Do you really want to talk about Ohio State’s latest loss, a 20-14 setback to the criminal entity from State College?

Yeah, neither do I. So let’s not. Let’s, instead, talk about the apparent new man who will lead Ohio State football starting in 2012. It isn’t official yet but it seems cast in stone that by next week Urban Meyer will be the next head coach of the Buckeyes. In terms of prestige and prior accomplishment it’s the biggest head-coaching hire in the history of the program. Paul Brown was a top-flight high-school coach, Woody Hayes was a winner at the O.G. Miami and Jim Tressel racked up four Division I-AA National Championships at Youngstown State. But Urban Meyer has enjoyed ultimate success at the highest level of the sport.

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It took a little while for the Ohio State Buckeyes (6-0) to shake off the rust, or perhaps the lingering effects of Thanksgiving dinner, to beat a pesky Valparaiso team Friday night. After struggling early, the Buckeyes used a second half surge to rush past the Crusaders for an 80-47 victory.

William Buford led all scorers with 25 points while Jared Sullinger stuffed the stat sheet with 14 points, 13 rebounds, five assists, four steals and one block. Aaron Craft was two assists away from a double-double after putting up 15 points and Deshaun Thomas added 12.

Despite the impressive stats and the 33 point victory, the Buckeyes didn’t feel like they played their best basketball. “Our guys weren’t making shots, but we got some good looks,” Ohio State coach Thad Matta said. “Valparaiso is a good basketball team. We made some mistakes defensively, and they made us pay.”

The first half wasn’t a work of art for Ohio State. The Buckeyes started sluggishly against Valparaiso, just as they have against everyone they’ve played this season (aside from VMI). After connecting on five of their first 10 shots, Ohio State went cold from the field and missed nine of their next 11. During that stretch, Valparaiso was able to make up for a few early turnovers with the strong play of Jay Harris, who scored 10 points in as many minutes against the Buckeyes. Things looked to be turning around for Ohio State as they put together a 12-2 run, but the Crusaders responded with a 10-3 run of their own to close the half. The two teams went into the locker room with the Buckeyes leading 33-29.

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When all hell broke loose at Ohio State last Spring, it wasn't surprising that eventually stories would get written that would be less than flattering of former head coach Jim Tressel, even if lightly sourced and highly speculative.  He was fair game, after all, because he had admittedly failed to disclose potential violations of NCAA regulations to his boss, athletic director Gene Smith.  When he signed an affidavit indicating he was unaware of any potential violations that pretty much made him a piece of raw meat to any writer with a grudge.

Those stories that did get written, like the Sports Illustrated hit job, were lightly sourced and highly speculative but mostly revealed nothing new nor did anything to cause people to re-assess all they ever thought about him.  Tressel didn't get a pass but his reputation didn't take any more hits.

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The Ohio State Buckeyes (4-0) used strong contributions from all five of its starters, highlighted by 27 points and 13 rebounds from Jared Sullinger, to beat the North Florida Ospreys 85-50 on Monday night.

Deshaun Thomas had 16 points and six rebounds while Buford added 13 points, five rebounds and four assists. With Sullinger, Thomas and Buford handling the offense, Lenzelle Smith Jr. and Aaron Craft wreaked havoc on the defensive end by notching three steals each, an effort that led to 23 North Florida turnovers throughout the game. The victory extended Ohio State’s home winning streak to 26, a stretch that reaches back to February, 2010.

The Buckeyes started the game a bit sluggishly, a recurring trend that confounds head coach Thad Matta. Ohio State missed their first three shots and all four of its first free-throw attempts, allowing the Ospreys to hang around. Sullinger was also held scoreless midway through the first half as North Florida trailed just 14-17 through 10 minutes of play.

“We didn’t come out with any juice, any energy or any intensity., “ Sullinger said. “We came out expecting to win because we are Ohio State. We realized this team wasn’t scared to play and obviously it showed in the first half.”

At the 10 minute mark, the light flipped on for Sullinger. The preseason All-American big man for the Buckeyes rattled off 16 points to close the first half, fueling a 20-2 run that all but sealed the game for Ohio State. Deshaun Thomas was able to get going early as well, scoring 13 of his 16 points in the first half as Ohio State took a 45-26 lead into the locker room.

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