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Game Thread Game Six: Ohio State 35, Michigan State 24 (final)

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Maybe we can find something out from the drive summaries:


<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><tbody><tr class="ysptblhead2"><th colspan="6"> 1st Quarter </th> </tr> <tr class="ysptblhead3"> <th>Start
Time</th> <th>Time
Poss</th> <th>Drive
Began</th> <th># of
Plays</th> <th>Yards
Gained</th> <th valign="top">Result</th> </tr> <tr class="ysprow1"> <td class="c"> 15:00 </td> <td class="c"> 1:40 </td> <td class="c">OHST 20</td> <td class="c">3</td> <td class="c">9</td> <td class="c">Punt</td> </tr> <tr class="ysprow2"> <td class="c"> 9:53 </td> <td class="c"> 1:23 </td> <td class="c">OHST 8</td> <td class="c">3</td> <td class="c">55</td> <td class="c">Fumble</td> </tr> <tr class="ysprow1"> <td class="c"> 4:34 </td> <td class="c"> 1:57 </td> <td class="c">OHST 20</td> <td class="c">5</td> <td class="c">80</td> <td class="c">TD</td> </tr> <tr class="ysprow2"><td colspan="6"></td></tr> <tr class="ysprow1"><td colspan="6"></td></tr> <tr class="ysptblhead2"> <th colspan="6"> 2nd Quarter </th> </tr> <tr class="ysptblhead3"> <th>Start
Time</th> <th>Time
Poss</th> <th>Drive
Began</th> <th># of
Plays</th> <th>Yards
Gained</th> <th valign="top">Result</th> </tr> <tr class="ysprow1"> <td class="c"> 14:12 </td> <td class="c"> 1:37 </td> <td class="c">OHST 4</td> <td class="c">3</td> <td class="c">4</td> <td class="c">Punt</td> </tr> <tr class="ysprow2"> <td class="c"> 6:30 </td> <td class="c"> 0:48 </td> <td class="c">OHST 10</td> <td class="c">3</td> <td class="c">9</td> <td class="c">Punt</td></tr></tbody></table>
1st half: Add in the two muffed kicks and our ONLY drive over 3 plays was the only offensive points in the first half and NO drives lasted over 2 minutes. The only other drive that was promising Pittman fumbled pushing for extra yardage. A whopping 7 and a half minutes of possession... can't score if you don't have the ball. Average starting field position: OSU 12.4.

<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><tbody><tr class="ysptblhead2"><th colspan="6"> 3rd Quarter </th> </tr> <tr class="ysptblhead3"> <th>Start
Time</th> <th>Time
Poss</th> <th>Drive
Began</th> <th># of
Plays</th> <th>Yards
Gained</th> <th valign="top">Result</th> </tr> <tr class="ysprow1"> <td class="c"> 13:15 </td> <td class="c"> 2:54 </td> <td class="c">OHST 23</td> <td class="c">4</td> <td class="c">77</td> <td class="c">TD</td> </tr> <tr class="ysprow2"> <td class="c"> 4:49 </td> <td class="c"> 1:41 </td> <td class="c">OHST 28</td> <td class="c">4</td> <td class="c">9</td> <td class="c">Punt</td></tr></tbody></table>

<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><tbody><tr class="ysptblhead2"><th colspan="6"> 4th Quarter </th> </tr> <tr class="ysptblhead3"> <th>Start
Time</th> <th>Time
Poss</th> <th>Drive
Began</th> <th># of
Plays</th> <th>Yards
Gained</th> <th valign="top">Result</th> </tr> <tr class="ysprow1"> <td class="c"> 14:07 </td> <td class="c"> 3:11 </td> <td class="c">OHST 20</td> <td class="c">6</td> <td class="c">24</td> <td class="c">Punt</td> </tr> <tr class="ysprow2"> <td class="c"> 9:03 </td> <td class="c"> 0:11 </td> <td class="c">OHST 15</td> <td class="c">2</td> <td class="c">3</td> <td class="c">Fumble</td> </tr> <tr class="ysprow1"> <td class="c"> 7:12 </td> <td class="c"> 2:16 </td> <td class="c">OHST 20</td> <td class="c">5</td> <td class="c">80</td> <td class="c">TD</td> </tr> <tr class="ysprow2"> <td class="c"> 3:01 </td> <td class="c"> 1:32 </td> <td class="c">MIST 19</td> <td class="c">3</td> <td class="c">19</td> <td class="c">TD</td></tr></tbody></table>
2nd half: 6 possessions, 3 TD's, 1 TO, 2 punts. The thing that sticks out to me with this half is the big strike potential and the offense getting some confidence back after playing like crap last week and the first half. Something must have been said at half time to wake the guys up because they played much better this half on both sides of the ball. Average starting position minus the last possession: OSU 21.2. Average starting position with the last possession: OSU 31.2

Game average starting position: OSU 22.6 - MSU's punter did a professional job of pinning us in our 20 a few times... definitely one of the best in the country.

A few observations:
* At the end of the day the offense took steps in the right direction as they were able to get into the endzone 4 times. The big strike ability that was missing was in abundance today with 3 30+ touchdown receptions. If Pittman gets 20 carries a game he'll have no trouble surpassing the 1000 yard mark. Their biggest issue right now is holding onto the ball.
* For as much time as the defense was on the field they played a very good game. The only thing the defense is lacking is the ability to create turnovers... none the last two games.
* Drew Stanton is a very good quarterback and has a career in the NFL waiting for him. He has a great eye for finding the open receiver.
* I also noticed watching the game on TV that the crowd was not that loud until we got the lead in the 4th quarter. The crowd didn't seem that fired up at the beginning of the game and it went downhill as the turnovers mounted. Was it a hangover from the Penn St. loss or was there an overwhelming feeling of negativity because of the offensive woes? I think a lot of people came to the game with the mindset that if the offense did not play well again that the world was going to end.

At the end of the day, 4-2 > 3-3. :oh::io:
 
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Sloopy45 said:
"Fact is, today, in our sleeping giant, something awoke."

What awoke? Asides from a blocked FG runback that saved our hides, there were a ton of turnovers and special teams mistakes that I saw today.
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Most of what you wrote I have to agree with (given the context)

However, the above requires a specific response - yes , having a real honest to god special, special team's play was a wake up for us today.

And the special, special team's play came after all the crippling fumbles and miscues that would, otherwise, have humbled us.

As for the 5th year metric of having an honest to good winner QB - what can one say, Boeckman and Schoenhoft are riding pine, but sit ready for future duty. Stanton, for that matter was not instantly recognized for what he is today at MSU (my opinion only - future player on Sunday for pay).

Sloopy45 said:
This aint Youngstown State anymore - big time college programs don't adjust their offensive systems in reaction to their talent. They recruit their talent to fit their system.
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Well yeah and nay.
Yeah -I agree, ideally that we should have a scheme and recruit the fitting talent into that scheme.
Nay, you cannot always predict who that difference maker may be, and for that matter how a gifted athlete may fit any given scheme.
And Yeah- this is not YSU, JT has to identify what he wants and get the best Ohio (or other) boys to fit his vision.
 
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Wow, I can say that I enjoyed this game moreso than any other game dating back to Michigan last season. I scalped some tickets this morning, and boy I was glad that I decided to do so.

We did everything humanly possible to lose that game, in fact late in the first half I thought we would need a miracle.......and low and behold we got it in the form of a blocked field goal. I think a lot of the season turned around with that blocked kick today.

What disturbed me more than our playcalling, or performance was the fucking fair weather fans that actually got up from my section today and left midway through the 2nd quarter.....yes they actually left the game. What a fucking joke that was.

In the 4th quarter when Smith fumbled it.........and most of the Shoe booed him...........I witnessed dozens of blue hairs get up with their head sets on, and leave the game.......boy they missed a good ending.

I am proud of our guys today, but deep down I am becoming more and more frustrated with some OSU fans, who seem to make this game out to be more that it simply is. They demand perfection........it's not going to happen, maybe one or two college programs will get a chance to dance with it over a season (we did in that magical 2002 season). The sad thing is, there are many rabid fans that would kill to have great seats to yell their asses off in support of their Buckeyes. Sadly, there are Blue hair, arm chair quarterbacks scattered throughout the stadium that eat up most tickets.......and bitch most of the game. Fuck em...........I'm proud of Smith today, and I'm proud of the Buckeyes for winning a great college football game...

In the end, that is all this thing we worship is......and game. This guys do their best every week, and every time I see some adult boo a Smith........or walk out early on our boys.......it saddens me............because I appreciate everything that the represent, regardless of the outcome of every game. Honestly, I love college football.......and so do the players and coaches, why else would they devout their lives to entertain us all. :osu:
 
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osugrad21 said:
I'd say it was more about the DL not having to worry about gap control and pinning their ears back for the pass rush....and Stanton having to wait for deeper routes to develop.
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Bingo....

I noticed that late in the game the staff made some adjustments that helped take away that annoying pass that tore us a new ass in the middle of the field. I think once they did this, Stanton was forced to hold more passes due to his security blanket being revoked. This led to more coverage sacks, and a more rattled Drew Stanton.
 
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daddyphatsacs said:
Bingo....

I noticed that late in the game the staff made some adjustments that helped take away that annoying pass that tore us a new ass in the middle of the field. I think once they did this, Stanton was forced to hold more passes due to his security blanket being revoked. This led to more coverage sacks, and a more rattled Drew Stanton.
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They started rolling coverage more to confuse Stanton...the moving pocket was very effective today.
 
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What a day. Looks like everyone but Purdue and Illinois remains in the race.

The difference between this week and last? Penn State had to play on the road. They put the ball on the ground. Michigan has a running back and a quarterback.

I'm still convinced we have the best d in the league and maybe the best in the country, but I've seen at least three running back/quarterback tandems in the Big 10 that I wish were wearing scarlet and gray including the MSU combination of Stanton and Ringer.

In regrads the PSU - Mich game and USC - ND, in the short run PSU loosing helps us because it still gives us the chance to be sole champs if we run the board and if PSU stumbles again. I hate seeing Pete Carrol and USC win but it certainly showed that they are not the defensive team everyone thought they were and in the long run it keeps ND from being the regional leaders if we can keep on winning. If they had pulled this off I feel certain we'd have found the recruiting game much more difficult for the next two years.

Finally, who gets the calls when Michigan and ND play each other? Jeez, those two teams must blow the refs after each game. Could not believe the spots they gave Michigan and took away from PSU... Paterno got hosed.
 
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I'd say it was more about the DL not having to worry about gap control and pinning their ears back for the pass rush....and Stanton having to wait for deeper routes to develop.
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Ok here is a point I brought up earlier, see what you guys think. I continue to go back to the offensive woes, guess it just cant be helped. If we move the ball, score points, lead........that tends to make the other offense play with a tad more urgency, maybe get them just enough out of their gameplan, that our D CAN be more effective, cause more turnovers, etc. State Penn played a flawless game offensively against us. Why? Because they didnt have to take any chances having the lead most of the game. Same happened in the 1st half today. Once we got a couple breaks, took the lead, they started to pass more, we started to pressure more, got more sacks, and even a turnover, if the call was made right by the ref.

Thoughts?
 
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Ok, I went back and broke down the game film as a pure amateur fan, but it gave better and worse insight into my judgment of smith on the day.

First half (it was before I went to dinner, so my memory of specifics is somewaht hazy, however I remember the overall picture):
Not good. Locking onto WRs too much. Some of the time it worked, other times he missed other WRs.

On the 3rd down rollout and throwaway, pittman looked like he was gonna go up field, and right before troy threw it pittman stopped running, hence troy's throwaway. I could be wrong, but it looked like he was trying to throw it to him. No excuse for not checking upfield for teddy (who was apparently wide open, which I missed live since I was watching troy), but I think the plan was to go to pittman. So you can see how my judgment was skewed earlier, as I was watching the qb and not a wide open ginn like others saw.

On the ugly drive with two incompletions (the awful one to gonzo) and then the 3rd down scramble just short of the sticks: What the TV didn't really reveal on 1st down is that Teddy did a pretty poor job coming back to the ball IMO. He moreso stopped and fell backwards to catch it. Had Teddy come a few steps back to help on the play, I think that's a completion. No excuse for the gonzo error tho.

We simply didn't have enough possessions on offense in the first half thanks to fumbles by everyone. That sun was brutal today, and was the reason Santonio dropped that second kickoff. He should have let the other one bounce first, b/c the wind threw off his judgment and he wasn't in position to field it properly. Teddy just misplayed it, no sun involved.

3rd quarter, pretty solid quarter for Troy. He stepped up twice when the pocket collapsed (one time for 7 yards, another time for like 30 that was called back for holding... was it one of those stupid after the play ones? I didn't notice the hold but wasn't watching for it closely)

He threw some good 10 yard passes and some 5 yard quick hits. Danielson beat the "bad tackling" horse to death on the Teddy play so much, that it's easy to miss the great catch/concentration by Teddy, and a pretty good throw into a tight spot by Troy (it wasn't an amazing throw, but good considering his recent woes).

Start of the 4th. 3rd and 15 (thanks to another reverse call that didn't work) Troy takes off after seeing nobody downfield. Danielson comments on it, but there wasn't anything over the middle, therefore everyone was covered. That wasn't the only time I saw that, where our two WRs seemed to both be outside the hashes, making it easy for their defense. This doesn't mean troy didn't miss people by locking in on one side today, but there were times our WRs were surprisingly held in check somewhat. That was a playcalling thing a few times (including this 3rd down) vs. a Troy thing.

Next drive Troy keeps the ball and drives the pile ahead for a first down run. Then he times his screen pass perfectly, and Pittman does the rest (not a hard play, but timing is sometimes his struggle, so again, this is a plus). Then on his next pass, he buys enough time and hits Holmes downfield well, and Holmes does the rest.

That's why I was pleased with Smith's performance. The locking on was worse than I thought, but despit ethat I thought for him today's game was a big step up, especially how he managed the game in the 3rd and 4th quarter, turnover free, didn't force the ball, and led his team down for a TD to win the game (which must have been shocking to all of those who posted after PSU "did you think there was anyway he was gonna lead us to a score that last drive").

He struggled some in the beginning, tho we had 17 plays and in a tressel offense that means almost no warmup for the QB. He also stalled a drive or two on his own too, no doubt. But when you look at the second half performance, I thought today was far better than the negative reviews he's receiving.

I'm not saying he was a good or even great QB today (a great QB is Drew Stanton, no fumbles or INTs despite all of that pressure... I have a feeling some of you that weren't that impressed with him before the game might not have seen the guy throw much this year b/c he is a lot better than last year). I think he was solid enough and made plays when he had to do so. Krenzel may have seen the field better, but he certainly didn't have to put up 24 points every game either.
tedginn05 said:
just joking, maybe you didn't get the joke:(
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if you're joking, use a smiley or a tongue smiley... not a sad face.
bmax]If we move the ball said:
* I also noticed watching the game on TV that the crowd was not that loud until we got the lead in the 4th quarter. The crowd didn't seem that fired up at the beginning of the game and it went downhill as the turnovers mounted. Was it a hangover from the Penn St. loss or was there an overwhelming feeling of negativity because of the offensive woes? I think a lot of people came to the game with the mindset that if the offense did not play well again that the world was going to end.
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People always hate JT's offense in the stands (and probably for good reason), but there was an extra sense of distaste today. They were also disgusted with the fumbling as well. Definitely not a hangover, they were loud before negative things started happening.
 
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Good analysis, Jwins. Considering that Troy only had 5 incompletions and 1 turnover on the day, and got 249 yards on 10 completions (with about 100 of that being YAC after bad MSU tackling), I think a lot of people were more critical of Troy than they should have been today.
 
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