1. With the win, the Buckeyes claimed their 36th Big Ten title (37th, if you want to count the vacated title in 2010), and their 20th outright title. Ohio State leads the Big Ten in outright titles, and trails only Michigan (42) in total titles.
2. J.K. Dobbins proved that he is the best freshman running back in the Big Ten, rushing 17 times for 174 yards (10.2 ypc), with long runs of 52 yards and 77 yards. Meanwhile, Wisconsin's heralded freshman Jonathan Taylor had 15 carries for 41 yards with a long of just 7 yards (2.7 ypc). Taylor put up huge numbers all year because he was the beneficiary of the Badgers' one-dimensional ground and pound offense, but Dobbins is clearly the better athlete and the better runner.
3. Dobbins now holds the Buckeye record for rushing yards by a freshman with 1,364. Last night he surpassed Maurice Clarett, who had 1,237 yards in 2002. Dobbins is currently in 13th place for most rushing yards in a season at Ohio State, and with at least one game remaining this year he has a reasonable chance to claim tenth place (currently held by Pepe Pearson, with 1,484 yards in 1996).
4. J.T. Barrett's 84-yard touchdown pass to Terry McLaurin is the fourth-longest pass play in Ohio State history, the longest being Kenny Guiton to Devin Smith for 90 yards against California in 2013. The Barrett to McLaurin pass is also the eighth-longest play from scrimmage in Ohio State history.
5. J.K. Dobbins's 77-yard run is the 12th longest rushing play in Ohio State history, and the longest rushing play not to score a touchdown.
6. Throughout the week, Buckeye fans were worried about linebacker Jerome Baker and how he would respond to Wisconsin's variety of misdirection plays. All Baker did was come up with arguably the best game of his career, with 16 tackles, 2 TFLs, and a sack.
7. We can argue about the performance of J.T. Barrett (12 for 26 passing for 211 yards, 2 touchdowns, 2 interceptions; 16 rushes, 60 yards, 1 touchdown), and whether backup Dwayne Haskins might have done better given the chance. But we can never doubt Barrett's toughness. Just six days after knee surgery, Barrett played the entire game against the #4 team and #1 defense in the country and produced 271 total yards and 3 total touchdowns, with nothing on the line except for a Big Ten title and a possible Playoff berth.
8. Barrett will leave Ohio State with every quarterback record that matters, including total wins, passing yards, passing touchdowns, rushing yards (for a quarterback), total yards, total touchdowns, and possibly completion percentage (Barrett currently leads Todd Boeckman by a very narrow .0005 margin). Now he can add Big Ten Champion to his résumé.
9. Even though the final score was 27 to 21 it often seemed like a 42 to 13 kind of game. The Buckeye offense generated four plays of 50+ yards and the defense held the Badgers to 60 yards rushing on 32 carries (1.9 ypc) and basically shut down All Big Ten tight end Troy Fumagalli (5 receptions for 45 yards, long of 11 yards, no touchdowns, two-point conversion). But the explosive Buckeye offense turned the ball over three times, including a pick six and a fumble deep in their own territory that gave the Badgers an easy ten points. The offense also stalled out in the red zone twice, resulting in a pair of short field goals (20 yards and 27 yards); and wasted excellent field position in the 3rd quarter, with a pair of drives starting near midfield that ended with no points (punt, interception). As a whole, the offense seemed like an assortment of huge plays, overthrows, dropped passes, turnovers, with a few crucial penalties thrown into the mix.
10. Now on to the topic on most Buckeye fans' minds: The Playoffs. We won't know for a cople more hours whether the Buckeyes will get it into the Playoffs this year, and until the Committee makes their announcement at noon today there will be endless speculation on who "deserves" to make it. Most of that speculation will surround Ohio State (11-2, Big Ten Champion, bad loss to Iowa) and Alabama (11-1, no conference title, no signature wins), as one of those teams will likely occupy the fourth and final Playoff spot while the other will fall into the fifth slot (first out). Of course, most Buckeye fans will be rooting for Ohio State to get in, right? Well, not so fast, my friends. Here's a sample of the "argument" from the other side of the Buckeye fan base:
As you can see, the logic of this so-called argument is clearly faulty. But the argument also represents a loser mentality that has no place in sports. I'm not going to go into any game thinking that the Buckeyes "will almost certainly get embarassed [sic]." The national media predicted utter embarrassment for the Buckeyes in 2002 against Miami (Tim Brando's 48-10 prediction being one of the most memorable) and again in 2014 against Alabama. The result? Two national championships for Ohio State.
As I said in the game thread, if you are so afraid of losing in the Playoffs, then why don't you lobby for a spot in the Quick Lane Bowl where Ohio State can get a shot at mighty Wake Forest or Boston College? Certainly, the Buckeyes won't "embarrass" themselves against a team like that and you can revel in an easy win against an inferior opponent. Or you can be really embarrassed if the Buckeyes sleepwalk through a game like that and lose (does anyone else remember the 1990 Liberty Bowl?).
I don't know if the 2017 Buckeyes are one of the four best teams in the country. What I do know is this: If the Buckeyes make the Playoffs this year, then they at least have a chance, however slim, of winning the national championship this year. If they don't make the Playoffs, then that slim chance is quickly reduced to none. Major national championships are very rare even at a place like Ohio State (the Buckeyes average one every 13.5 years), and if my team has a shot at getting one now then I want to take it now. No waiting for next year.
2. J.K. Dobbins proved that he is the best freshman running back in the Big Ten, rushing 17 times for 174 yards (10.2 ypc), with long runs of 52 yards and 77 yards. Meanwhile, Wisconsin's heralded freshman Jonathan Taylor had 15 carries for 41 yards with a long of just 7 yards (2.7 ypc). Taylor put up huge numbers all year because he was the beneficiary of the Badgers' one-dimensional ground and pound offense, but Dobbins is clearly the better athlete and the better runner.
3. Dobbins now holds the Buckeye record for rushing yards by a freshman with 1,364. Last night he surpassed Maurice Clarett, who had 1,237 yards in 2002. Dobbins is currently in 13th place for most rushing yards in a season at Ohio State, and with at least one game remaining this year he has a reasonable chance to claim tenth place (currently held by Pepe Pearson, with 1,484 yards in 1996).
4. J.T. Barrett's 84-yard touchdown pass to Terry McLaurin is the fourth-longest pass play in Ohio State history, the longest being Kenny Guiton to Devin Smith for 90 yards against California in 2013. The Barrett to McLaurin pass is also the eighth-longest play from scrimmage in Ohio State history.
5. J.K. Dobbins's 77-yard run is the 12th longest rushing play in Ohio State history, and the longest rushing play not to score a touchdown.
6. Throughout the week, Buckeye fans were worried about linebacker Jerome Baker and how he would respond to Wisconsin's variety of misdirection plays. All Baker did was come up with arguably the best game of his career, with 16 tackles, 2 TFLs, and a sack.
7. We can argue about the performance of J.T. Barrett (12 for 26 passing for 211 yards, 2 touchdowns, 2 interceptions; 16 rushes, 60 yards, 1 touchdown), and whether backup Dwayne Haskins might have done better given the chance. But we can never doubt Barrett's toughness. Just six days after knee surgery, Barrett played the entire game against the #4 team and #1 defense in the country and produced 271 total yards and 3 total touchdowns, with nothing on the line except for a Big Ten title and a possible Playoff berth.
8. Barrett will leave Ohio State with every quarterback record that matters, including total wins, passing yards, passing touchdowns, rushing yards (for a quarterback), total yards, total touchdowns, and possibly completion percentage (Barrett currently leads Todd Boeckman by a very narrow .0005 margin). Now he can add Big Ten Champion to his résumé.
9. Even though the final score was 27 to 21 it often seemed like a 42 to 13 kind of game. The Buckeye offense generated four plays of 50+ yards and the defense held the Badgers to 60 yards rushing on 32 carries (1.9 ypc) and basically shut down All Big Ten tight end Troy Fumagalli (5 receptions for 45 yards, long of 11 yards, no touchdowns, two-point conversion). But the explosive Buckeye offense turned the ball over three times, including a pick six and a fumble deep in their own territory that gave the Badgers an easy ten points. The offense also stalled out in the red zone twice, resulting in a pair of short field goals (20 yards and 27 yards); and wasted excellent field position in the 3rd quarter, with a pair of drives starting near midfield that ended with no points (punt, interception). As a whole, the offense seemed like an assortment of huge plays, overthrows, dropped passes, turnovers, with a few crucial penalties thrown into the mix.
10. Now on to the topic on most Buckeye fans' minds: The Playoffs. We won't know for a cople more hours whether the Buckeyes will get it into the Playoffs this year, and until the Committee makes their announcement at noon today there will be endless speculation on who "deserves" to make it. Most of that speculation will surround Ohio State (11-2, Big Ten Champion, bad loss to Iowa) and Alabama (11-1, no conference title, no signature wins), as one of those teams will likely occupy the fourth and final Playoff spot while the other will fall into the fifth slot (first out). Of course, most Buckeye fans will be rooting for Ohio State to get in, right? Well, not so fast, my friends. Here's a sample of the "argument" from the other side of the Buckeye fan base:
Let me translate this for you: We don't want the Buckeyes to go to the Playoffs in a year that they are deserving (2017) because we want the Buckeyes to go to the Playoffs in a year that they are deserving (2018 and beyond).
As you can see, the logic of this so-called argument is clearly faulty. But the argument also represents a loser mentality that has no place in sports. I'm not going to go into any game thinking that the Buckeyes "will almost certainly get embarassed [sic]." The national media predicted utter embarrassment for the Buckeyes in 2002 against Miami (Tim Brando's 48-10 prediction being one of the most memorable) and again in 2014 against Alabama. The result? Two national championships for Ohio State.
As I said in the game thread, if you are so afraid of losing in the Playoffs, then why don't you lobby for a spot in the Quick Lane Bowl where Ohio State can get a shot at mighty Wake Forest or Boston College? Certainly, the Buckeyes won't "embarrass" themselves against a team like that and you can revel in an easy win against an inferior opponent. Or you can be really embarrassed if the Buckeyes sleepwalk through a game like that and lose (does anyone else remember the 1990 Liberty Bowl?).
I don't know if the 2017 Buckeyes are one of the four best teams in the country. What I do know is this: If the Buckeyes make the Playoffs this year, then they at least have a chance, however slim, of winning the national championship this year. If they don't make the Playoffs, then that slim chance is quickly reduced to none. Major national championships are very rare even at a place like Ohio State (the Buckeyes average one every 13.5 years), and if my team has a shot at getting one now then I want to take it now. No waiting for next year.
