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Topic: Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

Topic: Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

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Kevin Finnegan
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Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

Posted: 12/1/2016 3:52:37 PM

After being named MAC Defensive Player of the Year, being named a Freshman All-American, and setting the school's single season and all-time sack record, is Basham OHIO's greatest defensive player ever?

I've only followed the team since 1999, so I don't go far back. But I would put him ahead of greats since then of Dion Byrum, TJ Carrie, Mike Mitchell, Landon Cohen, Chip Cox, Noah Keller, and my personal favorite, Bop White.

Mark Lembright '85
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Location: Highland Heights, OH
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RE: Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

Posted: 12/1/2016 4:27:33 PM

Don't forget linebacker Vince Costello, who wound up playing 12 years in the NFL and whom the Cleveland Plain Dealer ranked as the Browns'56th best player of all-time. And I'm sure there are many other players I'm not aware of. My dad used to tell me about Costello and that's how I know that name.

As to Basham, great defensive player for sure. I sort of get the impression though that he never really reached his full potential while in college. After his freshman year a lot of people, myself included, thought he'd be a dominant player on defense. I thought he might even be as good or as destructive as Jason Taylor was when Taylor was at Akron. But Basham seemed to have plateaued for a couple of years and then had a nice year this year. Great player for sure. Dominant? Nope.

Bcat2
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RE: Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

Posted: 12/1/2016 5:34:19 PM

Would love to have seen Basham opposite Tremayne Scott.

"Do not pray for easy lives. Pray to be stronger men." JFK

MonroeClassmate
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RE: Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

Posted: 12/1/2016 8:22:59 PM

I know it is not the question but my favorite for all time great: Julian Posey

It is easy to see sacks and hard to know what the corner is doing if they continue to throw away from him. So give me the corner out there all alone on the top receiver with a good QB and a lame rush and that guy, the corner, has got to be a stud.

I recall Posey with a touchdown saving tackle when he was all the way on the other side of the field and had no angle at the guy and he simply ran him down coming out of nowhere.

Safety Moore, pound for pound was also one of my favorites during the 2000's.

If OHIO's 2016 offense had been above average this season, Basham may have even had a better season, pinning back his ears with offenses forced into obvious passing situations.

Monroe Slavin
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RE: Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

Posted: 12/1/2016 10:02:51 PM

Good freshmen and senior years. Not remarkable in between.

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Bcat2
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RE: Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

Posted: 12/1/2016 10:21:11 PM

Monroe Slavin wrote:

Good freshmen and senior years. Not remarkable in between.

This is one of those "Nothing Personal" moments. B44, you want to pile on?

Hey everyone, per Monroe, Freshman All American = "Good." Oh, then MAC Def POY = "Good."

Monroe. Thanks for sharing, not really.

"Do not pray for easy lives. Pray to be stronger men." JFK

bshot44
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RE: Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

Posted: 12/1/2016 10:23:25 PM

Bcat2 wrote:

Monroe Slavin wrote:

Good freshmen and senior years. Not remarkable in between.

Yeah. Let me pile on. You're the worst.

Pataskala
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RE: Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

Posted: 12/1/2016 10:35:38 PM

You need to look beyond the stats. His freshman year he wasn't known so opponents played him one on one. Sophomore and junior years he had a rep, and there were injuries among the front seven, so he was double teamed a lot. This year the rest of the front seven was awesome so they had to play him straight up again. Whether he had the numbers or not, he was always the guy the other team focused on.

Last Edited: 12/1/2016 10:37:09 PM by Pataskala

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Bcat2
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RE: Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

Posted: 12/1/2016 10:55:08 PM

Pataskala wrote:

Monroe was here for all that. He just chooses to dismiss what does not fit his agenda. An Ohio Def POY just must not be any better than "Good." What would be next, the recruiting or coaching might be better than mediocre. Horrors, not to be allowed. "Nothing Personal" though.

"Do not pray for easy lives. Pray to be stronger men." JFK

OhioCatFan
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RE: Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

Posted: 12/1/2016 11:58:44 PM

Pataskala wrote:

I tried to tell the party of the first part this on numerous occasions, when I used to communicate with him privately. That's as big a no-win proposition as communicating with him publicly. He claimed that I was wrong. That Basham wasn't being double teamed. I was at every home game and some away games each year. While, I'm not the brightest Xs and Os guy ever to come down the pike, when someone else, who does know what he's talking about, told me to look for the double teaming, I actually saw it with my own two eyes. When I reported this to our resident expert (and head of the tar and feather brigade) I was told that I didn't actually see what I had seen. I was also told that in no way is Basham NFL talent. That is still an open question, but it's interesting that at least some experts who are more expert than our expert seem to think he has a fighting chance.

Last Edited: 12/1/2016 11:59:35 PM by OhioCatFan

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Monroe Slavin
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RE: Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

Posted: 12/2/2016 12:06:14 AM

You might be fair and tell about the other player who you boosted to me as an All-America talent.

I've seen injuries, disappearing against better opponents and not dominating for prolonged stretches. There's talent but I'm not sure of its scope.

OhioCatFan
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RE: Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

Posted: 12/2/2016 12:10:26 AM

Monroe Slavin wrote:

Are you talking about my favorite receiver since Brazill -- Brandon Cope? I'm actually still high on him. He's had some injuries that have held him back. Oh, I'm sorry, I'm not suppose to mention injuries. In all fairness, I probably did over estimate Cope's talent, but it's a little hard at this juncture to figure out what he could have been with a few more breaks.

Monroe Slavin
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RE: Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

Posted: 12/2/2016 12:11:09 AM

It's not Cope.

OhioCatFan
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RE: Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

Posted: 12/2/2016 12:15:37 AM

Monroe Slavin wrote:

It's not Cope.

Well, whoever it was, I will admit that I was undoubtedly wrong about him. See admitting that you were wrong is good for the soul. :-)

bshot44
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RE: Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

Posted: 12/2/2016 12:25:06 AM

OhioCatFan wrote:

Monroe Slavin wrote:

It's not Cope.

Well, whoever it was, I will admit that I was undoubtedly wrong about him. See admitting that you were wrong is good for the soul. :-)

If only others on this board would follow suit, ha!

Maybe the guy who disappears for a week when Ohio loses?

Basham had a very strong Bobcat career. Maybe not as dominant as many thought after freshman year... but to Monroe and other's points, whether it was double teams or injuries or whatever... his sophomore/junior years were down statistically comparably speaking to Fr & Sr years.

So what's acceptable adjective? Obviously "good" doesn't cut it. Great? Awesome? Un-f***in-believable? What would satisfy your delicate pallet bcat2?

Bcat2
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RE: Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

Posted: 12/2/2016 12:42:53 AM

bshot44 wrote:

OhioCatFan wrote:

Monroe Slavin wrote:

It's not Cope.

Well, whoever it was, I will admit that I was undoubtedly wrong about him. See admitting that you were wrong is good for the soul. :-)

No problem Fr All American and MAC Def POY will do fine.

"Do not pray for easy lives. Pray to be stronger men." JFK

LuckySparrow
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Member Since: 10/15/2012
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RE: Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

Posted: 12/2/2016 9:02:21 AM

+1 Bcat2.

Nothing to argue about here. Basham is a stud. We'll have to wait and see what he does beyond OHIO before determining if he's our greatest defensive player ever.

What a day at the Convo.....Wow!

OhioCatFan
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RE: Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

Posted: 12/2/2016 9:11:48 AM

LuckySparrow wrote:

+1 Bcat2.

Nothing to argue about here. Basham is a stud. We'll have to wait and see what he does beyond OHIO before determining if he's our greatest defensive player ever.

Disagree. His Bobcat credentials should be based on what he did as at OHIO not any future pro career.

doubledribble
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RE: Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

Posted: 12/2/2016 9:15:01 AM

Vince Costello was an outstanding Bobcat middle linebacker, and had a stellar career with the Browns. He was also a very good baseball player at Ohio, and was invited to try out with the Reds after his senior year. After his baseball try-out the Reds made him an offer, but he decided to take a shot with the Browns. The rest is Cleveland Browns history.
Another outstanding linebacker "back in the day" was Skip Hoovler from Pataskala. He is a Bobcat Hall of Famer, and also wore the number 50 like Vince. A serious knee injury hurt his chances of making it to the NFL.

Bcat2
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RE: Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

Posted: 12/2/2016 11:08:48 AM

OhioCatFan wrote:

LuckySparrow wrote:

+1 Bcat2.

Nothing to argue about here. Basham is a stud. We'll have to wait and see what he does beyond OHIO before determining if he's our greatest defensive player ever.

Disagree. His Bobcat credentials should be based on what he did as at OHIO not any future pro career.

"Do not pray for easy lives. Pray to be stronger men." JFK

ShoreCat
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RE: Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

Posted: 12/2/2016 11:16:54 AM

Jason Carthen should at least be in this discussion

cc-cat
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RE: Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

Posted: 12/2/2016 12:02:48 PM

bshot44 wrote:

So what's acceptable adjective? Obviously "good" doesn't cut it. Great? Awesome? Un-f***in-believable? What would satisfy your delicate pallet bcat2?

I think we can all agree that as Ohio's first MAC Defensive Player of the Year we can refer to Basham as a "Great" player for Ohio. "Greatest" is open for debate.

Kevin Finnegan
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RE: Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

Posted: 12/2/2016 12:23:44 PM

OhioCatFan wrote:

LuckySparrow wrote:

+1 Bcat2.

Nothing to argue about here. Basham is a stud. We'll have to wait and see what he does beyond OHIO before determining if he's our greatest defensive player ever.

Disagree. His Bobcat credentials should be based on what he did as at OHIO not any future pro career.

I agree with this completely. I think revisionist history sometimes makes players become remembered as greater than they were when they were Bobcats. I think a perfect example is Mike Mitchell, who has built a very good NFL career. However, as a Bobcat, he was a hard-hitting, oft-injured player who seemed to always come just short of his potential.

Bcat2
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RE: Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

Posted: 12/2/2016 12:36:02 PM

finnOhio wrote:

OhioCatFan wrote:

LuckySparrow wrote:

+1 Bcat2.

Nothing to argue about here. Basham is a stud. We'll have to wait and see what he does beyond OHIO before determining if he's our greatest defensive player ever.

Disagree. His Bobcat credentials should be based on what he did as at OHIO not any future pro career.

Did Mike make the combine? Was his draft a big surprise? Was there a pro team that found him under the radar? Did Solich make some calls on his behalf?

"Do not pray for easy lives. Pray to be stronger men." JFK

bshot44
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RE: Is Basham our greatest defensive player ever?

Posted: 12/2/2016 1:13:57 PM

Bcat2 wrote:

finnOhio wrote:

OhioCatFan wrote:

LuckySparrow wrote:

+1 Bcat2.

Nothing to argue about here. Basham is a stud. We'll have to wait and see what he does beyond OHIO before determining if he's our greatest defensive player ever.

Disagree. His Bobcat credentials should be based on what he did as at OHIO not any future pro career.

Did Mike make the combine? Was his draft a big surprise? Was there a pro team that found him under the radar? Did Solich make some calls on his behalf?

I'd say Mitchell going on the first round was a complete surprise... Especially considering ESPN had ZERO video of him. When was last time a first round pick had just a full screen graphic when they talked about him.

And as a Steeler fan, Mitchell has caused me multiple fits of rage watching him try to cover, tackle, etc. He literally just tries to hit people as hard as he can resulting in numerous ridiculous penalties... And then he likes to run his mouth nonstop.

Paul Zeise from Pittsburgh Post Gazette said it best recently

"Safety Mike Mitchell needs to get on with his life�s work. He can still talk a big game, but playing one is way out of his reach, another victim of the undefeated father time."

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