[2 - POST-SPRING GAME] How many games will the Buckeyes win in 2004?

[Clarity]

Just like the first time I asked, the question is how many games do you think the 2004 squad will win?

The point of this is to really think about your perspective now, relative to your perspective when I asked before. If it's different, why? Was it something in the Spring game? Worried that no QB has stepped forward and grabbed the competition by the horns the way they have at other schools this Spring? Maybe you saw the running game look rough, outside of an early entry freshman, and all the talk about addition by subtraction on the OL is starting to sound a little suspect. Maybe special teams is scaring the hell out of you.

On the other hand, maybe you saw real promise. A squad that lost 3/4 of its starters on both lines, 2 starting LBs, a starting CB, a starting S, one of the most successful (not necessarily one of the most gifted) starting QBs it's had behind the wheel, its RBs coach, a starting TE, 2 of its top WRs -- well you get the point. But despite that, you see talent stepping in that may have the potential to be even better. Instead of seeing the 2 TD passes Zwick overthrew, maybe you saw his effectiveness elsewhere. Or knowing that Smith couldn't play to his real strength without the white jersey, saw flashes in him when he was opened up, despite it being too little, too late.

I'm not looking to spoonfeed thought process, just provoke it. If your views have changed, explain why. If they haven't that might be something to explain too. Either way, it will be interesting to see how perspectives continue to shift as the Fall approaches. Think of it as an online time capsule.

--edit--
FWIW, I'm shifting from 11-1 to 10-2. Almost solely because of special teams. I believe they'll be cleaned up and entirely functional at a high level by the time the season rolls around, just because it's such a major part of JT's game plan. I'm just not feeling it yet. Hoping to take this back up to 11-1 before the season starts. You know, because my perspective actually dictates how the team does...

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

I still feel good with 11-1, I never put much stock into the spring game, we will be back in the hunt for the national title.

[daddyphatsacs]

As long as Jim Tressel is at the helm, and we continue to recruit talent, we will be in the national title hunt. 11-1 seems pretty realistic right now.

[MililaniBuckeye]

I'm also sticking with 11-1. The spring game is always both an indicator and a deceiver. No doubt in my mind that both Zwick and Smith will get better as practices continue--which seemed to be the biggest concern of the game--and Boeckman's performance was a nice surprise. Tressel and crew are good at finding and fixing problems and making needed adjustments. If the OL continues to improve, there's no reason not to expect us to be the favorite in every game this year, especially if the defense turns out to be as good as its potential.

[Buckeyehead]

The Spring Game doesn't influence my prediction in any way, shape or form.

To quote Allen Iverson: we're talking about practice.

I said 11-1, and if I had to choose which "1" it would be, I'd say Purdue and really hope I'm wrong. Going into there unbeaten, and losing, would suck big time.

[buckiprof]

I didn't vote in the 1st poll, but after the Spring Game I'm going with 11-1. What I took from the Spring Game was that the defense could be unbelievable this year, better than last year or the year before.

I too have concerns about special teams particularly the punting game. We have been spoiled in recent years with our punters, so some drop-off may be expected, but what we have seen so far is cause for concern. Since JT rightfully acknowledges this phase of the game as being quite important, I trust that by fall, it will be much improved. I hope it is at the level of the past 2 years, but I do not expect that.

[MightbeaBuck]

You forgot to list the Recruiting Coordinator as one of the loses this year. Though his role as tight end coach will probably be filled nicely, his recruiting won't affect the team for at least a year.

I believe that the Buckeyes will go 11-1, but if I had to hedge, it would be to go 10-2, not 12-0. The way I see it is that out of 24 starters (11 offense, 11 defense, 2 special teams), the team lost 14 players to the draft. That leaves ten players not drafted.

These ten players are either 1.) good enough to have been starters last year and are returning this year, or 2.) they weren't good enough to be drafted and so we are getting rid of these lesser players (though they would be stars on middle tier teams).

This may sound bad, but it is very similar to what the team was like two years ago, losing the remnants of John Cooper's last starting team, and the End of the World as we know it was about to happen. And it did, unlike anything we realistically thought possible, the Buckeyes beat the Hurricanes!

It may be at least a little similar, but we are in much better shape than we were at the start of that season, so I am very optimistic