Michael Citro
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Grumpy Old Buckeye: Nit-picking Ohio State’s 56-0 win over Western Michigan
Michael Citro via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK
The Buckeyes made life difficult for the Broncos and this column.
Sometimes the Buckeyes just make my job difficult. It’s not easy to find the dark clouds around the silver linings when Ohio State beats a team as comprehensively as the 56-0 destruction of Western Michigan Saturday night. The defense didn’t even give up 100 yards of offense, and the Buckeye offense went for nearly 700 yards as Ohio State wiped the Horseshoe turf with the Broncos all night.
Still, finding the bad to go with the exceptionally good is what I do, so let’s do this. Here are the things that had me spittin’ mad from Ohio State putting the Broncos on full blast.
After opening the game with a sack, Cody Simon had some issues on the second WMU drive. Simon had a chance to give the Ohio State defense its second consecutive three-and-out, but the veteran linebacker couldn’t make a play in space and allowed a 16-yard gain for a first down on third-and-10.
That led to another first down and rhythm for the Bronco offense, as the visitors quickly got into field goal range on a long completion against Davison Igbinosun. Simon had a chance to make amends for the missed tackle with an interception later in the drive, but he couldn’t hang on.
That allowed Western Michigan a chance to answer the Buckeyes’ first score immediately, but the Broncos’ backup kicker could not convert the 42-yard attempt.
Austin Siereveld committed a holding infraction on the second OSU drive on a play in which Will Howard got tripped up for what would have been a sack anyway. While Siereveld isn’t the starter, the Buckeyes’ next-man-up mentality means he’s got to be ready to compete every week. That entails dominating against lesser competition and holding his own against better teams.
Also, if you hold and your quarterback still goes down behind the line of scrimmage, shame on you. Get better at holding.
In a year when officials have been lenient across the board with contact downfield from defensive backs, Igbinosun somehow got a pass interference penalty late in the first quarter. The receiver clearly pushed off as he broke on the ball, and although Igbinosun momentarily grabbed the receiver, that has been a clear no-call through the college football season thus far in games from virtually every conference (disclaimer: I haven’t seen a game called by a Mountain West crew yet in 2024).
If you’re going to call the grab, call the push-off and let’s have a do-over.
In the first half, Denzel Burke, who clearly did not lead with the crown of his helmet, was thrown out of the game for leading with the crown of his helmet, which is a thing I distinctly saw him not do, and which Dean Blandino, the officiating expert for the Big Ten Network, also said he did not do.
Nevertheless, the officiating crew tossed Ohio State’s best cornerback for an infraction that never happened in the final minute of the first quarter. The side of Burke’s helmet made contact with the side of the running back’s helmet, so how that call got made is perplexing.
A holding penalty called against backup wide receiver Bryson Rodgers negated an 80-yard Quinshon Judkins touchdown run. It didn’t even look like it was on Rodgers on the replay. It appeared to be someone (whose number I didn’t quite catch) who wasn’t as far downfield as Rodgers. At any rate, it wasn’t necessary, because Judkins was going to blast past that defender anyway.
It wrecked a fun play and that always boils my peanuts. The drive ended up stalling due to a Howard underthrow to Jeremiah Smith (with an uncalled defensive pass interference on the play).
Look, that’s really all I’ve got for you this week. Everything below is pretty much forced mock outrage to levels never previously reached. The Buckeyes simply dominated.
If I wanted to pile on, I could point out how Ohio State had to take a timeout in the third quarter after forcing a punt, which kept the Buckeyes from having one for the last drive of the half. I could mention the offensive line allowing pressure on back-to-back plays on the final OSU drive of the half.
I could also be harsh and criticize:
I should, however, call attention to a fourth-quarter drive that featured bonehead mistakes on consecutive plays.
Zen Michalski’s obvious hold put Ohio State in a first-and-20 situation. On the next play, Devin Brown couldn’t find a receiver downfield, so he rolled right and then ran out of bounds, taking an unnecessary self-sack, when he could easily have legally thrown the ball away for no loss. That pushed the Buckeyes out of field-goal range.
A loss on a screen pass to James Peoples made it third-and-more-than-a-quarter-of-the-field. Brown then took a sack on the next play. It was a ridiculous sequence and the first two plays set that up. It also prevented Ohio State from easily eclipsing 700 yards of total offense.
Obviously this was a game where mock outrage has to be the only outrage.
The Buckeyes were never challenged on either side of the ball. Smith continues to show he could become the best wide receiver in Ohio State history since the last best receiver in Ohio State history. Kayden McDonald flashed bigtime on defense, as did Caleb Downs (and many others). Judkins and Henderson ran through the Broncos like they weren’t there. Howard built on his first game as a Buckeye, and the offensive line did almost exclusively good things!
Next week, the Buckeyes are off, so the only thing I get to be grumpy about is the lack of an Ohio State game. The Buckeyes host Marshall on Sept. 21 in their next time out, and if they keep improving, perhaps the only thing I’ll get to be grumpy about that day is a lack of things to be grumpy about.
Continue reading...
Michael Citro via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK
The Buckeyes made life difficult for the Broncos and this column.
Sometimes the Buckeyes just make my job difficult. It’s not easy to find the dark clouds around the silver linings when Ohio State beats a team as comprehensively as the 56-0 destruction of Western Michigan Saturday night. The defense didn’t even give up 100 yards of offense, and the Buckeye offense went for nearly 700 yards as Ohio State wiped the Horseshoe turf with the Broncos all night.
Still, finding the bad to go with the exceptionally good is what I do, so let’s do this. Here are the things that had me spittin’ mad from Ohio State putting the Broncos on full blast.
Mixed Results
After opening the game with a sack, Cody Simon had some issues on the second WMU drive. Simon had a chance to give the Ohio State defense its second consecutive three-and-out, but the veteran linebacker couldn’t make a play in space and allowed a 16-yard gain for a first down on third-and-10.
That led to another first down and rhythm for the Bronco offense, as the visitors quickly got into field goal range on a long completion against Davison Igbinosun. Simon had a chance to make amends for the missed tackle with an interception later in the drive, but he couldn’t hang on.
That allowed Western Michigan a chance to answer the Buckeyes’ first score immediately, but the Broncos’ backup kicker could not convert the 42-yard attempt.
Don’t Hold Back
Austin Siereveld committed a holding infraction on the second OSU drive on a play in which Will Howard got tripped up for what would have been a sack anyway. While Siereveld isn’t the starter, the Buckeyes’ next-man-up mentality means he’s got to be ready to compete every week. That entails dominating against lesser competition and holding his own against better teams.
Also, if you hold and your quarterback still goes down behind the line of scrimmage, shame on you. Get better at holding.
Igbi-No, Son
In a year when officials have been lenient across the board with contact downfield from defensive backs, Igbinosun somehow got a pass interference penalty late in the first quarter. The receiver clearly pushed off as he broke on the ball, and although Igbinosun momentarily grabbed the receiver, that has been a clear no-call through the college football season thus far in games from virtually every conference (disclaimer: I haven’t seen a game called by a Mountain West crew yet in 2024).
If you’re going to call the grab, call the push-off and let’s have a do-over.
Targeting Remains Stupid and Subjective and Will Forever Be Thus
In the first half, Denzel Burke, who clearly did not lead with the crown of his helmet, was thrown out of the game for leading with the crown of his helmet, which is a thing I distinctly saw him not do, and which Dean Blandino, the officiating expert for the Big Ten Network, also said he did not do.
Nevertheless, the officiating crew tossed Ohio State’s best cornerback for an infraction that never happened in the final minute of the first quarter. The side of Burke’s helmet made contact with the side of the running back’s helmet, so how that call got made is perplexing.
Spoiling the Fun
A holding penalty called against backup wide receiver Bryson Rodgers negated an 80-yard Quinshon Judkins touchdown run. It didn’t even look like it was on Rodgers on the replay. It appeared to be someone (whose number I didn’t quite catch) who wasn’t as far downfield as Rodgers. At any rate, it wasn’t necessary, because Judkins was going to blast past that defender anyway.
It wrecked a fun play and that always boils my peanuts. The drive ended up stalling due to a Howard underthrow to Jeremiah Smith (with an uncalled defensive pass interference on the play).
Look, that’s really all I’ve got for you this week. Everything below is pretty much forced mock outrage to levels never previously reached. The Buckeyes simply dominated.
If I wanted to pile on, I could point out how Ohio State had to take a timeout in the third quarter after forcing a punt, which kept the Buckeyes from having one for the last drive of the half. I could mention the offensive line allowing pressure on back-to-back plays on the final OSU drive of the half.
I could also be harsh and criticize:
- Jayden Ballard fair catching the second-half kickoff on one hop.
- Josh Fryar somehow being downfield on a first down throw to Smith.
- The play call of a tight end screen on third-and-1 that got blown up on a missed block by Emeka Egbuka after a poor spot prevented a first down on the previous Judkins run.
- Kojo Antwi’s drop on an easy first-down throw from Howard.
I should, however, call attention to a fourth-quarter drive that featured bonehead mistakes on consecutive plays.
Zen Michalski’s obvious hold put Ohio State in a first-and-20 situation. On the next play, Devin Brown couldn’t find a receiver downfield, so he rolled right and then ran out of bounds, taking an unnecessary self-sack, when he could easily have legally thrown the ball away for no loss. That pushed the Buckeyes out of field-goal range.
A loss on a screen pass to James Peoples made it third-and-more-than-a-quarter-of-the-field. Brown then took a sack on the next play. It was a ridiculous sequence and the first two plays set that up. It also prevented Ohio State from easily eclipsing 700 yards of total offense.
Obviously this was a game where mock outrage has to be the only outrage.
The Buckeyes were never challenged on either side of the ball. Smith continues to show he could become the best wide receiver in Ohio State history since the last best receiver in Ohio State history. Kayden McDonald flashed bigtime on defense, as did Caleb Downs (and many others). Judkins and Henderson ran through the Broncos like they weren’t there. Howard built on his first game as a Buckeye, and the offensive line did almost exclusively good things!
Next week, the Buckeyes are off, so the only thing I get to be grumpy about is the lack of an Ohio State game. The Buckeyes host Marshall on Sept. 21 in their next time out, and if they keep improving, perhaps the only thing I’ll get to be grumpy about that day is a lack of things to be grumpy about.
Continue reading...