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Teradja Mitchell, a five-star LB, reveals Ohio State is in his top 11 on a birthday cake

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Ohio State made the cut along with USC, LSU, Michigan, Florida, Clemson, Georgia, Alabama, Virginia Tech, Penn State and Florida State.

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Ohio State just got done signing the best recruiting class in history on Wednesday. Things are going well for Urban Meyer in recruiting. 

Before National Signing Day ended, the Buckeyes took a step forward with a five-star prospect in the 2018 class when Teradja Mitchell of Virginia Beach (Va.) Bishop Sullivan Catholic revealed his top 11. 

On a birthday cake. 

It was Mitchell's 17th birthday. 

Ohio State made the cut along with USC, LSU, Michigan, Florida, Clemson, Georgia, Alabama, Virginia Tech, Penn State and Florida State. 

Rated the No. 1 inside linebacker in the 2018 class in the 247Sports composite rankings, Mitchell's 31 scholarship offers are proof that he's one of he most elite prospects in the country. 

The 6-foot-2, 232-pound prospect has never visited Ohio State, but the Buckeyes would certainly like to get him on campus for an unofficial visit. 

Check out his highlight tape below: 

 

PGA Tour 2017: Waste Management Phoenix Open leaderboard, TV, tee times for 1st round

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The Waste Management Phoenix Open 2017 features Phil Mickelson, Jordan Spieth and numerous other quality players.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The PGA Tour's Waste Management Phoenix Open, where players and fans annually put on quite a show, unfolds today through Sunday at TPC Scottsdale in Arizona.

Among those competing: Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas, Hideki Matsuyama, Jon Rahm, Rickie Fowler, Bubba Watson and Phil Mickelson.

Waste Management tee times

Spieth has won eight PGA Tour titles, including two majors. He is ranked sixth in the world.

Thomas, Spieth's close friend, is seeking to win his third straight PGA Tour start. In five official starts in the 2016-17 season, he has finished T8, 1, T23, 1 and 1. The two most recent victories came on the Hawaii swing. Thomas is ranked eighth in the world.

Matsuyama, defending champion at Waste Management, is ranked fifth in the world.

Rahm won the Farmers Insurance Open last week in California.

Fowler, world No. 14, is one of the game's most popular players.

Watson and Mickelson have won a combined five Masters and own tremendous resumes at TPC Scottsdale.

Waste Management leaderboard

Players are extra-motivated at this event because of huge galleries that take pride in making noise. The par-3 16th hole, in particular, is famous for creating a football-type atmosphere in a stadium setting.

Thursday's live leaderboard:

PGA TOUR

WASTE MANAGEMENT PHOENIX OPEN

Site: Scottsdale, Ariz.

Course: TPC Scottsdale. Yardage: 7,216. Par: 71.

Purse: $6.7 million (First place: $1,206,000).

Television: Thursday-Friday, 3-7 p.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday-Sunday, 1-2:30 p.m. (Golf Channel), 3-6 p.m. (CBS Sports).

Defending champion: Hideki Matsuyama.

Last week: Jon Rahm won the Farmers Insurance Open.

Notes: Justin Thomas is playing for the first time since sweeping the Hawaii events. The last player to win three consecutive PGA Tour events was Rory McIlroy in 2014 (British Open, Bridgestone Invitational, PGA Championship). ... Jordan Spieth at No. 5 is the highest-ranked player in the field. ... Rickie Fowler last year had a two-shot lead with two holes to play until losing to Matsuyama in a playoff. Fowler, coming off a victory in Abu Dhabi, has not won anywhere in the world since then. ... Steve Stricker makes his 2017 debut. He turns 50 in three weeks. ... Harris English is playing for the last time before getting married next week. ... The tournament last year reported having 618,364 fans for the week. ... Phil Mickelson has another opportunity to become the first four-time winner of the event. A victory also would give Mickelson seven victories in Arizona, breaking a tie with Johnny Miller. ... Mickelson (twice), Mark Calcavecchia and Grant Waite hold the course record of 60. ... Asked if he would be willing to allow caddie races on the 16th hole that the PGA Tour banned, Commissioner Jay Monahan said he "doesn't expect to see any change on that front."

Next week: AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

Online: www.pgatour.com

(The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

Kyrie Irving, Tristan Thompson running Matthew Dellavedova's old play

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Kyrie Irving and Tristan Thompson are running the high pick-and-roll more often, the way Thompson used to run it . Watch video

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- On a team with LeBron James, Kyrie Irving, and Kevin Love, nothing Tristan Thompson does could really be considered a staple of the Cavs' offense.

But he's carved out a nice little niche for himself on the high pick and roll.

Thompson picked and rolled his way to 18 points and 14 rebounds Wednesday night in Cleveland's 125-97 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves. Those points came on a night Kyrie Irving set a career-high with 14 assists, four of them to Thompson.

The Timberwolves are young -- their stars are second-year center Karl-Anthony Towns and third-year wing Andrew Wiggins -- and as a unit they were a mess trying to guard Irving.

Though the Cavs All-Star only shot 5-of-18, the T'Wolves constantly converged on him on the pick-and-roll, often leaving no one to check Thompson as he strolled toward the hoop. Three of his baskets from Irving were dunks (two were alley-oops), and Thompson slammed home another running a side pick-and-roll with Kyle Korver.

Because Love is hurt, the Cavs started Channing Frye at power forward. Frye is almost exclusively a 3-point shooter despite being 6-11, which made it even more confusing for Towns.

"Running pick-and-roll with T-Top now is just the ability and confidence that I not only have in him but I have in myself to come off and be ready to shoot and then also his role kind of creates a kind of a backside action where guys got to attack him," Irving said. "We put Channing out there and guys got to make a decision. And KAT was out there, Karl was out there guarding Channing a few times and it's kind of hard for bigs to come out and tag and be in the right spot, so we just tried to see that and take advantage of it."

Cavs stockpile assists in win

The niche, if you will, was carved by Thompson last year on the pick-and-roll action while he was mostly a member of Cleveland's second unit during the regular season. Matthew Dellavedova was the point guard for that unit, and the play seemingly ended with a dunk by Thompson off a lob from Dellavedova multiple times a game.

Thompson is the starting center now and is on the court with the Big 3. But getting him involved in the offense has become more of a focal point (for the sake of this discussion, let's forget the zero points on zero shots Thompson didn't accumulate in a loss to Dallas Monday).

In three of Cleveland's last four games -- all wins -- Thompson has scored 10, 19, and 18 points. He's scored off the high pick-and-roll at least three times in each of those games.

Considering Thompson's scoring average -- 7.5 points per game -- and who else is on this team, three games out of four with double-digit points shows something is different with how the Cavs are using him.

"It's really up to the opposition or whatever their coach believes that they want to give up," Thompson said. "Especially when you got Channing who's lifted and for guys guarding him, big men, they're in uncomfortable spots. If they're pulled away from the basket then you have a two guard or a little guy, that's the low man, so they're not used to being down there either. It creates opportunities for lobs or, if not, Kyrie plays cat and mouse, find Channing in the high quadrant or get to the rim.

"Whenever you got four shooters out there and guys making shots at a high level making 3s, it forces teams to make a decision on what they want to give up."

The 19 points Thompson had in a win Sunday over Oklahoma City was his season high. Again, umm, leaving the, ahem, scoreless game against Dallas out of it, Thompson is on a roll. But he knows that's not primarily his role.

"Guys have to do what their role is and be a star in their role," Thompson said. "So for me just play hard and competing. There's gonna be nights where you're going to score. There are gonna be nights when you don't score, but you still get impact the game on the defensive end, rebounding. Doing the things that might not show up on the stat sheet but can change the whole dynamic of the game."

What to know from Cavs' 125-97 win over T'Wolves: 'Hey, Joe!'

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Here's what fans wanted to know after the Cavs beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 125-97 Wednesday night Watch video

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Here's what fans wanted to know after the Cavs beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 125-97 Wednesday night:

  • If it's a foregone conclusion that the Cavs are going to sign a backup point guard, will it be Mario Chalmers, Kirk Hinrich, or Jordan Farmar -- all of whom tried out Wednesday afternoon?
  • The Cavs' defense seems better when Kyle Korver and Channing Frye are not on the court together. Does that mean Korver may start?
  • Will the Cavs work out any free agents who are post players?
  • Why not trade Korver to get a piece Cleveland needs?

Also see:

Cavs stockpiled assists

Kyrie Irving, Tristan Thompson running Delly's old play

Kyrie Irving makes impact on bad shooting night and Tristan Thompson's work with Kyle Korver helping: Fedor's five observations

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In the past, scoring 14 points on a terrible shooting night would derail Irving's game. But he continues to show growth, especially as a playmaker. Watch video

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- If Wednesday night was a sign of things to come in February then maybe LeBron James' frustration will quell and the rumblings about Carmelo Anthony will stop.

Putting a choppy January behind them, the Cavs opened the new month with their best offensive performance of the season, scoring 125 points, the most in about two months, while tallying a season-high 37 assists on 48 made shots en route to a 28-point win against the streaking Timberwolves.

Here are five observations:

Sticking with the plan - Prior to the game, head coach Tyronn Lue projected greatness for one-time Cavalier Andrew Wiggins, who usually tortures his former team. Karl-Anthony Towns has emerged as one of the league's brightest young stars.

The Cavs' defensive game plan centered on limiting Wiggins and Towns, willing to live with other pieces having success.

In the first half that strategy backfired. Not only did Towns (15 points) and Wiggins (14) reach double figures, but the Timberwolves got a big boost from Ricky Rubio, who scored 12 points on 4-of-4 from the field, including 1-of-1 from 3-point range, burning the Cavs for going under every high pick-and-roll.

As a result, the Wolves scored 60 points on 26-of-46 (56.5 percent) from the field in the first half.

But instead of changing the plan, the Cavs played the percentages, believing Rubio, a career 37 percent shooter and 31 percent from 3-point range, was going to regress.

"Great. Great. That means that (Zach) LaVine and Wiggins and Karl aren't touching the basketball so it kind of works in our favor," Irving said. "No disrespect to Rubio, but we were going under and he was hitting the mid pick-and-roll and we just weren't panicking. We understand that when the other guys got it going they're a different team so our game plan tonight was to make Rubio kind of beat us."

It worked. Rubio scored two points on 1-of-7 from the field, including 0-of-2 on triples in the second half, as the Minnesota offense collapsed.

"Sticking to our game plan and communicating," Tristan Thompson said. "And really just forcing Rubio to have a scoring mindset. And with him doing that, it takes away from the other guys getting in a rhythm, and so, that's what we want."

For those that may have Rubio on a potential trade list, keep tonight in mind.

The Cavs' entire plan was to expose his fatal flaw as a shooter, not respect his jumper and force the Wolves to essentially play 4-on-5 on the offensive end.

They shot 15-of-48 from the field (31.3 percent) in the second half.

Kyrie's career night - Irving was clearly frustrated about his shooting struggles, which carried over from Monday's loss.

After going 7-of-21, he followed that up with a 5-of-18 performance.

"It's a win," Irving said. "I'll deal with the personal shooting woes by myself tomorrow. I'm already pissed off for the last two games that I've shot the ball, especially in Dallas. But tonight, when guys got it rolling, when guys are making shots, it makes it a lot easier."

In the past, scoring 14 points on a terrible shooting night would threaten to derail Irving's game. But he continues to show growth, especially as a playmaker. He dished out a career-high eight assists in the first quarter and finished with a career-high 14 for the game in 31 minutes.

"It's just a feel for the game," he said. "Knowing where guys are going to be. I understood defensively what the other team is trying to do."

Spot start - With Kevin Love out, still resting his sore lower back, Lue started Channing Frye.

The coach contemplated all of his options, including James Jones and Richard Jefferson, but with the Wolves starting a frontline featuring Towns and Gorgui Dieng, both at least 6-foot-11, his only real option was Frye.

Wearing a pair of Kyrie's sneakers, which Frye once thought would have too much traction for him, he scored 18 points, tying the most he's scored since Nov. 15. He went 7-of-13 from the field, including 3-of-9 from beyond the arc.

That's right, Frye made more 2's than 3's, which is just the fifth time that has happened in the last two months.

Did his teammates urge him to play closer to the basket?

"I haven't," James said. "I want Channing to do what he do. If he wants to mix it in he can, but we traded for Channing to space the floor for us and shoot the ball and if he mixes in a couple rolls then so be it. Tonight was one of those instances. But Channing can do what he wants to do. I don't care. He's a smart basketball player."

Kyle Korver's help - Last week, I wrote a story about Tristan Thompson getting help from Korver on his free throws after Thompson had plummeted to Andre Drummond's level of paltry free-throw shooting.

On Wednesday, Thompson went 4-of-5 from the stripe, putting a bit more arc on his tosses.

Since getting pointers from Korver, Thompson is shooting 9-of-12 (75 percent).

I shared those numbers with him before walking out and he immediately knocked on his wooden locker room stall, trying anything to keep his good stretch going.

Finally - Speaking of Korver, he scored 20 points Wednesday, a high mark since coming to Cleveland.

"Great game for him tonight and I was happy to see it," James said.

James also had a big hand in Korver's scoring outburst, assisting on five of Korver's eight made shots. Some were catch-and-shoot triples.

"Those were the shots everybody told me I was going to get all the time," Korver said. "He's an incredible passer and he sees the court so well, commands so much attention. I feel like I've missed a bunch of those shots. I've gotten a lot of really good looks since I've been here. It's interesting. It's a different shot. I'm used to coming off screens and really having to run and work through shots. I've got to do a little better at just plain old catch-and-shoot spot shots."

Of course, James -- and others -- still hit Korver coming off screens.

"We want to continue to get him moving," James said. "We mixed it in a lot tonight. The first shot he made was off the move. Couple other shots he made was off the move as well."

Cavs invite point guards, then set season high for assists in 125-97 win over Minnesota

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The Cavs posted a season-best 37 baskets in pulling away from the Timberwolves. Watch video

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Kyrie Irving and LeBron James piled up enough assists for an army of point guards.

On the day his team brought three free-agent point guards for an audition to be his backup, and with potential trade target Ricky Rubio with him on the court, Irving was a human Goodwill store in a 125-97 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves Wednesday night.

James was right behind him.

Irving posted a career-high 14 assists to go with 14 points, while James added 12 assists along with his team-high 27 points and eight rebounds. Irving chalked up 10 dimes in the first half and broke his old personal best of 13 in the third quarter and didn't play at all in the fourth. He had three alley-oops to Tristan Thompson, Richard Jefferson and James in the opening half.

The Cavs' 37 assists were easily a team high for the season. As they say, timing is everything.

Earlier Wednesday, the Cavs hosted Mario Chalmers, Kirk Hinrich and Jordan Farmar for a tryout to be that veteran backup point guard both James and Irving desire so they don't have to handle the ball all the time. Lance Stephenson, a wing player, was also in on the tryout. Multiple sources said the tryout went well, that each player would provide a skill set the team needs, and one or more could very well be signed between now and March 1.

The Cavs (33-15) have won three of their last four overall and five straight against the Timberwolves.

Thompson scored 18 and led the Cavs with 14 rebounds. Channing Frye, starting for the injured Kevin Love, scored 18 and Kyle Korver provided 20 points (hitting four of seven 3-pointers) off the bench. He was 8-of-11 shooting, and his 20 points were his high since joining the Cavs last month.

The Timberwolves received 26 points and 12 rebounds from Karl-Anthony Towns and 23 points from Andrew Wiggins. Rubio, who could be of interest to the Cavs in a possible trade, scored 14 and ran up 13 assists of his own.

Minnesota coach Tom Thibodeau's staple is defense. The idea was to add such an accomplished coach -- you remember him from his days with the Chicago Bulls -- with a defensive acumen to  T'Wolves team with young stars. The desired results have been slow to come.

Entering as the 23rd-ranked defense in the NBA, Minnesota (19-30) watched the Cavs shoot .539 from the field and commit just 10 turnovers. Cleveland also bullied its way to 52 points in the paint.

James shot 11-of-14 from the field Wednesday night. Before the game, he accepted the NAACP's Jackie Robinson Award for his achievements on the court and in the community. Robinson would've leaped out of his spikes had he seen James' move in the third quarter.

This isn't going to do it justice, but James floated under the rim and tossed up a reverse scoop shot that somehow fell in after a foul with 4:20 left in the period.

Irving wasn't nearly as efficient shooting (5-of-18), but he also played the role of distributor like never before in his six seasons. He posted eight assists alone in the opening quarter.

And with all of this talk about the need for a backup point guard, Kay Felder chipped in with nine points and three assists off the bench.

NEXT: The Cavs start a four-game road trip Saturday night in New York against the Knicks. The game's on ABC at 8:30 p.m.

Cleveland area's top football players in the 2019 recruiting class

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Archbishop Hoban's Nolan Rumler and Massillon's Jamir Thomas are among Northeast Ohio's top sophomores, who are soon to be junior high school football standouts.

Will Ohio State's 2017 recruiting class win a national championship? Buckeye Talk Podcast

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Ohio State signed the program's best class of the modern recruiting era on Wednesday. We recap signing day and what this group could become.

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Ohio State football signed its 2017 recruiting class on Wednesday, so now we're talking future. Will this monster class, the most talented on paper that Urban Meyer has signed in Columbus, win a national championship?

That's where our discussion about National Signing Day -- how this class came together and how it projects in the future -- led us. Listen to that conversation below in our latest Buckeye Talk Podcast, in which we do a complete wrap on signing day.

If you missed any of cleveland.com's Ohio State national signing day coverage, you can find it all here.

Our Buckeye Talk Ohio State podcast is available on iTunesStitcher and Soundcloud.


Jimmy Garoppolo on if he'd embrace turning around a losing team like the Browns: 'We'll see when we get there I guess'

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Jimmy Garoppolo hasn't thought much yet about being traded to a team such as the Browns, but in one month, he'll likely be the hottest available QB. Watch video

HOUSTON -- Patriots backup quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo isn't thinking about being traded to a team such as the Browns just yet, but in a little over a month, he'll likely be the hottest commodity on the trading block.

"To be honest, I really haven't thought about it much,'' he said Wednesday at Super Bowl availability. "It's not even in the back of my mind. We're focused on the Falcons this week. It's a big week for us. It's the biggest game of the year and that's kind of where my mind's at.''

After going 2-0 this year and getting a taste of starting, would he welcome the chance to turn around a losing franchise such as the Browns?

"That opportunity really hasn't approached me yet, so we'll see when we get there I guess,'' he said.

When asked about trade reports on Tuesday, he said, "It will be interesting. Right now, just focused on this week. It's a crazy week, hectic with all this stuff. We'll see what happens."

The Browns are one of several teams who will toss their hat in the ring if the Patriots are willing to deal Garoppolo, especially if they're not enamored with one of the top three quarterbacks in the draft: Mitch Trubisky, Deshaun Watson or DeShone Kizer. In fact, the teams with the top three picks in the draft might all have interest in the Garoppolo, a second-round pick out of Eastern Illinois in 2014.

The Browns have the No. 1 pick. The 49ers, who will be coached by former Browns offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan, go second and the Bears, with former Browns offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains running the offense, have the No. 3 pick. Bears GM Ryan Pace also is an Eastern Illinois product.

Is it conceivable one of those teams would surrender a top-three pick for Garoppolo? One former NFL general manager told cleveland.com at the Senior Bowl that he'd give up the No. 1 overall. The Browns also have the No. 12 overall pick from the Eagles trade and the No. 33 pick at the top of the second round. They have the most ammunition in this year's draft to land Garoppolo if they really want him.

Shanahan liked Garoppolo more than Teddy Bridgewater in the 2014 draft when he was with the Browns and spent a lot of extra time with him. Loggains, then the Browns quarterbacks coach, was alongside Shanahan for all that due diligence.  

"I remember going on a visit to (to Cleveland) and they (also) worked me out,'' Garoppolo said. "There was a lot of interaction. I met (Shanahan) and coach Dowell Loggains and we had a good experience. It was a good visit.''

The Browns, of course, drafted Johnny Manziel that year  -- against Shanahan's wishes. Now, he might have a chance to coach the quarterback he liked perhaps better than the rest that year. Shanahan's high-flying offense -- first in the NFL in points per game and tied for seventh-most in NFL history -- hasn't been lost on Garoppolo.

He's been running it all week for the scout team and loves it.

"It's a fun offense actually,'' he said. "They run a lot of different routes and deep stuff and it's fun for the quarterback. Having athletes like he has, I'm sure he enjoys it. (On scout team) one week you'll have a good offense that you enjoy running and the next week you're like 'Aw, man, I don't like this offense.' (But) it's really quarterback-friendly.''

As for Browns coach Hue Jackson, Garoppolo doesn't have much history with him. Jackson, a noted quarterback expert, was offensive coordinator of the Bengals when Garappolo came out of school, and was set with quarterback Andy Dalton.

"I met (Jackson) at the combine,'' Garoppolo said. "It was one of those 15-minute meetings. I think that was about our only interaction.''

In his six quarters of play before suffering a sprained shoulder in Week 2 against Miami, Garoppolo went 2-0, threw four touchdowns without an interception, completed 71.2 percent of his passes and earned a 119.0 rating.

"As a quarterback, you always believe in yourself,'' he said. "You always know you can do things. Once you get your opportunity, you can either do it or you don't. I'd like to think I took advantage of that opportunity."

The Browns will weigh Garoppolo's two starts and three years in Bill Belichick's system -- behind arguably the greatest quarterback of all time in Tom Brady -- against drafting a rookie quarterback high and having a 50-50 chance of success.

At 6-2, 225, he's got the prototypical size and skill set the Browns are looking for, including arm strength and processing speed. Because he is heading into the final year of his rookie contract, the Browns would have to work out an extension before making the trade.

Garoppolo provided a glimpse into mindset about wanting to start somewhere when asked about his choice of Eastern Illinois.

"The Big Ten schools all talked to me as a preferred walk-on and I had a couple of other scholarships at small schools, but at Eastern it was just a great opportunity to play, which is really what got me -- and we all want to play -- so that was the main thing,'' he said.

Question is, will the Patriots be willing to trade him? With Brady saying in 2015 that he wants to dominate for another 10 years, the Patriots won't be able to pay Garoppolo the money he'll make on the open market. Besides, Belichick seemed to throw down the trade gauntlet in mid-November when he said Brady and Garoppolo were interchangeable.  

"When we put Jimmy in there, it's really seamless,'' he said. "Unless you were actually looking at the position, if you just could block out that position and say which was in there at quarterback, I don't know if you would know a lot of the times."

That's first-round pick talk, but he just might be worth it.

Super Bowl LI, featuring the New England Patriots and Atlanta Falcons, will be 10-point game: DMan's pick

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Super Bowl LI, between the New England Patriots and Atlanta Falcons, will be competitive for a while before the Patriots pull away.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The New England Patriots will win and comfortably cover the spread in Super Bowl LI on Sunday in Houston.

At least that is how I see it -- for entertainment purposes only, of course.

I have picked NFL against the spread for two straight years:

* In 2015, I went 122-127-7 in the regular season and 4-6-1 in the postseason. I did manage to win the Super Bowl (Denver +5 1/2).

* In the 2016 regular season, I went 130-118-8 and I am 8-2 in the postseason.

In this space, I decline to take the easy route when picking ATS. I pick all of the games, not a select few "hot ones'' each week. Leave that to a video. At the same time, I am realistic. I think batting .500 is an accomplishment, and I make no guarantees. (And don't yell at me too loudly when I have a bad week(s) because this is, after all, for entertainment purposes only.)

I have researched each team/matchup, but I plan on relying more on gut than anything else this season. 

For continuity's sake, each week I will use the MGM Mirage lines from vegasinsider.com as of Wednesday afternoon unless noted. Games are listed as I came upon them, not by order of certainty. I do not adjust picks even if injuries occur and/or lines change between Wednesday afternoon and Sunday.

  • Week 1: 9-6-1
  • Week 2: 8-8
  • Week 3: 7-9
  • Week 4: 8-7
  • Week 5: 7-6-1
  • Week 6: 5-10
  • Week 7: 10-5
  • Week 8: 6-6-1
  • Week 9: 6-6-1
  • Week 10: 5-9
  • Week 11: 11-1-2
  • Week 12: 9-6-1
  • Week 13: 9-6
  • Week 14: 9-7
  • Week 15: 6-9-1
  • Week 16: 8-8
  • Week 17: 7-9
  • Week 18: 3-1
  • Week 19: 3-1
  • Week 20: 2-0

Week 20 recap: Given the importance of the games, a 2-0 record felt like 16-0. It felt so good that I want to see the capsules again.

Conference Championship Games predictions:

@ Atlanta -4 1/2 over Green Bay

Skinny: Packers QB Aaron Rodgers can only do so much. He will be unable to overcome Green Bay's defensive issues against Atlanta's prolific offense. Falcons, 37-31.  

(Falcons won, 44-21.)

@ New England -6 over Pittsburgh

Skinny: Patriots no doubt are insulted that the spread isn't bigger. Steelers pay for Patriots having not played well in divisional-round victory over Houston. Patriots, 27-17.

(Patriots won, 36-17.)

Super Bowl LI

Sunday night

New England -3 over Atlanta

Skinny: In what figures to be a delicious matchup, the NFL's top scoring offense (Falcons) faces its stingiest scoring defense (Patriots) in climate-controlled conditions.

I like the Falcons. I really do. They feature QB Matt Ryan, WR Julio Jones and plenty of other playmakers on offense. Their coordinator is Kyle Shanahan, who was OC in Cleveland for one interesting season (2014). Shanahan has made the pieces of his complex puzzle fit, thanks largely to Ryan's arm talent and football IQ.

Ryan and Jones will present significant challenges for the Patriots. Neither one is going to intimidated by the New England aura. They will do their part, and receive some help, on Sunday night.

The problem for Atlanta is, the Patriots are a machine. The Patriots have all facets covered, on the field and in the booth. The Patriots can score plenty of points, too, and their 11-on-a-string defense is more dependable than Atlanta's.

The key to beating the Patriots is a nasty, physical, disruptive defense. The Falcons' D is no slouch, but it won't make the Patriots nervous. After a competitive first half, QB Tom Brady will get what he wants, when he wants it. As a result, coach Bill Belichick and Brady secure their fifth Super Bowl title in seven attempts together.

Final score: Patriots 30, Falcons 20.

Homecourt conference wins vs. Top 25 teams not a surprise anymore: College Basketball 2017 (video)

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Conference play is a great equalizer in College Basketball 2017 as teams are so familiar with each other. The deciding factor is often nothing more than homecourt advantage and that has proven to be the case this season. Watch video

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Familiarity is what makes conference play so tough. Playing teams regularly, two and three times a season, home-and-home makes for easy scouting reports and tough matchups. It is where home teams dominate.

Last week, 14 teams ranked in the Associated Press Top 25 lost games. All were in league play and only one was on its homecourt.

It's been quiet so far this week, but not without close calls. One anticipated upset did not happen. No. 2 Baylor was given a good chance to take out No. 3 and Big 12 powerhouse Kansas on the road, but it didn't happen. The resilient Jayhawks prevailed, 73-68, keeping their 51-game homecourt winning streak alive.

Also Wednesday, No. 14 Cincinnati trailed almost the entire game before beating unranked Tulsa on it's home floor, 57-55, when senior Troy Caupain hit a jumper with 4.4 seconds remaining.

As league play begins its second round, only 10 of 32 conferences have an undefeated leader. And only one of those sits atop one of the traditional power conferences -- No. 5 Arizona in the Pac 12.

The only undefeated team in the country overall, No. 1 Gonzaga, puts this general theory to test Thursday night in a West Coast Conference road game at BYU. If the Cougars win, it might be considered an upset by some, but it will be business as usual on the home court in major college conference play.

We talk about it in this video.

Carmelo Anthony in Cleveland - good idea for the Cavs? Bud vs. Doug

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In this Prepare for List Off, Bud and Doug discuss the idea of the New York star in Cleveland. Watch video

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The New York Knicks seemingly really want to see Carmelo Anthony in Cleveland.

Do you?

Talk heated up again this week, though the idea of getting rid of Kevin Love to get Anthony in here has never interested David Griffin and the Cavs. 

LeBron James would almost certainly be on board with his friend joining him on an NBA roster. This might be the closest answer the Cavs could find to Golden State adding Kevin Durant in the offseason. 

But are we sure that the move would make the Cavs better? 

And how could it possibly happen if the trade didn't include Love?

In this Prepare for List Off, Bud Shaw and I checked in on the idea of Anthony in Cleveland. Watch and then vote on what you would do.

Kyrie Irving dropped 14 dimes vs. Minnesota, but which assist was the best? (poll)

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Kyrie Irving's career-high 14 assists were all highlight-worthy. But which one was the most impressive?

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Cleveland Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving dished out a career-high 14 assists Wednesday in a 125-97 win against Minnesota, collecting 10 helpers in the first half alone.

Irving's assists ranged from the sublime to the spectacular, including a couple of alley-oop handoffs to Tristan Thompson and Richard Jefferson.

It was Irving's eighth game with 10 or more assists this season. He previously set his career high at 13 on Dec. 21 against Milwaukee with 13.

The Eastern Conference All-Star starter also shot 5-for-18 from the floor and finished with 14 points in 30 minutes.

Thompson and Channing Frye benefitted most from Irving's generosity, with four made field goals each off Kyrie dimes, while LeBron James had three. The 14 assists is the most ever by a LeBron teammate, according to ESPN

Here are some of Kyrie's best passes from the game:

Curl and lob to Tristan Thompson for dunk

 

Baseline wraparound pass to Thompson for the jam

 

45-foot fast break lob to Richard Jefferson

 

Ball movement finds LeBron for the spectacular finish

 

Slip-screen lob to LeBron for a dunk

 

After seeing the highlights, it's time for Cavaliers fans to vote: Which Kyrie Irving assist against Minnesota was the most impressive?

Pick your favorite in the poll below and defend your selection in the comments.

Cleveland Indians pitcher Trevor Bauer ready for the season, not spring training: Zack Meisel's Musings

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Bauer said he packed his bags for his off-season training the day after Game 7 of the World Series. Watch video

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- There is, in fact, rest for the weary, at least for those who want the time to recover.

Trevor Bauer, however, did not.

"I sacrificed my four weeks I usually take off and went straight into training," Bauer said. "I had a really productive off-season because of that. I didn't have any build-up time. I might actually do that [annually] going forward."

Bauer said he packed his bags for his training the day after Game 7 of the World Series. Bauer, who logged a 5.40 ERA in three World Series appearances, was the final pitcher to toe the rubber for the Tribe in 2016. He quickly shifted his attention to his training regimen.

"I went out there and did the best I could," Bauer said. "There's nothing else to be done."

The new season begins in two weeks, but the regular season remains two months away. First, players must endure about seven weeks of spring training.

"It's a lot," Bauer said. "Personally, I'm probably only two or three weeks away from being in in-season shape. So it's a long time for me."

Here are a few nuggets on the Tribe.

1. No promises: At the Greater Cleveland Sports Awards in January 2016, Michael Brantley declared his intention to be in Terry Francona's Opening Day lineup. He opted not to make any grand proclamations this time. Brantley met with reporters on Friday -- the day after the 2017 Greater Cleveland Sports Awards.

"I won't say [anything]," Brantley said. "All I know is I'm healthy right now and I've got a progression to go through. Once I get through that, I'll be ready to rock and roll."

Brantley said his hope is to be as far along as his teammates are once spring training commences.

Really, no one will have any semblance of an idea about Brantley's potential until he plays in spring training games.

Related: Brantley says he's ahead of schedule

2. Training days: Roberto Perez spent much of January training with Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina in Florida. Molina, 34, is a seven-time All-Star and an eight-time Gold Glove Award winner. Perez said they devoted much of their time together to working on the mental side of catching.

Perez and Molina both hail from Puerto Rico.

"He's the best catcher," Perez said. "You want to work with the best."

In 25 World Series plate appearances, Perez posted an .833 OPS, with a pair of home runs.

3. Family affair: Perez took three weeks to decompress from the long season before he initiated his off-season program. His wife gave birth to their son during the World Series.

"I wanted to go home and spend as much time with [my son] because i know it's going to be a long season," he said.

4. It's been a while: Wily Mo Pena, close to signing a minor-league deal with the Indians, last hit a major-league home run on Aug. 24, 2011. That long ball landed beyond the center-field wall at Progressive Field and it came at the expense of Josh Tomlin. That was nearly 2,000 days ago. Pena went 3-for-3 with four RBI that afternoon. For the Tribe, Cord Phelps went 0-for-5. Matt LaPorta, Jason Donald and Shelley Duncan each collected multiple hits.

Pena, 35, last logged more than 120 big-league plate appearances in a season in 2008.

Related: Tribe, Pena closing in on minor-league deal

Watch, vote on the top boys basketball plays of January

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See area standouts from Holy Name's Dwayne Cohill and St. Vincent-St. Mary's Jayvon Graves to St. Ignatius' Matt Davet and Brush's Andre Harris.

CLEVELAND, Ohio – Watch the video above and vote in the poll below to pick the cleveland.com boys basketball play of the month.

The top plays from January were compiled by cleveland.com with submissions noted below. Catch a play on video and want to submit it? Email mgoul@cleveland.com.


Here are the top plays up for vote.




Antonio Blanton, Elyria: His 3-pointer in the finals seconds of a 77-76 win Jan. 10 at Medina handed the Bees their first loss of the season.


Keith Simmons, Brunswick: Simmons’ buzzer-beating layup Jan. 27 at home lifted the Blue Devils for a second time against Elyria, 43-41. This play comes courtesy of Brunswick’s athletic department.


Trent Williams, Solon: On the same night as Simmons’ heroics, Williams did the same with a corner 3-pointer. His shot on the road helped the Comets to a 66-63 win at Shaker Heights. The Solon athletic department provided this highlight.


Matt Davet, St. Ignatius: A senior forward, Davet’s 3-pointer to beat the fourth-quarter buzzer highlighted a 36-point night. It also spurred St. Ignatius to a 90-80 overtime win Jan. 13 against rival St. Edward.


Mike Smith, Glenville: Tarblooders coach Michael Holt said Smith made shots like this one to avoid being cut in the preseason. Smith’s buzzer-beater before halftime Jan. 24 highlighted a 72-45 win vs. MLK that locked up Glenville’s top seed in the Senate League tournament.


Nijon Kirkman, John Hay: Kirkman doesn’t normally take 3s, but he had to Jan. 13 so the Hornets could keep their Senate League matchup going at East Tech. The Scarabs won, 84-79 in double overtime.


Taylor Pupkiewicz, Valley Forge: The senior guard also played beat the clock during the Patriots’ Jan. 10 loss to Holy Name.


Andre Harris, Brush: Two dunks from Harris make the cut. First, the 6-foot-3 sophomore finished in a vital 76-67 Western Reserve Conference road win Jan. 20 at Madison. Harris then brought the house down on an alley-oop Jan. 31 during an 88-45 home win vs. Mayfield. Brush coach Chet Mason provided the second highlight.


Demetrius Terry, St. Edward: The sophomore guard showed off his defensive skills in this steal and score against St. Ignatius.


Grant Huffman, St. Edward: More defense from the Eagles’ young crew. In this one, the freshman chased down a potential basket for the block.


Marreon Jackson, Garfield Heights: More defense, but from the Toledo-bound senior point guard. Jackson’s block came Jan. 15 during Flyin’ to the Hoop in Dayton.


Brian Roberts Jr., Copley: Roberts’ steal and score showed how dangerous of a guard he can be Jan. 17 during a 68-59 win against Stow.


Austin Brenner, Copley: Also a quarterback and recent Ashland commit, Brenner’s defense helped the Indians pull away in the second half from Stow.


Dwayne Cohill, Holy Name: A junior point guard, Cohill displayed his handled and scoring ability during the Scholastic Play By Play Classic at Baldwin Wallace against Brush. Cohill scored 30 points in the 79-57 win Jan. 8.


Jayvon Graves, St. Vincent-St. Mary: The Buffalo commit plays above the rim, and these two plays Jan. 6 during a 69-67 home win vs. St. Edward exhibit that.


R.J. Sunahara, Bay: Sunahara beat the buzzer with a near-full-court heave Jan. 31 at Rocky River. Bay won, 79-43. Rockets coach Jared Shetzer provided the highlight.


Miryne Thomas, Central Catholic: From the Play By Play Classic at Baldwin Wallace, Thomas played both ends of the floor. The 6-7 senior blocked a shot against Shaker Heights and finished the play with a one-handed slam.


Jalil Little, Lorain: A senior point guard, Little beat the third-quarter clock with a putback that ultimately made the difference Jan. 3 in a 66-64 win against Garfield Heights.


Naz Bohannon from Little, Lorain: The Titans pulled even at halftime thanks to Little’s steal and Bohannon’s finish. The seniors have Lorain on top of the Lake Erie League, and their 69-67 win Jan. 27 vs. Cleveland Heights contributed to it.


Contact sports reporter Matt Goul on Twitter (@mgoul) or email (mgoul@cleveland.com). Or log in and leave a message below in the comments section.


Cleveland Cavaliers Scribbles: Carmelo Anthony, Iman Shumpert, playing defense -- Terry Pluto (photos)

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The Cleveland Cavaliers had a 25-7 record heading into 2017. Then they were 7-8 in January, as the defense collapsed. But the last thing they need to do is trade Kevin Love for Carmelo Anthony.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Scribbling about the Cleveland Cavaliers after their 125-97 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday:

1. Let's deal with the show business part first. Why are ESPN and some other media outlets dwelling on a possible Carmelo Anthony-for-Kevin Love deal? There is some truth to the rumors. The New York Knicks want to trade Anthony for Love. If I'm running the Knicks, I'd trade Anthony for Love. Anthony will be 33 on May 29. He has two more years and about $57 million left on his contract.

2. Like LeBron James, he's in his 14th NBA season. Unlike James, Anthony had major knee surgery in February of 2015 to repair a torn patellar tendon and missed the rest of the season. He also had some microscopic knee surgery early in his career. He has had a few minor injuries since, missing 10 games in 2015-16 season. He has missed only one game this season.

3. So those advocating a Love-Anthony deal can say Anthony has been even more durable than Love this season. The Cavs All-Star forward is dealing with back spasms and has missed seven games with various minor injuries this season. But Love has been pretty durable in his Cavs career. He missed seven games in 2014-15. He sat out five games last season. His major injury was in the first round of the 2015 playoffs when he needed shoulder surgery.

4. Love is 28 years old. He is under contract until the summer 2020. At that point, he will be 31 -- younger than Anthony is right now. Unless you think Anthony can help the Cavs win a title right now -- and don't care at all about the future -- the deal makes no sense.

5. So why the buzz? Because ESPN and other major media outlets are enamored with super teams and big names. The national networks loved it when James joined Chris Bosh and went to the Miami Heat to play with Dwyane Wade in 2010. And the same is true when the Cavs put together James/Love/Kyrie Irving in 2014. And now it's the Golden State Warriors with Kevin Durant joining all the Warriors stars.

6. So Anthony/James/Irving means big ratings, lots of internet hits, etc. James and Anthony are good friends, dating back to their high school days. They have vacationed with each other, along with Chris Paul and Wade.

7. But is this really a good basketball trade? This is not a fantasy league. Most media people and fans don't give enough value to defensive rebounding, an area where Love excels. Anthony does not. James and Anthony both prefer to play small forward. Anthony is averaging 23.1 points, 6.1 rebounds and shooting .435 from the field this season.

8. Love for Anthony? I can't buy it. I hope the Cavs don't, either.

9. Meanwhile, something a bit strange has happened with the Cavs in two of their last three games. They played some defense. They held Oklahoma City and Minnesota under 100 points. OKC shot 37 percent from the field, Minnesota shot 44 percent. The game becomes so much easier when you defend.

10. In their 107-91 victory over OKC, the Cavs were determined to make life hard for Thunder star Russell Westbrook. He shot only 7-of-26 from the field. Iman Shumpert was outstanding on defense. Shumpert did great work again against Zach Lavine, a 19-point scorer for Minnesota. Lavine was 4-of-18 from the field.

11. Coach Tyronn Lue told the media after the Minnesota game that the Cavs allowed 27 points on high pick-and-roll plays in the first half, only six points on those same plays in the second half. The team made adjustments on defense, and the players paid attention. In the first half, Minnesota shot 56 percent, it was 31 percent in the second half. That's progress.

12. Love's critics can contend that he played only 12 minutes in the OKC game and sat out against Minnesota. He is dealing with back spasms. But that's not why the defense suddenly took major steps forward. The Cavs defended better because they were embarrassed by their play in the previous 11 games, allowing 110 points per night.

13. Something else has happened: They moved the ball. I really think it's a product of energy on defense. When you prevent the other team from scoring, it becomes easier to fast break. In general, the team feels better about itself. The Cavs can score. They can shoot. They don't have a perfect roster. But please this is a very talented team.

14. Heading into 2017, the Cavs had a 25-7 record. That wasn't an accident. They were playing well. J.R. Smith missed 11 of those games, and they were 9-2 without him. They were clicking. Then came the 7-8 mark in January, primarily due to the collapse on defense, lack of focus and ball movement on offense. Perhaps they are in the process of refocusing.

15. In the victories over OKC and Minnesota, Tristan Thompson had 26 rebounds and 6 blocked shots. He also had 5 steals. He was a force on defense and grabbed a lot of offensive rebounds, too. He is a key player for the Cavs.

16. Some of the joy of the game seemed to come back to James. He wasn't glaring at teammates that often. His ball handling was much better in the OKC and  Minnesota games, 20 assists compared to 4 turnovers. He also had 22 rebounds in those games.

17. Kyle Korver finally looked comfortable with the Cavs, scoring 20 points on 8-of-11 shooting. He's averaging 8.8 points and shooting .428 from the field (.426 on 3-pointers) in 12 games since being traded to Cleveland. It's easy to see how he can be an even more productive player once he fits into the offense.

18. Irving has been a factor in both victories. He had a career-high 14 assists against Minnesota. He had a miserable shooting game (5-of-18) but delivered so many excellent passes that he helped the Cavs dominate. He was on the floor for loose balls. He hustled. He had 29 points and 10 assists in the victory over OKC.

19. In between the two victories, the Cavs were embarrassed, 104-97, in Dallas on Monday. That was ridiculous, a blast from the awful performances earlier in January. We'll see if any more of those games pop up or if the Cavs are getting back to the team that was 25-7 in the first two months of the season.

20. Yes, the Cavs still need a backup point guard or a playmaker ... or another player. But the OKC and Minnesota games show what this team can do when it actually concentrates on basketball.

Are Cleveland Cavaliers waiting for the playoff re-start? -- Bill Livingston (photos)

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It is not alarming that over half of the Cleveland Cavaleirs' losses have been to losing or at least non-winning teams. The playoffs will show who they really are.

EVELAND, Ohio - The good news is that the Cleveland Cavaliers aren't getting up for the little ones.

Six of the 14 teams that have beaten them have losing records. The Chicago Bulls, who have beaten them twice, are at .500.

Focus, schmocus. Check back with the Cavs when it's April, and the playoffs are here.

A gloomier view

That, at least, is a more reasonable response than crying, "They lost to New Orleans without Anthony Davis, and to Sacramento, and who cares who suited up for them? It's Sacramento! Heavens to Jiri Welsch, who's next, Brooklyn? Will they even let us keep the trophy?"

The Cavs have beaten the Brooklyn Nets twice and are done with them for the season.

The Cavs will keep the championship trophy.

Last season banished forever the ghost of former Cavalier Jiri Welsch, who fired up a corner 3-pointer when 14-year veteran LeBron James was in his second NBA season. The ball bent in curving splendor, like a draw in golf, and landed in the middle of the lane, untouched, as players stared at it, aghast.

With the curiosity of youth, James said to Welsch, "What the (bleep) was that?"

The dog days

These pre-All-Star Game exercises, while yielding no Welschian moments, are taking place near the tail end of the dog days of the regular season. Actually, that's an insult to dogs, but so is the Westminster Kennel Club's decision to also have a competition for cats this year.

Man's best friends will survive the insult, and so will the Cavs.

It's not only that J.R. Smith will eventually return, and Kyle Korver is beginning to fit in, and surely coach Ty Lue won't have to activate himself as the backup point guard.

It happens every spring

The difference is that the playoffs are different.

More off-days mean more rest. The Cavs can use it. LeBron James and Smith are 32 years old. Before the NBA Finals end, Channing Frye will be 34, Korver 36, James Jones already is 36, and Richard Jefferson will be only a few days short of 37.

More time means a better chance to lock in on deterrence although "hustle back on defense" is not exactly a secret to success. The Cavs have violated that precept with abandon in the regular season.

The effects of the schedule are even more dramatic between regular season and postseason in baseball. On the way to the World Series, Cleveland Indians manager Terry Francona short-rested starters and went to the bullpen in the early innings and used Andrew Miller in all kinds of relief roles, unlike during the 162-game grind.

With the Cavs, the major difference will be that Lue will shorten the rotation to eight players, nine at most, except in mop-up duty.

Matchups will mean everything. Players such as Frye and former backup point guard Matthew Dellavedova played important roles in getting the Cavs to the Finals, then were little used against Golden State's small ball lineups. Jefferson's role increased.

A likely third straight Finals

In a famous scene in the movie "Hoosiers," coach Gene Hackman has his players measure the distance from the backboard to the foul line and the floor to the rim at the state finals to make the point that it is the same game the team had played all season.

In the playoffs, that's not strictly true.

In jazz, the melody only serves as the departure point for improvisation, adjustment and creativity. It's the same in the NBA playoffs. The "scaffolding" of the game lets players reach the ceiling of their talent.

James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love made magical plays in the final moments of the Finals last season.

The Cavs play in the much weaker Eastern Conference. They will get that opportunity again

Letters to the Editor: For & Against Chief Wahoo logo for Cleveland Indians (video)

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A look at some of the many opinions we've received from readers regarding the Chief Wahoo Cleveland Indians logo. Watch video

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Cleveland Indians' success and run to the World Series -- not to mention news last week that MLB's All-Star Game is coming in 2019 -- has brought more attention to the team, and another round of debate regarding the grinning logo of Chief Wahoo.

We've covered the history of the logo in another video, but any mention of the Chief brings out the passions of Cleveland's baseball fans.

Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred met with Indians owners last week as they continue to seek a solution on Chief Wahoo.

Over the years, The Plain Dealer and cleveland.com have received many letters, emails and Tweets from readers voicing their opinions. The video above highlights a few of them. Note: The voices reading excerpts of letters on the video are not of the people who submitted the letter.

With Cleveland's baseball team headed into the most promising season in a generation and the All-Star Game announcement, is now the time to let go of Chief Wahoo?

What's your take? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.

Akron's Kwan Cheatham elevates his game in MAC play (video)

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Kwan Cheatham was never a double-figure scorer for Akron until Mid-American Conference play began this season. Now he is averaging 12.0 points overall, and 16.4 points in MAC play. Watch video

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- When you're hot, you're hot, and right now no player in the Mid-American Conference is hotter than Akron senior Kwan Cheatham.

The 6-10, 235-pound forward has been the perfect compliment to fellow senior and Cincinnati product Isaiah Johnson, Akron's 6-10, 290-pound center. As the Mid-American Conference season hits the midway point, both are on a Player of the Year course.

For Johnson, averaging 16.4 points on the season, it was arguably expected. But for Cheatham, averaging 12.0 points a game, it was not.

While Cheatham has been a starter since his sophomore season, he never averaged in double figures. He scored 7.9 points a game as a sophomore and 7.2 points a game as a junior. Even this season, prior to MAC play, he was only averaging 8.2 points a game.

But once the lights came on for league play, Cheatham has been blazing. He has averaged 16.6 points in nine conference games with a career high of 31 points against Buffalo.

He is shooting 45.3 percent on 3-pointers this season and 80 percent on free throws. And Cheatham leads the Zips in rebounds at 9.4 a game.

Akron coach Keith Dambrot said Cheatham's sudden improvement is evidence of his hard work over the past several seasons. The only area where the coach issues even mild criticism is offensive rebounding.

Still, with nine MAC games to play and the Zips on a 12-game winning streak, complaints are few and far between for Cheatham and the undefeated Zips in MAC play.

Ohio State football recruiting: Everything Mark Pantoni said from National Signing Day

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Everything Mark Pantoni said from his National Signing Day press conference in the Woody Hayes Athletic Center on Monday. Watch video

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Everything Mark Pantoni said from his National Signing Day press conference in the Woody Hayes Athletic Center on Monday. 

MARK PANTONI: I'll just start off with one of Coach Coombs' favorite lines: Today wasn't a good day, it was a great day at Ohio State. It was exciting. I felt confident last night going to bed, and you guys probably saw my tweet, that we didn't want any drama here today and there wasn't. That was always a good sign on signing day.

Just to take 20 seconds, there's a lot of hands that go into the whole recruiting operation, and especially during the season when coaches are busy with game planning and getting prepared for our opponents. I want to really thank my right-hand man Eron Hodges. This guy is a superstar in the profession. He's been with us for over a year now, and he's got a really bright future. Tim Hinton has been really great to rely upon as all of his experience as a college and high school coach. So I really appreciate his knowledge and expertise and helping with recruiting.

My guys Anthony Coughlin and Ed Terwilliger also in my office that do a great job for me.

In the front office, the girls Katie, Megan, Taylor Alex are really helpful in setting up all the visits for us. This past year we hired Zach Swartz, as Coach mentioned, to do all our social media. It was a home run hire. He's exceed all expectations with his job, as you guys all follow on social media.

And then our two Jedis, Sam Silverman and Ken Stufflebeam, have been here for a couple years now and those guys are the best in the business at what they do. And finally, I also thank the SACO staff, strength and conditioning staff. Ryan Stamper with his Real Life Wednesdays. Our creativity team meets every morning at 7:00 a.m. to help with recruiting materials. And then I'm missing other people, but Gene Smith, as well, for all of his support and taking the time to meet with prospects when we need him to.

So that being said, be happy to answer questions.

Q. Can you describe how much bigger and more complex and ambitious your department is compared to when you started here?

Yeah, when I first started 10 years ago in this business, it was almost a one-man operation, and now all those names I just read off, we're talking about recruiting an army. Even here now it's expanded. When I first got here, it was really just Greg Gillum and I kind of doing the majority of stuff. And as the number of players to watch expands, as the social media expands, as the nationwide search expands, you have to keep adding and adding. And now even the social media team is a team within themselves. So I think this operation is only going to continue to evolve and continue to grow, and just the nature of recruiting that keeps evolving and taking place.

Q. When you talk about all those things and the way you guys have expanded and evolved, where is it left for this to go?

I think the next wave is you're going to see it become more -- have more personnel specific departments like the NFL. I think you're going to start seeing -- there's already two or three schools that have titles of general manager, and then you're going to see just 20 people in the personnel office just cutting up film and doing film evals. I think that's going to be the next step and it's just going to keep growing from there.

Q. Is any part of that hard to believe? I don't know how you evaluate yourself, but it's changed so much and it continues to build. I don't know if you think that's good for the game?

I think any time that the support staff can assist the coaches and make their lives easier, it's a good thing so they can focus on our current teams and games during the season. But at some point when is it going to become too big? There's going to be places like Ohio State that can afford to have these massive armies, and other schools may not.

But I think it is helpful, the larger our staff is, the more information we can find out about kids and do the research and be well-equipped in helping our coaches make informed decisions.

Q. I would imagine when you got to Ohio State you had a vision for what you wanted Ohio State recruiting to look like. Today's class with all the five-stars, relatively little drama, how close is this class to that vision?

In the perfect world, it looks great on paper. For any class I think you really don't know until three years from now. The 2013 class standing up here today, we didn't know Zeke Elliott was Zeke Elliott and Darron Lee would be Darron Lee.

So on paper you're most proud and confident of the type of kids they are and the families they come from that they're going to be successful because of that. So in that case, we feel outstanding for the type of kids we've signed and how talented they are on film that we expect them to come in ready to play.

Q. Is it too simple to say that the national title two years ago, the NFL Draft a year ago, I would imagine those were kind of the two pillars of what you saw?

Yeah, that's exactly right, in my opinion starting with the National Championship and then almost a year ago in April at the NFL Draft, seeing all those guys walk across the stage has really lifted our platform probably on a more national level to be able to open these kids' eyes a little bit more to Ohio State.

Q. Just a tremendous amount of this class starting with Shaun, obviously, has been committed for more than a year, upwards of 18 months, and a lot of those guys, they weren't just like guys like Josh Myers, guys out of state, too. What type of work goes into keeping that many guys committed for that long when they're that type of caliber of prospect that you've got all these other schools that know who to target in trying to get them to flip? What was that process like for you?

Yeah, any time a kid commits, you almost have to keep remind yourself to recruit as if they are not committed because you always want to make sure you're showing love because you know the other schools aren't backing off. Sometimes I know if we lose out on a kid, it may make us start recruiting him harder even though he commits to another school. So we have to remind ourselves that just because someone's committed, we've really got to treat and show the love that they deserve.

You know, any time you get out of the -- our eight-hour radius, the percentages go way down. So those are the guys that we really have to focus on and you know we're going to be in a fight until that name comes through the fax machine on signing day.

Shaun Wade specifically, we have not had a great track record down in Jacksonville with kids who have committed to us, so give him and his family a lot of credit for sticking firm. We took a lot of trips and we even encouraged him to take his trips, but at the end of the day we said pick what you feel is the best and he picked Ohio State because of that. We're really proud of his family and Shaun for sticking with us.

Q. 21 signees, it's a relatively small class for you guys. What do the numbers look like for 2018? Do you think it'll be a bigger class?

I was looking at it today, I think we have -- I forget the number of seniors. I want to say more than 14 seniors maybe going into next year versus this year we had five. So we knew that was going to be small as it is. So we have a bigger starting ground. In our eyes there's probably going to be, as usual, guys who leave early for the NFL Draft, so we keep some of those names in mind as projections.

But I think you'll always see us get to at least 20 and then the big years the 25.

Q. Talk about names of the 2018 class, I know you guys have two verbal commitments. Do you feel like a rash of commitments is coming in that class? Because I know last year you had ten commitments already for the 2017 class.

Yeah, the coaches, they're just finishing up this class so now they're focus is on the '18 class. We have all the film prepared for them now so they can do their true evaluations on the '18 guys.

So I think as they get their lists in order of how they rank them, I think during the spring is when you start to see the guys will really start to push for commitments and through the summer to get a good foundation of the class.

Q. Urban mentioned it, but the NCAA might look at the early signing period in December for the spring, and for a guy like Elijah Gardiner, if he were a year younger this might end up different. For your recruiting efforts, do you expect the landscape to change at all?

Yeah, I think it will. I'm interested to see how many kids will actually decide to sign in December if they have that opportunity.

And the positive aspect is the J.K. Dobbins of the world, you don't have to worry about recruiting them for a couple more weeks until they get here.

The negative is if a kid signs with another school, that coach leaves, position coach leaves, school gets in trouble, then what's going to be the procedures for that. So there's still some questions how it's all going to happen when it does happen. So it will affect the landscape and affect how we -- timing of official visits, when we want to bring them in. We may try to get kids in that very last week and now before that signing date, be the last visit on their mind. So that's things we've got to keep in mind and consider.

Q. If it's December, you're still preparing for a bowl game?

Absolutely.

Q. How do you mitigate your time?

Yeah, I think just like any visit during the season, the coaches are going to be getting prepared for the bowl game. And then myself and my staff will have the large chunk of the visit on our hands and we'll just have to make sure the kids have a great time, as we do now.

Q. When it's 15 guys leaving early for the NFL in the last two years, does that put more pressure on you to get guys who can play right away?

Yeah, you know, every year we expect guys to be on that track to leave early, and so there's some pressure to make sure when you lose a Darron Lee, you'd better bring in someone just as good or the team is not as good. You always have to try to equate the talent that you lose with what you bring in. And then every year, there may be one or two guys that leave that you're not projecting to leave. In that case, kind of where we're at with wide receivers this year, we weren't sure on a couple guys what caused that last second scramble with Elijah Gardiner, but we always want to have a pair and a spare ready for worst case scenarios to where it's not just try to quickly find someone at the last second, but we have a list of guys ready just in case something were to go down.

Q. Has anything changed in that regard in the last couple years?

I don't think so. Since day one we always wanted to recruit guys that are not only great kids who want to do great things after football, but who want to play in the NFL. And so those are the kids we're looking for from day one, and then we're going to continue to do that.

Q. I know they came in very late in the process, but did the coaching staff changes have any impact on your recruiting in terms of -- you had to transition a little bit, and I'm sure had they had different territories and whatnot, but you guys made it seem seamless.

Yeah, Tim Beck, give him a lot of credit. He did an outstanding job in the state of Texas with Baron and Jeffrey. And even with Shaun Wade in Jacksonville. So when you're very familiar with the prospect and their families. And you have a change like that, you always want to make sure that you're on top of things and the position coach can jump right in there.

The great thing that Tim did and Luke did, they were always very up front and honest with these kids and their families. There was no deception, no hiding. When they knew they were going to be leaving, they were very up front with the families.

I think the families really appreciated that and made the switch a lot easier.

Q. This may be more of an Urban question, but when you help to arrange the recruitment of a quarterback and you're getting guys out of Las Vegas and Texas, is there any emphasis on, hey, let's get some film of them playing in Ohio-type weather, or is the philosophy that a quarterback that can throw in the dessert can throw in the arctic?

Yeah, that's a good question. It's hard to simulate, obviously, so it's hard to project that. I don't know what the right answer is and how you would evaluate that. But I do know when we did recruit Joey Burrow, who was not a very highly recruited guy but there was a lot of emphasis placed on him versus the other one or two kids played in Ohio, he's played in the cold, he knows what the rivalry means, and so that really helped Joe's stock in our eyes.

So in that case, him versus a kid who maybe we saw as an equal talent in Texas or wherever it was, Joe got extra bonus in our eyes because of those reasons.

Q. When you guys are putting together a class, you guys have seven out of 21 commits from Ohio. In your mind you guys have the best class in the history of the program maybe right now, but I don't think --

No, it wasn't, not enough Ohio. That's something we want our percentage to be much higher on. There's too much talent in this state, but at the same time, we're also searching for the best players in the country.

We always have to keep reminding ourselves Ohio kids are our first priority. They will be. Sometimes we probably over evaluate them because those are the kids we get to camp so many times, we know all about, versus a kid out of state. Trust me, we place so much emphasis on the state of Ohio and we're going to continue to and do our best to get the best players out of the state of Ohio.

Q. You talked a lot about the NFL Draft and the National Championship you guys won, but you know as well as anybody that this class, from a numbers standpoint, with the five-stars that you have is dramatically the best class you guys have put together. Why now, in your mind, do you think it call came together in year five or six for Urban and what kind of made it all mesh at the same time right now?

Yeah, I think the three things are, one, the National Championship two years ago, and then last year with the NFL Draft, and then finally just the evolvement and success of our Real Life Wednesdays program to not only be able to say here's what we do and have these great speakers who our team, but to then show Billy Price doing an internship with Nike, to have Joe Burrow, Austin and Sam Hubbard go to Goldman Sachs in New York, and so now these are testimonies, our guys actually do this instead of just having guys speak and giving us great information, but now we have guys in the real world doing these great internships. I think that was huge for Baron and Jeffrey and among others, and I think between those three different things I just mentioned is the huge success we've had.

Q. Did Beck try to recruit Browning and Okudah after Texas after he left Texas?

Not that I'm aware of.

Q. Were you worried about those kids?

I think there's just always the respect factor. He's got a job to do down there, too. So they did go see J. K. That was no surprise to us.

Q. How are you on numbers? I think we have you at 89 with this class, guys on the current roster?

Yeah, I'm not even sure where today puts us, but we will be at 85 come August when we need to be.

Q. And you guys had a kid on a visit recently cited for marijuana possession. How does that happen?

You know, we educate our players as much as we can, and we try to do as much research on prospects before we even bring them up here, and I guess mistakes happen with the number of kids we bring up here. We don't want it to happen and it's not a good reflection on us, either. So we do as much homework as we can to avoid those situations, but we got a bad deal on that one.

Q. Is there any worry about whoever was hosting him on the guys on your end?

You mean -- we don't really -- it's not a worry. Obviously we worry every day about kids. It's college. We don't want our players doing that sort of thing. But it's not something we go to sleep every night worried about that kids are going to have issues like that. We have a lot of trust in our kids, and we constantly remind them every day, our coaches do. We feel confident in the type of kids we bring in the program that they make the right decisions.

Q. Is Elijah Gardiner a great example of the depth of the book that you guys keep or accumulate? Can you take me through first hearing about him to having Urban Meyer going to Texas?

Eran, who I mentioned before, he's the one who actually found Elijah just searching through names. And when the coaches -- it was on a Sunday, Coach Meyer was in the office and we started showing him some of these receivers that we had found and Elijah was one of them, a guy we were very interested in and figured we needed to get to know.

So Kevin was down the first week to go see him with Zach Smith, and they liked his physical appearance, got great feedback from the high school coach. And so then that next week is when we decided to fly Coach Meyer in and he felt the same way those guys did, decided to bring him here on a visit, which was almost like a job interview for him, getting him around our players, constantly asking our players what he was like with them, just to make sure, again, we want to make sure we bring in the right type of kid and all the boxes checked out positively for him, and we're glad he's a buckeye.

Q. How much of a scramble, as you look back on it now, was it to get that third receiver if that's what you want to call it in this class? Y'all went through almost a Rolodex of names until you found Elijah. I guess the jury is out on him for the first couple years, but how much of a scramble was that, and how much of a need was that to get the third receiver?

We felt it was fairly important, obviously, to do the search that we did. We play a lot of receivers, as you guys know, so wanted to be able to have the depth and practice to be able to practice and give these guys the rest that they need in between practice reps. We thought it was very important. So to bring a guy in who we know may be a little bit developmental but who is a big, strong, fast guy to give us some depth at that position here for the future, like a guy like Bin Victor did last year. We knew he was a guy who needed to be developed, but he came on a lot faster than we thought.

Q. Did you ever believe that Real Life Wednesdays, when it was introduced, that it would become a major factor in your recruiting? Are you sitting here now a little bit --

Yeah, a little bit, the impact it's had not only on recruiting but our players itself, and the fact that these guys are now more interested in doing more research on different fields of area, knowing that Coach Meyer is going to help them get to that point I think has been a huge success.

Q. You mentioned that this whole process is starting to feel like the NFL a little bit, so what lessons are you taking learning from their personnel people and how they handle the free agency? The NFL is similar, but is it different?

It's probably just a little bit similar in just the traits and their mindset of how they draft people as far as film evaluation, character, the critical factors they look for at each position, more so on that and then free agency and trades and salary caps and that sort of thing.

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