I keep seeing this and scratching my head. Yes, we gave up a lot of yards but that means very little. They were trying to catch up most of the second half, so they were throwing the ball a lot, right?
FSU was playing catch up because they were sloppy with the football, which they have been all year.
Cook ran for a first down to the 31 and fumbled. Instead of driving to take the lead 20-13 or kick a FG with their great kicker, they surrendered all of that late momentum. Kudos to Oregon for taking it.
Oregon scores quickly, which is why they're deadly and a far cry from the mediocrity that hung around with FSU all year during the regular season.
Down 12, they drive for a TD. Oregon answers with their own.
Down 12 again, they again reach oregon territory, pick up a first down, and fumble with the freshman. Now the game is getting out of control as Oregon drives for another quick TD. Now it's a 19 pt game, their best RB can't be trusted, and the flood gates open.
Jameis gets to the 40 and goes for a hilarious signature end to his career, with the banana peel lateral to no one for an easy TD for Oregon.
FSU had 272 at halftime.
They had 429 yds midway through the 3rd quarter when Dalvin Cook started fumbling.
The only statistic that matters is the final score.
Absolutely, but we are looking for flaws to project the outcome against a better offense and more efficient team.
I have been having this same conversation with a few Duck fans, as well, who haven't been happy with our new D-Coordinator this year. In a perfect world there'd be complete domination. But it doesn't work that way when your offense is only possessing the ball about 20 minutes per game. The stat that really matters is that we're only giving up slightly under 18.00 points per game over the last 7 games, including the FSU game.
I think that keeps it from being a shut down defense. I don't think it keeps it from being a good defense, but those are nearly extinct these days.
Also, it's not like Florida State just dropped the ball on those turnovers. Oregon defenders took the ball away, knocked it out of their hands and recovered it, tipped a ball and allowed a defender to intercept in and straight up recovered another bonehead fumble. The Ducks had a hand in 4 of those turnovers that were more like "takeaways". The only "gimmee" was the fumble by Winston that we returned for a TD.
Agreed. They were great plays by the defense. The natural thought by buckeye fans is whether a horse like Elliott will give up the ball as easily as Cook.
We're very respectful unless treated otherwise. We've had several fans from opposing teams visit and had some great experiences. There were a few jerks, who were ejected immediately, but it's usually been pretty casual. Of course, there are Oregon fans that are idiots, too, that make us all look bad. If any jerks from our clan show up and start trouble feel free to kick them to the curb. We don't appreciate people like that either.
Which board(s) would you recommend? For instance, I work for the OSU scout site taking photographs but would never EVER visit hineygate. It's horrendous.
Finally, the past is just that, the past. You can pretty much throw that last game out the window. The game we played in the 2010 Rose Bowl will have little if any impact on this game. We have a few freshman that redshirted that year still on the roster, but about 98% of those players are gone and we both have new head coaches, new defensive coordinators and we have a new offensive coordinator. That game is pretty much moot.
Agreed.
One thing I will say about that is we were just beginning to find our way back then and you guys were already a national brand. We're on a lot more level playing field now nationally (excuse the pun) than we were back then, having made the playoffs this year and going to 4 BCS Bowls in the previous 5 years, including a national championship game.
Yep, your brand is finally reaching the top, while OSU's is being built back up. Most would tell you we're a year ahead of schedule but playing above that for now!
