Just a few quick thoughts....
1. This is the first time that I've seen the Buckeyes get [censored]ed off in a while. I mean really
[censored]ed. It all started early in the third quarter. Washington got the ball to begin the second half, and returned the opening kick 35 yards to their own 41. The Huskies proceeded to drive 40 yards in 7 plays, down to the Ohio State 19 yard line. Then, for some reason, the Buckeyes kicked the intensity up about a dozen notches: two straight TFL's (Grant, Jenkins) and then a sack by Laurinaitis cost the Huskies 10 yards, and set them up for a long FG attempt, which was blocked by Kurt Coleman (who got by his man so quickly that he almost overran the kick). After that, it was lights out for UW until the 3rd- and 4th-stringers hit the field in garbage time. That was the kind of defensive intensity that the Buckeyes rode to a national championship in 2002. Now, of course, I'm not saying....
2. A lot of Buckeye fans like to whine about the national media, and how they "hype" other teams and "disrespect" Ohio State. Well, that hype can go both ways, you know. In 1997, Andy Katzenmoyer won the Butkus award primarily based on his early-season performance against Missouri, the game in which he planted Mizzou quarterback Corby Jones into the turf at Memorial Stadium. The Big Kat's performance on the road against an upset-minded non-conference team with a supposedly unstoppable dual-threat quarterback (sound familiar?) was indelibly etched in the minds of Butkus voters, and the race for that award was over in week four. The same thing might have happened yesterday for James Laurinaitis. As mentioned above, it was JL's sack early in the third quarter which helped to shift the momentum in favor of the Buckeyes, and his two athletic interceptions stopped Washington scoring drives deep in Ohio State territory. The final stats: 8 tackles, 2 interceptions, 1 sack, 1 TFL ... and 1 Butkus Award.
3. Speaking of the national media.... In 2002, many media types predicted that the Buckeyes would get thomped in the third game of the season by a team with an all-world quarterback and a super-athletic defense. Well, the Buckeyes knocked around that Heisman-candidate QB (Jake Gesser), and Maurice Clarett thrashed that suffocating defense for 230 yards, as Ohio State won handily by 19 points. That supposedly unbeatable team? Washington State, of course. Why bring up that bit of ancient history? Because yesterday, in their third game of the season, the Buckeyes beat another supposedly unbeatable team from the state of Washington, with another phenom QB (Jake Locker), thrashed another athletic defense (that West Coast speed, y'know) for 263 yards on the ground, and won the game by (you guessed it) 19 points. It must be one of them coincidences....
4. Speaking of Locker, add him to the Lloyd the Barber gallery:
Sorry, couldn't resist. The kid's gonna be a good one, and I'm glad that we caught him as a freshman.
5. Malcolm Jenkins will eventually be added to the list of Ohio State cornerbacks who were drafted in the first round (Springs, Winfield, Plummer, Clements, Gamble). But Donald Washington is nearly as good, and Chimdi Chekwa has shown well as a nickel back. If the corners can continue to lock down their men, then the Buckeyes defense will be tough to beat.
6. Ben who? Devon who? Joseph who? Martez who? Josh who? CAMERON HEYWARD. Enough said.
7. Too much good yesterday to complain about the bad, but this team still has some holes. Good thing that the Buckeyes have five weeks to fill them, before the real season starts.
Thanks Daddy, I'd never have found that on Espin...