The outcome of this game didn't really surprise me. Oh, I thought that the Buckeyes would probably score a few more points and make the game sorta respectable and all, but I pretty much figured that Southern Cal would show why they were the number one team in the country ... and Ohio State would show that they were overrated, especially by Buckeye fans. So, what went wrong last night ... and what IS wrong with this team?
1. Team Speed? If you listen to the know-nothing national pundits, last night's beat down was all about the slow, fat Buckeyes falling prey to another team with blazing speed. Well, I call bullshit on that. Oh sure, USC has excellent team speed, but Joe McKnight looks pretty damned fast when he's running free in your secondary, and the Trojans' front seven look pretty damned fast when they're running free in your backfield. Folks, I'm going to pull out the oldest cliche' in football, but it still holds true - You win games in the trenches. Like Florida in 2006 and LSU in 2007, USC beat the snot out of the Buckeyes in the trenches.
To be fair, the offensive line wasn't so bad ... at least until the Trojans dialed up the blitz on every play during the second half. Once again, however, penalties were the bane of this group - three false starts and and a huge holding call cost Ohio State field position in the red zone and at least one touchdown. Ohio State's tailbacks averaged 4.2 yards per carry - which isn't bad against a top-notch defense - and most of the five sacks could be blamed on bad/slow decisions by the Buckeye quarterback.
The defensive line was the real weakness of the team last night (and for the last 2+ seasons). At times, the DL seemed invisible, and in fact they combined for just 4.5 tackles ... and that was against a USC offensive line that was supposed to be young and inexperienced and the Trojans' Achilles heel[sup]1[/sup]. The Buckeyes' front four put no pressure on Mark Sanchez, and the lone "sack" came in the fourth quarter on a play in which the Trojans had absolutely no intention of throwing the football.
The linebackers had decent games statistically, combining for 23 tackles and the aforementioned "sack", and JL made a few noteworthy plays, but it's really difficult for linebackers to operate when they've got offensive linemen in their faces all game long ... and that gets back to the defensive line not doing their jobs. Opposing teams simply aren't concerned about the Buckeyes' defensive tackles, and thus they are able to send a guard straight at Laurinaitis on every run without fear that a DT will beat his man one-on-one and blow up the play.
So, once again, it was the play in the trenches that cost the Buckeyes - speed had little or nothing to do with it.
2. Notes on Some Individual Players.
a. Malcolm Jenkins. Played hard from the first snap to the last; led the team with 10 tackles, with many solid sticks in the open field; lived up to the hype, more or less.
b. Lawrence Wilson. Is anyone still saying that this kid will be even better than Vernon Gholston?
c. Ross Homan. Is anyone still saying that he is the next A.J. Hawk?
d. Beanie Wells. Would definitely have made a diffience ... the Buckeyes probably add at least one field goal, maybe two, if he had played last night.
e. Anderson Russell. Before the 2006 Michigan game, we heard that Anderson had a very difficult time with play action fakes. USC exploited that perfectly on the TD pass to Blake Ayles.
f. Todd Boeckman. After the Penn State game last year, do you remember that some people were actually touting Todd Boeckman for the Heisman Trophy? Todd definitely has skills, but I have honestly never seen a player whose game falls apart so quickly at the first sign of adversity. Todd looked very good during the first quarter, and he threw a beautiful pass to Robo for a "touchdown" in the second quarter ... but after that play was called back due to holding, Boeckman more or less fell apart. On the very next series, with Ohio State still very much in the game down only 14-3 and moving the ball quite well on a pair of 11-yard runs by Pryor and Herron, Boeckman threw a picture perfect strike to Rey Maualuga for a pick six. Not only did that play seal defeat for the Buckeyes, it also likely earned Maualuga the Award formerly known as Butkus. In the second half, here is a complete list of Boeckman's pass plays, in order: sack; incompletion; intentional grounding; sack; interception. And then Terrelle Pryor finished out the game....
3. The Future Is Now. Let's face it - this season is over. Yeah, the Buckeyes can still win their umpteenth Big Ten title, and they can still roll an utterly inept Michigan squad for an unprecedented fifth time in a row, but as far as national championships and public perception, this team is done.
Sixth-year senior Todd Boeckman is not the answer. Period. I'm sure that Todd is a great guy and all, but he had two chances to lead this team to a national championship, and he didn't get the job done. No shame in that - he joins Cornelius Greene, Art Schlichter, Bobby Hoying, Joe Germaine, and Troy Smith as Buckeye quarterbacks who didn't quite make it to the top.
True freshman Terrelle Pryor still has two chances to lead this team to a national championship. It's obvious by now that Pryor brings a different dimension to this team, a dimension that has been missing since the 2005 season - a quarterback who is a true dual-threat. Pryor was arguably the best player on the Buckeyes' offense last night, and he'll only get better with more playing time ... so just play him. Start him. Now. And for the rest of the season. Sure, I have 47.8 billion in vCash riding on that result, but I can objectively state that Pryor gives the Buckeyes the best chance to win beginning next week. And even if he doesn't, so what? Let's get the kid ready for 2009 and 2010, when the Buckeyes will once again have legitimate shots at a national title.
And the same argument goes for other positions as well. Let's get the Block O in there and see what they can do, and Posey and Thomas and Sabino and Williams and some of the other kids. The future is now!
4. Recruiting. Bill Conley likes to take the credit for the outstanding recruiting class of 2002 that helped the Buckeyes win the national championship that year and made another serious title run in 2006. But let's not forget that Coach Bill Conley Recruiting Expert was primarily responsible for the recruiting classes of 2003 and 2004, classes that in retrospect produced a few true stars (Whitner, Gonzalez, Youboty, Barton in 2003; Ginn, Gholston, Pittman, Freeman in 2004), and way too many busts. I have heard it said that Conley made an early offer to running back Maurice Wells (class of 2005), and that this move pleased Jim Tressel so much that Conley "retired" shortly thereafter. And let's not forget that it was JT who opened the Glenville pipeline - before Tressel arrived on the scene, Conley couldn't convince Coach Ginn to send Pierre Woods (class of 2001) to Columbus ... so let's give JT the sole credit for Troy Smith (class of 2002), Donte Whitner (class of 2003), and Teddy Ginn (class of 2004).
Since Conley left, recruiting has definitely improved ... at the very least, more kids are actually sticking with the program and providing some production on the field. The class of 2008 has the potential to be the best ever, and the class of 2009 is not far behind, so there will be many great days ahead for Buckeye fans. So, JT has been an excellent recruiter, right? Well, not so fast, my friend. While Tressel has been excellent in recruiting "speed" players, he has failed to bring in enough help along the lines. I know that Coach Bollman likes to work with small groups that fit his system, but maybe it's time to stop being so picky and to start getting some more big bodies on campus. And while we're at it, how about a defensive tackle or three who can collapse the pocket once in a while?
5. What If? Speaking of recruiting, what if Ohio State had been able to sign either Xavier Lee or Robert Reid, who were the top dual-threat quarterbacks in the class of 2004? Each would be a fifth-year senior right now, and would have provided a seamless transition from Troy Smith to Terrelle Pryor. As it was, Tressel had to scrap Ohio State's most dynamic offense ever after the 2006 season to structure the scheme to Todd Boeckman's strengths. And while the drop back passing, I-back running game has obviously been somewhat successful, it is clear that JT is much more comfortable running a multi-faceted offense centered around a dual-threat quarterback. Fortunately all of the pieces are in place for next season ... and don't expect Ohio State to recruit a "pro style" quarterback any time soon.
6. Fans ... and why we do what we do. Last night, the mods and admins banned several posters, mostly for bashing the Buckeyes. Some people may have issues with our strict "no bashing" policy, and we certainly understand your concerns. But if you want to know why we do what we do here at BP, just visit some other Buckeye boards and see what the so-called "fans" over there have to say about "their" team. Hey, we were all angry and frustrated last night, but that's simply no excuse to launch vicious attacks at the players and coaches ... as if they owe you something. If anything was "embarrassing" last night, it was the conduct of some Buckeye fans.
I'd like to thank all Trojan fans who were gracious in victory, and all Buckeye fans who were civil in defeat - you are all welcome here.
And I'd like to give a special thanks to all of the visiting fans who were supporting the Buckeyes last night. I realize that some of you (Florida and LSU fans) had a vested interest in seeing the Trojans go down to defeat, but I'd also like to think that you were supporting "us" because you have had a enjoyable experience at BuckeyePlanet. You were truly credits to your teams (and your conference
) last night.
[sup]1[/sup] Achilles was Greek - these Trojans have no vulnerabilities.
1. Team Speed? If you listen to the know-nothing national pundits, last night's beat down was all about the slow, fat Buckeyes falling prey to another team with blazing speed. Well, I call bullshit on that. Oh sure, USC has excellent team speed, but Joe McKnight looks pretty damned fast when he's running free in your secondary, and the Trojans' front seven look pretty damned fast when they're running free in your backfield. Folks, I'm going to pull out the oldest cliche' in football, but it still holds true - You win games in the trenches. Like Florida in 2006 and LSU in 2007, USC beat the snot out of the Buckeyes in the trenches.
To be fair, the offensive line wasn't so bad ... at least until the Trojans dialed up the blitz on every play during the second half. Once again, however, penalties were the bane of this group - three false starts and and a huge holding call cost Ohio State field position in the red zone and at least one touchdown. Ohio State's tailbacks averaged 4.2 yards per carry - which isn't bad against a top-notch defense - and most of the five sacks could be blamed on bad/slow decisions by the Buckeye quarterback.
The defensive line was the real weakness of the team last night (and for the last 2+ seasons). At times, the DL seemed invisible, and in fact they combined for just 4.5 tackles ... and that was against a USC offensive line that was supposed to be young and inexperienced and the Trojans' Achilles heel[sup]1[/sup]. The Buckeyes' front four put no pressure on Mark Sanchez, and the lone "sack" came in the fourth quarter on a play in which the Trojans had absolutely no intention of throwing the football.
The linebackers had decent games statistically, combining for 23 tackles and the aforementioned "sack", and JL made a few noteworthy plays, but it's really difficult for linebackers to operate when they've got offensive linemen in their faces all game long ... and that gets back to the defensive line not doing their jobs. Opposing teams simply aren't concerned about the Buckeyes' defensive tackles, and thus they are able to send a guard straight at Laurinaitis on every run without fear that a DT will beat his man one-on-one and blow up the play.
So, once again, it was the play in the trenches that cost the Buckeyes - speed had little or nothing to do with it.
2. Notes on Some Individual Players.
a. Malcolm Jenkins. Played hard from the first snap to the last; led the team with 10 tackles, with many solid sticks in the open field; lived up to the hype, more or less.
b. Lawrence Wilson. Is anyone still saying that this kid will be even better than Vernon Gholston?
c. Ross Homan. Is anyone still saying that he is the next A.J. Hawk?
d. Beanie Wells. Would definitely have made a diffience ... the Buckeyes probably add at least one field goal, maybe two, if he had played last night.
e. Anderson Russell. Before the 2006 Michigan game, we heard that Anderson had a very difficult time with play action fakes. USC exploited that perfectly on the TD pass to Blake Ayles.
f. Todd Boeckman. After the Penn State game last year, do you remember that some people were actually touting Todd Boeckman for the Heisman Trophy? Todd definitely has skills, but I have honestly never seen a player whose game falls apart so quickly at the first sign of adversity. Todd looked very good during the first quarter, and he threw a beautiful pass to Robo for a "touchdown" in the second quarter ... but after that play was called back due to holding, Boeckman more or less fell apart. On the very next series, with Ohio State still very much in the game down only 14-3 and moving the ball quite well on a pair of 11-yard runs by Pryor and Herron, Boeckman threw a picture perfect strike to Rey Maualuga for a pick six. Not only did that play seal defeat for the Buckeyes, it also likely earned Maualuga the Award formerly known as Butkus. In the second half, here is a complete list of Boeckman's pass plays, in order: sack; incompletion; intentional grounding; sack; interception. And then Terrelle Pryor finished out the game....
3. The Future Is Now. Let's face it - this season is over. Yeah, the Buckeyes can still win their umpteenth Big Ten title, and they can still roll an utterly inept Michigan squad for an unprecedented fifth time in a row, but as far as national championships and public perception, this team is done.
Sixth-year senior Todd Boeckman is not the answer. Period. I'm sure that Todd is a great guy and all, but he had two chances to lead this team to a national championship, and he didn't get the job done. No shame in that - he joins Cornelius Greene, Art Schlichter, Bobby Hoying, Joe Germaine, and Troy Smith as Buckeye quarterbacks who didn't quite make it to the top.
True freshman Terrelle Pryor still has two chances to lead this team to a national championship. It's obvious by now that Pryor brings a different dimension to this team, a dimension that has been missing since the 2005 season - a quarterback who is a true dual-threat. Pryor was arguably the best player on the Buckeyes' offense last night, and he'll only get better with more playing time ... so just play him. Start him. Now. And for the rest of the season. Sure, I have 47.8 billion in vCash riding on that result, but I can objectively state that Pryor gives the Buckeyes the best chance to win beginning next week. And even if he doesn't, so what? Let's get the kid ready for 2009 and 2010, when the Buckeyes will once again have legitimate shots at a national title.
And the same argument goes for other positions as well. Let's get the Block O in there and see what they can do, and Posey and Thomas and Sabino and Williams and some of the other kids. The future is now!
4. Recruiting. Bill Conley likes to take the credit for the outstanding recruiting class of 2002 that helped the Buckeyes win the national championship that year and made another serious title run in 2006. But let's not forget that Coach Bill Conley Recruiting Expert was primarily responsible for the recruiting classes of 2003 and 2004, classes that in retrospect produced a few true stars (Whitner, Gonzalez, Youboty, Barton in 2003; Ginn, Gholston, Pittman, Freeman in 2004), and way too many busts. I have heard it said that Conley made an early offer to running back Maurice Wells (class of 2005), and that this move pleased Jim Tressel so much that Conley "retired" shortly thereafter. And let's not forget that it was JT who opened the Glenville pipeline - before Tressel arrived on the scene, Conley couldn't convince Coach Ginn to send Pierre Woods (class of 2001) to Columbus ... so let's give JT the sole credit for Troy Smith (class of 2002), Donte Whitner (class of 2003), and Teddy Ginn (class of 2004).
Since Conley left, recruiting has definitely improved ... at the very least, more kids are actually sticking with the program and providing some production on the field. The class of 2008 has the potential to be the best ever, and the class of 2009 is not far behind, so there will be many great days ahead for Buckeye fans. So, JT has been an excellent recruiter, right? Well, not so fast, my friend. While Tressel has been excellent in recruiting "speed" players, he has failed to bring in enough help along the lines. I know that Coach Bollman likes to work with small groups that fit his system, but maybe it's time to stop being so picky and to start getting some more big bodies on campus. And while we're at it, how about a defensive tackle or three who can collapse the pocket once in a while?
5. What If? Speaking of recruiting, what if Ohio State had been able to sign either Xavier Lee or Robert Reid, who were the top dual-threat quarterbacks in the class of 2004? Each would be a fifth-year senior right now, and would have provided a seamless transition from Troy Smith to Terrelle Pryor. As it was, Tressel had to scrap Ohio State's most dynamic offense ever after the 2006 season to structure the scheme to Todd Boeckman's strengths. And while the drop back passing, I-back running game has obviously been somewhat successful, it is clear that JT is much more comfortable running a multi-faceted offense centered around a dual-threat quarterback. Fortunately all of the pieces are in place for next season ... and don't expect Ohio State to recruit a "pro style" quarterback any time soon.
6. Fans ... and why we do what we do. Last night, the mods and admins banned several posters, mostly for bashing the Buckeyes. Some people may have issues with our strict "no bashing" policy, and we certainly understand your concerns. But if you want to know why we do what we do here at BP, just visit some other Buckeye boards and see what the so-called "fans" over there have to say about "their" team. Hey, we were all angry and frustrated last night, but that's simply no excuse to launch vicious attacks at the players and coaches ... as if they owe you something. If anything was "embarrassing" last night, it was the conduct of some Buckeye fans.
I'd like to thank all Trojan fans who were gracious in victory, and all Buckeye fans who were civil in defeat - you are all welcome here.
And I'd like to give a special thanks to all of the visiting fans who were supporting the Buckeyes last night. I realize that some of you (Florida and LSU fans) had a vested interest in seeing the Trojans go down to defeat, but I'd also like to think that you were supporting "us" because you have had a enjoyable experience at BuckeyePlanet. You were truly credits to your teams (and your conference
) last night.[sup]1[/sup] Achilles was Greek - these Trojans have no vulnerabilities.
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