What I Know, What I Think, What I Wonder — The Spring Break Edition

I know that in all the world, the one legitimate arbiter of Buckeye truths is Denzel Burke. When he speaks, I listen. He won’t trash a player – or at least I’ve never asked him about a player that he’s trashed — but if he has yet to be impressed, he will say they still need to work and get better. He said that of the freshman corners last week. People can try to gas a guy up to him and he’ll set them straight.

I think once Denzel Burke starts speaking highly of somebody, we should all pay attention. Back in December he said Carnell Tate was the next great Ohio State receiver. This past Thursday, he said the same of Jeremiah Smith. We can also put Jermaine Mathews in Burke’s praise group. None of these names are a surprise, but he doesn’t do this for everyone. In fact, he rarely does it for anyone.

I wonder how Tony Alford spins this to recruits and families. You can’t stay somewhere nine years and then try to paint it as anything other than great. He also can’t point at Ohio State’s lack of running backs drafted over the last decade because that’s on him. The best course of action is to just focus on Michigan and not even bring Ohio State up. Which has not exactly been Michigan’s operational directive over the last few years.

I know the players were shocked and some were obviously upset about Tony Alford’s decision, but today’s player also understands the need to do “what’s best for you.” They have been professionalized through NIL and the transfer portal.

I think it’s fine to get excited about Jeremiah Smith, but don’t forget about the guy who Marvin Harrison, Jr. said was essentially a year ahead of him developmentally.

I wonder if this will actually help Florida recruiting. After all, you can’t miss out on Florida guys if you don’t have a running backs coach trying to recruit them.

To read the rest of this extended edition of What I Know, What I Think, What I Wonder, you can click here, but you’ll need to be a premium subscriber. Additional topics include staying cautious with the Jeremiah Smith hype, some inside excitement on a transfer, more on the Tony Alford departure, some feedback on possible replacements, and much more.

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