As reported yesterday here on BuckeyeBanter.com and elsewhere on the World Wide Web, reserve cornerback Eugene Clifford has been suspended for the BCS national title game, but starting cornerback Donald Washington is not suspended pending an appeal.

The Buckeyes last practice before the Christmas holiday was on Wednesday, and the team will not meet back at the Woody Hayes Athletic Facility until Dec. 26, giving the team a week off before they prepare to play LSU on Jan. 7.

On the official site of Ohio State athletics, www.ohiostatebuckeyes.com, there was a brief press release stating that Clifford was suspended for breaking an unspecified team rule, but it made no mention of Washington.

It may be another week before we learn the status of Washington for the title game.

But could it have been that the press let the “cat out of the bag” too soon before head coach Jim Tressel and athletic director Gene Smith received all of the facts? What team rules were broken? It seems a little fishy that now all of a sudden that Clifford, who mainly played on special teams for only four games is suspended, yet Washington is able to appeal.

Clearly, Washington is far more valuable than Clifford is, and losing Washington would alter Ohio State’s defensive game plan, who has become one of the better cornerbacks in the Big Ten this season.

by Matt Barker
December 20, 2007

The Columbus Dispatch is reporting that starting cornerback Donald Washington and reserve cornerback Eugene Clifford have been suspended from the team, according to sources close to the program.

In the report, beat writers Ken Gordon and Tim May stated that both broke teams rules, but they didn’t specify which one(s).

WCMH-TV 4 in Columbus is also reporting that “athletic director Gene Smith declined Thursday to confirm the suspensions and said there was ‘work to be done’ before he could confirm them.

Washington, a sophomore, had 34 total tackles with 26 solos, of which two were tackles for loss, an interception, and a fumble recovery while starting all 12 games this season.

Clifford, a true freshman, played in four games and recorded eight tackles, three of which were solos.

The latest depth chart published on Nov. 25 lists Clifford as the back-up to starting boundary corner Malcolm Jenkins. Listed third at BC is sophomore Andre Amos.

Second on the depth chart at field corner behind Washington is Chimdi Chekwa, a redshirt freshman who totaled 29 tackles, 26 solos, while primarily playing in nickel coverage.

Others who might see extended playing time are Jamario O’Neal and Aaron Gant.

Tags: Football by Matt Barker, Publisher & Editor of BuckeyeBanter.com
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The Ohio State Buckeyes (7-3) will once again square off against the Florida Gators on the hardwood, Saturday afternoon. Tip-off at Value City Arena is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. ET, and the game will be televised on CBS (WBNS-10 TV in Columbus.)

The Buckeyes took on the Gators twice last season, one of which included the national championship game at the Georgia Dome, where Florida won 84-75.

And for those hoping that this season’s game will be a rematch of last year’s battle in Atlanta, think again.

Eight players from both teams were selected in the two rounds of the NBA Draft held last June. Greg Oden (1st), Al Horford (3rd), Mike Conley Jr. (4th), Corey Brewer (7th), Joakim Noah (9th), Daequan Cook (21st), Chris Richard (41st), and Taurean Green (52nd) are gone.

Also gone from last year’s title game were seniors with Ohio State’s Ron Lewis and Ivan Harris, plus Florida’s Lee Humphrey.

While Ohio State head coach Thad Matta did return one starter from the 2007 championship game, point guard Jamar Butler, Matta’s counterpart, Billy Donovan, does not have that luxury against the Buckeyes.

All five of his starters against on Ohio State are getting their first chance to have their names heard during pregame introductions with two freshman, two sophomore, and a junior in the line-up.

Florida’s top returning starter is combo guard Walter Hodge, who averaged just 5.7 points per game last year, and is the only upperclassman in the starting five.

Hodge, a 6-foot junior, is averaging 9.8 points and 2.8 assists per ball game this season.

Leading the way is freshman Nick Calathes, a 6-foot-6 swingman, who tops the Gators in both points (15.8 ppg) and assists (5.5 apg) on average.

Second on the team in scoring and third in rebounding is 6-foot-10 post player Marreese Speights, who is averaging 13.5 points and 7.4 caroms per contest.

Leading the team in rebounding is 6-foot-7 sophomore forward Dan Werner, who is pulling down 7.5 boards and pouring in 7.7 points per game.

Rounding out the starting five is Hodge’s backcourt mate, 5-foot-11 guard Jai Lucas, who generally runs the point. Lucas averages 9.4 points per outing.

The first sub off the bench is 6-foot-9 freshman forward Chandler Parsons, who normally replaces Lucas in the line-up, which shifts Hodge over to point guard. Parsons is averaging 10.6 points per game.

Florida has yet to play a ranked team this season, and their lone loss came to in-state rival Florida State, as the Seminoles down the Gators 65-51 at the O’Connell Center in Gainesville on Nov. 25.

Florida cracked the Associated Press Top 25 college basketball poll the week before the Florida State game at No. 25, then fell out of the rankings following the loss to the Seminoles.

Since that loss, Florida has reeled off six-straight wins, but against far lesser opponents. The Gators had to rally to beat Georgia Southern on Dec. 15, as the Eagles led 36-29 with about 14 minutes remaining. Florida ended up winning 52-49 in Jacksonville.

At the 10-game mark last year, the Buckeyes sported a record of 9-1, though Ohio State has had a more difficult schedule this season after facing four ranked teams.

Up next, Ohio State will host Maryland-Baltimore County on Saturday, December 29. Tip-off is scheduled for the ungodly hour of 11 a.m. ET, and it will be televised on the Big Ten Network.

Tags: Men's Basketball by Matt Barker, Publisher & Editor of BuckeyeBanter.com
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In one of their better outings of the season, the Ohio State Buckeyes defeated the Cleveland State Vikings 80-63 at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Tuesday night.

Five Buckeyes scored in double figures with freshman guard Jon Diebler coming off the bench to lead Ohio State with 17 points.

It was a homecoming of sorts for several Buckeyes at The “Q” including sophomore guard David Lighty, who scored 15 points to go along with eight assists. Lighty attended Cleveland’s Villa Angela-St. Joseph High School.

The Buckeyes jumped put to a 17-3 advantage after a steal and a long pass by Lighty resulted in a layup for Diebler with 13:51 remaining in the opening frame.

Ohio State held a double-digit lead for almost the rest of the game except for a 14 second stretch with just over two minutes left in the first half.

The Buckeyes went into the locker room at halftime holding a 35-25 advantage, and took their biggest lead of the contest when Diebler drained a trey with 11:07 left in the game that put OSU ahead 63-39.

If there was any problems in last night’s game, it was that the Buckeyes took their foot off the gas pedal a little too early as Cleveland State went on a 10-0 run following Diebler’s triple and cut Ohio State’s lead down to 63-49 with 6:25 left after a short jumper by D’Aundray Brown.

But the Vikings could not get any closer after Diebler connected from downtown on Ohio State’s next two possessions.

Freshman forward Kosta Koufos added 16 points, seven rebounds, and five blocked shots while his backcourt mate, senior Othello Hunter, scored 14 points and had six caroms.

Freshman swingman Evan Turner chipped in 11 points.

Only one Viking scored in double figures as J’Nathan Bullock added 16 points for Cleveland State.

Ohio State shot 52.6 percent (30-of-57) from the floor, including 12-of-22 (54.5%) from beyond the arc.

Meanwhile, Cleveland State was held to 36.4 percent from the field on 24-of-66 shooting, and was just 3-of-13 from three-point range.

Even though it was a good win, there were two more troubling stats at the conclusion.

The Buckeyes were outrebounded yet again, though by the slimmest of margins, 36-35, and had 17 turnovers to Cleveland State’s 15 miscues.

Up next, in a rematch of last season’s national championship game, the Florida Gators pay a visit to Value City Arena, Saturday afternoon. Tip-off time is scheduled for 4:00 p.m., and it will be televised on CBS.

Tags: Men's Basketball by Matt Barker, Publisher & Editor of BuckeyeBanter.com
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