Podcast Summary: "Ohio State Around the Shoe: Buckeyes' Perfect Red-Zone Call; Clemson & Notre Dame Lessons for OSU"

Podcast: The Bill and Doug Show: Ohio State Football Talk
Host: Blue Wire
Episode Date: September 15, 2025
Guests: Bill Bender (Sporting News), Andrew Gillis (cleveland.com), with hosts Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis

Main Theme

This episode of The Bill and Doug Show dives into the state of Ohio State football amid the 2025 season, focusing on lessons drawn from current struggles at Clemson and Notre Dame, red-zone decision-making at OSU, shifting perceptions about the Big Ten race, the viability of MAC teams in the new playoff landscape, and the evolving role of alma mater allegiances in sports media. The panel—veteran college football writers with local and national ties—deploys wit, candor, and deep analysis to engage Buckeye fans and look at broader trends across college football.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Lessons for Ohio State from Clemson and Notre Dame

Segment start: 05:14

• Bill Bender urges OSU fans to be grateful for their sustained excellence, highlighting Clemson’s and Notre Dame’s recent setbacks as comparative cautionary tales:

  “Could you imagine at Columbus right now if Ohio State lost to a caliber program of like NC State and SMU? The Tigers are 2-6 against top 10 teams since that Sugar Bowl where Ohio State just nuked them with Justin Fields… There’s a difference between Dabo having a national championship team … and just another ACC contender.”
  — Bill Bender (05:38)

• Andrew Gillis stresses the “fragility” of elite programs, citing Clemson's slow adaptation to the transfer portal and Notre Dame's puzzling staff decisions:

  "After Covid, they were kind of famously slow to adapt to the transfer portal … you pair that with the fact that you don’t have a super weapon at quarterback … it can go downhill quick."
  — Andrew Gillis (07:07)

• Bill Landis zeroes in on quarterback management:

  "Perhaps an appreciation of how Ryan Day has managed the quarterback position. He doesn’t let things fester ... Kyle McCord had an okay season in 2023 and Ryan Day didn’t promise him anything after that. So Kyle McCord left and they got a better quarterback with Will Howard and they won a national championship."
  — Bill Landis (11:11)

• Discussion includes whether independence is helping or hurting Notre Dame’s playoff hopes, and whether OSU fans should remain content or vigilant.

2. Re-Evaluating The Big Ten Championship Race

Segment start: 15:14

• Preseason vs. Current Predictions:
  All panelists originally picked Ohio State vs. Penn State; now, most lean toward Ohio State vs. Oregon, citing Oregon’s early dominance.

  “Oregon to me might just be a wagon. Maybe we’re just in the same place we were last year, where we looked at it and went: Okay, Ohio State and Oregon are the best two teams in the country …”
  — Andrew Gillis (16:16)

• Penn State Still in the Mix:
  Bender holds out for Penn State upsetting Oregon, emphasizing the home-field whiteout advantage and defensive depth.

  “I think Penn State wins that game. I just ... like their defense. It is tough to go in there and win. There’s some really good Ohio State teams that escape that one in, what, ‘18…”
  — Bill Bender (20:36)

• Big Ten’s Strength at QB and Beyond:
  Gillis highlights the presence of potentially the top three QBs in the nation: “They might be the three best teams in the country and they might just have three eventual first round picks at quarterback.” (22:41)

3. Buckeyes’ Perfect Red-Zone Play Call Scenario

Segment start: 23:24

• Hypothetical Situation:
  Fourth and goal from the 2-yard line—game on the line.

• Bill Landis:
  Wants the ball in Jeremiah Smith’s hands:

  “Something designed for Jeremiah because he’s the best player in college football ... but not just a fade. Something with pre-snap movement and targeting Smith.” (24:16)

• Doug Lesmerises:
  Suggests a QB-run, presidential package with multiple RPO wrinkles:

  “I think I’m putting Keen Holtz in and running some kind of read play ... maybe RPO it a tiny bit. If there’s a tight end who leaks out ... you can throw a little pop pass.” (25:04)

• Bill Bender:
  Likes the RPO with Bo Jackson and multiple options at the line:

  “Bo Jackson’s the running back I’m putting in there.” (27:05)

• Andrew Gillis:
  Agrees: best player, best chance:

  “It has to go to Jeremiah Smith … I’d much rather go down swinging with our best player, rather than your O-line gets beat and CJ Donaldson gets stuffed.” (29:33)

• On offensive line faith:
  Landis voices overall faith in short-yardage execution, but expresses concern about “condensing everything and helping the defense too much.” (29:40)

4. Will a MAC Team Make the College Football Playoff?

Segment start: 31:42

• Outlook Bleak:
  All agree it's unlikely, possibly impossible under current or future conditions.

  “I don’t think it’ll happen in the next 10 years … There’s so much parity in the league, it makes it difficult."
  — Bill Bender (33:09)

• Transfer Portal & Parity:
  Gillis:

  “The stability of that conference is not great right now … I don’t even know if the conference is going to be viable in five years.” (34:23)

• Landis:
  Tells a cautionary tale of mid-major volatility:

  “It’s just like far too volatile of a conference … I just don’t think the league lends itself to [playoff runs].” (39:28)

• Panel Reflection:
  The consensus mourns the erosion of the MAC’s national relevance, both due to external (transfer portal, realignment) and internal (lack of institutional investment) pressures.

5. Alma Mater Fandom in Modern Sports Media

Segment start: 41:26

• Bill Bender:
  Advocates for mentioning alumni roots “in small doses … show it, but don’t make it who you are.” (43:23)

• Andrew Gillis:
  Notes the impossibility of feigning neutrality about formative college experiences, but stresses professionalism and relatability:

  “It is irrational and short sighted to expect people who attended a university … to just say, ‘those feelings never happened.’” (43:40)

• Bill Landis:
  Shares his Penn State-to-OSU beat writer journey and supports fan perspective—when handled responsibly:

  “College football is so unique … I’m okay with fan sentiment being baked into the coverage … as long as it’s not done in the way [Portnoy] does it.” (46:37)

• Doug Lesmerises:
  Warns against fan-bias masquerading as analysis:

  “…Why would you have someone who’s completely biased talk about a game or analyze a game? … It’s annoying and it’s unprofessional.” (48:23)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Humor & Banter:

  • “I thought you were gonna be in preschool [in 2007]. I feel much better about that.”
    — Doug Lesmerises, (03:23)
  • Ongoing jokes about flag football, fourth-grade quarterbacks, and drafting Pickerington 8th graders for fantasy leagues break up the intensity of the analysis.

• On Penn State’s Big Ten Aspirations:

  • “Wake me up when they beat Ohio State. They haven’t done that since 2016 ...”
    — Bill Bender, (20:43)

• On the MAC’s Future:

  • “There are people in league circles who would not be surprised if an FCS drop is not in [Akron or Kent State’s] future.”
    — Andrew Gillis, (34:23)

• On Fans Covering Their Alma Mater:

  • “You can show it, but don’t make it who you are.” — Bill Bender, (43:23)

Actionable Takeaways & Final Thoughts

• Buckeye fans:
  Appreciate your current program stability and leadership. The quick fall-offs at Clemson and Notre Dame show how even elite brands can stumble.

• Big Ten outlook:
  Oregon and Ohio State, loaded at QB, may be the conference’s new steady powers. Don’t count Penn State out, but the “peak” theory may be overblown.

• Red zone play calling:
  Get the ball in your best player’s hands—whether via creative motion, RPO, or a simple (but well-designed) quick pass to a superstar receiver.

• MAC reality:
  Increased parity, transfer portal losses, and lack of deep investment mean G5 playoff dreams, especially in the MAC, grow dimmer by the year.

• Sports media:
  Revealing alumni ties can humanize reporting, but it should never cloud professional objectivity or cross over into performative fandom.

For more from these analysts:

• Find Bill Bender at Sporting News
• Andrew Gillis at cleveland.com
• Follow Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis each Monday for “Around the Shoe”