Despite loss, Ohio State should still be tournament bound

In case you missed it, Ohio State fell to Michigan State on Friday afternoon in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten tournament, 77-70. The game wasn’t as close as the final score indicates, and it was yet another tough loss against a very good Michigan State team for the Buckeyes.

That loss, however, shouldn’t cause too much concern for Buckeye fans about the team’s tournament bids, according to Cleveland dot com’s Stephen Means. A loss to one of the best teams in the country is understandable, and despite Ohio State’s less-than-stellar final record (19-14), the Buckeyes are almost certainly in the NCAA tournament, likely as one of the last few teams to avoid an early week trip to Dayton.

The Buckeyes also feel pretty good about their chances, per Adam Jardy.

Obviously, there’s not much else that a coach and team would say, but with yesterday’s win over fellow bubble team Indiana, the Buckeyes are more than likely correct in their confidence.

“Mike Klis of KUSA reports that the team has re-signed Jeff Heuerman. It’s a two-year deal with a value of $9 million”

- Josh Alper, Pro Football Talk

At least one Buckeye is staying put in this summer’s free agency. After an injury ended a promising start to last season for Heuerman, the Broncos have decided to run it back, and bring their starting tight end in for at least two more years, in what is essentially an extended prove it deal.

The biggest thing on this contract for Heuerman isn’t establishing his talent (we know he can play, as does the NFL), but proving that he can remain healthy. He’s struggled with injuries for much of his young NFL career. He broke his ribs in week ten last year, and tore his ACL prior to his rookie season back in 2015.

Buckeyes look to spread the word of handball team

Hey, did you know that there’s handball at Ohio State? Don’t worry if you didn’t, you’re not alone. It’s a rapidly growing sport in America, but one that still has quite a bit of explaining and marketing to do to prospective fans before it can garner the attention it wants. Enter Ohio State, and the founder of the team, JD Orr.

In an effort to spread the word a bit, and to show his team what handball can be and is in other countries, JD took the Buckeyes to Europe, and Kiel News wrote a lovely little piece about it (entirely in German mind you, so you may need a translator).

The piece has quite a bit of good stuff in it, including a concise description of what exactly you could expect from handball if you’re unaware of the sport:

“It’s like football without hands, water polo without water or lacrosse without horseback.”

Orr goes on to mention that handball is “fast, exciting and spectacular” just like some of America’s most popular sports, and that the key for getting more people to enjoy it is just introducing them to it.

If you’re interested in learning more about handball at Ohio State, you can follow the team on twitter, and maybe even watch a game, attached below.

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