What I Know, What I Think, What I Wonder — Wisconsin Week Edition

I know that when Marvin Harrison, Jr. says “I wish I had half the talent that he came in with,” about Jermaine Mathews, Jr., that means something to me. I said a bunch about Mathews in last week’s WIKWITWIW, so I won’t spend too much time here, but when the best receiver Brian Hartline has ever coached says that about a guy, that guy’s a dude.

I think it took a little longer than expected for Kenyatta Jackson to live up to the offseason hype, but everybody is finally seeing what we had been hearing from sources and seeing in practice.

I wonder how many big plays Jim Knowles would have baked in last year if he knew what plays were coming. I’m guessing zero.

I know that Jermaine Mathews has gotten a ton of attention of late, which followed a ton of attention for Malik Hartford a month ago, but let’s not forget a third true freshman who is finding a role – Kayden McDonald. When the Buckeyes are facing a big-time short-yardage situation, we’re seeing Big Number 56 running into the game more and more. He’s another one of those guys that when you reach out to people about, there’s a smile in the reply. As Urban Meyer used to say about some guys, “He’s an energy giver, not an energy taker.” The Buckeyes have a bunch of those kinds of guys in this class.

I think Ryan Day’s frustration with the running game is also aimed at the running backs missing the available running lanes. With TreVeyon Henderson expected to play this weekend, they may again have a guy who can get to the hole, provided he sees it. They’ve missed Henderson’s homerun-hitting ability, but last week they also missed Dallan Hayden’s consistency and vision.

I wonder if the real reason Connor Stalions got put on leave is because he taped over an episode of Judge Judy.

To read the rest of this extended edition of What I Know, What I Think, What I Wonder, you can click here, but you must be a premium subscriber. Additional topics include the Michigan sign-stealing scandal, more on Jermaine Mathews, Sonny Styles, more on Kenyatta Jackson, the Ohio State running game, understanding the offense you are seeing, TreVeyon Henderson, the Wisconsin offense, and much more.

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