Baver Answers Colin's Questions - Huskers Week

Catch Baver on the CD1025 Morning Show w/ Brian Phillips Friday Mornings at 7:40 am. and follow @baverbuckeyebag

Colin: Before talking Buckeyes, do you think Baker "Money" Mayfield would have planted that flag in Ohio Stadium if he knew Iowa State was going to do him the same way just once month later? How embarrassing was that and why did the Sooners defense that dominated the Bucks with ease give up so many points?

Baver: Yep….humiliating. 7 straight yrs with a loss to a double-digit dog. This time to a 31-point dog. That’s pretty hard to do. That wasn’t the same Baker Mayfield that carved up the Bucks. All those times he found open receivers after being chased by OSU D-linemen? Mayfield overlooked open receivers time and time against Iowa St. As for Sooner defense…similar story. It didn’t look anything like the defense that shut Ohio State down. The short passing game that the Bucks couldn’t get going? Iowa St feasted on OU with their short game. OU did have some key injuries on D, with Emmanuel Beal and Steven Parker missing good portions of the game….but come on, this was Iowa State for heaven’s sake.

Colin: Along those lines, with the improved Buckeye passing game, do you think we would beat the Sooners if the rematch were this week?

Baver: The Bucks probably would win a rematch. The OSU WRs sure look improved. We’ll probably be able to answer that question better after Penn State’s trip to the ‘Shoe in 2 wks.

Colin: Nobody is giving Nebraska any chance in this night game at Lincoln. Sounds like a classic trap game. Is there a scenario where the Huskers pull the upset?

Baver: Nebraska is a team that could probably beat Ohio St if a number of things went right for them. None of OSU’s last four opponents could say that. They got CB Chris Jones (meniscus tear) back for a bit against Wisconsin last Saturday, and he should play more against OSU. When healthy, he is the best defender the Huskers have. But if the Buckeyes let Tanner Lee beat them, God help them. Lee has thrown a league-high 10 picks, and is going to get harassed by Nick Bosa and company all night long. If they get Ohio State in a funk, this could be close, but I don’t think that happens. I like Ohio State 41-13, so I think you lay the 24 pts.

Colin: JT Barrett putting up some huge numbers. Is your confidence in him on the rise?

Baver: To an extent, but again, judgment day is October 28th against the Nits. Kevin Wilson is JT’s 3rd O-coordinator that he has played for. It looks like things are now starting to click a bit, and JT’s got some of his confidence back. Barrett doesn’t throw many picks, and is such an effective runner. And you’d see a big downgrade in those two areas if Haskins were running the show right now. But JT has not played well in big games as of late, and Penn State still looms.

Colin: Is Michigan's offense beyond repair and why hasn't Jim Harbaugh been able to recruit a stud QB?

Baver: That’s a pretty bad offense, isn’t it? Of course, bad play calling, and a minus-5 turnover ratio against Sparty didn’t help matters last Saturday. What is it with Jimmy continuing to throw the ball when he doesn’t need to in big games? It absolutely killed them against Ohio St last year and against Sparty last week. But I wouldn’t necessarily write UM off just yet. As for QB’s, they’ve signed a top-10 QB in the last two classes (Brandon Peters in ’16, Phil Steele’s #8 QB nationally, and Dylan McCaffrey this yr, Steele’s #4 QB). They may turn to Peters at some point, but they are trying to redshirt McCaffrey. Peters is probably behind where UM thought he would be at this point.

Colin: Washington State cracks the top ten. Can they run the table in the Pac 10?

Baver: Maybe, but I doubt it. The Cougs of course have the big one against the Huskies to end the regular season, and that one is on the road. They also have to play at Stanford, and would likely have to probably beat USC again if they make the P12 title game. Still, this is a good Wazzu team, and even if they don’t win the league, they are not going to go quietly.

Colin: Give us an update on your picks to date and any other lines/games you will be keeping an eye on?

Baver: 13-6 against the spread….so good overall, but thought Urban would lay it on against UNLV, and take it a bit easier on two of his ex-assistants in Ash and Durkin…and OSU did the opposite. I like Utah catching 13 on the road at USC. USC has the look-ahead with a much-improved Notre Dame team on deck, while Utah is underrated year-in and year-out. I definitely like Auburn laying 7 on the road against LSU. This is simply not a good LSU team. And I gotta go with Tom Herman’s Longhorns getting 8 1/2 in the Red River Shootout.

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.