Devin Barclay's 39 yard FG in overtime sent Ohio State to the Rose Bowl. (AP: Mark Duncan)
Running Game Punches Ticket to Pasadena
After racking up 228 yards on the ground last week in State College, the oft-maligned offensive line backed that effort up with another 229 yards rushing against a legit Iowa defensive front seven led by stud end Adrian Clayborn and LB Pat Angerer.Similar to last week, the stout 4.5 yards per carry average is made even more impressive by the fact everyone in stadium knew the run was coming but Iowa could not consistently stop it. Ohio State ran the ball on 75% of their snaps (51/68) with Tresselball in full effect. Hell, even the 17 passes did little to take pressure off the line since they were typically short and wide further encouraging Iowa to crowd the line of scrimmage.
They've been in my cross hairs all year so props to them for stepping up, especially Marcus Hall as he made his first of many starts at right tackle. Funny though, the one lineman getting all the limelight is Jim Cordle yet I can't help but feel he's by far the least responsible for the ground success.
Also, with Pryor obviously still banged enough to force the Wildcat into the playbook, it was great to see Boom and Zoom run with such purpose. I know some of you knock Boom for his lack of big play ability but he was the workhorse carrying a career high 32 times for 97 yards and a touchdown. That's just a 3.0 yard average but he did his part to not only wear down the Hawkeye defense but also to keep Saine fresh which paid dividends as Zoom hit a 49 yard home run and weaved his way 22 yards for another score en route to an 11 carry, 103 yard night. With TP only getting carries by way of scrambles and otherwise being shackled by Tressel, the 43 carries and 200 yards from Boom/Zoom and the o-line stands at the top of reasons why this team clinched a trip to Pasadena.
Tresselball - AKA Anginaball
At the risk of some of you getting all worked up, I don't know how an objective fan can simply look the other way when it comes to evaluating some of Tressel's moves just because OSU was able to escape victorious. I love Tressel and OSU football just as much as the rest of you but I refuse to overlook some warning signs that could eventually be exposed (in the Rose Bowl).Look, I get the magic of Tresselball and buy into its principals but aren't you the least bit concerned that Tressel appears to have little confidence in Pryor? I'm all for minimizing mistakes and keeping Pryor from costing OSU the game but I thought he looked as poised as we've seen him in a first half in which he went 8/11. I only charted one attempt as a poor throw / bad decision which was a 2nd and 8 incompletion over the middle on OSU's second drive. On the following drive that saw OSU tie the score at 3-3, Pryor was a beast going 4/4 including three 3rd down conversions through the air featuring a nice 6 yard slant to Dane (3rd & 5), a well timed and placed 15 yard out to Posey (3rd & 8) then a short 6 yard toss to Saine on 3rd and 3 at the Iowa 24. His only incompletion on the drive was a smart throw away on 3rd and 5 at the 12 yard line. His reward for the excellent play? Seven more attempts over the final 38 minutes.
One series in particular that puzzled me occurred after Iowa's KO return for a TD closed the gap to 24-17 with 10:56 to play. Needing to answer Iowa's counter punch to Saine's long TD that caused a huge momentum swing, the Buckeyes were handed a golden opportunity when Iowa's Daniel Murray booted the ensuing kickoff out of bounds before an Iowa player was whistled for a personal foul giving OSU the ball at the Iowa 45 yard line. It was like the USC game all over again as the golden opportunity was squandered thanks to Tressel's uber-conservatism. The Vest would dial up six straight running plays capped by a 3 yard loss on 3rd and 8 at the Iowa 27. The lost yardage on a play the entire country knew was coming extended the field goal try to 47 yards which Barclay promptly hooked.
Again, I'm just as happy as the next guy that OSU won and I can't think of another coach out there that I'd want in his place but damn does he make it frustrating sometimes. Clearly, Tresselball is good enough to own a bad conference for a decade resulting in 5 straight conference crowns and BCS games out the wazoo but it's hard to fathom this offensive game plan would stack up favorably against a truly elite team. I guess that's a moot point this year considering it doesn't appear they will play one elite team all season.
Dane Does It Downfield
When you play receiver in an offense that only throws the ball on 35% of the snaps (261/730), I would imagine it might be difficult to consistently keep your head in practices and games. Thankfully, OSU receivers have always prided themselves on being excellent downfield blockers at the behest of wide receivers coach Darrell Hazell.This year is no different as the WR's have played a significant role in a rushing attack that his gone for over 200 yards in 7 different games this season. In fact, with another big day on the ground next week in Ann Arbor, this year would mark the first time under Tressel that the Buckeyes have eclipsed 200 yards rushing 8 times in one season.
Of this year's crop of blockers with hands, Dane Sanzenbacher is clearly the most polished and though he had only 2 catches Saturday, he was a major factor in the game. Dane kept his assignment on Saine's shifty 22 yard TD wiggle staying with his man as the Buckeyes took a 10-3 lead and he was even more impressive on Boom's 11 yard TD. Split wide right, Dane locked up his defender and effectively sealed the corner allowing Boom to waltz in untouched giving OSU a 17-10 lead. That particular play was textbook but he wasn't done yet as he helped Saine complete his 49 yard TD jaunt by shielding a defender from the 15 yard line to the endzone. Great stuff from a guy who knows his role and does it well. I wonder if he can play left tackle? (Ok. Sorry. That was probably unnecessary.)
Field Position Football Requires A Punter
Tresselball is a little easier on the ticker if the punter shows up. Maybe that's part of the reason why Saturday shaved a couple years from our lives because clearly Thoma was a no show. In five punts, He averaged just 35.8 yards with none inside the 20. Worse yet, Iowa's average starting field position was their own 41 while Ohio State's average starting field position was their own 26.His night started off with a bang as he flipped the field booting a 48 yarder with no return moving the ball from the OSU 27 to the Iowa 25. He stunk it up from there, however, helping put extra pressure on the OSU defense. Thoma's second put went all of 27 yards giving Iowa great field position at their 43 which they turned into a 32 yard field goal and a 3-0 lead.
After a 38 yarder went without negative consequences, Thoma's next punt midway through the 3rd quarter traveled a meager 31 yards allowing Iowa to set up shop at their own 44. Again, the Hawkeyes would take advantage of the short field with Vandenberg hitting Marvin McNutt for a 9 yard TD to tie the game at 10 apiece.
Thoma's last shank of the day, a 36 yarder that gave Iowa the ball at their own 33 with :52 left, could have been a major problem but thankfully Ferentz is just as conservative as Tressel and opted to run out the clock even though he had 2 timeouts.
I don't know if Thoma even needs to make the trip next weekend but here's to hoping he can get back on track before the bowl game. He's certainly had his share of positive moments this year so at least we know he's capable but Saturday was definitely not his night.
Rough Night for the Corners
Personally, I've been pleased with the performance of Chekwa and Torrence this year though I'm not blind to the fact the defensive line's ability to get pressure has certainly helped the entire secondary look good. Saturday, we saw what can happen if the defensive line doesn't get consistent pressure thus allowing the opposing QB to sit back in the pocket and scan receivers for an extended period.Don't get me wrong, the secondary showed up when it mattered most and eventually took advantage of a freshman QB's mistakes but I don't think you can argue Chekwa and Torrence had a rough night in coverage. Torrence was guilty to a much lesser extent though he did bite on play action allowing DJK to get behind him for a 55 yard completion. Chekwa, however, might have played his worst game as a Buckeye.
He was continuously beaten to the spot especially on slants and he also gave up some big plays as Vandenberg picked on him all night. Iowa's first TD drive saw Chekwa give up the seam on a 32 yard toss to McNutt. Two plays later, the same connection would victimize Chekwa to tie the score although I have to give Vandenberg some credit for threading the needle.
Chekwa's struggles continued especially on Iowa's TD drive to force overtime. First, Chekwa missed an interception, instead tipping the ball as he was hit by Rolle, allowing Iowa's Tony Moeaki to make a 16 yard grab. Two plays later on 2nd and 7, Chekwa was again beaten on a 14 yard slant by McNutt giving Iowa a 1st down at the OSU 13. It only got worse from there as McNutt hauled in a 10 yard fade for a TD over the top of Chekwa who failed to turn and make a play on the ball. As we've seen here and there in the past, Chekwa had good coverage but had no idea the ball was in the air.
As with Thoma, the good news is the Buckeyes survived Chekwa's rough night. Further good news is that we've seen Chekwa play much better than this for the balance of the season so hopefully he can put this one behind him because OSU will need a confident Chekwa come January.
Comments
I believe that Tressel made Ferentz blink in regualtion time. Once Tressel went conservative at the end of regualtion time, Iowa got the ball with good field position and had a time out but payed conservative and lost the game.
Great game. Lets keep foucsed on beating Michigan now.
i agree with everything you typed. cordle is beyond words terrible and tresselball is not a good mindset. think about it and tell me one other major college football head coach who adheres to the same philosophy. there isn't one because they know in order to be a top tier elite program you have to be constantly evolving to run with the big boys...tresselball is the reason ohio state is not a top tier program and anybody who says they are has not been watching them play the best of the best since '06. tressel needs to wash the sand out of his vagina and grow a pair, pryor was on point and he reined him in, i'm glad pryor doesn't have a problem showing tressel he's upset when he won't reward him for making good decisions by giving him more opportunities.
Being critical is fine, but just remember TP is hurt and with a 3rd and long, Tressel (and me) want him to be able to scramble if necessary. That 19 yard run he had when he juked Angerer was beautiful.
Don't look now, but the two headed monster of Boom and Zoom we've been waiting for all season is here! Now all we do is complain that Pryor isn't passing enough when 4 weeks ago half the Buckeye Nation wanted him at WR. I'll take a win everyday over a flashy offense. Win the game, plain and simple.
man... watching the offense run dave plays is horrible.
We honestly need a OC.
I just hope Jim Tressel's ego can allow for this!
Question: Why is boom playing? Why no Jordan Hall? Why 3 straight run plays ever?
NEW POLL QUESTION: If we would have lost the game who would be to blame.
A. Defense
B. Offense
C. Offense Play Calling
D. Special Teams
My vote is on C.
Assuming our KO-coverage does it's job after Saine's huge TD and we're probably not talking about Anginaball.
I'm going to make a new definition on Urban Dictionary for Tresselball. "Tresselball - any and all external actions which express having extremely small testicles and in some cases, inverted testicles.".
p.s. I know we don't want to start any fights in the Rose Bowl parking lot, but can we all get together to tar & feather then stone Gregg Doyel?
So who does everyone want to see in Pasadena?
Stanford?
Oregon?
Arizona?
Arizona is a long shot but I'd take them. Stanford is rolling right now so they are last on my list.
Tressel ran like 10 straight running plays early in the game and they gained like 40 yards. If the run is working, you stick with it.
However, I don't think Tressel took advantage of the play action as much as he could have. With all the running they were doing, to see a beautifully sold play action to Posey or Dane would've been nice.
And is anyone else tired of the read-option that ALWAYS goes to the running back? Everytime they ran that play there was tons of grass open that Pryor could've taken. But it always went to the RB for a 3 yard gain.
oregon would make for a better hyped game...
Place there uni who knows what they will wear.
Buckeye SC: he ran 10 straight running plays right! Did we score?
I keep seeing people type that Tressel reigned in Pryor. I have a question. were the receivers getting seperation? I have not rewatched the game yet, so I do not know the answer to my question. while watching the game live, it seemed as though Pryor had no one to throw to.
Pryor checked down as he should, but to say the coaches reigned him in seems a little arrogant. When i say arrogant, I mean lets give the Iowa defense some credit.
Also, why does everyone think the Big 10 is worse now than it was even 25 years ago? This conference has always been the Big 2 Little 8 (9). I remember Wisky sucked until Barry Alverez showed up. Illinois has always been Illinois, look at Indiana's history. Oh, and Woody was known for taking the Northwestern week off. What would happen now if the Bucks ignored Northwestern for a whole week. I could go on and on about the past Big 10.
When some people refer back to the "good ol'days" I think back to my grandfather walking to school in the snow up hill both ways. It was the same then as it is now.
It's a conference that's clearly down that can't play D for shit. I'll take any of them.
I don't know where to start and for once I am at a bit of a loss for words here..... First, we should all enjoy winning the conference (again) and getting to the RoseBowl--those were the stated goals of this year's team and for that Tressel and company deserve much, much credit-- but, we have to go out and kick the crap out of Michigan next week to keep the Mojo going... (50 anybody?? Woody Style!).
Now here comes the headscratching part... what in the good lord's name is Tressel thinking sometimes????? 4th and less than 1 with a 6' 6" QB and he punts??? Pryor went nutz on the sidelines--- just like USC all over again..????
2 timeouts with over a minute to go in the first half and up by 10--why not throw a few sideline (safe) passes and see if you can get into field goal range, why take the Time-outs to the locker room--the 2 minute time management continues to be a problem. End of the game, Tress runs and runs and runs and then Punts it back to a Hot QB???? Can anyone say Barkley or McCoy or Vince Young?????? Try something, anything to make a first down to kill the clock at the very least,,,, don't give a Hot QB a chance.... Did anyone see what Jack Del Rio did yesterday... He told Maurice Jones Drew if they let you make the TD quick to get the ball back, run to the 1 and take a knee..... and he did. Seems Texas may have let Boom Score quick last year to get the ball back and win... Tress did not have the cahones to tell him to take the knee at the 1 to run some clock down...
Tress sometimes out-thinks himself and most of the opposing Big-11 coaches are not good enough to do anything about it. Play any GOOD team with a good forward thinking coach and now you have a problem (Les Miles, Urban Meyer, Pete Carroll, Mac Brown). Not sure things will change, the formula is there--it just needs to evolve a bit.... think man, think and stop using a the same formula week after week... If WE know its coming, so does the other sideline..... Now its Michigan Week, forget last week--Get amped up and lets go kick the crap out the Wolvereeenies and keep them out of a bowl game!
No but that's my whole point.
run the ball to the point that they aren't considering the pass and then throw in a play action.
And just because you don't score doesn't mean you shouldn't keep running the ball. The defense is going to get to the RB eventually.
Tressel should've used the play action (ala 2006 vs Michigan)
If you got 7 yards running the ball on 1st and ten you know Iowa is thinking OSU is going to run for the 3 extra yards.
That would be the perfect time for a play action. I didn't see it.
So I semi-agree with you.
I take that back: they're not clearly down, it's just that the bully on the block in the Pac 10 is getting the shit kicked out of it. The Pac 10 is comparable to the Big 10 in parity, but they're isn't a D like ours in the Pac 10.
The problem for me in not that Tressel reigned in Pryor. It is the lack of Offensive Creativity, or lack of an actual philosophy. We used the tight end one time the whole game it was great. However, we ran the ball so many times with that same 26-dive play, there was no option, zone option, and sweeps.
We put the slowest guy in to run the ball… I am sorry I think boom heron is a great guy.
Nevertheless, he is not the best back on that roster! TOO SLOW!
There is a lot left to be desired when watching the Ohio State Offense, anyone that is not a classic homer would agree. Even my wife watching the game says, “ why are we running the ball so much” “why is boom running, he is so slow”. These are statements from a 22 year old.
I just wanted to see Ohio State move the pocket let TP decide if he wants to run or pass. I saw it one time it was great, and we never saw that again. He is the best player on the field we should roll out constantly.
On the other hand, we can just hand the ball off to boom 3 times, and punt.
“Hope for a boom td on a 3.0 average per run”
As far as punting on 4th and 1 from our own 30, the Pats went for it at the same spot on the field last night. They didn't get it, and they promptly lost. There were a lot of places where you could question Tressel's playcalling Saturday (running to set up a long field goal on 3rd and 8 or whatever comes to mind), but I think the punt on 4th down was the right call.
But a win's a win. I just hope the team's taking this game as seriously as we are. Fortunately, if there's one thing we can count on Tressel for (other than making the safe play EVERY FREAKIN' TIME), it's having the team ready for Michigan.
I am wondering how hurt Pryor really was for this game and how hurt he has been. The people at ABC were saying he has a bum ankle, turf toe on both feet, a bad hamstring and a cut on his finger. If this is all true do you think this factored in to some of the playcalling because Tressel didn't feel as though Pryor was healthy enough to scramble if needed, or have any desgined runs because he was "banged?" I am just not sure Pryor is healthy, which is why he stuck with the run game.
I thought the turf toe comment was interesting. I could be wrong, but I haven't heard or read that about TP anywhere. Maybe Holly knows something we don't know...
C? seriously.. blame the special teams and defensive staff for not calling up more blitzes.
You can't throw downfield when the receiver just isn't open. Thats how turnovers happen and a single turnover could have cost us this game..
Would I have liked to see one or two more slants or maybe a screen or a few more rollout's with a pass to the RB out of the backfield.. yeah it would have been nice but who knows if it would have been a game changer.. why do you people get so upset that we run the ball if its working.. most coaches would kill to have 230 yards on the ground every game.. You can't blame the offense for this one or the playcalling.. it wasn't THAT bad, yeah ok maybe one or two calls but there was nothing wrong with our offensive strategy.. they put 7 men in the box to take away any real passing threat so you punish them on the ground for it.. thats what we did...
give us back one or two interceptions that should clearly been made by the defense.. a Nathan Williams offsides taken back, a few more blitz packages to counter their quick passing game out of the three step drop that doesn't allow our dline to get pressure quick enough... and a decent punting game on Saturday night and that game would have been a slaughter.. you people are forgetting that IOWA scored just as many points as we did in regulation... how is that our offenses fault?? we would have killed for 24 points against USC, now you are all bitching when you are just uninformed..
true.... As the chant goes... GO BUCKS, BEAT MICHIGAN!!!!!!
I was thinking the same thing... Pryor may be hurt more than we know..... he got to rest the ankle, Hammy, toes, whatever so he can let it hang out vs. Michigan....... Hope the score is way in our favor at the half so Pryor can hit the bench and nurse up his injuries for the Rose Bowl!
Question...
bucknut, i know you are smarter than that...
You think becuase pryor was a little hurt we were conservative?
tell me you really don't think that.
We are that way because tressel is that way, not beacuse anyone
was hurt, if this was the case he wouldn't had let TP run for 19 yards
to set up a touchdown.
Question: why does everyone seem to have a good backup?
We need to recruit better at the backup quarterback postion!
Not, that we are horrible but i think could use some improvement.
wow statements from a 22 year old female that don't make any sense.. seems pretty logical to me..
we were running the ball because it was working.. you would rather have Pryor throw to receivers that weren't open? you would rather have him force the deep ball into coverage like you and many others were lambasting him for earlier in the year? If you paid any attention to Iowa's defense they were doing a very good job of blanketing our receivers the entire game.. the only had 7 in the box.. so you run
and FYI Ballard had 3 receptions, not 1, get your facts straight, we also threw the ball to Saine 3 times..
Pryor is banged up as well, the last thing we need is to run him 15 times a game and risk him hurting his ankle or feet worse than it already is.. you want Bauserman taking snaps?
I'm going to say one more thing here, cause I keep hearing people say
"well the defense knows we are going to run the ball"
well no shit, but does it really matter if it is working?
Pryor is hurt, he was gimpy last week against Penn State, he said so himself.. he talked specifically how he was hobbling when he was running because his ankle was hurting him so badly..
Boom didn't look that slow on his stiff-arming TD run. His problem is he tends to pick one lane and stick with it rather than using his vision.
you are exactly right.. they covered up our receivers like a warm snuggie.. Pryor should be praised for checking down and not forcing those passes which usually end up in Turnover City, as we saw earlier in the season..
Iowa's defense is not getting the credit they deserve for the Stellar job they did on shutting down any semblance of a passing game.. too bad for them that they couldn't stop the run..
Duran,
I don't think it was why he was conservative, believe me I am not defending Tressel on some of the stuff I saw. It was way to conservative and I am the first to say so.
My point was I just think it had a factor into the gameplan a little bit, that is all. I think he is banged up and it led to very few desgined runs, which is a staple to Pryor's success. It was just a thought, not why I thought he was conservative, because he is conservative even when TP is healthy.
Putting aside JT's philosophy, an interesting take today from College Football News on how we, as Buckeye fans, can choose to view our Rose Bowl season:
"If you downgrade the value of the Rose Bowl and the Big Ten title that comes with it, go ahead... but realize that until the BCS system gets blown up (and that won't happen for at least another four years, if not more), you're basically bashing your own conference and longstanding Midwestern football values.
Don't blame Jim Tressel for winning the Big Ten again. Blame the Big Ten - its administration, but also its prevailing football subculture - for the supposedly problematic and unacceptable "success" of Ohio State football in the Tressel era."
If we want credit for beating a good team Oregon, but can we beat them playing this type of game? If we want an easy game Stanford, they will line up and try to run on us like a typical big ten team and we can stop that cold.
I'm sitting there on that 4th and one, and saying to my wife there is no way Florida and Tebow don't go for it here. There is no way Alabama or LSU don't QB sneak it here to get the 1st and win the game. That is why the Bucks can't take out an SEC team, they play conservative to keep the lead and try not to lose, in the SEC you have to attack to win.
Great article...you've very succinctly put into words the joy yet overriding concerns of all Buckeye fans. McNutt, PBBuckeye, et al, we all watch and have the exact same comments. Obviously this works because the opposition is not elite talent. Tresselball without a good punter ? Up by 7 & still playing for the tie (overtime) ? Pryor 14-17 & not letting him throw even a safe pass ? Playing not to lose, instead of playing to win, will eventually catch up to you..& will be very hard to swallow, if you didn't give it your best shot.
PS.
Saw Maurice Jones Drew & thought of Boom & Texas immediately !
Masoli isn't going to singlehandedly beat us. Obviously Oregon is going to show a very wide open running attack. Maybe with the exception of Navy, our D hasn't faced a running game it didn't like.
The bucks won the game but it was an example of what not to do. They couldn't put pressure on a freshman QB, they ran the ball to a fault. I agree it worked most of the game but you need to attack at some point, a proper playaction pass call would have ended the game, just like against penn state. Mistakes let Iowa tie the game, an offsides took away a pick and then a LB with no field awareness knocked a CB off an int that let Iowa continue the drive. Two huge mistakes that let them tie the game. They have much work to do, hopefully the defense kills calista forcier and they can practice for the Rose Bowl next week.
Jeez this is disheartening. I dont care how it was done, we are playing in the ROSE BOWL, and it has been decided before scUM week!!! That is awesome.
And......the Iowa game is in the past. Biggest game of the year this week. It would make scUMs year to pull the upset. I hope TP has a coming out party!!
Oh I forgot about the great punting by our 5th year senior. What happened to the Buchanon kid? I thought he had a rocket leg. Why not let Buchanon punt for long ones and Thoma punt shorties to try to pin them?
Call me a realist. I'm very well aware (like most people here) of JT's philosophy and how it plays out in X's and O's. But, sooner or later (hopefully sooner is January 1), despite Tresselball, it won't "catch up to us." Rather, it'll just click and we'll be on the other end of things. Despite the fact that we did our best to hand the game away on Saturday, I honestly forgot what that feeling after the game felt like. In that moment, stats and what JT did or didn't do really didn't matter.
He's been sick.
Pryor hasn't really been healthy since he started making better decisions with the ball. I think everyone needs to have patience. He was conservative earlier in the year because Pyror made so many bad throws..
I agree with everything you said except the passing game.. Iowa and PSU are two different teams.. just because pa works on one it doesn't mean it was going to work saturday night...
I wasn't there, and the t.v. didn't give wide enough shots to see the coverage, but I thought point 3 on the buckeye football analysis blog Saturday was really interesting. If that's right, and the receivers weren't getting open it puts things in a different light.
We had lots of short passes to RBs and tight ends. That means we were making the best of the coverage situation, something we haven't been able to do previously. In terms of the quarterback, it means:
1) Pryor recognized a bad pass
2) he decided NOT to take it anyway
3) he didn't wait forever on the same receiver and give the D time to get to him
4) he didn't try to scramble when there wasn't a lane and end up down in the backfield.
Instead, he kept looking for another pass that was there until he found it.
For all the ballyhoo about Pryor's 'maturing' those are things I haven't seen him do yet. Maybe it's the gimpy feet that are giving him the patience to wait for the pass instead of forcing things, but it's some of the most promising things I've seen from him this season.
I agree that Chekwa was getting hosed throughout the game, but I don't think he can be blamed for that tipped pass to Moeaki; that was on Rolle, who needs to play more under control. I love his passion and fire, but on several plays Rolle was out of position because he over pursued, and Adam Robsinon burned right past him. Chekwa had perfect position on that pass to Moeaki, and Rolle came firing in and slammed Chekwa in the back. After the play, you could tell Rolle realized he had screwed that pick up, just had Nathan Williams with his oveager and unnecessary off-sides play that nullified the pick-six.
This would have been vintage tresselball, and we would be singing its praises, had Special Teams showed up. Terrible punting, a 99 yard TD coming off of blown kick off coverage, a missed extra point, and Ray-Ray could not break free. Special Teams rebounded in time for Barclay to make the game-winner, but I was not impressed with what should be a strength of this team.
I think it pretty safe to say the Pryor is nursing some injuries and Tressel didn't want him running too much. I believe that's why they went to the wildcat formation on a few occasions. Normally, those would've been qb draws with Pryor. And with the offensive line blocking the way it has been, we should spend more time giving them some props for these last two games against the leagues best two defenses outside of Columbus. Over 200 yards rushing against Iowa is no small feat and to have two backs near or over the 100 yard mark was great. On a day where the defense was not as dominant and the special teams wasn't all that special, I think its safe to say that for once, the offense picked up the slack for the other two.
http://brutusbucknutz.blogspot...
Fair point on the tipped pass. As I was rewatching the game and writing the post, I probably didn't want to give Chekwa benefit of the doubt on that one since he had been toasted so many times to that point. I am amazed he played that poorly because he's way better than what he showed Saturday.
Fa Fa Flunky
Ma Ma Monkey
tressel knew he could win with extreme tresselball enuff with the iowa the team won its over its now Eceryone knows tressel will turn up the o for this game always has so on to important things................ F--- dickrod and the wheisels and the qb named taint lol and their toilet of a stadium and there crying ugly coeds, and there piss and blue uni's and how great is it that after THE BUCKEYES (in what i hope is a one time only jersey look not bad jerseys just not for the buckeyes) disfigure and mame the scum, we keep them from of their hopes and dreams for the season (the fricken motor city pizza pizza bowl!!!! lmao) how great is that people... where is the hate!!!!!!!!! I WANT BLOOD!!! A CURB STOMPING!!! I WANT AN OUTRIGHT BIGTEN CHAMPIONSHIP!!!!!!!!!
I bet everyone on the Rose Bowl Committee was wearing scarlet and gray on saturday afternoon.
They could feel their pockets getting bigger as soon as the game was over.
The OSU horde is going to invade Pasadena.
too bad for them..... no excuses--take your beating like men!
http://www.freep.com/article/2...
I thought TP played well...but I got the feeling a lot of the checkdowns were called to the back or the TE based on how quickly he got rid of the pass.
Cincinnati. I dont like any of the Pac 10 options.
Can't see that happening Brian, especially with the MNC game in Pasadena, the RB commitee will be more than happy to stage the traditional BX/PX matchup.
That being said, I'll take the Bucks over ANY team in the Pac or Big Least. No defense, pure and simple. That is why DickRod won in the BE and why Stanford dropped 55 on SC!
Im with ya, fuck Iowa, fuck the Rose Bowl, it's fuckin scUM week baby, just replay the Biakabuttfuck game on youtube, and the blood starts boilin'.
Thats hilarious, I was thinking the same thing. What a cash grab for the RB commitee this year. Ohio St. in the RB AND the MNC!
-Apologies if this has already been mentioned but Z Boren is a man at fullback. He was pivotal in Booms wildcat juant and he sawed off Pat Angerer's legs on Saine's 49 yard scamper. Angerer was on the ground faster than he's probably ever been.
-I was okay with the playcalling sans the series following the Iowa KO return. That was horrid and indefensible. Outside of that, I was fine with it and I actually thought our last possession in regulation was superbly run. JT milked the clock enough to give Iowa big decision and Ferentz folded his hand. Beautiful. Had we went guns blazen, sure we might have won the game in regulation but we could have easily went 3 and out and given Iowa all kinds of time to get into FG range.
-The national media criticism is shortsighted mostly. The only "disgusting" (to quote Gregg Doyel) thing about the game would have been if Iowa got out with the W. The lead for all of 4 minutes.
Did Rodriguez actually refer to this as a big game? I thought his whole attitude was that it was just another game and didn't matter? I guess a desperate guy will say anything lol.
I know they won't break from tradition it's just my pipe dream. I just don't like the idea that Stanford could be the team. Oregon would be a good matchup and we may get a bit more respect for beating them.
huh...Nick Saban..Lou Holtz..Rutgers coach...the list goes on and on...It took a series of events to get the game tied....some of you guys and the media act like both coaches played for a tie. NO. They decided to take their chances in overtime rather then forcing a mistake. Anyone watch the Florida-Tennessee game earlier in the season? Both coaches esp. Meyer in full Tresselball mode. It happens all the time...only OSU gets signaled out. Butt Wipe Gregg Doyle acts like these two coaches played for a tie...no...they went for the safest. surest way for them. If Pryor had forced an interception and lost, every one of us would have blamed Tressel for taking chances...just like you ALL did after the first half of USC when being aggresive gave USC a shot for a tying field goal,
we didn't lose so your poll is insepid
"but I refuse to overlook some warning signs that could eventually be exposed."
Chris - you know I love your stuff, but I'm a little worried about your memory. Eventually? How about 2005 Texas, 2007 Illinois, 2008 Penn State, 2008 Texas, 2009 USC?
Spot on with the Tressball write up! Yeah, it's a broken record, but c'mon! Time and time again recently, specifically during the big, important games, Tressball either dooms us or close to it. I'm sorry, as a fan I hate watching games like the one on Saturday, especially when you know your team should be destroying the other team. The emotional roller coaster was too much haha. I was gonna step off the edge if another frosh QB came into OUR HOUSE and pulled out a win.
I'll take tresselball over cooperball any day of the week
you don't call a checkdown.. you check down after option 1, which is usually the preferred option isn't open... in fact on a couple of the three passes to saine you could see him looking deep then turning, seeing saine and deciding to fire away.
great post, agree 100%, i'm thrilled with his progression
ta ta toothy
again, explain to me how Tresselball allowed the other team to score 24 points?
Correction... the Pats had 2 yards to go and that's a lot in the NFL. Tress should have went for it. Period. TP gets that 1 yard in his sleep.
Sean-
I will admit being conservative cost them 2005 Texas and 2009 USC. The Illinois lost was due to a poor defense.
The Penn State game last year just plain sucked.
In regards to the 2009 Fiesta Bowl against Texas, the fans kill me. That game was played wide open. Our QB was lining up at WR. In addition to that, the fans claim the the Buckeyes scored too quick at the end. So they [the fans] are upset when Tressel goes for the kill or when he plays conservative. It is a no-win.
damned if you do. damned if you don't. you'll always have critics.
I guess some fans have short memories. USC... USC... US...
Hey, like I said in the other thread, I'm ecstatic to be going to our first Rose Bowl under Tress, but games like the Iowa one doesn't give me much confidence going ahead against superior teams. What's really disheartening is that I know our team talent wise is stacked and could give just about anyone a good game, but with Tresselball we're shackled in one leg. I hope the Rose Bowl will be a different outcome this year.
Sean...
just bad sentence structure on my part...to say I was hungover when rewatching the game and writing this post would be an understatement...I meant eventually as in January 2010...pertaining to this year's team. Trust me, I'm well aware of the dangers of Tresselball and I'm sure I've written the same numerous times over though I usually end up getting the stink-eye from some of the kool aid sippers that confuse giving an honest assessment with not being a fan.
Boom had some terrific runs in short yardage situations. IMO he ran much more effectively on 3rd and short than Saine did. I don't think Hall would have moved the pile the way Boom did a couple of times.
If we had lost all would have a share in the blame.
I'm also pretty sure it was a failed fourth and one call that lost Florida its one game against Ole miss last year. You know, the "make a whiny speech and get a statue of you made" game.
I think he should have gone for it vs USC. Going for it from your own 28... not quite as clear of a move.
The only time that we were conservative that disappointed me was when we had the chance to punch Iowa back in the gut after their TD return and simply ran the ball, including a loss that might well have cost us the FG.
I don't have Tivo so I can't check but it seemed that the corners played well off the receivers a lot and were vulnerable to the slant as opposed to getting beat to the spot. I might not be remembering correctly though.
Ok so I shouldn't have called it a checkdown. Some of the swing passes to the backs I can almost guarantee were the call.
I beg to differ on the passes to the backs. TP looked downfield for all of .5 seconds before turning and firing for the back. While wishful thinking would say that was progress, he did it 5 or 6 times, and so quickly that I don't think at his level he had time to survey the field.
To make it more apples-to-apples, say it was the SEC championship, same point of the game and the same score. Still think Meyer would have gone for it? I'd be willing to take the opposite side of a bet on that.
I think it was a little bit of both. The corners were off the line in some situations but in others, especially the 3rd and mediums, I saw Chekwa on the line but simply giving up the inside. Almost like he was worried about getting beat deep on a fade.
It happens. Florida has a great secondary and they got toasted on even worse breakdowns when they played Arkansas.
Fair enough.
I agree with the post that stated that the D-line has helped the corner's tremendously this season. Torrence is a good athlete, and will have a shot at the NFL by the time he's done here. Chekwa, not so much. He is a decent tackler, but seems very inexperienced in coverage, hence never turning around to see the ball. Teams will continue to pick on him, i'm afraid. Coleman & Hines are terrific, and clearly the strength of the secondary. As for the ultra conservative play calling — don't you know that Tres didn't want to show anything for the Michigan game?!
How about we all slow down about jumping on the Pac-10? OSU lost to a team that has been beaten by a combo of about 70 points in Pac-10 play. So if Oregon and Stanford beat the hell out of USC and the bucks lose to them AT HOME, Where does all your confidence come from? Just curious.
Let's just admit that we are lucky to be in Pasadena and hope that we actually show up against a good non-conference opponent. That would be my first worry personally.
If we win in Pasadena we will be 1-6 against non-conference ranked opponents in our last 7 games. Not exactly a record that screams we are gonna beat anyone they put in front of us.
We don't have a good backup because we're not a "pass first school". Heck some days we don't even throw the ball enough for our starter to get in a groove. It's just who we are. TP is a great kid, a great athlete, and I hope he progresses into a great QB. However when you only aveage 21 attempts a game it's hard to get 1 great QB to commit let alone a good QB to ride the pine.