Preview: #11 Ohio State vs #24 Wisconsin
The city of Columbus welcomes you
 #11 Ohio State 4-1, 2-0 Big Ten Roster | Schedule |
October 10, 2009 3:30 PM ET – ABC —— Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH |
 #24 Wisconsin 5-0, 2-0 Big Ten Roster | Schedule |
Saturday afternoon will mark the 74th time in the history of the two schools that Ohio State and Wisconsin will meet head to head to play a college football game. The Badgers enter Columbus red hot after getting off to a 5-0 start, including a big win against Fresno State, and will be looking to prove to the conference and the country that they are contenders, not pretenders. History will not be on their side though as OSU leads the all-time series 52-17-5 and the sting still burns from last year’s heartbreaking 20-17 loss in Madison, a game in which Terrelle Pryor put himself on the national map.
The Badgers always play the Buckeyes tough and once again are lead by hard nosed play in the trenches. The game will be the first true challenge for the Buckeyes since the USC game and it will be interesting to see how both sides of the line hold up against a stingy Brett Bielema team. The Badgers are rolling, but they’re about to run into the toughest game on their schedule.
Opponent
When you play Wisconsin you are assured of one thing: they will run the football (okay, two things, the second being they will punch you in the mouth while doing so). Take away the fact that the Badgers have not had quality quarterbacks the last few years, Bucky always brings a talented stable of running backs to the field and this year is no different. John Clay is one of the country’s best under the radar players (for now at least) and the reigning Big Ten Offensive Player of The Week leads the conference with 582 yards and seven touchdowns on the ground. At 6-1/248, he is big, tough, and hard to tackle, making the game a big test against a stout Buckeye run defense.
While the last few Wisconsin quarterbacks haven’t posed much of a passing threat, the Buckeyes must respectScott Tolzien, at least for now. The Big Ten’s leader in passer efficiency, Tolzien is 82-125 for 1,043 yards and nine touchdowns against just three interceptions. Wisconsin has not played a defense nearly even half as good as what the Buckeyes will line up with, so it will be interesting to see what happens when OSU brings the rush against the young signal caller. The Badgers throw the ball (216 yds/game) nearly as much as they run the ball (217 per game) and are first in the conference in scoring and second in total offense, something that can be attributed to Tolzien’s play.
The Big Ten’s Replacement For BeanieLooking at the roster, Nick Toon, son of oft-concussed Al Toon is a threat, but the Badgers are solid in the tight end department and defending tight ends has always been a problem for the Bucks. Owen Daniels and Travis Beckum are gone from the Wisconsin program, but Garrett Graham still calls Madison home. Graham has 23 catches for 268 yards and four touchdowns and Buckeye fans should expect to see him targeted early and often, especially on play action fakes to Clay which could be very effective if Heacock and Fickell can’t make early adjustments. The Badgers are a perfect 20-20 in the red zone this season with an amazing 18 touchdowns and the play of Garrett Graham in those situations is a big reason why.
On defense the Badgers have not faired as well as the offense, ranking 70th in the nation in total defense and 64th in the country in scoring defense. They do get after the quarterback though, as they rank 17th in the country with 2.8 sacks a game. That stat has gotten a boost from the reigning Big Ten Defensive Player of The Week, end O’Brien Schofield. Schofield leads the conference with 4.5 sacks and 11 tackles for a loss and will prove to be a tough match up for Mike Adams and JB Shugarts.
There’s not too much to write home about when discussing the Wisco back seven, but veteran linebacker Jaevery McFadden and safeties Chris Maragos and Jay Valai have the experience to make a difference in a close game. As mentioned in the Presser Notes on Wednesday, Valai was the player who rocked both Dane Sanzenbacher and Boom Herron in the game last year, but with the league’s sudden love of suspensions, don’t expect either side to make anything of the retaliation sort from that situation.
Special teams has played a factor in this series in the past and the Buckeyes seem to have the advantage in this area. The Badgers are only 77th in the nation in net punting average at 35.1, 79th in punt return average at 6.7, and 109th in kick return average at 17.9. Field position could prove to play a big part in this game and Wisky will have to perform better then they have on special teams to win a battle against a Jim Tressel coached team.
Buckeye Breakdown
Coming off a third consecutive victory and a 33-14 win against Indiana, Ohio State should be feeling good, but I can’t help but think about how the offense still has some growing to do. Some may say Ohio State will have its hands full with the Badgers and they probably will, but I think as long as the offense continues to grow and develop, the Buckeyes will come out on top.
Many will be interested to see if OSU will continue their aggressive play calling lead by Darrell Hazell on offense or, if like in other games against the Badgers, The Vest will revert back to his conservative ways. There is no doubt that Tressel will want to control the clock and field position in this game, but if the Buckeyes can take advantage of their edge in the talent category then they can expose some weaknesses in the Wisconsin defense early. Terrelle Pryor needs to continue to spread the ball around like he did against the Hoosiers, keeping Badger defenders on their toes throughout the game.
Another thing to watch on offense is how the running backs will be utilized. Brandon Saine is certainly proving his worth with his play so far this season, but Boom Herron is still listed as the number one back and if he is back to being 100% healthy then the Buckeyes could have themselves a very dangerous duo in the backfield. Jordan Hall has done a stellar job as the third running back, but Jaamal Berry could be in line to see playing time as comments from the coaches in the last few weeks have signaled he might get some playing time when healthy.
Captain Kurt Makes His Return This WeekOn defense the Bucks will have to keep the motor going as the Wisconsin offensive line is always up for a challenge. Lawrence Wilson, Robert Rose, and Todd Denlinger have really stepped up their game in the past few weeks, making this unit even stronger than we thought it was after the USC game. Jim Heacock can continue to rotate players and keep them fresh, but will be a man down this week as Dexter Larimore is out with a sprained knee. The Silver Bullets need to put pressure on Tolzien and limit Clay’s yardage on Saturday in order to ensure a comfortable victory for the Bucks. We’ll be tuned in to see how the undersized Rolle does against Clay, but we’re just huge Hedgehog fans.
Kurt Coleman returns in the secondary this week after serving a one game suspension for a helmet-to-helmet hit, but after Anderson Russell’s solid performance against the Hoosiers it will be interesting to see how the staff uses him and Jermale Hines at free safety and the star position. Devon Torrence has successfully entrenched himself as the second corner back and he and Chimdi Chekwa have done a fine job of keeping any damage through the air at a minimum.
Aaron Pettrey missed two “gimme’s” last week, but needs to bounce back strong against the Badgers. These are the types of games that could come down to a kick or two and Pettrey needs to forget about last week and move on in order to ensure Jim Tressel that he can call on his kicker if needed this week in any situation.
Prediction
While Bucky has played the Buckeyes close in the Jim Tressel era (though the series is now even at three each, Tressel started 1-3 against the Badgers), it will be very difficult for them to come into The Horseshoe and beat Ohio State. Scott Tolzien faces his first real test as a starting quarterback in the Big Ten and will have his hands full with Cameron Heyward and Thaddeus Gibson all day. John Clay may indeed be the first rusher to eclipse 100 yards against this defense on Saturday, but it won’t be enough as the Buckeyes will take care of business and handicap what has been a very balanced offense so far this season.
Ohio State 27, Wisconsin 13
Wisconsin’s win against Fresno State was in Madison, not at Fresno.
you are so right, the croud in fresno would probalby made it a fresno win
The crowd needs to be LOUD in this one. As you mentioned, this is Tolzien’s first start in a big game on the road.
Agree with the crowd noise comments. If we can get even half the intensity there was in the ‘Shoe for the U$C game Tolzien will be wetting himself.
A lot has been made in the past couple of games about the slow down of the offense in the 2nd half. Has it been confirmed that the Darrell Hazell Experience has been calling the offensive plays for both halves of the game? Sometimes it almost seems like Tress takes back over for a bit in the 2nd half and just lets Hazell call a couple at that point. Or am I reading to into it and the offense just decides that they only need to play 30 minutes instead of 60.
I’ll do my best!
What’s the weather forecast? We’ve had crazy amounts of rain in St Louis and C’bus usually gets our weather a day later.
It’ll be dry fortunately.
It’s raining nice and good in Chicago today. Ditto to what Rob said about Cbus getting the weather a day later.
We’re going to have A.M. rain and then sun so since the game is at 3:30 it should be okay.
Why does TP have his two fingers tapped together on his left hand? Saw this while checking out game pictures at www. crookphotography.com/buckeyes
OSU 27
Wiscy 13
430 total yards for Bucks
Maybe there was something he didn’t want to forget, and he didn’t have any string…
he always tapes those fingers. even last year I noticed that.
This game will come down to who has the playmakers. Wisky, can pound you for nickel and dime yardage, but do they really have the guys who can make the BIG play?
Also, I think the pressure on Tolzien is a huge factor. Sure, he has performed well in tight games so far, but nothing will have him ready for confernece play in the Shoe.
I think Wisky is the perfect team for TP to stretch his legs and get some big gains on the ground. I have a hard time believing Wisky has a DB who can outrun him.
Bucks 31- Wisco 13 Pryor 190 passing 115 rushing, 3 td’s
Who here thinks Mark May will pick Wisconsin to win but when OSU pulls out a 2-3 TD victory and Lou Holtz is trying to argue how good the Buckeyes really are, May will interrupt him saying, “Yeah coach but it was against WISCONSIN! WISCONSIN coach!”
And of course the media and the coaches will believe every word he says.
???????
Mark May is a douche.. anything he has to say is as stupid as Obama winning the Nobel Peace prize….. both have done nothing to earn their accolades.
Apparently getting elected President of the United States is worthy of the Nobel Peace Prize.
The whole world has a hard-on for Obama.
What a joke.
hope and change is apparently the criteria for the award. I HOPE he fixes the economy, I HOPE I have a job next year, I HOPE I can send my kids to college, something better CHANGE soon or the party in power is going to get swept out on its ass…. sorry for the rant, now back to sports…LOL
Mark May already picked Wisconsin. Yesterday on college football live he ended the game preview with “when Wisconsin wins this game.”.
ES(ec)PN has become comical in its supposed objectivity. I don’t even watch the College Gameday (I used to love it), college football weekly, or pre, post, or halftime shows. They have all become forums for expanding whatever the agenda of the day is and the game play-by-play is becoming talking points of the day instead of actually calling the game.
Kirk (former BUCKEYE CAPTAIN AND QB) Herbstreit is on every Thursday at 8AM on a local Miami radio station to talk college football. He has fallen under the spell and badmouth’s the Big-Ten all the time in SEC and ACC country… he has become more interested in forwarding his career by sticking to the party line than being objective and a cheerleader for the school that put his pretty boy ass on the map. I remember the old days when he brought his twin boys on the Game-Day set dressed in Buckeye gear head to toe. Those were the days!!!!
I don’t mind if Herbstreit is objective. That is fine. If he really believes OSU won’t win the game, I’m cool with that. You shouldn’t be considered a traitor for not picking your team to win every game. It is impossible to win every game. I’m sure he cheers for OSU in every game…but he has realistic expectations and we shouldn’t fault him for that.
Should he bad mouth the Big Ten? Probably not. But the Big Ten isn’t exactly making a name for itself right now.
I think if the Big Ten was out there wrecking people, you would see a different Herbstreit.
And he defended OSU after the loss to USC. He said that the losses to FLorida and LSU should be out of people’s minds. OSU can play with anyone.
On the flip-side you have Speilman. He wears his scarlet and gray beating heart on his sleeve. I admire that too.
I just don’t like they commentators that have it out for one team in particular. Musberger is notorious for this and so his Mark May.
I would group Lou Holtz in the same category as Speilman. He bleeds Irish and you can’t really fault him for that. He should be more objective but its hard.
agreed on most of your points, and the Big-11 had done nothing to help itself in tough OOC games and bowl games (last year, PU)…. but it seems to me that Herbie is going out of his way to put down the Big-10 to increase his own popularity… there are definitely talking points of the day/week….. watch all the games and shows and different commentators hit the same points. Sad when the management feels it is necessary to script the talent.
College football is going from a team-oriented sport to a conference-oriented one.
Pretty soon they are going to have NCC’s (National Conference Championships). The best of the best from each conference square off for the NCC.
What team does Musberger have it out for? I have heard him compliment the Buckeeys a lot and actually kind of enjoy the games he does. Maybe I’ve missed something there. Mark May is a blowhard and while he is objective to every other team and conference it’s obvious that he HATES Ohio State, and I do find it ridiculous that ESPN puts him out there as an expert. He has picked the bucks to lose every game at least since 2002.
I think Herbstreit has totally sold out. He may like the Bucks privately, but when South Carolina plays a crappy NC State team, and the game is horrendous to watch. I don’t need to hear about how that great SEC defense shut down the team. Never mentioned that the team absolutely sucks that they were playing. South Carolina, Ole miss Tennesse, Mississippi State, Georgia, UK, Arkansas would all be average teams in any conference. IBut to listen to Herbstreit you’d think they all would dominate every conference. He is not being objective at all in that. People can say what the want, but at least Spielman and Lou Holtz are honest about their loyalties and don’t sell out.
Not a Herbie apologist, but I think it’s worth noting all three of his boys were on the set decked out in OSU football jerseys a few weeks ago when College Game Day was here for the USC game…
I’m just sayin.
He may very well be, but it’s at a point now where he doesn’t mention Ohio State at all. You can be objective and still show some love. Robert Smith doesn’t pound his chest about the Buckeyes, but he still gives them a mention once in a while. I mean, he even acts like no fans are more passionate than SEC fans now. Even when it comes to tailgating. I’m sorry but I refuse to believe that Ohio State and Penn State fans aren’t as passionate as Florida fans. That they tailgate 10 times better in Alabama then they do Columbus. That’s the stuff that bothers me.
He mentioned OSU right after their loss to USC.
he said that they shouldn’t dwell on the losses to Florida and LSU anymore and neither should the nation.
He said OSU can play with anyone. They were just on the wrong end of that game.
The man is getting millions of dollars to be an objective sportscaster.
He doesn’t have to be up OSU’s ass all the time. Let him breathe a little.
That’s not what I’m advocating at all, I’m just saying he doesn’t mention them as much as he praises a South Carolina team that really isn’t that good.
Ever think that he doesn’t have to mention them as being good because that is kind of rhetorical? They are ranked #8 in the nation. He knows they are good. Everyone should know they are good.
If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck….
Also….
Being ranked from #6 – #20 is kind of a dead zone.
If you are ranked outside the top five you really aren’t that noteworthy. Its like a gray area which a lot of broadcasters don’t like to touch.
The bottom of the top 25 gets attention because of the fluidity there between teams being shuffled on and off.
If OSU cracks the top 5 you will hear more about them.
Whoa, politics…
sorry… had to get that off my chest…. still kinda scratching my head on this…. no more politics from me on this forum…. party foul, my bad! LOL
Likewise.
Definitely a personal foul. You may get a Coleman suspension for that.
I totally agree with every comment made about mark may he is a douch bag i would really like to find out how to email him or send a message 2 espn about how stupied and dumb he is!!! I never heard ofmark may and ive been following college football for a long time must be nice to kno absoultly nothin about what your broadcasting sorta like a weather man where u can be wrong in everything you say and still get paid 100k or more a year!!!!!!!!!! LOL Oh well only in america with our horrible president OBAMA who is in way over his head and the democratic party is just full of idiots
This post makes my head hurt in at least 4 different ways.
Seth – Way to show how “stupied” you really are. If you are going to call someone STUPID, at least know how to spell it!
Going to go out on a limb and say Mark May pulls a shade more than 100K. This ain’t local channel 6, kid.
Only in America is our President getting a Nobel Prize a bad thing.
Or losing an Olympic bid a good thing
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=113351145&ps=rs
I think it’s fair to say that the cities know this going in. It’ an opportunity to have you r city on display for 16 days to the whole world. Anyway, most of the people against them getting the Olympics didn’t do so because they were worried about the city of Chicago. I don’t think the guys on FOX News give a crap about the city. At any rate, I’ll say it really doesn’t make a damn difference what city the olympics are in because the whole event is one big commerical for Mc Donalds and Coca-Cola. It lost a lot of it’s luster to me in 1992. Also, it’s not fun when you don’t have the Commies to cheer against. I mean does Al Qaeda isn’t in the most talent rich nations.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/20091009/us_time/08599192939500
Not the only one.
During the pregame last night he already said tOSU would lose.
he pics OSU to lose EVERY game….. a broken clock is right twice every day…. he is a jackass
get off of russell anderson’s nuts it was INDIANA, he is still a liability more than an asset on the field, good lord you would think it was usc he balled out against. the hoosiers, he looked like a girl jumping to catch the pick in his stomach and he hits like neon deion, that is he doesn’t.
George Bodenheimer is the current president of ESPN Inc.
ESPN Plaza
935 Middle Street
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Telephone +1 860 766 2000 / 2264
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Email espn.com@espn.com
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good luck, I have written before and never got a reply.
1st, don’t forget that for the last couple of weeks, Desmond Howard has said that Ohio State may struggle against Illinois and Indiana. It’s clear that it is OSU against the world. I am really getting tired of the polls. One poster on here mentioned it last week about 4 and 5 star recruits being downgraded once they show interest or commit to Ohio State.
Lastly, this is an OSU blog not a politics blog. To Seth, PALM BEACH BUCKEYE, and Buckeye in SC, you are entitled to your opinions about the President. You are actually blaming him for winning a Nobel Peace prize that he had no clue that he was in the running for. Let me guess, on his way to the IOC last week, he stopped by the Nobel Peace committee headquarters and made a pitch to win? As a former Marine, an someone who has had the honor of providing security for 3 former Presidents, Secretary of states and American’s abroad, show some respect for the office of President regardless of who it is. I couldn’t stand GW but I smiled in the picture I took with him and I showed him the respect the office deserves. Now, we can go back and forth all day on this blog but I’m more animated in person (just ask Jason and Chris who write for 11W).
I’m currently an officer in the United States Air Force who has served in Iraq and I will honor any lawful order given to me by my Commander-n-Chief.
However, like you said, I am entitled to my opinions. I shouldn’t have put them on this blog and I for that I apologize. This isn’t a place for politics.
Lets get back to Buckeye football.
and I was a Master Sargeant in the United States Air Force Medical Corps…. I apologized also. I obeyed every order given by Presdident Clinton and Bush 1……. again, I apoligized already and now that we are done boasting about our Military background, lets get back to football.
I agree this is not the right venue for discussing politics. Likewise, I wish I did not have to see/read the 49,478 times that Sports Illustrated, eSECpn, and other major sports media outlets as well as sports blogers and comments made completely unrelated, gratuitous jokes about GW Bush, Cheney, Palin, etc., but pretended like it had some connection to the topic at hand.
Like: “John Clay stiff arms would-be tacklers with the same vengeance as the Obama administration stiff arms corruption investigators.” You see, I’m a sports writer just innocently using a metaphor – no politics there.
A spiteful person would say things like “pot, meet kettle,” and “what comes around goes around.” But it’s more important that we move forward. Let’s all agree to loudly condemn all examples of excessive and gratuitous politicization of entertainment – in Hollywood movies, prime time t.v. shows, sports media, musical concerts, etc.
I’m sure Carence is all for that.
thx
Look what you started, palm beach.
Thank you for your service Carence. I agree with every word you said.
LOL…. I know, I know….. 50 lashes with a wet noodle for me…. sorry everyone… has never happened before and won’t happen again….. lol
for the record though, read what I said, nothing derrogatory about the man… just about the Nobel prize.
I had to pay for 50 lashes with a wet noodle the last time it happened to me.
Where can I get that kind of action for free?
/tijuanaed
Im suprised you all are commenting on Mark May (D-bag of the universe btw) and the Nobel Peace Prize/President, when Alex gave us such a great picture at the top of the article to comment on…..
http://insider.espn.go.com/ncf/features/take2?gameId=292830194
WTF ESPN! How in the hell does Wisconsin have a better coach then tOSU? The only thing that Wisconsin coach is better at then Tressel is taking down a grand slam at Denny’s at 3am after escaping a close one to Wofford.
As Always. F-Michigan
I don’t have ESPN Insider access, but if they did give the coaching nod to Bielema, then there’s really nothing to say. Wow.
I guess he got points because he has a sweet Hawkeye tattoo on his calf?
Look, its not that bad. The webmaster at ESPN.com did the best he could with what he had to work with. I imagine the scene of the article hand-off from Mark May to the webmaster looked something like this:
http://www.stumplane.us/img/treehorn.gif
(I came here just to post that bc i thought it was hilarious. fortunately, i had either the wisco girls or this to work with. all glory to the internets!)
This game does not scare me. Ohio State is not “percieved” to be good enough by the national media for them to have a let down this game. Our D is lights out and will hold Wisky to no more than 21 points and the last 7 will be in garbage time.
s far as being sold on the Offense, I would stay thats a strange way of stating it. This offense is definatly coming together. Are they the best most balanced offense in the country like they will be by seasons end or by early next year? That answer is no. But this offense was a couple brain farts away from putting up 50 points against Indiana at Indiana. If you havent noticed Indiana has a better D than Wisky does. So I think we hang 40 on Wisky and cover this spread.
Eveery week this team fixes mistakes from the previous week, and this weekend will be no different. Pettry wont miss a FG, Posey wont drop an easy TD, and Pryor wont miss an easy TD in the fourth qarter. All simple mistkes made by a young team that is starting to gel. I think this could be the gelling week and if so watch out Wisky it could get ugly.
I agree, one week it’s all going to click then watch out.
Alex (who wrote this article),
Where did you find polls that had Wisconsin at #24 and Ohio State at #11? From what I’ve seen the A.P. says Wisc is unranked and OSU #9 and the USA Today and Harris polls have Wisc #25 and OSU #8. Just wondering.
Go Bucks!
Pretty sure 11W writers use blog polls. Which are more accurate, although I don’t agree OSU is really the 11th ranked team in the country.
IMO, we would win by at least 2 td’s vs. Boise and Cincy. Yeah it sounds homery, but on the other hand, I don’t think we would have a chance vs. Florida right now.
late hit on Tebow by a back-up pass rusher…. he gets ejected (who cares) and Timmy is out of the game.
HAH! Now that is a gameplan to build on
Tebow wears JORTS
Tebow wears jorts and sandals.
God bless Tebow, wonder if she goes on miissionary trips.
http://rds.yahoo.com/_ylt=A0WTefQueM9K9dYAT4CjzbkF/SIG=12e02hgpd/EXP=1255197102/**http%3A//www.techbanyan.com/3229/tim-tebow-girlfriend-photo/
not just sandals, those leather stupid sandals that only granola munchers should wear.
prob wears braided belts too.
Urban Meyers spent the night in the hospital with Timmy…. isn’t that sweet…. prob got a happy ending to ease his misery!
Woops, I meant this:
http://www.techbanyan.com/3229/tim-tebow-girlfriend-photo/
I’m sure she’s willing to wait til marriage.
Urban and Timmy will go on a circumcision mission trip for their honey moon in Thailand.
Lady-Boys all around!
if she is his girlfriend (not sure ) he HAS to be banging her…. no if, he has to be.
That’s correct. We use the BlogPoll rankings for the previews.
I heretofore demand that this incessant billy-bally hubaloo regarding modern politics abate, and I call to order a quorum, to faithfully recognize and remove aspersion, from the indelible design that the Constitution vests in Congress the power to open and repair harbors, and remove obstructions from navigable rivers, whenever such improvements are necessary for the common defence, and for the protection and facility of commerce with foreign nations, or among the States, said improvements being, in every instance, national and general in their character. In close, I submit that Daniel Webster is an able statesman and an expositor of the first rate, and I propose enforcement of the ongoing moratorium on discussions of a political character that bear not on non-Whig matters.
I like football.
too early to be drinking yet
Well played, sir!
Three cheers for the Whigs!
Nerd Alert
anyone have a link to the coverage maps for ABS/ESPN this weekend? I can’t seem to find it anywhere…
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?page=coveragemaps2009
pretty funny that the entire state of Pennsylvania does not get the Pitt game as the primary coverage….LOL
Thanks for the link. Good news is I get to watch the game at home opn ESPNHD
funny point on the pitt coverage, are there really that many pitt fans outside of Mark “I hate everything from Ohio” May’s giant head though?
I am not coming on here to say that I think UW will win this game. In fact, i’d be surprised if OSU doesn’t win by 2 TD’s. I am a big Badger fan and am realistic. I hope we can pull off an upset this weekend. OSU fans, remember a few names . . . Al Toon, Garrett Graham, and John Clay. You shut them down tomorrow and we don’t have a chance. You let two out of the three have big games and we may have a chance at beating you! GO BUCKY!
Al Toon???? is he one of the Looney Toon brothers??? Tiny Toons???
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4HW7YTWeg20
oops, I meant Nick Toon. Al Toon is Nick Toon’s father who played in the NFL and for UW!
I think you mean Nick Toon, his son (yes, he really did name his son after mid-to-late-90’s nickelodeon shows).
Yep, i am aware. See post above
I’d be surprised if OSU does win by 2 TDs but that’s just the pessimist in me.
Good post, Bucky. But Al Tool will get KILLED if he suits up for the Badgers on Saturday. The man is like 46 years old now, with bad knees. Nick Toon, on the other hand, is more of a threat.
Sorry, I was slow on the draw. Thanks for the correction, Bucky.
Our offensive line scares me. If they can create some room for John Clay to run and allow for us to then create some opportunities to have play action passes, this will be a game. However, the line is not very experienced and our big RT John Oglesby is very slow at times. Could be a long game if the front doesn’t make a push.
not to mention Ohio State’s d-line is “OK”
This just in, saw Herbie doing a preview to tomorrows game on the gameday set by LSU, apparently in the SEC the also tailgate better than anyone else, per Herbie.
herbie also loves him a white out. every time he gives props to the penn state student section a piece of me dies.
He needs to move south…… apparently they brainwash up in Briston, Ct….. he needs to remember why he is relavent in the first place. The Starting QB at a Major D-1 school and his pretty boy looks are the ONLY reason he has that job–he never played in the NFL. Show your daddy some love Herbie.
The intereesting thing will be if somehow it works out that they’ll play an SEC team in Bowl season. Who will he go with? If he picks the Buckeyes, we’ll know who he loves. He used to always go Buckeyes and Fowler would give him a hard time, because Fowler was SEC beore it was cool for everyone to love all SEC.
WHO HERE HAS TAILGATED AT LSU, ALABAMA, GEORGIA, OR FLORIDA?
Are we actually bashing Herbstreit because he thinks LSU has a better tailgating atmosphere?
So if someone came up to Herbstreit and said, “2004 OSU Buckeyes vs the 2008 Superbowl Champion Steelers….who wins?” Herbstreit is supposed to say “2004 Buckeyes every day and twice on Sunday.”
C’mon people.
It is okay to be a homer every now and then but lets not attach that to the man wherever he goes or with whatever he says.
Let the guy have his opinions. He still loves the Buckeyes but he can still be realistic.
And if you remember, he was the only one on the set to pick the Buckeyes in the 2002 NCG.
He picked USC to beat OSU and he was right. Nothing wrong against that.
He gets paid to make those decisions.
That’s why you see Herbstreit on college gameday and the game of the week with Musberger while Speilman is the 3rd man in the broadcasting booth at Northwestern vs Eastern Michigan.
Just being realistic here.
you’re talking to yourself…
Just adding on.
I didn’t bash him, I’m just saying is it really relevant that every time they cover a game he mentions how no one does it better thant he SEC. He was talking the Florida and LSU matchup. He’s not paid to tell us that the 12 schools in a certain region of the US play better football than everyone else, tailgate better than anyone else, and love their team more than anyone else. He is paying millions to be objective, but seems to me he is missing the point. There’s no difference between him and Fowler or Craig James who constantly talk about how great a few schools are. Every week it’s the same thing.
AND, no I’m not advocating him saying the Bucks would beat the Steeler’s. I’m just saying it seems to me that he is affraid to pick against ANY SEC team playing out of conference. So, if South Carolina or Georgia played the Bucks, guess who he’d be picking. Not the ucks.
He’s lost his objectivity and is helping ESPN sell their product now.
Honestly, can you blame him for not picking the Bucks? Of picking any Big Ten school against the SEC?
Ohio State played South Carolina in two straight bowls games.
Result: 0-2.
yeah, that wasn’t like 8 years ago or anything either…
also, schteve bellsscchhhari was “qb”
It’s not that hard to pick any Big 10 team against Any SEC team because the bowl records head to head aren’t that different the last 10 years. OK Ohio State has been beaten but other teams in the conference have had success. Even last year, Iowa pulled it off and Michigan State gave heavily favored Georgia a fight.
I think it’s basically 12-12 the last 10 bowl seasons. However, it loks like especially lately, Don’t pick the Big 10 over a Big 12 team, ouch those are ugly states. .
Okay…be as objective as you can with these matchups:
Lets say all of them are played on a neutral field with no fans. Just an empty stadium.
Going by the rankings of teams, i.e., highest ranked SEC team vs highest ranked Big Ten team. Using Coaches Poll
Ohio State vs Florida
Penn State vs Alabama
Iowa vs LSU
Wisconsin vs Ole Miss
Michigan vs Auburn
Minnesota vs South Carolina
Northwestern vs Georgia
Indiana vs Arkansas
Michigan State vs Kentucky
Purdue vs Tennessee
Illinois vs Mississippi State
How many games does the Big Ten win?
IMO, from what I’ve seen so far from both conferences, Michigan State is probably the only team that would be favored to win their game.
With things being as they are right now, from what I’ve seen I think they’d win 3 maybe 4. Of course that could change as the season goes on, but 3 confidently and 4 maybe. Right now, Ohio State would not beat Florida right now. Of course Florida’s toughest game to this point has been Tennessee so it’s still hard to say how great they are. Bama would kill Penn State, but other than Illinois and Purdue, I think the rest of the big 10 would be in their games ata least.
Buckeye in SC, I don’t think anyone disputes that the SEC has been the best conference for the most part over the last 6-8 years and is the best this year. Rather, Big Ten fans get annoyed when eSECpn acts like the SEC is head and shoulders above all other conferences. With that in mind, a better gauge of whether the Big Ten is within close shouting distance of the SEC is to drop FLA then go down the line:
Ohio State v. Alabama
Iowa v. LSU
PSU v. Miss
Wisc. v. Auburn
Mich v. USC
MSU v. Georgia
Minnesota vs ARK
Northwestern vs Kent
Indiana vs Tenn
Purdue vs Miss St
Illinois vs Vandy
The BT more than holds its own in these matchups, although if the SEC is all superior as some think, they should be able to dominate with teams 2-12.
Run_Fido_Run
So you basically attempted to legitamize the Big Ten by making a crutch for it to stand on.
You threw out Florida.
Why not just make Vandy play every Big Ten team to gauge the Big Ten’s supremacy against the SEC.
You can’t just dump the #1 team in the conference and play it off like that makes everything all better.
Just face the truth…in a head-to-head matchup, the SEC would dominate the Big Ten. Trust me, I don’t like to say that. I live in South Carolina and I can’t stand the SEC. But the SEC would wax the floor with the Big Ten.
Maybe not ten years ago and maybe not ten years from now. But at this very moment, it would be a massacre.
yeah, sorry fido, i’m with SC on this one. you can’t throw out florida, and the big 10 is improving but still isn’t close to the SEC’s overall strength, especially when look at the bottom half of both conferences
One more point then I’m done. What’s so great about objectivity? Lee Corso is very objective but the guy is a moron who acts like a fool every weekend. I’d take Daffy Duck picking Notre Dame every week, who also gets paid a ton to be “Objective”
I’ll admit Lee Corso is getting really REALLY bad. I feel sorry for the guy. He can’t complete a single sentence without losing his train of thought.
the man had a stroke in the off-season… give him a break.
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/news/story?id=4213090
he might be getting alhimers
is this true we are 13-1-1 when we are ranked higher than wiscy when we play them?
I’m not sure, but it seems a little high. For a few decades (Woody), we owned them, but they started to rise up a bit during the 90s and I would have to think that in the last 20 years, there are at least two Wisky wins over us when we were ranked higher.
I am a big Badger fan and am biased towards my Badgers. That being said, I really don’t understand the 16 point spread. OSU fans do you really think 16 points is appropriate? Afterall, Sconnie does play well at OSU.
yeah, 16 seems a bit much, but on the other hand the OSU defense has been absurd the past three games, and our offense seems like it has turned a corner. plus never underestimate the ability of bret bielema to completely screw up a gameplan.
with that said, if our o-line is still hurting from the flu, things could get really interesting on the offensive side of the ball.
sweet sweet cover today. bet the house. its all about match ups and wisky just doesn’t match up.
Anyone get in on this?
Thank you d-line. This d-line is the best since 03′.
One other observation: the middle of the field is wide open and Pryor is still staring down his first read. If teams are going to spy pryor with two Lbs then he has to throw deep middle. However its hard to do when all the routes are outs.
It also seems as if pryor was getting pissed with the play calling.
I think the line is crazy off, and I can’t really tell in which direction. Wisconsin is a tough, tough opponent this year. This isn’t the same imploding Badgers of the last 2 years, this is a team that is focused on doing the small things right, and having that sum up into wins.
One score game, and Wisconsin has a good shot at the upset with such a Buckeye offense that is still maturing.
There is also the fact that Wisky has only won 17 times in the 75 year history of the game.
one score game…? ya wisconsin scores once i agree. blow out today no question.
bucks fan you have either lost your mind or you just need glasses and havent seen these 2 teams play. Wisky has beated trash and in the process thier D hs given up a ton of yards and points.
Indiana has a better Defense than Wisky does if that tells you anything. Hey pick up your laptop and check out the rankins of the two teams since you obviously havent seen a college football game this decade. This line is right and OSU should win by at least 21 points.
i herd this from my old high school coach and he said in every game there are usually 5 plays that make the difference in a game.
wiscy has not been punched in the mouth – yet.
minny gave away that game to them last week.
i liked what terry bradshaw and jimmy johnson said – it all comes down to EFFORT!
we win the turnover battle we win the game this week.
I really don’t understand the concern about this game. Wisconsin has giving up a ton of points this year. Wofford put up 14 points. Ohio State is the best d they have seen all year.
Pryor will have a break out game and throw and run for 350 yards combined.
you know it would be nice to see pryor put it together and hit every pass and be the offensive big ten player he was voted pre-season.
listening to buckeye pregame wns 97.1
Bucky the Badger gets his claws out and attempts to gnaw through the Vest’s nuts (even getting a few bites in) but the nuts of The Vest are strong and Pryor allows his own nuts to drop and scores big
Pryor’s Nuts 34
Bucky’s claws 21