Game Thread FIESTA BOWL: tOSU 21, Texas 24 (01-05-09)

[Buckeyeskickbuttocks]

No shame in that loss. As I told my kids last night when they were getting all worked up and saying things I'd allow them to say about Michigan..... Texas is a good school, with a good program, and they and their fans are good people who love their school as much as we love ours. (Maybe this is true about every college, really, but they don't need to know that about Michigan )

I hate the fact that Ohio State lost. But it was a great game. Best one of the bowl season if you ask me. I wish it would have ended with it 21-17... but McCoy made plays when he had to.

I hate the fact that the spot on 4th and 3 was changed by an official who not standing right over the play. As I said to ryn, "If that's the spot, Ohio State wins... he didn't get there." BUT.... he did get there, and the correct spot was made when all was said and done. I don't like the fact that the spot ended up being correct.... but.. I'm not gonna bitch about it either. I wish the linesmen stuck to his guns and said 'No, this is the spot, I was right on top of the play' But.. even if he was right on top of it, he wasn't right.

I can recount several plays last night that I wish had gone differently. Giving up 3 of 4 4th downs... Rose not getting the pick (of course, taking a bullet off the chest like that's no gimme), Russell not being a sure tackler when it mattered most... Like any loss, this one hurts

But...

Texas played a whale of a ballgame. While Ohio State "deserved" to win - played well enough to win - so did Texas. And to Texas, I say Congrats. You continue to have my respect.. as fans... as an institution... and as a program.

 

[CleveBucks]

I am bummed out, but people recognize: THE BUCKEYES ARE BACK!!!

We are not that inferior team that melts down and gets blown out in big games against powers from other conferences.

Texas was one of the top teams in the country this year, and we made them sweat to the last minute.

This narrow loss is better for Ohio State football than us beating up some Big East team 45 - 7 in some bowl that will reinforce the public's perception of us as second-rate.

We can hang with the best. We proved it tonight. Texas bested us by only a little bit.

Now the year of PRYOR has begun. I'm excited.

This I can't agree with. This is how Notre Dame Fan reacted after Charlie's "win" against USC in 2005. At this point nobody is giving Ohio State credit for keeping it close. At some point OSU needs to start winning the big games outside the conference.

 

[Buckeyeskickbuttocks]

This I can't agree with. This is how Notre Dame Fan reacted after Charlie's "win" against USC in 2005. At this point nobody is giving Ohio State credit for keeping it close. At some point OSU needs to start winning the big games outside the conference.

I agree with you not agreeing. Ohio State wasn't 'gone' to even have to 'be back' in the first place.

I do take some solace in the fact that as I was waiting for the presser watching ESPN news, they (ie the media) were showing Ohio State some earned respect for their performance. Said stuff like "I know Ohio State has laid some eggs in big games over the last couple years (true) but they sure did not tonight (also true)"

If a loss can change the national perception, I'm fine with it.

 

[DaddyBigBucks]

OSU Offense: Best performance of the season given the level of competition

OSU Defense: Ditto

Special Teams: Didn't cost us the game

OSU management of their emotions: DID cost us the game. They played poorly for a quarter or so after the gift drive to open the 2nd half. Uncharacteristic mental mistakes were common on both sides of the ball for much of the 2nd half.

OSU management of their emotions - Part II: Best performance in a big game in years. They recovered - they came back - they competed to the very end. Well done.

Play-by-Play: Worst performance of this college football season

Color Commentary: Worst performance in the history of television - seriously. Unprepared - unobservant - analysis that missed the point - analysis that was just plain wrong - worst ever and it's not close


Post game analysis: The claims by the punditry that Texas played poorly miss the points made earlier that OSU played very poorly for a quarter. Further, the claims that Texas played poorly miss the obvious theme of the entire bowl season: The Big 12 is less than the media portrayed them to be. This is not a prediction about Thursday's game, it is just an obvious observation. After last night's game, taken within the context of the bowl season, is there ANY reason to doubt that Ohio State has the best defense that Texas played all year? There's the point that no one is making, and it speaks louder than any point that they ARE making.

 

[3074326]

It's good that we're getting respect, but I hope our players aren't content. I said this in another thread, but I hated "moral victories" when I was in sports. It kind of told me that I played hard, maybe my best, and it wasn't good enough. That, to me, is very counterproductive.

Pretty sure our group of guys coming back next year will be fired up, though.

EDIT: Don't want this to sound like I'm not proud of the team for what the did last night. Hell of a game. They did show a lot of heart. I'm pretty excited for the future.

 

[Fungo Squiggly]

FG! Takes it from a 2 score game to...a 2 score game.

I guess 3 is better than none.

8 points equals a two score game? You are paid way too much to make a mistake like that.

and now no chance at a FG

Alex Boone gets burnt

That sack by Orakpo came from the right side. Browning, not Boone, got beat.

This game was ours by 15 points...i'm ashamed of the phuckin' pathetically corrupt society we live in.

Uuuuh....what?

I'll preface this by saying you cannot tell a player to lay down.....

Boom Herron would have become the smartest player in tOSU history had he gone down on the 5 yard line instead of scoring the touchdown. I'd take a game winning field with 30 seconds on the clock over a 5 point lead with 2:05.

Boom could have crashed at the 5 with 2:05 leaving Texas with 2 timeouts. Assuming Texas uses their first timeout after that run, they have one timeout with us on the 5 yard line. That takes us to 2:00 with Texas having 1 timeout and us on the 5 or 6.

Assuming we take another knee, Texas has us at 1:58 and zero timeouts.

Assuming we run the football(2nd down), maybe we score with them having zero timeouts. If we get tackled, we still have 3rd and fourth downs.

We honestly could have kicked a field goal leaving almost no time for a comeback.

You can't fault Boom for running the ball in, but better clock manegement could have been utilized.

I'll take a glorofied extra point over leaving Colt McCoy and Texas 2 minutes to score a touchdown any day of the week.

Right on. I laid in bed for an hour (trying to sleep...no luck there) staring at the ceiling replaying that drive.

EDIT - huh. Apparently my ceiling was replaying that drive. Interesting phrasing, crackhead.

Now...confession time...It's all my fault, no really. My faith...it wained...I just didn't want to get blown out. I didn't talk smack, and down here in Dallas, when guys at work wanted to bet, they asked if I wanted straight up or bet the line...I said you know what, I don't need that line, let's go modified, you guys beat my bucks by more than 3 points and I'll pay up...f me...we lose by 3

Texas didn't beat OSU by more than 3. Sounds like a push to me.


I don't know about anyone else, but man did I sleep poorly last night. I haven't lost sleep over the outcome of a game since the 2005 Texas game. Just kept replaying how things could have gone differently. Not the most disheartening (*cough* blowout *cough*) of losses, but one of the most agonizing of recent memory. I had nightmares for a week about the '05 game after that loss. No nightmares last night, but I probably didn't even make it to REM before the alarm went off. Forgive my incoherent ramblings. I need a nap. Badly.

[Lecter]Have the Longhorns stopped screaming, Bucky?[/Lecter]

Congrats to Texas on a fantastic win.

 

[Fungo Squiggly]

Also, a serious bravo to the mods for dropping the ban hammer when necessary.

 

[jimotis4heisman]

Russell not being a sure tackler when it mattered most...
quote]

this one sticks out for one reason to me. its the same play he made at the end of the first half. he played the ball and got a pick, at the end of the game he played the ball and got burnt. 50-50. i can live with effort plays were you get beat.

maybe ill post more later, who knows but a few things.
1-im proud of the way the team carried themselves
2-texas. great 2 games weve played with them, epic levels and the thrid worked out the way id like it. mack is classy. texas is a top shelf program. they seem to have great kids, great coaches, very good people, a great school. congrats horns.

 

[mooktarr]

This was a very good, hard fought game. Go Bucks.

 

[Buckeyefrankmp]

Our team was so lost and out of shape. They wanted no part of it. I don't know how the Texas o-line, all their players as a matter of fact, got together and back to the line for the next play so quickly.

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AlS5WHUOgwM]YouTube - Suggested Workouts: Not So Much Or Must Do At OSU?[/ame]

Maybe they should have done more than 12% of the suggested workout. I feel when RR gets things going Up North, you will see a lot of this hurry up. At least that is what the plan is. Hopefully we will not see the Bucks so out of shape when/if they get it together Up North.

 

[Fungo Squiggly]

I re-wrote Simon & Barf-uncle's "Sounds of Silence" as "The Curse of Hindsight" but, lucky for you all.....I came my senses and deleted the post. I'm not that delirious yet.

 

[buckeyesin07]

I don't know about anyone else, but man did I sleep poorly last night. I haven't lost sleep over the outcome of a game since the 2005 Texas game. Just kept replaying how things could have gone differently. Not the most disheartening (*cough* blowout *cough*) of losses, but one of the most agonizing of recent memory. I had nightmares for a week about the '05 game after that loss.

Similar thoughts here--Texas stole that one from us in '05 and they stole another one last night. The games were eerily similar in that just when we had them on the ropes, they march down the field and get in the end zone with very little time on the clock. Credit them for making plays when the game was on the line, but they also should feel pretty lucky to have escaped our little three game series with a 2-1 record.

 

[Buckeyefrankmp]

I re-wrote Simon & Barf-uncle's "Sounds of Silence" as "The Curse of Hindsight" but, lucky for you all.....I came my senses and deleted the post. I'm not that delirious yet.

So what do you see now in hindsight that you did not see before?

 

[Steve19]

OSU management of their emotions: DID cost us the game. They played poorly for a quarter or so after the gift drive to open the 2nd half. Uncharacteristic mental mistakes were common on both sides of the ball for much of the 2nd half.

OSU management of their emotions - Part II: Best performance in a big game in years. They recovered - they came back - they competed to the very end. Well done.

In my mind, this is the biggest opportunity to improve the performance of our football team. This team was sometimes fragile emotionally when calls did not go their way. We need to be tougher emotionally and this can be taught.

 

[buckeyesin07]

this one sticks out for one reason to me. its the same play he made at the end of the first half. he played the ball and got a pick, at the end of the game he played the ball and got burnt. 50-50. i can live with effort plays were you get beat.

Watching the replay, it seems to me like Russell originally was going to jump the route and go for the pick, and when the ball was in the air, he realized that he wasn't going to make it there on time (maybe a McCoy threw a shorter, harder pass than Russell anticipated?), so he tried to adjust to make the tackle but didn't have time and therefore missed the receiver. Anyone else have any thoughts on that play?