Eleven Warriors

I think we've settled on a name for this feature and while I'd like to still pay homage to Brian @ MGoBlog for pioneering the blog film study concept, sharing the same name was making my stomach hurt.

Though the offensive performance against Purdue was enough to put anyone to sleep, if you want to relive any of it, here it is in all of its glory. Two things really stood out to me: the number of times the offense lined up in an unbalanced set and the fact that this team pretty much cannot run the option to the right side of the field when Rehring is in the game.

I think I can only recall seeing Saine in on one play and with Flash and Rasta returning kicks, you have to wonder if the hamstring is still getting to him or if there's something else entirely.

If you're looking to cure insomnia, read on.

14:43 - 12:53 1st Quarter, Punt
LoS	Down/Dist	Formation	Type	Player	Yards
OSU-36	1/10	I-Form	Run	Wells	1
Pitch right to the strong side of the line (but the short side of the field) and the ROLB comes from across the field to make the stop on Beanie at the line of scrimmage. The linebacker, Heygood, was Boone's guy, but he got a great read and Boone didn't even have time to get to him. Browning did a great job of moving his man to the sideline (+1). Nice block out of Person as well (+.5).
OSU-37	2/9	Pistol Loaded: Twins	Pass	Robiskie	8
Throwing out of the pistol, the line does a pretty good job of protecting -- but then again, Ballard and Beanie were kept in to block, so they should win the 7 on 4s. Purdue is playing zone and Robo makes a nice catch on an out pattern (+.5). Pryor shuffles his feet when throwing, but the ball had good touch and velocity (+.5).
OSU-45	3/1	Goal Line	Penalty	Person	-5
The Buckeyes come in with a goal line set featuring Smith, Lukens, Ballard and Andrew Miller in a #83 jersey (??) in to block for Beanie before Person's false start penalty negates a promising play (-1.5). Should seniors still be getting whistled for false starts?
OSU-39	3/6	Shotgun: Three Wide	Pass	Wells	0
Purdue takes advantage of the penalty to get their dime unit on to the field and the safety makes a good break on a screen pass to Beanie. Brewster had a little bit of trouble getting out to his guy and didn't get a hand on his guy (-.5) or the play could have gone for big yardage. Pryor needs to put a little more zip on that ball (-.5).
Drive Notes: The Buckeyes were unable to take advantage of Flash's long return when they shot themselves in the foot the first time they ran into a third down. I think if you go back and look at the first seven games, there have probably been close to a dozen drives that were killed by mindless penalties on the offensive line.

8:51 - 6:29 1st Quarter, Punt
LoS	Down/Dist	Formation	Type	Player	Yards
OSU-18	1/10	Shotgun: Three Wide	Run	Pryor	21
Rehring checks into the game at right guard. Pryor fakes a handoff to Beanie and keeps the ball around the right end. Browning moves Heygood to the other side of the field (+1), while Brewster whiffs and doesn't block anybody (-1). Pryor makes a nice cut and then gets extra yards at the end of the run from running through one tackler and stiff-arming another (+1).
OSU-39	1/10	Shotgun: Three Wide	Pass	Posey	23
Safety Dwight Mclean comes untouched off of the edge, but Pryor fakes him out of his shoes, buying time before looking up field and finding Posey crossing (+1) for a another first down. Good zip on a throw against his body.
OPP-38	1/10	Shotgun: Bunched TE	Run	Wells	4
Rehring is in at right guard and proceeds to not tackle anyone on the play (-1) run right behind him. Beanie still finds a decent hole thanks to a nice block from Brewster (+.5) and he gets four tough yards.
OPP-34	2/6	Shotgun: Bunched TE	Run	Pryor	-2
This is an option play, but Rehring is pushed five yards into the backfield by Heygood (-1). At this point, Pryor has to make something out of nothing and is dropped backside for a loss. Browning did his best to match Rehring, getting blown back four yards himself (-1).
OPP-36	3/8	Shotgun: Four Wide	Pass	Posey	INC
Pryor got decent protection, but hurried the throw a little, missing Posey (-.5).
OPP-36	4/8	Field Goal	Penalty	Bench	-5
Ah, that sweet, sweet fake that was killed by a delay of game, but still tipped off to Purdue and effectively killed for the season. A.J. Trapasso is angry.
Drive Notes: Two big plays to start the drive and move it into to Purdue territory amount to nothing as some blocking breakdowns (see the Rehring Effect in the photo below) and an errant throw kill the drive. I liked going for the fake at the end of it, but that play has to get in sooner.

5:02 - :57 1st Quarter, Field Goal
LoS	Down/Dist	Formation	Type	Player	Yards
OSU-37	1/10	I-Form: Twins	Run	Wells	16
With Rehring now in at right tackle and Cordle in at right guard, the Buckeyes run Beanie left for good yardage. Boone gets a great block (+.5) and Smith ate up Heygood with the lead (+1). From there, Wells bounced it to the outside and stiff-armed Mclean (+1) to get an additional five yards on the play. Tressel gets a little animated because Purdue corner Torri Williams goes for Beanie's feet out of bounds. It's only not a penalty because the referees have grown to have sympathy on DBs in Beanie's presence.
OPP-47	1/10	Pistol Loaded: Three Wide	Run	Wells	6
Rasta is the upback with Beanie deep and Beanie takes the handoff to the left side again for six. Decent all-around blocking out of the line, but if Brewster could have held his block a half second longer, Beanie was off.
OPP-41	2/4	I-Form	Run	Wells	19
Purdue stacks the left side of their line and the Buckeyes chose the correctly, running Beanie behind Boone and Cordle for the third straight play. Good blocking all around, but particularly from Brewster, who got a pancake on the play (+1.5). Williams saved a sure touchdown with a nice open field tackle.
OPP-18	1/10	I-Form: Twins	Run	Mo Wells	0
Wells is the deep back with Smith in front of him. Purdue is lined up in the gaps and Neal gets across before Boone can make a block on him, stopping the play at the line.
OPP-18	2/10	Single Back: Bunch	Penalty	Purdue	12
Flash comes in motion and gets the handoff, but is tackled in the backfield thanks to encroachment and subsequent facemask on the defense. The encroachment is declined and the facemask is effectively worth 12 yards from the original line of scrimmage.
OPP-9	1/G	Shotgun: Three Wide	Run	Wells	1
Ohio State comes out in an unbalanced line with Rehring and Boone lined up to the right. Both are knocked back into the backfield on the snap (-.5) and Beanie was lucky to spin back to the line.
OPP-9	2/G	Shotgun: Three Wide	Run	Pryor	2
Ohio State shows the unbalanced line again with Boone out as the extra right tackle, but Rehring is again punched back into the backfield on a called option to the right (-1). Pryor has to tuck the ball and head inside.
OPP-7	3/G	Single Back: Three Wide	Pass	Posey	INC
Posey gets the inside, but Pryor misses him on the slant, throwing a tad behind him (-.5). Ed Cunningham astutely points out Pryor's double set before firing the ball.
Drive Notes: Beanie got the drive going with three straight runs to the left side of the line. After a facemask penalty put the Buckeyes inside Purdue's 10, the drive stalled like so many other red zone attempts this season. The staff really wants to run that option, and it should be money for this team, but the right side of the line is doing their best to ensure it's not effective. Pretorius comes in and hits a 24-yard field goal to put Ohio State up 10-0 with under a minute remaining in the first quarter.

14:54 - 13:02 2nd Quarter, Missed Field Goal
LoS	Down/Dist	Formation	Type	Player	Yards
OPP-29	1/10	I-Form	Run	Mo Wells	3
Person is in at right guard with Browning back at right tackle. Brewster and Cordle get good blocks (+.5), but Person pulls and doesn't hit anyone (-.5). Purdue plays it well and there's not much of a hole for Rasta.
OPP-26	2/7	Shotgun: Four Wide	Run	Mo Wells	0
Inside draw to Rasta, but Brewster's man makes the stop for no gain (-1) off a nifty spin move. Boone does a nice job driving the end out of the play (+.5).
OPP-26	3/7	Shotgun: Three Wide	Run	Pryor	5
Purdue only came with four off of stunts and Pryor had plenty of time (at least four seconds in the pocket) before he tucked the ball for a gain of five on the left side. Hartline was open for a second up the sideline and Posey was open underneath late on the play.
Drive Notes: The Buckeyes got the ball to start in excellent territory, thanks to Jenkins' pick. After two runs out of Rasta, Pryor couldn't find anyone open on 3rd and 7 and the team had to settle on a 38-yard field goal attempt. Which Pretorius promptly shanked left. This drive neatly sums up the Buckeyes' offense for the day.

9:35 - 4:54 2nd Quarter, Field Goal
LoS	Down/Dist	Formation	Type	Player	Yards
OSU-45	1/10	I-Form	Run	Wells	6
Smith gets his guy in the hole and Cordle (+1) and Boone (+.5) gets really good blocks as Beanie takes the ball over midfield.
OPP-49	2/4	I-Form	Pass	Ballard	7
Play-action time with Pryor rolling right and finding a wide open Ballard for the first down. He did a good enough job selling the run (+.5) to bring the defender off of Ballard and make the play possible.
OPP-42	1/10	Pistol Loaded: Three Wide	Run	Wells	4
Saine lines up to Pryor's left with Beanie behind him. The handoff goes to Beanie over the left side for a short gain. Decent blocking out of the entire line, but nothing extraordinary. This was a good play out of Purdue's defense.
OPP-38	2/6	I-Form: Twins	Run	Wells	1
Beanie to the left this time for a short gain. Mclean came up from safety and made the play at the line of scrimmage. The run was away from his side, but Rehring racked up another play where he didn't block anyone (-1).
OPP-37	3/5	Shotgun: Three Wide	Pass	Robiskie	11
Good protection out of the line and Pryor finds Robo sitting in the zone to move the chains. The ball was thrown before Robiskie came out of his cut and was inserted between two defenders (+1) in one of Pryor's better throws to this point.
OPP-26	1/10	Pistol Loaded: Twins	Run	Wells	-2
This is the same play that went for six against Wisconsin, but Purdue's Brandon King makes a heck of an open-field tackle coming up from the corner.
OPP-28	2/12	Shotgun: Three Wide	Run	Pryor	-4
Yet another unbalanced line with Ballard lined up as a receiver-eligible left tackle and Rehring, Mike Adams and Browning making up the right side of the line (Boone not in the game at all). Pryor has some time on the rollout, but doesn't find anyone open again and is caught from behind by the backside defensive end on pursuit (-.5). Adams hopped with a limp and appeared to injure his ankle on the play.
OPP-32	3/16	Shotgun: Three Wide	Pass	Hartline	INC
Good pass protection and Pryor gets the ball to Hartline with some zip, but he drops it (-1). I'm not a huge fan of throwing six yard hitches on 3rd and 16, but JT was clearly thinking about how awesome it would be to get closer for another field goal try.
Drive Notes: Rehring was back in at right guard with Browning in at tackle for the majority of the drive, but the staff continued to show a lot of unbalanced looks including that interesting set without plus Adams, minus Boone. A typical Buckeye drive: signs of life and then a mistake or two to kill it all. Clutch 49-yarder out of Pettrey at least.

3:11 - 1:05 2nd Quarter, Punt
LoS	Down/Dist	Formation	Type	Player	Yards
OSU-24	1/10	Shotgun: Three Wide	Pass	Mo Wells	18
Boone gets beat outside by his guy (-.5) and it forces a hurried throw out of Pryor to Rasta. Since the screen is what Mo Wells was put on Earth to execute, he picks up a nice first down with a couple of cuts (+1). He got a nice downfield block out of Brewster (+.5).
OSU-42	1/10	Shotgun: Three Wide	Run	Mo Wells	3
Inside draw to Rasta for a short gain. There was a gaping hole for a minute, thanks to good blocks out of Brewster (+.5) and Person (+.5), but it closed quick.
OSU-45	2/7	Shotgun: Three Wide	Run	Pryor	-10
Unbalanced with Cordle, Boone and Rehring all lined up left. Pryor drops to throw, but he's dropped for a loss (-1) on the play, partly because he rolled right to where Rehring had kicked the end out.
OSU-35	3/17	Shotgun: Four Wide	Run	Pryor	0
Another called pass, but Kerrigan blows past Rehring (-1) on the right edge so quickly that Pryor is unable to even set his feet before being sacked.
Drive Notes: The staff continues to shuffle the line with Rehring back in at right tackle and Person lined up next to him at guard and then midway through the drive, moves Rehring to left tackle before finally putting him back on the right side where he gave up the third down sack.

10:58 - 5:50 3rd Quarter, Punt
LoS	Down/Dist	Formation	Type	Player	Yards
OSU-19	1/10	I-Form	Run	Wells	0
Pitch right to Beanie, but Heygood and Kerrigan do a great job of standing up the Buckeye offensive line and making the stop for no gain.
OSU-19	2/10	Single Back: Three Wide	Run	Wells	4
Decent blocking up front and a small hole at first, but Purdue again does a good job of closing things up.
OSU-23	3/6	Shotgun: Four Wide	Penalty	Purdue	5
Defensive offsides sets up a 3rd and one. Pryor will learn to try to go deep on these freebies as he only musters an incomplete pass to Beanie in the flat.
OSU-28	3/1	Goal Line	Run	Wells	6
Good blocks out of Person (+.5) and Lukens (+1) allow Beanie to pick up five yards and move the chains. Bonus points (+.5) to Wells for carrying two guys for additional yardage.
OSU-34	1/10	I-Form	Run	Wells	12
Heygood comes up and throws Smith to the ground (-.5) but Beanie proceeds to stiff-arm him, spins away from Mclean, stiff-arms Gerald Gooden, jukes Carlino and then bowls over cornerback Pender to pick up 12 and a first down (+2).
OSU-46	1/10	I-Form: Twins	Pass	Robiskie	INC
Pryor gets good time and sets his feet, but overthrows (-.5) an open Robo, who had a step or two on his man (+.5).
OSU-46	2/10	I-Form	Run	Pryor	9
More good blocking on a called pass -- Boone (+1) and Brewster (+1) both recorded pancakes on the play. After not seeing anyone open, Pryor tucked the ball and ran towards the left sideline.
OPP-45	3/1	Goal Line	Run	Pryor	1
I'm guessing on the formation here, because we were getting Wisconsin highlights when the play went off. Pryor on a sneak to pick up the first down.
OPP-44	1/10	I-Form	Run	Wells	0
Smith met him in the hole, but Heygood got enough of a push to tangle Smith's feet up with Beanie's and Wells went down for no gain. Boone was working Kerrigan enough (+.5) that if Beanie had not tripped up, he had some daylight.
OPP-44	2/10	Shotgun: Four Wide	Run	Wells	-2
Kerrigan tosses Boone (-1) and brings down Beanie for a loss. Wells appears to tweak his foot again on the tackle (horse-collar... cough...) and subsequent late hit that wasn't called.
OPP-46	3/12	Shotgun: Four Wide	Pass	Posey	6
Pryor completes a slant underneath to Posey, but it's way short of the marker.
Drive Notes: Another promising drive that just kind of stalled after crossing midield, really. It did eat up a lot of time and Trapasso's punt was downed inside the Purdue five, but the Buckeyes are leaving a lot of potential points off the board.

4:10 3rd Quarter - 14:30 4th Quarter, Field Goal
LoS	Down/Dist	Formation	Type	Player	Yards
OPP-39	1/10	Shotgun: Bunched TE	Run	Hartline	5
Good pocket protection (seven in on protection) as Pryor hits Hartline as his second progression.
OPP-34	2/5	I-Form: Offset	Run	Wells	8
Beanie gets the ball to the left side and picks up the first down behind a sweet block from Smith on Heygood (+1). Rehring also had a nice block, pancaking his guy (+1.5).
OPP-26	1/10	Single Back: Four Wide	Run	Pryor	0
Fake draw to Beanie and a Pryor keeper around the right side results in no gain when Holland comes off Ballard's attempt at a block (-1) to make the stop.
OPP-26	2/10	I-Form: Offset	Run	Wells	1
Beanie is met at the line, but the blocking wasn't all that bad. Give this one to Purdue's defense. Wells being Wells, didn't go down on first contact and spun to keep the play positive (+.5).
OPP-25	3/9	Shotgun: Three Wide	Pass	Thomas	16
Nice screen call to Flash as he moves the chain by way of some nice running and nifty blocking (+1). Boone (+.5) and Hartline (+1) in particular made great blocks to spring the play.
OPP-8	1/G	I-Form: Twins	Run	Mo Wells	-1
Pitch left to Rasta and is met behind the line by Barker after he slid off of Rehring's block (-.5). Boone did a nice job of sealing off his side (+.5).
OPP-9	2/G	Shotgun: Four Wide	Run	Pryor	-3
The call is another option right with Pryor and Rasta, but yet again, Rehring's guy (in this case Mike Neal) gets so much penetration (-1.5) that the option is aborted and Pryor has to take it inside where's promptly swarmed by the Purdue defense.
OSU-12	3/G	Shotgun: Four Wide	Run	Pryor	7
The Boilermakers only rush four and Pryor has plenty of time to look around, but once again can't find the open receiver (Flash, for one, was open on a bubble). He tucks the ball and runs but is stopped at the five.
Drive Notes: It's pretty hard to start at your opponent's 39, put together an eight play drive and get held to only three points, but the offense misfired in the red zone yet again and the Buckeyes had to settle for a 22-yard Pretorius field goal to make it 16-3.

9:47 - 7:32 4th Quarter, Punt
LoS	Down/Dist	Formation	Type	Player	Yards
OSU-32	1/10	I-Form	Run	Wells	2
Not much of a hole here, but nobody getting burned on their blocks either. Just good Purdue run defense.
OSU-34	2/8	Shotgun: Four Wide	Run	Wells	3
Option to the right and for once, the play isn't blown up in the backfield. Pryor hesitated and ended up throwing another forward option pass (-.5) -- a technique he's pioneering.
OSU-37	3/5	Shotgun: Three Wide	Run	Pryor	3
Once again Pryor drops back to pass and has a full couple of seconds to find a receiver, but is unable to do so. After evading a guy in the pocket, he takes off towards the left sideline and comes up just short of the first down.
Drive Notes: A very meh kind of three-and-out. Trapasso did get off another bomb, pinning a fair catch inside the 20, at least.

5:14 - 2:24 4th Quarter, Punt
LoS	Down/Dist	Formation	Type	Player	Yards
OSU-23	1/10	I-Form: Offset	Run	Wells	0
Carlino beats Brewster (-.5) and the rest of the Purdue defense do a good job of stuffing this one near the line of scrimmage. Pretty sure the only reason Beanie is in the game right now is for a chance at 100, despite what Tress said postgame.
OSU-23	2/10	I-Form	Penalty	Purdue	15
Play-action out of the I and Robo has two steps on his guy deep. Pryor underthrows the ball a little (-.5) and Robiskie is interfered with while waiting for the ball.
OSU-38	1/10	Single Back: Bunch	Run	Wells	3
Person misses Carlino (-.5) on his pull, but Beanie is able to sidestep him and get a few yards on the play.
OSU-41	2/7	Single Back: Three Wide	Run	Wells	1
Draw to Beanie and he has a hole, but he trips on the line of scrimmage (-.5). Had he stayed on his feet, he would have had 15+, easy.
OSU-42	3/6	Shotgun: Four Wide	Run	Pryor	1
Decent protection on a called pass, but Pryor starts to feel the heat and takes off running. He gets about one yard before deciding to try to run into Heygood at the end of the play.
Drive Notes: Cannot. Take. Much. More. Of. This.

The Final Tally

1. Beanie: +4.0
2. Boone: +2.0
3. Robiskie: +2.0
4. Brewster: +1.5
5. Cordle: +1.5
6. Browning: +1.0
7. Flash: +1.0
8. Lukens: +1.0
9. Rasta: +1.0
10. Smith: +1.0
11. Hartline: 0.0
12. Pryor: -0.5
13. Ballard: -1.0
14. Person: -1.0
15. Rehring: -6.0

One of those numbers just kind of really jumps out at you, doesn't it? What I wouldn't give for a reporter to ask Tressel how Rehring graded out when they meet with him on Tuesday...

Losses by Oklahoma, Missouri and LSU on Saturday meant our top three was blown to bits. While it was difficult to decide who should move up, it was even more difficult to decide how far the losers should drop considering they all lost to legit teams.

With Texas' win over previous #1 Oklahoma, we moved them to the top spot followed by Penn State and we vaulted Florida to #3 after beating LSU by 30.

On the Buckeye front, we dropped them one spot to #11 but frankly they could find themselves out of the polls completely in another week unless they put forth a better effort than what we saw against Purdue.

With all the upsets this week, I'm sure you all have some opinions so let 'em fly. As is customary, we have until Wednesday to take your feedback and submit our final ballot for the week.

1		I officially have a man crush on Texas WR/KR Jordan Shipley. The Great White Hope hauled in 11 passes for 112 yards, 1 TD and ran back a kick for a 96 yard TD in the Longhorn's 45-35 win over previously #1 Oklahoma. Quan Cosby ain't bad either (9 catches, 122 yards). Next up: host wound-licking Mizzou @ 8pm.	4
2		The Nittany Lions embarassed Wisconsin 48-7 in Camp Randall scoring 31 unanswered to close the game. QB Daryll Clark continued so spark PSU with 3 TDs (2 pass, 1 rush) and 244 yards through the air. PSU had just 1 turnover (int) and 1 penalty while forcing Wisconsin into 4 turnovers. The Lions are 7-0 for the first time since 1999.	4
3		The Gators put a 51-21 smackdown on LSU in the Swamp behind 3 TD's from Tebow (2pass, 1run) and a defense that held LSU to 80 yards rushing and forced 3 turnovers. Is Florida the SEC's best?	8
4		Idle. Next up: Ole Miss	--
5		So, will this finally be the year Stoops gets some flak for being a big game choker on par with OSU/Tress? 10 penalties, 2 turnovers, blowing 2 different 11 point leads and an 8 point lead…Not impressive.	4
6		It wasn't pretty as USC racked up 10 penalties and turned it over 5 times behind 3 INT's from Mark Sanchez but the Trojans still managed to shut out hapless Arizona State 28-0. McKnight ran for career high 143 yards.	1
7		Georgia outrushed Tennessee 148-1 and got 310 yards (1TD, 1INT) from Matt Stafford in a pedestrian 26-14 win over the putrid Vols. Knowshon went for 27/101 and UGA stayed consistent racking up 11 penalties. Next up: Vandy	1
8		The Cowboys picked off Chase Daniel 3 times and held the Tigers to 64 yards rushing in their 28-23 upset win at Missouri. Ok State QB Zac Robinson threw for 215 yards and 2 TD and ran for another. Their 6-0 start is tied for 2nd best in school history (9-0, 1945).	7
9		Chase Daniel removed himself from the top of the Heisman pack with 3 INT's in Mizzou's 28-23 upset home loss at the hands of Oklahoma State. The Tigers need to regroup quick - next up: @ Texas.	7
10		The Red Raiders beat Nebraska 37-31 in OT thanks to an uncharacteristic defensive stand on the last possession of OT. Offensively, it was typical T-Tech as Graham Harrell threw for 284 yards and 2 TD with WR Michael Crabtree grabbing 5 for 89, including both of Harrell's TD tosses to become the Red Raiders' all time TD catch leader with 32. Two more games before the gauntlet of Texas, Ok St. and @ Oklahoma begins.	1

11		An anemic offense (222 total yards) was helped by a strong defensive / special teams effort (2 turnovers, 1 punt block TD) as the Buckeyes posted a less than impressive 16-3 win over Purdue. A similar effort in East Lansing next week will result in an L.	1
12		How'd that taste, Les? Ricky-Jean ran his mouth, then couldn't play as Florida put up 475 yards of offense on the Tigers. The 51-21 spanking was the worst loss in Miles' 4 years at LSU. My heart aches - with joy.	9
13		BYU posted an unimpressive 21-3 win over New Mexico behind Max Hall's 265 pards passing and 3 TDs. The Cougar defense held their opponent without a TD for 3rd time in last 4 games. Impressive, huh? Maybe not - those three teams: UCLA, Wyoming, New Mexico.	1
14		Boise State went out of conference to post a 24-7 win over Southern Miss. Kellen Moore led the Broncos with 174 yards through the air and 3 scores. Boise State D stopped all 4 Southern Miss 4th down tries and forced 2 TO's.	1
15		Jayhawk RB Jake Sharpe ran 118 yards and 3 TD's and Todd Reesing 256 and a TD as Kansas moved to 2-0 in the Big12 for only the 3rd time since the conference's inception in '96. The Jayhawk D held Colorado QB Cody Hawkins to 8/22 before daddy pulled him for excessive suck.	1
16		The Utes got 5 turnovers leading to 3 defensive or special teams TDs in a 40-7 win over Wyoming. Offensively, Utah managed only 11 first downs and went 4/17 on third down. How bad is Wyoming? They've been outscored 153-23 during their 4 game skid.	1
17		Idle. Nex up: @ Boston College	1
18		Javon Ringer ran for 124 yards and 2 TDs while Brian Hoyer passed for 169 yards and 2 TDs in Sparty's 37-20 win over Northwestern. MSU struggled defensively giving up 459 yards and 15/24 third downs though they forced 3 TO's.	4
19		Idle. Next up: @ Navy	--
20		Idle. Next up: Syracuse High	--
21		The Tar Heels forced 5 Irish turnovers (4 in 2nd half) and overcame some shoddy reffing in the closing seconds to 29-24 decision over Fat Charlie's boys.	2
22		Idle. Next up: @ Arizona	2
23		The Gophers improved to 6-1 thanks to an impressive 27-20 road win over Juice and the Illini. The Gopher D sacked Juice 4 times and ran his fumble back for a score putting Minnesota up 27-13 with five minutes left in the game. DeLeon Eskridge rushed for 124 yards and 2 TD's.	NR
24		Ball State moved to 7-0 with a 24-7 win over Western Kentucky. MiQuale Lewis paced the Cardinals with 112 yards rushing and 1 TD.	NR
25		Smoke and mirrors ran out as Vandy fell 17-14 at Mississippi State. The Vandy offense generated a paltry 109 yards with 2 turnovers to send them plummeting in the rankings.	11

DROPPED OUT: Illinois (#21), Wisconsin (#25).

Gov Bobby Jindal was in Gainesville this past Saturday stumping for his Republican brethren in front of a mix of both LSU and Florida fans. After drawing some boos upon announcing LSU as the defending national champs, Jindal quickly went into politician recovery mode and offered up an olive branch with Buckeye flavor right around the 3:00 mark. Enjoy. (HT: Busted Coverage)

Note: Any comments related to politics will be deleted -- unless you're pimping the Whig Party. Keep the smack-talk LSU or Florida-related.

Be afraid. Be very afraid.

Defensive Line Sets the Tone We must consider the level of competition but the D-line gave Painter and the entire Boiler offense fits for much of the day.

Once again, Thaddeus Maximus led the charge up front recording six stops including two TFL's, a forced fumble and a sack. Dude has been a flat out monster since cracking the starting lineup. I love his motor. The move is one of few coaching decisions that hasn't made me vomit in this train wreck of a season though it should've come about a month earlier.

Gibson wasn't alone this week, however, as Abdallah contributed a sack (3 tkl) with Larimore and Denlinger adding their own TFL's. Worthington was also a presence adding 3 stops in addition to helping hurry Painter in the pocket.

The pressure from up front helped force a supposed preseason Heisman candidate into a 23/51, 1 INT performance and the group also helped stop the run as Purdue was held to 2.7 yards per carry (26/70).

Again, the level of competition must be factored in, but the line has at least shown some improvement in both production and in their ability to tie up blockers so the LB's can make some stops (Animal 10, Freeman 9).

Bottom line, this unit still has a ways to go but at least they are showing signs of life. With Ringer in the on-deck circle, they'll need to prove this wasn't more a product of Purdue's suck than their growth if OSU plans to escape East Lansing with a W.

Time for a Change at PK? Considering our offense is famous for getting less effective the closer it gets to the goal line, should OSU consider putting AARP co-chair Ryan Pretorious on the pine in favor of Aaron Pettrey?

Yesterday's 38 yard miss in the 2nd quarter capped off the most aggravating possession of the day (more on that later) and probably got the crowd in trouble with all the goody-two-shoe fans as boos rained down on the field at a clip Pacman Jones would be proud of.

On the year, Pretorious is now 13/17 but he's only 6/10 from 30+ yards out and just 2/5 from 40+ while Pettrey is 2/2. I know, that's just two kicks, but Pettrey was also 5/7 last year from 40+ yards. Some might advocate the current pseudo two-kicker system wherein Pettrey kicks the long ones but I say bench Pretorious and let Pettrey kick full time. I'm tired of holding my breath waiting for the ball to first clear the line of scrimmage then to see if it might actually have a straight flight pattern.

This Week's WTF? Coaching Moment There were a few WTF Coaching Moments to choose from but nothing was more upsetting than OSU's response to the Jenkins INT that set the Buckeyes up at the Purdue 30 yard line with 14:54 left in the half and already up 10-0. This was a chance to step on Purdue's neck so what do Tressel and Bollman come up with? They insert Mo Freaking Wells into the lineup and proceed to run him two straight times setting up a 3rd and 5 which turns into 4th and 2 after a Pryor scramble then Pretorious shanks the aforementioned 38 yarder. Cue me reaching for the nitro-glycerin pills...

What's so mind-blowing is that unless Beanie was unable to play, which didn't yet appear to be the case, why the F is Mo Wells in there with a chance to put the game away? I'll tell you why. Probably because Tressel was sticking with his usual script of getting his backup RB in there early to get some touches.

I don't necessarily disagree with that strategy as a basic concept, however to not have Beanie in on that series, with that field position, is a crime. Also, I think that strategy is further compromised when it's not truly your second best RB (Boom) that you are putting out there - it's your third best RB, behind a horsesh!t line. To not have your best players on the field at that time is a disservice to your team. Period.

I feel like a growing segment of the fan base continues to pile on Heacock and Bollman (rightfully so) but at what point does some of the blame shift to Tressel? It's not like he's a CEO/Coach like Cooper where the assistants do all the heavy lifting. Plus, he's the same guy that was getting credit a few weeks back for waking up the offensive line. Now that they are clearly back in their slumber, does that mean all the heat goes back to Bollman but not Tressel? I'm tired of it.

Don't misconstrue my comments to say Tressel needs to go because he doesn't. I just think he should be held more accountable because he's not putting his players in the best position to succeed with his play calling and his loyalty to at least one coordinator that is no longer effective is jeopardizing the program.

Beanie Expresses Frustration Don't know if you caught the actual postgame locker room interviews on Fox local but Beanie was clearly frustrated with the way the game unfolded. Besides his own health issues - his toe and a recent flu bug - he also chose his words carefully while offering not-so-veiled criticism toward the play calling and the performance of his offensive line.

“We’ve got to be able to pass the ball. Me being a running back, you’re probably not expecting me to say that. But it’s true. We’ve got to pass the ball. Not even to give me more room, just to have a better game plan. We’ve got to get the ball downfield to Robiskie and Hartline and all our young guys. We’re just not getting the ball to our playmakers.”

I can't find any other actual transcript quotes but he also made it clear the offensive line needed to block because it doesn't matter what play is called if the backfield is full of defenders before a play can develop.

One last thought on Beanie. While I'm sitting here banging on Tressel for not having Beanie in on a key drive, I can't help but feel Beanie is sometimes more than okay with being out of the lineup. I mean, if Spielman was a RB on the sidelines during that 2nd quarter drive starting at Purdue's 30, do you think he'd just be standing off in the distance with his helmet pushed up waiting for the coach to send him back in? Me neither. Just sayin'.

Jenkins is So Fun to Watch I want to end on a positive note so how 'bout Malcolm Jenkins yesterday? In the first half alone he registered a blocked punt, an interception and a sick pass breakup on a 4th and 2 try.

Beyond the statistical production, he continues to be the emotional anchor of a defense that has played better in recent weeks and we're gonna miss him more than we realize when he heads to the NFL.

With another crazy college gameday in the books and an ugly Ohio State victory, we turn our focus Sunday to the NFL Buckeyes. Divisional races are taking shape and week six's key match ups involve teams from the AFC North and NFC South.

The Bills have their bye this week sitting atop the division at 4-1, which may allow New England to keep pace with an away win over a desperate San Diego team. Mike Vrabel and the Patriots stayed out west after beating San Francisco last week. Vrabel has recorded 14 tackles and is second on the team with 2 sacks, while Matt Wilhelm is sixth on the Chargers with 25 stops.

The Dolphins and Jets are looking to get above the .500 marks, as they face off against the winless Texans and Bengals respectively. Ted Ginn will be looking to extend his 5+ reception streak to three against a defense that has given up at least 27 points in each game this season. The Gun Show is looking to build off his 4 tackle performance of last game against a Bungals team starting Ryan Fitzpatrick at quarterback..

First place is up for grabs in the NFC South, as 4-1 Carolina travels down to 3-2 Tampa Bay, while Atlanta looks to keep pace at home against Da' Bears. Chris Gamble is third on the Panthers with 25 tackles, including 21 solos and has helped Carolina hold opponents to a combined 9 points in the last two weeks. Joey Galloway is still out for Tampa with his foot injury.

If your are looking for any type of fantasy help today, you might want to look elsewhere. Santonio Holmes and the Steelers are on their bye, while Anthony Gonzalez takes on the league's best defense in the Baltimore Ravens. Speaking of the Ravens, they announced this week that Joe Flacco would be the starter for the remainder of the season, delaying Troy's NFL career one more year.

Antonio Pittman is still out for the Rams with a lower leg injury and Michael Jenkins has caught only 9 balls, but according to Jack Arute at halftime yesterday, he was having a solid game on defense. Bobby Carpenter is playing in perhaps the most offensive game today in Dallas at Arizona.

I typically take the point of view that the win is ultimately all that matters. Whether it's by one point or 50, the parity in the game means there really are no bad wins -- just ask Michigan or Illinois fans. After all, the Buckeyes were coming off a tough battle with a physical Badger team with another tough one looming next week in East Lansing, so we'll take the "W". But if this Ohio State offense doesn't figure some things out with a quickness, we can all forget any type of good win against a team in a January bowl game, let alone any longshot fantasies of sneaking back into the championship game.

For the second time this season, the Buckeye offense was kept out of the end zone and if it weren't for the stellar job the defense turned in, Curtis Painter might have got that elusive victory over a ranked foe. As it was, the 16-3 Ohio State victory was either sad offense and great defense or two good defenses going at it, depending on which side of the Ohio/Indiana border you live on.

Once again the Buckeyes seemed to do some things well, others not so well -- they're still waiting on that complete game. But no matter how you view it at any type of meta level, from about the 14:00 mark of the second quarter it was a pretty terrible game to watch and my head hurts from having to write about it. But at 11W Inc, we strive to dissect the turds just as we would the roses, so please read on.

Offense

First, you have to give credit to Brock Spack (just as fun to type as it is to say) and the Boilermaker defense. They put together a nice plan to contain and really limit Pryor (120 yards on 28 plays) and also did a good job of tackling Beanie on the afternoon, limiting the yards he normally gets after first contact. Linebacker Anthony Heygood had a monster game with 11 solo tackles (12 total) and defensive end Ryan Kerrigan had two sacks and and another TFL, but this is the nation's 108th ranked defense we're talking about.

You can make the argument that with the defense playing well and a comfortable halftime lead, Tressel shut down shop to save some things for bigger games on the horizon. But even if you're just calling straight ISOs all afternoon, you'd like to see the line take over a little bit. A mere 11 more yards of total offense than punting yards against the league's worst defense?

From my view, the lead actor in this offensive tragedy was the line today. They surrendered three sacks and five TFLs and pretty much did their best to turn young Boilermaker linemen into superstars. There were times when they won the battle up front, but overall the effort was inconsistent at best. The team finished 4 of 14 on third down conversions and three visits inside the Purdue 25 turned into two field goals and a missed field goal, continuing the team's red zone troubles.

I'm also not sure I understand the logic of getting Rehring into the game at the expense of Browning. The sack he gave up while playing right tackle was a total bullfighter play and I'm starting to be of the opinion that the less seniors on the starting line, the better. Boone is a great quote and the press loves him and all that, but you have to start to wonder if part of the line's problem is his devil-may-care philosophy towards life. I really hate piling on these young men, but patience is running.

Some of the blame surely wrests at the feet of Pryor. The announcers touched on it, but I think it's absolutely true that he's overthinking the game right now instead of letting it come to him. Someone mentioned that Krenzel was on 1460 a few weeks ago and mentioned something along the lines of how the quarterbacks are pounded not to throw an interception so much that they don't just get out there and play. He has the tools -- he just needs to get out there and have fun, playing to his instincts.

Beanie had his 100-yard game streak snapped at five in having his worst outing since the Illini held him to 76 last year. He did finish with 95 yards on the afternoon, but his 4.3 yards-per-carry average was well below the 7.9 he brought into the game. Much of that is on the offensive line -- even when he was breaking off big runs, he typically had to beat one guy in the backfield or at the line of scrimmage -- and some of that is because of the solid tackling put forth by Purdue. There was a scare when he tweaked his injured toe a bit and was replaced by Mo Wells on the next series, but he did return to the game.

Saine did play, but surprisingly, didn't register a single carry. With Boom out, many were thinking that he would get more chances, but that didn't happen. Rasta picked up just 6 yards on 5 attempts, continuing the funk he's been in all season -- or translated, Beanie is the only running back capable of getting good yardage with this line (shows you how special Boom is going to be, as well).

With only ten total receptions among them, none of the receivers put up any type of numbers. In fact, the leader was Posey with his two catches for 28 yards. Robiskie had just two for 19 and a near miss at a bomb as he had beaten his man badly only to see an underthrown ball from Pryor that led to a pass interference call on the defense. Hartline finished with one catch for five yards and could have doubled his production if not for a pretty bad drop in the 2nd quarter. Flash Thomas saw his first significant action of the season, both on offense and special teams. He was thrown to a couple of times and finished with just one reception, but I liked the reverse to him that we saw blown up via Purdue encroachment.

The passing game was kind of weak, but it looks like Pryor is starting to look Posey's way more and more. Those two will obviously play a large role in the future of Ohio State football and the sooner they can get on the same page, the better.

Defense

As bad as the offense looked, the defense looked equally as good. The closest Purdue would come to the end zone was a 53-yard field goal on the opening drive of the second half. Their other 11 drives were composed of six punts, two turnovers on downs, a fumble, an interception and a missed field goal.

The group was able to neutralize every threat on the Purdue offense and seemed to really do a great job of disrupting the flow of the Boilermaker offense. They applied pressure, got into passing lanes and broke up passes and tackled well. For the first time in what seems like forever, the defense was able to get good play out of each level. The much maligned line finished with two sacks and five TFLs, Laurinaitis and Freeman led the team in tackles with 10 and nine respectively and the secondary, led by Jenkins, flat-out stopped the Big Ten's top passing team.

Jenkins might have had his finest day as a Buckeye and finished with an interception, four tackles and another pass broken-up. He also turned in the play of the game with his first quarter block of a Purdue punt that led to Etienne Sabino's first points as a Buckeye. He nearly had a pick-six on a failed Purdue fourth down attempt in the 2nd quarter, as well. Chekwa also played well, finishing with four tackles and two passes defensed. He will be scary good next season.

The play of the line was a pleasant surprise and it was the emerging Thaddeus Gibson once again standing out. He had six tackles on the day, including one sack and two TFLs. His first half sack was a thing of beauty as it led to a fumble recovered by Wilson and with each game you can almost feel his confidence growing. I'll never understand why it took so long to get him into the starting lineup, but he's in now, so I'll stop trying. Abdallah had a rare sack ad Denlinger, Larimore and Nathan Williams all finished with TFLs. Finest outing of the season from this group.

Special Teams

Another week, another mixed bag from the special teams. The blocked punt was a brilliant -- especially considering the team had looked for an opportunity to come after it if Purdue lined up on the left hash and Flash's opening kickoff return proved that the Buckeyes can field an effective unit there. But Pretorius missed another mid-range field goal and there was the delay of game penalty on the fake attempt early on. Can anyone tell me why we have a backup kicker that's two for two, both from 49 yards or more backing up a guy that's hitting about 80% of his shots from closer in? I heard about the trajectory and style points, but isn't it worth a shot?

Notes

Lawrence Wilson will have an MRI on Monday... This is the first time in four attempts that Terrelle Pryor did not lead the team to a touchdown on their opening series of the game... Curtis Painter has now directed 23 straight possessions that did not reach the end zone... For the 9051st straight game, the Buckeyes lost the sack battle to the opposing defense... The blocked punt for a touchdown was the first time Ohio State has done that since A.J. Hawk scored on one against Northwestern in 2005... How many false start penalties have we seen out of this line this year -- should that not fall back on Bollman somewhat?

If you have been known on occasion to enjoy the game of college football, you have one dandy of a day ahead of you. At 3:30, we'll be treated to our third straight game with LeBron in Cleats and Beanie Wells operating out of the same backfield full-time. I think we're starting to realize just how special this tandem is and it may be worth taking a step back and appreciating it because there's a very real chance that we may only have six more of these Saturdays in store.

The Buckeyes will be trying to move Curtis Painter's career mark against ranked teams to a nice, round 0-10 and they should do so. It would be pretty fresh to get one of those games where you come away appreciating a good butt-kicking -- like the Purdue and Penn State games last season.

You can get the coverage map for the game here. Unless you're overseas, you will get the game, though you may have to tune in to ESPN instead of ABC depending on where exactly you live in the lower 48.

Unlike typical mid-day Buckeye kickoffs, there's actually a pretty damn good game going off beforehand when two top five teams meet in the Red River Shooutout. Top-ranked Oklahoma and #4 Texas have both played as well as anyone, really, and considering what happened in the previous two games this season with national title implications (OSU/USC and Alabama/Georgia), I'm just praying for a game that's actually close into the third quarter for once.

If you're not lucky enough to attend the Ohio State game, you can catch #20 Michigan State taking on #23 Northwestern on the Deuce. Things are going so well in Evanston with the 5-0 start that Northwestern fans are now referring to Iowa as the perfect warm-up for Sparty (how fast thee hath fallen, Mr. Ferentz).

You better be deft with the remote at night because there are three great games (varying in their degrees of greatness, of course) kicking off at the same time:

#6 Penn State @ Wisconsin, 8PM - ESPN
After two excruciating defeats, will the Badgers be able to regroup and knock off unbeaten Penn State? I doubt it, but winning in Madison is not easy (and those in the know seem to think it will be a battle). I'll be rooting for the Nittany Lions at any rate because we need them perfect when they take on the Buckeyes in two weeks.

#5 LSU @ #12 Florida, 8PM - CBS
Les against Urban. Ricky Jean Francois wanting to put Tebow out of the game being misquoted about wanting to put Tebow out of the game. Two loaded teams, a great environment and coaching firepower has the makings of another instant classic between the two SEC schools.

#16 Oklahoma State @ #3 Missouri, 8PM - ESPN2
You've heard it a million times lately, but Chase Daniel has yet to suffer his first three-and-out on offensive series. That's pretty sick. Oklahoma State is also unbeaten, so this won't be a walk, but it may take an Oklahoma or Texas to knock off this Tiger team -- and you'd still have to like Daniel's chances in those games.

#14 Ohio State 5-1, 2-0 Big Ten Roster | Schedule

October 11, 2008 3:30 PM ET - ABC —— Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH

Purdue 2-3, 0-1 Big Ten Roster | Schedule

Game six of the Joe Tiller farewell tour comes to Ohio Stadium Saturday and so far, the parting gifts for the oatmeal-loving coach have been few and far between.

After blitzing Northern Colorado in the opener, the Boilermakers lost a heart-breaker to then 16th-ranked Oregon at home in overtime. After jumping out to a 14-point halftime lead, Purdue watched the Ducks pile up the bulk of their 330 yards on the ground in the second half before winning in overtime.

They bounced back by beating Central Michigan in week three before getting smoked by the Irish and following that up with a tough home loss to Penn State last weekend.

The constants through this skid have been poor defense and recently, questionable play at quarterback. Things grew so dire in the loss to Penn State that after suffering 11 straight possessions without scoring points, Tiller yanked quarterback Curtis Painter, the only guy on his roster with the backing of a Heisman campaign.

Pulling the school's 2nd-leading all-time passer is but one of the luxuries a guy has with one foot out the door, but the Big Ten will certainly miss the guy when he's gone. His accomplishments are many and without him, "a guy in a wizard hat selling snake oil" sadly would not have entered my vernacular. He'll have a chance to get that last great win Saturday in Columbus, his first over a ranked opponent in 16 outings. While the odds of that happening remain small, outside of last season's 23-7 defeat in front of a home black-out, the Boilermakers have consistently played the Buckeyes well during the Tressel era.

Opponent

Despite last week's benching, Tiller has stated that, Painter (#12) will start against the Buckeyes. Purdue bloggers are saying he's flat-out sucked this year and Tiller took the opportunity call him out through the press earlier in the week. He's on pace to put up his worst numbers since seeing action his freshman season and suffice to say, this is not what the Boilermaker faithful had in mind for his senior season. Oh, did we mention he's 0-9 against ranked foes in his career? If he doesn't get this one against the Buckeyes, he may not get another chance in that regard. What does being one of the most prolific throwers in conference history, yet going O-for against ranked teams mean for one's legacy?

If Painter can turn things around this weekend, he'll look to his trio of top targets: Greg Orton (#21), Desmond Tardy (#6) and Keith Smith (#8). Orton has been around for ages it seems and is dependable, while Hardy is having a breakout season as a senior. He's topped 100 yards receiving twice this year including 10 snags for 175 yards and a score in the loss to Notre Dame.

Running back Kory Sheets (#24) stepped up when projected starter Jaycen Taylor tore his ACL in fall camp and has run -- so to speak -- with the opportunity. His 498 yards in five games is good enough for 5th in the Big Ten in rushing. While 180 of his yards came in the Oregon game, when you throw in his receiving and return yards, he's second in the conference in total offense.

5th-year senior tackle Sean Sester (#74) anchors an offensive line that doesn't give up a lot of sacks (1.6/game) either by way of scheme or Painter's relatively quick, if inaccurate, release. He's a monster at 6-7/325 and Gibson and Wilson (and hopefully some Nathan Williams) will have their hands full if they find themselves across from Sester.

On the defensive side of the ball, the Boilermakers are on pace for their worst season ever under Tiller. They're currently 108th in total defense, 104th in rush defense and 93rd in pass defense, allowing an average of 435.8 yards per game. Penn State put up 202 yards on the ground last week, while an Irish team that is near the bottom in national rushing rankings ran for 201 yards against this defense. And we've already mentioned the 330 that Oregon dropped on them. They did hold the vaunted Spread HD offense of Penn State to their lowest point total of the season, but...

Standout players include linebacker Anthony Heygood, a 5th-year senior that studied at the Sam Sword Center for Staying in School for a Decade. He's a nominee for the Butkus and Bednarik award and is without a doubt, the best player on the Boilermaker defense.

Senior defensive ends Keyon Brown (#95) and Alex Magee (#71) lead the team with two sacks each and both are sturdy, if not quick ends that should test the Buckeye tackles.

The secondary is nothing to write home about, but it's Big Ten football, so they're just as capable as other defensive backs in the conference if Pryor wants to put one up for grabs. If he plays smart, he could have a big day against this group.

NOTES: The game will pit the Big Ten's top-rated passing offense against the top-rated passing defense... The Boilermakers have not won in Columbus since 1988... Against Penn State last weekend, Purdue turned in a zero penalty game... Tiller has only suffered five losing streaks of three games or more in his 12 years at Purdue... The Central Michigan victory this season put Tiller alone atop the school's coaching victory list.

Buckeye Breakdown

On paper this game does not even appear as close as the 19-point line suggests. But Buckeye fans have a healthy does of respect for Purdue no matter how badly they may be perceived. Outside of Wisconsin, perhaps no Big Ten team has given the Buckeyes as much trouble as Purdue has. Those efforts haven't always translated to wins, but they have brought many nail-biters.

Ohio State should look to get an early lead executing what it feels are its best plays and then move on to address other areas of the game that need improvement. The continued evolution out of Pryor and Beanie running the option, plays out of the pistol and other formations will probably move the ball with relative ease against this defense. Quite a few teams have put up sick rushing numbers against Purdue, but none had the firepower of those two doing it.

Hopefully some early success and quick scores will mean a light day for Beanie and some much-needed rest. He, along with the rest of the team took some shots in Madison last weekend and need to get to as close to healthy as possible ahead of a trip to East Lansing next weekend. Boom's concussion means Saine will get another opportunity to prove he's more than the cloud of hype he's been since arriving on campus after winning Ohio's Mr. Football his senior year of high school. If he comes out and runs hard and has a great game, that's great. If not, Boom should be back next weekend.

Good decisions are what this game should come down to for Pryor. He got the huge win last weekend thanks to some late game heroics, but there was a stretch of about two quarters where he was completely pinned-in and taking bad losses. He'll have some fresh faces at receiver with Dane being out because of his own concussion and Small tweaking his knee in practice this week. Posey and Flash look to be the primary beneficiaries, but I'm left wondering what happened to Taurian Washington. We don't see him much, but when we do, he's taking balls to the house. There has to be something else to his situation.

For the line, it's crucial that they build on any type of momentum they generated in the Wisconsin game. Though Pryor was sacked four times last weekend, I'm not sure if you can put any of those on Boone and Co. With Purdue's defensive woes, the group has another chance to shine and that's key if the team wants to take care of business when the meat of the conference schedule hits.

The defensive front has to get pressure on Painter. I feel good about that happening because Thaddeus Gibson is taking strides each week, Wilson has been steady and newcomer Nathan Williams is really getting noticed. It's telling that the team's sack leader is a linebacker (Freeman) and he's only on pace for six this year.

I'll be looking for Ross Homan who has really turned it on over the last handful of games. Against Minnesota and Wisconsin, he first set and then tied his career-high in tackles with 10 in each game. Every year there's a guy or three that starts to make progress once conference games roll around and Homan appears to be one of those guys this season.

The safeties need to do a better job of coverage down the middle because if Painter has time, he'll pick them apart. So far, they've shown a bigger desire to hit than stick with opposing receivers and they have to get that fixed before they meet Juice and the Illini.

Considering the Buckeyes blitzed a better Purdue team in front of a hometown blackout last season, you have to like their chances of putting away a relatively easy victory. Purdue will have a chance -- especially if Painter heats up, but Pryor, Beanie and a growing offensive line and defense should prove to be too much.

NOTES: With 10 tackles at Wisconsin, Laurinaitis became just the 14th Buckeye to join the 300 tackle club... Beanie needs seven yards to move into 10th on Ohio State's all-time rushing list, while Robo needs two receptions to move into 10th on that list... Ohio State leads the all-time series 36-12-2... Ron Franklin, Ed Cunningham and Jack Arute will call the game.

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PREDICTION: Ohio State 31, Purdue 13

With another big conference game up this weekend, we checked in with the guys at Boiled Sports to get their keys to a victory over the Buckeyes. They're not quite ready to call this one a lock for Purdue, but they do have a list of things Purdue should look to do to leave Columbus with the win.

The following are, in our opinion, a number of keys to potential victory for the Boilers. Okay, maybe not victory, but to a slightly increased chance of victory.

1. Beanie Wells is run over by a cement mixer on his way to practice on Friday.
2. Terrell Pryor gets his foot caught in a Jacuzzi motor and is unable to make the game. Understand, we’re not saying he would be unable to play due to injury – we’re saying he would need to be stuck and physically being unable to make it to the ‘shoe. Because, if he did, even with one foot we’re still a little afraid of him.
3. aOSU's locker room door is welded shut or at least jammed closed by an axe handle.
4. Drew Brees, ever the prankster, arrives in Columbus and dons Curtis Painter’s uniform, helmet and blank stare.
5. Brock Spack falls asleep after having a yummy pumpkin pie and in his absence, the team forgets that they’re not allowed to blitz – ever – and actually gets aggressive.
6. A lawn mower gains AI and plows through the OSU sideline.
7. A pretty girl shows up and the Ohio-based team is so flabbergasted that they lose focus on the game.
8. Purdue comes out wearing USC jerseys. Especially effective with USC’s players.
9. Maurice Clarett stumbles drunkenly onto the field, insisting he “still has eligibility” and proceeds to take the ball and run a sweep left while carrying his Grey Goose bottle(s), only his “sweep” looks like people look after they’ve done the “spin your head on a bat” thing and he falls down, fumbles and Purdue takes it to the house.
10. The Boilers are able to literally bend the space-time continuum because that happens as frequently as the Boilers beating a top ten team… on the road.