Drew Thurman (12:31 pm)

After a few weeks of slow news on the recruiting front, Sunday started what has been an exciting week. That day Dominic Clarke (Frederick, MD) committed to the Buckeyes, and showed that the Buckeyes are making a big effort to load up the secondary. He joined C.J. Barnett and Jamie Wood as secondary recruits in the 2009 class.

Clarke's commitment was big for several reasons. First of all, he replaces Darrell Givens that the Buckeyes lost to Penn State. The second reason is because he provides a ton of speed. His critics complain that he is not big enough, but what he lacks in size he makes up for in speed (4.4 second forty). Clarke was a very nice pick up for the Buckeyes. (Check out his video below)

Then yesterday the Buckeyes added Adam Bellamy (DL - 6-4 275) from Aurora, Ohio. Bellamy adds to an already great defensive line class with John Simon and Melvin Fellows. Bellamy's film is pretty impressive, and he seems to always know where the ball is at. I personally think Bellamy will a blue collar lineman, and will get it done in the trenches for the Buckeyes.

So with these two commitments this week, the Buckeyes are up to 17 in the 2009 class. So who is next? Well I am not totally sure, but they need to jump on the bandwagon fast. This class is shrinking quickly, and there are a lot of really talented players left out there. The scholarship count does worry me a bit right now, and we will have to see how things play out in the coming weeks.   

Drew Thurman (6:13 pm)

I have noticed an alarming trend among Buckeye fans over the last several months. This problem finds its roots at the importance placed on preseason polls. Hit up the boards and you will know exactly what I am talking about. Almost any forum on any Buckeye website has had fans complaining about the fact that the Buckeyes are not preseason number one. It goes deeper than that though.

I have also seen a growing number of Buckeye talking about who we might play in the National Championship Game. I keep asking myself, "Are we crazy?" Did anyone else watch the Illinois game last year? The Buckeyes are not invincible! Besides USC, the Buckeyes have two very difficult games at Wisconsin and Illinois. All of this is even assuming the Buckeyes do not have a hiccup against someone else. Oh, did I mention USC in week three?

I am not trying to be a pessimist, but I think we are putting too much pressure on this team. I am not saying not to expect excellence or even hope for it, but I think our focus is blurred based off our dominance the last few years. We have been very spoiled as fans, and to expect our team to walk through the Big Ten every year is pretty unrealistic.

So what am I rooting for? Well, I am pulling for a National Championship just like everyone. It starts in week one with Youngstown State though. It's time this team does not just assume its headed to the big game, and starts getting a chip on its shoulder. With the media beating down on the Buckeyes and the Big Ten, they need to come out and play with a vengeance. Who cares about preseason polls or hype! Who cares about who we might play in the National Championship Game! This team has a lot to prove before we talk about those things.

Drew Thurman (10:49 am)

The Silver Bullet would like to announce that our blog is now also being syndicated on the Bleacher Report. The Bleacher Report is another great venue for our articles to be read. If you are wanting to find our articles over there it best to find them under the Ohio State football, recruiting, or college football subheadings. Please enjoy!

Dave & Drew Thurman (2:40 pm)

Over the past 4 years Ohio State has lost a few prospects that have been close to being committed. Here is an update on where they are, and how they have performed.

Major Wright- Started 7 games as a true freshmen at free safety for Florida. He recorded 67 tackles, which made him third in tackles on the team.

Ben Martin- Had 7 tackles as a true freshmen for Tennessee. He has a chance to start for them at defensive end this next season.

Rico McCoy- Had 106 tackles last year as a sophomore for Tennessee at linebacker. He was also a 2nd Team All-SEC performer.

Joseph Barksdale- As a true freshmen he played in 11 games at LSU. He is expected to be a starter this next season at right tackle.

AJ Wallace- Wallace just finished his sophomore campaign at Penn State. Last year he started in 4 games and recorded 33 tackles on the season. As a kick returner he had 22 returns for 581 yards (26.4 avg.) and a touchdown. He is expected to be a starter at corner this next season. 

Kyle Jefferson- Started in 7 games as a true freshmen at Wisconsin. He recorded 26 catches for 412 yards and 2 touchdowns at wideout.

Mike Massey- Massey is getting ready to enter his senior season at Michigan. Last season as a second string tight end he recorded 4 catches for 38 yards.

Jeff Cumberland- In his first two seasons at Illinois, Cumberland has started in 8 games at wideout. Last season he had 12 catches for 243 yards and 3 touchdowns.

Javon Ringer- Ringer enters his senior season with Michigan State this next season. As a junior last year he recorded 245 carries for 1484 yards and 6 touchdowns.

Tyrell Sutton- Sutton enters his senior campaign at Northwestern after being hurt for a big portion of last year. In three years he has 2996 rushing yards, and has also recorded 114 catches.

Brandon Braxton- Braxton enters his senior season for Oklahoma. He has started 17 games over the last three years at offensive tackle, but has battled injuries.

Leonard Hankerson- Started in 2 games last season at wideout for Miami, and recorded just 6 catches. He is expected to start this next season. 

Nick Claytor- Claytor (OT) redshirted last year at Georgia Tech. He is not expected to start this next year for the Yellow Jackets. 

Broderick Green- Green redshirted last year at USC. He is listed at 3rd or 4th string on the depth chart at running back this next season.

Kristofer O'Dowd- Started in 3 games as a true freshmen at center for USC. Expected to be the starting center for the Trojans this next season. 

Ronald Johnson- Johnson was a true freshmen for USC this last year, and had 7 catches for 110 yards and a touchdown. He also had 25 kick returns for 625 yards with a 24.8 average.  

Rob Gronkowski- Started as a true freshmen at tight end for Arizona. He had 25 catches for 525 yards and 6 touchdowns.

Conredge Collins- Collins enters his senior season at Pittsburgh, and he has had 16 starts at fullback over the last three seasons. Over those three seasons has recorded 251 rushing yards.

Anthony Davis (Pictured)- As a true freshmen he started in 8 games at Rutgers, and was a First Team Freshmen All-American. He is expected to be the starter at left tackle this year for the Scarlet Knights.

Josh Chichester- Has yet to see the field for the Louisville Cardinals. He went to prep school, and then redshirted last season.

Kyle McCarthy- In 2 years at Notre Dame he has started in just one game. Last year he recorded 20 tackles for the Fighting Irish. He has a chance to be the starter at strong safety this next season.

Robert Hughes- As a true freshmen last year he started in 1 game for Notre Dame at running back. On the season he recorded 294 yards and 4 touchdowns. He is fighting for the starting job with James Aldridge and Armando Allen.

Drew Thurman (1:51 pm)

I recently had an interesting conversation with several Buckeye fans. The main question that was brought up was, "are we really that deep at running back after Beanie?" The conversation was not directed at criticizing the backup running backs, but instead taking an honest look at the position. So let's take a look...

Brandon Saine
Brandon Saine is a very interesting conversation. Saine started with spark last season, and looked to have a bright future as a starting running back for the Bucks. After his injury though, Saine really never seemed to get back in stride. With that said, Saine did show some serious skills in the spilt back formation with Beanie. He had some nice receptions in the National Championship Game, and I hope to see that formation more this next season.

My only concern is that Saine has not shown that he can be an every down back that can pound the ball inside. I see Saine more as an outside runner, but others do disagree with me. I was reminded that this was the same criticism of Pittman in his early years at Ohio State. So watching Saine this season could help with a lot of the questions that surround him. The potential is obviously there, and I will be pulling for him.

Maurice Wells
Maurice Wells enters into his senior season with a lot to prove. Wells has never really turned into the player many had hoped, and he is surrounded by critics. I have always liked Wells' work ethic, but the results have never really been there. Many have already written off Wells for the 08-09 season, and they could very well be right. Last year he only averaged 3.6 yards, and had 3 touchdowns. With Saine getting more carries this next season, Wells well probably have to bring up the YPC to have a successful senior campaign.

Boom Herron
After redshirting last season, Herron seems to be a forgotten man. I was impressed though when watching him at the spring game. I had already heard positive things about Herron from the spring practices, and he did not disappoint in the spring game. Herron has a tough running style for his size, and I like that he does not dance. Herron obviously has several bodies in front of him, but I think he may be a major contributing factor for the Buckeyes next season.

Conclusion
So I guess you can decide for yourself. I personally think we have plenty behind Beanie in 08-09, and for the future. I did not even throw in Lamaar Thomas who has a chance to play running back for the Bucks. I did list him as a wideout, but seeing him in the US Army All-American Game made me realize that he looked tough in the backfield with Pryor. So that gives us the possibility of Saine, Herron, and Thomas in the future. Throw in some guys like Jordan Hall or Jamaal Berry and you have a very bright future at running back!

Drew Thurman (10:22 pm)

1)Gene Menez of Sports Illustrated has listed Beanie Wells as the man to beat for the 2008 Heisman. Beanie seems to be getting all the hype, even over Tim Tebow.

2)If you watched the Reds yesterday you got to see Ryan Freel doing something amazing. He lost his bat and actually hit a beer vendor. It was a pretty incredible play. You can also go to reds.com to check out the video.

3)CBS has released the Bowl schedule for 2008-09. I was bummed to see that Fox has coverage of most the major bowls including the National Championship Game. They did a terrible job last year, and I hope they get some better announcers this year!

Drew Thurman (9:47 pm)

A few days ago I read some interesting comments from Tommy Tuberville over on AOL Fanhouse.He said this:

In advocating a playoff, Tuberville pointed to Ohio State losing by a wide margin in consecutive national championship games by SEC teams. "Ohio State would have finished fifth in our league and they're ranked No. 1 in the preseason poll," Tuberville said.

I was actually suprised that Tuberville made these comments. I always thought Tuberville was a classy coach, and I was pretty disappointed. I understand he is upset that the BCS has refused the playoff system, but there is no reason to attack Ohio State.

Tuberville needs to stick to coaching. Instead of attacking a team he can't play, he should be focusing on the teams that he been beating him in his own conference. Maybe then Auburn will finish better than fifth in the SEC themselves.