Tressels, Fickells and Urbans,
It doesn't matter what their record is...these guys are not the "little bananas" or the "Christmas jammies."
During the 2007 season, Ohio State played at Minnesota and the Golden Gophers really outdid themselves playing in their all-yellow uniforms. Minnesota looked absolutely silly and played terribly. They were awful. The score was 30-7 and during the Tressel-era, that kind of score was considered a blowout. (In the Urban-era, 30-7 is a poor showing for the Buckeyes.) The Golden Gophers looked like little bananas.
Last weekend, my mom said it looked as if Maryland was playing in their Christmas jammies. Again, the all-red uniforms were silly and the Terrapins were horrific. Maryland is just a bad team...and from this day forward, they are now the "Christmas jammies."
Even though their record this season would suggest otherwise, Michigan State is not the little bananas or the Christmas jammies. After waiting for 7 consecutive weeks, Michigan State finally got their first Big Ten win last weekend. They've had some bad losses this year, but there's plenty of history with Sparty that will keep Ohio State fans up at night.
In my opinion, Ohio State should have won the national championship in 1998 and 2015...but, Michigan State ruined those chances. OSU was the only team in the country that could have beaten Alabama in the championship game last year...as proof, the NFL is now littered with amazing talent from that Buckeye team. The 1998 team was also loaded but had one slip-up against MSU. Some may point to the 2013 Buckeye team, also...but I don't think Ohio State would have won the national championship that season after losing to MSU in the Big Ten Championship Game...the OSU defense was not strong enough to win it all.
Darth Dantonio has been the only one who can stop Ohio State during Urban's tenure...and the thing is - he was on the light side of The Force during his 2002 national championship stint as an assistant at OSU...before he turned to the dark side. And, lately he's been Urban's father at the worst possible moments.
So, I'm anticipating this is a tougher challenge than it should be...just because its Michigan State.
I do hope OSU keeps building on all the momentum of the last few weeks. Lots of great changes to the offense and the players are showing some growth. Keep in mind, over half of the entire Ohio State roster has freshman eligibility. I'm assuming the Buckeyes are the least experienced team in Division I football (I still call it Division I). But, there's a ton of talent on the team.
I would love to see one of the more decisive Ohio State victories in recent years against Michigan State this weekend...and keep building momentum in November!
Touchdowns: Mike Weber, JT, KJ Hill, Curtis Samuel, Curtis Samuel, Noah Brown, Malik Hooker
OSU 49 MSU 20
Go Bucks! Beat MSU! Dante Booker for Heisman!
Girthy Pappy
