By Garry Smits (Jacksonville.com) --As it turns out, an Ohio State coach will once again guide the Buckeyes in his final game in Jacksonville. But interim coach Luke Fickell won’t be leaving under the same circumstances that marked the end of Woody Hayes’ career when a punch he threw at Clemson linebacker Charlie Baumann late in the 1978 Gator Bowl resulted in Hayes’ firing the next day. “We’re going to write a new history of Ohio State in the Gator Bowl,” ... Read More

From: ESPN.com -- Ohio State probably could have gotten by this week without a banged-up Jared Sullinger. The star forward, though, doesn't want to miss any time with Big Ten play approaching. The second-ranked Buckeyes play their final non-conference game Thursday night when they meet Miami of Ohio at Nationwide Arena.Ohio State (11-1) didn't have Sullinger healthy in three of its last four games before the sophomore returned Tuesday night against Lamar. He missed a 64-35 win over Texas-Pan American ... Read More

By Kyle Meinke (annarbor.com) --Remember when Brady Hoke was last summer's recruiting darling? That is fading into a distant memory, thanks to the Big Ten's newest coach. Urban Meyer was hired at Ohio State three weeks ago, and began his tenure with such a recruiting flurry that the Buckeyes' class shot up to No. 5 in the nation this week, according to Scout. Texas remains No. 1 overall and Michigan is holding steady at No. 2 on the strength of Hoke's hot summer, which ... Read More

By: Adam Wells (BleacherReport.com) -- When Urban Meyer signed on to become Ohio State's head coach, I can't imagine that he was aware of the NCAA slapping more sanctions on the program that include a one-year bowl ban and the loss of more scholarships. But even with that setback, the Buckeyes will still rule the roost in the Big Ten. High school football players want national exposure and an opportunity to play in BCS games because it will ... Read More

Thayer Evans (FoxSports.com) -- The Ohio State University still doesn’t get it. That’s the only way to explain athletic director Gene Smith’s asinine response Tuesday to the NCAA’s Committee on Infractions slapping the Buckeyes with a one-year post-season ban, the loss of nine scholarships over the next three years and three years of probation along with other penalties for football players receiving more than $16,400 in impermissible benefits. “We are surprised and disappointed with the NCAA’s decision,” Smith ... Read More

By: Gregg Doyal (CBSSports.com) -- When Ohio State athletics director Gene Smith pulled Urban Meyer out of a hat, I thought he had saved his job. More to the point, I thought he should have saved his job. That was a huge hire, the perfect hire, and for being able to pull off that coup, Smith deserved to stay. Until Tuesday. And now I'm back to where I've been for the last year, wondering how the hell Gene Smith still has ... Read More

By: Bud Elliott (SBNation.com) -- With today's news that the NCAA rejected Ohio State's proposed penalties and imposed a scholarship reduction almost double that of what the Buckeye's submitted, many Ohio State fans will wonder how this will impact Ohio State's recruiting. And this is an important question, as Ohio State has been on an absolute tear lately on the recruiting trail. Meyer has catapulted Ohio State's class from decent to excellent, with the additions of defensive linemen ... Read More

By: Pat McManamon (FOXSportsOhio.com) -- A wise man once explained that while poverty is an injustice, the NCAA is simply inexplicable. It wasn’t Confucius who said it, but it was Confucian in its simple logic. Because the NCAA makes a habit of baffling, incoherent, near-absurd rulings, and it makes them with all the pomposity of a British know-it-all traipsing through Australia in the penal colony days. It’s even easy to imagine NCAA suits making the decisions with the same Derby ... Read More

From: Andy Staples (CNN.com) -- Dear Tom, I write to inform you of a glorious opportunity, courtesy of the NCAA's Committee on Infractions. What if I told you that you could hire a football coach who has won one BCS national title, four Division I-AA titles and seven Big Ten titles (including six that still count)? What if I told you that you could hire a man who has won 81.7 percent of his games at the FBS ... Read More

From: OhioStateBuckeyes.com -- The Ohio State University today received the NCAA’s ruling regarding violations involving its football program. Following a 12-month investigation conducted jointly by the NCAA and the University, the NCAA levied sanctions beyond those self-imposed by the university. Among the penalties Ohio State had self-imposed was a loss of five scholarships; the NCAA imposed a nine-scholarship penalty, three during each of the next three years. Additionally, the NCAA has imposed a three-year probation ... Read More