Bear with me. Is the D playing poorly on occasion because they know the offense can go score crazy? Remember last year when Tebow became the starter in Denver. Suddenly, the Broncos had an iron curtain D. Well, that was because they knew if they didn't play lights out, they were going to lose because the O couldn't put up points. Also their kicker started going straight crazy with his late game heroics. He knew he couldn't miss because a field goal was extremely valuable. Isn't the same thing happening now but in reverse? The D knows the offense can score so they are as not mentally sharp as they should be. Also, I am worried that the missed chip shot field goal from straight down the pipe could come back to haunt us when we need a game winner.
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A high scoring offense will typically always lead to more points for the other team, that I can agree with. But NOT 49 points, that does not fit the typical few extra points do to lax play by the D.
I disagree on that being the issue. If that is the issue then the coaches need to start going off on these kids and playing other kids that want it more. Really though i don't see The staff allowing these kids to do things like that. I think what it really comes down to is what previous people have mentioned before time and time again. 1.) Our scheme has been horrible against the teams we are facing. We don't seem to be making good adjustments to combat whats coming at us. This defense was designed to stop the big ten teams of old that run I formation and run it at you with a little play pass sprinkled in. Hence a good showing against MSU. Now the big ten is evolving and a lot of teams are moving to a spread to compensate for their lack of talent against teams like our's. We need to evolve as well. 2.) The final issue is our fundamentals. This is a big problem nationwide actually. I watched a bit about it on college football daily where they talked about poor tackling and poor angles being an issue with a lot of teams around the country. They even had a video to show all the piss poor tackling this year with a lot of teams. These things are coachable and fixable let's just hope the players respond better. Lets also hope the coaches become better at in game adjustments to take away what the other teams are throwing at us. This is just my opinion though I could be wrong.
I refuse to believe or accept that as a valid reason for Indiana putting up 49 points or Nebraska putting up 38.
While I don't believe that the offense's scoring is the main cause of the defensive woes, I do believe it is a contributing factor that, when added to poor scheme and fundamentals, leads to a few more points on the board.
I believe we had somewhere between 32-36 minutes TOP. That was not the issue here.
Never said anything about T.O.P. It was "good" against Indiana. But let's face it, if the defense knew it absolutely needed a stop against Indiana because they knew the fate of the team depended on it, I think they get the stop. That's what happened in the low scoring MSU game.
Sometimes it's easy to get the attitude that says, "hey, we're up by 14, I'm not going to blow this coverage on purpose, but if they score again I know Brax will turn on the jets and get us another TD."
If that was the case then why did they walk away from that game looking like they lost? Travis Howard even said the goal was to hold those guys to a TD. And were completely caught off guard with how many points those boys actually put up on them.
All I'm trying to do is come with with another reason why they might be giving up so many points. It can't be a physical issue (especially against Indiania who clearly have lesser athletes), so maybe it's more mental than we know. I'm sure the coaches are coaching fundamentals like crazy during practice.
I see what you are trying to say, but I just don't buy it.
I keep coming back to the "4-6 seconds of relentless effort" comment. Could that really be the core issue of this defense?
No not at all. I remember Florida and other elite teams of the past blasting teams by 70+ and only giving up less than 20pts. It all comes down to having great defense like coach said. We need to get this defense fixed ASAP! Its a combination of effort, coaching, and tackling...
Stay tuned for my new post "is my girlfiend TOO sexy?"
I went to two games in the mid 90's as a kid... Rice and Pitt... I believe Rice was 70-0 and Pitt was 72-0... a lot of points means nothing in terms of impacting the way your defense plays, our defense this year is just down right terrible.
Haha. I like the joke, but there is a connection there. Scoring a ton of points makes the other team need to constantly score and move the ball. Having a sexy gf makes other dudes want her that much more so they pull out all the moves to woo her.
That '96 team pitched 3 shutouts, 72, 45, and 48 to zip...what I wouldn't give for that.
I think Oregon can make this claim and it holds a little water, but their scoring drives are typically like 2 minutes. If that.
My view of the defense at this point in the season is that 1) some, not all, lack true effort; 2) there seems to be a certain degree of "laziness" -- like they know this year that the O can actually score this year vs. last year and the D is relying on that; 3) poor coaching. I refuse to believe that a D cannot defend agains teams that throw the ball. We continue to get abused down the middle of the field and there is NEVER a D player in the middle of the field. There seems to be little in-game adjustment. Further, outside of the MSU game, we don't seem to actually have a defensive game plan against our opponent. We knew IU would be slinging the ball left/right yet there seemed to be little blitzing on the QB. Are our front 3-4 that weak they can't break through IU's o-line? Really??? IU's o-line!!??? If players are too injured to be effective, sit them and put in the back up. Not like the starters are doing anything anyway. At least then you have a legitimate excuse -- young, inexperienced player. And I'm sorry, but WTF is going on with Simon?? He's been invisible most games. Again, if he's injured, sit him. Outside of the MSU game and the end of the Nebraska game, he doesn't seem to be lighting it up. For me the only players really giving it their all seem to be Roby, Howard, O. Johnson, Shazier and Hankins. 4 out of 11 ain't going to get it done.
Good to know I'm not the only one who has noticed this...
There will be adjustments made from week to week. If it is a quick strike offense that normally wears down a defense as they get right back on the field. Unfortunately the D does not look to have enough depth to get a starter a breather.
I can not, nor will i accept... that an OSU defense would willingly & knowingly sandbag... just because the offense is putting up big scores. I'm amazed a fan would actually think this.
To the OP: NO.
Also, does anybody really think Coach Meyer would put up with sandbagging players or coaches?
I think the title needs a tweak! Despite your argument, no offense can score too much. Unless you are trying to lose!
Plus, when the offense wasn't scoring a ton, the defense was still ugly. Your theory works over the last 2 weeks but how do you explain the terrible D the 5 weeks before?
Oregon doesn't really get into shootouts with mediocre teams they usually score 60 and keep them around 30 they do not have an elite defense but a solid one. And if the d thinks like that kick their asses off the team that is laziness
Wherever you are, there you be!
I love the way the offense is playing but the defense is definitely an issue. If you aren't giving it your all then you shouldn't be playing. What I wouldn't give to have this offense and the defense of the Tressel Era
Buckeye Nuthouse Member 2011-13 season
Block "O" 2012 season
I have looked at the numbers trying to figure out if there really is that big of a difference in this year's "high speed" offense vs. last year's "in reverse" offense re: TOP, #of plays, etc. The numbers are surprisingly not that different. TOP is almost exactly the same. Number of offensive plays is up about 6 plays per game (which is about 9%). So the defense isn't on the field for more time. They certainly aren't on the field after as many 3 & outs as they were last season.
Tough to put a finger on the struggles, but I feel it's a combination of new coaches, new schemes, injuries, lack of continuity in the lineup from week to week and overall poor play. Poor play is the biggest part of that recipe.
vacuuming sucks
Can we stear this away from the sandbaggin angle? Definitely did not mean to imply that. What I would like to imply is the mentally involuntary response to the fact that the offense is scoring more so subconciously players think it's less important to get stops on every drive.
We, as humans, naturally act this way. Ex: You have a 18-4 edge in cornhole against a newbie and his horrible girlfriend. Do you really try as hard as when you are down 20-19 to your best friend? Applies to everything in life really.
If I'm up 18-4 in cornhole to anybody, I try to put the bag in the hole and end it.
Tackling (or lack thereof), bad persuit angles, and the inability to get off blocks are the 3 biggest problems I see in the defense. The type of passing offenses have exposed the weaknesses in terms of personel (LB/DB). We forget this team shut down Michigan State almost completely; however, Indiana is a worse matchup (worse players, but man they had fast WRs).
The 3 problems I talked about aren't really "talent" issues. I think it is either lack of mental toughness, laziness, or just wanting to make the "big hit" that is causing these things to happen. I think they can be fixed no matter how bare the cupboard is at LB.
Don't give up... Don't ever give up.
Casual gaming vs Cut-Throat sports is NOT a valid comparison. Try rolling your 20-sider to see what you can make up next.
Since when is NCAA athletics cut-throat? I was just trying to relate the circumstances to an every day experience and say that no human is immune to these tendancies. More so if you are 18-19 yrs old and still learning about the type of person you will become.
LOL, go back & rewatch the indiana game. Look carefully at the expressions of the players towards the end, & compare it to THIS... see if you are capable of drawing your own conclusions.
I don't know. The kid on the far right of that pic looks ready to run across and shove that football into someones throat to win. So how does this relate to whether we are scoring too much?
Doesn't that woman know that the best players throw a helicopter bag?
Off topic, back to the original intent: The defense is subconsciously taking the offense for granted.
yeah the offense is scoring way too much, imo i think after they score 14 points, they need to shut the offense down until the next game, just take a knee the rest of the game ya know, just shut it down. lmao