Ohio State’s Chris Holtmann might have a natural rival with Indiana’s Archie Miller

“I’m gonna leave that to fans of both programs. My responsibility is to coach these guys as well as I can. I try not to worry about any other program, or compare myself to what anybody else is doing, or how they’re doing. There are three new coaches in the league this year. So to some degree you recognize that there’s always gonna be some comparison when you have three new coaches: How are they doing? What’s their year shaped up like? I’m sure that will continue in the years to come.”

- Chris Holtmann via Bill Landis, Cleveland.com

A new rivalry may be brewing in Columbus. The men’s basketball team plays against Indiana tonight, which has always been a case for a good game. But it has a little more meaning this season and for future seasons, too. Holtmann hails from Butler as his previous destination while Archie Miller, the Hoosiers’ head coach, was previously at Dayton. On top of that, Miller was a fan favorite pick to replace Thad Matta as the Buckeyes’ head coach. Of course, timing didn’t help out Ohio State and Miller ended up at Indiana in a move that had many Hoosiers fans excited.

Nearly to the end of the season now, Ohio State is sitting among the top shelf of Big Ten teams while the Hoosiers are sitting around .500. With all the turnover in the coaching staffs across the Big Ten, there’s a chance for new blood in terms of rivalry and Holtmann and Miller could start one over the course of the next few seasons,

“Ohio State hasn’t announced how it will replace Coombs, but the room will change. One question is whether the new coach will rotate corners the way Coombs has for the last few years, basically using three starters for his two starting spots.”

- Doug Lesmerises, Cleveland.com

The Ohio State secondary was very solid last season for the Buckeyes, helping them reach the Cotton Bowl and securing a big win over USC. With Denzel Ward moving on to the NFL, Doug Lesmerises took a look at what the cornerback situation will be for Ohio State next season. The result seemed to be looking at Kendall Sheffield and Jeffrey Okudah as the starting cornerbacks with Damon Arnette also rotating in. There’s also the matter of Kerry Coombs leaving the program to join Mike Vrabel’s staff in the NFL.

Coombs was big on rotating a lot of the secondary based off offensive formations and certain players being on wide receivers, etc. The next in line for Coomb’s position might have a different philosophy which could certainly impact how the starting spots are filled. Regardless, it seems a safe bet to have Okudah and Sheffield in the starting lineup due to their performances at the end of the season. Sheffield improved a lot over the course of the year while Okudah showed up in the Cotton Bowl and filled big shoes left by Ward.

“Michigan has been dreadful on the offensive line for a few years, an issue that hasn’t resolved itself as expected by Jim Harbaugh trying to turn the Wolverines into more of a smash-mouth, physical team in his image. ”

- Austin Ward, Land of 10

With the recent hiring of Ed Warriner by Michigan, some have to wonder if that will finally give the Wolverines a slight edge over Ohio State. Urban Meyer has yet to lose to Jim Harbaugh, but now Harbaugh has taken a former member of Meyer’s staff under his wing. Warriner spent the past season with Minnesota and is well known for his ability to get offensive line talent playing to their potential. At Ohio State, Warriner helped shape Corey Linsley, Jack Mewhort, Andrew Norwell, and Taylor Decker into NFL blockers.

Whether or not he’s able to do the same at Michigan, it’s hard to imagine Warriner being the key to defeating the Buckeyes next season, especially considering the defensive line talent that Ohio State brings back. Nick Bosa, Dre’Mont Jones, and a host of other defensive lineman talent should keep the Wolverines’ offensive line busy for much of the afternoon.

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