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Football Pro Day

Football: Bobcats prepare for Pro Day

By Tony Wolfe | Mar. 12, 2014

Players and coaches have filed into Walter Fieldhouse for the first days of spring practice throughout the week. Thursday, however, the new facility will be packed even further when professional scouts enter the building for Ohio’s Pro Day.Former Ohio quarterback Tyler Tettleton and receiver Donte Foster are among the list of athletes who will be showcasing their talents to potential suitors during the afternoon.“It’s fun to be back around the guys, and see how far they’ve come with their training,” Tettleton said. “I’ve been working out every day when possible, just trying to take care of my body and eat right and do the right things. I feel like I’m in the right place right now. It’s exciting and I’m looking forward to it.”The former Bobcat also says he’s weighing his future options after six NFL teams began communicating with him following an All-Star Game he played in last month, in addition to one Canadian Football League team that has offered him a contract.Foster has spent the past eight weeks training in Miami, Fla. working on drills such as shuttles, bench presses and verticals preparing for Thursday’s opportunity. Foster shared Tettleton’s enthusiasm about Pro Day and relayed some advice given to him by Indianapolis Colts receiver and former Bobcat LaVon Brazill.“LaVon told me to just stay relaxed,” Foster said. “If one thing goes bad, you can’t let that dictate the rest of your Pro Day. He just said to stay focused, and if you have one bad drill, then just go onto the next one and just make the most of it. You have to go into these things with confidence, so hearing that from him was very beneficial to me.”Tettleton and Foster have each attended the early days of the Bobcats’ spring practices to observe next year’s team, as well as the new practice facility.“I’ll always be a Bobcat, so I’ll always support them,” Tettleton said. “I try to be around the guys as much as possible. It’s great to be in here, and see the new indoor that my class and all of these guys helped build and provide for this program.”As one of the players looking to fill Tettleton’s shoes this season, redshirt junior Derrius Vick has been looking to get the most out of the first week of practice.“Practice has been way different,” Vick said. “The new quarterback coach has us doing a lot more drills and puts a lot more emphasis on different things. I can definitely feel myself getting better quickly every day.”Ohio’s Pro Day kicks off at Walter Fieldhouse on Thursday at 1:30 p.m.aw987712@ohiou.edu@_tonywolfe_

The Post

OU paid less for lastest bowl bid

By Chad Lindskog | Mar. 12, 2014

Although Ohio failed to win its third consecutive bowl game, expenses for Ohio football’s four-day trip to St. Petersburg, Fla., in December totaled less than the team’s previous two postseason trips, according to a report released by Ohio Athletics last Tuesday.Of the $469,147.08 in total expenses for the Bobcats’ trip to the Beef ‘O’ Brady’s Bowl, Ohio University paid $32,642.08 out-of-pocket from the Post Season Opportunity Fund — a $120,000 annual allotment from the General Fee. The total is less than half of the $78,569 OU pulled from the same pool in 2012 for the AdvoCare V100 Independence Bowl, according to a previous Post article.“We’re going to start making money off of (bowl games),” said Tom Symonds, Ohio assistant athletic director for media relations. “There’s going to come a time when we get increased funding from the league to go to these bowls — don’t be surprised if you see a couple years down the road that we’re making money off (games).”Ohio Athletics received $400,000 in payout from the bowl in addition to $36,505 from ticket revenue from the game. The decrease in money pulled from the Post Season Opportunity Fund was a result of an increase in ticket revenue compared to 2012, when Ohio Athletics brought in $23,876 in Independence Bowl ticket sales.“From where we were, we’re spending far less money to go to these bowl games,” Symonds said. “We’re getting better bowl deals. … Five years ago we weren’t getting that ($400,000) guarantee.”OU also sponsored a bus trip for about 350 students, who for $50 apiece were transported to and from Florida, stayed one night at a resort and were given a ticket to the Beef ‘O’ Brady’s Bowl. Expenses for the bus trip totaled $45,684, but OU made $13,800 of that cost back in revenues from students who bought tickets for the trip.Revenue for the student trip came from multiple sources. The Ohio Bobcat Club — a fundraising arm of Athletics — financed the largest portion of the student trip, donating $15,844.“We wanted to have our players know that our students are behind us … even down in Florida.” Symonds said. “When bowls see what we do with our student attendance and getting students to games, that’s a big deal to them.”The President’s Office Budget and VP Student Affairs Budget each paid $8,000 to cover the remaining costs of the trip, so the university wouldn’t lose money.According to a statement from Athletics, “The significant exposure received can benefit enrollment, fundraising, campus life and school pride to students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends.”Athletics had taken until the first week of March to release its bowl game expenditure report because it was waiting to receive final transportation costs, Symonds said. Past bowl expenditure reports have been issued in a similar timeframe in years past, and representatives from the Ohio Bobcat Club and Athletics marketing department did not return requests for comment. Ohio lost the Beef ‘O’ Brady’s Bowl to East Carolina 37-20 on Dec. 23. The game was the Bobcats’ fifth consecutive postseason appearance and Ohio is one of 21 programs to play five straight bowl games.“Just like a cross country runner that is able to go to the NCAA tournament and compete in the nationals, — and we’ve got five wrestlers that are able to go to the nationals and compete — we’re in the business to provide those opportunities for student-athletes.” said Dan Hauser, Ohio senior associate athletic director for external operations. “When they have the chance to compete in the postseason, we’re going to support those opportunities.”cl027410@ohiou.edu@ChadLindskog

Sports Column

Sports Column: Pass by college, go directly to D-League

By Colin Hanner | Mar. 11, 2014

The National Basketball Association’s Developmental League, most commonly known as the D-League, is not the most legitimate feeder system into the big leagues. With small-town markets, trivial venues and lack of talent compared to its big brother organizations, it’s no question why not all NBA teams have a D-League affiliate.

Baseball

Bobcats to open at home against Thundering Herd

By Alex Busch | Mar. 11, 2014

Although bad weather is expected throughout the day, Ohio is set to open its home campaign at Bob Wren Stadium on Wednesday in a game against non-conference rival Marshall after spending three consecutive weeks playing on the road.The Bobcats, which have 16 freshmen on the roster, are excited to finally play at home in a familiar setting instead of dealing with the ongoing travel on the road. “We’re glad to be at home and get a chance to get into a rhythm,” coach Rob Smith said. “When you’re on the road so much it can be a challenge sometimes to find a good rhythm.”Ohio only faces Marshall twice, but similar to the rivalries in other sports, the Bobcats aren’t too fond of the Thundering Herd.“We only play them twice a year, but we still don’t really like them,” junior outfielder Tyler Wells said. “Coach Smith hates playing them and always wants to win.”Marshall started its season by winning three of its first five games, before dropping the next six contests. The Thundering Herd picked up its play last weekend as it took two out of three games in the Conference USA opening series, which was its first conference opening series victory since 2009.Marshall junior pitcher Matt Margaritonda earned the school’s fourth Conference USA pitcher of the week award after throwing a complete game, including a career-high 11 strikeouts in their 5-2 victory against East Carolina on Sunday.The Bobcats are coming off a four-game series against Longwood in which Ohio dropped three games after recording inconsistent performances. The Lancers outscored the Bobcats 14-12, but won a pair of games by at least three runs.Ohio has been outscored 83-50 this season and the Bobcat pitching staff boasts an ERA of 5.38.Smith said sophomore pitcher Jake Miller will get the start against Marshall, despite surrendering six runs on seven hits in one inning of work in Ohio’s first game against Longwood on Saturday. The team plans to use other pitchers against Marshall as well.“The Ohio-Marshall rivalry is a very good one in all sports and we’re no different,” Smith said. “We know that when they come to town we’re going to have to play really well in order to beat them and we’re looking forward to that challenge.”ab109410@ohiou.edu@Alex_Busch91

Women's Basketball Recap

Ohio ends season of rebuilding

By Charlie Hatch | Mar. 11, 2014

The painful, rebuilding year is over for Ohio.And though first-year coach Bob Boldon didn’t lead the Bobcats to the Promised Land, he put them on a road to recovery.In a frustrated season full of growing pains, Ohio finished with a 9-21 record, which shows improvement in comparison with the team’s worst year in program history last season, when the Bobcats went 6-23.There were also plenty of mood swings for the young, largely inexperienced squad.After two seniors weren’t medically cleared to play, junior guard Mariah Byard became leader of the Bobcats’ three sophomores and seven freshmen.Following a 78-62 loss to Bowling Green midway through Mid-American Conference play, Boldon said he had been impressed with his team, which had to learn a new system with new coaches with the majority of the roster new players.“I’m thrilled with our freshman class,” he said. “I think they’re all doing a great job. Our goal is to be good in three years. We’d like it to be sooner than that, but we’re in a process that can be uncomfortable at times.”If Boldon was uncomfortable in early February, then he must have been in a living nightmare by March.After dropping numerous winnable games, including a loss to Miami in the regular season finale, he belittled everything the team had worked for throughout the season and said the Bobcats were “not a good basketball team.”But there were bright spots in a year overshadowed by a ten-game losing streak and just one win in the final 15 games.Though they did not win the games, they gained experience in a pair of losses to Top Ten opponents, and the Bobcats began MAC play by winning three of their first four contests.In an announcement by the MAC on Monday, sophomore guard Kiyanna Black received honorable mention All-MAC honors, while freshman guard Quiera Lampkins earned All-MAC freshman squad honors.In addition to postseason accolades, redshirt sophomore guard Kat Yelle played her first full season for the Bobcats after injuries plagued her in both 2011-12 and 2012-13 and will return with experience.Whether improvements are apparent, Boldon said in every interview (except after Miami’s game) that the Bobcats were maturing and moving in the right direction, as the team will not lose any players next year.And Boldon knows a thing or two about improvement. Before taking over at Ohio, he transformed the Youngstown State he inherited from a 0-30 team to a 23-10 squad in 2012-13.Boldon said he expects a competitive team will come in three years, and he’s done it before.gh181212@ohiou.edu@CharlieHatch_

'Cats head north for 'war' against RedHawks

’Cats head north for ‘war’ against RedHawks

By Christian Hoppens | Mar. 11, 2014

Ohio has swept the Battle of the Bricks so far this season, defeating Miami in both Athens and Oxford.Now the Bobcats look to continue this season’s dominance of the RedHawks in Cleveland, as the teams will take the court for the third time in a second-round Mid-American Conference Tournament game Wednesday.Wins didn’t come easy for Ohio in the teams’ previous two meetings. The Bobcats climbed back from a 16-point second half deficit to defeat the RedHawks at home in their first game on Feb. 8, and needed overtime to squeeze out an 82-76 win last Saturday.Taking down Miami a third time will come down to matching its intensity, Ohio coach Jim Christian said.“It’s going to be a war out there,” he said. “If we meet them at their competition level, then it’s going to be one heck of a game. If we don’t, then we’re going to be in trouble because we know how they’re going to play.”Part of meeting Miami at its “competition level” will come down to playing smart basketball and avoiding the turnovers that often plague the Bobcats, who have averaged 14.1 giveaways in their seven MAC losses.Miami is a team that feasts on swiping the ball from its opposition, leading the conference with 8.8 steals per game and ranking second in the MAC with an average of 14.8 turnovers forced. And in last Saturday’s game, the RedHawks forced 19 Bobcats giveaways.Ohio freshman forward Antonio Campbell said he and the rest of his teammates need to play intelligently if they want to move past the RedHawks for the third time this season.“I’m sure it’s not going to be easy,” Campbell said. “I’m pretty sure they’re going to try to double in the post again. I’ve just got to be smart and make the right plays out of the double.”Campbell has been one of the Bobcats’ key contributors of late, taking the starting job from junior forward Maurice Ndour, whose season-long back problems have recently flared up and forced him to play fewer minutes when coming off the bench.In the three games Campbell has started in place of Ndour, he’s shot 15 of 20 from the field, averaging 12 points and four rebounds.“The thing that he’s done better than anything is he’s able to play through his mistakes now,” Christian said. “In the beginning of the year when you’re a freshman, the weight of the world kind of goes on your shoulder, and now he’s able to play through it.”Ohio will need players such as Campbell to continue their better-than-average play in order to pull off the task of winning four games in the next four days. But despite the daunting slate ahead, Christian is just focused on beating Miami again.“It’s conference tournament time,” he said. “Is it going to get up another notch? It’s going to be hard to because I think both teams played unbelievably hard on Saturday.”ch203310@ohiou.edu@c_hoppens

Sports Column

Pass college, go directly to D-League

By Colin Hanner | Mar. 11, 2014

The National Basketball Association’s Developmental League, most commonly known as the D-League, is not the most legitimate feeder system into the big leagues. With small-town markets, trivial venues and lack of talent compared to its big brother organizations, it’s no question why not all NBA teams have a D-League affiliate.Last week, Dallas Mavericks owner and notorious loudmouth Mark Cuban took a shot at the NCAA’s role — or lack thereof — in developing student-athletes into NBA prospects. In college basketball, the heralded “one-and-done rule” allows players to leave their respective college programs after one season and enter the NBA Draft.However, Cuban argued the D-League has the potential to grow as a viable alternative to college. “A major college has to pretend that they’re treating them like a student-athlete, and it’s a big lie and we all know it’s a big lie,” Cuban said. And he’s right.First, let’s address the elephant in the room that the D-League is often referred to as a joke. It’s evident in team names like the Bakersfield Jam, which sound more like an artisan brand of marmalade than a basketball team, and with the D-League All-Star Weekend that is paradoxical to players’ developmental status.Yet, it may be in the best interest of the most talented high school players to skip their first year of school and head to places like Sioux Falls, S.D. or Portland (Maine, that is).Cuban claimed college players hardly attend classes and the term “student-athlete” gets thrown around more as a pleasantry in conversation than an actual practice. Students are compensated indirectly at the collegiate level, but cases of impermissible benefits seem to be a growing norm for star athletes.P.J. Hairston, a former North Carolina Tar Heel, was expelled from UNC for accepting illicit benefits, as well as for marijuana possession and reckless driving. Instead of transferring schools or playing professionally in Europe, Hairston turned to the D-League to showcase his talents in hopes of becoming an NBA Draft pick.And the D-League is growing. The New York Knicks are in the process of starting an affiliate, which will add to the existing 17 teams. Yet the growth lies in the ability of the D-League to help young players adjust to life. College may institute a sense of an agenda and help players mature — the D-League is at best a stripped-down version of that.With the NCAA’s dubious policies in place, it may prove easier for the D-League to shift the culture of college basketball and the NBA alike. But it’s essential that one steps forward in looking out for the best interests of its players.  Colin Hanner is a junior studying journalism and is a sports writer for The Post. Do you think players may begin to choose the D-League instead of the NCAA? Let him know @ColinHanner.

Kellogg looks towards his future

Kellogg looks towards his future

By Christian Hoppens | Mar. 10, 2014

An hour and a half before each home game, senior guard Nick Kellogg can be found on the court, putting the finishing touches on his fluid shooting motion that earned him the Mid-American Conference record in made three-pointers.

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