Penn State Aftermath

[tibor75]

It all comes down to recruiting. Games like this show that recruiting rankings are meaningless.

I don't care what the rankings are. There isn't a single OL starting today that would start on the 2002 team. Or 98. Or 95. Or 94.

 

[tibor75]

But I've been around enough D1 athletes to know that "mailing in" very rarely happens, and even more rarely on Tressel teams. .

Cough, cough, Chris, cough, Gamble

 

[Thump]

1) If last night had been my first experience with American football, then I'd never watch another game again. That was quite simply the lamest, ugliest excuse for a football game that I've ever seen, and both teams were equally at fault. The one and only big play in the entire game resulted from a boneheaded move on the simpliest play in football - the quarterback sneak (but more on that later). It wasn't a defensive slugfest ... it was offensive ineptitude at the highest level.

2) Terrelle Pryor is a true freshman, and we certainly expect him to make freshman mistakes. But his fumble on the aforementioned quarterback sneak was not a freshman mistake ... it was a stupid play. Pryor has played enough football to know that his job is to take the snap, follow his center, fall forward, gain eighteen inches, and go back to the huddle to call the next play. You can't become a hero on a quarterback sneak, Terrelle ... but you certainly can become a goat.

3) Before the year started, I thought that Pryor would win a game all by himself, and he did that at Wisconsin. And now he has the distinction of losing a game all by himself. It's generally pretty difficult to identify a single play throughout the course of a game that was the definitive turning point, but his fumble was that play. At that time, Ohio State was up 6-3, with 11:03 left in the game, with third down and inches to go. The Buckeyes had just run five straight times for a combined 22 yards, and had crossed into Penn State territory. The Nittanty Lions' defense looked like it was finally wearing down, and a successful quarterback sneak would have given the Buckeyes further momentum and a fresh set of downs ... and capping the drive with a touchdown would have essentially ended the game. But after the fumble, Penn State got the ball in great field position and eventually scored the game-winning touchdown against a rather dis-spiritied Ohio State defense. Although they had a final chance (see below), the Buckeyes never really recovered from that unfortunate play.

4) The fumble was definitely Terrelle Pryor's "Joe Pisarcik Moment", but he did have a chance to redeem himself at the end of the game. Down 13 to 6 with 1:07 left, the Buckeyes began their final drive of the game at their own 20-yard line after a touchback. Pryor completed a couple of passes to Ray Small to move the ball into Penn State territory, and then he tried to play the hero once again. After a fierce pass rush from Aaron Maybin (more on that later), Pryor rolled out to the right, set himself, somehow found Brian Hartline engulfed in a sea of white jerseys, and with plenty of time to throw launched a bomb into triple coverage that was promptly picked off. On that play, the four Penn State pass rushers were all caught inside, three pass defenders were following Hartline to the endzone, and the short zone on that side of the field had been vacated. Pryor was already near the right sideline, so all he had to do was take off running, gain ten or fifteen yards for the first down, go out of bounds to stop the clock, and then run the next play. But instead, Terrelle thought with his ego and not with his reason, and he went for the highlight reel play instead of the sure thing. Now of course, we can write that off as a "freshman mistake", but we also have to wonder if Pryor is one of those players who will always try to win the game all by himself ... and if that is the case, does he have the talent to do so? If the answer to the latter question is "yes", then we may have the next Vince Young in Columbus ... but if the answer is "no", then we might just have a problem on our hands....

5) Two big games, nine total points. That ain't gettin' it done, folks. It all starts up front, and after a few solid (but certainly not spectacular) games in a row, the Buckeyes' offensive line reverted to their true form ... getting blown up on running plays and blown by on passing plays. Blame the coaching all you want, but the talent ... and the depth ... just isn't there.

6) And another thing about the offensive line ... have the Buckeyes had a truly athletic offensive lineman since Orlando Pace? Maybe LeCharles Bentley and Nick Mangold, but that's about it. Brewster, Shugarts, and Adams seem to be a huge step up in terms of athleticism ... and Justin Boren is a proven commodity ... so let's hope that the offensive line gets a huge upgrade next season.

7) While the offense was anemic last night, the defense wasn't anything special. Yeah, they held the allegedly high-powered Nittany Lion offense to 13 points and 281 total yards (both season lows), but we all watched the game last night, and none of us was impressed with that Penn State team. The defense made no big plays (no turnovers, one sack), did nothing to change the momentum of the game, couldn't hold Penn State to a field goal after the Pryor fumble, and couldn't force the Lions to punt on their final drive. In general, the Buckeyes' defense got "out-hit" by the Lion's offense ... the Penn State offensive line won most of the battles in the trenches, and the Penn State ball carriers were consistently able to fight through tackles for extra yardage. Oh, it wasn't a bad game by the Buckeye defense by any means, but when they were called on to win the game in spite of the Buckeye offense, they just couldn't do it ... and that is what separates a truly great defense (2002) from a merely good defense (2008).

8) Penn State was called for exactly one penalty last night (it was declined by Ohio State). If those had been two SEC teams, then we'd all be saying that the officials (with orders from the league office) were trying to help the undefeated team stay undefeated so that they could get to the big money national championship game. But those were Big Ten officials last night, so we can just blame it on plain old incompetence.

9) I don't care what anyone says, games like last night's hurt worse than the blow-out losses. Yeah, we can try to rationalize those games away with a bunch of "what ifs", but in reality we know that our team got beat from start to finish by the likes of Florida, LSU, and USC. Last night, however, we really should have won the game, and but for perhaps the single most ill-advised, momentum-killing play in the history of Buckeye football, we probably would have won the game. And that just plain sucks....

10) Was it just me, or did the whole team seem flat for most of the game? For a homecoming night game against the #3 team in the country, it sure seemed like the visitors were way more pumped up than the home squad.

11) I am convinced that several players on this team "mailed in" the season from day one. Fortunately, they'll all be gone next year. No names, please, but I am not referring to Jenkins, Laurinaitis, or Boeckman....

12) This is Ohio State. There are no moral victories, no good losses, no learning experiences. The Buckeyes are supposed to win 80-90% of their games, and last night's contest was one that should have gone in the "win" column. No excuses.

13) After the USC game, I said that the Buckeyes' season was officially "over", and that Tressel should start Terrelle Pryor for the remainder of the year so that he could gain valuable experience for the 2009 season. It worked. Now I'm saying that the Big Ten season is officially "over", and that Tressel should open up the offensive play book so that Pryor can gain valuable experience for the 2009 season. Please listen....

Quite possibly your worst post ever.

I'd expect that out of a rookie poster but not you.

 

[BrutusMaximus]

The thing that hurts the most in all this, is that if you put State Penn up against Florida, Texas, USC, Georgia, Okie, etc.........they would get pasted. We really blew the game, and blame the talent as much as you want, but I have seen the same thing with every talent we've had..........entirely too conservative, no imagination, and trying to win 9-6 with 3 field goals. People say, "Well why not? It's worked before". Yeah, and it also hasnt worked before. There is no reason to run a high school offense with the recruits we get. Wow.

Regarding the defense ... they had a chance to win the game in the fourth quarter, or at least keep the game tied, and they didn't come through. Sometimes the defense needs to pick up the offense, and it just didn't happen last night. Yeah, the offense placed the defense in a tough situation after the fumble, but greatness shines in tough situations.

Are you serious? Sometimes I wonder which game you're watching. The D was the ONLY reason we were in the game to begin with. My God.

 

[Brutus1]

Fair comment. They did disappoint in their bowl as much as we did.

If you're looking at it that way, then it was an impressive win in AA last year considering what underdog Michigan did to Florida in their 2007 bowl game.

 

[1926Buckeyes]

Lets get this kid ready for next year because we are going to need to score a hellava lot a points to win games without #1, #33, and #2 on defense.

This is one thing that does concern me. Will TP and the OL and WRs be ready to score next year when we face basically the same USC team that will return basically everyone on offense that is scoring 41 ppg and will only get better with experience? If Carroll does a good job, that O could average close to 50 ppg next year. They;ll have the talent.

Then OSU has to go out to PSU who doesn't return everyone on O, but will return their 2 stud RBs and Clark along with several OL and a TE.

These 2 offenses will be among the 5-10 best in the nation and with the loss at several key positions on D, OSU will have to score points. Also, I think Mchgn will be a tough game in AA.

 

[Brutus1]

#2 will be the hard one to replace.

#33 and #1 are replaceable.

 

[LordJeffBuck]

Are you serious? Sometimes I wonder which game you're watching. The D was the ONLY reason we were in the game to begin with. My God.

Keeping a team in a game and winning a game are two entirely different things.... After the Pryor fumble, the team had the lead, and the defense didn't hold it. What's so difficult to understand about that?

Look, I know that it's not entirely fair, but in the world of Tresselball, the defense had better hold the fort when the offense opens the gates....

 

[ScriptOhio]

1. Blah, blah, blah, defense was great blah, blah, blah. All season long these guys have missed tackles. Last night was no exception.

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I was half listening to 610 on the way home this morning and a woman named Linda called in and talked about a meeting in which Gene Smith evidently took some heat regarding the future of the program. Grumblings within the Athletic Department about line play and the way the Bucks have looked flat in all the big games since the 06 Michigan game. Sounded like she really knew something. Anybody know who she is, exactly what she said and why she sounded so well informed?

Was her name Susan by any chance...?

Maybe it was Daisy?

Does she drive a UPS truck?

 

[DaddyBigBucks]

A lot of the emotion on the board is coming from people having their bubble's burst. They had expectations that were frustrated last night.

What I'm having a hard time understanding is how those expectations survived this long into the season. I was at the OU game, and my expectations for this season ratched down a long way right then and there. It was clear to me then that this team was just not going to be what I thought they might be.

Judging from the number of people who picked OSU to win this game in the various contests on the board, I feel like I'm in a very small minority. Most of you kept holding out hope that the team would somehow "wake up". I did too I suppose, but in the same way that I hope that a meteorite full of money will land in my backyard. There wasn't a lot of expectation attached to it.

This perplexes me for two reasons: 1) My football knowledge doesn't surpass the board average... I'm just not that football smart; so if I saw it, why didn't most of the board see it? and 2) I'm usually the most optimistic homer on the board. If someone is going to blindly miss the fact that the Buckeyes just don't have it, I would expect it to be me.

This team has improved from their early season performances, sure. But not enough to make me believe there was enough there to become a great team by Buckeye standards. And yes, the offense has shown flashes here and there. But even Indiana shows flashes here and there. So does Purdue. But I'm not surprised in the slightest that they were held without a touchdown last night: Frustrated, but not surprised.

I am very proud of the team overall though. They played hard and fought hard last night. They played a team that should not have been better than them, but the fact is the Nits ARE better than them this year. It is frustrating AS HELL that the Nits are better this year, because they shouldn't be. Nevertheless the Buckeyes, such as they are, really gave it their best last night and came within a couple of bad plays of pulling off the upset (that should not have been an upset (or did I make that point already)).

Regardless of much of the current chatter to the contrary, I will believe to my dying day that this team should have been a contender. But after surviving the 80s and the 90s; I'm more than willing to accept a 10-2 year from a team that should have been a contender. Yeah, I'm disappointed that they weren't better than this; but the opportunity to be as good as they could have been is long gone. For now, I'm just pulling for them to make the best of what's left.

If you're thinking that I should expect more from this team, then you don't understand my position at all. I did expect more, but the reality phone rang during that Ohio game and I answered it. What should I do about it? What CAN I do about it? Complain? To whom?

It's a lot more fun to cheer for the Bucks to be the best that they can still be than to piss and moan about what might have been. Give it a shot.

 

[BrutusMaximus]

Keeping a team in a game and winning a game are two entirely different things.... After the Pryor fumble, the team had the lead, and the defense didn't hold it. What's so difficult to understand about that?

Look, I know that it's not entirely fair, but in the world of Tresselball, the defense had better hold the fort when the offense opens the gates....

No, they have to win the game, because our O couldnt move the ball against my high school team. "Tresselball" as you call it, causes this. And you are just fine with that, right? Sure doesnt make sense to me.

 

[scooter1369]

Keeping a team in a game and winning a game are two entirely different things.... After the Pryor fumble, the team had the lead, and the defense didn't hold it. What's so difficult to understand about that?

Look, I know that it's not entirely fair, but in the world of Tresselball, the defense had better hold the fort when the offense opens the gates....

When the defense holds one of the high scoring offenses in the nation to 13 points, Ohio State is supposed to win. I find it very hard to blame a single bit of that game on the defense.

This is three games this year that Ohio State has failed to score an offensive touchdown. To say the defense blew it at the end is simply incomprehensible.

 

[1926Buckeyes]

A lot of the emotion on the board is coming from people having their bubble's burst. They had expectations that were frustrated last night.

What I'm having a hard time understanding is how those expectations survived this long into the season. I was at the OU game, and my expectations for this season ratched down a long way right then and there. It was clear to me then that this team was just not going to be what I thought they might be.

Judging from the number of people who picked OSU to win this game in the various contests on the board, I feel like I'm in a very small minority. Most of you kept holding out hope that the team would somehow "wake up". I did too I suppose, but in the same way that I hope that a meteorite full of money will land in my backyard. There wasn't a lot of expectation attached to it.

This perplexes me for two reasons: 1) My football knowledge doesn't surpass the board average... I'm just not that football smart; so if I saw it, why didn't most of the board see it? and 2) I'm usually the most optimistic homer on the board. If someone is going to blindly miss the fact that the Buckeyes just don't have it, I would expect it to be me.

This team has improved from their early season performances, sure. But not enough to make me believe there was enough there to become a great team by Buckeye standards. And yes, the offense has shown flashes here and there. But even Indiana shows flashes here and there. So does Purdue. But I'm not surprised in the slightest that they were held without a touchdown last night: Frustrated, but not surprised.

I am very proud of the team overall though. They played hard and fought hard last night. They played a team that should not have been better than them, but the fact is the Nits ARE better than them this year. It is frustrating AS HELL that the Nits are better this year, because they shouldn't be. Nevertheless the Buckeyes, such as they are, really gave it their best last night and came within a couple of bad plays of pulling off the upset (that should not have been an upset (or did I make that point already)).

Regardless of much of the current chatter to the contrary, I will believe to my dying day that this team should have been a contender. But after surviving the 80s and the 90s; I'm more than willing to accept a 10-2 year from a team that should have been a contender. Yeah, I'm disappointed that they weren't better than this; but the opportunity to be as good as they could have been is long gone. For now, I'm just pulling for them to make the best of what's left.

If you're thinking that I should expect more from this team, then you don't understand my position at all. I did expect more, but the reality phone rang during that Ohio game and I answered it. What should I do about it? What CAN I do about it? Complain? To whom?

It's a lot more fun to cheer for the Bucks to be the best that they can still be than to [censored] and moan about what might have been. Give it a shot.

Good post. I get very frustrated too, but it makes me even more frustrated when fans seem to forget how football is played and that these things happen. I hate it and I'm very frustrated that this team didn't live up to it's potential, but they are what they are, a team that has gone from NC season to transition season.

 

[osugrad21]

Numerous posts have addressed singular pieces of blame...but the original post spreads the blame from the OL to TP's fumble to the defense not getting a key stop late to playcalling to team passion.

No, they have to win the game, because our O couldnt move the ball against my high school team.

Your HS team is awful...the BP Football Team would put up 60 on them.

 

[LordJeffBuck]

When the defense holds one of the high scoring offenses in the nation to 13 points, Ohio State is supposed to win. I find it very hard to blame a single bit of that game on the defense.

This is two games this year that Ohio State has failed to score an offensive touchdown. To say the defense blew it at the end is simply incomprehensible.

If Ohio State had lost 49-42, would you have been happy with the performance of the defense? I highly doubt it ... but in reality, it would have been the same result ... their defense would have still been seven points better than out defense ... and the Buckeyes would still have lost the game.

Now, what if the Buckeyes had been leading 42-39 with ten minutes to play, and Penn State would have scored ten unanswered points to win 49-42? Would you be happy with the defense blowing the lead in that case? I doubt it, because good defenses shouldn't give up ten points down the stretch in a losing effort. But because the score was only 6-3 with ten minutes left to play, it was okay for the defense to give up those same ten points down the stretch in a losing effort? Really?

Again, it may not be entirely fair to put that much pressure on your defense, but that is what JT usually does in games like last night's. And yes, the defense cracked under that pressure. Is Tresselball a better strategy than Bob Stoops's, who puts an equal amount of pressure on his offense, but loses to Texas 45-35 because his O can't pile up points quite as fast as Mack Brown's?