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Game Thread Ohio State 3, Southern Cal 35 (Sept. 13)

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kc286496;1253211; said:
Well, you are definitely giving yourself away as an outsider with statements like that! Don't feel bad, we don't expect you to understand. Ohio State football is our livelihood. The entire Columbus community lives and dies with every snap. We can't help it. I moved here from the East Coast in 1990 and had no college football allegiances. It took a long time for it to happen, but eventually I became enamored with the sense of pride that only Ohio State football can instill. To say that a close loss in the LA Colliseum is nothing to be ashamed of is probably a true statement to a reasonable, normal human being. But Buckeye fans are anything but reasonable and normal. A loss of any proportion will be completely demoralizing. I cried like a little girl after the Texas loss. I was crushed. These players are our heros and when they lose, we lose with them.

Again, I don't mean this as a knock on USC...but I spent a year living out in SoCal back in 2001-02. I remember flipping on the radio one Saturday morning and the USC/UCLA game was on. I remember thinking to myself, "Wow, I've been here the whole week and I didn't even know the USC/UCLA game was today." Shoot, you can't even dodge a Scarlet & Grey spring game discussion around here. The soccer mom in the cubicle next to you is going and she's tailgating. 315 is backed up to the hospital curve. The guy at the gas station wants to know if you got a glimpse of that new QB everyone's been talking about. It's a different world around here, man, and we're friggin' lunatics! Go anywhere in America and yell out, "O-H". I'll bet you your next beer at least one person responds with a resounding, "I-O!".
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It's certainly different, but I guess that's just the nature of being a fan of a team from a college city as opposed to one from a major USC city with several different universities. People in LA get excited about SC (if they arent UCLA fans) but the city is so big and cosmopolitan that you just don't have the same atmosphere as Columbus where the city is basically built around the school. I've been to Columbus during the Fall and it's a great atmosphere up there, probably as good as anywhere in the US.
 
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Tlangs;1253218; said:
:oh::beer:
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:ho:

pay-up-sucker.gif
 
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JonathanXC;1253155; said:
It's not hard to see the similarity in the 2002 Cincinnati game without Clarett, and this Ohio game without Beanie. We still went on to play great against great teams when we had to. This happens every year, to great teams. Look at USC last year. Many were screaming that they should be in the BCS national championship game! They played HORRIBLE against Stanford, (a bad team with a backup QB, much like Ohio) and LOST. The big difference is, we won. And yet people are still writing us off. You'd think this game was already played and USC already won by four TDs the way the national media is talking. Are you serious? Have you seen our defense? Do you know that a lot of that defense came back just to beat USC and win a national championship? The big thing about the OU game is we won. We played at our worst, and we still won. Last year USC played at it's worst...and it lost. Which would you rather have? All this teams goals are still in tact. Win this game, and we quickly rise up to the top of the polls. Although i'm sure people will find a way to bring us back down again. The key to this game, and this season, is TODD BOECKMAN. And it has nothing to do with touchdown passes, or yards, or completion %. It's about attitude and approach to the game. Craig Krenzel played 2002 with a 'REFUSE TO LOSE' mentality. Sometimes it seems as though Boeckman plays with a 'scared to lose' attitude. Well, I know the defense will play with a refuse to lose attitude. But I think Craig Krenzel needs to give TB a call this week, and give him some advice. Todd...you need to refuse to lose. Don't even consider losing the game. Don't let it happen. Do whatever it takes to win. It doesn't matter if it is like the 2007 Michigan game, where it was all Beanie Wells on offense. Just refuse to lose.

I'm sick and tired of this media biased to USC. This is our chance. It's the world against Ohio State. We better go fucking show the world what Ohio State football really is.
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HELL YES!!! This is what I'm talking about...With every breath I take, every move I make (Not a reference to The Police), I'm getting more and more pumped up!! I can't wait to watch this team play like we have expected them to.


:gobucks3::gobucks4:

BUCKYLE;1253192; said:
:bow: I've really missed these posts.

I'm getting so fired up, I'm going to punch Nutty's neighbor in the face!
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:slappy:
 
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Just, for a second, think about what the game week atmosphere would be like if both OSU and USC had a bye in week two. Totally different. The outcomes of the first games were remarkably similar, two blowouts of inferior teams. Everyone would be saying that the game on the 13th would be a clash of the two juggernauts of CFB. You could say that USC got a free pass by not playing in week two. Sure, everyone assumes that they would have rolled over any team they might have played, but they assumed that about OSU before the OU game. Ugly wins happen for every team in every season. USC has had their fair share, as have every NC team since Neb 97. Now, the OSU haters have their pablum that they so desperately cling to, and are calling for a blowout of unprecedented proportions in LA. This is simply because USC is one of the five NCAA teams they've actually heard of, so they can't dismiss it as a cupcake matchup. (also, USC is really good, but I'm talking about the mentality of haters here)

Kurt, it seems that you are blissfully unaware of the constant vitriol aimed at OSU since the UF loss. How lucky you are. To see some of it, just go to any of the major CFB sites (cfbnews, sportingnews, scout, rivals, yahoo, ESPN, etc.) and look at the comments left for any article mentioning the Buckeyes. Any mention of OSU ignites a firestorm of hate from fans of any and all CFB teams. The comments sections for OSU articles is usually about 3x longer than those about other teams. It's mostly SEC fans, but anyone and everyone outside of the Buckeye Nation lines up to take their shots. Even Ntre Ame fans proclaim that their team would mop up the field with us for fuck's sake! So, that's why this game is of such importance. After each of the last two NC games, we've had to sit thru the unbearable off-season until we had the chance to see our Buckeyes show what they can do. If USC wins, it won't be the end of the world, but, since no one considers the Big Ten schedule as credible, we would have to wait until a bowl game to have a chance to silence the haters.

There is some precedent for the 2nd week slump in the Tressel era. Only once in his tenure have we won comfortably in week two, @ Texas 06. The others were either losses or ugly wins: UCLA 01, UC 02, SDSU 03, Marshall 04, Texas 05, and Akron 07. Perhaps with all the excitement leading up to opening day in Columbus, there's just a bit of a hangover for week two. But the good news is that Tressel's Buckeyes recover splendidly in week three: 7-0, baby!

O-H!!!
 
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generaladm;1253260; said:
Kurt, it seems that you are blissfully unaware of the constant vitriol aimed at OSU since the UF loss. How lucky you are. To see some of it, just go to any of the major CFB sites (cfbnews, sportingnews, scout, rivals, yahoo, ESPN, etc.) and look at the comments left for any article mentioning the Buckeyes. Any mention of OSU ignites a firestorm of hate from fans of any and all CFB teams. The comments sections for OSU articles is usually about 3x longer than those about other teams. It's mostly SEC fans, but anyone and everyone outside of the Buckeye Nation lines up to take their shots. Even Ntre Ame fans proclaim that their team would mop up the field with us for [censored]'s sake! So, that's why this game is of such importance. After each of the last two NC games, we've had to sit thru the unbearable off-season until we had the chance to see our Buckeyes show what they can do. If USC wins, it won't be the end of the world, but, since no one considers the Big Ten schedule as credible, we would have to wait until a bowl game to have a chance to silence the haters.

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Believe you me, I'm quite aware of the vitriol surrounding OSU's performance in the last two year's Bowl Games.
Last year after OSU lost a second consecutive BCS Title game to a SEC opponent, I told one of my good friends that winning the Rose Bowl was better for a program than losing the NC game. He disagreed, but after several months of disrespect for the Bucks, he came back and said he probably agreed.
As you mentioned, a loss to USC would mean that you would have to wait until a Bowl game to silence the haters which, should OSU lose to USC, I think is exactly what will happen. The problem I see is that most Buckeye fans just do not want to wait that long to shut up the rest of the country and show that yes, they are a power team that can hang with the big boys. My point was simply that should OSU lose to SC, the season isnt over but the Bucks will need to bide their time before really making their statement and shutting up the criticis, most likely in a major BCS Bowl game.
 
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Top 10 USC-Ohio State subplots
Monday, September 8, 2008
Posted by Bruce Feldman

After two weeks of decent matchups, we finally get a great slate of games. The headliner is the Ohio State-USC showdown, which will dominate the talk of the sport for the next week. Since there are so many compelling subplots to that game, I figured this week's Top 10 list would serve as a good jumping-off point:

1. Beanie Wells' right foot: The Buckeyes' hammer might just be the best running back in college football. No one is more of a force coming out of the I-formation going downhill. OSU is a different team with him. Keep in mind, Wells gashed LSU and its vaunted D-line for 146 yards and a 7.3 yard-per-carry average in the BCS title game. However, just how healthy will he be for this game? It's not as if these Trojans haven't faced some great backs in their time. I asked Brian Cushing who was the toughest back they'd faced and he ticked off an amazing list. Cushing went from Darren McFadden to Marshawn Lynch to Rashard Mendenhall to Felix Jones, and this was after I brought up Oregon's Jonathan Stewart. So who was the best big back he faced? "Probably LenDale [White]."

2. Linebacker U: Think the Wells versus Rey Maualuga matchup is juicy, how about a statement game for the two top linebacking crews in the country? Both squads are stacked. OSU's James Laurinaitis has won every award a college linebacker can win, although both Maualuga and Cushing are in the same class. As is Buckeye Marcus Freeman.

Interesting aside: Last week I asked Cushing about how close he came to considering going to OSU. The New Jersey product said he was intrigued given the Buckeyes' great legacy of linebackers, but at the time he was scared off by concerns that Ohio State might be in trouble with the NCAA because at that time QB Troy Smith was in the news for his suspension for a bowl game. "I was afraid they might be going on probation," said Cushing, who ultimately chose USC over BC and Miami.

3. Buckeyes Redemption: Ohio State's two losses in the past two BCS title games have been well documented, but a win against top-ranked USC would be huge not only for the Buckeyes but also the Big Ten. OSU's win at Texas in 2006 is actually the league's only win over a top-10 opponent from a BCS league in the past five years.

4. Sanchez 4 Heisman? It's still way early, but after a terrific start, USC QB Mark Sanchez could be positioned for a Heisman run. The Buckeyes' D is very formidable and with all of the attention on this game, someone on offense is going to get a lot of shine. Given how many weapons USC rotates into its offense, Sanchez figures to be the only constant.

5. The Terrelle Pryor Coming-Out Party? The touted OSU freshman quarterback seemingly could give the Buckeyes' ground game a jolt, but was the coaching staff hiding him or shielding him last week when he got only three meaningful snaps against Ohio? Expect Pryor to get some action, especially considering how much the Trojans have struggled with mobile quarterbacks in the past -- Va. Tech's Bryan Randall, Texas' Vince Young and Oregon's Dennis Dixon immediately come to mind, although USC did bottle up Illinois' Juice Williams last season.

"When you play a guy like that, you just have to play within the defense," says Maualuga. "You have to be patient and stand your ground."

6. Ray Small's big words: You don't expect to get much trash talk from a Jim Tressel team, but Ohio State's dangerous wideout certainly got folks' attention out here in L.A. when he discussed a "class" difference between OSU and USC. "Here at Ohio State, they teach you to be a better man," Small said. "There, it's just all about football."

When apprised of Small's comments, USC's Clay Matthews seemed to indicate that those words will be echoed inside the Trojans' locker room: "Coach Carroll does a great job of getting people excited about football," Matthews told the L.A. Times. "We've all bought into it, and it's been pretty successful."

7. Can USC get overconfident? You'd think the Trojans won the BCS title after the way they were lauded following the romp over Virginia, and then when you factor in the status of Wells and how shaky the Buckeyes looked in their game against Ohio it'll be hard to find many folks outside of Columbus touting an OSU upset. In case you were wondering about such things, the Trojans were 2-4 last season covering the spread as a home favorite.

8. Big Game Boeckman? Todd Boeckman's rep is that he's been very steady, but in four games against ranked opponents last season he threw seven TDs and seven INTs. (In the Buckeyes' other games in 2007, he threw 18 TDs and seven INTs.)

9. Pete Carroll out-of-conference magic: In the past five years, his teams have faced six ranked nonconference opponents in the regular season and his record is 6-0 with four of those W's being by at least 17 points.

10. The Rose Bowl: Given the current BCS format, this game actually may be the closest thing the Pac-10 and Big Ten have had in pitting the leagues' two best teams against each other since the 2003 Rose Bowl between USC and Michigan.
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ESPN - Bruce Feldman Blog
 
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