Five things to watch this weekend: Big weekend for Notre Dame
It's hard to imagine a worse -- or at least more aggravating -- start to the 2011 season for the Fighting Irish. Not only are they 0-2, but both losses could have easily been wins. Despite the record, Notre Dame is still Notre Dame and the schedule sets up favorably from here on out. Recruits aren't jumping ship yet, but ESPNU 150 athlete Ronald Darby is looking around a bit. One of the Irish's top targets left, four-star Austintown-Fitch (Ohio) running back William Mahone will be officially visiting along with Darby this weekend.Can Trotwood-Madison finally topple Wayne?
The Trotwood-Madison (Ohio) seniors have never beaten Wayne (Ohio). The Rams' last loss at home came at the hands of the Warriors, too. This time, the Warriors (1-2) will be without Braxton Miller, the blue-chip quarterback now playing at Ohio State."Wayne has a really good team and no disrespect to them, but they beat us the last two years because they Braxton Miller," said T-M coach Maurice Douglass, whose team is 3-0. "When things went wrong, Braxton Miller became Braxton Miller."This year, Douglass' defense is loaded with Division I athletes, most notably senior Bam Bradley and juniors Cam Burrows and Mike McCray.Wayne isn't without talent either, though. Receiver Armani Miller is committed to Toledo, and Miller's replacement, Javon Harrison, is no slouch either. Offensive lineman Lovell Peterson is also one of the best juniors in the state.For recruiting's sake, Ohio State could use a win
Before both these programs were dragged through the mud because of self-inflicted scandal, this was one of the highlights of the non-conference schedule. Both teams were supposed to be loaded with talent. Miami's No. 1 ranked 2008 class are seniors now and Ohio State was likely a preseason top-three team with Terrelle Pryor.Since news broke of each program's misdeeds, recruiting has come to a standstill for both. While only one Buckeyes commit has jumped ship thus far, a win on Saturday will give coaches a chance to remind current commits and top targets that, despite the turmoil surrounding the program, Ohio State is still Ohio State.A win also might mean a little bit more stability in the coaching staff. Close calls against Toledo aren't likely to make Ohio State AD Gene Smith remove the interim tag on coach Luke Fickell anytime soon. And don't think opposing programs aren't reminding recruits they can't be sure who will be coaching Ohio State next year. A win would help quiet that. Will Pickerington Central's seniors pick themselves up?