Ohio State and Georgia agree to a home-and-home football series

It’s possible both these programs could meet in the College Football Playoff before 2030, but Ohio State and Georgia have agreed to a home-and-home football series, with Ohio State visiting Georgia in 2030, and the Buckeyes hosting the Bulldogs in 2031. Ohio State and Georgia were originally supposed to meet in the regular season in the 2020 and 2021 seasons, but the Ohio State cancelled the series because of the Big Ten’s agreement at the time with the Pac-12 that called for 12 non-conference games per year between the two conferences. That agreement has since been called off.

Ohio State and Georgia have met just once on the football field, with Georgia earning a 21-14 victory over the Buckeyes in the 1993 Florida Citrus Bowl. If schedules hold, the 2030 meeting with the Bulldogs will mark the first time Ohio State has played a team from the SEC since 1987 when the Buckeyes traveled to LSU, where the teams tied 13-13 in Baton Rouge. When LSU visited Columbus in 1988, the Buckeyes edged the Tigers 36-33.

The addition of the Georgia home-and-home to Ohio State’s future schedules gives the Buckeyes four other home-and-home series in the future with Power 5 schools. Ohio State will take on Oregon in 2020 and 2021, Notre Dame in 2022 and 2023, Washington in 2024 and 2025, and Texas in 2025 and 2026. With plenty of high-profile matchups with teams over the next decade, it truly is a great time to be an Ohio State fan.

“I don’t think the weather does much. We have so many things on the sideline that we didn’t have in high school, like heated benches, stuff like that, so I don’t think it’ll be a huge factor.”

- Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields via Joey Kaufman, The Columbus Dispatch

Justin Fields has had things pretty easy so far as Ohio State quarterback. Up until Ohio State’s last game against Wisconsin, Fields had played in good weather, and wasn’t hit all that much. The Buckeyes and Badgers played in a rainstorm a couple weeks ago, but that didn’t do much to slow down Fields in Ohio State’s 38-7 win over Wisconsin.

Now after a week off to gear up for the last month of the regular season, Ohio State will get back to work on Saturday, hosting Maryland at noon at Ohio Stadium. The skies look clear for the Buckeyes and Terrapins, but the high temperature is likely only to get into the mid-40s. For Fields that will be a bit of a change from what he’s used to, as he grew up in the Atlanta area, and spent his first year of college at Georgia.

Despite the weather conditions worsening as the season goes on, Fields isn’t too concerned about something Ohio State can’t control. Fields has played in some games where the temperatures were below 30 before, so he has had some experience with cold weather football. Fields also knows Ohio State will have plenty of heating technology on the sidelines to keep their quarterback and the rest of the team comfortable. If Fields is able to improve on his performance against Wisconsin, where he didn’t turn the football over in sloppy conditions, it’s hard to think there is much out there that can rattle the sophomore quarterback.

“There’s a sliding scale, but right now I feel 10 out of 10. [The off date] did come at a good time for me. Wisconsin wasn’t my best game ... so the second bye week was really good for us. I feel healthy, but I felt hesitant a little bit, didn’t feel like I was up to my potential.”

- Ohio State offensive tackle Thayer Munford via Austin Ward, Letterman Row

With the way the Ohio State offense has moved lately, it’s hard to believe that offensive tackle Thayer Munford was injured. The Buckeyes have been racking up the yardage and points all year long, winning by at least 24 points in each of their eight games this season. The offense is about to get even scarier, since Munford says Ohio State’s most recent bye week helped him get back to feeling like his normal self.

It all started as Ohio State was heading into the Northwestern game, when Munford was dealing with an injured ankle. While he was able to play against Northwestern and Wisconsin, Munford admits that he wasn’t quite his normal self. Sitting out against Wisconsin wasn’t an option for Munford, as backup Josh Alabi was also injured, and if Munford couldn’t play it would have left redshirt freshman Nicholas Petit-Frere to try and slow down the Wisconsin defense.

Now that Munford had last week off to get some extra time in the training room, the tackle isn’t expecting the ankle to be an issue going forward. Ohio State can be cautious the next couple weeks with Maryland and Rutgers on the schedule, but the Buckeyes are going to need the anchor of their offensive line to be at full strength towards the end of the month, when Ohio State has to play Penn State, Michigan, and possibly in the Big Ten Championship Game.

“That’s always been my dream. I grew up watching Hayley Wickenheiser and Marie-Philip Poulin, and I think those players have inspired me to be where they are.”

- Ohio State women’s hockey forward Emma Maltais on being invited to play for the Canadian National Women’s Team via Randall Miller, The Lantern

This weekend’s two-game series on the ice between the United States and Canada will have a little Buckeye flavor, as junior forward Emma Maltais has been invited to play for the Canadian National Women’s Team. The neighboring countries will square off on Friday and Sunday.

Maltais grew up in Toronto and actually played for Canada’s under-18 team, where she was coached by Nadine Muzerall, who is currently Ohio State’s head coach. Since coming to Columbus, Maltais has been a force, leading the Buckeyes in both of her full seasons with the team, and she is currently leading Ohio State in points through 12 games this year. Maltais was named conference Rookie of the Year two years ago, and has twice been named first team All-WCHA.

While it remains to be seen if Maltais will be able to earn a permanent spot on Canada’s roster, she certainly is on the right path. Not only is Maltais leading on the ice, but she is doing everything she can to lead off the ice as well, asking teammates to reflect on the performances after games and how they can make each other better. Making the Canadian Women’s National Team takes plenty of work, but there’s no doubt that Maltais will do everything she can to make herself a fixture on the squad going forward.

STICK TO SPORTS

• Swenson’s could be opening up their fifth location in Central Ohio in Clintonville, which would be the first inside I-270.
• FlixBus is set to launch in Columbus next week with service to Pittsburgh and Washington D.C.
• The Ohio Collegiate Overwatch Invitational will take place in Hilliard on Sunday, with eight Ohio teams vying for $3,000 in prize money.
• Some people received text messages overnight that were originally sent on or around Valentine’s Day.
• Coca-Cola will be releasing a seltzer named “AHA” in March, marking their biggest product release in a decade.