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Game Thread Ohio State 45, Michigan State 7 (Oct. 18)

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LordJeffBuck;1298206; said:
I hate to disappoint you, but Lane is a fifth-year senior. His chances to start are over.
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Don't lie, JLB, you love to disappoint me. Oh well, hopefully Lane can make enough of an impression in limited duty to get an invite to an NFL training camp. The guys really playing, but that backfield is nearly impossible to crack.

Coaching does matter, just not as much as talent matters. I'd say that talent on the field is probably 90% of the equation ... and because talent can be "coached up" during practice, then maybe the actual break-down is 70% talent, 30% coaching. Bottom line: In college football, the most important job for the coaches is to recruit the talent.
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I mostly agree with you, but I'll say this: Good to great coaching can make a marginal improvement on talent, bad coaching can make talent irrelevant. Look at the legacy of John L. Smith. He didn't have talent on par with the elite BCS teams, but the team's schizophrenic meltdowns were an indication of a lack of preparation and direction. Same with ND last year, the talent was better than 3-9, but the coaching kept getting in the way. Auburn and Clemson are programs that are supposed to have the talent level to compete with elite teams, but their results are consistently below expectations. It could be argued that John Cooper prevented some of his teams from reaching their true potential. I think most teams reflect the personality of the coaching staff. There's certainly no substitution for talent, but talent needs direction.
 
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DDN

OSU holds Ringer to just 67 yards


By Doug Harris
Staff Writer

Sunday, October 19, 2008

EAST LANSING, Mich. ? Ohio State may have had some lavish defensive schemes in its arsenal for Javon Ringer, but the tactic that held the nation's leading rusher in check is one that works every time: Keep him off the field.
OSU ended the first half with a 28-0 lead and nearly doubled the Spartans in time of possession (19:31 to 10:29). Ringer could do little more than spectate as Terrelle Pryor and Co. took charge in the 45-7 victory.
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DDN

Ringer's boast motivated Buckeyes

By Doug Harris
Staff Writer

Sunday, October 19, 2008
EAST LANSING, Mich. ? Ohio State defensive players were already jacked up about their encounter with Javon Ringer, but they became even more juiced after a few snippets of a Ringer interview were relayed to them before hitting the field.
On ESPN's "College GameDay" show, the Dayton native reportedly talked about wanting to beat the Buckeyes by four or five touchdowns and showing folks back in Ohio how the Spartans have blossomed.
While those comments may seem innocent enough, ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit questioned Ringer's judgment on the air, wondering why the player would say anything that might incite the Buckeyes.
And OSU defensive coordinator Jim Heacock certainly made sure his unit knew what the nation's leading rusher was thinking, giving a coach's spin on the interview in a final pregame huddle.
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I haven't watched my recording of the game yet, so I'm not sure if this was shown on TV.

TBDBITL was on the field, not in the stands, for the entire game. They were near one corner of the end zone. It was odd to see sousaphones about three yards away from the back of the end zone, and made me wonder about player safety - it was a good reason to not call fade patterns in that corner. :tongue2:

Anyway, when the game was over, after the midfield prayer, the team gathered in that corner of the field, which was in front of the large tOSU contingent of fans. The players celebrated for just a minute while the band played, and then TBDBITL completely encircled the team and its coaches to play Carmen Ohio.

It was a very cool moment after a great performance on the road. And stuff like that is part of why some of those guys came back for another year as a Buckeye.

And sincere thanks to the Spartan band that was waiting patiently on the other half of the field to play their post-game piece in front of what was only a few hundred remaining Spartan fans. In other stadiums, I've seen the home band start playing before TBDBITL was done. It was a classy move by the Spartan band director, maybe due partly to the bands playing a number in combined formation at halftime.
 
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Dispatch

Easy lancing Pryor, Buckeyes answer critics with their best effort of season
Sunday, October 19, 2008 3:41 AM
By Ken Gordon


THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
1019_osu_pryor_lede_sp_10-19-08_C1_LIBL495.jpg
NEAL C. LAURON | Dispatch
Ohio State's Terrelle Pryor avoids a tackle by Michigan State's Greg Jones in the first half.


NEAL C. LAURON | Dispatch
Ohio State's Chris "Beanie" Wells stiff-arms Michigan State's Chris L. Rucker during a run near the sideline. Wells rushed for first-half touchdowns of 1 and 12 yards.



EAST LANSING, Mich. -- He stood with his back against a wall, the position in which Terrelle Pryor apparently thrives. Moments after Ohio State's freshman quarterback led an out-of-the-blue 45-7 blowout of Michigan State yesterday, Pryor was still smoldering, unable to put out the competitive fire that had burned so fiercely inside him during a difficult week.
Of course he had heard the questions and the doubts -- how could he not? After a lethargic 16-3 victory over Purdue, in which the offense did not score a touchdown, critics once again wondered whether Pryor was as good as advertised.
Maybe a return to senior quarterback Todd Boeckman could help this club, some speculated.
So on Friday, Pryor stopped into coach Jim Tressel's office.
"I said, 'Coach, if I don't move the ball within the first quarter, sit me down,' " Pryor recalled. " 'You'd better sit me down and put Todd in, because Todd will do it.' "
Tressel said in 23 years as a coach, he's never had a player say such a thing.
"I said, 'Just relax,' " Tressel said. " 'Now, if you throw (an interception), don't worry, you won't have to make that request.' "
The point was moot. Pryor accounted for 188 total yards, two touchdowns and no turnovers.
Chris "Beanie" Wells pounded for 140 yards and two touchdowns on 31 carries, and the Buckeyes defense forced five turnovers and scored two TDs, as well.

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Dispatch

Six points

Sunday, October 19, 2008 3:41 AM

THE PLAY


Ohio State cornerback Donald Washington's 44-yard fumble return, right, midway through the first quarter. On the heels of Terrelle Pryor's touchdown run, the return set up the second TD and sparked the rout.
THE STAR

OSU tailback Chris "Beanie" Wells. He ran for 140 yards and two touchdowns. Michigan State's Javon Ringer ran for 67 yards and no TDs. Ringer went in leading the nation in TDs and the Big Ten in rushing. Wells went in saying, "Remember me?"
THE STAT

Michigan State lost three fumbles -- two were returned for fourth-quarter TDs -- and threw two interceptions. Ohio State had no turnovers.
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Dispatch

Defense turns the tide
Buckeyes run back 2 fumbles for TDs, set up a third score
Sunday, October 19, 2008 3:28 AM
By Tim May


THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
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DORAL CHENOWETH III | Dispatch
Ohio State's Thaddeus Gibson runs for a 69-yard touchdown after recovering a Michigan State fumble.


http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/multimedia/audio_slideshows/2008/10/osumsu/index.html

EAST LANSING, Mich. -- When presented with opportunities in the form of loose footballs on the turf at Michigan State yesterday, the Ohio State defense did more than simply secure them. The Buckeyes grabbed them and ran with them. Ohio State changed the game with three long runbacks after Spartan fumbles. Donald Washington had a 44-yard return to set up OSU's second touchdown in a 21-point first quarter. Then Thaddeus Gibson and Jermale Hines scored their first college TDs on fourth-quarter returns, the exclamation points in a 45-7 win.
Key fumble recoveries were not limited to the defense. Linebacker Austin Spitler came up big when OSU punt returner Ray Small fumbled deep in Buckeye territory late in the first quarter. Spitler's recovery at the 3-yard-line didn't set up a TD but probably saved one.
"The thing was, guys were flying around," Washington said. "If the ball is loose and you hustle around, you'll luck up sometimes. The ball just bounced our way."
The most spectacular runback was Gibson's. Michigan State had scored on its first possession of the second half and, trailing 28-7, was driving again when quarterback Kirk Cousins dropped back to pass from the OSU 23. Cornerback Malcolm Jenkins came in untouched from Cousins' blind side, made the hit to knock the ball loose, and Gibson grabbed it.
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Dispatch

Wells outruns Ringer in duel of top rushers
OSU standout gains twice as many yards
Sunday, October 19, 2008 3:21 AM
By Tim May

EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Ohio State vs. Michigan State not only was a showdown of Big Ten leaders, it was a matchup of two top tailbacks: the Buckeyes' Chris "Beanie" Wells, who led the conference last season, and the Spartans' Javon Ringer, his would-be heir. Wells gained 140 yards rushing and scored two first-half touchdowns in the Buckeyes' 45-7 win yesterday. Ringer, who was leading the nation with 14 touchdowns and was second in rushing, had 67 yards and no TDs.
For Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor, the argument was settled.
"Beanie's the best back in the country," Pryor said. "I mean, Javon Ringer is good, maybe he's the second-best. But Beanie Wells is the best back in the country."
After Wells, Pryor was the game's second-leading rusher, with 72 yards. In the first half, when Ohio State built a 28-0 lead, Wells topped 100 yards and Pryor passed for one touchdown and ran for one.
Wells said the jammed right foot that caused him to miss three games this season was sore. But, psychologically, he said he felt much better than he did a week earlier, when he challenged the offense to execute better after a lackluster 16-3 win over Purdue.
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Dispatch
Laurinaitis sets tone with big whack

Sunday, October 19, 2008 3:30 AM
By Ken Gordon, Tim May and Bob Baptist


THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
1019_hartline_sp_10-19-08_C9_LIBL4AA.jpg
DORAL CHENOWETH III | Dispatch
Ohio State's Brian Hartline comes down between defenders on a 56-yard reception in the first quarter that set up a touchdown.



EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Ohio State's defense is back to shutting teams down and making big plays, and at the heart of this resurgence is -- who else? -- James Laurinaitis. The senior linebacker got off to a good statistical start this season but had not made as many game-changing, impact plays as in the past.
Until yesterday in Spartan Stadium. Among his team-high 11 tackles, Laurinaitis had 1 1/2 sacks and another big hit on Michigan State quarterback Brian Hoyer, knocking him woozy in a 45-7 victory.
"He's a great linebacker," defensive end Thaddeus Gibson said. "All the accolades that he has, he showed it today. He's a great player."
Laurinaitis spearheaded a unit that has given up just 10 points over the past two weeks. Yesterday, the Buckeyes forced five turnovers, two of which they converted into touchdowns.
They limited Spartans running back Javon Ringer to 67 yards and recorded a season-high three sacks. It was not a sack, but Laurinaitis' crunching hit on Hoyer just after he let a pass fly gave Hoyer head and hand injuries.
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