SB Nation - Todd Boeckman

Back out on that road again

Sam @ WWAHT — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 15:30:32 -0000

Three weeks ago, Ohio State ignominiously fell on the road in West Lafayette to a determined Purdue Boilermakers squad playing roughly 7 miles over its head. The shocking loss snapped Ohio State's 16-game road winning streak and negated the possibility of the Buckeyes matching Michigan's 17-game road streak in the late 80's. Had Ohio State won that game, it would be returning to Happy Valley this Saturday in the hopes of snapping their archrival's record. Unfortunately, Terrelle Pryor's performance in front a not-that-hostile crowd on that fateful day make such pondering feel more like delusions of grandeur. Ohio State has had two weeks to lick its wounds at home against wildly overmatched foes, both in- and out-of-conference, and the narrative has shifted. Now, the Buckeyes head into Happy Valley with the goal of getting their road groove back.

Just how magical was that road streak? Well, from late 2005 until early 2009, it wasn't particularly controversial to say that Jim Tressel's teams played some of their best football in hostile environments. Five games in particular truly defined the run, and even a bonus one came out of conference:

In 2005, Ohio State arrived in Ann Arbor 8-2, but with an apparent renewed life following the heartbreaking loss to the Nittany Lions. Down 21-19 late in the fourth, Troy Smith thrust a dagger into the heart of Michigan fans (and it wouldn't be the last time):

Antonio Pittman would later seal the deal with a touchdown run, and the streak was on.

The next season, in the early September Texas heat, the preseason favorites for the national championship made quick work of the defending champion Texas Longhorns (sound NSFW):

It was after this game that the "road warrior" meme first gained traction. Heading into that game, there wasn't that much (setting aside preseason hype and rankings) in the Buckeyes' favor. Sure, Vince Young was gone, but Ohio State had to replace 9 starters on defense, and was still in search of a bona fide number one receiver. Nevertheless, for one magical night, the team put it all together and dominated a team that, even in retrospect, it probably shouldn't have dominated so thoroughly. The win catapulted the Buckeyes through an undefeated regular season and landed them a date with Florida (*single tear*) in Glendale.

But before all that, Ohio State had to take care of conference business, and that meant traveling to undefeated Iowa in late September, the last test of what had looked to be a brutal opening month going into the year. Unfortunately, Iowa ended up being fairly disappointing on the year, but that didn't stop this from being so much damn fun:

That marvelous catch and run was just a part of an epic 38-17 beatdown that would set a new standard for road beatdowns in which the good guys ride into town, rape the mascots and ride off on the women. Or, rather, with the opposing women-folk trussed to their wagon. Either way, the win solidified Ohio State's status as untouchable for the 2006 regular season.

Yes, 2006 Iowa set a standard. That is, until Ohio State returned to State College, Pennsylvania in 2007. Penn State was by no means a great team, but had all the necessary tools (except for Anthony Morelli, who was just a plain tool if you're a Nittany Lion) to pull off an upset of the top-ranked Buckeyes. At the site of Ohio State's last road loss, anything seemed possible. Instead, Ohio State crushed Penn State's larynx the moment the Nits showed signs of life in taking a 7-3 lead on their very first drive (apologies for the music):

Looking back on that game now, it's easy to say it was anomaly for Todd Boeckman, who never came close to approaching. It was not, however, anomalous for the team as a whole, which now had a reputation etched in stone for playing its best football on the road. Ironically, a shocking home loss to Illinois two weeks later only worked to solidify Ohio State's growing conference reputation as road juggernauts.

While the "road warrior" label did not die in 2007, I feel it's proper to end with the most thorough, soul-crushing domination of the entire streak. Yes, there were approximately 67 punts. Yes, Michigan had little-to-no chance of winning this game in the first place. Yes, Ohio State's offense didn't look particularly pretty, but, uh, I'm kinda used to that by now. I don't care. This is simply the stuff schadenfreude dreams are made of:

There are images from this game that will never die: Chad Henne assuming the fetal position, cowering from another Vernon Gholston sack. The Gun Show getting Henne on some other occasion, this time ensuring the team's best player has at least one more black mark on his senior season. Beanie Wells ending all doubt by putting the Buckeyes up 14-3 wit ha brilliant scoring one. Vaguely attractive Michigan coeds crying. This... this beautiful, beautiful thing:

While I hesitate to call it the beginning of any sort of end, the thoroughly demoralizing, soul-stomping victory in Ann Arbor, like a boot stomping on a human face forever, was arguably this streak's crowning achievement. Sure, the Buckeyes won more road games the next season; a last-minute victory at Wisconsin, twin jailsexings of Michigan State and Northwestern, and an even-in-all-but-the-turnover-margin-and-thus-the-final-score cro-magnon victory at Illinois. All were fun to watch, but none of them featured Buckeye football at its absolute best (ed. note: Michigan at least featured great defense) in truly pressure-packed situations (Madtown came close, but.... the Buckeyes hardly looked even competent for three quarters of that game), and thus, none of them truly merit inclusion as games that defined the streak. Michigan represented a farewell of sorts; the Buckeyes would not quite live up to their dominant road billing from there on out, and it finally came back to bite them in West Lafayette.

Thus, that streak is over. Dead. When Ohio State makes the trip to Happy Valley this weekend, it absolutely must attempt to recapture some of the magic that guided previous Ohio State squads into and out of hostile territory unblemished. Jim Tressel's winning formula is usually excellent on the road; home team turnovers plus a consistent ground attack, capable of grinding out 5+-minute scoring drives, take any crowd - including the Whiteout, if 2007 is any indication - out of the game, with a masterful, and at times, brutal efficiency. Yes, I'm all for boring these suckers to death. Games like these are when Tresselball's ability to slowly destroy an opponent's soul is paramount. Hopefully, this Buckeye team can cobble together enough of a running game to make this look a bit more like 2007 than 2005. Ohio State is "back out on that road again", as Steve Earle once sung, and in these situations, there really are "those that break and bend". Is Ohio State the other kind? We'll know soon enough.

Bench Adam Weber: In my mind, the MarQueis Gray Era should begin

grahamfiller10 — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 04:46:50 -0000

My golfing partner today was a friend named Kris Krzyminski. Kris played Division 1 basketball at Oakland University and then played in Europe. On the way home from the golf course, we discussed the individual nature of basketball versus the team nature of football. After I espoused my usual belief that basketball depended on the brilliance of 1 or 2 individuals, he countered with this statement: "Wouldn't you say that the quarterback is the most important player on the football field? Isn't his individual worth pretty damn high?"

In Minneapolis, Kris's statement rings true. Adam Weber's inability to improve as a field general has helped hamstring the Golden Gophers offense. Of all 11 quarterbacks qualified for passing efficiency, Weber ranks 10th in the Big Ten, just ahead of Juice Williams, He's thrown the most interceptions and his completion percentage is the lowest in the league. I've studied his mechanics (sound), but you can't deny he tosses too many balls into coverage and doesn't know how to throw the ball away.

These are just statistics and old talking points; I will make a cohesive argument as to why MarQueis Gray should be the starter for the last four Gopher contests in 2009.

The Offense System

Minnesota cannot pass block this year. They've got some big boys who can run block, led in size by the 375 lb. Jeff Wills. Weber has got sacked 17 times and it's been awhile since I saw some cohesive drives highlighted by the passing game. I'm harping on this fact because Weber has been taking 5-7 step drops behind a line that...can't...pass...block. So the gameplan isn't working, let's do something different shall we?

Fisch's offense is most effective when a power run game is being complimented by screens and misdirection.That's his MO, he's done it everywhere. It's no accident that Nick Tow-Arnett, the tight end who has caught so many dump downs and screens, is the Gophers second leading receiver. Gray went 5-6 for 51 yards and a TD last week at the end of the OSU loss. But it's not his throwing statistics that make me want him at the helm of Jedd Fisch's offense. It's his effectiveness in carrying out what Fisch really wants to do. Gray can bootleg with or without blockers, run the read option, throw on the run, and take a hit on that 6' 4'' 215 lb frame. The polish will come along with experience, which leads me to...

The Future

For the remainder of this season, Minnesota plays MSU, South Dakota State, Illinois, and Iowa. I would say L to Iowa, L to MSU...and I am waffling on SDS (6-1 in the FCS, beating a UNI team that should have beat Iowa) and the Middling Illini. So we're looking at anything from 4-8 to 6-6 most likely. Queso Bowl or the Pizza Pizza Bowl seem like valid options...But why am I harping on this fact?

Thoughts on my article and the QB situation in Min, courtesy of Daily Gopher:

The Gophers have a triangle of problems and IMO Weber is third on the list of things to fix. Here is my mulligan offense post from a few weeks ago. Essentially the play-calling has been suspect, penalties have killed drives AND Weber has been inconsistent. If you watch last week's OSU game Weber actually played well in the first half. There were at least 3 dropped balls that were routine catches. All three would have resulted in a first down instead all three resulted in punts.

All of this gets to the fact that replacing Weber with a freshman (who hasn't really played since 2006) isn't going to solve the other problems. Gray broke his leg early in his senior season, didn't play in what would have been his freshman season so he hasn't played consistently since his junior year. So because he is athletic, won't solve our offensive problems. Weber has been good at times this year, people easily forget that. And the offense has often stalled for reasons he cannot be held accountable for.

Ultimately this is a no lose situation for the Gray camp (everyone except me). If he plays well then obviously everyone was right. If he stinks then who cares cause he's doing no worse than Weber. Problem is, like I said, Weber has played well this year so that won't be true. But it will be the "logical" conclusion by the masses. Really, I don't care. I like Gray a lot and want him to be great, so if he plays and plays well I'm happy. But I fear he does not give us the best chance to win on Saturday.

installing Gray into the offense right now would allow this explosive freshmen to get a feeling for a full college football game. Starting Gray Saturday will give him a chance to exercise leadership and proclaim "this is my team ya'll." Although pulling a three year starter in Weber is bound to raise controversy, I can't imagine the boosters and players being too upset about trying something to end the offensive doldrums. What is Mini gaining from another 10-24, 132 yd, 2 interception performance by Weber?

More importantly, it would give Jedd Fisch a chance to experiment with the offense that he will be running in the future. And here is the kicker: Minnesota already runs all the plays that Gray could successfully run. Quarterback draws, tight end screens, quick slants that don't require the OL to hold their blocks for a long time. These plays are already in the system.

Here is a great quote from Daily Gopher (message board or article, I don't remember):

Sadly, they will beat South Dakota State and either Michigan State or Illinois, win six games, and go to a crappy bowl and some fans will point to this as a successful season. At this point, the only way you could consider this successful is if they run the table, including a win over Iowa, or they win three games with MarQueis Gray at quarterback.

You remember Todd Boeckman of course, weighed down by having to noodle arm throws into coverage. Jim Tressel was ballsy enough to turn to his frosh quarterback, simplify the system to a power running attack (Oh Jedd should love that), and essentially go back to basics. I'm not asking Brewster to pull a Ron Zook and take a ride on the quarterback carousel. I just want Tim to take a long look at what he's got in front of him: A physically ready quarterback who fits perfectly in the OC's schemes and an offense that's bogged down horribly. Breathe some life into TCF, show some nuts like Tressel in '08.

What to Do With Terrelle the Terrible

Law Buckeye — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 21:39:15 -0000

For Jim...

Last week I asked what was wrong with Terrelle Pryor. This week I know what is wrong with Terrelle Pryor.

Pryor's dysfunction can be broken into three distinct categories:

Throwing

Can't throw a short spiral to save his life. Result? More incomplete passes out of the backfield than I care to count.
Hooks his arm release like a tournament fisherman trying to jerk a bass out of the water, only in reverse. Result? Pegs the ball at the ground, forcing receivers to dive or "touch their toes" to pick up the ball. Dramatically limits yard pickup after the catch.
Can't lead his receivers on middle routes. Result? Incomplete/broken up passes. Interceptions.
Doesn't adjust his "snap" on his release for the speed and length of the throw. Result? More turf bullets than I care to count.
Stares at his chosen receiver like a teenage boy ogling cleavage. Result? Linebackers have an easy time keying in on and jumping routes.

Decision-Making:

Stands in the pocket for too long checking off multiple receivers. Hesitates to take off on the ground. Result? Gets beat to the sideline by outside linebackers. Routinely tackled close to the line of scrimmage on scrambles.
Throws lazy deep balls (a.k.a. "arm punts" Hat Tip: BSD) into double-coverage. Result? Allows free safeties ample time to close and make a play.

Psychology:

Pounds the turf in frustration after sacks. Hangs his head on the sidelines. Allows the game to get to him. Result? Interferes with the "muscle memory" component of mechanics making it difficult for Pryor to replicate what he did in practice during live play. Makes it difficult to recover from mistakes as a game progresses.

The combination of these raw tendencies and others has seen a signature talent devolve into a scarecrow. Don't delude yourself. Pryor is getting worse every week. The question now is what to do about it.

Let me start by saying what Jim Tressel shouldn't do. He shouldn't bench Pryor.

Don't get me wrong. Pryor should have seen the bench on Saturday against Purdue -- probably after he threw his second interception of the day at the 6:38 minute mark of the Third Quarter. Just as Rich Rodriguez substituted Denard Robinson for Tate Forcier in the fourth quarter against Iowa last week to provide an elusive "spark," a backup's presence can sometimes be a tabula rosa for a struggling offense. At the very least handing Joe Bauserman the reins for a series of two might have disrupted the Boilermaker's defensive flow, resulted in a few completions, and opened up the ground lanes for a greater rushing presence. It also might have given Pryor a chance to exorcise his demons on the sideline.

(As a short aside, Tressel needs to watch Cincinnati's Brian Kelly for cues on how to treat a struggling quarterback when he comes off the field. Pull his face mask to get his attention, tell him what he did wrong, tell him he's not going to do it again, and provide instructions on what to do instead. Make the episode a visible reprimand. Make the player mad at you instead of himself. He'll come out of the gate on the next series like a damn grizzly bear).

Still, although Tressel should have turned to Bauserman in the midst of the meltdown, he should not make him the starter next week against Minnesota. To do so would be to shoot the arthritic remains of the Ohio State offense in the foot. As Ken Gordon of The Columbus Dispatch reminds us, although Pryor is one big fat piece of the pie, he's not the entire problem.

The next biggest concern, as I see it, is the play of the offensive line. [C]learly, the line was a disaster, and there are three sophomores starting -- all big time recruits: Mike Adams, Mike Brewster and J.B. Shugarts.

What does all this say? That the recruits are all busts, all of them? Really? That they aren't getting the proper coaching? That they just had a bad day?

I believe the truth lies somewhere between bad coaching and bad day.

Coaching must be faulted to some extent. The staff had all offseason to determine what system would best suit Pryor's abilities. They came up with a pro style, run-based attack....then scrapped that after three games. All that offseason analysis -- five assistant coaches working at least 40-hour weeks for eight months, that's about 7,000 hours of work, for what?
The line appeared to be rejuvenated a few weeks ago when OSU went to the shotgun, zone-read offense. But when teams started putting serious heat on the past two weeks, they melted like wax figures.

The Buckeyes are burdened by a bad line that can't pass protect. It's easy to forget in the midst of bad throws and short scrambles how many times Pryor has to evade one, even two rushers to buy himself the time to look up field.

Imagine what that offense would look like with a young, lead-footed, pocket passer at the helm. Oh yeah, we tried that already. Todd Boeckman, anyone?

For better or worse we're stuck with Pryor. So what should Tressel do?

Consider this:

[T]he only time Pryor has looked comfortable the past two weeks was in running the hurry-up, two-minute drill. OSU scored three times in its past four possessions in the hurry-up.

But can you do that all game? Should the Buckeyes turn into Texas Tech, since that appears to be the only system in which its QB can thrive?

No, we shouldn't turn into Texas Tech exactly, but -- as a local sports radio commentator suggested yesterday -- we should model the offense after another successful program plagued with an elusive quarterback with a bum arm: Texas' 2005 National Championship squad.

To compensate for Vince Young's poor decision-making, and limited football smarts, Mack Brown installed an ultimatum offense so easy anyone could run it. It worked as follows:

Operate out of a five-wide receiver formation.
Have Vince pick one receiver as his lone target in the huddle.
After the snap, have Vince read his primary receiver. If the receiver is open, make the throw. If the receiver isn't open, run.

It's that simple. Pryor should be coached to run like hell the second he smells something fishy. Sure, it might not turn him into a Sunday starting signal caller. But, does anyone really think he's got a chance of quarterbacking at the next level?

Maintain the kid's confidence, and give the offense the best chance of success. It's not the only choice, but it's the smartest one.

On the Trials and Tribulations of Terrelle

Sam @ WWAHT — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 14:00:39 -0000

More photos » by Tony Dejak - AP

2 months ago: Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor (2) is finally brought down after a 25-yard run by Toledo cornerback Jermaine Robinson at his feet during the second half of their NCAA college football game Saturday, Sept. 19, 2009, in Cleveland, Ohio. Also chasing Pryor is Toledo safety Drey'Lon Pree (44). Ohio State won the game 38-0. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)

Browse more photos »

I think most of us assume Terrelle Pryor is destined for some form of greatness. But the guy's "just a sophomore", and so for now, it's prudent to set your sights on mere very-goodness and hope for the best. But through four games this year, how much more do we know about our signal caller as, you know, an actual quarterback?

First, let's take a look at what we knew about him prior to the season. Law Buckeye over on The Rivalry, Esq opined on his skills thusly:

Snap (A-):

Security/Ball Placement (A): Pryor keeps his non-throwing hand flush with the football up until the time of the release, and tucks the ball down on roll outs.

Retreat Speed (A-): Terrelle is quick on the drop, although (not surprisingly) most of his fallbacks are short, quick slants.

Footwork (B-): Pryor's steps are dicey. He chops at the turf rather than pushing off of it.

The Fake (B+): Pryor puts his hands out and leans into the back, appropriately selling the handoff. Pulls back a little too quick, so the effect is short lived.

Adaptation (A): Pryor's mobility helps him to gracefully evade the pass rush, although he sometimes collapses when his primary and secondary receivers get jammed on call backs.

Release (B):

Survey (A-): Pryor benefits from his height in this category. He keeps his head up and out, although, he doesn't appear to scan much after the snap.

Stance (B-): Pryor's stance is too narrow. His leading foot is barely in front of his back foot, making him vulnerable to a tackle, and limiting his power.

Step (C+): This is one of Terrelle's greatest challenges. He only steps on deliberate long-balls. Otherwise, he shifts his foot -- relying on his upper and not his lower body to contribute momentum to the pass.

Wrist/Throw (B-/B+): In 2008, Pryor lifted the ball up in a U shape motion before flicking his wrist, an "extra" step that appeared to decrease the forward energy that was transferred to the ball. Spring game footage shows a more fluid transition and better release. Hence, the range of scores.

Overall Score: B+

With my limited scouting ability, I agree with most of what he said. Pryor's biggest recurring problem is his footwork, which makes it difficult for him to set properly and throw the ball with accuracy. Pryor came to Ohio State with the intention of leaving as an NFL quarterback, and if he's still clinging onto that dream, he's going to have to learn the basic footwork, among numerous other things.

I find it interesting that Todd Boeckman had similar mechanical problems in 2007, and it frequently lead to the infamous "punterception", which debuted in full force against Purdue in West Lafayette. Boeckman threw three touchdown passes in the 23-7 win, but he also threw three picks, a few of which came off of lobbed deep balls. It would not be the last time we saw the phenomenon that year, and Pryor's deep passing looks like it needs the same amount of work. Of course, we're comparing 5th-year junior Boeckman to 2nd-year Pryor, and it's not entirely fair to the young QB. However, this still could signal the start of a worrying trend, as both Boeckman and Pryor struggled greatly with core mechanics despite general continuity in coaching ranks; Boeckman spent 2007 under the tutelage of Joe Daniels, who has abandoned his coaching duties in an ongoing fight with cancer. Daniels' protégé, Nick Siciliano, was Pryor's de facto coach for most of 2008, and assumed the duty formally prior to the 2009 season. Fortunately, there is still plenty of time to make up for mistakes; Ohio State doesn't face a passing defense currently ranked in the top-35 until the trip to Happy Valley. Now is the time to work out any and all kinks before they really start costing us.

Being a Buckeye quarterback is a demanding task and not good for various aspects of your personal well-being, chiefly your sanity; you're either the most hated or the most loved guy in the state depending on how you play. Just ask Steve Bellisari and Justin Zwick. There's an inordinate amount of pressure on Pryor, but you know he expected it coming in. I, for one, don't think the pressure is getting too him. I really don't. I think the issue here is, at least partially, the mentality JT cultivates in his quarterbacks, which sometimes leads to overprotection of the ball and the hesitancy we've seen in two straight Buckeye signal callers. However, I'm also beginning to think that JT is doing what he can to get away from that mentality in his signal callers - against Toledo, in good weather and with mostly good protection, Pryor attempted 32 passes - the most in a game since Troy Smith's masterful 41-attempt, 29-completion effort against Michigan in 2006. Even if it's only for a brief moment, I think Tressel is making the changes he feels he needs to, "in order for our offense to be successful", as he would put it, because really, turning Terrelle Pryor into Craig Krenzel just isn't going to fly for too long. .

Against both The Midshipmen and Toledo, Pryor looked like the quarterback we'd thought he'd be for all but a few fleeting instances; instances which resulted in picks. The frustrating inconsistency should go away with age, but as Pryor enters the midway point of his sophomore year, the "age" argument is beginning to wear thin. Against USC, the main thing Pryor seemed to be afraid of doing after that first pick was turning the ball over; and you know that's a product of Tressel's emphasis on ball control. I'll let you decide whether Tressel wanted to reign Pryor in after that first pick, but from what I could tell, Terrelle did plenty of that all by himself. He frequently looked hesitant, indecisive and overly-cautious against the Trojans. Off the top of my head, I can recall only a single play where Pryor looked both comfortable and determined, and that one play showed us all that he is capable of: facing a hopeless 3rd and long, Pryor took the snap, and without hesitation found a sizable hole and picked up a first down, dragging USC defenders along with him. It was a fleeting glimpse of the greatness that could be Terrelle Pryor. Unfortunately, the rest of the game was a long gaze into the abyss of how far he has to go.

That one, true breakout game is still eluding "Lebron-in-Cleats", and as a fanbase, I think we need to remember that it's going to take baby steps. I think Toledo was a pretty large leap forward for him, and that Illinois was too, in its own special, rain-soaked way. The second of his three touchdowns versus the Rockettes was particularly striking; for the first time in his career, Pryor "threw a guy open", meaning that he placed the ball in an open area of the field near his man rather than directly on top of the open receiver - in this case Dane Sanzenbacher - and he placed it in such a way that Rocket DBs had no chance of thwarting the attempt. That's some notable progress and considerable mental fortitude from a guy coming off the worst game of his career. A week later against the Illini, Pryor showcased some good decision-making, both while running the option with Daniel Herron and while making a few key passes to keep the chains moving. He still followed that up with an awkward across-the-body quacker that was nearly intercepted, but again, baby steps. The fact that Pryor saw limited time under center shows us that Tressel is in fact opening up the offense schematically to better fit his quarterback; far more than he did at any point last year. I think that TP just suffers from a classic case of "trying to do too much": see the aforementioned Illinois quacker and the forced pass while taking a sack against Navy. Right now, his decisions are very high-risk, high-reward, and there just doesn't seem to be much of a grey area. Either he's doing fine or he's lobbing up a pass against Toledo that just might have touched the sun. He's just a sophomore, so inconsistency is par for the course. But this stretch of games coming up is key; if he doesn't look like an actual quarterback against at least two of this Charmin Soft set of defenses, then we may have to face up to the fact that he probably won't this year, setting up a 2010 season that will make or break his future as a QB.

"That puke, inside of a pumpkin orange"

Sam @ WWAHT — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 16:00:25 -0000

They low down, they dirty, they some snitches...*

I guess technically it's hate week. Illinois is, after all, one of our two main rivals (sorry Penn State) and we even have a dorky trophy to commemorate this "rivalry", in which Ohio State's all time record stands at 61-30-3, and in which the Buckeyes actually have more losses in the Shoe (18) than they do in Champaign (12). Yeah, it's a weird rivalry, characterized lately by weird games. Last year, Illinois outgained Ohio State by over 100 yards and still lost by ten. Ohio State won the game with just 49 yards through the air, 36 of which came on just three of OSU's ten attempted passes. The year before, Illinois capitalized on a blown fumble call, three picks from the previously unblemished Todd Boeckman and an agonizing final drive that took 8 minutes off the game clock and roughly ten years off my life.

Even in 2006, when Ohio State was rolling anyone and everyone in its path, the Fighting Illini sacked Troy Smith 3 times, held him without a passing touchdown for the first time all year, and forced him to throw just his third pick of the season in an uneven effort from the Buckeye squad, which ended up winning only 17-10. It was the closest anyone outside of Michigan would play them throughout the entire regular season.

2005 was largely unremarkable, save the final score: 40-2, the only Illini points coming off a blocked XP that was returned for a safety. So we know these games have a definite recent trend of overall weirdness, and many of them would serve as good fodder for Dr. Saturday's intriguing Life on the Margins series. Will this weekend be any different?

*(full disclosure: I don't hate Illinois. I don't think I could be more indifferent to a team. Ron Zook provides me with lulz when they're bad, and Juice Williams puts on a show when they're good. I almost like them.)

Well, there's no real reason to think so. As ridiculous as the Ohio State defense might be, this might be the best offense - when healthy and feeling like it - that it will play all year. The problem is, of course, that the Illini have yet to actually look like it

Date	Opponent	Surface	Result	Rush Yards	Pass Yards	Plays	Total Yards	Yards/Play
09/05/09	+ Missouri	Turf	L 9-37	110	215	72	325	4.5
09/12/09	Illinois St.	Turf	W 45-17	384	164	63	548	8.7
	Totals			494	379	135	873	6.5

And after putting up such relatively lackluster stats against a) a rebuilding outfit and b) an FCS school, there isn't really cause to believe the Illini are going to explode against an Ohio State defense that is giving up an average of 15 ppg. But in this series, it's difficult to rule much of anything out. In 2007, Juice Williams was coming off three straight games in which he had thrown at least one pick. He responded with four touchdowns and zero interceptions against a dumbfounded Ohio State secondary that would finish first in the nation in yards allowed. If there's one Buckeye defense that should have stopped the Illini, it was that one, and it just couldn't.

As much success as Williams has had against Ohio State, the Illini running game has done its part, totaling 474 yards in the last two games combined. It could be said that Illinois runs the one offense that Jim Heacock just can't figure out. Ohio State was fortunate enough to intercept Williams at a key point in the 2008 game, and with the running game exploding for 305 yards, the Buckeyes never felt threatened in the second half. This is the one thing that worries me about tomorrow's game; if Juice finally gets it going, like he always seems to against the Buckeyes, does Ohio State have a running attack that can slow the game's pace down a crawl?

Illinois runs the type of offense Jim Tressel just absolutely has to hate, because it's not a ball-control affair, and like Florida and LSU, can put points up in bunches against almost any defense that doesn't adjust immediately. It's Toledo with talent and speed, and a quarterback who can run against teams not named Colorado. I'd hate playing against it too.

So why, if the 2007 and 2008 units couldn't stop Illinois, should this one in 2009 be any different? Simple answer: speed. This might not be a particularly popular opinion, but I'm willing to place good money on Ross Homan, Brian Rolle and Austin Spitler being faster as a unit than James Laurinaitis, Marcus Freeman and Larry Grant. Brian Rolle especially is a speed demon who should have no serious problems tracking down Williams and the Illini running backs in the open field. Just watching the game against Toledo; it was rare that guys weren't at least in place to make the needed tackle, which is huge against teams that run this offense. A defensive clinic of similar proficiency will result in the Illini netting 14 points at the most.

Offensively, this game will be a good way to gauge Terrelle Pryor's progress purely as a passer. Illinois has one of the softest secondaries one could hope for in the early part of the season, and the fact that both of the Illini's interceptions have come against Illinois State makes me giddy. An arm punt here or there will be picked, sure, but I think Pryor will get a bit more leeway with his throws against the Illini than against other Big Ten secondaries, which will give the coaching staff a bit better of an idea of what he needs to work on.

I'm still waiting for Daniel Herron or Brandon Saine to have a breakout game. Really, if neither can get it together at this point, I can't help but conclude that they won't under these circumstances , and that the staff seriously needs to re-evaluate some schemes or get Jordan Hall some more reps. Illinois' rush defense has been decent, holding Mizzou and State to 2.8 yards a carry on the ground, but Mizzou is Mizzou and Illinois State is coached by Brock Spack, who brought basketball-on-grass to the quite little burg of Normal, Illinois. Neither will ever place the emphasis Ohio State does on pounding the rock, so the Buckeyes need to get something going early and often.

Five predictions that will make me look foolish come Monday :

- Juice throws at least one pick, and is held under 50 yards rushing

- Ohio State actively exploits the hole left by Martez Wilson's departure

- The running game continues to struggle, but Pryor's improvisational skills make it look a bit more respectable.

- Pryor throws at least one arm punt pick, to go with 3 or more touchdowns

- Final score: Ohio State 31, Illinois 13

The last time the Illini went to Columbus...

Joe Kutsunis — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 18:42:01 -0000

Saturday's game is important for all of the obvious reasons of course, its the start of the Big Ten schedule, the Illini are 1-1, its the first of two top 20 teams the Illini will face in back to back weeks. But for me it is important because Columbus Ohio is where the signature win for Zook and Juice took place, a game in which the then unranked Illini took down the #1 Buckeyes and launched the team to the Rose Bowl. A game that I was at.

It was without a doubt the coolest football game I have seen in person. I was with the Block I on the annual road trip, and as a result had some of the best seats in the house, right behind the end zone, right in front of the student section. If you never have been to Columbus for a football game, I cannot recommend it enough. It is a zoo. Aside from the 100,000 plus people actually at the game, there is tailgating and other events going on outside that must include another 10,000. I love Memorial Stadium and gameday in Champaign, but in terms of pure scale it is a long way from Columbus.

The stadium looked huge on the inside of course, but it was not really as overwhelming as you might think. It is designed really similarly to MS and really just looks like a scaled up version, with a larger press box/luxury suite edifice. What cannot be overstated however is what 100,000+ people sound like when they are all yelling at once, it is absolutely deafening. I still cannot believe that a football team could hear to snap the ball there. Lucky for us I suppose, that Juice does call the snap but signals for it when he is in the shotgun.

More impressive than the fans, more impressive than the stadium, and more impressive than Jim Tressel's meticulously cleaned sweater vest was the way Illinois absolutely shocked Ohio State. The year before of course the Illini had kept it close at MS and given OSU a real game, but Buckeye fans simply chalk it up to looking ahead to Michigan and dismiss the idea of an Illinoi team, coached by Ron Zook no less, could actually pose a threat to their undefeated season.

Then Daniel Dufrene busts an 80 yard run straight up the middle all the way to the OSU 5 yard line. (Oh please please don't start talking about blown calls and referees under investigation, as I recall OSU fans, you still made it to the BCS Champ game just in time to get blown off the field by LSU.) The Illini tied the game soon thereafter and made sure they would not go quietly like the rest of the Big Ten that year.

It was also the game where the Illini defense showed the rest of the nation just how bad a QB that Todd Boeckman could be. 3 INTs and alot of running around in the pocket. He would later show the same poise against LSU in the title game, and against USC the following season. You may recall that merely a week earlier ESPN was suggesting Boeckman as a serious contender for the HEISMAN. Miami Thomas did America a favor and ended that talk very quickly.

The most memorable part of the game of course was the famous 4th quarter drive. The Illini had the lead by a touchdown and the ball with 8 minutes left. An absolute eternity. Most of the time when coaches and fans refer to just how good a player Juice can be, they point to this possession, where time after time he dared the OSU defense to stop him, but made first down after first down. Most of the time simply running up the middle on QB draw plays through massive holes that were opened up by the O-line. If you had asked me at the time what the Illini needed to do to win the game, I would have told you to make it to the 30 yard line and kick a field goal to make it a two possession game. It seems completely crazy to me, but Zook out-Tresseled Tressel. He sat on the ball for 8 minutes and ended the game without giving OSU a chance to win it in the last minutes.

Let me tell you something though, as loud as that stadium was early on in the game, it was a stunned silence as the final seconds ticked off. I sincerely doubt I get to see a game quite this cool again. At least until the next time the Illini play there perhaps.

2009 Big 10 Quarterback Rankings, First Edition

grahamfiller10 — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 22:13:26 -0000

It's been 9 long months since I made my final edition of the 2008 Big Ten Quarterback Rankings. Since late 2008, the majority of teams in the Big Ten are starting a new quarterback and let me tell you folks, this is great, great news for the quarterback rankings. In 2008, quarterback play was horrible and inconsistent. Two main factors led to the horrid play - Injuries and disappointing veterans. Curtis Painter, Kellen Lewis, Brian Hoyer, Todd Boeckman, Allan Evridge, and Juice Williams were injury prone or ineffective in 2008, leading to backups getting significant playing time. By the end of the season, only a few QB's were healthy and putting up solid stats. This year, with a conference wide focus on passing and more teams opening their playbooks, the quarterback play is markedly improved from last year.

Not only does this improvement make the ranking a more interesting exercise, I don't have to spend the year explaining how in the world Juice Williams is the third best quarterback in the Big Ten, a spot he ended up in through default last year. Enjoy The Rivalry's 2009 Big Ten Quarterback Rankings First Edition, which I will update every three weeks.

Ed Note: After #4, the quarterbacks blend together, talent and number wise. I gave Tolzien and Kafka extra points because of their surprising success, but that can all be wiped away with early in-conf struggles. And I took away points for struggling in big games, which I believe is where a quarterback can best be judged.

	QB	Team	Comments
#1	Daryll Clark	PSU	Has looked comfortable in the pocket throwing to the newbie receivers. Clark's best attribute is that he trusts his O-Line - he will sit and slowly chop his feet, waiting for routes to open up. Game Avg: 22-32, 250 yards, 3 TDs.
#2	Kirk Cousins	MSU	His accuracy and poise in the pocket have resulted in the Big Ten's best passing efficiency rating. This devout Bapist can make every throw - swing passes, curl routes in traffic, out routes to the sideline. Don't let the wobbler at the end of the ND game fool you - He should be taking every snap at MSU. Game Avg: 15-23, 215 yards, 2 TDs.
#3	Tate Forcier	UM	Showed up in primetime against ND, putting on a performance for the ages. Throws an accurate ball and his shifty moves are perfect for the RichRod Spread. Not lightning fast like Pat White, but gets the 3-5 yards on the Zone Read QB run that Sheridan/Threet could never get. Game Avg: 14-22, 163 yards, 2 TD, 37 ypg rushing.
#4	Terrelle Pryor	OSU	Lebron In Cleats showed a fully evolved arm in the Spring Game, leading to an overly excited phone call from Law Buck. Unfortunately, the indecisive shot putting returned against USC. Would I take him over Forcier? Yes. Did he choke under pressure? Yes. Game Avg: 14-25, 204 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT, 59 yards rushing.
#5	Ricky Stanzi	IOWA	Holds himself like a veteran and has engineered victories while Iowa Hating God wipes out all his playmakers. No complaints about his throwing motion here, but the unexplainable interceptions flummox everyone. Game Avg: 20-33, 215 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT.
#6	Scott Tolzien	WISC	Tolzien has been the surprise of the non-conf games. Accurate and eager to spread the ball around, I guess we realize why Sherer's loopy delivery was dropped in favor of this supposed career backup. Throws an extremely catchable ball for a Wisky offense that isn't relying on the run so much anymore. Game Avg: 15-23, 214 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT.
#7	Mike Kafka	NW	A tremendous game against Syracuse was tainted by an ugly pick late, but his numbers exceed what we expected by so much it's scary. He's showed a live arm and has refused to depend on his very solid scrambling abilities. Game Avg: 21-28, 247 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT.
#8	Adam Weber	MINN	I watched him against California and two problems are obvious. He doesn't know how to throw the ball away and he doesn't get any blocking. When given time, Weber/Decker is a dangerous combo. I expect more from this frequently inaccurate veteran. Game Avg: 20-34, 231 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT.
#9	Ben Chappell	IND	Crimson Quarry and others were calling for him to start last year, but injuries and Lewis's on-again, off-again playing schedule never allowed Chapell to become the unquestioned leader. Now fully in command, the Pistol offense and some athletic receivers have helped Chappell to look, as the British say, not half-bad. Game Avg: 21-31, 225 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT.
#10	Joey Elliot	PU	We predicted doom and gloom in West Lafayette, but the Boilers and Elliot looked a tad more explosive than expected. His personality as a QB isn't fully evolved yet - Should be rolling out as much as in the NIU game? Should the quick slants of yesteryear be incorporated more? Game Avg: 20-33, 225 yards, 1 TD, 2 INTs.
#11	Juice Williams	ILL	We all saw the Mizzou ugliness and the uninspired Illini. We all saw Juice do Juice things like throw wild, ineffective passes all over the place. We also saw no run game. So until he returns to good old rollercoaster Juice, Big Ten leader in Total Yards in 2008, I leave him here. Game Avg: 18-28, 179 yards, 1 INT.

Toledo tonic: cures more than just what ails ye

Sam @ WWAHT — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 16:00:16 -0000

More photos » by Amy Sancetta - AP

Channeling Marty McFly: you better get used to that end zone, kid...

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I think it's safe to say that Ohio State needed to win the way it did on Saturday to provide some sort of spark for the rest of this season. It was very easy for many in the media and some in the fanbase to assume Ohio State was dead in the water after its loss to USC; it's just difficult to rebound from a game where mere minutes seemed to separate redemption from regression. Quoth the Dispatch:

Instead, after losing to Southern California last week, the Ohio State Buckeyes wallowed in their misery. They internalized it, got mad and got even.

Toledo was the unfortunate recipient of all this seething, absorbing a 38-0 beating in front of a heavily partisan OSU crowd of 71,727 in Cleveland Browns Stadium.

I guess we just have to hope they didn't spend all that excess aggression and rage against what, when you get down to it, was just another MACrifice that had chewed its way through nice and cushy lowest-tier BCS defenses. If you take the best players from Purdue and Colorado's defenses, you might be able to cobble together a defense three-quarters as athletic as Ohio State's. I don't say this to be cruel or arrogant, it's just fact.

So Toledo ended up being an excellent showcase game, but it also ended up being good practice for Illinois, as the Rockettes run a very similar offense to the Illini's, albeit with a fraction of the talent. Toledo's offensive line, which had looked dominant against Colorado and merely very good against Purdue, never got a beat on the Ohio State pass rush. The numbers may not show it, but Cameron Heyward, Doug Worthington and Thaddeus Gibson each set up their own tent in the backfield. If Ohio State can provide similar amounts of pressure all season long, it won't lose another game. I'm not sure it faces a genuinely better offensive line until Wisconsin comes to town, so now is the time to hone their skills. Partial mea culpa: I was only partially wrong about Worthington as a DT. In short yardage, dude got put on roller skates by USC and Navy. But when the offense has any more than 2 yards to go for a first down, the guy's just a terror and will be a huge asset against every spread team Ohio State faces, which brings me back to Illinois.

It helps to have a dominant defensive line against any team, but spread teams like the Illini typically try to neutralize the pass rush with incredibly annoying bubble screens and QB draws. Illinois did this well against Ohio State two years ago in the 'Shoe, most noticeably on the agonizing final Illini possession that bled eight minutes (!) off the play clock. Todd Boeckman always got the blame for that loss, but the defense did him no favors. They just couldn't get the Illini off the field. Even Vernon Gholston struggled with the read-option, long after it became clear that Juice Williams was keeping the ball every time. This defensive line is far more disciplined than the '07 one, and stronger on the interior. The Illini have already given up five sacks on the year, and that's with multiple mobile quarterbacks to choose from. I think another big day is in store for Heyward and Co.

Alright, I'm done salivating over the D-line. Other units impressed against Toledo. The secondary in particular got a good bit of practice against Toledo's tall, fast wideouts, but they probably aren't going to face a receiving corps as talented as Illinois' again this year. You know who Arrelious Benn is and what he do, unsexy '09 stats (1 catch for 9 yards) notwithstanding. Benn is struggling with a high ankle sprain, but may be healthy for this weekend's game (about that article: can you believe Illinois has won 7 out of the last 10 games in Columbus?). As if Benn's potential presence wasn't enough to get you fretting, Jarred Fayson is actually the Illini's leading receiver, with.... 8 grabs for 89 yards. Um. As you can tell, the Illini passing attack isn't exactly clicking on all cylinders right now, and there really isn't much in the way of evidence that it's going to start any time soon. This week, Juice Williams is coming back from an injury, and he's doing it against what's shaping up to be one of the Big Ten's best secondaries.

However, it's Juice Williams, and it's Ohio State. The past two seasons, Juice Williams has thrown for 332 yards and 6 touchdowns (to just 1 interception) while toting the rock himself 25 times for 118 yards. Against everyone else, he has 30 touchdowns to go with 28 picks. It's accepted fact these days that there is a Dr. Isaiah and a Mr. Juice, a Jekyll/Hyde conundrum within Isaiah "Juice" Williams that causes him to alternate between bona fide all-Big Ten quarterback and just another noodle-armed scrambler. Ohio State has mostly seen Dr. Isaiah dicing them for two years running; In 2007, Ohio State's defense, which finished the season as statistically the best in the country, could not bottle up Dr. Isaiah for the life of them. In 2008, flashes of Mr. Juice ended up dooming an Illini upset bid in which Dr. Isaiah presided over most of the proceedings. What Juice Williams shows up will go along way in determining whether this game is competitive.

Offensively, there shouldn't be too much to worry about. Ohio State got a far different look from Toledo than it will against Illinois, so it's difficult to know what to expect. Toledo ran a 4-2-5, Navy ran a 3-4 (and looked pretty good doing it), while USC's 4-3 "under" scheme invalidated the Ohio State running game. While the Illini run a 4-3 much like USC's in terms of personnel, the talent level is, despite Zook's overzealous recruiting strategies, greatly reduced, and so are the results: the Illini have given up 840 yards and 54 points of offense through two games. They have little-to-no pass rush and the secondary is, *ahem*, questionable, giving up even more yards through the air to Illinois State than they did to rebuilding Missouri.

While I fully expected Ohio State to roll Toledo with a powerful rushing tandem of Herron and Saine, that never came to be. This is one of the few games Ohio State has remaining in which it should, on paper, pile up 200+ yards rushing in a relatively easy winning effort. However, If the Buckeye running game again fails to get untracked, another 250+ yard day through the air from Pryor doesn't look out of the question with Illinois' porous pass D. If the stars align and both dynamics of the offense are fully in sync and hitting on all cylinders, this could just be another quiet snoozer. Unless, of course Dr. Isaiah has something to say about it.

Why the Illini must put a stop to Tressel's reign of terror

Joe Kutsunis — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 17:18:11 -0000

More photos » by Matt York - AP

THIS MAN MUST BE STOPPED (AP Photo/Matt York, File)

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I am a fan of movies, and as any of my friends will tell you, I am more than willing to have a conversation composed entirely of movie quotes. So when I think of what has happened to the Big Ten in the era of Jim Tressel's unprecedented dominance and post season disappointment, I am reminded from a quote from The Dark Knight "This town deserves a better class of criminal, and I'm going to give it to them." If the Big Ten is going to be dominated by a bloated, talent laden, year in year out conference champion, we need someone better than Jim Tressel. This league, if you will, deserves a better class of coaching.

No, I do not believe the analogy extends all the way to Zook here. (If you are looking for a misunderstood anarchistic sociopath to burn the city down, I think Tim Brewster is the more fitting man) But what I am getting at is the rule of the Tressel crime syndicate over the league has too often meant running roughshod over the Midwestern states, only to fall flat on its face when it faces any state below the Mason Dixon line. Florida, LSU, USC, Texas and USC again. It has been a mighty disappointing road to hoe for the buckeyes when faced with players who don't have easy access to sweet corn.

My point, ladies and gentlemen, is that having already lost, in an entirely new form of embarrassment, to USC. The Buckeyes must not be allowed to even share in another conference title this year.

The USC game as it has been very very well documented by Chris Brown of Smart Football, shows that Jim Tressel cannot be trusted with the advantages that he has been given at Ohio State, the Heisman Trophies, the easy recruiting, the gigantic stadium and loyal fan base, all of these things are wasted on a man who wants to sit on a 5 point league against USC and hope he can bleed the clock.. A man who can take the best college athlete to ever walk into his locker room and reduce him to playing football like Todd Boeckman. A man whose offensive strategy is conservative even by the standards of the stale as nails NFL. A man who is apparently more concerned with making Pryor a legit pro prospect than actually winning a football game.

Go ahead look at how Tressel's team performed against Toledo on Saturday. Look at all the offensive statistics you want. 38 points, a million yards for Pryor, blah blah etc. That is, no offense to Toledo, against a MAC team where OSU enjoyed an absurd talent and size advantage. We know what happens to Tressel when he meets a team with equal talent to his own. He loses his confidence, his guts and his creativity on offense in hopes that he can steal a win by relying on his defense and hoping the clock runs out before his opponent can start playing post 1991 football. Problem is, this is 2009, and Pete Carrol is not afraid to gamble, put the ball in the hands of a freshman and tell him to win the game. Woody and Bo are long gone, and so should be their brand of football.

Don't get me wrong, the Illini and the rest of the Big Ten have played their own role in this, by rolling over to the assumed winner year in year out. (Although we have beaten the Bucks a whole lot more often than others in recent years.) The rest of the league, for its own sake needs to keep Ohio State out of the BCS, at least for this one year, if only perhaps to shake the sweater vest out of his comfort zone. As long as the Buckeyes, and their archaic brand of football are allowed to run roughshod over the conference, they will be allowed to define the Big 10's national perception. This cannot be allowed to continue. So on Saturday, I hope for the Illini give the Buckeyes a 0-1 record in the Big Ten, for all of our sakes.

Pride And Dignity

Sam @ WWAHT — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 04:18:51 -0000

More photos » by Terry Gilliam - AP

3 months ago: Ohio State wide receiver Dane Sanzenbacher (12) runs for a 56-yard gain after a reception, between Southern California defenders Malcolm Smith (6) and Josh Pinkard (36) during the first quarter of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Sept. 12, 2009, in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Terry Gilliam)

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Alright, we didn't pull it out. We dominated the proceedings for about three quarters. We didn't quite choke, but we didn't win. I'm not pissed. I'm not calling for anyone's head. For the most part, Jim Tressel called an excellent ballgame. Congratulations to the Trojans. Outside of some early chippiness, they were all class.

Still, we're left with basically what we had entering the game: a prolonged losing streak to the best of the best. What's worse, it's not like USC played the game of their lives. Barkley was far from perfect, it took McKnight three quarters and ten minutes to wake up, and Damian Williams was mostly pulling a disappearing act in between the occasional jaw-dropping catch. But we had a whole freaking lot to do with all that.

The Good

- Let's start with the obvious: the defensive line. On every USC drive but the two most critical ones (the field goal before the half and the TD at the end), they were phenomenal. Lights out. That USC line is still a collection of five first rounders, and Thaddeus Gibson, Nathan Williams, Cameron Heyward, Dexter Larimore, even Rob Rose, all gave them everything they could handle. For an extended period of time, USC's makeshift strategy to slow them down was to just hold them. The Trojan running game never got untracked, and Barkley never got comfortable. Simply the best performance I've seen out of the front four since 2002, hands down.

- The secondary. Yes, there were big plays here and there, but Damian Williams never went ape like I thought he would. I think a lot of this had to do with the presence of Jermale Hines, and the non-presence, outside of some nickel packages, of Anderson Russell. Big ups to Chimdi Chekwa for locking down Williams most of the night.

- Brian Rolle. Brian freaking Rolle. Studmundus. Plays with speed simply unheard of the past few years at OSU at the LB position, and hits like a ton of bricks. He's already the next great Ohio State LB.

- Daniel Herron. USC's defensive front was swarming, but when there was a hole, Herron found it. No, his stats aren't eye-opening, but if you watched the game, you know he ran with vision and toughness, especially on 3rd down.

- Brandon Saine. While the FB looks seemed to go away after a while, when it was deployed, it worked beautifully. Saine just has excellent hands and will be a bona fide weapon at the end of the season.

- The playcalling. Let me explain myself: much of what Jim Tressel did broke all sorts of tendencies, and consistently kept the USC defense off balance. It was aggressive, it was varied, and in general, it was far from the vanilla stuff we're used to seeing. More on this later.

The Bad

- The execution. This isn't just coach-speak. This is also why the offense's numbers aren't the sexiest. Pryor was staring down receivers, Bryant Browning still cannot pull to save his life, and the downfield blocking was non-existent. This makes Herron's day all the more commendable, but makes Tressel's playcalling, which I thought was mostly great, look a whole lot worse than it actually was.

- One really, really bad defensive playcall - putting Ross Homan one-on-one with Joe McKnight. This single brainfart basically cost us the game. I hope Heacock isn't given too hard a time for it, because it was one missed note in what was otherwise a symphony of aggressive looks, blitzing and stunting.

- Towards the end of the game, I noticed OSU reverting to some softer looks on the outside, which made some of USC's shorter stuff work. The press had been excellent up to that point, but I imagine Heacock made this decision because he didn't want that fullback wheel burning us again.

- Settling for a field goal in the 2nd quarter. God almighty, our QB is 6'6", 240 pounds, and on the one-yard line we're taking a five step drop and handing it off to a 190-lb tailback? Cue my smarmy Denis Leary-from-the-Direct-TV-commercials incredulous face. I love Boom and all, but I'm never going to rely on him to pick THAT up against THAT defense.

The Downright Confusing

- Uh, Pryor? Dude, you got off to such a hot start. I mean, after that pick and everything, but... settle down, man. There were times when he wasn't even getting pressured and the Todd Boeckman Happy Feet came out. I give him a solid B-minus on the day - that 3rd down conversion on the ground was magnificent, as were his passes to Dane Sanzenbacher, DeVier Posey and Brand: Insaine. But he's just not a consistent quarterback right now. The arm-punts have mostly gone away, but he's still overthrowing 6'7" guys like Jake Ballard and tossing prayers off his back foot. He's just a sophomore, so I'm not even close to worried about his progress yet, but seeing such greatness trammeling itself with boneheaded mistakes is heartwrenching.

- The offensive line. Periods of surprising dominance interspersed with "here we go again" flopping and lollygagging. Overall, I think they did well too; it's USC, and that they didn't have 7 sacks at the end of the day is partially a testament to both Cordle and Miller for limiting the Trojans' bevy of pass rushers just enough to keep the offense intermittently functional. However, a lot of their success can also be attributed to Pryor's ability to scoot once he feels pressure. As surprisingly decent as the pass-blocking was, the run blocking was tough. They simply could not move the Trojans backward, and really, most teams can't, but tonight was especially brutal. The defense gave these guys all sorts of chances to score, and they just couldn't do it.

- This isn't an Ohio State thing, but where was the fullback wheel for USC? The way OSU was loading up against the run, it would have worked for at least a good 15 yards. Instead, Havili got one touch on the night that I can remember off the top of my head.

All in all, I'm proud of this team. They came out and fought. They didn't lie down and take it like many in the media wanted them to. For those of you out there currently in despair at what you'll hear from Cowherd, Mark May et al. this week: calm down. Turn the radio off. Turn the TV off. Read a few blogs where people usually know what they're talking about. Anyone who watched this game tonight will know that it was an epic battle between two talent-stacked teams. USC preserved their OOC win streak. Ohio State preserved something else, even if no one outside of Ohio is willing to admit it: its pride. Its dignity. It played with a passion and a fire I haven't seen from this team in years. It actually looked like it wanted to be on the field. Like it wanted to prove its detractors wrong. The knowledgeable detractors will probably look at this game and at least make some changes to their criticisms. The idiots... well, they'll always be there. Screw 'em.

I'm not "settling" for keeping it close. I'm frustrated and tired. I've got a headache that probably won't go away for a few days. But I simply won't deny that I'm glad we made them earn every single yard.

Our boys fought. Like fucking warrior poets. That's more than can be said for what we saw in Glendale, New Orleans, and Los Angeles. I am damn proud of my football team tonight.

Go Bucks.