Penn State negative recruiting

The Big Ten media days usually don’t produce any super juicy stories, but once in a while they have something that’s a bit more savory than normal.

During the open podium session, both Ohio State coach Urban Meyer and Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio were asked if they used negative recruiting tactics against Penn State. More specifically, they have been accused of bringing up and using things relating to the Jerry Sandusky scandal.

While most of the sanctions against Penn State have returned to pre-scandal norms, various awful stories continue to come out.

It’s hard to doubt the truth of the accusations, but it should not come as a surprise. College football is a slimy place and recruiting can be simply brutal. Most recruiting goes on behind closed doors, with exact topics of discussion hardly ever mentioned.

Recruiters will go to incredible lengths to get a talented high school athlete to sign with them and using a skeleton in another university’s closet is probably commonplace.

Whether something should be done about it, however, is an entirely different conversation. Perhaps launching it was the Nittany Lions’ game plan, but it certainly does not seem to have created the shock and outrage they may have wanted.

To be fair, however, both Dantonio and Meyer looked fairly insulted and surprised when they were asked if they actually used those practices. Of course it could have simply been an act, but it also would not be surprising if it was an assistant coach’s decision and never managed to make it up to the head coach.

— Jordan Hansen

Ohio State reloading

The Buckeyes do not have “down years.” They reload with talent each year, and they compete for championships every single season.

As long as water is wet, Ohio State will have a really good football team. That is how it seems.

However, there was a thought among fans and other people of college-football knowledge that thought Ohio State might not be quite so good this year as it was during its national championship season two years ago or the Fiesta Bowl-winning team from a year ago.

After all, the Buckeyes had 12 players drafted in the 2016 NFL Draft. That is an absurd number of players drafted.

That could be every starter on one side of the ball, plus one from the other side. That wasn’t the case, but it helps to picture how much talent they lost to the NFL.

Head coach Urban Meyer chose a prime opportunity to share with the media on Tuesday of Big Ten media days that his team is not hurting for talent, though.

In fact, he informed everybody in attendance and watching at home that he believes his 2016 version of the Buckeyes has the most talent he has ever seen on one football team.

Well, OK then, Coach. You are starting to scare the rest of the football world with statements like that.

If he is telling the truth, that is a huge story. If Meyer was able to replace 12 professional football players and somehow make his team better, he has powers unbeknown to 99 percent of people on the planet.

The fun part about Meyer’s claim is that it will be on display before his team even makes it to conference play. After seemingly tune-up games versus Bowling Green and Tulsa to start the season, the Buckeyes head to Norman, Oklahoma, to take on the Sooners, playoff participants from a season ago.

— Blake Dowson