Ohio State 34, Minnesota 21 (Sep. 27)

[BB73]

Originally Posted by JonathanXC

Correct me if I am wrong, but there are two teams that Ohio State will always play, and always play at home in even years, and on the road in odd years...and that is Penn State and Michigan. I think quite a few teams have "rivals" locked in like this in the Big Ten.

Every Big Ten team has two "locked in" oppenents every year:

tOSU - PSU. and TSUN
MSU. - PSU. and TSUN
PSU. - tOSU and MSU
TSUN - tOSU and MSU
.
Purd - Ind. and NW'ern
Ill. - Ind. and NW'ern
NWern- Ill. and Purd
Ind. - Ill. and Purd

.
Iowa - Minn and Wisc
Wisc - Minn and Iowa
Minn - Wisc and Iowa

[osugrad21]

Link

Ohio State notes and extras: Buckeyes know Gophers should be genuine Big Ten test

Shaun Bennett | The Chronicle-Telegram

COLUMBUS ? Although Ohio State isn?t sporting the 4-0 record it had hoped heading into the Big Ten season, the Buckeyes know they still have a conference championship to defend and a BCS bowl bid to win.
?The Big Ten competition is the main concern now,? sophomore defensive end Cameron Heyward said. ?We have to get ready to play Minnesota next weekend. They are a tough team so we need to be ready.?
The Golden Gophers will arrive in Columbus next Saturday with a 4-0 record and dreams of further derailing Ohio State?s dreams. Minnesota has picked up victories over Northern Illinois, Bowling Green, Montana State and Florida Atlantic.
?Looking at their schedule, I thought they?d probably be 4-0 coming in,? Ohio State coach Jim Tressel said. ?They?ve been coming along now for the past couple of years and the coaching staff has high expectations. It?s tremendously important, because nothing?s more important than Game 1 of the Big Ten race.?
The game is at noon and will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network.

[daveeb]

Minnesota has improved drastically from where they were last season. That is a given. They have quadrupled their win total. As long as Tim Brewster continues to improve his recruiting practices, they are going to continue to win more games every single year until they go as far as they can.

Adam Weber is a two-year starter at QB. Redshirted his Freshman Year. Last year, he was Minnesota's running game and passing game. He hasn't been asked to do everything this year. Last year, Weber was Minnesota's leading passer and rusher.

However, this year, Weber has been complimented by an increased use of the running backs. That's what happens when a team starts to win games. True freshman DeLeon Eskridge, a former 3* recruit on Rivals, leads the team with 204 yards rushing and 5 touchdowns. True sophomore Duane Bennett has 140 yards rushing and 2 touchdowns on 32 carries (Take away his big run for 61 yards and that becomes 79 yards on 31 carries). However, he is known for coming out of the backfield and catching a pass. 12 catches out of the backfield for Bennett, the second highest total on the team.

And that leads us to Eric Decker. Decker, a junior, put up solid numbers last year with 909 yards receiving and 9 touchdowns. Aside from that, Weber does not have many targets to throw the ball to.

Their defense is full of ball hawks. They give up a ton of yards, but they get a ton of turnovers. Their turnover ratio is +11. As long as Ohio State takes good care of the football, picking apart Minnesota's defense should not be that big of a problem.

Overall, Minnesota has definitely improved this year. But, they aren't strong enough yet to truly become a power in the Big Ten. Whilst a small bowl game may be in order (Something like the Motor City Bowl), don't expect Minnesota to cause too many problems. Brewster definitely has this squad on the right track though. If he continues to recruit well, the Golden Gophers should continue to improve.

And yes, they are definitely a test.

[BUCKYLE]

Originally Posted by daveeb

If he continues to recruit well, the Golden Gophers should continue to improve.

Yeah, improve to 9-3, 8-4 every year. They've been as high as they'll go, and the coach got fired for his production.

And yes, they are definitely a test.

Until we roll them, and then they were overrated and hadn't face any real competition. (Not saying you'll say that, just what I expect to hear)

[leroyjenkins]

Originally Posted by daveeb

And that leads us to Eric Decker. Decker, a junior, put up solid numbers last year with 909 yards receiving and 9 touchdowns. Aside from that, Weber does not have many targets to throw the ball to.

Thanks dave, good post. I may be wrong but I think Decker is OUT!

[daveeb]

Originally Posted by BUCKYLE

Until we roll them, and then they were overrated and hadn't face any real competition. (Not saying you'll say that, just what I expect to hear)

By test, I mean they are the first Big Ten team we are going to play. That means that we are still going to have to deal with the increased size. Whether or not they are a step above Troy is up for debate. But, from what I can tell, they have improved, they feel really good about themselves right now, and they may have something resembling a running game. I still feel that if Ohio State holds onto the football, the game should easily go Ohio State's way. If Ohio State makes mistakes, it will not easily go Ohio State's way.

Originally Posted by leroyjenkins

Thanks dave, good post. I may be wrong but I think Decker is OUT!

Scout.com says everything is fine right now. Was he injured yesterday? I know he played, but I wasn't able to see that game yesterday.

[sparcboxbuck]

Originally Posted by JonathanXC

I don't like playing Minnesota...they seem to always play us better than they play everyone else.

Originally Posted by MililaniBuckeye

We own Minnesota more than we own any other Big Ten team...

I'll have some of what he's having. Thank you.

[BUCKYLE]

Originally Posted by daveeb

By test, I mean they are the first Big Ten team we are going to play. That means that we are still going to have to deal with the increased size. Whether or not they are a step above Troy is up for debate. But, from what I can tell, they have improved, they feel really good about themselves right now, and they may have something resembling a running game. I still feel that if Ohio State holds onto the football, the game should easily go Ohio State's way. If Ohio State makes mistakes, it will not easily go Ohio State's way.

Gotcha. Great write up btw.

I guess my point could be about every big ten team we'll play this year. If we beat any of them badly, no matter their ranking when we do, they will instantly become overrated, and the victory won't mean much. (to outsiders...and some Buckeye fans)

[jwinslow]

I guess my point could be about every big ten team we'll play this year. If we beat any of them badly, no matter their ranking when we do, they will instantly become overrated, and the victory won't mean much. (to outsiders...and some Buckeye fans)

Yep, we need to send our coaches to SC & the SEC to figure out how they manage to prove teams are vastly overrated but still prove they are elite in the process.

[BUCKYLE]

Originally Posted by jwinslow

Yep, we need to send our coaches to SC & the SEC to figure out how they manage to prove teams are vastly overrated but still prove they are elite in the process.

That's what kills me. Let's say PSU is undefeated 'til our game. They would probably be ranked in the top five or so. We beat them by twenty, they were overrated. They don't lose another B10 game, win their bowl against the second place SEC team, and it still won't matter. The fact that tOSU wins PROVES that whatever high ranked team we beat was overrated. I expect [censored] like that from ESPN, but I have a feeling, until we win a BCS game against either USC or an SEC "juggernaut", that a lot of BP'ers will feel the same. I just don't understand it.

[MililaniBuckeye]

Originally Posted by sparcboxbuck

I'll have some of what he's having. Thank you.

To whom are you referring? If it's me, allow me to list the three Big Ten teams against whom we have an .800+ winning percentage (and not who's at the top):

Minnesota, 40-7-0 (.851)
Indiana, 65-12-5 (.823)
Northwestern, 58-14-1 (.801)

We're 33-2 in our last 35 games against Minnesota.

[Jaxbuck]

Originally Posted by BUCKYLE

That's what kills me. Let's say PSU is undefeated 'til our game. They would probably be ranked in the top five or so. We beat them by twenty, they were overrated. They don't lose another B10 game, win their bowl against the second place SEC team, and it still won't matter. The fact that tOSU wins PROVES that whatever high ranked team we beat was overrated. I expect [censored] like that from ESPN, but I have a feeling, until we win a BCS game against either USC or an SEC "juggernaut", that a lot of BP'ers will feel the same. I just don't understand it.

I'm thinking that winning a big game again could start to silence some of that chatter. If we were even competitive in a big OOC game we wouldn't be hearing this stuff. Getting drilled by every elite team we have faced lately puts a little doubt in the mind of people when they see us beat the Minny's of the world.

You guys can't tell me you don't see how people could come to that conclusion. Untill we prove it on the field again vs a premier OOC opponent people are going to doubt any B10 or small time OOC win and rightfully so.

[BUCKYLE]

Originally Posted by Jaxbuck

I'm thinking that winning a big game again could start to silence some of that chatter. If we were even competitive in a big OOC game we wouldn't be hearing this stuff. Getting drilled by every elite team we have faced lately puts a little doubt in the mind of people when they see us beat the Minny's of the world.

You guys can't tell me you don't see how people could come to that conclusion. Untill we prove it on the field again vs a premier OOC opponent people are going to doubt any B10 or small time OOC win and rightfully so.

Then why is it the Big 12 is so highly regarded considering Oklahoma has [censored] the bed in bowl games like five years running?

[jwinslow]

Originally Posted by BUCKYLE

Then why is it the Big 12 is so highly regarded considering Oklahoma has [censored] the bed in bowl games like five years running?

Because ESPN doesn't talk about it... or if they do, it's a very brief sub-topic forgotten quickly when the real stories spring forth.

[Jaxbuck]

Originally Posted by BUCKYLE

Then why is it the Big 12 is so highly regarded considering Oklahoma has [censored] the bed in bowl games like five years running?

Probably because the rest of the B12 has done something to redeem the conference lately I can't really say for sure. Obviously we take more heat than OU. Thats not the point.

The point is that, at least imo, its perfectly sensible to doubt OSU's wins over the lesser teams until they prove it against the big boys again.