Still upset about the Illinois game? Ross from Along The Olentangy breaks down both the Buckeye offense and Illinois defensive game plan from last week's showdown in his post. As usual, great stuff. His write-up puts some perspective on the OSU strategy and some of the reasons the game was closer than most fans wanted. Even if you're not an "Xs and Os" type of guy, Ross can give you some insight that goes over the head of most fans who watch the game.
Speaking of the Illinois game, if you didn't notice it in Jason's forum post, Zach Boren was named the Jim Parker offensive lineman of the week. What's that, a fullback was named the team's best lineman? Yep, that's right, and Zach certainly made a name for himself last Saturday, especially in the fourth quarter. The younger Boren paved the way for Boom Herron to carry the team to victory and it's final touchdown in closing out a 24-13 victory against the Orange Crush. This kid continues to impress, and while we'd love to see him more involved in the passing game, we'll certainly be happy as long as 44 is taking out defenders for Boom, Zoom, Berry, and Hall all season long.
Looking forward to Indiana, BSB takes a look at last year's match-up in Bloomington, a game in which the Bucks prevailed by a score of 33-14. You won't see Duron Carter scoring through the air in this year's version, but you may see similar results from the Buckeye ground game, which put up 219 last season against the Hoosiers. In case you missed it yesterday, Joe has a solid breakdown of the 1981 clash between the two teams as well.
Chappelbombing. That's the new term created by MGoBlog's Brian Cook attributed to the Indiana aerial assault. Brian takes a look at the rest of the Michigan opponents and their chances of "Chapplebombing" the Wolverines in the post. I think most teams will take advantage of UM's weak secondary and will be using plenty of aerial attack when they play the Maize and Blue. Having trouble in a 42-35 win with IU last weekend, what will happen when Michigan faces "little brother" MSU and their talent-balanced offensive and defensive units?
Stalk high school kids? We don't either too much, but if you're wondering about how future Buckeyes are performing lately, check out this report. While the guys in the fold appear to be pretty solid, it will be interesting to see who fills out the remaining spots in the class of 2011. Top targets on the map are DB Jabari Gorman, LB Connor Crowell, LB Ejuan Price, OT Aundrey Walker, LB Anthony Wallace, DB Doran Grant, WR Shane Wynn, and DB Damian Swann, among others. Stay tuned as official visits unfold throughout the season and we have a better idea of who's in the mix.
Enough of this Blake guy already. Just when you think it's over, it appears former UNC assistant coach, John Blake, had contact with Ndamukong Suh's family last season. Reportedly, call logs show Blake had contact with agent Gary Wichard within minutes of talking to the Suh family, suggesting some shady dealings between the parties. Blake has denied steering any players to Wichard, a blatant lie in my book, considering his lawyer admitted to taking money from the agent while on the Carolina coaching staff. Getting your own players involved in trouble is one thing, but sniffing around in other programs? Just plain wrong. I hope Blake made a ton of money off his Wichard scandal, because it's a longshot he'll ever get a coaching gig again
Finally, moving off football (for now), some Thad Matta fluff from Paul Daugherty of SI.com. Daugherty touches on how Matta has done a fabulous job building the OSU hoops program through many challenges including losing a bunch of players early to the NBA. He may not win a championship while in Columbus, but just like Jim Tressel, I think Thad is a coach that will go down as a Buckeye legend and will be appreciated years after he leaves the school. What this guy has done to turn around the team from the O'Brien mess and build a program set up to be among the nation's best year after year is incredibly impressive. Thank you Thad-keep doing what you're doing.
