One of our longest After Carmen shows of the year, and the game Ohio State just played only occupied about one-quarter of the discussion. That's because The Game is in full view.
The Buckeyes dominated Rutgers, 42-9. Their defense shut down a quality Scarlet Knight attack, with Rutgers' lone touchdown coming late in the game after Ohio State's backups were in.
Improvements continued in the Buckeyes' running game, with 254 yards on 38 carries (6.7 yards per carry) as a team. Rutgers features the worst yard-per-carry run defense in college football by a full yard, but there was still improved physicality there. The real test of whether the gains are real comes at Michigan, however.
More important than any other question to ask is the health status of Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate. The wide receiver position looked a gargantuan step worse without both of them against Rutgers, as Ohio State's wide receivers only had four receptions for 43 yards combined. Our confidence level in the Buckeyes for next week's game will rise if both can play. But even in that case, the psychological hurdles of four straight losses to the Wolverines will give pause until Ryan Day's program gets a pair of gold pants again.
Eleven Warriors' Andy Anders and Dan Hope articulate Michigan anxieties, review the Rutgers game and pay homage to retiring Ohio State sports information director Jerry Emig on our final After Carmen from Ohio Stadium this season, which you can watch in the video at the top of the page.
