Back-to-back shutouts by the the Ohio State Football squad have earned them some respect in the latest college football polls. In both the AP and USA Today Coaches poll, the Buckeyes sit at number 9. A fellow Ohio team, Cincinnati, is also creeping up in the polls earning top 10 status in the AP Poll while lurking at number 11 in the coaches poll. OSU is highest rated Big 10 team following the upset loss of Penn State and the Bearcats the remain most acclaimed team out the Big East.

Around the Big Ten, Penn State fell to #15 and #13 in the polls with Iowa and their 4-0 record earning them rankings of 13 and 17 following their win against the Nittany Lions. Michigan also remains in the Top 25 with a record of 4-0.

If you've been following Cleveland sports for awhile you may remember the old joke "The NCAA is so mad at the Kentucky basketball program that they are going to give Cleveland State two more years of probation". This of course was after Kentucky was caught red handed paying players to play for the Wildcats after a UPS package broke which was being sent to one of their recruits with a sizable amount of money inside. Cleveland State, of course, was put on probation for housing Manute Bol and another would be recruit for two weeks inside an area motel. Hardly the worst offense in the NCAA history but the college sports governing body threw the book at them two years removed from their Cinderella run in the tournament in 1986. The penalty was so harsh that CSU was kicked out of their conference during their probation of three years, unheard of till this day. The historically rich University of Kentucky received the same penalty of three years but remained in eligible for conference play for an offense much harsher and being caught with the proverbial murder weapon. The penalty levied against Cleveland State would help send the once upstart basketball program into a tailspin that lasted nearly two decades before being rescued by current head coach Gary Waters.

There is some good news and bad news to report for NCAA football fans in the Cleveland area regarding the future of the Patriot Bowl. Next season, the Patriot Bowl will go on a hiatus meaning their will be no contest at Cleveland Browns Stadium like we have had for the past 3 seasons. In those games, MAC teams such as Akron, Kent, and Toledo, played Army, Boston College, and most recently Ohio State.

The Cleveland Sports Commission, who organized the successful events, has informed me that they are targeting 6-8 teams to play at Browns Stadium during the next 10 seasons, although nothing has officially been set in stone. So while the lakefront will be sans college football in the 2010 season, we will be getting our fair share of top level collegiate football in the coming years on the Northcoast.

Just to have fun with it a little, I am going to come up with some teams I would like to see play in the Cleveland the coming years.

I have decided to start a weekly column giving a recap of some of the important going-ons on the local sport scene. Here are some of the things that we learned this week in regards to Cleveland sports.

• Cleveland Cavaliers player Delonte West gave a new meaning to being a shooting guard.
• Terrelle Pryor can sure produce against a MAC team. Unfortunately for Ohio State, the Buckeyes do not play in the MAC. It is apparent watching the highly acclaimed sophomore that he has some major areas to work on. First and foremost is his footwork. Maybe the good news is that he will probably be smart enough to stick around for four years with Jim Tressel. If he leaves next year, he won't get drafted very high unless he wants to play in the NFL as a wide receiver.
• Brady Quinn looks like Tarzan, throws like Jane.
• The Cleveland Indians have packed it up this season. If you haven't looked in awhile, the team is on a 7 game skid. Don't worry Tribe fans, you only have to deal with Eric Wedge grinding it out for about two more weeks until he adds to the growing list of Ohio's unemployed.

The Ohio State football squad is in a battle for Buckeye State supremacy. The upstart Cincinnati Bearcats out of the Big East is flying up the polls, sitting just one spot below Jim Tressel and OSU. The Bearcats are currently ranked #14 in the AP poll with the Buckeyes one notch better at #13. In the USA Today coaches poll, Ohio State (2-1) is ranked 11th with the undefeated southern Ohio team at #15.

While covering the Buckeyes game at Cleveland Browns Stadium this weekend, I had a really interesting thought that I brought up to some other media members. If Cincinnati continues to win, how intriguing would it be to see Ohio State versus Cincinnati in a BCS game this winter. Of course it is a long way off with a lot more football to played, but that game would be very marketable.

While countless area Ohio State fans were probably thrilled shutting out the Toledo Rockets today at Cleveland Browns Stadium, it was probably very disappointing for Benedictine alumnus Alex Steigerwald. Steigerwald, the kicker for the Rockets, is hitting field goals at a record pace. The senior kicker from Mayfield Heights has connected on 84.7% of his attempted field goals (39 of 46) which is best the best percentage in the history of the Mid-American Conference and closing in on second best all time in NCAA history as he collects the minimum number to qualify (55) to be included their career tabulations. The all-time leader he is chasing the in annals of NCAA football is John Lee who starred for UCLA in the early 80's holding the record with 87.8 attempted kicks (79 of 92).

Steigerwald's golden toe was in fine form last week in the Rockets win over Colorado a week ago. Steigerwald drilled career long 50 yarder in the win and went 2-3 missing on his other long range attempt of 50 yards in the Rockets third consecutive win over a Big 12 foe. In his first two seasons playing for Toledo he was nearly automatic with a mark of 20-21.

If you were thinking that there would be some kind of hangover from Ohio State after the heartbreaking loss to USC last weekend, you were very mistaken. The only hangovers that will be felt by Buckeyes will be from their fans who are partying it up on West 6th Street at a victory celebration that took over an entire street and featured the Ohio State marching band playing the festive atmosphere in front of their adoring fans who saw the Buckeyes dismantle the Toledo Rockets 38-0 at Cleveland Browns Stadium this afternoon.

The Buckeyes defense set the tone of the game early with a quick 3-and out against the Rockets, who roared past the Colorado Buffaloes a weekend ago and amassed over 600 yards of total offense against the Big 12 foe. The Buckeyes offense got in gear on their first possession of the game, and the Rockets defense could never set the correct coordinates against OSU this afternoon, giving up a 76 yard bomb on the third play of the game from Terrelle Pryor to Dane Sanzenbacher. Sanzenbacher would again be on the receiving end of another touchdown pass in the first quarter, and had a career day against his hometown college hauling in the 2 touchdown passes to go along with a total of 5 catches and 126 yards.