Michael Citro
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Grumpy Old Buckeye: Ohio State vs. Michigan State
Michael Citro via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Ben Jackson/Getty Images
Here’s what gave me indigestion against Sparty (Or was it just my dinner?)
It may be difficult to get angry at whatever your team does when it puts its opponent in a blender and completely dominates, but that’s the premise here, so bear with me while I put on my most cynical pair of glasses to look back upon Ohio State’s 38-3 home win over Michigan State on Saturday night.
Here’s what gave me indigestion as I watched the night game against Sparty (OK, it could have been the Mexican food).
Carson Hinzman’s name went into my notes first this week on Ohio State’s first drive. His ridiculously bad snap hit himself in the rear end and nearly created an early disaster for the Buckeyes. It was just the fifth snap of the game. Fortunately for Ohio State, Kyle McCord was able to pick it up cleanly and throw it at the feet of Emeka Egbuka for no loss on the play. The Buckeyes picked up a first down on the ensuing play thanks to Egbuka drawing a pass interference penalty on Jaden Mangham.
Ohio State’s vulnerability against slant passes seems to have no fix. Each week, teams are able to exploit the middle of the OSU defense to the point where I’m not sure why teams call any other play. If I were an opposing offensive coordinator, I’d probably just keep calling slant passes until the Buckeyes showed me that they can stop them. It seems automatic, and a good team that can execute could probably cause a lot of trouble sticking with that one play.
Nate Carter gashed the OSU run defense for 27 yards on the Spartans’ first play of their second possession. Ohio State’s defense had a slower start to the game than the OSU offense, including giving up some chunk plays to Michigan State’s offense. On the play, Carter simply rushed around the right side, Ohio State did not set the edge, and it was a big play for Sparty. The defense redeemed itself by forcing a three-and-out on the ensuing set of downs.
Early in the second quarter, the first of two incredible spots was given to the Spartans when Katin Houser scrambled under pressure. The MSU quarterback was a good yard short of the line to make, but the official who spotted the ball gave him a generous spot. The play was reviewed and moved back, so the replay process worked the way it was supposed to. The second time it happened, in the second half, there was no such review.
With Houser shy of the first down and the ball near midfield, Michigan State sent the punting team onto the field, despite already being down 21-0. Everyone in the stadium and watching on TV knew a fake was likely, and yet Jaren Mangham took the direct snap and went five yards to convert. Ohio State played punt safe but didn’t pack the box, making it an easy conversion.
At this point, I simply have to believe that Ryan Day is waiting until the offseason to fire Parker Fleming, because if he’s allowed to stay on after what we’ve seen from the special teams units this season, it’s coaching malpractice on the same level of keeping Brian Ferentz or Alex Grinch on staff.
On a third-down play inside its own 10-yard line, the OSU offense called a safe run play to TreVeyon Henderson. The problem with the call, which was exceedingly conservative when there’s a guy named Marvin Harrison Jr. on the team, was that the right side of the line both blocked the outside defensive lineman and let the inside man go free. That man stuffed Henderson at the line of scrimmage and forced Ohio State to punt. The ensuing Michigan State drive produced the visitors’ only points of the evening on a field goal.
McCord had a fantastic game, but it was one of his few mistakes that cost Harrison his third receiving and fourth overall touchdown of the night. The young quarterback underthrew a wide open Harrison in the left corner. Because of the underthrow, the defense was able to make a play on the ball. If he’d put it in the back corner, it was an easy score for the Heisman Trophy candidate receiver.
It looked like the Spartans were about to put a second score on the board late in the third quarter. The Buckeyes had a 38-3 lead at the time, and the Spartans took possession on their own 28-yard line. The OSU defense had a bit of a lapse to start the drive, allowing Sparty to move into OSU territory.
After two strong defensive plays resulted in a loss of a yard across them for Michigan State, the Spartans then picked up 10 on third down and three more on fourth. Pass interference by Malik Hartford gave the visitors another first down immediately after converting on fourth. Jaren Mangham ran three straight times to pick up yet another first, moving the ball to the OSU 34.
Thanks to a Michigan State holding penalty a couple of plays later, the Spartans’ drive stalled, but it was the kind of soft possession we’ve seen about once per game from what has been an excellent defense in 2023.
It wasn’t easy to find things to gripe about this week, so maybe I should be complaining about that. Obviously this column should not be taken out of context. The good vastly outweighed the bad. Harrison Jr. and Henderson did their usual things, while McCord had his biggest night as a starter so far. The young defensive backs filling in at safety did a good job, and Cody Simon deputized well for the injured Tommy Eichenberg. The game was comfortably in hand before halftime. It felt like nature was healing.
Next up, the Buckeyes host Minnesota at 4:00 p.m. ET next Saturday. Ohio State will have to avoid stepping into the trap with The Game looming a week later.
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
Photo by Ben Jackson/Getty Images
Here’s what gave me indigestion against Sparty (Or was it just my dinner?)
It may be difficult to get angry at whatever your team does when it puts its opponent in a blender and completely dominates, but that’s the premise here, so bear with me while I put on my most cynical pair of glasses to look back upon Ohio State’s 38-3 home win over Michigan State on Saturday night.
Here’s what gave me indigestion as I watched the night game against Sparty (OK, it could have been the Mexican food).
Snap-fu
Carson Hinzman’s name went into my notes first this week on Ohio State’s first drive. His ridiculously bad snap hit himself in the rear end and nearly created an early disaster for the Buckeyes. It was just the fifth snap of the game. Fortunately for Ohio State, Kyle McCord was able to pick it up cleanly and throw it at the feet of Emeka Egbuka for no loss on the play. The Buckeyes picked up a first down on the ensuing play thanks to Egbuka drawing a pass interference penalty on Jaden Mangham.
Why Did It Have to be a Slant?
Ohio State’s vulnerability against slant passes seems to have no fix. Each week, teams are able to exploit the middle of the OSU defense to the point where I’m not sure why teams call any other play. If I were an opposing offensive coordinator, I’d probably just keep calling slant passes until the Buckeyes showed me that they can stop them. It seems automatic, and a good team that can execute could probably cause a lot of trouble sticking with that one play.
Set That Edge
Nate Carter gashed the OSU run defense for 27 yards on the Spartans’ first play of their second possession. Ohio State’s defense had a slower start to the game than the OSU offense, including giving up some chunk plays to Michigan State’s offense. On the play, Carter simply rushed around the right side, Ohio State did not set the edge, and it was a big play for Sparty. The defense redeemed itself by forcing a three-and-out on the ensuing set of downs.
Garbage Spots
Early in the second quarter, the first of two incredible spots was given to the Spartans when Katin Houser scrambled under pressure. The MSU quarterback was a good yard short of the line to make, but the official who spotted the ball gave him a generous spot. The play was reviewed and moved back, so the replay process worked the way it was supposed to. The second time it happened, in the second half, there was no such review.
Special Teams Still Not-So-Special
With Houser shy of the first down and the ball near midfield, Michigan State sent the punting team onto the field, despite already being down 21-0. Everyone in the stadium and watching on TV knew a fake was likely, and yet Jaren Mangham took the direct snap and went five yards to convert. Ohio State played punt safe but didn’t pack the box, making it an easy conversion.
At this point, I simply have to believe that Ryan Day is waiting until the offseason to fire Parker Fleming, because if he’s allowed to stay on after what we’ve seen from the special teams units this season, it’s coaching malpractice on the same level of keeping Brian Ferentz or Alex Grinch on staff.
Blocking Problems
On a third-down play inside its own 10-yard line, the OSU offense called a safe run play to TreVeyon Henderson. The problem with the call, which was exceedingly conservative when there’s a guy named Marvin Harrison Jr. on the team, was that the right side of the line both blocked the outside defensive lineman and let the inside man go free. That man stuffed Henderson at the line of scrimmage and forced Ohio State to punt. The ensuing Michigan State drive produced the visitors’ only points of the evening on a field goal.
Blemish on a Big Night
McCord had a fantastic game, but it was one of his few mistakes that cost Harrison his third receiving and fourth overall touchdown of the night. The young quarterback underthrew a wide open Harrison in the left corner. Because of the underthrow, the defense was able to make a play on the ball. If he’d put it in the back corner, it was an easy score for the Heisman Trophy candidate receiver.
Don’t Let Them Drive
It looked like the Spartans were about to put a second score on the board late in the third quarter. The Buckeyes had a 38-3 lead at the time, and the Spartans took possession on their own 28-yard line. The OSU defense had a bit of a lapse to start the drive, allowing Sparty to move into OSU territory.
After two strong defensive plays resulted in a loss of a yard across them for Michigan State, the Spartans then picked up 10 on third down and three more on fourth. Pass interference by Malik Hartford gave the visitors another first down immediately after converting on fourth. Jaren Mangham ran three straight times to pick up yet another first, moving the ball to the OSU 34.
Thanks to a Michigan State holding penalty a couple of plays later, the Spartans’ drive stalled, but it was the kind of soft possession we’ve seen about once per game from what has been an excellent defense in 2023.
It wasn’t easy to find things to gripe about this week, so maybe I should be complaining about that. Obviously this column should not be taken out of context. The good vastly outweighed the bad. Harrison Jr. and Henderson did their usual things, while McCord had his biggest night as a starter so far. The young defensive backs filling in at safety did a good job, and Cody Simon deputized well for the injured Tommy Eichenberg. The game was comfortably in hand before halftime. It felt like nature was healing.
Next up, the Buckeyes host Minnesota at 4:00 p.m. ET next Saturday. Ohio State will have to avoid stepping into the trap with The Game looming a week later.
Continue reading...