Probably an inappropriate title given that Buckeye Nation probably saw the "budding" of this superstar more than a year ago ... but Evan Turner is now a much-talked about budding superstar on the national media stage.
Evan Turner collected his third-consecutive weekly Big Ten Player of the Week honor after leading the No. 18 Ohio State men’s basketball team to a pair of wins last week. On 11/24/09, the junior guard recorded Ohio State's third all-time triple double with 16 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists to propel the Bucks past Lipscomb, 84-64. Evan Turner, a Chicago native, now owns two triple-doubles on the year, making him one of just 34 NCAA student-athletes all-time to record multiple triple-doubles in a single season.
With the effort against the Bisons, he also becomes the first Buckeye to open the season with five-consecutive double-double performances since Clark Kellogg in 1980. Turner continued his scoring prowess in Saturday's contest against St. Francis, adding 16 in OSU's 110-47 rout over the Red Flash, becoming the 44th Buckeye in program history to eclipse the 1,000-point plateau.
On the week, Turner averaged nine rebounds, eight assists and 16 points on 71.4% shooting.
Turner has been called upon this season to embrace the point guard position as the Bucks' roster lacks a starter at the position. Spelled by PJ Hill who comes off the bench as a viable 6th man, Turner then rotates to the 2 or 3 position and remains in the game. With the exception of the past 2 blow-out games, Turner rarely leaves the floor and has typically played all 40 minutes. While this bolsters his stats, the fitness of Turner is apparent this year as he has worked hard to avoid the turnovers that plagued his play last season in similar 40-minute bouts. Turner had a tough game vs. UNC where he had double figures in the turnover stat, but in other games this season, he has been careful with the ball and has improved his decision-making and ball handling.
Notice that Coach Matta has moved back to his man-on-man defensive scheme, a scheme that served him well with previous squads and at previous coaching venues. Last year, however, the Bucks relied largely on a zone defense and with a squad of all returners from 2008-2009, the Bucks can revert to a zone when necessary to stop a hot shooting team. Lighty has also returned from his broken foot in 2008 - recall that the Bucks started 7-0 until Lighty went down and while the season was a winning season, most feel that the 2008-9 record was ultimately a disappointing one. Lighty has already made his mark with outstanding shooting (career high 22 points) vs. Lipscomb and through his defensive intensity in every game. Lighty also has honed his on-court leadership in part through observing from the bench last season some of the team's mental breakdowns in the past season.
The Bucks have a tough match-up this week with Florida State in the Big Ten-ACC challenge. Like UNC, Fla St is tall and rangy. The Bucks had a tough time driving to the basket against UNC and when their shooting failed them, particularly early in the game, the Bucks had no answer offensively. The Bucks also rely on Turner to be a rebounder. Presumably, the similar-sized Fla St will present similar problems for offensive 2nd shots and defensive rebounds as UNC did a week ago.
The Bucks have a mixed bag schedule-wise for the remainder of December until the Big Ten season starts on 12/31/09 at Wisconsin. The December schedule is win-able and those wins will be critical to getting notice come tournament time. The Big Ten looks solid across the top half of the 11 teams with a strong returning squad from Michigan State and Purdue. Michigan has also looked solid at times. Other contenders include Northwestern, Iowa, and Illinois and Penn State if they stay healthy. Indiana continues to lack depth but has skills among its starters. Of course with 3-point shooting, any team can beat any other team on any given night.
GO BUCKS from JennyBucks!
Monday, November 30, 2009
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Indisputable
It is a sunny day in C-bus:
Of course "owning" Michigan would make even a typhoon hitting Columbus seem like a sunny day ... and at 6 wins in a row, we own Michigan. Never mind the battle of Toledo or whatever it was called in the early 1800s when Michigan and Ohio quibbled over Toledo (we might want to give Toledo back to Michigan at this point), Ohio now "owns" Michigan ... and wouldn't we like a do-over on that Purdue game?
The Bucks' 5-game winning streak featured the same formula ... run the friggin' ball and run it hard and run it often. The Bucks had 5 straight 200+ yard rushing games after the Purdue loss to take control of their own destiny and they did it in a fashion that would make Woody proud. Are the problems of the O-line solved? Definitely not. Michigan DE Brandon Graham was the highlight of the UM defense ... and he was a problem for our tackles all afternoon. But in part because Graham was a one-man wrecking crew, the Bucks could fashion their offense away from the Michigan senior and the Bucks got some hard running from Boom and Zoom. I think Brandon Saine set the tone when he ran for a 12-14 yard gain dragging 3-4 Wolverines with him. Boom couldn't let Zoom get all the kudos and he did the same on a following drive.
The Bucks dominated the game so much that even their errors were happy successes ... the Saine score on the misdirection play was a mistake ... the student intern wrote down the wrong play number on the white board they use to signal in the plays to Pryor and the offense. The play was designed for a different formation and Pryor recognized the mistake but thought it could work anyway out of the formation called so he went with it. If you watch that play again, you will notice that the UM defense was so keyed on Pryor that when he took the initial snap to the right, the linebackers follow and the misdirection turned into the perfect call when even the defensive line got turned with their backs to the run of Saine off of the left side of the Buckeye OL. With the UM defense so skewed to the right side of the field, Saine just simply needed to get a step on the safeties and he was in the endzone. Looked like the perfect call ... but it was far from. Just the result was perfect.
Then on the center screen pass to Boom Herron inside the 5 yard line, per Tressel the play call came from his brother Doc Tressel who in Jim Tressel words, always wants to see the ball go to his running backs. But the coaching staff thought that there was not enough time to get the play off and Tress was out on the field desperately trying to call a timeout when the play went off successfully resulting in a score. The Bucks even with a series of mistakes were dominant in their effort and won the game.
The defense set the tone early. Forcier was forced back into the endzone on the UM initial possession and simply dropped the ball. Cam Heyward was in the right place at the right time to scoop the ball back into the endzone for the 1st Buckeye score. In fact, the Buckeye D line dominated the UM O line throughout the game ... even late in the game when the Bucks were dropping 7 and even 8 into coverage, the D line was able to get pressure on Forcier and Robinson. Even if the D got just 8 sacks and TFLs, there were at least as many hurries and throw-aways by the QBs. The UM offense did get a bit going on some short passes and when UM ran a hurry-up offense, limiting the Buckeye's situational substitutions, but Forcier made some serious blunders with the ball, particularly when Devon Torrence stopped a drive that had the potential to change the game's momentum in the 4th quarter. The pass almost seemed like Devon Torrence was the intended receiver.
Tressel commented after the game about Forcier and his abilities, but tipped his hat to his thoughts on a freshman QB when he talked about the ability of Forcier to sling the ball around but the freshman's poor decision-making. After all, the rivalry game often is about turnovers and the Bucks won that statistic pretty easily and Forcier was responsible for all 5 of the UM giveaways.
Brian Rolle was a force in the lineup again this week with 9 tackles including 3 TFLs and Homan led all Buckeyes with 12 tackles. When your linebackers are leading your D statistics, that tells you that your defense is in control of the line of scrimmage and that the opponent running game has been shut down. As advertised, UM had 80 total rushing yards and 309 total yards. And yes, UM was slinging the ball around - nickel back Jermale Hines who plays the 'tweener in passing downs also had 9 tackles and 2 TFLs. And huge props to captain Kurt Coleman. With 2 interceptions - both of them athletic plays by the way - he exceeded even his own dreams he said in his last regular season game. His leadership of this team is to be particularly highlighted - he's well-spoken, hard-nosed, intense ... and his leadership is evident on this D.
On offense, the Bucks were skewed to the run ... 53 running attempts for 251 yards ... and the stats were 1-2-3 ... 1-Pryor with 19 attempts for 74 yards (3.9 yards per carry, 25 yard long), 2- Zoom Saine with 12 attempts for 84 yards (7.0 yards per carry, 29 yard long and 1 TD), and 3- Boom Herron with 19 attempts for 96 yards (5.1 yards per carry, 23 yard long). Pretty even really. Pryor also attempted 17 passes, completing 9 for 67 yards, 1 TD and 1 INT. One of the local commentators has been advocating for Pryor to run-pass in about equal numbers and he got his wish. He thinks that Pryor should get 15-20 rushing attempts per game because of the affect it has on the opponent defense who has to account for Pryor as a legitimate threat to carry the ball and to carry the ball in a fashion outside of the broken play, etc.
The Bucks' very successful 80-yard drive for their 1st score on offense was all run - and featured the coaching staff using the read-option. Essentially, Pryor gets to make the run-pass call at the line based on the defensive scheme and his reads ... typically this means that he is reading where the safeties are and often and probably in this case, where the talented UM DE Graham is lined up. Some QBs also read the center of the D line for their call ... the spacing for example will tell the QB and will tell the center how the play should be blocked. If the drive was truly executed the way Tress said it was executed, that tells a lot about the coaching staff's expanding level of confidence in Pryor and tells us a lot about Pryor's growing ability to read the opponent D. That drive was run to near-perfection.
About mid-week last week, the sports radio station in C-bus featured a call-in from Troy Smith who alone "owned" Michigan in his time as the starting QB. He talked of his growing relationship with Terrelle Pryor and his counsel of the sophomore QB. I am beginning to hear a bit more Tressel-speak from Pryor, much as Troy turned the corner in his sophomore year to the Tressel-way and began to see success. One can't forget that early in Troy's experience as QB, you saw a playbook that featured Troy's running ability over his ability to throw the ball. Now, there are distinct differences between the 2 QBs, but they are often compared here in C-bus, despite their clear differences. Troy was an after-thought in his recruiting class and got his first time on the field in kick-off run-backs, not as a QB as a freshman. Troy was also small in stature, but a big talker ... a bit like Pryor on the talking side. But, Smith was clearly a born-leader and when he got his first time as QB against Iowa in a loss, I will never forget him talking about "his guys". That said that he had command. Pryor has struggled a bit more with this in his time at QB ... in part because he replaced a senior captain as QB and therefore struggled to take command, probably by no fault of his own. Players are loyal and trust is key in the stressful situations a team might find themselves in when in a big, high-profile game. I think Pryor has made strides though. Smith could also really throw the ball from day one and he had a trusted receiver in Ted Ginn Jr. on the field - that partnership is important - a game of pitch and catch came easily to the two of them. Terrelle comes to O-State without that partnership but has support now in the emergence of third team RB Jordan Hall, a former teammate in Jeannette. I like the prospects of a developing relationship between the two of them on the field too. And I like the thought of Troy giving the current Buckeye QB counsel.
Well, the Bucks now have the task of shaking off the national stigma that they can't win on the big stage. Two consecutive losses to USC, too many BCS bowl losses haunt this team and Ohio State will remain a laughing stock on the national front until they can win in a high-profile bowl game. And the Big 10 does us no favors ... while I celebrate the consecutive defeats of UM, their fall from prominence only reinforces the Big 10 as a conference made up of the "sisters of the poor". And the OSU playbook does us no favors ... that being said, the Bucks need to find the formula that won the 2002 national championship and the preparation that got them the crystal football. And our ability to run the ball, control the line of scrimmage was a key to the victory over Miami.
Oregon showed vulnerability to a good defense last night and while they still won, Jeremiah Masoli made mistakes when rushed by Arizona's D. I'm guessing we've got more talent on our D than Arizona. Oregon's D didn't impress me as much but rather, the Arizona offense was just not deep enough to go more than 4 quarters. No question, however, we've got to score more than 21 to beat a Pac 10 team. And Oregon State ... that presents an OSU vs OSU game! Oregon State has the ability to run the ball and features as their president the former Ohio State provost! That matchup might be confusing!
There is a chance for the Bucks to exhale a little and enjoy Thanksgiving but then it is back to the white board ... and let's hope that the month or so of preparation brings new wrinkles and an effective offensive and defensive game plan.
We're Rose Bowl bound baby!
One final thought ... the tribute to Stefanie Spielman was touching. The idea of the pink Buckeye leaf was a great one and her tenacity against cancer, a disease she fought for one-fourth of her life, make us grateful to have known her, and in my case, even a little. She never asked "why" or complained about her cancer but rather knew that God had something special in mind for her. Gordon Gee said it so well when he said, "She was given the gift of a visible life, and she wanted to give that gift to others." And in her near-12 year battle, her work raised over $6.5 million for cancer research and many here in Central Ohio were direct beneficiaries of her work and the work of her family. Please send a tribute to her fund in her honor, work her family will continue in remembrance of her for years to come. It is appropriate that Chris played for an Ohio State program that Coach Tressel keeps burning with the "pay it forward" motto of Woody Hayes and the Spielman family lived that and will continue to live that motto in the years to come. Stefanie paid for so many to have a better life ... a life, period, for that matter. Even in her 5th recurrence, her use of experimental therapies will leave a legacy for cancer research. I hope to take from knowing her, even a little as I did, not to complain about the little things in life and to stop being outraged by the trivial. Rather, I hope that when faced by the difficult I can show even a little of her courage and that I can "pay it forward" by my actions in the remainder of my life.
GO BUCKS from JennyBucks!
Of course "owning" Michigan would make even a typhoon hitting Columbus seem like a sunny day ... and at 6 wins in a row, we own Michigan. Never mind the battle of Toledo or whatever it was called in the early 1800s when Michigan and Ohio quibbled over Toledo (we might want to give Toledo back to Michigan at this point), Ohio now "owns" Michigan ... and wouldn't we like a do-over on that Purdue game?
The Bucks' 5-game winning streak featured the same formula ... run the friggin' ball and run it hard and run it often. The Bucks had 5 straight 200+ yard rushing games after the Purdue loss to take control of their own destiny and they did it in a fashion that would make Woody proud. Are the problems of the O-line solved? Definitely not. Michigan DE Brandon Graham was the highlight of the UM defense ... and he was a problem for our tackles all afternoon. But in part because Graham was a one-man wrecking crew, the Bucks could fashion their offense away from the Michigan senior and the Bucks got some hard running from Boom and Zoom. I think Brandon Saine set the tone when he ran for a 12-14 yard gain dragging 3-4 Wolverines with him. Boom couldn't let Zoom get all the kudos and he did the same on a following drive.
The Bucks dominated the game so much that even their errors were happy successes ... the Saine score on the misdirection play was a mistake ... the student intern wrote down the wrong play number on the white board they use to signal in the plays to Pryor and the offense. The play was designed for a different formation and Pryor recognized the mistake but thought it could work anyway out of the formation called so he went with it. If you watch that play again, you will notice that the UM defense was so keyed on Pryor that when he took the initial snap to the right, the linebackers follow and the misdirection turned into the perfect call when even the defensive line got turned with their backs to the run of Saine off of the left side of the Buckeye OL. With the UM defense so skewed to the right side of the field, Saine just simply needed to get a step on the safeties and he was in the endzone. Looked like the perfect call ... but it was far from. Just the result was perfect.
Then on the center screen pass to Boom Herron inside the 5 yard line, per Tressel the play call came from his brother Doc Tressel who in Jim Tressel words, always wants to see the ball go to his running backs. But the coaching staff thought that there was not enough time to get the play off and Tress was out on the field desperately trying to call a timeout when the play went off successfully resulting in a score. The Bucks even with a series of mistakes were dominant in their effort and won the game.
The defense set the tone early. Forcier was forced back into the endzone on the UM initial possession and simply dropped the ball. Cam Heyward was in the right place at the right time to scoop the ball back into the endzone for the 1st Buckeye score. In fact, the Buckeye D line dominated the UM O line throughout the game ... even late in the game when the Bucks were dropping 7 and even 8 into coverage, the D line was able to get pressure on Forcier and Robinson. Even if the D got just 8 sacks and TFLs, there were at least as many hurries and throw-aways by the QBs. The UM offense did get a bit going on some short passes and when UM ran a hurry-up offense, limiting the Buckeye's situational substitutions, but Forcier made some serious blunders with the ball, particularly when Devon Torrence stopped a drive that had the potential to change the game's momentum in the 4th quarter. The pass almost seemed like Devon Torrence was the intended receiver.
Tressel commented after the game about Forcier and his abilities, but tipped his hat to his thoughts on a freshman QB when he talked about the ability of Forcier to sling the ball around but the freshman's poor decision-making. After all, the rivalry game often is about turnovers and the Bucks won that statistic pretty easily and Forcier was responsible for all 5 of the UM giveaways.
Brian Rolle was a force in the lineup again this week with 9 tackles including 3 TFLs and Homan led all Buckeyes with 12 tackles. When your linebackers are leading your D statistics, that tells you that your defense is in control of the line of scrimmage and that the opponent running game has been shut down. As advertised, UM had 80 total rushing yards and 309 total yards. And yes, UM was slinging the ball around - nickel back Jermale Hines who plays the 'tweener in passing downs also had 9 tackles and 2 TFLs. And huge props to captain Kurt Coleman. With 2 interceptions - both of them athletic plays by the way - he exceeded even his own dreams he said in his last regular season game. His leadership of this team is to be particularly highlighted - he's well-spoken, hard-nosed, intense ... and his leadership is evident on this D.
On offense, the Bucks were skewed to the run ... 53 running attempts for 251 yards ... and the stats were 1-2-3 ... 1-Pryor with 19 attempts for 74 yards (3.9 yards per carry, 25 yard long), 2- Zoom Saine with 12 attempts for 84 yards (7.0 yards per carry, 29 yard long and 1 TD), and 3- Boom Herron with 19 attempts for 96 yards (5.1 yards per carry, 23 yard long). Pretty even really. Pryor also attempted 17 passes, completing 9 for 67 yards, 1 TD and 1 INT. One of the local commentators has been advocating for Pryor to run-pass in about equal numbers and he got his wish. He thinks that Pryor should get 15-20 rushing attempts per game because of the affect it has on the opponent defense who has to account for Pryor as a legitimate threat to carry the ball and to carry the ball in a fashion outside of the broken play, etc.
The Bucks' very successful 80-yard drive for their 1st score on offense was all run - and featured the coaching staff using the read-option. Essentially, Pryor gets to make the run-pass call at the line based on the defensive scheme and his reads ... typically this means that he is reading where the safeties are and often and probably in this case, where the talented UM DE Graham is lined up. Some QBs also read the center of the D line for their call ... the spacing for example will tell the QB and will tell the center how the play should be blocked. If the drive was truly executed the way Tress said it was executed, that tells a lot about the coaching staff's expanding level of confidence in Pryor and tells us a lot about Pryor's growing ability to read the opponent D. That drive was run to near-perfection.
About mid-week last week, the sports radio station in C-bus featured a call-in from Troy Smith who alone "owned" Michigan in his time as the starting QB. He talked of his growing relationship with Terrelle Pryor and his counsel of the sophomore QB. I am beginning to hear a bit more Tressel-speak from Pryor, much as Troy turned the corner in his sophomore year to the Tressel-way and began to see success. One can't forget that early in Troy's experience as QB, you saw a playbook that featured Troy's running ability over his ability to throw the ball. Now, there are distinct differences between the 2 QBs, but they are often compared here in C-bus, despite their clear differences. Troy was an after-thought in his recruiting class and got his first time on the field in kick-off run-backs, not as a QB as a freshman. Troy was also small in stature, but a big talker ... a bit like Pryor on the talking side. But, Smith was clearly a born-leader and when he got his first time as QB against Iowa in a loss, I will never forget him talking about "his guys". That said that he had command. Pryor has struggled a bit more with this in his time at QB ... in part because he replaced a senior captain as QB and therefore struggled to take command, probably by no fault of his own. Players are loyal and trust is key in the stressful situations a team might find themselves in when in a big, high-profile game. I think Pryor has made strides though. Smith could also really throw the ball from day one and he had a trusted receiver in Ted Ginn Jr. on the field - that partnership is important - a game of pitch and catch came easily to the two of them. Terrelle comes to O-State without that partnership but has support now in the emergence of third team RB Jordan Hall, a former teammate in Jeannette. I like the prospects of a developing relationship between the two of them on the field too. And I like the thought of Troy giving the current Buckeye QB counsel.
Well, the Bucks now have the task of shaking off the national stigma that they can't win on the big stage. Two consecutive losses to USC, too many BCS bowl losses haunt this team and Ohio State will remain a laughing stock on the national front until they can win in a high-profile bowl game. And the Big 10 does us no favors ... while I celebrate the consecutive defeats of UM, their fall from prominence only reinforces the Big 10 as a conference made up of the "sisters of the poor". And the OSU playbook does us no favors ... that being said, the Bucks need to find the formula that won the 2002 national championship and the preparation that got them the crystal football. And our ability to run the ball, control the line of scrimmage was a key to the victory over Miami.
Oregon showed vulnerability to a good defense last night and while they still won, Jeremiah Masoli made mistakes when rushed by Arizona's D. I'm guessing we've got more talent on our D than Arizona. Oregon's D didn't impress me as much but rather, the Arizona offense was just not deep enough to go more than 4 quarters. No question, however, we've got to score more than 21 to beat a Pac 10 team. And Oregon State ... that presents an OSU vs OSU game! Oregon State has the ability to run the ball and features as their president the former Ohio State provost! That matchup might be confusing!
There is a chance for the Bucks to exhale a little and enjoy Thanksgiving but then it is back to the white board ... and let's hope that the month or so of preparation brings new wrinkles and an effective offensive and defensive game plan.
We're Rose Bowl bound baby!
One final thought ... the tribute to Stefanie Spielman was touching. The idea of the pink Buckeye leaf was a great one and her tenacity against cancer, a disease she fought for one-fourth of her life, make us grateful to have known her, and in my case, even a little. She never asked "why" or complained about her cancer but rather knew that God had something special in mind for her. Gordon Gee said it so well when he said, "She was given the gift of a visible life, and she wanted to give that gift to others." And in her near-12 year battle, her work raised over $6.5 million for cancer research and many here in Central Ohio were direct beneficiaries of her work and the work of her family. Please send a tribute to her fund in her honor, work her family will continue in remembrance of her for years to come. It is appropriate that Chris played for an Ohio State program that Coach Tressel keeps burning with the "pay it forward" motto of Woody Hayes and the Spielman family lived that and will continue to live that motto in the years to come. Stefanie paid for so many to have a better life ... a life, period, for that matter. Even in her 5th recurrence, her use of experimental therapies will leave a legacy for cancer research. I hope to take from knowing her, even a little as I did, not to complain about the little things in life and to stop being outraged by the trivial. Rather, I hope that when faced by the difficult I can show even a little of her courage and that I can "pay it forward" by my actions in the remainder of my life.
GO BUCKS from JennyBucks!
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Beware of a Wounded Animal
Tressel told the team that they could celebrate their victory for 3 hours after the Iowa game but then it was Michigan Week.
Beware the wounded animal - the Wolverines need a victory against the Buckeyes next Saturday to become bowl eligible ... and to salvage any vestige of respectability this season. The spread ... the spread offense as designed by RichRod does not work in the Big 10 if you have no defense. And Michigan proved against yesterday that they have no defense.
And yes, Buckeye Nation again suffered through another agonizing offensive performance. When arguably you have the best athlete on the field on your team, why not use him? Well, one rather astute caller into WTVN radio this morning made the observation that a college QB needs 2 things - athleticism and the "it" factor. He observed that Terrelle has the athleticism thing but not the "it" factor and went on to explain that Terrelle did not have the grasp of the game from a technical, strategic, and fundamental way. Terrelle cannot read defenses, cannot understand the field position strategies necessary to manage the game, and did not yet make good decisions on the field. He went on to point out the 4th and short call where the Bucks were well back into their own side of the field and Tressel called for the punt. Pryor apparently was shown on camera showing his distaste for the decision. The caller first pointed out that a team leader does not conduct himself in that manner on the sideline but then that Tressel was correct in attempting to bottle-up Iowa deep into their own territory. While the latter did not work out so well as Thoma clearly was not consistent in his performance yesterday, a student of the game (and Tressel certainly is one) and a student of Tressel-ball always knows where Tressel's head is on a decision like that ... field position and put the defense back on the field.
The gauntlet was laid before these Buckeyes to make November one to remember - the toughest part of the schedule was laid before the team starting with the game at Penn State. While boring as all get-out, Tressel et al have clearly decided that they will manage the game for their venerable QB by taking the flash out of the playbook. There was nothing "up top" yesterday and little creativity in the victory. But then again, the Bucks again went turnover-free and that proved to be decisive dampened by losing, but for the final field goal, the special teams battle. Tressel-ball relies on solid special teams play and that was sorely lacking from the punt team, a missed field goal, and on the kick-off run back for 99 1/2 yards. That latter gaffe nearly stole the momentum from the Bucks who had just scored to put the game to 2 scores.
But Tressel showed confidence in the walk-on-turned-starter Devin Barclay as Tress clearly played for the field goal having seen his defense finally push the stout Iowa O-line out of the way for 2 straight offensive losses. Finally!
The game was predicted to be one fought in the trenches ... and hopefully the Buckeye O line took notes and was properly schooled by the Iowa O line. They played a terrific game allowing the Iowa back up QB plenty of time to hit the Iowa TE Moeaki for 3 catches and WR McNutt for 6. Were it not for the loss, Iowa would have probably called the performance by Vandenberg pretty darn good. His rookie mistake in the OT did cost Iowa a chance at a field goal when he took the deep sack, but overall, he showed no hesitation and a great deal of confidence. The Iowa O line gave him good time and opened up holes for the injured RB Robinson. The Buckeye D did enough to win but not enough to be called Rose Bowl champion - the tackling was weak and spotty at best. The coverage of the Buckeye D was solid but on several occasions, the Bucks seemed out of position.
Now props to Ross Homan who had the 1 int and led the team with 8 tackles, but he was slow to react on several plays and attempted arm tackles when his normally solid tackling was required. The second leading tackler was Chimdi Chekwa with 7 - that tells you that he was pitted on McNutt most of the game and that the complete passes required a solid DB tackle.
The Buckeye D also held Iowa to a season-low 310 yards in total offense and kept Iowa's ground game to under 100 yards.
On offense, this is the 4th straight game and 7th game this season that the Bucks have topped 200 yards rushing. Some kudos to the O line is due, however, I give props to the RB's who seem to be running with a bit more authority and show a willingness to take the hit. I miss Beanie. But Boom and Zoom are holding up their end of the bargain. Saine, helped by the 49 yard TD run, ended with 103 yards on 11 carries, while Boom Herron was the workhorse with 97 yards on a career-high 32 carries. Essentially, the game featured 2 100-yard rushers in the game for the Bucks. At the same time, Pryor did what was needed. He went 14 of 17 passing for 93 yards and ran for 29 yards. Those rushing yards came at key times too.
Tressel appeared to be set on a game plan that called for ball control and time-consuming drives and the Bucks largely executed - the Bucks won the clock battle with nearly 34 minutes of possession and topped 320 yards in offense. At one point, the scoreboard statistics showed the yardage as dead-even, much as the game was at that point.
Will Tressel-ball prove victorious in Ann Arbor. Often the weather has something to say about the offense - and at least in C-bus, the weather for week's end does tend to look a lot like a ground game is in store for the Bucks. But the Wolverine D is porous at best, particularly vulnerable to the big play. The scUM offense is inconsistent to put it mildly. Our D is stingy. We will need to tackle better. We will need to cover receivers better and be ready for the wounded animal to come out and claw for every yard, for their very respectability.
The Game is at noon eastern time on ABC. The normal pomp and circumstance are in full regalia this week as preparations for The Game will be made all week. The Bucks have an outright Big Ten championship on the line ... the Wolverines have a bowl berth at play (and maybe the future of RichRod too).
GO BUCKS from JennyBucks!
Beware the wounded animal - the Wolverines need a victory against the Buckeyes next Saturday to become bowl eligible ... and to salvage any vestige of respectability this season. The spread ... the spread offense as designed by RichRod does not work in the Big 10 if you have no defense. And Michigan proved against yesterday that they have no defense.
And yes, Buckeye Nation again suffered through another agonizing offensive performance. When arguably you have the best athlete on the field on your team, why not use him? Well, one rather astute caller into WTVN radio this morning made the observation that a college QB needs 2 things - athleticism and the "it" factor. He observed that Terrelle has the athleticism thing but not the "it" factor and went on to explain that Terrelle did not have the grasp of the game from a technical, strategic, and fundamental way. Terrelle cannot read defenses, cannot understand the field position strategies necessary to manage the game, and did not yet make good decisions on the field. He went on to point out the 4th and short call where the Bucks were well back into their own side of the field and Tressel called for the punt. Pryor apparently was shown on camera showing his distaste for the decision. The caller first pointed out that a team leader does not conduct himself in that manner on the sideline but then that Tressel was correct in attempting to bottle-up Iowa deep into their own territory. While the latter did not work out so well as Thoma clearly was not consistent in his performance yesterday, a student of the game (and Tressel certainly is one) and a student of Tressel-ball always knows where Tressel's head is on a decision like that ... field position and put the defense back on the field.
The gauntlet was laid before these Buckeyes to make November one to remember - the toughest part of the schedule was laid before the team starting with the game at Penn State. While boring as all get-out, Tressel et al have clearly decided that they will manage the game for their venerable QB by taking the flash out of the playbook. There was nothing "up top" yesterday and little creativity in the victory. But then again, the Bucks again went turnover-free and that proved to be decisive dampened by losing, but for the final field goal, the special teams battle. Tressel-ball relies on solid special teams play and that was sorely lacking from the punt team, a missed field goal, and on the kick-off run back for 99 1/2 yards. That latter gaffe nearly stole the momentum from the Bucks who had just scored to put the game to 2 scores.
But Tressel showed confidence in the walk-on-turned-starter Devin Barclay as Tress clearly played for the field goal having seen his defense finally push the stout Iowa O-line out of the way for 2 straight offensive losses. Finally!
The game was predicted to be one fought in the trenches ... and hopefully the Buckeye O line took notes and was properly schooled by the Iowa O line. They played a terrific game allowing the Iowa back up QB plenty of time to hit the Iowa TE Moeaki for 3 catches and WR McNutt for 6. Were it not for the loss, Iowa would have probably called the performance by Vandenberg pretty darn good. His rookie mistake in the OT did cost Iowa a chance at a field goal when he took the deep sack, but overall, he showed no hesitation and a great deal of confidence. The Iowa O line gave him good time and opened up holes for the injured RB Robinson. The Buckeye D did enough to win but not enough to be called Rose Bowl champion - the tackling was weak and spotty at best. The coverage of the Buckeye D was solid but on several occasions, the Bucks seemed out of position.
Now props to Ross Homan who had the 1 int and led the team with 8 tackles, but he was slow to react on several plays and attempted arm tackles when his normally solid tackling was required. The second leading tackler was Chimdi Chekwa with 7 - that tells you that he was pitted on McNutt most of the game and that the complete passes required a solid DB tackle.
The Buckeye D also held Iowa to a season-low 310 yards in total offense and kept Iowa's ground game to under 100 yards.
On offense, this is the 4th straight game and 7th game this season that the Bucks have topped 200 yards rushing. Some kudos to the O line is due, however, I give props to the RB's who seem to be running with a bit more authority and show a willingness to take the hit. I miss Beanie. But Boom and Zoom are holding up their end of the bargain. Saine, helped by the 49 yard TD run, ended with 103 yards on 11 carries, while Boom Herron was the workhorse with 97 yards on a career-high 32 carries. Essentially, the game featured 2 100-yard rushers in the game for the Bucks. At the same time, Pryor did what was needed. He went 14 of 17 passing for 93 yards and ran for 29 yards. Those rushing yards came at key times too.
Tressel appeared to be set on a game plan that called for ball control and time-consuming drives and the Bucks largely executed - the Bucks won the clock battle with nearly 34 minutes of possession and topped 320 yards in offense. At one point, the scoreboard statistics showed the yardage as dead-even, much as the game was at that point.
Will Tressel-ball prove victorious in Ann Arbor. Often the weather has something to say about the offense - and at least in C-bus, the weather for week's end does tend to look a lot like a ground game is in store for the Bucks. But the Wolverine D is porous at best, particularly vulnerable to the big play. The scUM offense is inconsistent to put it mildly. Our D is stingy. We will need to tackle better. We will need to cover receivers better and be ready for the wounded animal to come out and claw for every yard, for their very respectability.
The Game is at noon eastern time on ABC. The normal pomp and circumstance are in full regalia this week as preparations for The Game will be made all week. The Bucks have an outright Big Ten championship on the line ... the Wolverines have a bowl berth at play (and maybe the future of RichRod too).
GO BUCKS from JennyBucks!
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
The BIG Game - Game Time
The Bucks' annual tussle with that team up north will be shown nationally on ABC next Saturday. The game time is set for high noon. Perfect.
And the weather is improved ... about 63 degrees and increasingly cloudy throughout the day. Showers are possible overnight Saturday into Sunday.
GO BUCKS from JennyBucks!
And the weather is improved ... about 63 degrees and increasingly cloudy throughout the day. Showers are possible overnight Saturday into Sunday.
GO BUCKS from JennyBucks!
Buckeye Men's BB Debut
One would think that in all the years of great men's basketball at tOSU, last night would not have been a historic night. Afterall, the Bucks won 100-60 over Alcorn St. in the first round of the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic, a tournament that will later feature an OSU-NC matchup in NYC. But, it was ...
Evan Turner had the 2nd ever triple-double in OSU history (the other by Dennis Hopson vs. OU in 1986) with a 14 point, 17 rebound, 10 assist performance. The win also featured 5 players in double-figures and the return of David Lighty to the court for the first time since December 2008. Jon Diebler led scoring with 22 points including 6 triples. William Buford had 19, Jeremie Simmons 12, and Walter Offutt 11 points. Overall, the Bucks shot over 50% from the field the entire game, a game that was well under wraps before the half.
Evan Turner is largely filling the point guard role in a 6'7" frame and his play this season is showing that the summer led to much-improved ball handling skills. And props to Evan for playing 4 positions on the court ... all but the center spot. When PJ Hill enters the game, Turner moves to an open position and his talent and versatility are needed while Dallas Lauderdale heals the broken bone in his hand.
As a team, the Bucks had 29 assists to only 6 turnovers. Matta uses the ratio of assists to turnovers as one of his key measures of success. Successful outing.
The Bucks next play James Madison at home this Thursday night. The game tips at 7pm. Dallas Lauderdale is expected to see action this Thursday, though PT is unknown. He was dressed for last night's game but has not yet received medical clearance to play.
GO BUCKS from JennyBucks!
Evan Turner had the 2nd ever triple-double in OSU history (the other by Dennis Hopson vs. OU in 1986) with a 14 point, 17 rebound, 10 assist performance. The win also featured 5 players in double-figures and the return of David Lighty to the court for the first time since December 2008. Jon Diebler led scoring with 22 points including 6 triples. William Buford had 19, Jeremie Simmons 12, and Walter Offutt 11 points. Overall, the Bucks shot over 50% from the field the entire game, a game that was well under wraps before the half.
Evan Turner is largely filling the point guard role in a 6'7" frame and his play this season is showing that the summer led to much-improved ball handling skills. And props to Evan for playing 4 positions on the court ... all but the center spot. When PJ Hill enters the game, Turner moves to an open position and his talent and versatility are needed while Dallas Lauderdale heals the broken bone in his hand.
As a team, the Bucks had 29 assists to only 6 turnovers. Matta uses the ratio of assists to turnovers as one of his key measures of success. Successful outing.
The Bucks next play James Madison at home this Thursday night. The game tips at 7pm. Dallas Lauderdale is expected to see action this Thursday, though PT is unknown. He was dressed for last night's game but has not yet received medical clearance to play.
GO BUCKS from JennyBucks!
Monday, November 9, 2009
Bucks Get Weekly Honors!
Congrats to Ray Small who was named the Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week. Along with the D line, Buckeye special teams proved special and proved to be a difference-maker in the Penn State game. Note in the Jim Tressel Seven Nation Army video on the Plain Dealer site that Ray is standing immediately to Tress' right (left of him in the video) ... clearly, he's out of the Tressel dog house.
And greater props to Cameron Heyward. His 11 tackle, 3 TFL, 2 sack performance made him the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week and also the national Walter Camp Defensive Player of the Week. And yes, he's now in the national spotlight and that puts pressure on the true junior to make that post-season decision to "stay" or "go" to the NFL.
GO BUCKS from JennyBucks!
And greater props to Cameron Heyward. His 11 tackle, 3 TFL, 2 sack performance made him the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week and also the national Walter Camp Defensive Player of the Week. And yes, he's now in the national spotlight and that puts pressure on the true junior to make that post-season decision to "stay" or "go" to the NFL.
GO BUCKS from JennyBucks!
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Don't Celebrate Too Much Yet ...
Greetings from sunny C-bus:
And Buckeye Nation is celebrating a week that will likely be the first in years where the sports talking heads will have little to talk (i.e. complain) about with regard to Buckeye football this week.
But, note to Tressel ... it's a bit too early to celebrate too much ...
See the video below for one of the few times in his 9 seasons with the Buckeyes that we've seen Tressel get a bit crazy ...
http://videos.cleveland.com/plain-dealer/2009/11/buckeyes_celebrate_penn_state.html
Now, for the game analysis ...
Terrelle Pryor is going to get a lot of credit for this victory, but in my opinion, the determining factor in this game was the play of the D line and specifically, Cameron Heyward. Heyward was a mis-match for virtually every O lineman Penn State tried to use against him and was notably double-teamed and held over and over. Heyward improved his draft stock ... sadly, because he's a junior ... and got on every NFL scout's radar screen with his play yesterday. He had 11 tackles including 3 TFLs. As the Columbus Dispatch put it, "he was in the offensive backfield almost as much as Penn State quarterback Daryll Clark." And he was. His speed was just stunning. Teammates interviewed after the game weren't sure exactly what had "gotten into" Heyward, but to a man, they liked it. And the play of Thad Gibson, Doug Worthington, et.al. gave the linebackers room to roam and roam they did. After Heyward's 11 tackle performance, linebackers B. Rolle and R. Homan had 10 tackles each. The game plan called for shutting down Daryll Clark's favorite receiver, Derek Moye and he did not have a catch yesterday. That left Zug open for 7 catches and 96 yards. The Bucks also effectively limited RB Royster to a subpar 13 carries for 36 yards and Penn State had 201 total yards on offense for the game. Penn State had been averaging nearly twice that this season. This also marks the 20th game in a row where the Buckeye D has held a running back to under 100 yards. And but for the bogus TD call, the Bucks posted another shutout for the season.
Did you know that the Buckeyes lead the nation in 3-and-outs on defense this year? I'm not sure this is a widely calculated stat, but the Bucks notably kept pace with this measure yesterday too.
Credit special teams for getting the ball rolling on the scoreboard. Ray Small came out large on the first punt return where he got loose for 41 yards down to the PSU 9. It was classic Tressel-ball from a field position standpoint. The Bucks were held on offense, then the defense moved PSU backward on their first drive. Field position advantage was moving the Bucks' way. Then Ray Small gives the Bucks the ball inside the 10 for a first score. Phew. Game on.
On offense, there was nothing fancy in the game plan. Early on, TP came out clearly amped up and nervous. He was overthrowing nearly every route and seemed to rush his throws. Then the Bucks took a page from the Texas playbook and let TP hit a few short screen routes to get his confidence up. Colt McCoy in his early playing days at Texas benefited from an offensive script that typically allowed Colt to "warm up", hitting the short routes to fine tune his accuracy and to get confidence before they called the long passing plays. I hadn't seen Tress use that plan previously but it sure seemed like when TP showed some early problems throwing the ball that the coaches went that direction. They also called a few running plays for TP and some read-option to let him get his feet moving.
And speaking of Texas, the Columbus Dispatch had earlier last week carried a brief article featuring the Texas coach Mack Brown talking about the TP-Vince Young comparisons (ESPiN showed plenty on that yesterday). I shared with several a comment by Brown that stated that during Vince's sophomore year, there was a game mid-season where it all seemed to click and Vince never lost another game in his college career. Brown then predicted TP would lead the Bucks to a National Championship before TP's playing days were over. Brown also commended the Buckeye coaching staff and Tress specifically for bringing TP along exactly right. Now, I don't consider Mack Brown to be a seer, but as I read the statements, I started to think about the comparison. Physically gifted, Vince and TP have been compared before TP even came to tOSU. Physically, there are similarities. But I also think about quotes by TP this week noting that he knew that he had not yet led the Buckeyes in a "big game" and on the big stage yet. And I knew that Penn State would provide that venue if TP could "step up" and deliver on the hype. And certainly the hype is something TP is saddled with, not something he asked for. Perhaps, he has turned the corner and it has all clicked. That answer comes this Saturday and so forth.
And perhaps Mack Brown and Tress bonded this past summer while they visited the troops in the Middle East together on a coaches' tour ... and perhaps Tress picked Mack's brain a bit ...
The Bucks put together another 200 yard rushing game, but this time it was against Penn State, a team that led the Big Ten in nearly every defensive category and led the nation in several categories. Somehow, the O line seemed to click. And Boom came out a man possessed ... he ran effectively and looked healthy until he tweaked the ankle again and gave way to Saine. Saine looked awful after his first series and I was shouting at the TV for Tressel's ears ... where is Boom? But once Boom went down, Saine seemed to catch fire. Combined, the duo had 126 yards on 36 total carries and each ultimately got about 50% of the work. Sadly, PA-boy Jordan Hall got little time - 3 carries for 17 yards. Tress said after the game that the coaches were disappointed that Hall didn't get into the game more. OK. I buy that.
And how about DeVier Posey! Okay, just 2 catches but the 62-yard catch on the first play of the third quarter drive after PSU's punt. Up until that play, Tress had called run on every first down. Finally ... time to make the PSU defense honest. Up top. And that seemed to seal the momentum in favor of the Bucks and permanently quiet the crowd.
TP went 8 of 17 for 125 yards and 2 TDs. He also had 5 carries for 50 yards and 1 rushing TD. The game stats aren't Heisman-worthy but the big stat was this ... NO TURNOVERS. The Bucks for the second week in a row did NOT commit a turnover. And Penn State did.
Clearly, TP is banged up from last week's game. The recumbent bike on the sideline was a bit of "show" but there was a purpose. The claim was that Pryor needed to keep his ankles loose. Huh? I'm guessing something more of a gross muscle group like a hamstring ... either way ... keep it going Terrelle.
In a funny postgame line, Tressel when asked about the Penn State white out crowd said, "We thought all of that white was cheering for us since we were wearing white. It was nice." The Dispatch this morning called the white "surrender flags".
And consider that this was Tress's first victory against a higher-ranked team since the national championship game against Miami. That stat surprised me.
And that overhead shot provided by ABC/ESPiN at the game showing all the white but for the corner of red and the little blotch of red around the 20-yard line (where TP said his family was sitting) was very cool. Props to Penn State for getting even the blue-hairs organized to show school spirit. I truly wish that OSU could accomplish the same.
Iowa's surprise loss to NW changes the "game" for this coming Saturday. First, NW shows that their competitive game vs. PSU was no fluke. Fitzgerald is no dummy - after all, he's a NW grad. The NW coach put together 2 weeks of solid game plans to take down the biggies in the Big Ten. While they didn't get it done vs. Penn State last week, they sure did against Iowa. And nothing fancy. Just a solid game by NW got the job done. But, the decisive 7-point swing in the game came in the end zone following Iowa's opening drive (where they looked unstoppable by the way). NW came in on a well-called blitz and caught Iowa QB Stanzi in Iowa's end zone for what could have initially been a safety. Not only did NW get the ball loose from Stanzi resulting in a fumble that NW fell on for their first TD, but Stanzi went down awkwardly on the side of his ankle for a game-ending injury. And the injury, per Coach Ferentz, will keep Stanzi out for the next "couple of weeks". It appears to be the classic "high ankle injury", an injury that really hobbles skill players. Ferentz says that they will gameplan assuming Stanzi cannot go and if he can, it will be a bonus. Seeing the QB on the sideline on crutches and in a boot up to his knee tells me that the injury is not likely to heal by this Saturday, unless he's a heck of an actor.
So Saturday's home finale is for the Rose Bowl. The Bucks win, they go ... regardless of the Ann Arbor outcome the following week. The Bucks win, they also win the Big Ten ... again. Don't even speculate on who the Rose Bowl might have from the Pac 10. Talk about a screwed up conference.
But don't go to the florist just yet. There's work to do.
On the injury front, Pettrey is done for the regular season. Boom? Not clear. Another injury to the same ankle will probably hobble him or keep him from this Saturday's home finale. Big Mike Adams could be back for this coming game. Dexter Larrimore got in yesterday's game but he will continue to return to his pre-injury form as the games go on ... bad news for opponents. TP - let's just hope that the bike is just what the doctor ordered.
The home finale is this Saturday vs. Iowa at 3:30 in Ohio Stadium. Seniors will be honored - always emotional. And the weather ... bring the rain ponchos ... so far.
GO BUCKS from JennyBucks!
And Buckeye Nation is celebrating a week that will likely be the first in years where the sports talking heads will have little to talk (i.e. complain) about with regard to Buckeye football this week.
But, note to Tressel ... it's a bit too early to celebrate too much ...
See the video below for one of the few times in his 9 seasons with the Buckeyes that we've seen Tressel get a bit crazy ...
http://videos.cleveland.com/plain-dealer/2009/11/buckeyes_celebrate_penn_state.html
Now, for the game analysis ...
Terrelle Pryor is going to get a lot of credit for this victory, but in my opinion, the determining factor in this game was the play of the D line and specifically, Cameron Heyward. Heyward was a mis-match for virtually every O lineman Penn State tried to use against him and was notably double-teamed and held over and over. Heyward improved his draft stock ... sadly, because he's a junior ... and got on every NFL scout's radar screen with his play yesterday. He had 11 tackles including 3 TFLs. As the Columbus Dispatch put it, "he was in the offensive backfield almost as much as Penn State quarterback Daryll Clark." And he was. His speed was just stunning. Teammates interviewed after the game weren't sure exactly what had "gotten into" Heyward, but to a man, they liked it. And the play of Thad Gibson, Doug Worthington, et.al. gave the linebackers room to roam and roam they did. After Heyward's 11 tackle performance, linebackers B. Rolle and R. Homan had 10 tackles each. The game plan called for shutting down Daryll Clark's favorite receiver, Derek Moye and he did not have a catch yesterday. That left Zug open for 7 catches and 96 yards. The Bucks also effectively limited RB Royster to a subpar 13 carries for 36 yards and Penn State had 201 total yards on offense for the game. Penn State had been averaging nearly twice that this season. This also marks the 20th game in a row where the Buckeye D has held a running back to under 100 yards. And but for the bogus TD call, the Bucks posted another shutout for the season.
Did you know that the Buckeyes lead the nation in 3-and-outs on defense this year? I'm not sure this is a widely calculated stat, but the Bucks notably kept pace with this measure yesterday too.
Credit special teams for getting the ball rolling on the scoreboard. Ray Small came out large on the first punt return where he got loose for 41 yards down to the PSU 9. It was classic Tressel-ball from a field position standpoint. The Bucks were held on offense, then the defense moved PSU backward on their first drive. Field position advantage was moving the Bucks' way. Then Ray Small gives the Bucks the ball inside the 10 for a first score. Phew. Game on.
On offense, there was nothing fancy in the game plan. Early on, TP came out clearly amped up and nervous. He was overthrowing nearly every route and seemed to rush his throws. Then the Bucks took a page from the Texas playbook and let TP hit a few short screen routes to get his confidence up. Colt McCoy in his early playing days at Texas benefited from an offensive script that typically allowed Colt to "warm up", hitting the short routes to fine tune his accuracy and to get confidence before they called the long passing plays. I hadn't seen Tress use that plan previously but it sure seemed like when TP showed some early problems throwing the ball that the coaches went that direction. They also called a few running plays for TP and some read-option to let him get his feet moving.
And speaking of Texas, the Columbus Dispatch had earlier last week carried a brief article featuring the Texas coach Mack Brown talking about the TP-Vince Young comparisons (ESPiN showed plenty on that yesterday). I shared with several a comment by Brown that stated that during Vince's sophomore year, there was a game mid-season where it all seemed to click and Vince never lost another game in his college career. Brown then predicted TP would lead the Bucks to a National Championship before TP's playing days were over. Brown also commended the Buckeye coaching staff and Tress specifically for bringing TP along exactly right. Now, I don't consider Mack Brown to be a seer, but as I read the statements, I started to think about the comparison. Physically gifted, Vince and TP have been compared before TP even came to tOSU. Physically, there are similarities. But I also think about quotes by TP this week noting that he knew that he had not yet led the Buckeyes in a "big game" and on the big stage yet. And I knew that Penn State would provide that venue if TP could "step up" and deliver on the hype. And certainly the hype is something TP is saddled with, not something he asked for. Perhaps, he has turned the corner and it has all clicked. That answer comes this Saturday and so forth.
And perhaps Mack Brown and Tress bonded this past summer while they visited the troops in the Middle East together on a coaches' tour ... and perhaps Tress picked Mack's brain a bit ...
The Bucks put together another 200 yard rushing game, but this time it was against Penn State, a team that led the Big Ten in nearly every defensive category and led the nation in several categories. Somehow, the O line seemed to click. And Boom came out a man possessed ... he ran effectively and looked healthy until he tweaked the ankle again and gave way to Saine. Saine looked awful after his first series and I was shouting at the TV for Tressel's ears ... where is Boom? But once Boom went down, Saine seemed to catch fire. Combined, the duo had 126 yards on 36 total carries and each ultimately got about 50% of the work. Sadly, PA-boy Jordan Hall got little time - 3 carries for 17 yards. Tress said after the game that the coaches were disappointed that Hall didn't get into the game more. OK. I buy that.
And how about DeVier Posey! Okay, just 2 catches but the 62-yard catch on the first play of the third quarter drive after PSU's punt. Up until that play, Tress had called run on every first down. Finally ... time to make the PSU defense honest. Up top. And that seemed to seal the momentum in favor of the Bucks and permanently quiet the crowd.
TP went 8 of 17 for 125 yards and 2 TDs. He also had 5 carries for 50 yards and 1 rushing TD. The game stats aren't Heisman-worthy but the big stat was this ... NO TURNOVERS. The Bucks for the second week in a row did NOT commit a turnover. And Penn State did.
Clearly, TP is banged up from last week's game. The recumbent bike on the sideline was a bit of "show" but there was a purpose. The claim was that Pryor needed to keep his ankles loose. Huh? I'm guessing something more of a gross muscle group like a hamstring ... either way ... keep it going Terrelle.
In a funny postgame line, Tressel when asked about the Penn State white out crowd said, "We thought all of that white was cheering for us since we were wearing white. It was nice." The Dispatch this morning called the white "surrender flags".
And consider that this was Tress's first victory against a higher-ranked team since the national championship game against Miami. That stat surprised me.
And that overhead shot provided by ABC/ESPiN at the game showing all the white but for the corner of red and the little blotch of red around the 20-yard line (where TP said his family was sitting) was very cool. Props to Penn State for getting even the blue-hairs organized to show school spirit. I truly wish that OSU could accomplish the same.
Iowa's surprise loss to NW changes the "game" for this coming Saturday. First, NW shows that their competitive game vs. PSU was no fluke. Fitzgerald is no dummy - after all, he's a NW grad. The NW coach put together 2 weeks of solid game plans to take down the biggies in the Big Ten. While they didn't get it done vs. Penn State last week, they sure did against Iowa. And nothing fancy. Just a solid game by NW got the job done. But, the decisive 7-point swing in the game came in the end zone following Iowa's opening drive (where they looked unstoppable by the way). NW came in on a well-called blitz and caught Iowa QB Stanzi in Iowa's end zone for what could have initially been a safety. Not only did NW get the ball loose from Stanzi resulting in a fumble that NW fell on for their first TD, but Stanzi went down awkwardly on the side of his ankle for a game-ending injury. And the injury, per Coach Ferentz, will keep Stanzi out for the next "couple of weeks". It appears to be the classic "high ankle injury", an injury that really hobbles skill players. Ferentz says that they will gameplan assuming Stanzi cannot go and if he can, it will be a bonus. Seeing the QB on the sideline on crutches and in a boot up to his knee tells me that the injury is not likely to heal by this Saturday, unless he's a heck of an actor.
So Saturday's home finale is for the Rose Bowl. The Bucks win, they go ... regardless of the Ann Arbor outcome the following week. The Bucks win, they also win the Big Ten ... again. Don't even speculate on who the Rose Bowl might have from the Pac 10. Talk about a screwed up conference.
But don't go to the florist just yet. There's work to do.
On the injury front, Pettrey is done for the regular season. Boom? Not clear. Another injury to the same ankle will probably hobble him or keep him from this Saturday's home finale. Big Mike Adams could be back for this coming game. Dexter Larrimore got in yesterday's game but he will continue to return to his pre-injury form as the games go on ... bad news for opponents. TP - let's just hope that the bike is just what the doctor ordered.
The home finale is this Saturday vs. Iowa at 3:30 in Ohio Stadium. Seniors will be honored - always emotional. And the weather ... bring the rain ponchos ... so far.
GO BUCKS from JennyBucks!
Monday, November 2, 2009
Pettrey to Miss Rest of Season
Local word is that Aaron Pettrey had surgery today on the MCL injury he suffered vs. NMSt Saturday. He will miss the remainder of the regular season.
Backups are now a tie - Devin Barclay who played in his first collegiate game last Saturday and Ben Buchanan, the redshirt freshman who was sick last Saturday and did not dress. Both are listed as number 1 for kicking duties.
GO BUCKS from JennyBucks!
Backups are now a tie - Devin Barclay who played in his first collegiate game last Saturday and Ben Buchanan, the redshirt freshman who was sick last Saturday and did not dress. Both are listed as number 1 for kicking duties.
GO BUCKS from JennyBucks!
All Hail Defense ...
Greetings from sunny C-bus!
But a victory often brings a sunny disposition to Buckeye Nation!
A bit of a mid-year report card since the New Mexico State game yielded little in the way of surprise ... but for injuries ... more on that later.
The Ohio State defense - A. It pitched a near-perfect game vs. NMSt. Not only did it record its third shutout -- the school's most since getting three in 1996 -- it gave up just two first downs and about 60 yards in total offense to the 120th offense in NCAA. One of my favorite Buckeyes, Brian Rolle, had the exclamation point in Saturday's game with a fumble recovery for a touchdown and so OSU's defense outscored the Aggie offense. Not a surprise. And that D line has allowed the young LBs to blossom this season. I look forward to getting Dexter Larrimore back full strength soon!
The Ohio State offense - C+. Terrelle Pryor could be the hottest quarterback in the Big Ten if he could stay away from those passing lapses. No QB in the league runs more effectively (he's the seventh-leading rusher in the Big Ten with a 61.56-yard avg.). When he makes the right choice and doesn't hesitate, he's also a good passer, though it's clear he and his receivers all have room to grow. O line - it sucks. Period. The next 2 weeks will not allow the Buckeye offense to get away with slow starts! Is it possible that DeVier Posey might see some wildcat offensive plays written for him? He's a viable 3rd QB now with that left-handed pass to Sanzenbacher Saturday, in a reverse option that was actually designed to go to Pryor with the ball. Seeing Pryor covered, Posey went to his outlet in the endzone. Guess what? He can read defenses too. The Buckeyes ultimately must get a consistent running game going to run the gauntlet the rest of the season. And I'm more and more in favor of seeing more and more of Jordan Hall. I love the way this kid hits the hole fast and hard.
The Ohio State special teams - B-. This is looking scary into the next 3 games. The run backs on both kickoff and punt returns have been better than several seasons, sans Ted Ginn Jr. Just don't drop that punt! But with Pettrey hurt, Barclay proved about as effective in his first-ever college game Saturday. But that's not saying much. Tressel-ball requires a more-than-passable field goal percentage and while Pettrey proved solid from long distance, his shorter stuff is not reliable. Now Barclay ... he too was not reliable on Saturday. Kick-offs by Barclay were very solid, however. Loved those deep kicks and that was a net sum gain Saturday. Protection has been largely solid all season, but know that PSU and Iowa are both solid in this area and have the potential to turn a game with a big play on special teams. The Bucks too have that capability.
Buckeye Coaching - B+. I've seen something never seen before this season. Tressel is willing to give up some control on the offense. Clearly, Darrell Hazell is very involved in the offense on game day. All you need to do is to look at Hazell on the sideline to know that he's getting input on play calling and that he's very engaged with the players on offense on the field. Can we get a decent O line coach? And on D, not a darn thing I would do differently. The switch between Heacock and Fickell, moving Fickell to the field from the booth, and vice versa has paid dividends ... Fickell is much more animated on the field and his men feed off of that.
The gauntlet is before the Bucks with 3:30 starts this week in Happy Valley and vs. Iowa in the 'Shoe a week later. The Bucks control their own destiny and there's no reason they can't win out ... just as there's no reason to be confident in the outcome of all 3 games. Each team has its weaknesses and each has it's strengths.
Penn State - the team leads the Big Ten in virtually every statistical category in Defense. Offense - same issues as the Bucks but with a bit more seasoning at the QB spot - consistency or lack there of.
Iowa - a team that reminds me a lot of 2002 Bucks ... a team with heart and the never-give-up spirit that has led to many, many, too many 4th quarter wins. The advantage to the Bucks is having the game in C-bus. By the same token, Iowa is no slouch ... their D is a big-play D and their QB is service-able and at times, great.
Michigan - no defense. Period. Inconsistent offense. Weather could come up big in a game in Ann Arbor because scUM has no real running game and relies on Forcier's arm. That being said, the Bucks have not been consistent running the ball.
Injuries - Pettrey. Not clear if this is serious or not. Boom and Zoom (Herron and Saine). Unless they got banged up vs. NMSt., they return. I'm not sure I care. Pryor. Banged up. Not clear where and Tressel was mysteriously vague. Appears to be a "lower body injury" and Pryor referred to a left leg injury on the play where he got his head ripped off. Might be a quad ... hamstring ... or worse. O line - all are banged up and I'm not sure I care. The carousel of O linemen are as bad as ever and I don't think their lack of health is to blame. This is our real weakness. Period. Larrimore - should be back to full strength soon. Miss him - he's a true defensive tackle and if he's healthy, the Bucks can play more of a 3-4 and that can stop some of that short stuff underneath.
So ... the task at hand is clear.
Win out ... Rose Bowl at worst. BCS is possible.
Lose one ... Buckeyes do not control their future.
GO BUCKS from JennyBucks!
But a victory often brings a sunny disposition to Buckeye Nation!
A bit of a mid-year report card since the New Mexico State game yielded little in the way of surprise ... but for injuries ... more on that later.
The Ohio State defense - A. It pitched a near-perfect game vs. NMSt. Not only did it record its third shutout -- the school's most since getting three in 1996 -- it gave up just two first downs and about 60 yards in total offense to the 120th offense in NCAA. One of my favorite Buckeyes, Brian Rolle, had the exclamation point in Saturday's game with a fumble recovery for a touchdown and so OSU's defense outscored the Aggie offense. Not a surprise. And that D line has allowed the young LBs to blossom this season. I look forward to getting Dexter Larrimore back full strength soon!
The Ohio State offense - C+. Terrelle Pryor could be the hottest quarterback in the Big Ten if he could stay away from those passing lapses. No QB in the league runs more effectively (he's the seventh-leading rusher in the Big Ten with a 61.56-yard avg.). When he makes the right choice and doesn't hesitate, he's also a good passer, though it's clear he and his receivers all have room to grow. O line - it sucks. Period. The next 2 weeks will not allow the Buckeye offense to get away with slow starts! Is it possible that DeVier Posey might see some wildcat offensive plays written for him? He's a viable 3rd QB now with that left-handed pass to Sanzenbacher Saturday, in a reverse option that was actually designed to go to Pryor with the ball. Seeing Pryor covered, Posey went to his outlet in the endzone. Guess what? He can read defenses too. The Buckeyes ultimately must get a consistent running game going to run the gauntlet the rest of the season. And I'm more and more in favor of seeing more and more of Jordan Hall. I love the way this kid hits the hole fast and hard.
The Ohio State special teams - B-. This is looking scary into the next 3 games. The run backs on both kickoff and punt returns have been better than several seasons, sans Ted Ginn Jr. Just don't drop that punt! But with Pettrey hurt, Barclay proved about as effective in his first-ever college game Saturday. But that's not saying much. Tressel-ball requires a more-than-passable field goal percentage and while Pettrey proved solid from long distance, his shorter stuff is not reliable. Now Barclay ... he too was not reliable on Saturday. Kick-offs by Barclay were very solid, however. Loved those deep kicks and that was a net sum gain Saturday. Protection has been largely solid all season, but know that PSU and Iowa are both solid in this area and have the potential to turn a game with a big play on special teams. The Bucks too have that capability.
Buckeye Coaching - B+. I've seen something never seen before this season. Tressel is willing to give up some control on the offense. Clearly, Darrell Hazell is very involved in the offense on game day. All you need to do is to look at Hazell on the sideline to know that he's getting input on play calling and that he's very engaged with the players on offense on the field. Can we get a decent O line coach? And on D, not a darn thing I would do differently. The switch between Heacock and Fickell, moving Fickell to the field from the booth, and vice versa has paid dividends ... Fickell is much more animated on the field and his men feed off of that.
The gauntlet is before the Bucks with 3:30 starts this week in Happy Valley and vs. Iowa in the 'Shoe a week later. The Bucks control their own destiny and there's no reason they can't win out ... just as there's no reason to be confident in the outcome of all 3 games. Each team has its weaknesses and each has it's strengths.
Penn State - the team leads the Big Ten in virtually every statistical category in Defense. Offense - same issues as the Bucks but with a bit more seasoning at the QB spot - consistency or lack there of.
Iowa - a team that reminds me a lot of 2002 Bucks ... a team with heart and the never-give-up spirit that has led to many, many, too many 4th quarter wins. The advantage to the Bucks is having the game in C-bus. By the same token, Iowa is no slouch ... their D is a big-play D and their QB is service-able and at times, great.
Michigan - no defense. Period. Inconsistent offense. Weather could come up big in a game in Ann Arbor because scUM has no real running game and relies on Forcier's arm. That being said, the Bucks have not been consistent running the ball.
Injuries - Pettrey. Not clear if this is serious or not. Boom and Zoom (Herron and Saine). Unless they got banged up vs. NMSt., they return. I'm not sure I care. Pryor. Banged up. Not clear where and Tressel was mysteriously vague. Appears to be a "lower body injury" and Pryor referred to a left leg injury on the play where he got his head ripped off. Might be a quad ... hamstring ... or worse. O line - all are banged up and I'm not sure I care. The carousel of O linemen are as bad as ever and I don't think their lack of health is to blame. This is our real weakness. Period. Larrimore - should be back to full strength soon. Miss him - he's a true defensive tackle and if he's healthy, the Bucks can play more of a 3-4 and that can stop some of that short stuff underneath.
So ... the task at hand is clear.
Win out ... Rose Bowl at worst. BCS is possible.
Lose one ... Buckeyes do not control their future.
GO BUCKS from JennyBucks!
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