Baver Answers Colin's Questions - Terp Week

Colin: OSU has had 3 games against glorified high school teams since Oklahoma gave them a dose of reality. What have we learned over the last 3 weeks?

Baver: You are starting to see the depth this Buckeye team has. The backups, as a whole, didn’t look good against UNLV, but they looked scary good this past Saturday. It didn’t matter that it was against a bad Rutgers team; you could still see the talent all over the field. What else? JT looks more confident, but that confidence may fade in a bigger game. The D-line is probably even better than we thought they would be, if that is even possible. Kendall Sheffield may have Superman’s body, but he isn’t OSU caliber at cornerback, at least at this point. The WRs I think are starting to get there. Urban & Kevin Wilson are really working on the passing game, as they threw the ball all night at Rutgers. They certainly know that the passing game has to get better against real competition. Oh….and Parris Campbell still has all kinds of issues catching the ball. It’s a good thing he runs like a gazelle.

Colin: What chance does this Buckeye team have of challenging top dogs like Alabama and Clemson?

Baver: Not good….unless JT takes some MAJOR strides. Right now, I am worried about Penn State. If they can get the offense in gear against the Nits and post a big win, then I think we revisit this question.

Colin: The six man rotation at wide receiver…am I crazy or is starting to actually make some sense?

Baver: It’s definitely looking better, and Ohio State’s depth as mentioned, will continue to wear teams out. That rotation is starting to grow on me. And so many of these receivers create different problems for defenses. You have the pure speed of Campbell, Binjamin Victor’s long frame, and Terry McLaurin’s devastating blocking ability. Still….these guys still have to prove they can get it done against top-tier D’s. They were overmatched against Oklahoma, but the light at the end of the tunnel is getting a bit brighter.

Colin: The Terps road win over Texas was a fluke, right? How does the OSU-Maryland game play out? 

Baver: Maryland is a yo-yo. You mentioned the upset at Texas. Two weeks ago they hosted Central Florida and lost 38-10. Down to their 3rd QB because of injuries, you write Maryland off, right? The Terps then go on the road as a double-digit dog and beat Minnesota. Maryland may have the best running attack that Ohio State will have faced to date, led by Ty Johnson, a guy that probably has a future in the NFL. You will see the Bucks have a lot of success through the air for the 4th straight week, as the Terps pass defense is pretty bad. Maryland could hang around this week, but in the end I’ve got Ohio State winning 45-17.

Colin: Give us an update on your picks, and what will CD1025’s Brian Phillips’ Wazzu team do for an encore,as they travel to Eugene to face the Ducks?

Baver: 11-5 against the spread so far. I think Maryland plus the 31 is the play against the Bucks if you have to make one, but I’d stay away from that game as the spread looks about right to me. How does Washington St get up for another huge game for the 2nd week in a row? Autzen is always a tough venue to play in but I think the Cougs stays undefeated, and I’d lay the 3 pts against the Ducks.  The Oregon defense may be slightly improved after hefty coordinator Brady Hoke was shown the door after one season, but that Duck defense is still not very good. And I like Miami laying the 3 pts in Tallahassee against a reeling Florida State team. Nole freshman QB James Blackman, the so-called Slim Reaper, is not ready for big-time football at this stage.

Brian Phillips Answers Your MLB Playoff Questions and Predictions

What playoff series are you most interested in watching?

That's a tough one. I think they all hold their own intrigue. Great match ups! If you forced me to pick I'd say Astros/Red Sox. Houston floundered a bit during the dog days when George Springer was on the DL. In September though the bats really heated up. I can't wait to see them face Chris Sale, who really struggled in September. The Verlander trade has worked out very well for them. Great game one match up.

How do you think it will play out?

We'll see how correct I am:

Tribe over Yankees

Astros over Red Sox

Cubs over Nats

Diamondbacks over Dodgers

Championship Round:

Astros over Tribe

Diamondbacks over Cubs

Astros World Champions

All that said I hope I'm wrong. I would love to see Cleveland finish the job. The Astros acquiring Justin Verlander tips the scale slightly toward them. I hope I'm wrong. Obviously the Tribe are very familiar with him. 

Which team is your biggest lock to advance to the next round?

I can't pick against the Tribe, especially after Luis Severino suffered a rare blow up Tuesday in the Wild Card game. I'm sure the Yankees are very concerned that their young ace may not have yet developed the fortitude for the post season stage. I love Cleveland tapping Trevor Bauer in game one. If he suffers one of his meltdowns or cuts his finger playing with Tinker Toys, Cleveland has Corey Kluber to clamp down in game two. The Yanks are countering with former A's hurler Sonny Grey in game one. He's good, but not great. CC Sabathia is set for game two. He had a nice bounce back season, but he's no longer the guy we remember. Do the Yankees turn to Severino or Tanaka in game three? Tanaka gave up 35 bombs this year. 35! I really like the Indians to move on. The bats are just too hot and the pitching matches up nicely

Any upsets brewing?

Current form is important I think. I like Arizona to knock off the Dodgers.  The Diamondbacks played well down the stretch. The trade for J.D. Martinez was the best of the season. He's been raking and is a nightmare for lefties especially. Since returning from the DL meanwhile Clayton Kershaw has been less than himself. After an incredible first half, Alex Wood fell apart in the second. Does anyone ever know what Rich Hill has? If that curve ain't curving he has nothing. Yu Darvish has been very hittable at times. What do Kershaw, Wood and Hill have in common? All lefties. The Dodgers have to keep a lid on Martinez and Paul Goldschmidt. I don't see it happening. The Dodgers won the division handily, but one has to wonder about any team who lost 15 of 16 games as L.A. did late in the year

Any under the radar players you think could have a major affect on any of the series?

An unlikely hero always seems to emerge in the post season. It's a tough question to answer as I write because managers haven't yet locked their division series rosters. The Cubs Tommy LaStella and Albert Almora Junior are both role players who had nice years. They won't play a lot, but I like them as pinch hitters. Almora hits lefties well so I certainly see him starting against Gio Gonzalez in the division series. Arizona veteran catcher Chris Ianetta hit .210 with 7 home runs with Seattle last year. Following "The Law of the Ex-Mariner" the 34 year old turned in a most unexpected offensive season in 2017. 17 home runs. Hit .254. He was swinging it well enough that Arizona was batting him second at times toward the end of the year. He's yet another D-Back who abuses lefties. A tough out of late from an unexpected player. Also of note: His fellow Arizona catcher Jeff Mathis is among the worst hitters in baseball (lifetime .198)... except in the post season. For what it's worth he's hit .417 when it counts most in 23 career playoff at bats.

Brian Phillips hosts The Morning Show on CD1025 in Columbus and plays in multiple fantasy baseball leagues. 

NCP Switches From WOWWAY to Direct TV on Purpose to Enjoy Browns Blackout

Big $ has confirmed that the North Coast Posse has switched cable service at the Pencilstorm offices from Wowway to Direct TV to intentionally avoid watching the "Battle of Ohio" this weekend. Even better, having the Browns v Bengals game blacked gives them an excuse to go to a bar and get blacked out themselves.  You can still follow them on twitter @northcoastposse

Baver's Got OSU Rumors, Future Lines and Even Talks USC v Cougs

Tune into the CD1025 Morning Show with Brian Phillips every Friday at 7:40 to hear Baver's thoughts on Ohio State football and other stuff. follow @baverbuckeybag

Colin: Which stat is more important: OSU breaking passing records against UNLV or 0-3 Baylor hanging 41 points on Oklahoma? 

Baver: It’s a hard game to figure out sometimes, isn’t it? Obviously Oklahoma wasn’t up for Baylor like they were against Ohio State. But the Sooners did what good teams do, and still got the “W” despite not having their best stuff. If I had to pick four Playoff teams right now, Oklahoma would still be one of them.

Colin: Do you see any encouraging signs in the Offense that could lead to consistent success against a good defense like say, Penn State? 

Baver: I don’t know; I guess the Buckeye WRs are making some strides and Austin Mack appears to be on his way to big things before he leaves Columbus. JT again was JT with some passes that make you go “wow”…..and not ”wow” in a good way. But he settled down and started throwing the ball well in the 2nd quarter.  And JT is the guy…..there will be no change at QB. We saw why he starts, as Dwayne Haskins looked like a freshman in his first extended action. Can the OSU offense get it done against a good D? I have my doubts. Dedicating 25+ carries to the tailback position against those D’s would help matters.

Colin: Speaking of Penn State, is Barkley the best player in the country and would you prefer the N lions lose to Michigan or come to the Shoe' undefeated. 

Baver: Barkley is ridiculous, and I’m not sure I have ever seen a prototype tailback quite like him. He’s 230 pounds of solid brick, and watching a kid that size juke Iowa defenders in the open field was jaw dropping. I’d rather face an undefeated Penn State team when they come to town. I think Ohio State needs to show the rest of the nation that they are capable of beating a top-5 team…and need to show it sooner rather than later.

Colin: What can you tell me about Ohio State that may not be common knowledge to most Buckeye fans?

Baver: The rumor this past April was that DT Michael Hill was facing a 6-game suspension to start the 2017 season. Urban then told us in early August that Hill would be held out “a few games”. Meyer now says Hill will miss this week’s Rutgers game, which would be the 5th game Hill will have been held out. What else? Multiple off-shore sites have “Games of the Year” lines that they update weekly as the season progresses. 5 Dimes as of today has OSU fav’d by 7 vs Penn St, OSU fav’d by 14.5 at Iowa, and OSU fav’d by 3.5 at Michigan. The bettors think more highly of Ohio St’s chances than OSU fans do.

Colin: Since you appear with notable Washington State fanatic Brian Phillips on his CD1025 morning show every Friday at 7:40 am, what are your thoughts on the Cougs hosting USC and other games and lines you will be keeping an eye on?

Baver: Urban decided to actually pull his starters in the 1st half last week, and that cost me a cover on OSU, but I did hit the 3 other games, so I am 10-4 against the spread overall now including 3-1 on OSU gms. I see nothing I like really spread wise this week, so let’s look at the OSU – Rutgers game and USC’s trip to Pullman to face Brian Phillips’ Wazzu team.

I think Chris Ash has settled in a bit as a head coach, and will see his squad play OSU a bit closer than the 62-3 drubbing they took in the ‘Shoe last year. If Janarion Grant is full-go for the Knights, that will certainly help their cause. I think Rutgers +30 is the play here. The call: OSU 37 Rutgers 10.

USC played their best game against their best opponent this year (Stanford). But that was in the Coliseum, and now USC must travel to Pullman to face an underrated Wazzu team. Washington St D-line with Mata’Afa, Oguayo, and Luvu will make life difficult at times for Sam Darnold. I see this game going down to the wire, making Wazzu plus the 4 the play, but put a gun to my head and I’d say USC finds a way to win another tough one. 

Big $ Checks in from Indianapolis before Browns v Colts

The Browns are road favorites for the first time since 2014. To mark the occasion, Big $ took the North Coast Posse Gremlin West on I-70 to watch the game at a bar close to Lucas Oil Field. The following report was filed on his cellphone from The Whistle Stop Inn two hours before kick off. 

The Browns enter a stretch of four games that look to be competitive. What has to go right to beat the Colts this weekend?

Big $ - "Competitive" is such a relative word in Browns land. If they play with the mental acumen of a codeine laced juggalo as they did this past week, they would not win the MAC east. It does not  take much to deflate the sheerest glimpses of optimism that we are afforded as Browns fans and the Ravens game left plenty of holes for air to escape, The only factor that I think would lead to a victory this Sunday is if the Colts commit more significant mistakes.

Corey Coleman is injured again and the ghost of T Pryor is looming larger by the minute. Has anybody figured out we paid Kenny Britt instead of TP?

Big $ - I have not combed through Kenny Quit's advanced stats, but I am assuming that  he must have some Joey Votto like sabre metrics going on to have pulled the wool over the money ball boys' eyes the way he did. When you have grand canyon sized space in your salary cap, you don't let the only playmaker on your offense walk, no matter how big of an S.O.B.  Drew Rosenhaus is.

Kizer left the game with a headache. Is this troubling?

Big $  I know that playing the role of "Mr. Football Guy" in today's P.C. world is very unpopular, but I am quite wary of a Rookie with much to prove taking a few quarters off for a migraine. I'm no doctor, but if a headache is severe enough to excuse yourself, MID GAME, from your $800,000 a year job quarterbacking the Browns offense, you should probably spend the rest of the day in a dark room.  I think there is room for concern in this case.

OK, it's time, who should Lebron start for this week?

Big $ -  Literally, I do not know if there is one current starter at any position on the Browns who i am confident would be better than Lebron

What are you eating right now?

Big $ - These breakfast nachos are pretty awesome though the syrup mixed with salsa takes some getting used too. I slipped in a couple Hilltop Lagers just to save some cash for the ride homw.

The Winter Olympics Are Coming In Less Than 150 Days - by Wal Ozello

The 2018 Winter Olympics are less than 150 days away. Pencilstorm Contributor Wal Ozello will be providing on-going coverage leading up to the Olympics helping you prepare for what to watch for. 

The Winter Olympics is coming in 2018 and while it seems far on the horizon there are stories playing out today that will have a bigger impact than who are Jon Snow’s real parents. Here are the Top Three stories to pay attention to today.

Location, Location, Location…
The 2018 Winter Olympics are in Pyeongchang. When you search for that on Google Maps you’ll find it in South Korea with the Pyeongchang Olympic Stadium about 55 miles from North Korea.  The Opening and Closing Ceremonies will be as closer to North Korea than Mansfield is to Columbus. For those of you living under a rock for the past year, the relationship between North and South Korea, let alone the rest of the world, has been less than ideal. Earlier this year, South Korea reached out to its northern neighbor for some Olympic partnership that only sports can create.  They proposed a joint North-South Korea women’s hockey team and offered to host some of the ski competition at a new North Korean ski resort.  North Korea declined both offers. Since then, North Korea has been testing several intercontinental ballistic missiles and the U.S. and South Korea just finished joint bombing drills… in Gangwon Providence - which Pyeongchang County resides in.  Then at the UN on Tuesday, President Trump declared that, “If it is forced to defend itself or its allies, we will have no choice but to totally destroy North Korea.” Whoa. Khrushchev must be have looked down on that and said, "I just banged my shoe on that table, you sir, just drove head first into the deep end of the crazy pool."  All-in-all, this is much deeper argument than new Metallica vs. old Metallica. Keep an eye out folks, this story isn’t over, yet.

Falling Down The Mountain
Lindsey Vonn and potentially Bode Miller will be returning to compete in the Olympics. Lindsey is the one of the most successful women American skiers with Olympic medals, World Championship medals and World Cup titles.  She’ll be 33 in South Korea and this Olympics could be her last.  While most thought Sochi would be Bode’s last Olympics, rumor is that he’s planning to compete in Pyeongchang at age 40.  He’s the most decorated Olympic Athlete in alpine history and chances are he’s looking to solidify that position.  But those aren’t the name to look for… watch for Mikaela Shiffrin. She’s reigning Overall World Cup champion and the reigning Olympic and World Champion in slalom. Back in 2011 she became the U.S. Champion in Slalom… at age 16. Mikaela won her first World Cup event at age 17. The following year she won Gold in Sochi, becoming the youngest slalom champion in Olympic History. Since then, she’s won two World Championship gold medals, three World Cup slalom titles, and 24 career wins. Mikaela will do for the Olympic Alpine Skiing what Wonder Woman did for the Summer Blockbuster Movies… kick everyone else’s ass.  Here’s an impressive run for the 2017 World Championship where she beats her closest competitor by 1.64 seconds.

That "Other Team" Up North
Forget men's ice hockey during the Olympics.  It's a glorified all star game that lasts two weeks too long.  The real competition is in Women's Ice Hockey. They leave it all on the ice because they are competing at the highest level in their game and it's full contact guts and glory. The competition between the U.S. team and the Canadian team is fiercer than OSU vs. Michigan. While the U.S. team has won the World Championships the past four times and eight out of the last ten meetings, they haven't won Gold in the Olympics since 1998.  Who's beat them each time?  Canada.  They won gold in 2014, 2010, 2006 and 2002.  The last time the Canada held silver was the year U.S. got the gold - 1998.  The two teams will face each other at least four times before Pyeongchang, starting on October 25.  Keep a close eye on these showdowns.  While the U.S. has a great winning streak, I'm sure Canada's montra is going to be "The North Remembers."

And for those of you that don't think these girls can play, I can personally attest they can play hard.  A few years ago, I had the privileged of producing a profile of a High School Senior Goalie up in Duluth, Minnesota.  I stood on the ice as these girls skated a whirlwind around me.  It was just mind-blowing.  They want to prove they kick ass stronger than the Runaways wanted to prove they could rock with the best. Want to see some tough hits and and killer goals?  Check out this video below.

That's enough of a download for this week.  It's going to be a long winter ahead and I'll have more updates in the weeks to come.

Wal Ozello is a science fiction techno-thriller novelist and the author of Assignment 1989 ,  Revolution 1990, and Sacrifice 2086. When he's not writing or singing with the Columbus hairband, Armada, he can be found at the regulars table at Colin's Coffee.