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

[3074326]

Originally Posted by zeket10

Mark May seemed to be saying that is a very sarcastic way.

Yes, to which Holtz responded with "Something you didn't think would happen."

Lou is [censored]ing hilarious. He hates May as much as we do.

[fourteenandoh]

cloud 9 after this game today! i thought we were about to crumble like a house of cards. after seeing the way the team gelled today i'm ready for PSU. what ever happens will happen, but i think we have a shot now. if they come into the shoe and take us down i hope they run the table and get a shot at the NC game. this game has a lot of anticipation that we havent't had in awhile. i for one, welcome it.

[NOTREDAMECHIEF]

Wow, not that was an arse kicking. What a great first quarter, where was that offense earlier this year?? Congrat's....

[Steve19]

I think we may well have witnessed an exorcism of sorts today.

We've now watched two big away games that most fans thought Ohio State stood a good chance of losing. In Madison, the Buckeyes came back late and built a little confidence. Forget the meltdown later, Wisconsin was a good team when Ohio State played them.

Now, we see the team walk into East Lansing and take control. We mustn't under-emphasize two things.

The hit on Hoyer was awesome. I love how he called it "one of those little hits" in post-game interviews. He'll have a memory of #33 engraved in his nightmares for a while.

Momentum. Luck hasn't been on our side this year. It was yesterday. The first fumble for a touchdown really took it out of MSU. You create your own luck, but we also got lucky. The momentum was in our favor so quickly that the Spartans simply came unglued in the first half. Like Ringer said, they just did not expect the game to go that way. They expected us to struggle on offense--and so did most posters on Buckeye boards.

So, this brings up my final point. It was a great win. The first half was the most fun I have had watching Ohio State play in a long time, maybe since first half against Notre Dame in the 'Shoe. But this is a team in transition. There is no reason to expect next week will be so easy. Penn State clearly was looking ahead to us. They will be ready.

Well done Buckeyes! Bring this same intensity, take the next step in improving execution, get faster, and we can still make a statement this year.

[bucknutz]

watching the game again this morning, and it's just as good the second time around.

[buckeyes_rock]

Hats off to the d line! Their best game this year IMO by far. They are the reason JL looked like the Animal we know he can be.

Lots of hard hitting by the Bucks. Nice to have plenty of hits to choose from for the Jack Tatum hit of the week.

Oline didn't look bad. They definately held their own much better today. I saw Nichol get mad at himself a couple different times for not getting a good enough block on the edge...that was good to see--that he's striving to make himself better just like he talked about in his interview.

The offense obviously looked much better, but I still wish JT would've let TP throw it a little in the 2nd half to get ready for PSU. I think we all knew that JT was going to run, run, run with that sort of lead, but TP couldn've used some practice throwing some balls. They let him throw the deep ball on play action though, so I guess that's something.

Overall, very nice effort. So cool to see 45 points up there on the scoreboard! Let's hope we build on this game and come into next week ready to play our A-game!

Go Bucks!

[LordJeffBuck]

A few quick thoughts....

1) I think that we can put to rest the notion that Mark Dantonio's "schemes" were the reason (or even a major factor) that the Buckeyes defense performed so well in 2002 and led the team to a national championship that season. As usual in sports - and that means every sport at every level - talent is really what matters. Coaching can help to develop the talent and put the talent in the right position to succeed, put at the end of the day, it is the talent that wins or loses games. Funny how Dantonio was a defensive genius at Ohio State (with Mike Doss, Will Smith, Matt Wilhelm, Chris Gamble, Darrion Scott, Cie Grant, Tim Anderson, etc.) ... but his brilliance just hasn't translated to Michigan State (63rd in total defense, 39th in scoring defense this season).

2) The Buckeyes scored two more defensive touchdowns yesterday (fumble recoveries by Thaddeus Gibson and Jermale Hines), giving them 36 "non-offensive" touchdowns during Jim Tressel's 7-and-a-half year tenure at Ohio State. Another long fumble recovery by Donald Washington gave Ohio State the ball in the red zone and led to a third touchdown. That's 21 points set up by the defense ... which was three times the number of points allowed by the defense ... against a ranked team ... with a Heisman candidate tailback ... on the road ... but the defensive coordinator should be fired? I don't get it....

3) Staying with the fumble recoveries for a moment.... Ohio State gained 161 yards on those three returns ... which was 2/3 of what the Spartans' offense gained on 60 plays. Big plays matter, and Ohio State has a history of making big plays under Jim Tressel.

4) Some Buckeye fans were complaining that Tressel went "ultra conservative" in the second half ... with a 28-7 lead nonetheless. Do you not understand that Tresselball relies on the defense and special teams to establish field position and set up scores (see numbers 2 and 3 above)? Did Tresselball not work to perfection in yesterday's game?

5) A lot of people have complained that James Laurinaitis is a "grab and drag" tackler, or some such thing that's supposed to imply that he's not a tough, hard-nosed MLB in the mold of Chris Spielman or Mike Singletary or Ray Nitschke. Well, maybe you should ask Mr. Hoyer's opinion on that subject.... By the way, JL had 11 tackles and 1.5 sacks yesterday, which gives him 78 tackles, 2.5 sacks, 3 pass break-ups, and 1 interception on the season for the soon-to-be three-time All-American.

6) Brandon Smith had a very good game yesterday, making three receptions for 37 yards, and setting up some nice runs with his blocking (see especially Pryor's 32-yard run early in the first quarter) ... and he almost scored his first career touchdown, but was tripped up in the open field after a 21-yard reception in the second quarter. Smith has been a nice safety valve for Pryor all season, which is essential for a young quarterback.

7) By the way, Pryor looked a lot better this week after struggling against Purdue last week. But then again, all Buckeye quarterbacks struggle against Purdue for some reason....

8) Javon Ringer entered the contest looking to have a signature game against a powerhouse opponent en route to a Heisman campaign ... but after gaining just 67 yards on 16 carries, and 19 yards on 6 receptions, he can put those Heisman dreams to rest.

9) The offensive line play was substandard against Purdue, but it was much better against Michigan State. Last week, the Buckeye offense scored 9 points ... this week they scored 31 points. Go figure....

10) And for the second week in a row, the defensive line really stepped up. Their play didn't really show up in the stat sheet - they combined for 7 tackles, 1.5 TFL's, and 1 quarterback hurry - but their constant pressure disrupted the Spartans' offense and freed up the linebackers to make plays ... and of course Thad Gibson's fumble recovery for a touchdown iced the game for the good guys.

11) If you haven't already noticed, Malcolm Jenkins is the best player on this team.

12) If Ohio State beats Penn State next week, then all Hell's gonna break out in the BCS.

[generaladm]

Now that's Buckeye football!!! Just a great full game effort from every player. The D was flying around the field with bad intentions, and is hitting it's stride at just the right time. The O looked smooth, picking up yards in chunks, and hitting an occasional home run. This will probably be Ringer's lowest output of the season, and just the second game where he didn't find the endzone. I did think that Dantonio tried to push the passing game too much. No doubt, he realized that stopping the run would be our #1 priority, but by passing more early, the rushing game was completely irrelevant after the Bucks took a big lead. MSU really became unglued after the 1st quarter smackdown. Their offense was forced to play a scheme that they haven't run all year, and the confusion was apparent on nearly every play. In an effort to make big, quick gains, they were forced to try to get Ringer the ball on the outside with screens and pitches. OSU's D smells out those plays with the best of them. MSU did get the memo that TEs will be open all day, the D needs to figure that out.

Terrelle and Beanie bounced back to have their best game of the season. The fake handoff/TP run worked like gangbusters in the early going. TP sells it so well, it should be a great weapon throughout the season. Beanie's stiff arm grows in power with every game. Not a lot of action for the WRs, but Robo and hartline made their catches count big. There were a few plays where TP and the WRs were obviosly on different reads, hopefully they get those worked out. Brandon Smith is having a great year, blocking and receiving. I'm worried about Brandon Saine. He did a good job blocking, but when he got the ball, he looked slow and unsure. I hope he can start building confidence. Small and Thomas looked good on returns (except for the fumble, great play by Spittler). If the rumors of tension in the locker room were true, there is no better remedy than a convincing win where everyone contributed. This may have been a watershed game for the offense.

This may have been the best defensive performance since the 05 season. Really the only mistake they made was knocking Hoyer out of the game. They did take a nap in the 3rd quarter (who's got the TE?), but the game had been out of reach for 2 quarters, so no biggie. The DL can still step it up more, but they weren't bad today. Nate Williams continues to impress. He goes full out from whistle to whistle, gotta love that. Coleman had one of the best games of his career. That INT was just amazing, one of those plays where you say, "Why was he even on that part of the field?", great read, better catch. Just a good all around performance by the back 7, solid tackles and great support. Laurinaitis was around the ball all day (wait, I forgot, all other LBs make every tackle 10 yds behind the LOS, JL sucks), Homan was solid. Jenkins may be the best defensive player in the country. The guy's just amazing. I love how he forced the fumble and immediately looked for a guy to block. Just a complete football player. He deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as all the great OSU DBs. Shaun Lane made plays on ST all game, he's going to be a great starter, when he gets the chance.

Well, OSU's half way thru the conference schedule, and starting to look like the team we all thought we'd see out of the gate. Still a few mistakes here and there, but a dominating performance against a quality team. This may have been the first game of the season where we forced the opponent to play by our rules throughout the game. The team that played yesterday can beat any team in the country. After the Purdue game, I was a little concerned about MSU, and a lot concerned about PSU. Now, I'm confident that we can take PSU head on. It's not a gimme by any stretch, but the Buckeyes now know what it feels like to hit on all cylinders for an entire game. If they can repeat next week, they'll be one step closer to a conference championship and a top ten ranking. Good day to be a Buckeye!

[Best Buckeye]

Very nice write up LJB , Thanks for sharing.
I have to respectfully disagree with one item though,
Regarding Dantonio and his defense, or any other championship caliber team, You have to have both coaching and talent to win the big ones. Just as we had great talent in 2002 we had great coaching too. Everyone of our better D teams had both. I think in a couple years we will see just how good Dantonio's D is.

Not to downplay any other coach's talent but IMO Mark meshed with that team in a very good manner.

[jwinslow]

1) I think that we can put to rest the notion that Mark Dantonio's "schemes" were the reason (or even a major factor) that the Buckeyes defense performed so well in 2002 and led the team to a national championship that season. As usual in sports - and that means every sport at every level - talent is really what matters. Coaching can help to develop the talent and put the talent in the right position to succeed, put at the end of the day, it is the talent that wins or loses games. Funny how Dantonio was a defensive genius at Ohio State (with Mike Doss, Will Smith, Matt Wilhelm, Chris Gamble, Darrion Scott, Cie Grant, Tim Anderson, etc.) ... but his brilliance just hasn't translated to Michigan State (63rd in total defense, 39th in scoring defense this season).

I think it's certainly been overstated at the expense of Heacock and others, but I'd say they've played considerably better than their talent on defense at MSU. The mentality and toughness has taken a sharp change of direction.

[Nicknam4]

This is the only game we came into where we didn't look unprepared. Great game, if we play PSU like we did we'll be fine.

[LordJeffBuck]

Originally Posted by generaladm

Shaun Lane made plays on ST all game, he's going to be a great starter, when he gets the chance.

I hate to disappoint you, but Lane is a fifth-year senior. His chances to start are over.

Originally Posted by Best Buckeye

Very nice write up LJB , Thanks for sharing.
I have to respectfully disagree with one item though,
Regarding Dantonio and his defense, or any other championship caliber team, You have to have both coaching and talent to win the big ones. Just as we had great talent in 2002 we had great coaching too. Everyone of our better D teams had both. I think in a couple years we will see just how good Dantonio's D is.

Not to downplay any other coach's talent but IMO Mark meshed with that team in a very good manner.

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.

[Sportsbuck28]

My favorite play of the game is still Coleman's hustle to force that fumble after he slipped on the turf.

[Buckeye86]

Originally Posted by LordJeffBuck

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.

I would just throw in that you recruit the talent that fits your scheme. At places like Ohio State that isn't such a big deal because everyone who comes here has the talent to play in pretty much any scheme, but at smaller schools that don't get blue chip players you have to know what kind of talent will fit into their schemes to be successful.

[ScriptOhio]

Originally Posted by Sportsbuck28

My favorite play of the game is still Coleman's hustle to force that fumble after he slipped on the turf.

How can you not like the "Beanie bounce" into the endzone or Gibson picking the ball off the quarterback's butt and running for a touchdown?