Ohio St. ticket renewals delayed
Process to be paused for at least two months
In a normal year, season-ticket renewal applications for the upcoming Ohio State football season would be sent out a few days from now.
With the coronavirus pandemic stretching into its second year, OSU will push that back.
Brett Scarbrough, Ohio State’s associate athletic director for ticketing and premium seating, said it probably will be delayed for at least two months.
“It likely would not happen anytime before the end of April,” Scarbrough said. “We’re really trying to gather as much information as we can before we can launch that process relative to how many people we’re going to be able to have in the stadium.”
Athletic director Gene Smith said the answer to that question, like so many others, can’t yet be answered. Ohio State played its 2020 season without fans other than family members.
“Let me go to my closet and get my crystal ball,” Smith quipped when asked about spectators for the 2021 season. “I’m like everybody else. I’m curious. I don’t know.”
If fans are allowed, Smith said, the plan is for ticket prices not to be increased.
“We’re not recommending to the board (of trustees) that we raise ticket prices in ‘21,” he said. “That will be two years in a row that we will not have a ticket price increase.”
Smith said his optimism about spectators will grow if there’s a continuation of current COVID-19 trends – decreasing cases overall and those requiring hospitalization, and steady increases in vaccinations.
But for now, Ohio State is proceeding cautiously. A year ago, renewal applications were sent out, only to have the pandemic hit soon afterward.
“We spent all summer shifting and moving deadlines and adjusting and pausing, etc.,” Scarbrough said.
From that experience, he said, OSU knows it can wait and adapt to factors
that remain unpredictable now.
“It’s really about finding the balance between having as much information as we can before we do renewals, and then giving enough people enough time to spread their payments out,” Scarbrough said. “We do offer payment plans. It’s wildly popular. It does help with renewal rates.”
Spring game update
Coach Ryan Day said early this month that April 17 was the target day for Ohio State’s spring game.
Smith said it’s unclear whether any spectators would be permitted for that. If so, he indicated that OSU won’t charge for admission and that he would prioritize essential workers.
“My hope is that we’ll have an opportunity to develop a strategy to recognize our front-line people — our nurses, doctors, custodians, bus drivers — all those people who have made so many sacrifices for us for a long time now,” Smith said. “That would be my hope, that we could come up with a strategy to recognize them and invite them to the spring game.”
But Smith said “there’s a ways to go” before OSU can finalize that.
General admission tickets have been $5 in previous years.
The Buckeyes last drew an announced crowd of 61,102 at their spring game in 2019. brabinowitz@dispatch.com @brdispatch
The window for NFL teams to use the franchise tag on one of their pending free agents opened at 4 p.m. Tuesday. It’s a dicey mechanism, one that effectively ties a free agent to his team, courtesy of a lucrative one-year contract. It’s a deal less-established players often jump at, but more-established players bridle against due to the lack of long-term security they’re afforded.
Teams have until March 9 to use their franchise or (less lucrative) transition tag. Tagged players will still have the opportunity to sign long-term extensions in lieu of the tag until July or can even negotiate an offer sheet with another team (assuming he doesn’t carry the “exclusive” tag) willing to part with two firstround picks for his services — a rare occurrence.
Fifteen teams — nearly half the league — used a tag in 2020. However in the previous six years, only around a halfdozen teams employed a tag on average. And 2021 is likely to see a major reduction in tag usage from last year given a pandemic-induced drop in revenues will shrink the salary cap, not to mention the fact that fewer superstars have expiring contracts this year.
We examined the financial situations of all 32 teams to come up with a franchise tag recommendation for each:
AFC East Buffalo Bills – None: Be nice to keep starting LB Matt Milano and RT Daryl Williams, but neither merits a tag.
Miami Dolphins – None: QB Ryan Fitzpatrick is their most prominent free agent but obviously no sense in tagging a backup.
New England Patriots – None: They have the cap space to tag QB Cam Newton, C David Andrews or G Joe Thuney, who was franchised last year. But Newton is no longer worth that kind of investment or likely to generate a huge market.
New York Jets – FS Marcus Maye: He probably had a better year than former back-line teammate Jamal Adams did in Seattle. And the Jets have ample cap room to afford a valuable young player like Maye, 27, who’s played all 16 games in three of his four NFL seasons.
AFC North Baltimore Ravens – None: OLB Matt Judon is a steady, productive player, however tagging him a second time would cost $20.2 million. This defense also stands to lose Yannick Ngakoue, Pernell Mcphee and Derek Wolfe from the front seven.
Cincinnati Bengals – None: DE Carl Lawson, 25, just had his best season ... but not tag-worthy.
Cleveland Browns – None: DE Olivier Vernon’s strong finish in 2020 might have put him under consideration ... until he blew out an Achilles in the regularseason finale.
Pittsburgh Steelers – None: A team that’s already spent well beyond the cap can’t afford anything while QB Ben Roethlisberger’s financial situation ($41.25 million cap hit in 2021) remains unresolved. But nice as it would be to keep RB James Conner, WR Juju Smithschuster, DL Tyson Alualu, OL Matt Feiler, LT Alejandro Villanueva and OLB Bud Dupree, who was franchised in 2020 and was having a sensational season before tearing his ACL in December.
AFC South Houston Texans – WR Will Fuller V: He was in the midst of a career season, producing 80 receiving yards per game, until a performance-enhancing drug suspension cut it short. If Deshaun Watson returns, it would be sensible to tag Fuller.
Indianapolis Colts – None: WR T.Y. Hilton, DE Justin Houston and CB Xavier Rhodes are the types of veteran contributors a playoff team needs.
Jacksonville Jaguars – None: Be nice to have LT Cam Robinson in place to protect presumed No. 1 pick Trevor Lawrence ... but not for $15+ million.
Tennessee Titans – WR Corey Davis: The No. 5 pick of the 2017 draft finally began living up to the hype in 2020 with a career year. Davis’ tag would be significantly more due to his position than ascending TE Jonnu Smith.
AFC West Denver Broncos – S Justin Simmons: He’s emerged as one of the league’s premier safeties the past two seasons, though tagging him again will cost $13.7 million.
Kansas City Chiefs – None: Austin Reiter, one of the game’s better centers, is an option ... especially as it pertains to protecting franchise QB Patrick Mahomes.
Las Vegas Raiders – None: It would be nice to hang on to WR Nelson Agholor after he turned in his best year ... but not for approximately $20 million given the cap crunch Vegas is already in.
Los Angeles Chargers – None: Last year’s franchised player, TE Hunter Henry, would cost $12.7 million — a lot to give a good (but not great) player who’s never reached even 700 receiving yards.
NFC East
Dallas Cowboys – QB Dak Prescott: Definitely appears we’re headed to another tag, this one for $37.7 million, that will probably force the Cowboys to cut other players in order to be cap-compliant.
New York Giants – DL Leonard Williams: An exceptional run defender coming off a career-best 111⁄2 sacks, he was probably the Giants’ best player in 2020.
Philadelphia Eagles – None: Nobody worth tagging and no cap space available anyway.
Washington Football Team – G
Brandon Scherff: He was an All-pro for the first time in 2020.
NFC North Chicago Bears – WR Allen Robinson: They have to consider a tag given the season Robinson just had (102 catches, 1,250 yards, 6 TDS).
Detroit Lions – WR Kenny Golladay: An awfully good player who’s only 27, he also missed 11 games last season and might not help the Lions be that much more relevant in 2021.
Green Bay Packers – None: The NFC finalists don’t have the financial bandwidth to tag anyone right now.
Minnesota Vikings – None: S Anthony Harris, who didn’t pick off a pass after tying for the league lead with six in 2019, doesn’t warrant another tag.
NFC South Atlanta Falcons – K Younghoe Koo: It might seem silly to franchise a kicker, but it doesn’t actually cost that much — just $5 million a year ago — and Koo, 26, is coming off his first Pro Bowl effort.
Carolina Panthers – RT Taylor Moton: This team has been busily amassing cap space, perhaps to make a run at a quarterback (Prescott? Watson?). But it would also be smart to have enough in reserve to pay a capable 26-year-old blocker to protect whomever is taking the snaps in 2021.
New Orleans Saints – None: No team’s cap is in more disarray. The Saints have to shed about $70 million by next month.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers – OLB Shaquil Barrett: The Bucs have some cap space but not nearly enough to re-sign a laundry list of free agents.
NFC West Arizona Cardinals – OLB Haason Reddick: The 2017 first-rounder (finally) exploded in 2020, utilized as a pass rusher and responding with 121⁄2 sacks, tied for fourth in the league.
Los Angeles Rams – None: They’d doubtless love to keep S John Johnson and OLB Leonard Floyd but simply can’t afford either at this point.
San Francisco 49ers – None: Perennial Pro Bowl LT Trent Williams, 32, was Pro Football Focus’ top-rated tackle in 2020. But the Niners better get an extension done soon — his contract precludes him from being tagged this year.
Seattle Seahawks – None: RB Chris Carson seems like the most obvious candidate, but he’s had too many injuries.
CANTON — Nyah Funderburke repeated as champion in the 100-yard backstroke to help Columbus School for Girls finish third in the Division II state girls swimming and diving meet on Wednesday in C.T. Branin Natatorium.
Funderburke won the 100 back in 54.42 seconds and was second in the 100 butterfly in 55.44, finishing behind almost a second behind Mckenzie Reed of Dayton Chaminade-julienne. Funderburke won the 100 butterfly last season.
“That was a good way to finish off my (prep) career, especially after the 100 fly,” said Funderburke, an Ohio State signee. “It was a little disappointing (to finish second), but I’m grateful to have had a great race with my friend Mckenzie.”
The Unicorns scored 133 points to finish behind Gates Mills Hawken (387) and Shaker Heights Hathaway Brown (260). Hawken won its 23rd consecutive title. Columbus Academy was 11th (56) and Grandview was 14th (42).
CSG started quickly by winning the opening race, the 200 medley relay, in a program-record 1:42.96. Funderburke led off and was followed by Ava Fortney, Bethany Spangler and Olivia Morse.
“That was amazing,” CSG coach Brian Botzman said. “That’s a race I’ll
remember the rest of my life.”
Botzman rued the lack of atmosphere inside the natatorium, which usually is packed with swimmers and screaming fans for the state meet. This year’s event, contested during a pandemic, called for fewer spectators, social distancing and other measures to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.
“The meet didn’t have the energy that it normally has, but we started off strong,” Botzman said. “I thought as the meet moved along, the lack of energy had an effect on a lot of the teams and swimmers. Hopefully, we’ll be back to the way it has been in the past next year.”
Academy jumped up to the podium in the 200 medley relay thanks to three disqualifications in the championship heat. Mary Kate Prall, Emma Yakam, Lauren Klinefelter and Alexandra Butnariu finished in 1:49.39 to take fifth. Klinefelter also was sixth in the 100 butterfly (57.36).
Phoebe Ferguson of Grandview was third in the 200 individual medley (2:06.65) and fifth in the 100 fly (57.16).
“I was happy with my IM because I went faster than in district,” Ferguson said. “In the fly, I was a little unhappy because I had a little trouble with the wall and still was able to make the top eight.” shennen@thisweeknews.com @Thisweekhennen