Jim Weber gives four reasons why he sees the Buckeyes undeserving of Athlon's No. 6, USA Today's No. 8, and Phil Steele's No. 11 rankings.
Raise your hand if you think the Buckeyes will survive vs. Cal (9.15), at Michigan State (9.29), vs. Nebraska (10.6), at Penn State (10.27), at Wisconsin (11.17) and vs. Michigan (11.24) with just one defeat? In my mind, OSU will be fortunate to split those games and go 9-3 in Meyer’s first year.
#1: Braxton Miller’s Passing
#2: Wide Receivers
#3: Offensive Line
#4: Linebackers
Can't say I disagree with him about our weaknesses. But the addition of an actual QB coach and Miller's reported workouts with the WRs lead me to think #1 and #2 will be 100 degrees better than last season. I'm predicting 10-2 this season.
BTW Weber begins the piece by saying:
In the brutally long buildup to college football each summer, an offseason hobby of mine has become picking out a team that is wildly overrated as an indictment of preseason polls.
Last season's pick -- Notre Dame.
ummm....how long are we supposed to keep our hand raised? I'm getting strange looks.
When told OSU set school record for 50+ games this year, UFM said "That's good. We're gonna break that next year."
No biggie. Like I, and many others have said, try not to blame the players too much for last year's disaster of a squad.
* No head coach
* Literally zero leadership
* Incompetent Offensive Coordinator
* This guy was worse than not having a coordinator. This guy literally set this team up to fail due to his playcalling and ineptitude at developing an offensive gameplan -- my Michigan friend at work is convinced that Bollman intentionally sabotaged our squad with his play-calling out of bitterness of Tressel being fired -- he has told me repeatedly that there is no way anyone on this planet could be as incompetent as Bollman demonstrated last year, and that it had to be intentionally done. That really says something to me when folks outside our fanbase say things like this and mean it.
* Incompetent Offensive Line Coach (in fairness this had been a constant for 10 years)
* No one on staff qualified to coach QBs
* True Freshman QB with no coaching (see aforementioned bullet point) once spring ball ended and Tressel was fired.
* Young, inexperienced WRs with a first year receivers coach.
* Numerous suspended players throughout the year.
* Very young, inexperienced defense.
Given all of these facts, I think we're in for a significant improvement. Our squad was literally in the category of RichRod @ Michigan bad, so I'm not surprised that people have low expectations for us -- they haven't seen any reason for us to improve yet because they don't follow the team like we do.
They make very legit points. My big sticking point is that we were in every game towards the end last year. This was largely due to the defense. If we had any sort of creativity on offense, our record would have been different. We get that this year. The defense also gets better (best defensive line in the country, skilled+raw LBs+experienced secondary). Our wins will go up lol.
I gotta agree witht this. I'd be STUNNED if OSU comes out of that schedule with only 1 loss. More than likely, they will pick up 2 from that gauntlet.
Cal, win.
MSU, close: their defense is good, but I think we'll put pressure on the QB early and often.
Nebraska: revenge is sweet a la Wisconsin last year.
PSU, win.
Wisconsin: close, depends on how good Danny is at QB. Remember, we stopped Montee Ball quite effectively last year.
Michigan: our bowl game. Meyer lays down the law.
I'd say MSU and Wisc are our best chances at loosing. 1-1 out of those two for me. UCF could be a trap game.
As long as we beat Michigan and show marked improvement from last year, I am to overly worried about how many others we lose.
I'm guessing 2 or 3 losses TOPS though.
I'm gonna say 10-2, with a very close loss at MSU and one other game where we just don't show up (i.e. purdue in previous years)
But of that guantlet, i could see us getting through with 1 loss and if Urban has the guys ready for MSU (most challenging) i could even see us getting through unscathed. Unlikely, but possible
Sorry Urban, Woody is still my favorite
If we went 9-3 and beat UM, I'd be okay with that.
Help is on the way.
I'm looking for 10 wins, a win over scum, and improvement in the passing game from Miller and the receivers. If we do that, I call it a successful season because that will start enticing the 2014 recruits. It will show Meyer has turned things around.
@Renewal, you picked up on something that I noted as well. UCF is going to give us much more of a contest than Cal.
The other thing to keep in mind... As long as injuries aren't a factor, these guys are going to get better as the season progresses. I'm less worried about Penn State and Wisconsin than I am about Michigan State and Nebraska.
#fistpumpgobuckeyes
There's a reason Phil Steele named UCF ~#15.
IMO, Cal will be an even, if not better, opponent when compared to last season's Miami Hurricanes. Cal faces USC, Stanford and Oregon each year, have recentley played Michigan State (OOC) and Miami Fla and Texas in Bowl Games ....Doubt they'll be intimidated/lay down to the Buckeyes.
Cal will have a good OL, quick RB's, good TE and skilled WR's. They will bring a big DL and a LB corp that usually produces NFL draftees.
If OSU goes into that game with any sense of entitlement, they will be in for a long afternoon.
I doubt anybody on OSU is going to go into any of the games with a sense of entitlement, considering the season we had last year. Especially at the time of the cal game, where they will still need to prove to everyone that OSU football is back
Sorry Urban, Woody is still my favorite
I think it's a little hasty to project us as high as some of these publications have. I mean, clearly I think this team is capable of doing very well this year...especially with a relatively weak schedule. I wouldn't be so bold as to go out on a limb with a largely unproven team if I'm a reputable publication and put them as high as 6 or 8 or whatever. I'd possibly have them just outside the top ten and list them as a dark horse (for what, I know...bans and such) or a surprise team this fall if I feel that strongly about their potential.
kinda hard to say what the 18 to 22 year olds playing for Ohio State will be thinking come gameday. I believe the 4 arrests this summer is proof enough that focus isn't "always" there.
note: the guy who runs lostlettermen is a Michigan alum, fwiw
"You win with people." - Woody Hayes
Well that explains alot^^^^^^^^^^^^ Says OSU is overrated but what about his own team...??? We'll see what happens in 31 days against Alabama...that will tell the tale on tTUN.
"There's nothing that cleanses your soul like getting the hell kicked out of you."
"I love football. I think it is most wonderful game in world and I despise to lose."
Woody Hayes 1913 - 1987
His analysis is legit, I wouldn't be surprised with anywhere from 1 to 3 losses. Also, he admits that Michigan is "also seriously overranked at No. 7."
This team will be very very physical in every game this season and i think that will play a big part , along with their schedule, in them going undefeated. not etched in stone but very possible.
O H I O is the Buckeye State
*Raises hand*
Cal? Unless they're much improved from needing OT to beat Colorado, I'm more worried about UCF.
Our Buckeyes lost 7 games last year by 50 total points, with 5 conference losses by 25 total points. That's why I think this team can easily win 10 or 11 games. Teams that go 6-7 don't often lose each game by an average margin of just over 7 points. I'd be more worried if there were more double digit losses with Braxton as the starter. Last year's team was in every conference loss plus the Gator Bowl, and in some cases, beat themselves just as much as the opposition beat them.
Just the sheer change in culture that Urban brought in will have to be good for 2-3 more wins, and then you throw in better offensive system, conditioning system, etc. - yeah, to me, 9 wins isn't fortunate. Anything less would be very unfortunate.
Class of 2010.
The more I look at Phil Steele's assessments, the more I think he's the best cfb analyst out there. I think his No. 11 ranking is right on the money. This team belongs in the 10-15 range ranking-wise.
#fistpumpgobuckeyes
Is UCF really going to be all that motivated after their recent sanctions?