OT: Buckeye JT Tuimoloau Returning

Absolutely.  I never thought Day would be on the hot seat for THIS year's game - Michigan was a title favorite going into the year and the Game was in Ann Arbor.  Michigan was favored.  Next year is their do-or-die year. 

Blasphemy. The day that Michigan sits players to rest up for the playoff or doesn't take the game seriously is when I start tuning out. College football is special because it isn't the NFL. The more we wore erode the traditions and culture that makes college unique, the less it matters. Pay the players, let them transfer? Of course. But the minute the OSU game is not a matter of life and death importance is when college football will truly jump the shark.

Agree. The game has always been The Game because you needed to win it to win the big 10 and have a shot at the national championship/Rose Bowl. With 18 teams in the BIG and a 12 team playoff, the game will lose some of its luster over time. At some point we'll meet OSU in the playoffs, and THAT will be something.

When your team's culture is 'come here to get paid, not go to class, and win easy games while waiting out your 3 year quarantine before the NFL' it absolutely makes no sense to come back when you're a first round pick. Granted that's my biased outside impression, lol.

It's a good sign that guys are coming back for OSU but this is still the team that looked ill-prepared to play Missouri and has for the last 3 years been pushed around by UM.  Michigan's guys came back because they were so close to winning a title last year; OSU hasn't been that close and while you can expect incremental improvement guys like JTT have underwhelmed compared to expectations in college.  

OSU should be, like they are most years, a favorite to win the national title.  But depending on what happens with Alabama I'm not sure they're better than the Tide or Georgia, and we'll see how teams like Texas, UM, Oregon, etc. look next year.  Bringing the band back together for one more run is great but the actual track record for those seasons isn't great; UM this year is more the exception than the rule.

Not so fast, my friend! It depends why they’re coming back. If it’s a team oriented national championship goal, that’s one thing; but if it’s more bag money, that isn’t the same.

As fun as it is to pile on OSU as a Michigan fan, not necessarily sure the culture is quite the tire fire my fellow Wolverines make it out to be; but Igbinosun doing the money thing to Will Johnson, indicating that was the main reason he went there and Harrison wearing designer cleats shows there’s a handful of guys that are decidedly less team oriented that can drag down a locker room. The center complaining about not getting enough NIL (kudos to Day benching him) and McCord’s father demanding he be handed the starting job also indicates some more team chemistry killers. Jeremiah Smith demanding money won’t help either. Nothing would tear a locker room apart faster than certain guys getting more than others and then starting to get frustrated over that.

Also if the rumors about the Ole Miss RB are true claiming that he left because he wasn’t getting enough NIL…yikes.

Were you around here to hear what happened during the 2020 season when we supposedly had internal conflict from Dylan McCaffrey and his father taking offense with Harbaugh and there being schism over that? If a little bit of conflict can cause that dumpster fire of a season, imagine what multiple stars and their families quarreling with staff might do.

OSU needs to get their guys focused and elevate a team first culture if they want success. Worked for Washington and worked for Michigan.

Yes, OSU sucks.

I mean, your own coach did say a little while back (maybe last year?) that he needed $13M to keep his class together.  So it stands to reason that maybe he got the $13M he requested.  Also, your draft eligible guys are often 5*/1st round players, so they are foregoing big money to come back.  Usually that means they are getting big money to come back.

But generally speaking, returning talent is a positive thing, so OSU should be happy.  JTT often seemed a little underwhelming (unless you try to beat him in open space), but another year might make him more well-rounded.

OSU will return most of a really good defense.  And so will Michigan.

For osu it’s all about how good will Howard is and how good that o line plays. If those don’t pan out it won’t matter for the rest.

I honestly don't know if culture has anything to do with either team. Sometimes guys just enjoy the college experience and being "the man" on campus.

Now, with NIL, more players don't feel the need to jump to the NFL so they can stay and enjoy college. Throw in no gold pants and no NC and it's easy to see why JT would want to return. 

I think it's good for the sport when players stick around for their senior year. 

You can’t replicate what  this Michigan team had. They can try just like they tried to be tough but it probably won’t work