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- Thread starter Dryden
- Start date
Three reason's Bucky won't beat us!
1. The long ball
2. Defensive Backs 'R' "Us"
3. I like Jameson's
1. The long ball
2. Defensive Backs 'R' "Us"
3. I like Jameson's
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pianobuck46
pianobuck46
Good thing the game's on Saturday
Oh, I get it. Sorry, Bud, I haven't been up that long!
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Bucky32
Legend
I had to detox from college football a bit after Wisconsin decided it was high time to Leeroy Jenkins their season off the road and right into the ravine. Illinois was one of those games that was lost slowly, then all at once. I felt like the Badgers were pretty much in control until the Taylor fumble, when it obviously came unraveled. The more concerning revelation moving forward was that both lines got absolutely gashed.
As late as 10:59 a.m. last Saturday, I thought I had a pretty good read on this week's game. Now, not so much. The conventional wisdom would say that it's extremely difficult to bounce back from a loss like that and roll into a daunting road game against one of the most talented teams in the country. I'm going with the conventional wisdom here.
Offense:
Taylor is the centerpiece, but Jack Coan has played rather well this season while minimizing mistakes. He's obviously not going to match Fields throw-for-throw, but he can move through his reads quickly and drop passes in where he needs to. Some mobility. Getting Cephus back this year has been a boon, although I still feel like he's under-utilized in the offense. Ferguson is a nice big (albeit slow) target at TE. As others have noted, Chryst and Joe Rudolph like slants and run them often. The corner TE route has also worked well for them this year. Expect the "hippo" package and/or FB dives on short-yardage situations.
Chryst has basically alternated between heavy pistol and I-formation usage between every Big Ten game this year. He’s gotten a lot of heat for leaning on the former against Illinois. Taylor had to make 2 or 3 guys miss before even getting back to the LOS.
The Buckeyes will definitely be able to make hay against the offensive line. Jason Erdmann missed last week and I’m not sure what his status will be this week. Even with a fully healthy line, however, I suspect they will struggle.
Defense:
Again, I feel like I had a good pulse on the defense until last week. The Illini simply blew them off the line, and that put too much pressure on the second level to make a play. Spoiler alert: They didn’t.
It’s already been mentioned here, but Jim Leonhard doesn’t have a problem putting his DBs on an island in order to send more guys at the QB. I have to think he’ll revise that this week given the opponent. Definitely an area for OSU's offense to exploit. The linebacking corps has been a point of strength recently for Wisconsin and is again this year. Zack Baun and Chris Orr are the leaders here but there’s some depth.
Special Teams:
Meh. Collin Larsh is a coin flip when he lines up to kick. Zach Hintze will put it through the back of the endzone consistently on kickoffs. The return games are nothing to write home about.
Overall:
The more things change, the more they stay the same. Any potential formula for Wisconsin to win this game is the same as ever: shorten the game, make zero mistakes, and force some turnovers.
What is the spread up to now? OSU -14? That feels low to me based on what I've seen from Ohio State this year. I’ll say Buckeyes 38, Badgers 14.
As late as 10:59 a.m. last Saturday, I thought I had a pretty good read on this week's game. Now, not so much. The conventional wisdom would say that it's extremely difficult to bounce back from a loss like that and roll into a daunting road game against one of the most talented teams in the country. I'm going with the conventional wisdom here.
Offense:
Taylor is the centerpiece, but Jack Coan has played rather well this season while minimizing mistakes. He's obviously not going to match Fields throw-for-throw, but he can move through his reads quickly and drop passes in where he needs to. Some mobility. Getting Cephus back this year has been a boon, although I still feel like he's under-utilized in the offense. Ferguson is a nice big (albeit slow) target at TE. As others have noted, Chryst and Joe Rudolph like slants and run them often. The corner TE route has also worked well for them this year. Expect the "hippo" package and/or FB dives on short-yardage situations.
Chryst has basically alternated between heavy pistol and I-formation usage between every Big Ten game this year. He’s gotten a lot of heat for leaning on the former against Illinois. Taylor had to make 2 or 3 guys miss before even getting back to the LOS.
The Buckeyes will definitely be able to make hay against the offensive line. Jason Erdmann missed last week and I’m not sure what his status will be this week. Even with a fully healthy line, however, I suspect they will struggle.
Defense:
Again, I feel like I had a good pulse on the defense until last week. The Illini simply blew them off the line, and that put too much pressure on the second level to make a play. Spoiler alert: They didn’t.
It’s already been mentioned here, but Jim Leonhard doesn’t have a problem putting his DBs on an island in order to send more guys at the QB. I have to think he’ll revise that this week given the opponent. Definitely an area for OSU's offense to exploit. The linebacking corps has been a point of strength recently for Wisconsin and is again this year. Zack Baun and Chris Orr are the leaders here but there’s some depth.
Special Teams:
Meh. Collin Larsh is a coin flip when he lines up to kick. Zach Hintze will put it through the back of the endzone consistently on kickoffs. The return games are nothing to write home about.
Overall:
The more things change, the more they stay the same. Any potential formula for Wisconsin to win this game is the same as ever: shorten the game, make zero mistakes, and force some turnovers.
What is the spread up to now? OSU -14? That feels low to me based on what I've seen from Ohio State this year. I’ll say Buckeyes 38, Badgers 14.
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