Thursday Skull Session

By Jeff Beck on November 15, 2012 at 6:00 am
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Happy Wisconsin week Thursday. I couldn't be more excited to get Buckeye football back on my moving picture box this weekend. 

Let's get to it.

A SPECIAL GROUP. Dan Wolken of USA Today has a nice write-up on the state of these 10-0 Buckeyes. The article has a brief rundown of last year’s scandal, the early months of Meyer’s coaching career at OSU, and ruminates on what a 12-0 season would mean for this team in the history books.

The piece paints an interesting picture of last season as well as the early days of the 2012 campaign.

This from LB Etienne Sabino about last year:

"On and off the field, it was rough. You didn't know what was going on week to week or who was going to play or who was going to be suspended or whatever. It felt like a dark cloud was over us."

A dark cloud indeed. I’m of the camp that believes Meyer was the only hire that would have removed that cloud. Bring on anyone else, and this team might be going through some of the same tribulations.

Meyer’s influence was immediate and he went to work right away:

"I didn't know these guys. So we just grinded them as hard as we could in January, February and March and I started having conversations with them in early summer because I started to really appreciate who they were."

Once he found out who his players were, he learned he had a special group:

"Here's a group of kids that had nothing to do with nothing, came to Ohio State for a lot of reasons but mainly because they love Ohio State and they gave their life to this place, so they deserved the respect of the underclassmen to play as hard as they can for these seniors. I didn't know that in January."

It’s hard to say how another team would have reacted to this same situation. Obviously USC was largely able to stick together through their bowl ban, but it truly takes a unique mix of leadership and drive.

Undefeated or not, I think this squad will always hold a special place in fans' hearts. At a time when it might have been easier to mail it in, this group has given their all (think Purdue comeback).

That’s special stuff folks.

TAKE MY GOOD HAND. Ask any fan outside of the Big Ten who Ohio State’s key offensive players are and many would start drawing a blank beyond Braxton Miller and Carlos Hyde.

That’s because big plays from additional personnel have been few and far between. Making everyone else a household name on the scoring side of the ball is Meyer’s end goal. But how does he think he can make it can happen?

Through players doing what they're supposed to, of course. Just read Meyer’s response to Philly Brown’s 37-yard catch against Illinois:

Jobin'Philly just doin' his job. (Kerry Coombs also pictured).

“Well, that’s his job. I’m trying to develop that with everybody, that it’s not a big deal."

“It’s like an offensive lineman who blocks a three technique (defensive lineman) — it’s what you go get your scholarship to do. Catch a 3-yard curl, make a guy miss, beat another guy and go.”

Fostering that type of lunch pail mentality is exactly why Meyer ignored Brown's sideline "praise fishing" after the aforementioned catch. 

“I think it’s a mindset we’re trying to develop here that it’s not great, that it’s, ‘Nice job, Philly, move on to the next play,’ as opposed to, ‘Oh, my gosh, what a play. It wasn’t that good; it’s just what you’re supposed to do.”

Gotta love this kind of stuff from a head coach.

HATING EQUALLY. The shared animosity between Ohio State and Wisconsin has really blossomed of late.

Philly Brown came out and said Wisconsin is number two on his biggest rivals list, and the meetings over the last few years have certainly fueled that fire.

From the win in Madison in 2008 to the only loss of the 2010 season, the matchup with the fighting Bielemas has been wildly competitive. Throw in this and the below quote and we've got something shaping up this Saturday:

"I can tell you this, we at the Big Ten don’t want to be like the SEC—in any way, shape or form." -The Bielema in response to Meyer's "questionable"  recruiting tactics

AHHH it's got “good one” written all over it, don't ya think? So tell me, do you have hatred for Wisconsin? Is it venturing into Michigan territory?

I'LL JUST LEAVE THIS HERE. More of this on Saturday? Want.

Stop it

LINK A ROOS. Perfection within reach for Ohio State... This had to hurt... Horse fears are real fears... The best goal in soccer history?... Hey Chipper, no one wants to see that, for real.

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