OSU on Sports Illustrated

Allison HumbertRight: Junior-to-be Allison Humbert used to play the trombone and violin.
Photo by Peter R. Schlitt

While every Buckeye blog out there is searching for a photo of the cover to Sports Illustrated’s College Football preview edition, which Ohio State is featured prominently on, it really shouldn’t come as a shock since OSU is ranked No. 3 in the coaches’ poll.

The thing is, Sports Illustrated loves to sell its’ magazines. So instead of putting one team on the cover, they spread the wealth. Do you think people in Dayton are going to rush to the corner newsstand if SI has Georgia displayed on the cover of their periodical? No. If Ohio State is on the cover, is that going to help sell a ton of magazines in Daytona Beach? No.

Just like all of the other college football yearbooks and review magazines, the covers are regionally-based. So instead of showing you the new SI cover with James Laurinaitis and Beanie Wells standing behind Todd Boeckman, let’s reminisce, shall we?

Last football season, Sports Illustrated picked a Cheerleader of the Week, and on September 13, they choose sophomore Allison Humbert.

Allison hails form Green, Ohio, an affluent suburb midway between Akron and Canton.

The junior-to-be states that one of her favorite movies is Dumb & Dumber, one of her favorite television shows is Grey’s Anatomy, and that she would love to have dinner with Kelly Ripa. Hey, get in line!

She went on to say that she loves country music, her favorite guilty pleasure is Coldstone Creamery, and the three people that annoy her the most are Richard Simmons, Rosie O’Donnell, and Andy Dick.

But then again, don’t they annoy us all?

Oh, and her favorite professional sports teams are the Cleveland Cavaliers and Cleveland Indians.

You still want to see that cover, don’t you? Lucky for you I know someone at SI.

Fall camp is underway

Todd BoeckmanRight: Ohio State quarterback Todd Boeckman holds his helmet on the first day of fall camp.
AP Photo/Terry Gilliam

Fall camp got underway yesterday at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center for the Ohio State Buckeyes, who are ranked third in the nation in the preseason coaches’ poll.

With 20 starters coming back, nine on offense, nine on defense, as well as the place kicker and punter from last year’s team, there’s not much in the way of position battles for this season’s camp.

What we do know is that outside linebacker Curtis Terry is now a full-time fullback, and that Ross Homan will take over the vacated spot due to the graduation of last year’s starter, Larry Grant.

Terry and Homan are coming off injuries that saw them both get redshirted last season.

By moving from linebacker to fullback, Terry will probably see just as much playing time. During passing situations on defense, he would of been pulled in favor of a nickelback. Of course, he’s not expected to actually carry the ball on offense, but will be the lead blocker for Beanie Wells, Brandon Saine and others.

Also, defensive tackle Doug Worthington participated in drills, just like Michigan tailback Kevin Grady did for the Wolverines. Both were arrested last month on separate incidents of DUI. Worthington was working with the first-team D-line, so there appears to be no demotion at the moment. Of course, you are innocent until proven guilty.

Cornerback Donald Washington was practicing, too, though he may face a one or two-game suspension for breaking an undisclosed team rule last spring.

In most media outlets, the biggest hubbub was due to the fact that freshman quarterback Terrelle Pryor began practice wearing a scarlet jersey, instead of the black, no-contact one that the other quarterbacks were wearing. Not sure if it was a freshman flub, or if it was intentional, but Pryor later changed his jersey when head coach Jim Tressel was questioned about it. (See photos below)

Terrelle Pryor
Terrelle Pryor

Even Tressel joked about the miscue, as reported by Tim May of The Columbus Dispatch:

He’s live. Even in shorts, he’s live. I’m gonna go hit him.”

Tressel later made the comment in the same article about the opportunity to coach the No. 1 high school prospect in the nation:

That will be exciting because everyone has been talking about him so much, and he’s a great kid, he’s trained hard and he’s nervous like any freshman. I’m sure he didn’t sleep last night.”