The spring transfer portal window has come and gone without Ohio State losing any key players.

Six players from Ohio State entered the portal during the spring window, but none of them – running back Dallan Hayden, wide receiver Kyion Grayes, guard Enokk Vimahi, linebacker Nigel Glover and safeties Ja’Had Carter and Cedrick Hawkins – were in line to play major roles for the Buckeyes in 2024.

As a result, Ohio State has secured one of college football’s best and deepest rosters for the upcoming season even though it hasn’t made any post-spring transfer additions yet.

There aren’t a ton of obvious targets available in the portal for the Buckeyes to upgrade their roster, leaving one major question mark at right guard, but the Buckeyes will have healthy competitions both along the offensive line and at quarterback going into preseason camp since they were able to keep their rosters intact at those positions.

We begin this week’s episode of Real Pod Wednesdays by recapping a largely uneventful spring transfer window in college football and why that’s a good thing for the Buckeyes.

Later, we talk about the lingering needs for Ohio State men’s basketball and what options remain to fill them; a smaller-than-expected 2024 NFL draft class for Ohio State that still led to good fits for each of the four Buckeyes who were selected; and why it’s a long shot for Ohio State’s 2025 NFL draft class to break the all-time record for total selections even though it should be a prolific draft class.

The full rundown:

• 0:11: Post-spring roster retention went as well as Ohio State could have hoped
• 1:55: An uneventful portal cycle was good news for OSU, even if it limits OSU’s upgrade options
• 4:23: There doesn’t appear to be a plug-and-play, sure-fire upgrade available at right guard
• 6:21: Ohio State’s quarterback depth will be the envy of college football
• 8:46: Across the board, there’s far less talent in the portal now than there was in January
• 10:43: Safety, running back are positions where Ohio State could another depth piece
• 12:22: Defensive line, cornerback among positions where OSU’s depth really stands out
• 14:27: OSU should consider giving Inky Jones, TC Caffey scholarships if some remain open
• 19:11: Basketball transfer options dwindling after OSU misses out on Trey Townsend, others
• 21:51: Sean Stewart is the top remaining target for OSU, who must beat out competition for him
• 23:23: Kris Parker, Elijah Saunders, Langdon Hatton among other possible forward targets
• 25:41: OSU could use another center to back up Aaron Bradshaw, but there’s no clear target
• 28:47: OSU’s 2024 NFL draft smaller than expected, but Buckeyes’ picks set up to succeed
• 36:16: Josh Proctor, Xavier Johnson most likely to make teams among undrafted Buckeyes
• 40:10: Ohio State has as many as 20 prospects on NFL scouts’ radars for 2025 draft
• 44:56: A lot would have to go right for Ohio State to break the single-year draft pick record
• 47:16: Ohio State should have a lot more picks in the first two days of next year’s draft alone
• 49:49: Will players with NFL draft decisions be as motivated to stay next year as this year?
• 54:11: It shouldn’t be forgotten how hard it is to get drafted when forecasting to next year
• 54:52: Denzel Burke, Jack Sawyer, Emeka Egbuka among potential first-round picks in 2025
• 59:39: OSU won’t have a lot of junior starters this year, leaving fewer early departure candidates

Programming note: There will be no episode of Real Pod Wednesdays next week. RPW will return for its next episode on May 15.

The post-spring transfer window has been quiet so far for Ohio State football but plenty busy for Ohio State men’s basketball.

While there’s still one week to go in the post-spring transfer window for college football, Ohio State has seen just two players leave the program since the end of spring practice. That goes hand in hand with what’s been a much quieter-than-expected post-spring transfer window across the nation.

The basketball transfer portal, on the other hand, remains busy more than two weeks after the final game of the season. It’s been a back-and-forth cycle of roster movement for the Buckeyes, who landed their third transfer commitment of the offseason Saturday from former San Diego State wing Micah Parrish but saw that followed by Felix Okpara leaving the program one day later and Roddy Gayle Jr. transferring to their archrival two days later.

On this week’s episode of Real Pod Wednesdays, we discuss Ohio State’s transfer portal activity in both sports – or lack thereof on the football side – plus look ahead to this week’s NFL draft by making some predictions on where the Buckeyes’ top prospects will end up and identifying which less heralded Ohio State prospects we’d “bang the table” for.

The full rundown:

• 0:25: Lack of post-spring transfer attrition has gone as well as OSU could have hoped so far
• 6:12: Ohio State still wants a transfer offensive lineman, but it needs the right guy to enter the portal
• 8:40: College basketball’s portal craziness epitomized by Roddy Gayle Jr. going to Michigan
• 11:04: Roster retention hasn’t gone as planned, putting more pressure to perform on Jake Diebler​
• 15:08: Aaron Bradshaw can replace Felix Okpara, but Okpara is the more proven player
• 16:18: Ohio State needs to find two complementary players to fill out its frontcourt
• 23:09: Diebler needs to add the best players possible, then build his system around them
• 25:39: Ohio State’s draft class is smaller than usual, but it should still have at least five picks again
• 27:52: Mike Hall’s upside makes him a potential second-round steal
• 30:06: Marvin Harrison Jr. should be the first receiver and non-quarterback off the board
• 33:00: Why Cade Stover would be a good third-round fit for the Cincinnati Bengals
• 34:10: Tommy Eichenberg, Josh Proctor likely to be fourth and fifth Buckeyes drafted
• 35:38: The case for Xavier Johnson and Matt Jones to be late-round draft picks
• 38:39: Jesse Mendez and Kyle Snyder continue to shine at Olympic wrestling trials

Spring football showcased how much talent Ohio State has on its 2024 roster, but two of the biggest question marks surrounding this year’s Buckeyes.

Quarterback and offensive line have been the biggest positions of concern for Ohio State dating back to this time last season, and that didn’t change this spring. While Will Howard still looks like the frontrunner to start at quarterback for the Buckeyes, our opportunities to watch him throw this spring left us wanting more. And it’s clear Ohio State still doesn’t have five offensive linemen that it fully trusts.

All of that said, we remain confident about Ohio State beating Michigan, getting back to the top of the Big Ten and making the College Football Playoff. We believe OSU’s chances of winning the national championship are as good as just about anyone else, too, though there are plenty of hurdles the Buckeyes will have to clear first to get there.

With spring practices now complete, we share our biggest takeaways from the spring game, what we expect from the Buckeyes in the post-spring transfer window and our post-spring outlook for Ohio State’s 2024 season on this week’s episode of Real Pod Wednesdays.

The rundown:

• 0:07: The spring game showed OSU’s talent, but didn’t answer our QB and OL questions
• 4:51: Will Howard is still Ohio State’s likely starter; is he good enough to win a championship?
• 13:28: It seems the quarterbacks will have much more freedom to run the ball with Chip Kelly
• 17:19: Right guard is top transfer portal priority as offensive line isn’t where it needs to be yet
• 26:24: Aside from offensive line, OSU doesn’t need any other starters from the transfer portal
• 29:21: The offense “won” the spring game, but the defense was what stood out
• 31:09: Secondary allows OSU to be more aggressive with C.J. Hicks, Sonny Styles as blitzers
• 33:48: Post-spring transfer window will likely be busier this year, but Tuesday was a quiet first day
• 36:50: Jaylen McClain, Sam Williams-Dixon, Eddrick Houston among spring game freshman stars
• 38:41: Inky Jones, TC Caffey, Brennen Schramm among walk-ons who showed talent in spring game
• 40:39: It was fun to actually see some schematic wrinkles in the spring game for a change
• 43:29: Dan was “The Peoples Champ” of our spring game fantasy draft
• 47:42: Confidence percentages for OSU beating Michigan, winning Big Ten, making CFP, winning natty

Ohio State’s spring game will be headlined by a quarterback competition for the second year in a row.

While Will Howard entered the spring as the frontrunner to start at quarterback, the competition has heated up over the past five weeks. Not only is Devin Brown pushing Howard for the starting job, but true freshman Julian Sayin is becoming a real factor in the competition, adding intrigue to Saturday’s spring game as each of them looks to make their case that they should be Ohio State’s starter this season.

Jeremiah Smith, Caleb Downs and Ohio State’s offensive line will also be in the spotlight on Saturday as Smith and Downs look to keep their hype trains rolling while the Buckeyes continue to evaluate whether they have the pieces they need on the right side of the offensive line. We discuss all of the top storylines entering the spring game on this week’s Real Pod Wednesdays.

To add a layer of fun to our spring game viewing experience, we also conducted a fantasy draft to pick the offensive skill-position players who we think will have the biggest spring games on Saturday. Each of us drafted one quarterback, one running back, one wide receiver, one tight end and one flex player – which both of us used on a second wide receiver – to build teams that will be scored using standard fantasy football scoring (one point per 25 passing yards, four points per passing touchdown, one point per 10 rushing/receiving yards and six points per rushing/receiving touchdown).

Spring Game Fantasy Draft Picks:
1. Dan – Jeremiah Smith, WR
2. Andy – Quinshon Judkins, RB
3. Andy – Carnell Tate, WR
4. Dan – Julian Sayin, QB
5. Dan – Jelani Thurman, TE
6. Andy – Devin Brown, QB
7. Andy – Brandon Inniss, WR (Flex)
8. Dan – James Peoples, RB
9. Dan – Bryson Rodgers, WR (Flex)
10. Andy – Gee Scott Jr., TE

In the second half of the show, we discuss the state of Ohio State’s running backs room following Monday’s news that Dallan Hayden will enter the transfer portal. We wrap up the show by discussing all of the latest news on the Ohio State men’s basketball front including the hirings of Joel Justus and Jamall Walker, John Calipari’s reported interest in the job that ultimately went to Jake Diebler and the commitment of five-star point guard Marcus Johnson.

The full rundown for this week’s show:

• 0:07: Quarterback competition is the big spring game storyline, especially with Julian Sayin’s progress
• 9:25: We’re all excited to watch Jeremiah Smith and Caleb Downs play in the Shoe for the first time
• 14:06: Ryan Day leaving the door open for a transfer addition on right side of offensive line
• 19:54: C.J. Hicks, Sonny Styles, Bryson Rodgers among others to watch in spring game
• 22:10: Drafting our spring game fantasy teams
• 29:35: Ohio State still has the depth it needs at running back even with Dallan Hayden’s exit
• 35:43: Expect more transfers next week because that’s just the way college football is now
• 39:22: Carlos Locklyn won the introductory press conference
• 42:49: Jake Diebler makes two strong assistant coach hires in Joel Justus, Jamall Walker
• 48:30: Money, timing, long-term upside among factors in OSU hiring Diebler over John Calipari
• 55:12: Ohio State lands a huge piece for the future with commitment of Marcus Johnson

There’s been no shortage of Ohio State football and basketball happenings over the past week.

On the gridiron, Ohio State has now completed 10 of its 15 spring practices, highlighted by its Student Appreciation Day scrimmage on Saturday. Jeremiah Smith and C.J. Hicks are among the Buckeyes turning heads on the practice field while quarterback and offensive line remain Ohio State’s biggest question marks with a week-and-a-half of spring ball to go. Who will coach the running backs is no longer a question, though, with the hiring of Carlos Locklyn to replace Tony Alford.

On the hardcourt, postseason roster movement is in full swing for Ohio State men’s basketball as the Buckeyes made a big splash in the transfer portal by adding Meechie Johnson but subsequently lost one of their top players with the departure of Roddy Gayle Jr., who joined Scotty Middleton and Bowen Hardman as Buckeyes who have gone portaling since the season ended last week.

The full rundown for this week’s show:

• 0:58: It’s no longer a question of whether Jeremiah Smith will start but how good he’ll be right away
• 5:27: Will Howard leaving the door open for Devin Brown, maybe even Julian Sayin to be starting QB
• 12:43: C.J. Hicks seems to be making a move toward a breakout season
• 16:21: Ohio State’s defensive tackle depth looks promising with emergence of second-year players
• 18:54: Bryson Rodgers doesn’t have a clear path to the field yet, but he’s making a case for himself
• 21:05: Luke Montgomery, Josh Fryar looking likely to be starting right side of offensive line
• 26:28: Ohio State’s offensive line doesn’t look great yet, but it at least looks better than last year
• 28:47: Carlos Locklyn looks like a good running back coach hire despite his limited experience
• 35:03: Tim Drevno should be valuable asset for offensive line, adds pressure for Justin Frye
• 39:00: Meechie Johnson is a great addition, but transfer portal has been a net loss for OSU so far
• 42:15: Ohio State still in the market for another transfer guard (Matt Allocco? Bronny James?) 
• 45:28: Is Meechie an upgrade over Roddy Gayle? That depends on how you look at it
• 46:50: Adding a wing becomes an even bigger portal priority with Scotty Middleton gone
• 47:51: Ohio State needs to add another player in the frontcourt, too
• 49:40: OSU could put together a quality lineup with its current players, but proven depth is lacking
• 51:35: Bowen Hardman’s departure comes as no surprise
• 52:32: Jake Diebler must now prove he can land impact transfers without clear Ohio State ties

The offseason is officially underway for both Ohio State basketball teams.

Ohio State’s men’s basketball season ended Tuesday with the Buckeyes’ loss to Georgia in the NIT quarterfinals while the women’s basketball season concluded with an upset defeat to Duke in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. While both teams had hopes of continuing their seasons further, the focus for both teams now turns to the offseason – particularly what they will do in the transfer portal to bolster their rosters for 2024-25.

After starting this week’s episode of Real Pod Wednesdays with some shoutouts for Ohio State’s newly crowned national champions, we dive into what next year’s rosters could look like for both Buckeye basketball teams and what they both need to add in the portal. Later in the show, we talk about the latest developments for Ohio State football including Jeremiah Smith’s historically fast black stripe removal, the emergence of Jason Moore as a defensive tackle to watch and the ongoing search for a new running backs coach.

The full rundown of where you can hear us talk about a variety of topics in this week’s show:

• 0:07: Ohio State women’s hockey and pistol teams are elite
• 5:14: Ohio State wrestling’s future looks bright with national champion Jesse Mendez leading the way
• 9:20: The end of Ohio State’s men’s basketball season felt like a success despite Tuesday’s loss
• 15:11: Ohio State has a good core to build around if it can retain key juniors and sophomores
• 19:57: Adding a forward to replace Jamison Battle is Ohio State’s biggest transfer portal need
• 22:18: Meechie Johnson, Jalen Sullinger, Matt Allocco among potential transfer guard targets
• 29:12: The start of the offseason will be telling of Jake Diebler’s readiness to be a head coach
• 30:43: Jake Diebler’s hiring will be judged by if his Buckeyes outperform Dusty May’s Wolverines
• 34:34: Rebounding, lack of depth among flaws that cost Ohio State women’s basketball
• 40:05: Ohio State women need to add transfer center, guard who can make immediate impact
• 46:11: Jeremiah Smith’s black stripe removal adds more fuel to the hype train
• 49:24: Brandon Inniss, Caleb Downs and Quinshon Judkins hype also continues to grow
• 52:11: Sonny Styles and C.J. Hicks expect to be on the field together in some situations
• 53:44: Jason Moore emerges as a player to watch in defensive tackle rotation
• 55:23: Ohio State should be able to rotate more on defensive line this year, but how much should it?
• 57:18: The running back coach search continues, but Ohio State doesn’t need to make a panic hire
• 1:01:00: C.J. Stroud’s pro day appearance shows why he’s an ideal ambassador for Ohio State

Ohio State men’s basketball has a new head coach while Ohio State football has an unexpected opening for a running backs coach. Both teams have championship expectations.

The Ohio State basketball coaching search ended over the weekend when Jake Diebler was promoted from interim coach to head coach. While Diebler has never been a full-time head coach before, making it anyone’s guess how he will ultimately fare as a long-term head coach, Ohio State is projecting nothing but confidence in Diebler, making it clear they believe he can build the Buckeyes back into a championship contender.

Ohio State football, meanwhile, had a surprise staff vacancy pop up last Wednesday when Tony Alford left the Buckeyes to become the running backs coach at Michigan. Ryan Day didn’t seem too concerned about Alford’s exit during his press conference on Tuesday, though, stating that Ohio State has already identified an “excellent” group of candidates and that he believes the Buckeyes can have “the best offensive staff in the country.”

Day also showed confidence on Tuesday in several players who are currently competing for starting jobs in spring practice, namely right tackle Josh Fryar, tight end Gee Scott Jr. and wide receiver Brandon Inniss, who all drew considerable praise from Ohio State’s head man after the Buckeyes’ third spring practice.

With spring practice back in full swing for Ohio State football, Ohio State men’s basketball looking to make an NIT run with its head coach, Ohio State women’s basketball hoping to make a deep NCAA Tournament run and three other Ohio State sports teams having a chance to win national championships this weekend, it’s an extremely busy week in Ohio State sports, giving us lots to talk about on this week’s episode of Real Pod Wednesdays.

The full rundown:

• 1:08: Jake Diebler’s hire came a bit sooner than expected, but it had good reason to make a move now
• 5:37: Ross Bjork makes it clear the expectation for Diebler is to win championships
• 7:08: Jake Diebler’s authentic passion for Ohio State can help him succeed as OSU’s head coach
• 15:12: Rebuilding the coaching staff, adding transfers among Diebler’s first tests as head coach
• 25:09: Getting back to the Sweet 16 should be the goal for Diebler’s first season
• 26:04: Tony Alford’s departure was a surprise, but Ryan Day expects an “excellent” replacement
• 27:25: Ohio State could be trying to pry DeMarco Murray away from his alma mater
• 29:33: It seems like both Day and Alford were ready for a change
• 30:35: Ohio State can afford to take its time with RB coach search because of who it has at RB
• 33:54: Robert Gillespie, Deland McCullough, Stan Drayton also among logical RB coach candidates
• 35:03: Ryan Day is smart to involve the current running backs in the RB coach search
• 37:15: Ohio State’s Jim Tressel-inspired special teams coaching plan appears to be a sound one
• 41:21: Buckeyes getting used to helmet communication, which could lead to more creative play calls
• 44:09: Josh Fryar solidifying his status as Ohio State’s starting right tackle so far this offseason
• 47:17: Gee Scott Jr. is putting himself in position to be Ohio State’s starting tight end
• 50:28: Brandon Inniss showing Ryan Day and us that he can be an impact player this year
• 55:12: Pro Day will give us our first real glimpse at Will Howard vs. Devin Brown
• 56:25: Ohio State women’s basketball can beat anyone at its best but faces tough road to Final Four
• 1:01:08: Women’s hockey, pistol and synchronized swimming are all on natty watch this weekend
• 1:03:02: Houston and UConn are our NCAA Tournament picks (plus a bonus NIT pick from Andy)

It’s a season-defining week for Ohio State men’s basketball.

The Buckeyes are headed to the Big Ten Tournament with a chance to earn their way into the NCAA Tournament, but they’ll need to win at least two games in Minneapolis – which means beating an equally desperate Iowa team and a top-15-ranked Illinois team – to have a real shot of landing a spot in the bracket on Selection Sunday.

Meanwhile, Ohio State’s search for its next head coach continues to unfold behind the scenes. Florida Atlantic’s Dusty May seems to be emerging as the frontrunner while Alabama’s Nate Oats has entered the conversation and Xavier’s Sean Miller remains in the mix. Jake Diebler could continue to build his case for the job, too, if he leads Ohio State on a Big Ten Tournament run that gets the Buckeyes into the Big Dance.

We discuss all of that on this week’s Real Pod Wednesdays. We also talk about the most interesting things we learned from last Thursday’s Ohio State football interviews with Jim Knowles and eight of his defensive veterans, including the revelation that Jack Sawyer and JT Tuimoloau could play some snaps at outside linebacker, Denzel Burke’s high praise for Jeremiah Smith and his less positive assessment of Will Howard’s first two days of spring practice.

The full rundown for this week’s show:

• 0:00: Ohio State must win at least two games in Minneapolis to have an NCAA Tournament shot
• 4:33: It’s good to see Jake Diebler publicly vouching for his team to make the NCAA Tournament
• 6:54: Recent results might not carry as much weight with selection committee as OSU would like
• 9:24: Defensive improvement has keyed OSU’s recent success, and that must continue this week
• 10:19: Bench production, aggressive play will also be important factors for OSU in Minneapolis
• 14:12: Yes, a first-round bye is good for OSU; a win over 8-23 Michigan wouldn‘t have helped
• 18:24: Weighing Dusty May vs. Sean Miller vs. Nate Oats vs. Jake Diebler as coaching candidates
• 27:38: Ohio State must firmly commit to new coach rather than giving Diebler a one-year tryout
• 38:56: Does it make sense to use Jack Sawyer, JT Tuimoloau as OLBs in “double eagle” package?
• 47:20: How Ohio State could utilize Sonny Styles and C.J. Hicks on the field together
• 51:22: Denzel Burke is unafraid to set huge expectations for Ohio State and himself
• 54:50: Burke’s uncertainty on Will Howard serves as early reality check for transfer quarterback
• 59:55: As Jeremiah Smith hype keeps growing, what should we expect from him as a freshman?
• 1:04:54: OSU women’s basketball has a lot to work on after Big Ten Tournament loss to Maryland
• 1:09:44: OSU women’s hockey still favored to win it all, but path could go through Wisconsin again

Ohio State doesn’t have as many holes to fill this spring as it usually does, but there’s still plenty to talk about after the Buckeyes’ first spring practice.

The biggest headlines from the first day of spring practice included Sonny Styles’ move to linebacker, Luke Montgomery starting the spring as the first-team right guard and Devin Brown getting his shot to compete for the starting quarterback job.

Tuesday also brought Chip Kelly’s first press conference as Ohio State’s offensive coordinator, which came after a weeklong stretch in which Eleven Warriors spoke with nearly 30 current or recent Ohio State football players between last week’s NFL Scouting Combine, Saturday’s Open House at the Woody hosted by The 1870 Society and Monday’s pre-spring interviews with three Ohio State quarterbacks and three returning seniors on offense.

All of that gave us plenty to talk about on our first Real Pod Wednesdays of the spring football season, which we also capped off with some basketball talk as the Ohio State men look to continue their end-of-season surge and earn their way back into the NCAA Tournament bubble while the Ohio State women head to Minneapolis this week in search of a Big Ten Tournament title.

The full rundown for this week’s show:

• 0:00: Attending practice drives home just how much talent Ohio State has on its 2024 roster
• 1:02: There aren’t many major lineup questions except Will linebacker, right side of offensive line
• 5:06: Sonny Styles vs. C.J. Hicks is now officially a competition, and it will be a fun one to watch
• 8:12: Luke Montgomery at right guard is an intriguing option if OSU sticks with Josh Fryar at RT
• 10:16: There’s a whole lot of fan excitement to see this team in action
• 11:57: Ohio State is slow-playing other transfers into the starting lineup, but not Caleb Downs
• 12:37: Devin Brown isn‘t going to back down from competing with Will Howard at quarterback
• 20:35: It’s striking to see how deep with talent Ohio State’s quarterback room is right now
• 21:55: Lincoln Kienholz is in his first spring at OSU, so this isn’t a make-or-break year for him
• 23:48: First practice serves as reminder that Julian Sayin, Air Noland are just freshmen
• 25:00: Last year showed why it’s best if a clear starting quarterback emerges this spring
• 27:42: Jeremiah Smith is already turning heads
• 31:15: Brandon Inniss could be top punt returner option if Caleb Downs isn’t used there
• 34:31: Caleb Downs draws huge praise from former Alabama teammates at NFL Combine
• 38:28: Chip Kelly, Ryan Day both seem very comfortable in new roles working together
• 47:15: Combine features introspective Tommy Eichenberg, Cade Stover defending his blocking
• 55:21: Ohio State will have a real NCAA Tournament shot if it can win its next three games
• 57:51: Ohio State’s new identity under Jake Diebler has led to its improved performance
• 1:03:24: Diebler will be a head coach somewhere next year if he wants to be
• 1:04:38: Dusty May gaining traction as candidate to be Ohio State’s next head coach
• 1:07:53: No. 1 seed could be on the line as OSU women play for Big Ten Tournament title
• 1:12:52: Don’t forget about women’s hockey when discussing OSU’s most exciting teams

The start of spring football is less than one week away, Ohio State men’s basketball could play its way back into NCAA Tournament contention, a frontrunner has emerged in Ohio State’s coaching search and the NFL Scouting Combine is underway.

That gives us a lot of ground to cover on this week’s episode of Real Pod Wednesdays, and we discussed it all in a little more than 80 minutes.

With Ohio State football set to begin spring practices Tuesday, we start this week’s RPW by previewing the spring ahead, focusing primarily on the five biggest position battles that will take place in Columbus this spring. We also preview this year’s first edition of The Buckeye 20, which will be updated later this week, with a look at Ohio State’s top five players on the current roster entering spring practices.

Ohio State men’s basketball gave us something positive to talk about for the second week in a row with its buzzer-beating win over Michigan State, and we take a look at Ohio State’s potential path to the NCAA Tournament – which starts with winning its final three regular-season games, beginning Thursday against Nebraska at home (6:30 p.m., FS1). We also dive into Sean Miller’s emergence as a potential frontrunner to be Ohio State’s new coach and why he could be a fit to lead the Buckeyes.

We wrap up the show by talking about which Buckeyes could be the top candidates to boost their NFL draft stock this week and which ones have the most riding on their combine performance.

The full rundown for this week’s show:

• 0:45: Transfers will garner plenty of attention this spring
• 1:59: Five scholarship quarterbacks will force Ohio State to be smart about how it splits up reps
• 4:47: Ohio State’s most important position battles will take place on right side of offensive line
• 16:25: Sonny Styles, C.J. Hicks give Ohio State two intriguing candidates for one starting spot
• 27:00: Jeremiah Smith will be tough to keep out of starting lineup, but Brandon Inniss will be, too
• 32:59: Will Kacmarek will face competition from Gee Scott Jr., Jelani Thurman at tight end
• 36:59: Ty Hamilton, Kayden McDonald, Jermaine Mathews Jr. among others to watch this spring
• 43:40: Denzel Burke, TreVeyon Henderson and Caleb Downs enter 2024 as OSU’s top players
• 49:27: OSU men’s basketball gives us something positive to discuss for a second straight week
• 52:32: Three winnable games to end regular season keep OSU’s NCAA Tournament hopes alive
• 59:41: Eleven Warriors readers are split down the middle on Jake Diebler as OSU’s next coach
• 1:01:53: Sean Miller looks like the frontrunner to be Ohio State’s next coach
• 1:09:55: This is a good week to start watching OSU women’s basketball if you aren’t already
• 1:13:51: Marvin Harrison Jr. would have had nothing to gain by working out at NFL Combine
• 1:16:07: Mike Hall, Josh Proctor, Steele Chambers among candidates to boost draft stock

There’s finally something positive to talk about with Ohio State men’s basketball.

After struggling through most of January and February in Chris Holtmann’s final weeks as head coach, the Buckeyes started Jake Diebler’s interim coaching tenure off with a bang by upsetting No. 2 Purdue, 73-69, to earn their biggest win of the season in their first game following Holtmann’s firing.

Could that win spark a late run back into NCAA Tournament contention for the Buckeyes? We assess what would need to happen for Ohio State to have a realistic shot at getting into the Big Dance, which certainly starts with snapping its 16-game road losing streak as it hits the road twice this week to play Minnesota and Michigan State.

As for the future of the program, could Diebler’s hot start make him a candidate to get the head coaching job permanently? We discuss why that’s probably still a long shot and what would need to happen for Diebler to make a real run at the job before evaluating some of the other potential candidates for the job including Doug McDermott, Chris Jent, Dusty May, Sean Miller and Jay Wright.

In the second half of the show, we turn our attention to Ohio State football and share our thoughts on why promoting James Laurinaitis was the right move to round out this year’s coaching staff and what stood out to us from Tuesday’s interview sessions with Laurinaitis and Matt Guerrieri.

The full rundown for this week’s episode:

• 1:00: Gene Smith thought Jake Diebler would provide a spark, and he was proven right
• 7:56: Ohio State’s path to the NCAA Tournament remains uphill, but it’s not impossible
• 16:21: What would need to happen the rest of this season for Diebler to be the new head coach?
• 21:07: A look at some potential candidates for OSU’s coaching search, which has no clear frontrunner
• 29:46: Ohio State likely won’t have its new coach until late March or early April
• 32:07: James Laurinaitis, Matt Guerrieri both seem like coaches recruits will want to play for
• 35:58: Hiring a different assistant wouldn’t have been worth the risk of losing Laurinaitis
• 39:24: Adding a full-time linebackers coach will allow Jim Knowles to work with all position groups
• 40:20: Ohio State’s now-completed coaching staff is well-balanced on both sides of the ball
• 43:01: Guerrieri’s schematic expertise, ability to teach it explain move to replace Perry Eliano
• 51:16: Will Sonny Styles be a safety or a linebacker this year? The answer could be both
• 54:23: Laurinaitis seems optimistic about what C.J. Hicks can become this offseason
• 58:17: Gabe Powers and Arvell Reese also in the mix for playing time at LB this year