COLUMBUS (AP) — What’s brewing today with the 2008 Ohio State Buckeyes ...
n BUCKEYES BUZZ — Meeting with reporters in person for the first time since Saturday night’s 13-6 loss to Penn State, coach Jim Tressel said Thursday he could not foresee giving up control of offensive play-calling.
Tressel said he was not interested in bringing in a young, innovative offensive guru. He said it was better to have the players, assistants and himself decide on plays as the game unfolded.
He said offensive masterminds usually don’t last long in the business of college coaching.
“I’ve read about those guys that have shredders in their office, because they’re a genius and they don’t want anyone to ever see (their plays),” he said.
Tressel said he doesn’t often bump into them, either.
“I haven’t met one and most of them I’ve read about are either selling insurance or commentating,” he said.
n GUY GUY — A.J. Trapasso was announced Thursday as one of the 10 semifinalists for the 2008 Ray Guy Award, which goes to the nation’s top collegiate punter.
From a list of 53 nominees, the semifinalists won out based on net average, percentage of punts inside the 20-yard line, average return yardage and percentage not returned.
The award honors Guy, the first punter inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame and a legendary weapon for the Oakland Raiders from 1973-86.
Cincinnati’s Kevin Huber, Iowa’s Ryan Donahue and Michigan’s Zoltan Mesko join Trapasso as semifinalists.
Trapasso is averaging 42.3 yards per kick, has placed 12 inside the 20 and has had five result in touchbacks.
n NOT DOWN — Ohio State has more than 40 fourth- and fifth-year seniors on its roster this season. As many as 13 considered turning pro last year after the national championship loss to Louisiana State but elected to stick around for another season.
Tressel said those players are not crushed by Saturday’s loss and do not feel as though they wasted the year — even though it seems unlikely they can win another Big Ten title and make it back to a third straight BCS title game.
“The good news is that they came back for a lot of reasons,” he said. “Shoot, if you’re not interested in those kind of things (championships), then your heart’s not beating. But if that’s all you’re interested in, then you’re probably in low morale. Fortunately, those guys came back for probably 98 percent of reasons that had nothing to do with that.”
He added, “At least the way they practiced (Wednesday), unless they’re the greatest actors I’ve ever seen, their morale is simply that they want to get better and they want Ohio State to do well.
n TRESSELESE — Tressel, asked if he would consider staff changes: “I think you always, if you’re willing to try to decide which players are in the right position, you certainly better be willing to consider which coaches are in the right position and are you doing the right things. That has to be the beginning of all your thinking. Are you doing the schemes that your players are capable of doing and are you teaching them? And then are you utilizing them at the right times? I know that’s a hard one too, because, one moment you might think it is and the next moment, well, I didn’t know they were blitzing.”
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Buckeye Periscope:
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Lakers make it four in a row
Amid a sea of pink and a blaze of red all over the court defensively, the Pymatuning Valley Lakers accomplished something many thought they couldn’t at the beginning of the season: Win the Northeastern Athletic Conference championship.
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Scholastic Schedule:
FRIDAY, FEB. 3
Boys Basketball
n Jefferson at Lakeview
n US at Geneva
n Lakeside at Riverside
n PV at Badger
n Mathews at Grand Valley
n Madison at North
n Andrews at Edgewood
n Perry at Chagrin Falls
n Lake Ridge Academy at Grand River Academy -
An appreciation for the past
In 1958, a mere 54 years ago, the Grand Valley High School and Ashtabula County boys basketball career scoring record belonged to Jim Dodd. The ACBF hall of famer scored 1,377 points in his career as a leading post player for the Mustangs.
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ALL-TIME ASHTABULA COUNTY BOYS BASKETBALL SCORING LEADERS:
- RK. PLAYER SCHOOL YEARS POINTS
- 1. A.J. HENSON GRAND VALLEY ’09-'12 1,531
- 2. Matt Zappitelli Conneaut ’85-’88 1,454
- 3. Steve Savel Pymatuning Valley ’05-’08 1,440
- 4. Jim Dodd Grand Valley ’55-’58 1,377
- 5. Adam Schumann Edgewood ’99-’02 1,341
- 6. Frank Zeman Deming ’52-’54 1,338
- 7. Sean Freeman Pymatuning Valley ’87-’90 1,301
- 8. Corey Shontz Pymatuning Valley ’05-’08 1,292
- 9. Fred Scruggs Harbor ’86-’89 1,248
- 10. Randy Linsted Pymatuning Valley ’73-’76 1,223
- 11. Emilio Parks Lakeside ’08-’10 1,221
- 12. Jemal Harris Harbor ’90-’93 1,214
- 13. Chuck Naso Jefferson ’54-’56 1,210
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Geneva doesn’t miss a beat
A team that knocks down half of its shots and takes care of the basketball is awfully difficult to beat. For a half, that’s exactly the kind of team Geneva was in downing Premier Athletic Conference rival Lakeside, 50-32, Wednesday night at Lakeside Gymnasium.
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Abbie answers call
When the game is on the line — no pun intended — it’s nice to have the ball in the hands of the area’s leading free-throw shooter.
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Maplewood too much for GV
The Maplewood girls basketball team has been a traditional power in northern Trumbull County while Grand Valley has struggled in recent seasons.
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Scholastic Statistics:
GIRLS BASKETBALL
PREMIER
Geneva 50, Lakeside 32
at Lakeside Gymnasium -
Area High School Boys Basketball Statistical Leaders:
INDIVIDUAL
POINTS PER GAME
1. Harry Story Lakeside 26.1
2. Cody Blizzard Lakeside 22.4
3. A.J. Henson Grand Valley 19.7
4. Tim Cross PV 17.7
5. Stephon Ortiz Madison 17.2
5. Quintin Ratliff PV 17.2
7. Mitchell Lake Grand Valley 16.3 -
Dibble can’t save Falcons
Gia Dibble scored a game-high 17 points, including a 3-pointer, but the Jefferson seventh-grade girls came up just short against visiting LaBrae on Wednesday, 25-21.
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Lakers make it four in a row
