To be honest, I really didn't want to write anything for this post this week. I don't care about much right now and was able to focus on spending time with family the rest of the weekend before traveling back home from Columbus to Atlanta.

But I've done this most of the season and I'll continue to do it now.

Care: Offensive Play-calling

Offensive, indeed. Nothing about the offense was fun yesterday outside of Chip. Trotting him out there and letting him bulldoze Michigan was truly very fun. Except that, as we saw multiple times this season, when we started the train rolling Day/Wilson decided to pull the cord on the successful stuff and try to get cute.

Notre Dame laid out the plans for stopping our offense. Iowa capitalized on it as well as they could. Penn State did a pretty bang-up job of it as well, they just couldn't stop an all-World game from JT and Marvin Harrison. Put your safeties back deep, force us to run, and make Day earn each point with 10-play drives where you have to get 7-8 yards per play. Day has no patience for it and time and time again throughout the season would abandon things that worked: quick slants, a 6.4 ypc rushing game (this is where we were towards the end of the first half if the scoreboard displayed it correctly), and up-tempo. Well he gave it up again. And failed.

Ryan Day has been a mastermind at play-calling for much of his tenure at OSU. We've seen some truly marvelous play design and offensive performances through the last few years. But he needs to give up play-calling completely. Whether it's to Kevin Wilson or a new hire, Day needs to be a Head Coach and let someone else call the plays that doesn't have the tendencies he does, because the formula to stymie him is out there. It happens to the best, and it's happened to him. Time to change it up.

Don't Care: The post-season.

Warning: this is going to be pessimistic.

I don't care what happens the rest of the season. We have a realistic chance of backing into the playoffs at this point. If USC or TCU lose, we're in. There are no other teams they'll take over us. They won't take a 2-loss Bama. They won't take a 2-loss Clemson.

But I don't care if we're in the playoffs because we'll be playing Georgia. Georgia is what Michigan wants to be. Michigan wasn't entirely impressive in the first half against us, they have a QB who can't throw for shit (seriously, watching it in person was a delight until his lame duck passes landed in the hands of wide open guys because our cornerbacks are awful), and their defense is absolutely breakable if you actual commit to what is working against them. Georgia would absolutely destroy us.

And as for a NY6 bowl game? Cool. It's an awesome place to be in when you can say that your floor is possibly a 12-1 Rose Bowl championship. Very few teams can say that and many would kill for it. But I don't care anymore. I don't want that.

Care: Egbuka and Fleming are not Olave and Wilson

Duh. But please allow me to continue.

Our offense was exceptional before the bye week. We were thinking that our guys this year would provide no drop-off from last year, statistically and impactfully-speaking. That was hubris to the highest degree. We know that Olave and Wilson are great. On any other team least year where they weren't sharing the field they would have won the Biletnikoff. They are tearing up the NFL right now in their rookie seasons with one of them extremely likely to take Offensive Rookie of the Year.

Losing them was a huge deal. We have a VERY talented WR room, but we just lost two of the Top-7 WR in Ohio State history and assumed we'd move on without a hitch.

Well, we hitched pretty damn hard. Our receivers, outside of Harrison, couldn't get it done when it mattered. Everything they needed to do: blocking, gain separation, not drop balls that hit them in the hands...they didn't do far too often. They are very good, but they aren't elite.

Olave and Wilson are on the field this past Saturday and we end the first half with 28-35 points instead of 20 and that game is entirely different. We missed them a lot more this year than many of us liked to admit.

Don't Care: The flag planting

Michigan owned us. They earned it. It's disrespectful only to those who don't really understand what just happened. Michigan owns the rivalry right now. They own Ohio State. Plant your damn flag wherever you want.

There's always next year but until then...I accept it. I hate it, but I accept it.

Care: The "fire Day" crowd.

Just stop. You sound like a spoiled child about to pack up a Thomas the Tank Engine suitcase and threaten to run away because you couldn't have ice cream.

Ryan Day is a very good coach. And very good coaches still have weaknesses. Day's have been found and figured out and the teams with the athletes to match up with ours can exploit them.

But Ryan Day also has shown his willing to make moves to fix issues. Our defense may have been torched on Saturday, but Jim Knowles did things this year that none of us would have expected. And he has a single, solitary recruit of his own on the field. I believe he will have our defense even more improved next year. And I expect Day to make similar moves this offseason to fix everything that just happened against Michigan.

Have faith. It's two years of disappointment which sucks, but I still believe we are in good hands.

Don't Care: For Michigan.

Fuck 'em. Hate 'em even more now. Can't wait until next year when we can go to their place and ruin their season.