Preseason predictions have Ohio State toppling Wisconsin for Big Ten crown

“The poll also had voters break down how teams would finish in their respective divisions. Ohio State received 34 of the 38 first-place votes in the East, while Wisconsin had 31 first-place votes in the West.”

— Stephen Pianovich breaks down the cleveland.com media poll that determined who the favorite was to win the Big Ten | Landof10.com

Since Urban Meyer took over as head coach of the OSU football team, the Buckeyes have been a force to be reckoned with in the Big Ten. This season, it seems that the trend will continue, as cleveland.com conducted a poll amongst media members to find out who would be the favorites to win the conference.

With 34 of the 38 first-place votes, Ohio State was selected by the media to be the eventual winners of the East Division of the Big Ten Conference; for the West Division, Wisconsin received 31 of the first-place votes.

The poll also favored the Buckeyes against the Badgers in the Big Ten Championship Game.

While OSU was the runaway favorite in the East Division, two other programs received first-place votes. Penn State received seven first-place votes; Michigan also received one vote for first-place in the East. On the other side of the table, Northwestern received five votes for first-place in the West Division. The other team to receive votes at the top of the West was Nebraska. While the Cornhuskers only had two votes for first, it’s still one more vote than what Michigan had in the East.

To see all the predictions, you can click here.

“Three Ohio State Buckeyes and all graduates of the university...have been named to Walter Camp player of the year watch list for 2017.”

— Ohio State spokesperson

Award watchlist season is well underway. Again, Ohio State football is dominating the lists on both the offensive and defensive sides. In a press release by an OSU spokesperson, three Buckeyes (J.T. Barrett, Billy Price and Tyquan Lewis) were named to the preseason list for the Walter Camp player of the year. This award is the fourth oldest award in college football, and is one of the most prestigious awards as well.

Last season, Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson took home the award. The last Buckeye to win the award was Troy Smith in 2006. Both Jackson and Smith won the Heisman Trophy in addition to the Walter Camp player of the year award.

Thirteen Buckeyes show up on preseason watchlists. Below is a table that shows each award and the Scarlet and Gray representative in the running:

There is still time for more Buckeyes to be named to watchlists. We’ll keep you posted when that information breaks.

“With Ohio State competing with Miami for the No. 1 recruiting class in the country for the 2018 cycle, there promises to be plenty of talent on display.”

— Tim May on Ohio State’s Friday Night Lights camp, which takes place tonight | The Columbus Dispatch

The time has come for Ohio State’s epic Friday Night Lights football camp. Some of the top talent on the high school circuit will descend upon Columbus, Ohio, and will show why they are considered one of the best athletes on the high school gridiron.

In the past, Buckeye targets have made a commitment at the event, so don’t be surprised if history repeats itself over the weekend. If a commitment does end up happening in Columbus, we’ll have you covered.

If you want to know who all is making the trek to Ohio Stadium, we’ve compiled a list in our Friday Night Lights primer.

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