to chat with.  This week’s trivia question and prize relates to volleyball as well.

-  Ohio has six Sunday men’s basketball games this season, up from the two they played last year.  Jim and I will talk about this tonight on the A.D. Show.

-  The Bobcat Feedback Question of the Week for tonight:  What teams would you like to see Ohio schedule in the future?  Jim is more than willing to listen, and I am eager to hear some of the football and basketball programs listeners throw out there.

-  If you have a question or comment for the program, shoot me an e-mail or call in live at 740-592-6646.  We’d love to hear from you.

-  In recruiting news, 2009 hoops prospect James Kinney (6-1, 150) will visit Ohio this weekend.  He will depart his home in Champaign, Illinois, tonight and will be in attendance for the football game this weekend.

-  This leads me to speculate that Ohio sees Kinney as more of a combo guard than a true point guard, as I had previously reported.  Kinney has narrowed his list to Evansville, George Mason and Penn State, with a visit to George Mason in late October already set.

-  In talking to Kinney, it would not totally shock me if he gave his verbal word to John Groce and company at the end of this weekend.  We will see, though, because with recruiting you just never know.

-  Brian and I had quite an interesting debate and discussion on “The Sears Sports Fan” this week, in particularly last night when we reacted to the pre-season predictions on MAC basketball put out by Blue Ribbon.  Check it out on the podcast site at thesportsfan.mypodcast.com.  Again, you can listen to every single show whenever you want, and you can get the show delivered to your itunes on a nightly basis.

-  More to come.  Check back this weekend for any possible news about Kinney.  For now, back to the books.

* September 22nd  (Updated at 8:15 pm)

Keely Commits to Ohio

Ohio University has hit the jackpot twice in less than 24 hours.  Cleveland Heights High School forward Reggie Keely (6-8, 230) committed to John Groce and the ‘Cats early this evening just a few hours after Chicago area PG D.J. Cooper gave a verbal word to Ohio. Keely becomes the third of four possible 2009 recruits for the Green and White.

“I just think he always felt comfortable with John and (Ohio assistant) Dustin (Ford),” Keely’s high school coach Barry Egan said. “Reggie doesn’t say a whole lot….I think he’s glad it’s done.  He called John today and then went into the gym and did his work out, took his books home and hopefully studied.” 

Keely is a Scout.com two-star recruit while Rivals.com ranks him as the eighth best prospect in the state of Ohio.  He took an unofficial visit to Athens the weekend of Aug. 22-24.  He had offers from Kent State, Cleveland State, Rider, Oakland, Penn State, and Toledo.  He was offered by both Akron and Miami (OH) before the two MAC schools filled their ’09 class, and most recently Keely was receiving interest from Indiana.

Egan, who talked with Groce earlier today, said the new Ohio head coach is very excited over the recruiting success in the last 24 hours.  “I think he’s elated.  I think he’s very happy to get the point guard out of Chicago who is a steal, and I think Reggie (is a steal) too.

“I think they knew that they had a good chance at both.  My history with John goes back for a while, and I don’t think you can play for a better guy.”

Egan coach former Ohio State players Ivan Harris, Matt Terwilliger and Jamar Butler.  Groce isn’t the only one who has had a solid day.  Egan’s star guard at Cleveland Heights, Sirchristian Williams, committed to Rider today as well.

* September 22nd (6:45 pm)

Keely Commits to Ohio

Ohio University has landed the jackpot in less than 24 hours.  Cleveland Heights High School forward Reggie Keely (6-8, 230) committed to John Groce and the ‘Cats this afternoon just hours after Chicago area PG D.J. Cooper gave a verbal word to Ohio..

Keely becomes the third of four possible 2009 recruits for Ohio.

Much more to come on Keely and what has been the best 24 hours in a long, long time for the ‘Cats.

* September 22nd

Cooper Commits to Ohio

Ohio Bobcats new head basketball John Groce has just landed his second recruit for the 2009 recruiting class.  After an official visit to Athens this weekend, Chicago area point guard D.J. Cooper (5-9, 165) said he committed to Ohio on Sunday night.

Rivals.com and Scout.com list Cooper as a three-star recruit, while Scout has him as the 21^st best PG in the ’09 class.  Cooper chose Ohio over Kent State, Loyola Chicago and Wichita State.  He joins Princeton High School (OH) small forward Marquis Horne in Groce’s first recruiting class as a head coach.  Ohio has two scholarships still available for the 2009 class.

* September 21st

-  Chicago area 2009 PG recruit James Kinney has Ohio in his final four schools along with George Mason, Penn State and Evansville.  ‘Cats assistant Jamall Walker paid a visit to Kinney this past Wednesday, and head coach John Groce is expected to see the floor general this coming Wednesday.  Kinney is scheduled to visit Ohio for homecoming weekend on the 27^th.  He will visit Jim Larranaga’s squad on Oct. 17.

-  Indiana PG product Justin Jordan from the 2009 class has a top five of Boise State, Wright State, Texas Tech, Purdue and Marquette.  He is nowhere near a decision, and more schools could jump into the picture after he takes his SAT scores in early October.

-  I would guess that 2010 athlete J.D. Weatherspoon out of Northland H.S. in Columbus won’t give a serious look at Ohio.  If Weatherspoon doesn’t go to a Top 25 program, the MAC program that leads at this point appears to be Akron.  In a recent Rivals.com story, Weatherspoon said he recently attended the Ohio State game against Ohio a few weeks ago, and will probably take a visit to the Zips again.  UA was the first school to offer Weatherspoon, regarded as one of the top athletes in the 2010 class.

-  VMI, the ‘Cats opponent in week five this coming weekend, rushed for 517 yards in a 69-20 win over Cowan on Saturday.  This should be the easiest game plan in the history of Frank Solich’s career—stop the run.  The Keydets have thrown the ball a total of just 26 times in three games and have averaged 54 rushes per game.

-  VMI has just four seniors on their squad, which features 28 freshman.

-  More to come.

*  September 15th

-  Fresh off a trip to Kent State this weekend, Chicago area PG D.J. Cooper said he did not commit to the Golden Flashes on his visit.  Cooper added that he will definitely be coming to Athens next weekend.

-  Bad week to be an Ohio football fan—Buckeyes, Bobcats, Bengals and Browns all lose.

-  Jonathan Smith did not commit on his visit to Athens this weekend.

-  More to come.

* September 14th

-  Bedford High School guard Randal Holt (6-1) confirmed that he committed to Kent State today just days after Rivals.com two-star prospect Robert Johnson (6-6, 190) also gave a verbal to the Golden Flashes.  Holt chose KSU over Ohio University.

-Holt said he was recruited as a point guard, and with PG D.J. Cooper visiting Kent this weekend, would head coach Geno Ford take two point guards in the 2009 class?

-  Multiple sources tell TroopSports.com that Holt has yet to qualify academically for college.

-  Along with JUCO forward Greg Avila, Kent State now has solidified three of their four commitments for the 2009 class.

-  Cleveland Heights H.S. forward Reggie Keely (6-8, 230) was visited by ‘Cats assistant Dustin Ford earlier this week.  Keely is sitting on offers from Ohio, Kent State, Cleveland State, Rider, and others.  He is also being looked at by Indiana.

-  Much more to come later today.  Stay tuned.

* September 11th

-  Cincinnati LaSalle High School forward Danny McElroy (6-6, 200) has committed to Bowling Green, the longtime leader for his services.  “He decided over the weekend.  He really like them from the get go,” said McElroy’s high school coach Dan Fleming on Wednesday. “He liked BG and just said ‘I want to go there and be done with everything.’”

-  Chicago area PG D.J. Cooper (5-9, 165) has changed the date of his official visit.  Instead of taking a trip to Athens this weekend, he will come the weekend of the Sept. 19-21.

-  Speaking of the Chicago area, that’s where Ohio head coach John Groce has been this week as the contact period has opened up and coaches across the nation have hit the road.  Groce paid a home visit to point guard James Kinney (6-1, 150). 

-  Safe to say the Centennial High School product came away impressed.  “Oh my, it was perfect. It was hard not to commit to him tonight,” Kinney said Wednesday night.

-  According to Grove City High School basketball coach Greg Waits, Ohio University, Bowling Green, Xavier and St. Louis are the top four choices for 2009 forward Jonathan Smith (6-7).  The two-star recruit will take an official visit to Athens this weekend after checking out SLU last weekend.  Smith took an unofficial visit to Ohio last month.

-  Kent State is reportedly paying an in-home visit to Smith today.

-  With Smith on tap for a visit this week and Cooper set for the 19-21, there’s still one open weekend left in the month of September for a recruit to come in.  That will be Kinney.  He will be on campus all day Saturday, September 27 and will attend the homecoming football game against VMI.

-  “The Jim Schaus Show on The Sports Fan presented by Sears” is on tonight from 6-7 on 970 WATH.  Jim and I will talk to Field Hockey coach Neil MacMillan and women’s soccer coach Stacey Strauss.  We will be giving away football tickets, asking for your questions, and talking about some of the latest news coming out of the athletic department.  If you have a question for Jim you’d like to get answered, give us a call or shoot me an e-mail at ctroop@TroopSports.com.

-  Check out my article in The Athens NEWS today and read the piece on nine-year-old Cameron Brown.  If you can in any way help out the youngster or the charity golf tournament this weekend, please do so.  Call Jennifer at (740) 590-2860 for more information or to donate.

-  According to Rivals.com, Ohio has offered 2010 offensive lineman Taylor Miller (6-5, 300) from Edgewood High School in Ohio.  Miller also has an offer from Western Michigan and is getting looks from several Top 25 schools.

-  More to come.

* September 8th

-  In hoops recruiting news, Chicago area PG D.J. Cooper did not commit to Kent State on his visit this weekend and is set to visit Ohio University this weekend.

-  Notes from today’s press conference at Peden Stadium:

-  Theo Scott is underwent surgery today to repair a broken collarbone.  He is expected to miss at least 6-8 weeks, and Solich was not optimistic about Scott’s return for the 2008 season.

-  Scott cannot receive another redshirt for this season, according to Solich.  “The way it reads, he would have to—because of his particular situation—apply for a sixth year.  He has redshirted, he has played a year of junior college, he has played a year here—that’s three.  This year is four.  He has a year left next year, which is his fifth year, and in order to get a sixth year you have to have basically two season ending injuries.”

-  Junior Brandon Jones now becomes the backup quarterback, while Josh Febus will get reps in practice this week to be ready as the third-string QB.

-  Offensive lineman Tommy Stuck played just seven snaps against Ohio State on Saturday.  Solich said that was not due to injury, but merely because David White and Mike Eynon were excelling at center and left guard, respectively.

-  ‘Cats MLB Michael Brown is cleared to practice this week and is expected to play against Central Michigan.  Safety Steven Jackson also is expected to return in week three.  RB Vince Davidson, battling a turf toe injury, will give it a go as well.

-  Solich on the status of the running back situation:  “I thought Donte (Harden) did a good job of running the ball.  He had a few busts in the passing game, which we need to get corrected, but overall we were pleased with his performance.  Chris came up with an ankle injury that hobbled him a little bit over the course of the game.”

-  Added Solich on the RB’s:  “We’re still a little bit up in the air.  It’s going to take a little more time for it all to work out.  Eventually, we want to settle in on who is a definite number one and who is a definite number two.”

-  Solich on facing Central Michigan:  “In my eyes this is as equal a challenge for us (as the Ohio State game).”

-  More on “The Sears Sports Fan” podcast, which as you all know by now, is available all week to download.

* September 7th (9:45 pm)

-  Rivals.com two-star forward Marquis Horne (6-6, 180) committed to John Groce and Ohio University tonight.  Horne chose Ohio over Kent State.  The Princeton High School recruit out of Cincinnati is the first 2009 commit for the Bobcats.

-  More to come on Horne’s decision.

*  September 5th

-  Rivals.com three-star shooting guard Colt Ryan committed to Evansville last night.

-  The decision for 6-10, 220-pound center Drew McGhee to commit to Miami (OH) might raise an eyebrow or two around the MAC.  He will have to compete with 2008 recruits Julian Mavunga and Vince Legarza as well as 2009 power forward recruit Drew Kelly for playing time throughout his career, especially if Mavunga and/or Legarza redshirt this season.  On the bright side for the Redhawks, they will have plenty of big men for the next few seasons, but McGhee will really have to stand out to see the court.

-  I’m told that McGhee’s girlfriend goes to Miami (OH), which may have had a huge impact on his decision.

-  Cincinnati area forward Marquis Horne is expected on campus this weekend for an official visit with the ‘Cats.  Horne has already taken an official visit to Kent State and is likely choosing between the two schools.

-  On his weekly radio show last night, Ohio A.D. Jim Schaus said the ‘Cats are close to signing a deal with Ohio State in football for what would be a game during the 2010 season.  Schaus also expressed interest in playing Penn State in the near future as well.

-  I can’t be the only one who thinks new Ohio hoops coach John Groce slightly resembles ESPN tennis analyst Luke Jensen, seen here. 

-  Former Ohio State quarterback Craig Krenzel will join us on “The Sports Fan” tonight.  The podcast for “The Jim Schaus Show on The Sports Fan” is up as well.

*  September 4th

-  Don’t forget “The Jim Schaus Show on The Sports Fan” is on tonight from 6-7 on 970 WATH.  You can listen live online by going to OhioBobcats.com.  Jim and I will talk to Ohio volleyball coach Ryan Theis live from Pittsburgh as the ‘Cats prepare for a tournament this weekend.  Plus, we’ll talk to Ohio State offensive coordinator Jim Bollman, who played football for Ohio University and graduated in 1976.

-  More to come.

*  September 1st

Monday Football Notes

-  Some notes and quotes from Frank Solich and Noah Keller following Monday afternoon’s press conference.

-  On the loss:  “I felt bad after the game.  I feel equally as bad right now.  You look at both losses to Wyoming—both of those games could have been won.  We had several opportunities in both games to win them.”

-  Solich:  “(There were) probably about five or six plays that we were just inches away from making and if we would have made them, it would have changed the whole complexion of the game.”

-  Of the ‘Cats offensive linemen, LG Mike Eynon graded out the best at 91% in 46 plays.  RT Chris Rodgers was right behind at 90% in 62 snaps of action, including a team-high two pancakes.  A totoal of seven different linemen had snaps on Saturday.  RG Gary Schussler played in just 22 snaps, and graded out at a team-worst 82%.

-  MLB Michael Brown is feeling “better” but his status is unclear for this week’s game at Ohio State.

-  On losing the close games: “That’s something we have got to start doing and start to get a better handle on is when we are in ballgames in the fourth quarter, we’ve got to be the one that comes out on top.  So we need to press forward with that kind of thinking.”

-  On his team‘s ability to bounce back after the tough loss:  “I think I got a good handle on this team.  I believe them to be the kind of team that will bounce back.  We preach all the time about taking everything one play at a time, one game at a time.  So if we believe in what we say, then we have to take this game for what it was, learn from it, get better and then move on to the next game.”

-  Scott needs to do more on the ground:  “He needs to become a better runner.  He’s got the ability to be an excellent runner, and we need to get him to convert that running ability to something that’s really positive for us.  He’s carrying out things really well in practice, he just needs to now step it up in terms of what he’s all about as a runner in ballgames, because he has the ability to do it on both ends.  We didn’t really get scrambles to where he gained yards, and we didn’t really have running plays where he ended up with the ball that he gained yards.  When he did run, he needs to be a little bit more of an up-the-field runner.”

-  The running back depth chart is still up in the air at this point.  “It’s still an unclear picture,” Solich said. “(Chris Garrett) really did a good job in pass (protection).  We were throwing so much, and he did not have breakdowns in the pass pro game, which we had had coming through the fall camp with our backs.”

-  RB Vince Davidson is still in the mix:  “We had Vince go into the game with an injury where he was not 100 percent, so that affected how we used him in the game.  Donte got limited time.  You know, 62 plays does not give you the opportunity to have an awful lot of backs playing that get a number of reps.”

-  Summarized Solich on the RB’s:  “It’s still unclear who is the guy, if there is just a guy…That’s still a work in progress.  We hope by the time we get into conference play that that is decided.”

-  On “The Sports Fan” tonight, Brian and I will share audio of Solich’s reaction when asked of his decision to go for it on fourth-and-two late in the second quarter instead of kick an easy field goal.

-  Ohio is 0-13 against ranked opponents.

-  Ohio has not started 0-2 since 2002.

-  When asked what kicker Barrett Way’s range for field goals is, Solich said, “anywhere in the 40’s I feel comfortable.  He may be able to go up to 50.  We’ll see on that yet.  But when he really hits it right, he’s got a leg that will give you a lot of distance.  So I think as we go through the season, that will probably come into play.  Now whether he could have kicked a 62-yard field goal (at the end of the game on Saturday), I was hoping for a real big wind burst.  The wind does come through Wyoming sometimes.”

-  When asked why Way was sent out before the last play of the game for what would have been a 62-yard field goal attempt, Solich joked,  “There was some real thought there.  It may not have been good thought, but there was some real thought.”

-  The ‘Cats will pump in some noise simulation during practice this week to prepare for the atmosphere at Ohio State.

-  Solich’s reaction to the performance of the other MAC teams in week 1:  “It’s really hard to get a feel for where everything is at with the MAC.  Although I’m just going to say none of that is surprising.  With the Bowling Green game, I thought that that would be a close ball game.  I think Bowling Green is a very good football team.  As you go across the MAC conference itself, there wouldn’t be too many things that would have just outright surprised me.”

-  Will there be future games with Wyoming?  “There are a lot of things about (the matchup) that is good.  It’s a good matchup.  They’ve been great games.  I was impressed with their fan support and the crowd that they had in the game,” said Solich.  “The thing that you probably don’t like about it—either team—is the travel involved.  Even though the game was played at 12, we got home at three in the morning. That kind of travel is really not necessarily what you look for.  And if you look at recruiting, it’s not an area we really recruit and (Ohio) is not really an area that they recruit from.  So does that kind of matchup make as much sense as trying to get closer to where you have some built-in rivalries, where recruiting becomes a factor, those kind of things.”

-  Solich really expressed his desire to get the running game going.

-  According to LB Noah Keller, fellow teammate Michel Mitchell is a big NCAA Football 2009 fan.  “One of the guys on the team, in particular, he’s simulated (an Ohio-Ohio State matchup) enough times.  There has been a time or two I think where the Bobcats came out on top,” Keller said.

-  Keller noted that facing Virginia Tech QB Tyrod Taylor last year will help Ohio prepare for OSU backup QB Terrelle Pryor.

-  Evidence that you should not gamble on anything, including college football: Betting website claims Ohio traveled to Wyoming by bus

-  Much more to come.