Preview: #14 Ohio State vs. Purdue
What Joe Tiller will miss most in retirement
 #14 Ohio State 5-1, 2-0 Big Ten Roster | Schedule |
October 11, 2008 3:30 PM ET - ABC —— Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH |
 Purdue 2-3, 0-1 Big Ten Roster | Schedule |
Game six of the Joe Tiller farewell tour comes to Ohio Stadium Saturday and so far, the parting gifts for the oatmeal-loving coach have been few and far between.
After blitzing Northern Colorado in the opener, the Boilermakers lost a heart-breaker to then 16th-ranked Oregon at home in overtime. After jumping out to a 14-point halftime lead, Purdue watched the Ducks pile up the bulk of their 330 yards on the ground in the second half before winning in overtime.
They bounced back by beating Central Michigan in week three before getting smoked by the Irish and following that up with a tough home loss to Penn State last weekend.
The constants through this skid have been poor defense and recently, questionable play at quarterback. Things grew so dire in the loss to Penn State that after suffering 11 straight possessions without scoring points, Tiller yanked quarterback Curtis Painter, the only guy on his roster with the backing of a Heisman campaign.
Pulling the school’s 2nd-leading all-time passer is but one of the luxuries a guy has with one foot out the door, but the Big Ten will certainly miss the guy when he’s gone. His accomplishments are many and without him, “a guy in a wizard hat selling snake oil” sadly would not have entered my vernacular. He’ll have a chance to get that last great win Saturday in Columbus, his first over a ranked opponent in 16 outings. While the odds of that happening remain small, outside of last season’s 23-7 defeat in front of a home black-out, the Boilermakers have consistently played the Buckeyes well during the Tressel era.
Opponent
Despite last week’s benching, Tiller has stated that, Painter (#12) will start against the Buckeyes. Purdue bloggers are saying he’s flat-out sucked this year and Tiller took the opportunity call him out through the press earlier in the week. He’s on pace to put up his worst numbers since seeing action his freshman season and suffice to say, this is not what the Boilermaker faithful had in mind for his senior season. Oh, did we mention he’s 0-9 against ranked foes in his career? If he doesn’t get this one against the Buckeyes, he may not get another chance in that regard. What does being one of the most prolific throwers in conference history, yet going O-for against ranked teams mean for one’s legacy?
If Painter can turn things around this weekend, he’ll look to his trio of top targets: Greg Orton (#21), Desmond Tardy (#6) and Keith Smith (#8). Orton has been around for ages it seems and is dependable, while Hardy is having a breakout season as a senior. He’s topped 100 yards receiving twice this year including 10 snags for 175 yards and a score in the loss to Notre Dame.
Running back Kory Sheets (#24) stepped up when projected starter Jaycen Taylor tore his ACL in fall camp and has run — so to speak — with the opportunity. His 498 yards in five games is good enough for 5th in the Big Ten in rushing. While 180 of his yards came in the Oregon game, when you throw in his receiving and return yards, he’s second in the conference in total offense.
5th-year senior tackle Sean Sester (#74) anchors an offensive line that doesn’t give up a lot of sacks (1.6/game) either by way of scheme or Painter’s relatively quick, if inaccurate, release. He’s a monster at 6-7/325 and Gibson and Wilson (and hopefully some Nathan Williams) will have their hands full if they find themselves across from Sester.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Boilermakers are on pace for their worst season ever under Tiller. They’re currently 108th in total defense, 104th in rush defense and 93rd in pass defense, allowing an average of 435.8 yards per game. Penn State put up 202 yards on the ground last week, while an Irish team that is near the bottom in national rushing rankings ran for 201 yards against this defense. And we’ve already mentioned the 330 that Oregon dropped on them. They did hold the vaunted Spread HD offense of Penn State to their lowest point total of the season, but…
Standout players include linebacker Anthony Heygood, a 5th-year senior that studied at the Sam Sword Center for Staying in School for a Decade. He’s a nominee for the Butkus and Bednarik award and is without a doubt, the best player on the Boilermaker defense.
Senior defensive ends Keyon Brown (#95) and Alex Magee (#71) lead the team with two sacks each and both are sturdy, if not quick ends that should test the Buckeye tackles.
The secondary is nothing to write home about, but it’s Big Ten football, so they’re just as capable as other defensive backs in the conference if Pryor wants to put one up for grabs. If he plays smart, he could have a big day against this group.
NOTES: The game will pit the Big Ten’s top-rated passing offense against the top-rated passing defense… The Boilermakers have not won in Columbus since 1988… Against Penn State last weekend, Purdue turned in a zero penalty game… Tiller has only suffered five losing streaks of three games or more in his 12 years at Purdue… The Central Michigan victory this season put Tiller alone atop the school’s coaching victory list.
Buckeye Breakdown
On paper this game does not even appear as close as the 19-point line suggests. But Buckeye fans have a healthy does of respect for Purdue no matter how badly they may be perceived. Outside of Wisconsin, perhaps no Big Ten team has given the Buckeyes as much trouble as Purdue has. Those efforts haven’t always translated to wins, but they have brought many nail-biters.
Ohio State should look to get an early lead executing what it feels are its best plays and then move on to address other areas of the game that need improvement. The continued evolution out of Pryor and Beanie running the option, plays out of the pistol and other formations will probably move the ball with relative ease against this defense. Quite a few teams have put up sick rushing numbers against Purdue, but none had the firepower of those two doing it.
Hopefully some early success and quick scores will mean a light day for Beanie and some much-needed rest. He, along with the rest of the team took some shots in Madison last weekend and need to get to as close to healthy as possible ahead of a trip to East Lansing next weekend. Boom’s concussion means Saine will get another opportunity to prove he’s more than the cloud of hype he’s been since arriving on campus after winning Ohio’s Mr. Football his senior year of high school. If he comes out and runs hard and has a great game, that’s great. If not, Boom should be back next weekend.
Good decisions are what this game should come down to for Pryor. He got the huge win last weekend thanks to some late game heroics, but there was a stretch of about two quarters where he was completely pinned-in and taking bad losses. He’ll have some fresh faces at receiver with Dane being out because of his own concussion and Small tweaking his knee in practice this week. Posey and Flash look to be the primary beneficiaries, but I’m left wondering what happened to Taurian Washington. We don’t see him much, but when we do, he’s taking balls to the house. There has to be something else to his situation.
For the line, it’s crucial that they build on any type of momentum they generated in the Wisconsin game. Though Pryor was sacked four times last weekend, I’m not sure if you can put any of those on Boone and Co. With Purdue’s defensive woes, the group has another chance to shine and that’s key if the team wants to take care of business when the meat of the conference schedule hits.
The defensive front has to get pressure on Painter. I feel good about that happening because Thaddeus Gibson is taking strides each week, Wilson has been steady and newcomer Nathan Williams is really getting noticed. It’s telling that the team’s sack leader is a linebacker (Freeman) and he’s only on pace for six this year.
I’ll be looking for Ross Homan who has really turned it on over the last handful of games. Against Minnesota and Wisconsin, he first set and then tied his career-high in tackles with 10 in each game. Every year there’s a guy or three that starts to make progress once conference games roll around and Homan appears to be one of those guys this season.
The safeties need to do a better job of coverage down the middle because if Painter has time, he’ll pick them apart. So far, they’ve shown a bigger desire to hit than stick with opposing receivers and they have to get that fixed before they meet Juice and the Illini.
Considering the Buckeyes blitzed a better Purdue team in front of a hometown blackout last season, you have to like their chances of putting away a relatively easy victory. Purdue will have a chance — especially if Painter heats up, but Pryor, Beanie and a growing offensive line and defense should prove to be too much.
NOTES: With 10 tackles at Wisconsin, Laurinaitis became just the 14th Buckeye to join the 300 tackle club… Beanie needs seven yards to move into 10th on Ohio State’s all-time rushing list, while Robo needs two receptions to move into 10th on that list… Ohio State leads the all-time series 36-12-2… Ron Franklin, Ed Cunningham and Jack Arute will call the game.
PREDICTION: Ohio State 31, Purdue 13
“Purdue watched the Beavers pile up the bulk of their 330 yards on the ground”
Don’t mean to be the grammar nazi - Ducks, not Beavers.
Everytime I hear Purdue…I think of Holy Buckeye. Then I think of 2003 when I skidded off the road on the way to the game, had to get towed and get a tire fixed, but still made it in time for kick-off.
Two things happen when a team is backed into a corner, they quit or come out fighting mad. History tells me Purdue is gonna quit and we are gonna roll this weekend. There is the chance they’ve gotten a wake-up call and we might be in for a game.
Compounding this is the “game after Wisconsin” factor. We are pretty beat up and referring to last year, teams did very poorly against Big Ten competition the week after they played Wisconsin due to being beat up. I think Purdue is closer to quitting than fighting, but we aren’t going to have our A game.
We will win, but won’t cover the 19 point spread due to a late score to make the game closer than it really was.
Foxy Lafon? Is she Lacey Underall’s cousin?
I better see some screen passes in the offense’s repetoir this weekend. That’s Purdue’s Achillis heel and we should use it as an oppurtunity to practice that play for later games.
Nice preview, boys. Of course, you didn’t mention a rather awesome Purdue blog out there, but that’s okay.
J Money, after “The Color Purple”, I agree, it was an injustice not opening our eyes to your magnificence.
Don’t look now but…..If the offense can keep improving & our defense can live up to its pre-season hype (when was the last time we pressured a QB?) we can be right back in the mix. With good wins over Purdue & Michigan State, the Penn State game will be our last chance to impress on a national spotlight. SEC & Big 12 teams are now going to start beating up on each other……we have to show that we are a different team (Beanie & Pryor) than the won that lost to USC.
Allen if you mean “in the mix” as in the Rose Bowl mix you are spot on my friend. There will be no trip to Miami for this team unless they do a Girls Gone Wild Tour with Joe Francis (not sure Tress would go for that).
Good catch, BrotherBuck. It’s fixed now.
And sorry about the lack of link, J Money. Figured the entire post celebrating your intellectual greatness yesterday was enough. We’ll link to you in every post from here on out.
I concur with Kyle - we are in the mix to win the Big 10 and maybe, just maybe in the mix for an at large BCS game if we do not by beating Penn St.
This team is not national Championship material period and we as fans have absolutely no right to complain if we get jumped by teams that played in a far superior conference (only the B12 and SEC) and have 2 losses as opposed to our one horrid loss
I want to win a bowl game again and we will not do that by playing real top 5 team - we will get destroyed again and that will do nothing but hurt our chances of playing for the title WHEN WE ACTUALLY HAVE A WORRY TEAM AGAIN - lets be willing to be honest and concede what is obvious for the greater good = perhaps a TP led MNC appearance in a year (probably 2)
I meant worthy (not worry) team, btw - sorry
Amen Buckeye blowout.
Agreed, this team is not a MNC Contender, no matter how many teams falter down the stretch. Hard for me to type that, but the truth is the truth.
Next year and after, watch out tho, because TP will be on everyone’s watch lists.
Imagine if Beanie is back next year…
I know I will get bombarded with this but I have to disagree. Our goal should be to win out and if we do, we should be in the National Title talk. Would we need a lot of teams to fall in front of us (maybe even twice), sure, but our goal should ALWAYS be to be in the MNC.
Listen, was I devestated by the last two title games, absolutely. But the fact is, we were there, we had a shot that only one other team had, to win the National Championship. We failed. Badly. But this notion that we should not play in the title game and win another bowl game to gain some sort of mythical momentum going into next season is flat out absurd. This is not the NFL. We will not have the same team next year, so whatever momentum is gained by winning the Fiesta bowl or Capital One bowl will be irrelevant when spring practice starts next year. As long as we can put our name in the hat for a chance to win the title, no matter the outcome, that should be our goal.
Call me crazy, but I would rather go 11-2 and lose the MNC by 20 than go 10-3 and win the Capital One bowl by 20. You play to win the Championship, and an ass whipping in early September shouldn’t change that.
Ok, fire away….
I don’t disagree with you, Tyler. My position is that they will never again put a one-loss Ohio State team in the BCS Title game if they have any other viable options.
Tyler - I applaud the enthusiasm and fight in your comments, and although I agree that it’d be great to get a third shot in the NC game, I really don’t think that it’s going to happen. The thing to remember about the “mythical momentum” is that the two best teams don’t always play in the title game, but instead the teams that the polls/computers THINK are the two best teams do.
The Player’s/Coach Tressel’s/Buckeye Nation’s goals aside, the Buckeyes need to get back some “street cred”. They need to dominate the mediocre teams, bulldoze the good teams, and win convincingly against some great teams for that to happen.
For me, winning the next five games, beating Michigan AGAIN, and a big win in a bowl game against a strong team would make for an awesome season. Just like after ‘05, it could lead to a #1 preseason ranking next season.
Tyler - In some respects I don’t disagree, but mostly I feel the capital one bowl scenario you posit is more attractive to me. Like it or not, college football is a sport where you are voted the opportunity to play for the national championship, and that necessarily means the perception of your program is everything. if we lose another title game by 20, we will never be given the opportunity again to play for it with one loss. I do not want the teams over the next few years that might actually be worthy of playing for the title to get screwed in anyway. If we get blown out again that is a real possibility. We could see a 1 loss Bucks team that is actually deserving of the chance to play for it all watching on TV because a team that has no business anywhere near the game got plastered again
and Toledoben has it correct, if we have a good season to end this year off then we have a legitimate shot at the inside track for next year
don’t get our hopes up palm beach…i’m crossing my fingers
First, let me clarify that I think we have almost 0 percent chance of going to MNC for a third straight year. We knew going in we would have to run the table for voters to let that happen, and we got kicked in the nuts by USC, all but ending our hope at redemption. The polls are reflecting this.
Having said that, I disagree with any sentiment that this team SHOULDN’T play for the MNC title game this year should we win out and the cards fall in place for us. I just can’t understand why Buckeye fans would rather beat the 3rd of 4th best team in the SEC in order to gain some “street cred”, as oppossed to being in the national title game and HAVING A SHOT TO WIN THE NATIONAL TITLE!
Again, let me clarify, I DO NOT think we will play in Miami this year. But I WANT us to. No matter who we play be it USC, FL, LSU, UGA, MIZZOU, Texas, OKla….I don’t care, if we are in the position at the end of the season I would rather lose another National Championship game than not play in one and win the Outback or Capitial One Bowl.
Another way to look at it is Oklahoma. They have faired far worse than us in the BCS recently (lost last 4 BCS bowls, 2 being NC, dominated pretty much in all). Do you think their fans are saying “I hope we don’t go the MNC game this year and get embarrassed, I want to win the Alamo Bowl and be ranked high next season.” They are not saying that, so I ask you, why are we?
Let’s play em all and see what happens. We still have a shot at Miami, but right now it could also be Northwestern Vs. Vandy (I’d step aside to see that happen). Point is, lots can happen. If Penn State is top 2 when we play them and if we win, they won’t fall far - and we will need to be ahead of them. Remember we were No. 7 when we were done PLAYING last year and we weren’t PUT into the MNC, we were the No. 1 team. If anything, polls and voters could have manipulated things to find another team to play us (or DickRod’s boys could have just beaten Pitt).
Many in this forum were happy to hand USC the MNC after we lost that game. They scoffed at those if us who said we might see USC again in the Rose Bowl. Hmm. That’s looking like a pretty good possibility — if USC can win the Pac 10.
It’s not impossible, but highly unlikely that da bucks will get back to the NC, for a couple of reasons. First, at this point they have to start putting up numbers and impressing some folks. Unfortunate, but true. A 21-13 win over Purdue will not turn any heads. Secondly, it’s quite possible that they could lose a game or two down the stretch. The defense has shown a propensity for not being able to stop good teams when they have to. Illinois and Penn St. are going to give them trouble because they simply don’t defend speed that well. I was hoping that they would be more assertive this year, but they seem content to sit back in the soft zone. arghh! The hope is that Beanie & Terrelle have enough magic to get the ball in the end zone fairly often.
So what happens if Toledo beats Michigan?
Do Michigan fans do a “The Happening” and start throwing themselves off buildings and under lawnmowers? I’d say it’s 80-20.
Good thing I put the ROCKETS at a 25% chance of winning. I mean, christ, Michigan is averaging something like 4 turnovers a game.
I’m with Tyler. Sure, we probably will not go to Miami but I certainly can’t root for Orlando. Like Mr. Green says, ‘play them all and see what happens’. No offense but to shoot for a lesser bowl now so we win the bowl and have a legitimate inside track for next year is nonsense. We got blown out in last years title game and still started this year in the top five. The key to next year will be the USC game no matter what happens this year. Just win baby(preferably now)!
I personally am rooting for a rematch against USC in the Rose Bowl. It’s not that I don’t want to be in the MNC, I just believe its a near mathematical impossibility. It’s likely that at least the Big 12 or the SEC champ makes the MNC. For instance, the Sooners go undefeated; in that situation we’d need a dark horse, 2 or 3 loss SEC team to win the SEC championship game, thereby relegating that team to the Sugar Bowl. At the same time, we’d need USC to lose again; their toughest remaining opponent is probably Notre Dame. Then OSU would face the Sooners in the title game. Alternatively, there could be two simultaneous dark horse conference winners in both the SEC and the Big 12, both champions with at least two losses. This would most likely set up a MNC rematch between USC and OSU, although even that’s not a give due to fan backlash against OSU. This all assumes that OSU wins every remaining game in convincing fashion.
Anyway, I don’t think it’s evil to root for the Buckeyes to get to the MNC. In the end its all about politics and perception of conference strenght. Whether the Buckeyes are at the MNC or the Rose Bowl or the god damn Motor City Bowl, we need a bowl victory to set up our epic 2009 run at the MNC.
Go Buckeyes, cause we all know that Purdue Purdon’t.
I would rather beat ANY SEC team in the Cap 1 bowl than lose a MNC game by 20.
Tyler calm down man
Chief: Agreed. I Would rather win than lose no matter what bowl it would be. At the same time I would rather have an opportunity for the top prize to begin with.
Many comments on these boards say beating UM is not enough we need to play for national championships. If that is the case let’s shoot for it when we can. There is no guarantee we would be back anytime soon. Sure they lost two out of three but Tressel and Stoops have had opportunities to win national championships that most of the mighty SEC schools have not.
Baby Booey???
“Many comments on these boards say beating UM is not enough”
God…remember the dark days of John Cooper…I guess some of us don’t.
Chief: Can we shoot for both? Maybe multi task a little. We have to win one to have a shot at the other anyway. I agree about the Cooper era but it seems sometimes that people forget.
Tyler - Ok and OSU are in completely different situations. Oklahamo gone blown out one time in the championship game like five years ago. Second, they have not been clownstomped on national stage three straight games.
We are being treated differently than Ok by the media and fans, but some of that is warranted as well. They lost to WV badly last yearm sure, but Boise St was a close game and is more remembered for being the greatest upset in bowl history so it does not have the connotation.
I would rather beat any SEC team in the Cap one bowl by 20 pts than get destroyed in the MNC game again - which is exactly what would happen if we had to play any top 5-7 team
it doesn’t make you a bad fan to realize your team isn’t the best in the country, and it makes a you a good fan to readjust your goals with reality and to hope that us shakes out such that your team gets another chance.
I don’t think fans hoping to play for it all again this year get it.
Buckeyeblowout- Oklahoma was killed against USC and LSU in the MNC. I watched both games and the beat down was epic.
This week has been wierd. The Red River Shootout has been dominating the media here in Kansas City. I have had to defend Buckeye fans for the first time in my life. I think the rivalry we have with Michigan is much bigger than OU-TX. I have regularly seen Buckeye fans say “beating michigan is not enough”. What kind of fans are you???? “The Game” will always be a big deal to true Ohio State fans. Some of the younger Buck fans need to watch the HBO special about the rivalry.
The Red Sox regularly dominate the Yanks, has that rivalry been diminished, HELL NO!!! Go down to Auburn with an Alabama hat on and see what happens. In case you didn’t know, Auburn has won 5 straight. The game is still important.
Like I said earlier, I am living in KC right now. Can someone tell me what is going on with Buckeye Nation??? The mere thought that “The Game” has lost its luster in proposterous.
Buckeyeblowout- I was also at he Big 12 Championship here in 2004. OU was beaten by Kansas State 35-7. Darren Sproles put up over 200 yards against OU.
OU has been embarressed just as often as THE Ohio State University. They do take a beating on the radio out here for it.
Good to hear they get it, too. It just doesn’t seem like they are ridiculed the way OSU has been. But also, I think losing to USC once badly and losing on your conference big is not the same as what we have done, IMO. and it certainly isn’t being covered the same on the national networks … quick, when was the last time OK’s speed and athleticism has been questioned on national radio and TV for months on end?
Here they question OUs lack of RBs. Other than Peterson, they have never had a great one.
I may not know what clownstomped means but I’m pretty sure that is what WVU did to OU last year. What is worse losing to a #1, fully friken loaded, USC team in their house during the regular season or to a double digit underdog in a BCS Bowl game? They are both bad in my book but I can’t say the OSU loss was worse.
You have a point about the ‘lack of speed’ label.
All this talk about the MNC….Good Lord, we need a playoff system.
Welcome!! Michigan to the land of bottom feeders.
Signed Nebraska
Man I wish I could see the Michigan game only to see them struggle against Toledo. And how about Illinois in a tight one vs the Gophers?
Great day for CFB, the Texas-OU game is pretty intense aside from the absolutely horrific refereeing.