So my sacrilegious prediction was considerably 60% correct. I accurately guessed USC's score and picked the winner. I KNEW I should have made a bet on the 11.5 point spread... At least I would have come out a winner even in embarrassing defeat.
The game was over at halftime. Our team looked defeated on both sides of the ball and honestly, I don't really remember watching much, if any, of the second half. If OSU somehow makes the long FG and makes it 7-6 and keeps it a respectable 14-6 at halftime, you've still got a shot. You're a TD and 2-pt conversion away from tying it up. Instead, that idiot wearing #17 in white throws a pick-six and you're walking down the tunnel down by 18 at the half. Good night.
It's Terrelle Pryor time. Who cares if he hasn't thrown or completed a pass longer than 10 yards in his college career. He KNOWS how to and he DID IT in high school. The media and CFB pundits talk him down like he's never thrown a pass farther than 10 yards down the field. I'm confident that he does it in practice against a decent (once considered) vaunted defense. You still have to make the pass. He's the X-factor. When you play a mobile QB, you can "hide" the indiscretions of what is currently a MAC or Conference USA-level offensive line. If you can run, that means the defense has one less guy in pass coverage because he has to "spy" the QB. By the way, while we're on the page of putting athletes on the field, take Robiskie (who's inevitably injured) off the field and get some guys with speed on the field. Why do we look slow? Because we have all of our slow players on the field. Devier Posey - track star. Lamarr Thomas - track star. I won't knock Hartline because the guy knows how to run a route and you need that. Put our fast guys out in space and let them work. It's pointless if you want your wide receiver to run the same corner and out routes over and over without at least one fly pattern to mix things up. When was the last time we ran a reverse? Or a bubble screen? Or a double underneath crossing pattern?
It was painful to hear USC's defensive players in the post-game telling the reporters that they knew EXACTLY what OSU was doing on both sides of the ball. (Transition - poor coaching rant).
Bollman is at fault for having four inept returning starters who are malprepared for D-lines that are of equal size and speed (or better). He's done nothing to convince me that he knows what he's doing with those guys in the trenches.
Heacock is at fault for failing to utilize the individual skill and speed of the athletes that I know we have on our team. Soft zone, 3-deep coverage? Give me a break. Dantonio beat up The U in 2002 by playing an aggressive man-coverage, 8-in the box, blitz-style defense. Granted, offenses have become more spread in nature, but that doesn't mean you drop seven guys back in zone on every play. It's an awful scheme and it's painful to watch. It was pretty hard for Ken Dorsey to complete a pass off his backside.
Oh, fire these morons for failing to make any positive adjustments at halftime. Going back to the cookie-cutter BS is not an adjustment. It's conceding victory to the opponent.
I don't want to bash Tressel, but I will critique him for his failure to hire a true offensive coordinator. Once upon a time Ohio State was an offensive machine. We have the talent, but we don't have the right coach to utilize that talent to its fullest. Come on. Ohio State has a multitude of athletes STARTING in the NFL today. You mean to tell me they exponentially improved post-college to crack the starting line up in the pros?
Anyway, I'm not convinced that we can or will beat Troy at home this weekend. The drunk & belligerent student section won't be available for another week. The following reasons leave me weary about Saturday's game:
Ohio State - 24
Troy - 22
Somehow we win in a way-too-close one... .
The game was over at halftime. Our team looked defeated on both sides of the ball and honestly, I don't really remember watching much, if any, of the second half. If OSU somehow makes the long FG and makes it 7-6 and keeps it a respectable 14-6 at halftime, you've still got a shot. You're a TD and 2-pt conversion away from tying it up. Instead, that idiot wearing #17 in white throws a pick-six and you're walking down the tunnel down by 18 at the half. Good night.
It's Terrelle Pryor time. Who cares if he hasn't thrown or completed a pass longer than 10 yards in his college career. He KNOWS how to and he DID IT in high school. The media and CFB pundits talk him down like he's never thrown a pass farther than 10 yards down the field. I'm confident that he does it in practice against a decent (once considered) vaunted defense. You still have to make the pass. He's the X-factor. When you play a mobile QB, you can "hide" the indiscretions of what is currently a MAC or Conference USA-level offensive line. If you can run, that means the defense has one less guy in pass coverage because he has to "spy" the QB. By the way, while we're on the page of putting athletes on the field, take Robiskie (who's inevitably injured) off the field and get some guys with speed on the field. Why do we look slow? Because we have all of our slow players on the field. Devier Posey - track star. Lamarr Thomas - track star. I won't knock Hartline because the guy knows how to run a route and you need that. Put our fast guys out in space and let them work. It's pointless if you want your wide receiver to run the same corner and out routes over and over without at least one fly pattern to mix things up. When was the last time we ran a reverse? Or a bubble screen? Or a double underneath crossing pattern?
It was painful to hear USC's defensive players in the post-game telling the reporters that they knew EXACTLY what OSU was doing on both sides of the ball. (Transition - poor coaching rant).
Bollman is at fault for having four inept returning starters who are malprepared for D-lines that are of equal size and speed (or better). He's done nothing to convince me that he knows what he's doing with those guys in the trenches.
Heacock is at fault for failing to utilize the individual skill and speed of the athletes that I know we have on our team. Soft zone, 3-deep coverage? Give me a break. Dantonio beat up The U in 2002 by playing an aggressive man-coverage, 8-in the box, blitz-style defense. Granted, offenses have become more spread in nature, but that doesn't mean you drop seven guys back in zone on every play. It's an awful scheme and it's painful to watch. It was pretty hard for Ken Dorsey to complete a pass off his backside.
Oh, fire these morons for failing to make any positive adjustments at halftime. Going back to the cookie-cutter BS is not an adjustment. It's conceding victory to the opponent.
I don't want to bash Tressel, but I will critique him for his failure to hire a true offensive coordinator. Once upon a time Ohio State was an offensive machine. We have the talent, but we don't have the right coach to utilize that talent to its fullest. Come on. Ohio State has a multitude of athletes STARTING in the NFL today. You mean to tell me they exponentially improved post-college to crack the starting line up in the pros?
Anyway, I'm not convinced that we can or will beat Troy at home this weekend. The drunk & belligerent student section won't be available for another week. The following reasons leave me weary about Saturday's game:
- We can't score. 3 points against USC? Not having Beanie means not having a true running game. But again, that falls back on Bollman and the O-Line. Boone embarrassed and talking sh*t? That's three big games in a row. Hmm.. maybe he just sucks? Five turnovers against OU and we only put up 26 TOTAL points. That's 5 points per turnover... sad. Maybe the inability to score in the redzone against Youngstown State should have been a ginormous indicator of things to come (and worry about).
- Quarterback. A two-QB system doesn't work. It hasn't worked and it won't ever work. See Stanley Jackson-Joe Germaine. Justin Zwick-Troy Smith. Boeckman-Pryor. Put the #1 recruit out of high school from 2007-2008 in and let him eat. If your 3-wood isn't working, maybe you should take out the driver... Boeckman might be a 5-wood or a hybrid at best.
- Dissonance in the locker room. Boeckman is a team captain who I'm sure has his fair share of commited followers in the locker room. Alex Boone extrordinaire included. But for those who are the most competitive, those who hate to lose with the greatest of passions, they must be clamoring for Pryor. I know one guy who's rooting for #2. The other guy on defense wearing the same number. He's also the only guy who showed any visual emotion and heart in the USC game. Needless to say, a divided college locker room may be more viral than an NFL or high school locker room.
- Hangover. You just lost 35-3. You just got over your jet lag from flying back from the west coast. Hell, you probably feel like you just lost a few thousand bucks (no pun intended) in Vegas. You've got Buckeye fans who are scratching their heads and beleaguered on all accounts. This was supposed to be a team that would come in and dominate with its 20 returning starters and a fresh Top-5 recruiting class.
Ohio State - 24
Troy - 22
Somehow we win in a way-too-close one... .
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