SB Nation - Ross Homan

Ten Buckeyes submit NFL Draft paperwork

Mocking Dan — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 22:03:27 -0000

The Associated Press is reporting that 10 Ohio State juniors submitted paperwork to gauge where they might be selected in the 2010 NFL Draft.

Head coach Jim Tressel wouldn't say which players submitted paperwork, but he did say they were all starters.

That would include defensive ends Thaddeus Gibson and Cameron Heyward, linebackers Ross Homan and Brian Rolle, cornerbacks Chimdi Chekwa and Devon Torrence, tailback Brandon Saine, wide receiver Dane Sanzenbacher and offensive linemen Bryant Browning and Justin Boren.

"I've gotten a little bit of an early indication and shared it with the kids," Tressel told the AP. "We tried to do that before they went home for Thanksgiving. The NFL was good and got us some early things (so) that way the kids could get home and talk a little bit with their folks."

Clearly the two most intriguing players on Ohio State are Gibson and Heyward. Gibson, who has four sacks, projects as a 3-4 outside linebacker because of his agility and size. For those same reasons Heyward is considered one of the best 3-4 defensive end candidates in the nation.

Heyward leads Ohio State with 5.5 sacks this season and has been impressive against the run.

After the defensive linemen, Boren looks like he is the most ready for the NFL. A transfer from Michigan, Boren is a powerful and nasty interior lineman. He is Ohio State's best run blocker and would be one of the first three or four guards taken.

Saine had somewhat of a breakthrough season with 926 rushing yards, but should return to Ohio State. As it stands, he would likely be taken outside of the top 100 picks.

Sanzenbacher is an intriguing player. He has shown flashes of being a very good receiver this season with 27 receptions for 506 yards and six touchdowns. His hands are solid and he runs good routes. But he only topped 100 yards once in 2009 and had just four catches over the final three games of the year.

Still, Ohio State has a good history of putting out NFL talent at wide receiver. While Ted Ginn and Brian Robiskie haven't had the success some expected, Brian Hartline and Anthony Gonzalez have exceeded expectations.

The remaining players should return to Columbus for another season. They all look like they have pro potential but are raw – particularly the defensive backs.

Your 2009 defensive Bammy Award winner is...

Sam @ WWAHT — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 15:00:18 -0000

by Terry Gilliam - AP

3 months ago: Ohio State's Brian Rolle returns an interception during Navy's two-point conversion attempt during the fourth quarter of an NCAA football game Saturday, Sept. 5, 2009, in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Terry Gilliam)

View full size photo »

Yesterday, I handled the offense.

Today promises to be much more difficult. Replacing James Laurinaitis, Marcus Freeman and Malcolm Jenkins was never going to be an easy task, but you know what? This defense ended up being even better than the last one headlined by those guys. There actually wasn't that much hype coming into the year about this defense, with question marks across the board and many uneasy about the turnover, especially considering many of the new faces would be operating behind what had been - up to that point - a lackluster front four.

So, it figures that the front four would end up being the story of the season. It isn't a stretch to say it's the best front four in the country, but unfortunately, I only had the foresight to nominate one member of it for the 2009 Bammy. Let's start with the criteria again. The winner has to:

- be heavily hyped in the preseason

- actually deliver upon that hype, unlike Bam himself

With that done, here is the brief list of nominees, along with what I had to say about them in the preseason:

Brian Rolle

Two years ago, an opposing kick returner was flattened by an undersized freshman linebacker whose arms looked larger than his torso from a distance. Unfortunately, that hit technically never happened; there was a penalty on the play, and Ohio State had to re-kick. On the re-kick, that same freshman darted back downfield and again planted the returner, getting a big cheer from the Buckeye crowd. That freshman's name was Brian Rolle. When Tyler Moeller was crossed off this season's depth chart, all were disappointed but most knew that it was time for the Buckeyes to showcase their depth at linebacker. The first name on everyone's mind was that one guy who flattens people for a living. I was a little surprised that Rolle didn't win the spot this spring, but clearly, Moeller brings a bit of a different game to the table as a converted safety than Rolle. In fall camp, Rolle moved inside and Spitler moved outside. Now, the little guy - he's 5'11" on a good day - is going to get his chance to shine. He has said he doesn't want to be average, and this is his last and best chance to prove he's not. No one of this defense has developed a reputation as a hitter outside of Rolle, and I'm expecting him to bring a level of physicality to the linebacker position not seen here since AJ Hawk. Dude's also got an excellent dentist.

Official WWAHT Breakout Year Hype-O-Meter: 9 Bam Childresses out of 10

Doug Worthington

This one is a bit debatable - Worthington has been seeing significant time at various positions (mostly DT) for two years straight, and he has been... solid. Nothing spectacular, which is what most were expecting when he came to OSU as a five-star recruit. I've said in the past that he's playing out of position, but as DT, he does provide the occasional adequate pass rush. This year, he has to step it up in the wake of Nader Abdallah's graduation. While he'll never be the run stuffer Ohio State sorely needs, he can be an okay space-eater against the average teams on Ohio State's schedule. This year, he needs to come up big against either one of USC or Penn State. If he can be the feared guy on the Ohio State defensive interior in his last year, his career will be a rip-roaring success in my book.

Official WWAHT Breakout Year Hype-O-Meter: 7 Bam Childresses out of 10

Jermale Hines

This year, I was expecting more of the same from Jermale Hines at the nickleback position. That is, until recently. Word out of practice is that Hines is legitimately pushing three-and-a-half year starter Anderson Russell for playing time. Hines excels where Russell frequently doesn't - in coverage against spread teams - but Russell is without a doubt the more consistent performer up to this point. Hines is known for his bone-jarring hits than his coverage ability, but that's last year. This year, he's lining up at deep safety, rotating with Russell, which tells me the coaching staff is confident enough in his development as a coverage guy to make him the last line of defense against long bombs.

Official WWAHT Breakout Year Hype-O-Meter: 7 Bam Childresses out of 10

and honorable mentions Austin Spitler

The guy's had it rough. He spent three years (four if you count the redshirt season) toiling away behind James Laurinaitis, and in his senior year, he's going to have to transition to the outside to make up for the absence of Tyler Moeller. Add onto that the fact that up until now, his legacy is this:

If you don't remember this, you had turned off your TV at this point. That's Spitler giving LSU a new set of downs.

and you can see why the pressure is on Spitler. Fortunately, Spits doesn't have to worry as much as others about preseason hype, mostly because he has already contributed quality time spelling Laurinaitis and guiding the defense in mop-up duty. Expectations are sorta "meh" for him; for whatever reason, no one really expects him to dominate. I wrote in the Buckeye Battle Cry that this season will make or break his career, but the preseason hype about him simply isn't in the stratosphere like it is for the other guys; as a result, he just garners an honorable mention.

Official WWAHT Breakout Year Hype-O-Meter: 3 Bam Childresses out of 10

and Nathan Williams:

Williams came on late in the '08 season as a true freshman pass-rushing extraordinaire, notching two sacks against Northwestern and generally raising hell when he finally got the chance to hit the field. A December shoplifting arrest (which is why I call him Nathan "But A G Thang" Williams) failed to slow his progress, and good things have been emanating from both spring and fall camp. Williams steps into a loaded situation at defensive end - Gibson, Wilson, Heyward and Worthington all have legitimate shots at more playing time than the sophomore - and that's why I've relegated him to honorable mention status. If the situation at DE wasn't so crowded, I'd be a bit higher on Williams' chances of being the breakout player this fall. As I said Wednesday, however, I do think we'll see Nathan Williams in on 3rd-and-long, perhaps as part of a line that consists of him, Cameron Heyward, Lawrence Wilson, and Thaddeus Gibson; the four best pass rushers on the team. While that may only be a figment of my dreams, I think there's a better-than-average chance of it becoming reality.

Official WWAHT Breakout Year Hype-O-Meter: 4 Bam Childresses out of 10

And the winner is...

First off, I'd like to note that this was a far harder decision to make than the offensive Bammy. So many players stepped up this year to turn this from another good Buckeye defense into one of the true greats; a team which held Michigan, Penn State, Iowa and Southern Cal to an average of fewer than 15 points. There were players that I hadn't even nominated - Dex Larimore comes to mind, as well as Ross Homan, to a lesser extent - who weren't really considered because they didn't have all that much hype in tow, or at least as much as the aforementioned dudes. This was a tough, tough decision to make.

So why did the losers lose?

First up, Hines. Hines was a good player, and did an excellent job at filling the hole left by the clearly-confused Anderson Russell after the Navy game. Ohio State didn't give up many long passes this year after that - as per usual - and Hines was a big reason why. He had another contribution that I liked as well: when Michigan tried to utilize the rolling pocket Purdue killed the Buckeyes with, Hines was frequently sent on a blitz - right into the pocket - that disrupted Forcier's rhythm and forced at least one pick. He was solid in rush defense, but only intercepted two balls (one returned for a touchdown, however), but really wasn't quite the ballhawk - or the big hitter that I expected. He was undoubtedly a solid player, but I'm not sure if he lived up to the "next Ed Reed" hype he was getting among some circles in Buckeye nation in the preseason.
Williams was good in limited time, notching 3.5 sacks on the season, but never broke into the starting lineup. When you're backing up Cameron Heyward and Thaddeus Gibson, that's completely understandable. Still, his resume - even in limited time - is not the greatest for this particular award.
Spitler was actually better than I expected him to be, especially after a subpar debut against Navy; after that, he looked quick, decisive, and smart. Everything a 5th-year linebacker should be. But he too was never really a superstar - although, to be fair, he wasn't really hyped up to be one in the first place, and I find myself asking my August self "Why, why did you include him on this list?" He has yet to return my calls.
Here's the hard part. Doug Worthington had the best year of his career, notching two sacks, 4 TFLs, and 40 tackles; impressive numbers for a defensive tackle in a defensive end's body. He had the game-clinching sack against Iowa in OT to bolster a resume that's already as solid as almost every other nominee. As much I love D-Worth and what he has done for this defense, I gotta give the Bammy to...

Linebacker Brian Rolle. No big surprise here. After saving the day against Navy, Rolle went on the warpath, racking up 91 tackles, 7 for loss, a key pick against Illinois, a half-sack, and quickly became one of the vocal leaders of this defense. In the preseason, he was one of the most hyped players (with hype that had been building for years, no less) on the team and he still may have ended up sitting on the bench behind Tyler Moeller. In Moeller's absence, he picked up the slack and made us wonder where Moeller will fit in on next year's offense (answer: opposite Homan, more than likely, which might give Ohio State one of the best linebacking corps in the country yet again).

In the end, we all got BrianRolle'd, (HT: 11W) and we enjoyed it. It was very hard to whittle it down to one guy, but no one else delivered quite so well upon high expectations. Congrats, B-Rolle, and may your lack of ideal height prevent you from declaring early.

The Rose Bowl Game - An Early Look

Law Buckeye — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 17:47:39 -0000

Although the majority of selections won't be made until Sunday, it's officially bowl season on The Rivalry, Esq.

Let's inaugurate the fair-weather festivities with an introductory look at The Granddaddy of 'Em All, the 96th Rose Bowl Game. Having saved its best quarter of play for last, the Oregon Ducks captured the Pac 10 Conference Championship in the cold confines of Autzen Stadium last night, 37-33 over Oregon State. That means Eugene can finally take its seat at the table with Ohio State, who's been waiting patiently for almost three weeks to learn the name of its adversary.

Strength against Strength? Oregon's Offense versus Ohio State' Defense

I stayed late at a local Grandview pub to watch the game, and after three Bells winter white ales, my buddy turned to me and declared: "I like this matchup. It pits strength against strength." He's referring, of course, to Oregon's spectacular run-spread attack against Ohio State's rock solid 3-4 defense. I agreed, with slight reservation. The Buckeye's struggles against the spread offense are well documented. Oregon State, which boasted the best rushing defense in the Pac 10 coming into the Civil War, gave up 288 yards on the ground to the Ducks. (They gave up less to Stanford, and its almost-certain-to-be-a-Heisman-finalist tailback Toby Gerhart).

Make sure to go back and submit your picks for Week 14 of the Obligatory Predictions Contest. Weekly winners get a chance to write 500 words on the site.

The fact that Ohio State's defense, a unit that's adept at swallowing Big Ten power rushers, will be forced to de-stack the box, and dispatch into space to track a multifaceted (misdirectional) option attack should be cause for concern in Columbus. Last night, Oregon employed motion Pistol, two-back, and spread sweep sets, along with the bread-and-butter zone read to perfection against the Beavers.

But before you panic, remember, success begins and ends at the line of scrimmage. To compensate for the strength and depth of Ohio State's defensive line, Oregon will have to count numbers in the box, and hope for favorable blocking angles. When they get them, they can move on anyone like a hot knife through butter (see versus USC). When they can't, their attack is as flat as Kansas (see versus Boise State). If Ohio State's DT's can jam the middle and blow Oregon off the line early, they'll be sitting ducks.

But what about Oregon's lateral speed? Let me say this. While the Ducks appear to be sprightly at the receiver, and tailback positions, Quarterback Jeremiah Masoli isn't nearly the speedster that say, Terrelle Pryor is. Perhaps ironically, (like Oregon State did last night) Ohio State will try to force Masoli outside to limit the damage his powerful size can do north to south, while Oregon will try to force Terrelle Pryor inside to prevent him from skating to 12 yards a carry.

Thanks to the sideline-to-sideline speed injection we've received from Linebacker Brian Rolle, Ohio State is more than capable of keying Masoli and running him down on the edge. I'm more worried about bottling things up between the tackles.

How Bend But Not Break Comes into Play

Anyone who fears the return of Slow-Hi-O against the spread should remember the job Jim Heacock did against the Texas Longhorns in last year's Fiesta Bowl. A Longhorn team that was averaging some 43.9 points a game coming into Glendale was held to just 3 in the first half, and 24 overall. But the final total disguises the fact the Colt McCoy walked away from the game with his usual prodigious stats (41 of 59 for 414 yards).

Magic? Nope. Bend and not break.

Expect to see Oregon rack up a pile of yards on quick outs, and quick slants early on in drives as they march unimpeded down the field. But the closer they get to the goal, the tighter our corners cover, and a pass that Masoli could comfortably place three downs before, is suddenly jumped for a Pick 6. Ohio State has three players (Kurt Coleman, Ross Homan, and Anderson Russel) that rank in the Top 10 in conference for interceptions. Expect them to single-handedly mitigate big Oregon drives.

Thus, the early keys to the game:

Oregon Offense

Stunt to achieve favorable blocking angles.
Don't worry about going down the field early, keep the passing game short
Finish what you start.

Ohio State Defense

Win at the line.
Flush Masoil outside.
Bend, but don't break.

Poll

Who Wins the 2009 Rose Bowl Game?

Ohio State

248 votes

Oregon

648 votes

896 votes | Poll has closed

All-Big Ten Awards Announced, Swept Once Again By Toto

Oops Pow Surprise — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 13:00:45 -0000

by Charlie Neibergall - AP

about 1 month ago: Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz looks on during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Northwestern, Saturday, Nov. 7, 2009, in Iowa City, Iowa. Northwestern won 17-10. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)

View full size photo »

Good news, everyone!* The Big Ten announced its picks for the all-conference teams. Naturally, the offensive and defensive player of the year are both Terrelle Pryor. Okay, not true; he's not even honorable mention.

But there's plenty of actual good news. First, the devil media named Kirk Ferentz coach of the year, and here he is reminding them that they can go suck it and he hasn't forgiven them for the slights of the regular season.

Such language, Kirk!

As for the players, here's the link to the voting results. The media named Bryan Bulaga to the first team on offense, while the second team featured four of his friends from the line: Rafael Eubanks, Dace Richardson, Kyle Calloway, and Tony Moeaki.

On defense, the first team had a little more Iowa representation; Adrian Clayborn, Pat Angerer, and Tyler Sash all received their no-brainer merits. On the second team, Brett Greenwood and Amari Spievey. Iowa put eight players on the media's honorable mention team: Ryan Donahue, Broderick Binns, A.J. Edds, Derrell Johnson-Koulianos, Karl Klug, Daniel Murray, Adam Robinson, and Ricky Stanzi.

Not surprisingly, the coaches had a slightly higher opinion of the Hawkeyes; here's the link to their voting results. Bryan Bulaga was named their offensive lineman of the year(!!!), an award the media doesn't give out. Bulaga is joined on the first team by Moeaki and Richardson, both of which are worthy selections. Calloway and Eubanks didn't make the second team--not sure why on Calloway--but Derrell Johnson-Koulianos snuck in on a three-player tie for second-team WR.

On defense, the coaches agreed with the media in putting Sash, Clayborn, and Angerer on the first team roster. They also added Amari Spievey; as coaches, they're more likely to know that the reason Spievey didn't have a ton of picks wasn't that he's not good at football, but that there's just no hope in throwing at him; Spievey was a machine this season, and we're starting to lose hope that he's got more than one game left in an Iowa uniform. A.J. Edds is the lone Hawkeye on the defensive second team.

For honorable mention, it's as follows:Christian Ballard, Kyle Calloway, Ryan Donahue, Brent Greenwood, Karl Klug, and Adam Robinson.

Full All-BXI teams and a few thoughts are after the break.

MEDIA

POS.	FIRST TEAM	SECOND TEAM
QB	Daryll Clark, Penn State	Mike Kafka, Northwestern
RB	Evan Royster, Penn State	Brandon Saine, Ohio State
RB	JOHN CLAY, Wisconsin	Ralph Bolden, Purdue
WR	Tandon Doss, Indiana	Blair White, Michigan State
WR	Keith Smith, Purdue	Zeke Markshausen, Northwestern
C	Stefen Wisniewski, Penn State	Rafael Eubanks, Iowa
G	Justin Boren, Ohio State	Jon Asamoah, Illinois
G	John Moffitt, Wisconsin	Dace Richardson, Iowa
T	Bryan Bulaga, Iowa	Kyle Calloway, Iowa
T	Gabe Carimi, Wisconsin	Dennis Landolt, Penn State
TE	Garrett Graham, Wisconsin	Tony Moeaki, Iowa
PK	Brett Swenson, Michigan State	Stefan Demos, Northwestern

POS.	FIRST TEAM	SECOND TEAM
DL	Adrian Clayborn, Iowa	Jammie Kirlew, Indiana
DL	Brandon Graham, Michigan	Thaddeus Gibson, Ohio State
DL	Ryan Kerrigan, Purdue	Cameron Heyward, Ohio State
DL	O'Brien Schofield, Wisconsin	Jared Odrick, Penn State
LB	Pat Angerer, Iowa	Ross Homan, Ohio State
LB	GREG JONES, Michigan State	Josh Hull, Penn State
LB	Navorro Bowman, Penn State	Sean Lee, Penn State
DB	Tyler Sash, Iowa	Brent Greenwood, Iowa
DB	Donovan Warren, Michigan	Amari Spievey, Iowa
DB	Sherrick McManis, Northwestern	Brad Phillips, Northwestern
DB	Kurt Coleman, Ohio State	David Pender, Purdue
P	Zoltan Mesko, Michigan	Jeremy Boone, Penn State

COACHES

POS.	FIRST TEAM	SECOND TEAM
QB	Daryll Clark, Penn State	Mike Kafka, Northwestern
RB	Evan Royster, Penn State	Brandon Saine, Ohio State
RB	John Clay, Wisconsin	Ralph Bolden, Purdue
WR	Eric Decker, Minnesota	Tandon Doss, Indiana*
WR	Blair White, Michigan State	Derrell Johnson-Koulianos, Iowa* Keith Smith, Purdue*
C	Stefen Wisniewski, Penn State	Rafael Eubanks, Iowa* Joel Nitchman, Michigan State*
G	Dace Richardson, Iowa	Jon Asamoah, Illinois
G	John Moffitt, Wisconsin	Justin Boren, Ohio State
T	Bryan Bulaga, Iowa	Rodger Saffold, Indiana
T	Dennis Landolt, Penn State	Gabe Carimi, Wisconsin
TE	Tony Moeaki, Iowa	Garrett Graham, Wisconsin
PK	Brett Swenson, Michigan	Stefan Demos, Northwestern

POS.	FIRST TEAM	SECOND TEAM
DL	Adrian Clayborn, Iowa	Jammie Kirlew, Indiana
DL	Brandon Graham, Michigan	Thaddeus Gibson, Ohio State
DL	Jared Odrick, Penn State	Cameron Heyward, Ohio State
DL	O'Brien Schofield, Wisconsin	Ryan Kerrigan, Purdue
LB	Pat Angerer, Iowa Linebacker	A.J. Edds, Iowa
LB	Greg Jones, Michigan State	Ross Homan, Ohio State
LB	Navorro Bowman, Penn State	Sean Lee, Penn State
DB	Tyler Sash, Iowa	Donovan Warren, Michigan*
DB	Amari Spievey, Iowa	Sherrick McManis, Northwestern*
DB	Brad Phillips, Northwestern	Brandon King, Purdue*
DB	Kurt Coleman, Ohio State	David Pender, Purdue* Jay Valai, Wisconsin*
P	Zoltan Mesko, Michigan	Jeremy Boone, Penn State

Okay. While we're quite happy that Bulaga got such high accolades for the season, we can't be alone in thinking that he was hardly the best lineman in Iowa City, much less the Big Ten. He was either on the sidelines or out of sorts for the majority of the season, and we still haven't seen the elephant-tusk-covered road grader from last season on display. He totally would have deserved a preseason OL of the year, but his performance over 2009 didn't merit such superlatives.

This is hardly a new development from these postseason lists, however; generally, the lists are crafted off of the preseason lists, and anybody whose knee blew out with more than four games left was excised and replaced by someone else. After all, Bulaga was only a second-team All-BXI player last season, even though he was by far the best lineman on the team in 2008. Seth Olsen, meanwhile, had the good fortune to be a first-teamer to start the year, so he was on the first team after 2008, despite a relatively blah senior campaign; we'd have put him about fourth on the list of Iowa linemen for 2009, behind the two bookends at tackle and Rob Bruggeman at center.

Essentially, Bulaga won the award in 2009 for his play in 2008.

At the end of the day, this comes down to stats; there aren't any for linemen, despite the ill-fated attempt to get the "pancake" introduced about a decade ago (for this, we blame Orlando Pace). It's assumed that linemen are sure things, and that as long as they stay healthy, the narrative has stayed true. After all, without stats, most scribes have no time (or no idea) how to watch linemen individually.

Frankly, though it's a subjective stat, we'd love to see how linemen grade out per play (remember that Blake Larsen famously graded at 100% during his senior season at Atlantic; lord, had those knees survived...) Without having the means to undertake such an activity ourselves, we'd imagine that if you graded each Iowa offensive lineman, Kyle Calloway or Dace Richardson would probably be at the top.

If they're not, which is possible, then it would probably be the guy who didn't even get an honorable mention: Riley Reiff. He was stout in relief of Bulaga--hell, we're pretty sure O'Brien Schofield would not have batted Reiff around like a catnip mouse, unlike some Iowa linemen--and he basically forced his way into the starting lineup even before Big Dace went down. But since he wasn't even a projected starter, to say nothing of a preseason honoree, Reiff didn't have much of a chance for postseason mention. Shame, really; dude is legit, and he hasn't even filled out his frame yet.

As for the skill players, it's a little disappointing that Stanzi only made one honorable mention team. But we get how that can happen. Spievey only making second team in the media is flatly ridiculous. If he'd put together that same season in an Ohio State uniform, he'd be getting All-American talk.

Other than that, we don't have a ton of beef; Stanzi killed himself by leading the conference in interceptions when he went down to injury, and the rest of the offensive skill players were far too inconsistent or hurt to merit much consideration. Jeremiha Hunter not getting any honorable mention love is a little disconcerting, but the BXI was lo-ho-hoaded at linebacker this season; we're not quite sure whom we'd place him above. He'll get some love in 2010 if he stays healthy. Also--given the play of Jeff Tarpinian in relief--if Hunter stays healthy between now and next September, there's no position battle at weakside backer next season, right?

So, all in all, a fair list, even if the voting on offensive linemen is basically a year behind schedule. It's a year behind for everyone else, after all. Anybody else that you folks think got shafted? Did Marvin McNutt deserve a nod, or is he still a year away from recognition?

*/Farnsworth'd

Our golden boy is less turnover-prone than your golden boy!

Sam @ WWAHT — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 21:12:58 -0000

More photos » by TONY DING - AP

But coach! My vagina's bruised!

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Uh. That's all I got. Well, that and SIX STRAIGHT, BITCHES.

Nah, It wasn't pretty. I guess I didn't expect it to be. Nevertheless, can't shake this feeling that, if Tate Forcier hadn't thrown something like three red zone picks, Michigan wins this game. They were a five-win football team for a reason; their defense was a sieve, and the offense was productive but rather inconsistent. Michigan moving the ball on us like they did today does not bode well for a more potent spread attack like, say, Oregon. I expected Michigan to play Ohio State close, but I didn't expect a complete lack of wrinkles from the Buckeyes either.

But enough negativity; there were positives, mostly relating to our newly-dominant rushing attack.

The Good

- This running game death-star is fully operational. Brandon Saine and Daniel Herron have become the backs we were expecting from the get-go, and they're sometimes good enough to make up for the offensive line's deficiences; see: Saine's run in which the blockers got pwned, Brandon broke tackles and earned the first down by his own damn self. That's the toughness this attack has missed without Beanie Wells.

- Against Michigan's spread, I thought the front four did an okay job. Not excellent, but good enough to force Forcier into timely mistakes, and Gibson had a very good day after a quiet one against Iowa last week.

- Ross Homan has been nothing short of excellent for weeks now, and I hope he starts getting some more recognition. Tracking down Forcier in the open field was spectacular, and he rarely got caught out of position against that shifty little bastard Vincent Smith.

- The playcalling on the two scoring drives was terrific, and the execution finally synced up as well. Read-option and misdirection should be a central component from here on out; it works.

The Bad

- This secondary is just... very average. Yes, four picks and all that, but when this defensive line isn't dominating every other down, this secondary will give up plays. Devon Torrence and Chimdi Chekwa are not particularly reliable, and I think Hines is a bit more of a liability than I've realized. Michigan is far from the best passing attack Ohio State has played (9th in the conference, in fact), and neither is Iowa. It's not quite a trend yet, considering Ohio State completely shut down Penn State's aerial attack (5th in the conference), but it is a rather worrisome late-season development.

- As great as the rushing attack looked, our interior has trouble blocking for our bread-and-butter off-tackle plays, and that has to be freaking Jim Tressel out. Especially if he doesn't plan on expanding the read-option/misdirection section of the playbook.

- Outside of those two scoring drives, the playcalling was awful. Run-run-pass doesn't begin to describe it. Some of it was, as alluded to above, on execution. But it seems to me that if something isn't working, for whatever reason, you try something else. For an agonizing quarter-and-a-half, Ohio State stuck with its gameplan, despite the fact that it clearly wasn't working. Remember that McDonough story about Jim Tressel calling a play until his opponent stops it? Wasn't the case today. Those "Michigan-only wrinkles" were non-existent.

The Downright Confusing

- Nothing truly unexpected today, unless I want to go back to the playcalling and I will: early on, the only thing working was the passing attack. Ohio State repeated got big chunks of yardage through the air, and Michigan did not make any major changes in its coverage schemes (that I could see, anyway) during the first few drives, so why did we go away from it?

- The early dropped picks were agonizing. Glad we started catching them.

I'm not sure how good I should feel about this game. It's ~~great~~ absolutely fucking spectacular that the streak continues, but Michigan reminded us quite well that this team still has some noticeable issues. Personally, I think this was our last chance to drop a nasty beatdown on Michigan before RichRod finally gets in a groove, and we didn't. Michigan's offense is vastly improved over the latter (non-2006) Carr days, let alone RichRod's first year. He has one half of the team fully functional, and that half of the team is really quite young (Forcier, Smith, Roy Roundtree are all underclassmen). On defense, it's a completely different story, and I understand Michigan fans' wariness about this aspect of their team. I doubt Greg Robinson will ever make them a dominant outfit, but if the offense is scoring 30 points a game and not turning the ball over, they won't have to be. If they fire RichRod for this loss.... they're far more incompetent up north than we give them credit for.

Still, I find Michigan's offensive success disturbing. While they're very good, they are a shadow of the attacks Ohio State could potentially face in Pasadena. The Buckeyes did an excellent job of limiting the Michigan ground game, but this secondary is definitely vulnerable. For all the progress Pryor subtly made these past few weeks, he missed wide open guys today, a couple times for sure-fire touchdowns that came in rare instances where Jim Tressel was truly trying to score. We won't beat Oregon, Stanford or Arizona with 80 yards passing; this much I know.

But hey. Six straight, bitches, and The Game is in Columbus next year. Even if Michigan is better, Ohio State will return most of the defense, including a veteran secondary, and most major contributors on offense. As iffy as today's win was, I'm not sure JT's dominance of the Wolverines will let up any time soon.

Now, it's Rose Bowl time. Let's find a passing game in the interim.

Monumental upset brewing?

BoilerTMill — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 16:58:44 -0000

My apologies for the lack of updates on football this week. There are a number of reasons for this. First, most of us aren't really existed about being the latest speedbump on Ohio State's road to the Big Ten championship. Second, I actually started a real life, full-time job this week and I have been dealing with that start up. In an effort to become the king of all internet media in the state of Indiana, I am now managing the Indiana page for CoachesAid.com. It is basically a comprehensive Indiana High School Sports site that I will be running out of my home. It is still in its infancy, but I figured that if I can grow this place I can grow that one while managing an actual staff of writers.

Of course, I am not going to let it compromise my work here. It will basically just pay all the bills for the fun that goes on here at Hammer & Rails. That being said, we could have a fun afternoon on Saturday. For some strange reason we always play Ohio State very well. The recent history in the series has included a number of close games in which we really had no business playing them that closely. It has been five years since we beat the Buckeyes, but with a modicum of offense and a turnover-free afternoon we might be able to spring a major upset.

2009 Record: 5-1, 3-0 Big Ten

2008 Record: 10-3, 7-1 Big Ten

Bowl result: Lost to Texas 24-21 in Fiesta Bowl

Blog Representation: We Will Always Have Tempe, Buckeye Battle Cry, Eleven Warriors, Men of Scarlet & Gray, Buckeye Blog

Series with Purdue: Ohio State leads 37-12-2

Last Purdue win: 11/13/2004 at Purdue 24-17

Last Ohio State win: 10/11/08 at Ohio State 16-3

Of the other 10 Big Ten teams, we only have an equal or longer losing streak against Penn State. Of course, we currently only have a winning streak against Michigan, Illinois, and Indiana, so that doesn't mean much. This year's Ohio State team is much like their past few teams. They have won the games they should win, but lost a close game in their biggest matchup to date.

As a Purdue blog, I am required to include this video in any discussion of Ohio State.

Ohio State offense:

The Buckeye offense has not been overly prolific, but it doesn't need to be when the defense is playing at a high level. A prime example is last year's game in Columbus. The offense was awful, but the defense limited Purdue to a 53 yard field goal and even got a special teams touchdown on a blocked punt. We might expect more of the same, as running back Dan Herron (246 yards, 5 TD's) has already been ruled out for the Purdue game. The offense as a whole is averaging almost 30 points per game, which is more than enough for their defense.

There are complaints that quarterback Terrelle Pryor has been relatively ineffective, and that the defense giving him the ball in good position is the only reason Ohio State is scoring. In truth, isn't that the opposite of what Purdue is doing? We are giving opponents the ball in a great position to score, while our offense often must drive the length of the field. Pryor is 72 of 128 on the season with nine touchdowns and six interceptions. He has only thrown for 948 yards. His percentage of 56% is not great, but he is still a major running threat. He is second on the team in rushing with 333 yards and three touchdowns.

In place of Herron, who has been starting lately, is Brandon Saine. Saine has 349 yards rushing on the season but no scores. We will also likely see some of Jordan Hall (103-0). Once again, our run defense will be tested by a rushing attack that gains nearly 172 yards per game from multiple ballcarriers. I stress again though, our run defense has been good of late. It has just been put in bad positions. Last week Minnesota racked up yards as it killed the clock after our mistakes. We have shown we can stop Ohio State last year, and we absolutely must have the same defensive effort again.

The Ohio State passing game is not a huge threat, but there are plenty of playmakers in this unit. DeVier Posey (21-268-3) leads the team in receptions, while Dane Sanzenbacher (16-326-4) is a big play threat. I wouldn't be surprised if we saw more of Ray Small (5-77-0). One of his best career games came in a six catch, 70 yard effort with a touchdown against Purdue two years ago.

Ohio State's offensive line is big and very good, as you can expect from them. They have allowed just eight sacks through six games, and that is with Pryor being an elusive quarterback. All five starters will return next season, as guards Bryant Browning and Justin Boren are juniors, while J.B. Shugarts, Mike Adams, and Michael Brewster are sophomores. If we can generate a push against this line like we did last year we might stand a chance.

Ohio State defense:

I am not really afraid of moving the ball against one of the best defenses in the country. I am more afraid of giving it up. The yards we have gained show we can move the ball, but we haven't scored more than 21 points in our last four games because of turnovers. We lead the nation in turnovers right now with 20. Ohio State's defense has produced 14 turnovers. That is not a good sign.

Senior safety Kurt Coleman is a bit of a do everything guy for them. He is second on the team in tackles with 43, has two interceptions (one returned for a score) and has forced three fumbles. Fellow safety Jermale Hines also has a pick six and 30 tackles with a sack. These may be two of the best safeties in the league, but with the Ohio State defense you get a lot of best ______ in the league at that position.

The Buckeye pass rush will be furious, so our offensive line must give Elliott time to throw and open some holes. Ohio State has 18 sacks on the season, with 12 different players being involved in a sack. They have also generated 37 tackles for loss, or more than six per game.

Junior defensive end Thaddeus Gibson is, quite simply, a beast. He is speedy at 6'2" 240 pounds and has 6.5 tackles for loss. Cameron Heyward, leads the team in sacks with three and is the bigger defensive end at 6'6" 287. Todd Denlinger and Doug Worthington are good sized defensive tackles that can close the middle all by themselves.

Should we find room to run, linebacker Brian Rolle will likely be there. Rolle leads the team in tackles with 51 and has an interception. Austin Spitler and Ross Homan are also your typical Buckeye linebackers in that they play all over the field. They are good against both the run and the pass, meaning our short passing game will likely struggle.

Ohio State Special Teams:

While our special teams units have been a collection of mistakes in nearly every game, Ohio State's has been very sound. Ray Small is an excellent kickoff returner that has already returned one for a touchdown. He has just two returns, but for 142 yards and a score. Since that is about the only thing we haven't given up on special teams yet, you can expect that to happen Saturday. For good measure Small also returns punts, but only averages four yards per return. Both coverage units are very good as well.

Ohio State uses a two punter system. Jon Thoma only averages 39 yards per kick, but has dropped nine of 20 attempts inside the 20. Ben Buchanan has a bigger leg, averaging 43 yards on four kicks.

Austin Pettrey is a solid kicker for the Buckeyes, hitting 11 of 14 field goals with a long of 52. The senior is more than good enough to give Ohio State points anytime they get across the 35. There is a gigantic advantage for the Buckeyes in all aspects of special teams.

Intangibles:

What else can we say at this point? Ohio State is steaming along, destroying everything in its path before a three game finish of Iowa, Penn State, and Michigan. We are inventing ways to lose games. We could and probably even should be 6-0 right now. We also haven't beaten a ranked team in six years, while Ohio State is in the top 10. Officially, this is our first crack at a ranked opponent this season. It may be our only one as well. A win in this game would erase a lot of bad from earlier in the year, but that is a very tall order.

Still, I can't explain why we continue to play close games against Ohio State. The last two could have been wins if they had not completely shut down our offense. For us to win we have to break through and at least score the first meaningful touchdown in the series since 2004. We also have to get past our mental block and stop turning the ball over. Unfortunately, I won't believe it until I see it at this point in regards to turnovers.

Keys to the Game for Purdue:

Don't turn the ball over
Do not abandon the running game
Be patient on defense and contain the running game
On punts, run off the field as soon as it is kicked. On kickoffs, take a knee immediately whenever an opposing player is close. It has gotten that ridiculous.

What the Hell is Wrong with Terrelle Pryor?

Law Buckeye — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 04:39:13 -0000

More photos » by Tony Dejak - AP

2 months ago: Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor (2) tries to hold back Wisconsin defensive tackle O'Brien Schofield (50) during the fourth quarter of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Oct. 10, 2009, in Columbus, Ohio. Ohio State won 31-13. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)

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The numbers do lie. That's the case if you're talking about Ohio State's 31-13 win over Wisconsin. I'm feeling two very uniquely common things in its wake. The first is that the Buckeye defense -- a unit I saw pre-season as a brick and mortar line covered by a thin beard of young ivy -- may well be one of the best in the country.

The boys were kept on the field for 42 minutes -- or 70 percent of the game, yet they hounded, hustled, and hollowed-out an empty Wisconsin threat. Four of Wisky's 13 offensive possessions ended in punts. Two ended in missed field goals. Another two ended in touchdowns -- for the Buckeyes.

Despite being treated to little to no rest, our boys continued to perform. Perhaps most impressive was a late game stand that saw Wisky with the ball and a fresh set of downs on Ohio State's 8 yard line. The following four plays ensued:

Sack by Nathan Williams for a loss of 9 yards to the Ohio State 17.
Completed pass to Kyle Jefferson for 8 yards to the Ohio State 9.
Sack by Ross Homan for a loss of 9 yards, fumbled at the Ohio State 18.
Incomplete pass.

Ohio State's defense left positively nothing on the field. After stifling USC, shutting out Toledo and Illinois, and manhandling Indiana, we've come to expect nothing less. But we've got a problem in Columbus and it's not the offensive line, the running backs, the wide-outs, or the kicking team.

Take away the defense and special teams and the Badgers win 13-10. Hilary swears..

It's Terrelle Pryor -- the pre-season Big Ten offensive player of the year. Sure, Pryor can be an unbridled thoroughbred of size, speed, and potential. But he can also be a cardboard cutout of a quarterback. Where once there was decisive interchange and escapeability, we now are looking at a wooden replica of a signal caller.

Could Terrelle Pryor actually be devolving? I'm not ready to play the Juice Williams card just yet, but it appears that Pryor's natural instinct has been channeled into an awkward mess of mechanics, multiple reads, and cold downs by a coaching staff hell bent on turning him into a proficient passer. Instead of tight-rope throws, we're treated to lame bounce-passes. In the process evasion has been replaced by hesitation.

But is it really the coaches' fault? Let's look at a comparsion of how Pryor was forced to begin drives this year against Wisconsin versus last year:

2008: Pryor rush for 11 yards for a first down, Pryor rush for 9 yards, Wells rush for 6 yards, Wells rush for 2 yards, Wells rush for 4 yards, Pryor incomplete pass, Wells rush for 54 yards, Wells rush for 5 yards, Wells rush for 15 yards, Pryor complete pass for 5 yards, Pryor incompete pass.

2009: Pryor incomplete pass, Saine rush for 4 yards, Pryor incompete pass, Herron rush for 4 yards, Pryor incompete pass, Pryor rush for 27 yards for a first down, Saine rush for no gain, Pryor pass complete for 17 yards for a first down, Saine rush for no gain, Saine rush for 2 yards.

Last year, Pryor ran on a quarter of opening run downs for an average of 10 yards a carry. He completed just one third of his opening passes. This year, Pryor ran on just one sixth of opening run downs for an average of 27 yards a carry. He completed just a quarter of his opening passes. Still, despite delivering the greatest gain on a drive opener using his legs, Pryor was forced to pass three times as often as he was permitted to run. Not cool.

The problem is the trend doesn't hold up on a larger scale. Last year Pryor kept the ball on the ground 8 times, to 16 pass attempts. This year, he ran the ball the same amount of times, to 15 pass attempts. So while the playcallers seem less willing to let Pryor run out of the gate on drives, they're giving him a similar degree of latitude overall.

So what's got the kid spooked? I say it's the formalism. Bogged down in multiple reads, and welded to open looks, Pryor has become a proverbial deer in the headlights. Where there once was rhythm, there now is regret.

To fix the Ohio State offense, Jim Tressel and Darrell Hazell need to find a way to let the freak out of the box. Whether it's running out of the shotgun, or fine tuning the option it has to be done before November or the Buckeyes will become a victim of their own medicine.

"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

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.

Post-scrimmage ramblings

Sam @ WWAHT — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 16:00:16 -0000

More photos » by Terry Gilliam - AP

Brandon Saine will need to step up in a big way for the Buckeye offense to thrive in 2009

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News of the Ohio State offense's continued struggles in the preseason intrasquad jersey scrimmage has created both a little bit of excitement at the defense's prospects and apprehension over the offense's. As has been the case since for a few years running, the defense showed up and played marvelously. In 2007, this heralded the arrival of a dominant, number-one ranked overall squad that held conference opponents to an average of slightly less than 13 points per game. In 2008, the offense couldn't reclaim the Scarlet jerseys, and as we saw throughout the season, it was at least partially of its own doing, rather than the defense's dominance. In 2009, the defense managed to retain its jersey, despite a surge from the offense later in the game. What does this scrimmage mean for this year?

Well, luckily, a few key players didn't see any action: Austin Spitler and Justin Boren both sat out the game with injuries, and so did Lamaar Thomas, Lawrence Wilson, and Jake Stoneburner. To say the squad was at full health would be lying. But you already knew that. Bullet time!

Much is being made of the struggles with the running attack outside of Herron, but reports from the scrimmage seem to agree that the line has improved its run-blocking over what we saw in the Fiesta Bowl. This is actually a pretty big development: in the first half of the Fiesta Bowl, the line did quite well for itself against a very talented Texas front seven that would end up third-best against the run nationally. In the second half though, Texas adjusted, and largely limited the Buckeye rushing attack outside of Herron's late TD run that put the Buckeyes ahead. (*sniff*) It's important to note that this all went down without the best blocker on the line. A healthy Justin Boren could make this one of the more devastating rushing attacks in the country.
While the blocking improved, the stats may not necessarily show it: While Herron was running free with 10 carries for 53 yards, Saine and Berry combined for 9 carries and 25 yards. Berry had all sorts of problems, conjuring up premature worries of another four years of Maurice Wells' dance-and-drop routine. Remember what I've said about him in the past: he will struggle mightily if forced to play a Beanie Wells/Maurice Clarett-type of game. If the staff uses him in ways similar to the way it handled the undersized Antonio Pittman, he will flourish. If not, expect to see more stat lines like that this year.
Ken Gordon noted that three different guys got beaten on the six sacks, ("without the benefit of replay", however) and two of them were back-ups. One, unfortunately, was senior OT Jim Cordle.
Jordan Hall, another smaller back, impressed, and he's a bit more in the Pittman mold than Berry as a runner. I'm not sure he'll contribute much this year, but it's definitely a good sign for the running game post Herron/Saine.
Pryor and Posey have developed a bit of chemistry, which is very good news, as Pryor seemed to lack it to at least some extent with his receivers last year. That it's Posey is even better, because he's got the most potential out of this entire crop of WRs
That Ohio State gave up one of its touchdown to Rocco Pentello running the Navy offense would be worrisome if it didn't seem like so much of a fluke. Not to make excuses, but Pentello is a pretty stellar athlete: he received an offer from Cincinnati and heavy interest from Michigan State and West Virginia before getting the Buckeye offer. He's a legit FBS defensive back running a pretty tricksy offense, and he has experience at QB. It's not a good thing he scored on a 33-yard run, but it's also not all that surprising.
Pryor's no-contact jersey was sort of a big deal; he was essentially forced to remain in the pocket, and that just isn't his game right now, no matter how much he may think otherwise. Without it, we probably wouldn't have seen quite so many sacks.
The underwhelming passing totals are a good sign that the downfield passing game simply isn't there yet. Passes into the flats were a surprisingly common sight, but they weren't netting much in the way of yardage. Good news: Pryor has begun hitting the slant consistently, even in the face of pressure. He isn't hitting anyone 30 yards downfield, but right now, it's the small things, and I'll take it.
Something that few people are talking about in the wake of the apparent offensive anemia is the very real possibility that the defense may just end up being an even better unit than it was last year. They were without Austin Spitler and Lawrence Wilson - one starter and one probable major contributor - and they clearly dominated most of the game. Brian Rolle looked great, flowing to the ball and attacking like a veteran. Ross Homan looked solid, albeit in limited action. Cameron Heyward notched two sacks before rolling his ankle. This front seven may actually end up competing with Penn State's as the conference's best when all is said and done, and that is a huge helping hand for this young offense as they continue to grow and progress.