Are there freshmen who might be ready to take starting jobs away from Ohio State veterans next season?

On this daily Rose Bowl podcast we are looking ahead, because, again, no one really cares that much about Washington.

So Doug Lesmerises answered your questions about Ohio State recruiting, about California recruiting, about the H-backs next season, about Purdue and Nick Bosa, and about the freshmen, especially on defense, who will push for playing time in 2019.

Sorry we're late getting this to you, but here is our first daily Buckeye Talk from the Rose Bowl.

Doug Lesmerises is here in Los Angeles and breaks down everything that happened with Ohio State interviews and practice on Thursday as the Buckeyes get ready for the Jan. 1 Rose Bowl against Washington.

The plan is to do daily half-hour podcasts, but Doug likes the sound of his own voice (and coughs), so this one checks in at over 50 minutes.

Topics include:

• Dwayne Haskins and the NFL Draft • Greg Schiano and the Ohio State defense • Urban Meyer's shadow and Ryan Day • Washington's secondary • The Buckeyes as nearly 7-point favorites

Doug will drop daily pods on Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, before a final podcast after the game for Wednesday.

Stick around all week. And thanks as always for listening to Buckeye Talk.

Ohio State signed a 15-player class on National Signing Day on Wednesday, but those recruits weren't the only players shaping the future of the Buckeyes.

On this Buckeye Talk, Doug Lesmerises and Stephen Means talk about five-star defensive end Zach Harrison and the OSU class ranked third overall in average player rating.

They also take on the possible transfer to Ohio State of Georgia quarterback Justin Fields and what that might mean for current OSU QB Tate Martell.

Stephen and Doug recorded this podcast in a Panera Bread on Ohio State's campus Wednesday night, and while they were talking about the quarterback position, guess who walked in?

Tate Martell.

It was that kind of day and that kind of podcast.

Oh, they also addressed whether the story of four robots killing 29 scientists in Japan was true or not.

A whole lot is changing with Ohio State football, including, maybe, the way the Buckeyes compete for a championship.

This Buckeye Talk episode is chock full of Ohio State info as Stephen Means and Doug Lesmerises join you from the Woody Hayes Athletic Center, where on Wednesday they spoke with about 15 OSU players in the final interview session in Columbus before the Buckeyes head for California and the Rose Bowl after Christmas.

Doug is back from sounding like he was dead on last week’s podcast, having staved off influenza, and he and Stephen go into everything going on with the program, from what’s next for Ryan Day to what’s ahead on National Signing Day on Dec. 19 to the quarterback battle next season.

They did not discuss anything about Washington, the Rose Bowl opponent, because no one cares about that yet.

They did talk about how soon an eight-team playoff could arrive in college football. There’s a lot going on and they’re here to share it with you on this Buckeye Talk, with 90 percent less coughing.

Urban Meyer will finish his Ohio State career at the Rose Bowl. Ryan Day will take over as the full-time head coach on Jan. 2.

Crazy year, eh?

On this edition of Buckeye Talk, Doug Lesmerises sat in his basement and sounded like Eeyore while complaining about being sick, but he also managed to squeeze in many of the more than 100 questions listeners had on this momentous day for the OSU football program.

Why did athletic director Gene Smith choose Day to take over?

Which current assistant coaches will Day keep?

What’s a reasonable level of expectation for success with Day?

Sorry for my voice and for the cough drops, and thanks as always for listening to Buckeye Talk.

Ohio State is headed to the Rose Bowl.

So what happened with the College Football Playoff?

On this latest Buckeyes Talk Podcast, Stephen Means and I take all your questions about the 12-1 Big Ten champs and their postseason, and why that postseason doesn’t include a shot at winning a national title.

Normally, this lead-in in longer, but we didn’t get much sleep and we know you’re just hear to listen.

So here you go.

Ohio State is No. 6 in the latest College Football Playoff rankings and we're back with another Buckeye Talk Podcast to attempt to crawl into the minds of the playoff committee members.

Doug Lesmerises and Stephen Means take all your questions on the Buckeyes' current playoff chances. We imagine a world where Dwayne Haskins is back at Ohio State next year, even though he won't be. We praise again the Buckeyes who played best in the Michigan win. And we do it all from McDonald's - they let us inside this time.

But that's not all. Two guests join us.

First is former Ohio State running back Robert Smith of Fox Sports who revists the Michigan victory, ruminates on 14 out of 15 for Ohio State in the rivalry and tells us where Urban Meyer and Jim Harbaugh go from here.

Then we have Ralph Russo, the Associated Press national college football writer. He puts Ohio State in a national context for us, imagining what the Buckeyes might do against Alabama, what they might do against Oklahoma and where the OSU program stands among the best in the nation.

It's another packed Buckeye Talk. Come on in.

Ohio State thumped Michigan 62-39.

Yeah, you saw it. But how do you explain it?

Stephen Means and Doug Lesmerises of cleveland.com took all your questions after the Buckeyes won the Big Ten East and moved onto the Big Ten Championship by beating Michigan for the 14th time in 15 tries.

We were so eager to get to your questions, we answered them inside a car in the parking lot of McDonald's.

It's a postgame Buckeye Talk about the 11-1 Buckeyes.

In the Michigan week episode of Buckeye Talk, Doug Lesmerises and Stephen Means of cleveland.com address not only which team should win, but what the outcome will mean for both programs.

Ohio State and Michigan are both 10-1, with the Buckeyes No. 10 in the College Football Playoff rankings and the Wolverines No. 4. The result Saturday will affect both programs and how coaches Jim Harbaugh and Urban Meyer are viewed in victory and defeat.

We touch on Thanksgiving a bit, but once again, there's so much football intrigue going on with the Buckeyes, it's hard to spend too much time talking stuffing and pumpkin pie.

So let this version of Buckeye Talk fill you up, and thanks as always for listening.

Yes, 51 minutes and 535 yards. Ohio State gave up that against Maryland on Saturday, and won anyway.

On this postgame version of Buckeye Talk, Doug Lesmerises and Stephen Means try to figure out what happened, whether the OSU defense can be fixed, and how the Buckeyes could possibly compete with Michigan next week.