How do you stop TTech?

[faithfulraider]

Having seen their D-line play, I want no part of them. Their D-line would pants our O-line.

And on the other side of the ball, which is the point of this thread, what you need to stop the TT scheme is an absolutely lights-out dominant Defensive Line. I agree with those who have said that there isn't a scheme that just anyone can run that can slow them down. You have to have a KILLER front four.

IMO we proved that in 2002. We slowed them down pretty well; and that was before Chris Gamble moved to cornerback.

I harbor no illusions that the 2002 Red Raiders could hold the jock of the '08 variety. But the '08 variety has not faced a D-line in the same zip code as the '02 Buckeyes. Don't even get me started on Orackpo or however you spell it... The 'Horns D-line isn't a shadow of what we put on the field in '02.

The point is; the '08 Red Raiders could be slowed down enough that a good offense could outscore them. The problem is, Ohio State circa 2008 has neither the defensive line to slow them down nor the offensive line to outscore them.

JMHO

You are correct. The '02 buckeyes had a VERY dominant D-line. However, the 02 Red Raider O-line couldn't hold this year's O-line's jock straps. I think if it were possible to have those two lines meet in a game, it would be a very interesting game indeed.

You are also correct about the Texas line. Orakpo came into this came highly touted and he left broken...

 

[lvbuckeye]

I wouldn't mind playing TT in a BCS bowl. I think we match up well with them.

in the most simple terms, they way you slow down (not stop, i don't think that's possible) TTech's O is to pressure/sack Harrell without blitzing. if you can get to him with only the D-line, you can drop the other seven into coverage. and despite how well our back 7 matches up, we do NOT have that D-line. we'd get lit up like everyone else has...

 

[NightmaresDad]

with all due respect, Texas held Arkansas to 191 yards earlier this year. here's how the Razorbacks have fared against their SEC opponents:

Alabama (309)
Florida (361)
Auburn (416)
Kentucky (330)
Ole Miss (386)
S Carolina (309)

i realize it's a very small sample size, but it's the only SEC-Big XII matchup this year, and the Hogs fared considerably worse against Texas than they have against the vaunted SEC defenses...

and let's not forget what Mizzou did to Arkansas in the Cotton Bowl...

Well, you picked the best defensive team in the Big 12, too.
I realize there was no other game to pick, though.

TT's defense is "OK", as is OK ST's.
OK's pass defense is awful. They give up more huge plays than anybody that is ranked high in the polls.
KU. K ST, Mizzou, NE - they are all terrible defenses.

And Arkansas this year, especially early in the year, was the worst team in the SEC. Especially on defense.
Getting three hundred and some yards is not exactly lighting it up.

And it doesn't reflect how many yards were gained after the game was no longer a contest.

I will say, for the record, Harrell is the best QB I've seen all year,along with McCoy. What makes him almost unfair is ability to move in the pocket, and move out of the pocket when necessary, and still stay focused downfield and find the open guy. And of course, he is still accurate as heck when he has to throw on the run, too.
Makes both him and McCoy extremely hardto stop. TT has a better receiver corps, though, than TX.

 

[OCBucksFan]

I wouldn't mind playing TT in a BCS bowl. I think we match up well with them.

on a completely different note, whatever you're smoking, let me know because I think I'd like to get me some of that.

 

[BuckeyeNation27]

You are correct. The '02 buckeyes had a VERY dominant D-line. However, the 02 Red Raider O-line couldn't hold this year's O-line's jock straps. I think if it were possible to have those two lines meet in a game, it would be a very interesting game indeed.

You are also correct about the Texas line. Orakpo came into this came highly touted and he left broken...

while being held and injurring his knee on his own....

 

[DontHateOState]

How many seconds does the TT O-line have to block on an average passing play?

When you run as many quick hitters as they do they have an easier job.

I have enough faith in our coverage units to know that we would hold our own. And give Terrelle Pryor a month of bowl practice to improve...it will be fun to see.

 

[faithfulraider]

while being held and injurring his knee on his own....

not quite...Reed had him in a legal block and Orakpo twisted around...I doubt you would find a referee in the NCAA that would have thrown the flag there...Reed was not preventing him from retreating or chasing the play...he was simply in his way and not letting him get by, Orakpo was always directly in front of Reed and continuously driving in the same direction while twisting. Reed just took him to the ground while he was twisting and it ended up being a bad move on Orakpo's part.

 

[faithfulraider]

How many seconds does the TT O-line have to block on an average passing play?

When you run as many quick hitters as they do they have an easier job.

I have enough faith in our coverage units to know that we would hold our own. And give Terrelle Pryor a month of bowl practice to improve...it will be fun to see.

Most plays are within 3 seconds, but our line has blocked for as long as 14 seconds this year (against a lousy A&M team). Most good teams can be blocked for up to 6 or 8 seconds before GH is really getting into trouble.

 

[BuckeyeNation27]

not quite...Reed had him in a legal block and Orakpo twisted around...I doubt you would find a referee in the NCAA that would have thrown the flag there...Reed was not preventing him from retreating or chasing the play...he was simply in his way and not letting him get by, Orakpo was always directly in front of Reed and continuously driving in the same direction while twisting. Reed just took him to the ground while he was twisting and it ended up being a bad move on Orakpo's part.

No I was talking about the 2008 game.
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tM28K2wg8dY]YouTube - Texas Tech vs. Texas 2008: Orakpo Held?[/ame]

 

[faithfulraider]

No I was talking about the 2008 game.
YouTube - Texas Tech vs. Texas 2008: Orakpo Held?

So was I. Reed didn't have a choice on that play. He was locked up with Orakpo and his arm was caught up in Orakpo's twisting motion. Orakpo did that to himself and as I said, In my opinion no NCAA ref would have thrown the flag under game-speed conditions in that situation. Maybe I'm wrong, maybe I'm biased....but when refs won't through the flag when one of the Texas O-lineman is being drug along like a dog tied to the bumper because he is holding on to the jersey of Dixon, I just can't see the case for holding in this instance.

edit: To be honest, I think that either the refs are being trained to loosen up on holding calls, or they are getting to where they just don't know what holding is....personally, I think that they are redefining what holding is without actually changing the written rule. Besides that, if you look closely, you can find a hold on almost every snap of a football game. Over the last few years, it has been my experience that the Mountain West Conference has been the worst at recognizing holding, but the Big12 seems to be catching up...

 

[Brutus1]

That's not a hold. You have to take into account that the d-lineman spun, making it look like a hold. It was not. Good call.

That's why the 'hold' in the USC game should not have been called.

 

[BayBuck]

on a completely different note, whatever you're smoking, let me know because I think I'd like to get me some of that.

Why is that so crazy? If anyone's got the depth of talented DBs and fast LBs to cover their many weapons, it's us among a very small group. We may not do so well against read-option teams where the QB is a mobile threat, but we've always held our own against spread offenses because we're built to defend them. I'm not betting the house on it, but I like the matchup for sure.

 

[BuckeyeNation27]

He was locked up with Orakpo and his arm was caught up in Orakpo's twisting motion.

I wonder what would have happened if he wasn't holding on to Orakpo.

Don't mind me, I'm just bored

 

[BuckeyeFan 52]

Stopping Texas Tech is a tough challenge, no doubt, but it's possible.

Obviously defensive line play is where it begins. In my opinion, I think the opposing defensive line's ability to jump and knock down passes is just as important as getting pressure on Harrell. I do not know the average amount of time Harrell has between receiving the snap and getting rid of the ball (I would guess 3 to 4 seconds?), but I know his release is extremely quick. You won't get many chances to sack him, you just won't. That plan hasn't worked yet this season.

I think the best chance a defense has to slow down the Red Raiders is for it's LB'ers and DB's to "get in the way" of Harrell's throwing lanes. Now, this requires bigger, more athletic LB's with some quicks, but there are some teams out there that could do that. Playing man-to-man and trying to bump and jam the receivers at the line is a logical concept, but I don't believe there is a college defense out there that has the defensive backfield that could handle that for an entire game against a team with so many break-away wide receivers.

I think you have to play zone defense for the majority of the game. I'm not even convinced that mixing up your defensive looks will do much vs. this team. When Florida beat Ohio State in 2006, their defense showed almost an identical look on each and every snap when OSU had the football. The Gators were playing in different coverages and stunting throughout the game, but they lined in virtually the same spot every time. That in iteself confused Troy Smith and O-line. I think a similar approach has to be taken with this Texas Tech team.

The game in Norman coming up will be a good one. Don't think the Sooner's can't pull this one out, they easily could. Their offense is balanced enough to keep the Red Raider offense off of the field for quite a while.

Regardless, I think the one team in the country that could stop this Texas Tech team is Florida. They are entirely too balanced. They can match Tech point-for-point on the offensive side of the ball, and they have the right types of players in their defensive back seven to confuse Harrell and stop that offense enough to win the ball game.

Just my opinion.

 

[jimotis4heisman]

what about if i gave bob knight a bunch of chairs? hed toss em out there and slow you guys down. hed i know hes a good alumnus.



all joking aside some real good posters here from tech. and congrats on a great season so far. i liked watching tech play when we played you guys in 02.