2007 tOSU Football Season Discussion (merged)

[MililaniBuckeye]

I wouldn't call losing at home as #1 to a significant underdog being part of an "absolutely perfect" season, but I see your point. Blowing out everyone on our schedule, including Michigan and an SEC opponent in the national title game, would be my idea of an "absolutely perfect" season...

 

[NFBuck]

I've really enjoyed this season as a whole, and the team performed way above my expectations coming in (save the Illinois game). They played my kind of ball: Dominant defense, strong running game, solid passing game. What I particularly enjoyed was how JT allowed so many of the kids play and watching Robo, Beanie, Hartline, etc. emerge. It's been said by many, but if you would've told me in August that we'd be outright Big-10 champs, whooped scUM's ass and would be playing for a National Championship again, I'd have a hard time believing it.

 

[shetuck]

BB posted this over on another thread. thought it should also show up here...

sportsline

Quote:
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- It's obvious these Buckeyes aren't robots.

True, they're becoming the New York Yankees of the sport (three title shots in the past six years). True, their coach barely noses out a central vacuum cleaning system in terms of pizzazz. But these guys (and their coach) have actual personalities.

That's what I came away with Thursday after spending an afternoon interviewing the Bucks before their BCS title game date on Jan. 7. A lot of credit goes to the ol' central vac himself, Jim Tressel, for loosening up the atmosphere. He's the one who went out in the offseason and landed his biggest recruit (at least in media terms) -- sports information director Shelly Poe from West Virginia.

While that might not mean much to the majority of you, it was the equivalent of a thaw in relations between the U.S. and the old Soviet Union. Tressel himself wanted to get his program's story out to a broader audience. In came Poe, who worked for two decades publicizing West Virginia. As you can see by where the Mountaineers are in the national cosmos, she did a pretty good job.

Cont'd ...

 

[WaitingforKickoff]

I will say this, at the time of Gonzo's press conference, when people were wondering whether Gonzo decided to declare to abandon a sinking ship, it was very difficult to anticipate the marvelous season that we've had so far. Now it's time to get the job done.

 

[DaddyBigBucks]

I will say this, at the time of Gonzo's press conference, when people were wondering whether Gonzo decided to declare to abandon a sinking ship, it was very difficult to anticipate the marvelous season that we've had so far. Now it's time to get the job done.

"Sinking Ship"?

Isn't that just a tad dramatic? Maybe he thought that he wouldn't look as good with a new qb and no Teddy on the other side to get the bulk of the opposing defense's attention. But let's consider his own words, shall we?

Gonzo was on the sidelines during a game this year. I don't remember which one, but it wouldn't be hard to look it up because it coincided with a Colts Bye week. During the de rigeur interview with the sideline reporter he was asked if the offensive production of this year's crew surprised him. He talked about how he had practiced with these guys for years and knew bloody well how talented they were.

Gonzo knew the ship wasn't sinking. But so did everybody else. Sure, many people thought that this would be a bit of a rebuilding year; but that is a very, very far cry from the proper use of the "sinking ship" metaphor.

EDIT: That comes across a bit harsher than I intended it to. The truth is, I don't believe that you meant for what you typed to come across that way. And I didn't intend to sound like I was taking you so much to task for a poorly chosen metaphor. Not that big a deal, really.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

Commentary
Bob Hunter commentary: Ohio State learns that not everyone loves a winner

Sunday, December 16, 2007 3:27 AM
By bob hunter


Ever since Kirk Barton tossed out another one of his colorful Bartonisms on the night Ohio State landed in the national championship game, his comment has been rattling around in the half-empty compartment I call my brain.
"In all likelihood we will be the underdogs," he said, "because we know that pretty much everyone on Earth hates us ?"
Barton, an always-quotable senior offensive tackle, clearly meant outside the far-flung Buckeyes fan base, which has an intense love affair with the sports teams that borders on obsession. And, as usual, Barton's point is worth considering.
The media haven't been particularly complimentary to the Buckeyes, in part because of their meltdown in last season's national championship game and in part because their 11-1 record was judged to have come against a weak schedule and in a weak conference.
But does the outside world really hate Ohio State?

Continued.......

 

[shetuck]

Times-Picayune: Ohio State, 2007 Defining Moments

Varney says these are the three key moments that defined the Bucks' 2007 season:
1. Tressel "antics" (meh, I would have used the word enthusiasm) on the sideline after Coleman blocked UW's FG attempt early in the 2nd half.
2. tOSU's "ill-timed" timeout call in the 4th quarter of the Illinois game
3. Beanie's performance in The Game, specifically his 62-yard TD run in the 3rd quarter

DEFINING MOMENTS

Ohio State found its identity in Seattle, stumbled vs. Illinois, then finished with a flourish

Tuesday, December 25, 2007
By James Varney

COLUMBUS, OHIO -- As befits a team with a workmanlike reputation, and one that almost no one besides itself figured might play in the national championship game this season, Ohio State didn't land the No. 1 ranking and a spot in the Bowl Championship Series title game against No. 2-ranked LSU on Jan. 7 at the Superdome because of a handful of spectacular plays.
Buckeyes players say it is hard to pinpoint specific plays during their 12-game regular season that ended Nov. 17. Nevertheless, while producing fewer highlight reels than the Tigers, Ohio State did have some moments that galvanized the team, players said.

Not all of moments, however, came on the field. Herewith, a snapshot of three critical moments that helped -- or, in one case, appeared to derail -- Ohio State's journey to New Orleans.

Ohio State Coach Jim Tressel is so controlled and smooth, he is known throughout the state as "The Senator."
Even senators sometimes flash emotion with their staff, and it was one such moment on the West Coast that lit a fire under the Buckeyes.

cont'd...

the 2nd and 3rd one are good calls, in retrospect. the 1st one shouldn't be on the list, imo. instead, if we want to point to the UW game as the one where the bucks really found themselves (something i agree with, btw), i'd rather mention TB's performance on a couple of key long balls.

 

[Sportsbuck28]

Beanie's 3 TD's against Wisconsin are definately worth mentioning.

 

[MililaniBuckeye]

if we want to point to the UW game as the one where the bucks really found themselves (something i agree with, btw), i'd rather mention TB's performance on a couple of key long balls.

Actually, it's the personal foul called on Russell on Washington's first drive of the second half which pissed the defense off, and from that point on they manhandled Washington's offense...

 

[shetuck]

Actually, it's the personal foul called on Russell which pissed the defense off, and from that point on they manhandled Washington's offense...

right, but for me the defense wasn't the big question mark coming into that game. the big question mark for me up until that game was TB (and the Oline). i wasn't sure if TB could hold up under pressure, and in that game he proved me wrong in a big way. that's why i differ with his take on the key moment in the UW game.

 

[osugrad21]

ABJ

Buckeyes are team some love to hate Ohio State must be pretty good to draw passionate detractors
By George M. Thomas
Beacon Journal sportswriter

Published on Friday, Dec 28, 2007
COLUMBUS: For some college football fans, Columbus will always represent a wretched hive of scum and villainy.
Just like the Bronx will be for baseball fans, Boston for pro basketball fans and Dallas for pro football fans. With success comes a myriad of feelings from others ? enmity is just one of them.
Kirk Herbstreit, a former Ohio State quarterback and current ESPN analyst, experiences it on an amplified basis simply because of the reach he has nationwide. Many view him as an ambassador for the Buckeyes and the Big Ten.
''What's ironic to me is that when I travel around the nation, that because people have such a bad taste in their mouth for the Big Ten, I think they feel that the Big Ten is an overhyped conference and they feel Ohio State is an overhyped team,'' he said.
Many of those thoughts probably could be attributed to the blowout loss to Florida in the BCS National Championship Game last January, but Buckeyes football existed long before then.


Cont...

''More than Notre Dame, more than Michigan, Alabama, USC or Texas, Ohio State is the Yankees of college football,'' Seattle Post-Intelligencer columnist Art Thiel wrote. ''Because nothing says more eloquently that an American sports enterprise has reached the pinnacle than by being out of control and over the top.''

 

[osugrad21]

MJ

Hate strong for Ohio State
JASON LLOYD, Morning Journal Writer
12/28/2007




COLUMBUS -- The day after Missouri and West Virginia both lost, ensuring Ohio State would play in the national championship game for the second straight year, Kirk Barton fired the first salvo when he admitted, ''We know that pretty much everyone on Earth hates us.''


It's a feeling with which Ohio State players seem to have grown comfortable.

In 2002, when the Buckeyes won their first national championship in 34 years, they did so only after getting attacked nationally for their style of play, winning so many close games late. It earned OSU the nickname ''Luckeyes'' that stuck with them all the way through the double overtime victory over Miami.

Last year, Ohio State seemed to have the nation's respect for lasting the entire regular season No. 1, going 12-0 and beating two No. 2 teams along the way. All that was buried in the desert sand, though, with the 41-14 loss to Florida. That one night seemed to expose the Buckeyes as frauds, as feasting on a weakened Big Ten that offered little meat outside of Michigan.

Cont...

 

[bkochmc]

ABJ

Buckeyes are team some love to hate Ohio State must be pretty good to draw passionate detractors
By George M. Thomas
Beacon Journal sportswriter

Published on Friday, Dec 28, 2007
COLUMBUS: For some college football fans, Columbus will always represent a wretched hive of scum and villainy.
Just like the Bronx will be for baseball fans, Boston for pro basketball fans and Dallas for pro football fans. With success comes a myriad of feelings from others ? enmity is just one of them.
Kirk Herbstreit, a former Ohio State quarterback and current ESPN analyst, experiences it on an amplified basis simply because of the reach he has nationwide. Many view him as an ambassador for the Buckeyes and the Big Ten.
''What's ironic to me is that when I travel around the nation, that because people have such a bad taste in their mouth for the Big Ten, I think they feel that the Big Ten is an overhyped conference and they feel Ohio State is an overhyped team,'' he said.
Many of those thoughts probably could be attributed to the blowout loss to Florida in the BCS National Championship Game last January, but Buckeyes football existed long before then.


Cont...

I like Gee's response in that article:

Some might wonder where the animosity originates. Returning President E. Gordon Gee, who hasn't been known for his prowess in dealing with the athletic department in the past at OSU, might have hit upon the answers.


''In many ways, I think we have the most incredible national fan base of any institution in the country. Notre Dame, Michigan, Ohio State and USC have these kinds of national auras around them,'' he said in a published report. ''So I think you're going to get a lot of people who feel distinctly about the institutions. But hate would not be the word I would use. Admiration. Fear. Jealousy. Envy. Try those words.''

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Link

OSU turns in surprising 2007 season

COLUMBUS (AP) - This wasn't the way the season was supposed to go for Ohio State. The offense was gutted by graduation and early defections to the NFL. The defense had a rebuilt line and new faces at half the slots in the secondary and at linebacker. The quarterback had never started a game, and neither had the tailback. The place-kicker was a seldom-used, 27-year-old walk-on from South Africa.
Yet Ohio State finds itself exactly where it was a year ago: ranked No. 1 and headed to the Bowl Championship Series title game. What a strange, strange trip it's been.
"We knew we definitely could (get back)," quarterback Todd Boeckman said. "A lot of people were doubting us. We put that to good use. We used that as bulletin-board material. We had great leaders coming back in the seniors and some of the underclassmen, and a lot of guys stepped up and we had a great year."

Continued.......

 

[osugrad21]

CPD

Bill Livingston says Ohio State Buckeyes undeserving of national scorn


Monday, January 07, 2008Bill Livingston
Plain Dealer Columnist
New Orleans
- Bob Stoops, not Jim Tressel, should be in the stocks to day, where he can be pelted by the pieces of a reputation recent events have shattered.
Yet it is Ohio State that many believe should not be allowed to lower property values by appearing in the biggest game in college football again anytime soon.




Cont...