The Bill and Doug Show: Ohio State Football Talk

Illinois will visit Ohio State on Sept. 26 in the Big Ten opener for both teams in 2026, and Jeremy Werner of IlliniInquirer.com joined Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis on this episode to break down the Week 4 matchup. The Bill and Doug Show is running through the entire regular season schedule for the Buckeyes with videos and podcasts on this feed, and written breakdowns at their Substack at https://billanddougosu.substack.com 

Illinois hasn't beaten Ohio State since 2007, and the Buckeyes handled business at Illinois a year ago. There's a new QB, a new offensive line, and a n...

It's five Ohio State football topics on Around the Shoe, as Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis are joined by two spectacular Ohio State media members in Tom Orr and Tony Gerdeman from the Buckeye Weekly Podcast. 
Topics covered: 
• 15 years after his resignation, what is Jim Tressel's legacy? 
• Are we surprised Tressel became Ohio's lieutenant governor? 
• In which area will Ohio State improve the most in 2026? 
• What do we think of the SEC spring meetings? 
• Imagining a Wemby-like player in college football 
Thanks to Tony and Tom for their time and expertise, and thanks to you for...

The Big Ten is holding spring meetings in Southern California, and unlike the past, actually publicizing what's going on there and pushing a point of view. Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis have been asking the Big Ten to fight harder against the SEC in the offseason and it's finally happening. In this episode of The Bill and Doug Show, the guys talk about the Big Ten's new push, how an expanded playoff might affect rivalry games, and what the SEC might do in response next week. Then they make predictions for the next step in the playoff expansion discussion...

Kent State will visit Ohio State for a Week 3 matchup in Ohio Stadium on Sept. 19. To preview that matchup, The Bill and Doug Show went right to the source and welcomed Kent State head coach Mark Carney to the show.
Carney took over the Golden Flashes a year ago as the interim head coach and led them to a 5-7 record that he thinks maybe should have been more like 7-5. That job, after Kent State was 1-23 the previous two seasons, earned him the full-time gig.
In this episode Carney discusses his background as a Cleveland...

Ohio State football unveiled a bunch of uniform and field information last week, and on this episode of Around the Shoe on The Bill and Doug Show, it's time to break it all down. 

Joining Bill Landis and Doug Lesmerises are two great members of the media from Eleven Warriors: 
• Chase Brown 
• Josh Poloha 
The topics discussed:
• Describe the return of the gray/silver Heritage shoulder stripe 
• How often should alternate uniforms be worn? 
• How big of a deal is Ohio State's new turf? 
• Of their five possible uniforms for 2026, which look is the b...

College football has a ton of veteran quarterbacks for 2026, with playoff contenders from Ohio State to Texas to Notre Dame to Georgia to Oregon to USC to Penn State to LSU to Miami led by veteran signal callers.
On this episode of The Bill and Doug Show, Matt Fortuna of insidezonemf.com and The Independent podcast on Notre Dame joins Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis to draft the 15 best power conference quarterbacks in the country heading into the season.
First, they discuss the depth of the veteran quarterbacks. Then they revisit how quarterbacks were viewed a year...

It's Week 2 of our Ohio State schedule preview for 2026. That means looking at the Buckeyes' trip to Texas on Sept. 12 to take on the Longhorns. 

To give us insight into the Longhorns, beat writer Danny Davis of www.statesman.com and The Austin American-Statesman joined The Bill and Doug Show. From quarterback Arch Manning to receiver Cam Coleman to defensive end Colin Simmons to two new running backs to questions in the secondary, Davis broke it all down with Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis. 

That includes what the Texas homefield advantage is like, why the Lo...

It's a full Ohio State vs. Texas lookahead on this episode of Around the Shoe, as Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis are joined by two outstanding media members to dive in on the Buckeyes vs. Longhorns on Sept. 12. 
Joining Bill and Doug this week are: 
• Jonah Booker from Bucknuts.com 
• Shehan Jeyarajah from CBSSports.com 
The topics covered: 
• How important is a game like Ohio State-Texas to college football 
• Is Arch vs. Sayin a QB rivalry? 
• What are the chances both the Buckeyes and Longhorns will make the 12-team College Football Playoff? 
• Who are the...

The American Football Coaches Association backed three ideas for a college football playoff recently: • A 24-team field • Eliminating conference championship games • Finishing the postseason by the second weekend in January Bill Landis and Doug Lesmerises got to work on this episode of The Bill and Doug Show to figure out how difficult or easy it might be to make all three of those ideas come true in a way that doesn't ruin the sport. Can it be done? Yes. Thanks for joining The Bill and Doug Show.

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We are going to start Ohio State opponent previews on The Bill and Doug Show, talking to an expert each week from a team on the Buckeyes' schedule. We'll run through the schedule in order, planning to do one show a week here and one written piece on our Substack at https://billanddougosu.substack.com Up first is Ball State, as the Buckeyes host the Cardinals to open the 2026 season on Sept. 5. Cade Hampton, the Ball State writer for the Muncie Star Press (thestarpress.com) joins Bill and Doug to break it all down, with the conversation somehow also...

Talking Ohio State football topics continues on Around the Shoe into the offseason, as Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis are joined on The Bill and Doug Show by two great OSU media members. On this episode, it's two writers from Buckeyes Sports Bulletin: Bobby Gorbett and Greg Wilson. 

The topics covered are: 
• The Ohio State player injured this spring you are most interested to see in August. 
• Is Ohio State playing two MAC teams this season OK? 
• Describe what James Laurinaitis is doing with the Buckeyes linebackers. 
• Which current freshman are you most curious to se...

A bevy of college football topics are on the docket in this episode of The Bill and Doug Show, as Bill Landis and Doug Lesmerises run through:
• Georgia coach Kirby Smart acknowledging the rise of the Big Ten 
• The eligibility plan for players to get five years to play five 
• Probable expansion of the NCAA Tournament to 76 teams and the college football playoff to 24 teams 
• The SEC expected to dominate the NFL Draft next year 
• Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby and gambling issues 
• The idea of cutting some Olympic sports 

Thanks for joining The Bi...

Ohio State had 11 players taken in the 2026 NFL Draft. On this episode of The Bill and Doug Show, Bill Landis and Doug Lesmerises run through those players and their expected replacements for this season and decide which Buckeye will be the most difficult to replace. From Sonny Styles to Arvell Reese, from Carnell Tate to Davison Igbinosun, from Caleb Downs to Kayden McDonald, they evaluate the players likely to fill their roles. And they assign a score from 1 to 10 of how well they think Ohio State will be able to fill the gap. Thanks for joining The Bill and...

It's time to talk Ohio State in the 2027 NFL Draft on this episode of Around the Shoe on The Bill and Doug Show, as the panel looks ahead to Jeremiah Smith, Julian Sayin and some surprise early picks in the draft a year from now. 

To do this, Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis are joined by two excellent college football and NFL Draft reporters: 
• Bill Bender from The Sporting News 
• Dan Hope from Eleven Warriors 

Beyond draft hopes for Buckeyes next year, the discussion also includes other quarterbacks to like for the 2027 NFL Draft, a...

The Ohio State Buckeyes saw four players picked in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft on Thursday night. On this episode of The Bill and Doug Show, Doug Lesmerises is joined by one of the best NFL Draft experts around in The Athletic's Dane Brugler. Doug and Dane run through the selections of Carnell Tate at No. 4, Arvell Reese at No. 5, Sonny Styles at No. 7 and Caleb Downs at No. 12, plus they talk a bit about Jeremiah Smith and Julian Sayin in next year's draft. Then Doug wraps up the Big Ten beating the SEC in the number...

Ohio State finished spring football on Saturday with its spring game in Ohio Stadium. On this episode of Around the Shoe, Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis wrap up spring ball with the help of two great members of the Ohio State beat: • Stefan Krajisnik of cleveland.com • Adam King of 10 TV and 97.1 The Fan All four panelists offer their biggest remaining questions and biggest answers they got from 15 practices of spring football. 

Then they predicted how many catches freshman receiver Chris Henry Jr. will have this season, talked about the 2027 Ohio State QB situation, and discussed the idea...

Ohio State held its spring football game on Saturday in Ohio Stadium, and Bill Landis and Doug Lesmerises where there to take it ll in. On this postgame episode of The Bill and Doug Show, they react with the three most interesting things they learned on each side of the ball. For even more postgame reaction, check out their overtime show on Substack at https://billanddougosu.substack.com

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Ohio State held practice No. 14 of spring football in Ohio Stadium on Friday, and Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis were there to take it all on. On this episode of The Bill and Doug Show, they discuss the depth chart on both sides of the ball, including:
 
• Quarterbacks Julian Sayin and Tavien St. Clair 
• Receivers Jeremiah Smith, Chris Henry Jr. and Brock Boyd 
• Cornerbacks Devin Sanchez, Jermaine Mathews and Dominick Kelly 
• Safeties Jaylen McClain and Terry Moore 
• Expectations fro Saturday's spring game 

Thanks for joining The Bill and Doug Show. For more Ohio State...

What should the expectations be for Ohio State offensive line coach Tyler Bowen in 2026? On this episode of The Bill and Doug Show, the topic is the second-year OL coach and whether the Ohio State standard is being met in that room. Then Bill and Doug rank every offensive lineman on the roster and discuss what that means for this season, The defensive line is discussed next, headlined by defensive tackle Eddrick Houston. Then the topic turns to defensive line depth and what could be ahead of Qua Russaw and Beau Atkinson. Thanks for joining The Bill and Doug...

It's five Ohio State football topics to preview the Buckeyes' Saturday spring game on Around the Shoe. Topics covered include backup quarterback Tavien St. Clair, whether there is more faith in the offense or defense, players on each side of the ball to watch on Saturday, and what to think of the disappearance of the spring portal. 

Joining Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis on this episode are two outstanding members of the Ohio State media: • Tom Orr of The Buckeye Weekly Podcast • Cameron Teague Robinson of The Athletic Thanks to Tom and Cam for their time and insig...

It's the final week of spring football practice for the Ohio State Buckeyes, and on Monday, head coach Ryan Day met with reporters after practice No. 12. 

Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis covered several topics that Day spoke about, with the spring game ahead on Saturday. Among them: 

• What to expect on Saturday 
• Receiver plans for the fall 
• More Legend Bey talk • Running back injuries 
• How Day spends his time as a head coach 
• Melding the Day and Arthur Smith offensive ideas after spring 

Thanks as always for joining The Bill and Doug Show...

The Ohio State Buckeyes held their 11th practice of spring football on Friday, and afterward running backs coach Carlos Locklyn and running backs Bo Jackson, Isaiah West and Ja'Kobi Jackson spoke with reporters. New special teams coach Robby Discher also sat down to talk. On this episode, Bill Landis and Doug Lesmerises discuss if their opinions about the running backs room has changed, expectations for Bo Jackson and West in Year 2, what role to expect from Ja'Kobi Jackson as a transfer, and why everyone keeps talking up Legend Bey as a freshman. Then they talked special teams and what...

Ohio State football held its 10th practice of spring football on Wednesday and coaches and players from the Buckeyes' secondary spoke afterwards. 
Doug and Bill were there and after talking with everyone offered this idea: Will the OSU secondary be the strength of the team? This episode includes a deep dive into how the safety room breaks down, and a look at the cornerback room. Players discussed include Earl Little Jr., Leroy Roker, Jaylen McClain, Devin Sanchez, Jermaine Mathews, Dominick Kelly, Jay Timmons, Blaine Bradford and Terry Moore. 

Thanks for joining The Bill and Doug Show. Fo...

It's more Ohio State spring football talk on Around the Shoe, as we discuss five topics around the Buckeyes. On this episode, Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis are are joined by Dillon Davis of https://www.delgazette.com and Bill Rabinowitz of https://billrabinowitz.substack.com as their great media guests. The topics: 

• Predictions for the starting left tackle for Week 1 • Who will be the most explosive offensive player after Jeremiah Smith? • How should OSU fans view Michigan's national title in men's basketball? Thanks fo...

The Ohio State Buckeyes held their ninth practice of spring football on Monday, and head coach Ryan Day spoke to reporters after practice about, among other things: • Injuries that Austin Siereveld and Phillip Daniels that are creating a chance for Ian Moore • The desire for more explosive offense • Overturning a Jeremiah Smith touchdown catch in practice • Safety Earl Little Jr., tight ends Hunter Welcing and Mason Williams, and more Thanks for joining Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis for this episode of The Bill and Doug show. For even more Ohio State coverage, check out their Substack at https://billanddougosu.substack...

Ohio State football held its seventh practice of the spring on Thursday, and linebackers coach James Laurinaitis, tight ends coach Keenan Bailey and several players spoke afterward. On this episode of The Bill and Doug Show, Bill Landis and Doug Lesmerises discuss the expected contribution of Wisconsin transfer linebacker Christian Alliegro, the next step for starting middle linebacker Payton Pierce, and a bunch of young linebackers like Riley Pettitjohn, TJ Alford and Garrett Stover. Plus new tight end No. 1 Nate Roberts, and what to expect from the fullback position. Thanks for joining The Bill and Doug Show. For more...

The Ohio State Buckeyes held their sixth spring football practice on Tuesday, and head coach Ryan Day spoke to reporters afterward. Bill Landis and Doug Lesmerises were there and check in with this breakdown on where the Buckeyes stand. It's mostly about receivers. Not Jeremiah Smith, though, as the last two shows on this feed where about. This is what Day and others are saying about Chris Henry Jr., Brock Boyd and the rest of the young OSU receivers, and what it means for the future of the receiver room. It matters what the young guys do in 2026, but...

It's all Jeremiah Smith all the time on this episode of Around the Shoe on The Bill and Doug Show. Andrew Gillis and Stephen Means of cleveland.com and Buckeye Talk, two outstanding members of the Buckeyes beat, join Bill Landis and Doug Lesmerises to discuss Ohio State's superstar receiver. 

The topics: 
• The most interesting thing Smith said Saturday at his post-practice interview. 
• How many catches per game Smith should average this season. 
• Will he get to 4,000 career receiving yards? He's 1,446 away. 
• What needs to happen for him to win the Heisman Trophy? 
• Is 23 t...

The Ohio State Buckeyes had their fifth football practice of the spring on Saturday, and Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis were there to talk with superstar WR Jeremiah Smith and new receivers coach Cortez Hankton after practice. First, the guys talk about who lost their black stripes, and then they dive into Smith and where he said he can getter, why he strives to be an Iron Buckeye, what the Miami Pick-Six did to his offseason, and whether he considered leaving Ohio State for any other teams. Then they discuss the arrival of Hankton and how the Buckeyes seem...

Ohio State football held its fourth practice of spring on Thursday. Defensive coordinator Matt Patricia headlined the Buckeyes who spoke afterward, and Bill Landis and Doug Lesmerises zeroed in on what Patricia said about potential changes to the defense this season after losing seven starters.

 How might players like Garrett Stover, Qua Russaw, Earl Little, James Smith and Christian Alliegro be involved in different packages defensively? At the end of the episode, Doug retired his questions about Ohio State's defense maybe not being aggressive enough in 2025 after one more question for Patricia. And Smith, a transfer from A...

Ohio State football held its third practice of spring on Tuesday and Bill Landis and Doug Lesmerises were there to talk with new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith, offensive linemen Carson Hinzman and Luke Montgomery, and receiver Brandon Inniss after practice. 

Among the topics covered on this episode: 
• Should we expect an OSU offensive line that gets after people more in 2026? 
• The Buckeyes got their gold pants Tuesday. 
• Arthur Smith spoke to reporters for the first time since his hiring, what did he have to say? 

Thanks as always for joining The Bill and Doug Sh...

It's a dive into college football win totals on this episode of Around the Shoe, as Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis are joined by two great college football guests. 
• Ari Wasserman of On3.com and The Andy & Ari Show 
• Matt Fortuna of Insidezonemf.com and The Independent: A Notre Dame Football Podcast 

They join Doug and Bill for a long discussion about Ohio State's schedule, the Buckeyes' win total and how that squares with their status as the favorite to win the national title. Then they move on to a few other over-under topics: 
• Thoughts o...

Ohio State lost to TCU 66-64 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday, and Bill Landis was in Greenville, S.C., to take it all in. On this episode of The Bill and Doug Show, Doug Lesmerises joins Bill to discuss the Buckeyes' slow start, their second-half comeback, what went wrong in the last minute, the lack of bench scoring, hope for the future and how Diebler should be evaluated after his first NCAA Tournament game as a head coach. Thanks for joining The Bill and Doug Show. For more Ohio State coverage, check out billanddougosu...

Ohio State is a 2.5-point favorite over TCU in the first game of the men's NCAA Tournament on Thursday. Bill Landis is in South Carolina to over that game, and on this episode of The Bill and Doug Show, Bill and Doug Lesmerises break down that game and make their picks for the Buckeyes. vs Horned Frogs. Then they run through the history of No. 1 seeds winning the national championship and make their Final Four predictions. Thanks for joining The Bill and Doug Show. For more coverage of Ohio State football and basketball, check out billanddougosu.substack.com

Ohio State men's basketball takes on TCU on Thursday in the NCAA Tournament, and Bill Landis will be there to cover it for The Bill and Doug Show. While Bill is making his way to South Carolina, he and Doug broke down what this means for Bruce Thornton and Jake Diebler, and how the Buckeyes match up with the Horned Frogs. Thanks for joining The Bill and Doug Show. For more Ohio State coverage, check out their Substack at billanddougosu.substack.com

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It's an Ohio State football and men's basketball conversation on this edition of Around the Shoe, as Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis are joined by two great media guests on The Bill and Doug Show. Steve Helwagen of Bucknuts.com and Blake Biscardi of The Silver Bulletin swing by to join Bill and Doug to discuss: 

* The most interesting position group of spring football 
* Which freshman will make the biggest impact in 2026? 
* How popular should OSU men's basketball be compared to football? 
* What will happen next -- a football national championship or a bask...

Ohio State football held its second spring football practice on Thursday, and Bill Landis and Doug Lesmerises were there to watch the first hour and talk to Julian Sayin and Kenyatta Jackson after practice. Then they broke it all down on this episode of The Bill and Doug show. The focus? The growth of Sayin at quarterback -- in the weight room, in his confidence and in the mustache department. Then it was time to run through a handful of other Buckeyes that stood out Thursday. Thanks for hanging with The Bill and Doug Show. To get more OSU...

Ohio State football spring practice has started, and on this episode of Around the Shoe on The Bill and Doug Show, the topics covered include:

 * New salaries for Ohio State assistants 
* Guys at practice who caught our eye on offense and on defense 
* What Ryan Day saying that Julian Sayin's legs are an X-factor really means 
* How we should think about Jeremiah Smith The showed bumped back from Monday to Wednesday just this week so we could see OSU practice on Tuesday. 

Doug Lesmerises and Bill Landis were happy to be joined by tw...

Ohio State football opened spring practice on Tuesday, and Bill Landis and Doug Lesmerises were there to watch practice and ask Ryan Day questions about it afterward. On this episode of The Bill and Doug Show, the guys discuss what they learned about the Buckeyes' offensive line plans, running back depth, transfer portal strategy and more. For more OSU coverage, check out billanddougosu.substack.com. You can get 18 percent off an annual subscription during spring football with the code billanddougosu.substack.com/spring18 Thanks as always for joining The Bill and Doug Show.

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Of Ohio State's Top 22 Buckeyes from the 2025 season, as determined by Bill and Doug, only one of the top seven will be back in 2026 -- WR Jeremiah Smith. So assuming Smith continues to play at an All-American level in 2026 and he's the best Buckeye, who will be the No. 2 Ohio State player in 2026? On this episode, Bill Landis and Doug Lesmerises run through their last two years of Top 22 Buckeyes and break down candidates to be the second-best Buckeye this season. It's another part of their preview of spring football, which starts this week. Plus, get ready for a...