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Overall Team Attitude '08 Season

The reason that I started this thread is that each college football season seems to take on a life and personality of its own for each team. For example, in '06, our attitude, especially after defeating Texas on the road, was that we were a juggernut, especially on offense, and should we execute well, victory can be assured by the massive advantage in talent. In '07, our attitude was more humble, mainly due to the loss of key players on offense. As key players emerged, our confidence picked up but generally speaking our leadership wasn't great and our lack of confidence and fortitude caused us to panic, or at least be out of character in terms of execution and playcalling.

So what personality is this year's team going to take on? My sense is that a core group of leaders has emerged, and the the defense should be a much more calm and collected group. I think the difference between this year and last year is that the defense will be able to keep us in games even if the offense falters against key-powered opponents, like an USC or Illinois. And the coaching staff place enough confidence in the defense and not have Boeckman do anything beyond his capability, then we should be set for a great season.
 
I don't disagree with your analysis, but I see a slightly different dynamic. Go back to the 05 season, and you see the start of a three year pattern of very good teams that were out of balance. In 05, we had a senior led defense that was among the best in school history. The LBs and DBs specifically gave us an edge in every game. On the other side of the ball, we had lots of talent, but lacked in experience. The two early losses were a direct result of their inability to put points on the board. As the season went on, the offense gelled under the stability of the QB situation, and the team was much stronger overall, creating momentum for next season.

In 06, the core of the offense returned (minus Holmes), but the defense was decimated by graduation and early defection. The few seniors were concentrated on the D-line, with A. Smith and B. Mitchell the only seniors in the back 7. IIRC, Larry Grant was the sole junior in the backfield, and it was his first year in the program. The explosiveness of the offense took much of the pressure off the D, who did a great job of shutting down opponents who were desperate to keep the score close. The young D overachieved for most of the season, most notably in the turnover battle. When Anderson Russell went down, it created a huge hole in the secondary, and the D as a whole became exposed at the very end of the season. In the UM game, the O was able to outpace the wolverines on the scoreboard just enough to pull out a win. Nonetheless, the team went in to the BCS title game overconfident and underprepared. While the outcome of the game was a result of incompetence on both sides of the ball, the D performed as poorly as they had all season. There was not enough experience on the field to stop the bleeding.

07, I would say, is when the question of attitude really came to light. It's no secret that the coaching staff made a conscious effort to use the embarrasing UF loss as motivation for the entire season. Again, one side of the ball had most of the starters back, the other was replacing every skill position. The D was still very young, Grant was the only senior starter, but the others had a good deal of experience. The offense, again was long on talent, short on experience, with first year starters at QB, RB, and WR. The D played most of the season like the juggernaut that they were expected to be. Wisky and Illinois were the only regular season games where the D was not absolutely dominating. The O benefited from the breathing room while they struggled to find their identity. Early on, the passing game was most efficient, later, ground game took over. The O seemed to hit it's peak in the PSU game, and it was unable to sustain that balance down the stretch. The stressing of regaining respect may have backfired in the NC game. The normally steady D made numerous mistakes, including game changing penalties. The offense was forced to play from behind, and their weaknesses were exposed.

Now going into 08, we have the most balanced team in years. There is not an issue of one unit having to compensate for the other. Both sides of the ball are strong and experienced at every position. This is what I think the team attitude for 08 will be: Professional. Half of the starters could just as well be at NFL training camps right now, and they know it. They know how they stack up against the best teams in college football, and we have more experience per man than (I believe) any team in the country. In the past two years, the Buckeyes have seen both extremes in attitude: the attitude that no one could beat them; and the attitude that they had to earn respect in every game. This year, they still have the need to prove themselves, but I think it will be more proving to themselves that they can play at their highest level, rather than proving other people wrong. What I'd like to see from this team is the attitude that they know they are the best team in the country, but need to prove it on every play. I'd like to see them go into every game with the intention of not only winning, not only dominating, but mercilessly destroying their opponent on every single play. Make every tackle more explosive, put more in to every block, push for that extra yard, and this team could roll over teams like the mid-ninety's Cornhuskers, including USC. This could be the best all around team of the Tressel era, personnel-wise. If they can conjure the same attitude that Doss, Krenzel, Peterson, and crew brought to the 02 team, they could be unstoppable.
 
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generaladm;1223836; said:
I don't disagree with your analysis, but I see a slightly different dynamic. Go back to the 05 season, and you see the start of a three year pattern of very good teams that were out of balance. In 05, we had a senior led defense that was among the best in school history. The LBs and DBs specifically gave us an edge in every game. On the other side of the ball, we had lots of talent, but lacked in experience. The two early losses were a direct result of their inability to put points on the board. As the season went on, the offense gelled under the stability of the QB situation, and the team was much stronger overall, creating momentum for next season.

In 06, the core of the offense returned (minus Holmes), but the defense was decimated by graduation and early defection. The few seniors were concentrated on the D-line, with A. Smith and B. Mitchell the only seniors in the back 7. IIRC, Larry Grant was the sole junior in the backfield, and it was his first year in the program. The explosiveness of the offense took much of the pressure off the D, who did a great job of shutting down opponents who were desperate to keep the score close. The young D overachieved for most of the season, most notably in the turnover battle. When Anderson Russell went down, it created a huge hole in the secondary, and the D as a whole became exposed at the very end of the season. In the UM game, the O was able to outpace the wolverines on the scoreboard just enough to pull out a win. Nonetheless, the team went in to the BCS title game overconfident and underprepared. While the outcome of the game was a result of incompetence on both sides of the ball, the D performed as poorly as they had all season. There was not enough experience on the field to stop the bleeding.

07, I would say, is when the question of attitude really came to light. It's no secret that the coaching staff made a conscious effort to use the embarrasing UF loss as motivation for the entire season. Again, one side of the ball had most of the starters back, the other was replacing every skill position. The D was still very young, Grant was the only senior starter, but the others had a good deal of experience. The offense, again was long on talent, short on experience, with first year starters at QB, RB, and WR. The D played most of the season like the juggenaut that they were expected to be. Wisky and Illinois were the only regular season games where the D was not absolutely dominating. The O benefitted from the breathing room while they struggled to find their identity. Early on, the passing game was most efficient, later, ground game took over. The O seemed to hit it's peak in the PSU game, and it was unable to sustain that balance down the stretch. The stressing of regaining respect may have backfired in the NC game. The normally steady D made numerous mistakes, including game changing penalties. The offense was forced to play from behind, and their weaknesses were exposed.

Now going into 08, we have the most balanced team in years. There is not an issue of one unit having to compensate for the other. Both sides of the ball are strong and experienced at every position. This is what I think the team attitude for 08 will be: Professional. Half of the starters could just as well be at NFL training camps right now, and they know it. They know how they stack up against the best teams in college football, and we have more experience per man than (I believe) any team in the country. In the past two years, the Buckeyes have seen both extremes in attitude: the attitude that no one could beat them; and the attitude that they had to earn respect in every game. This year, they still have the need to prove themselves, but I think it will be more proving to themselves that they can play at their highest level, rather than proving other people wrong. What I'd like to see from this team is the attitude that they know they are the best team in the country, but need to prove it on every play. I'd like to see them go into every game with the intention of not only winning, not only dominating, but mercilessly destroying their opponent on every single play. Make every tackle more explosive, put more in to every block, push for that extra yard, and this team could roll over teams like the mid-ninety's Cornhuskers, including USC. This could be the best all around team of the Tressel era, personel-wise. If they can conjure the same attitude that Doss, Krenzel, Peterson, and crew brought to the 02 team, they could be unstoppable.

I completely agree, especially with the last two sentences of your post. However, I would humbly add one more ingredient; humility. I don't remember Doss & company telling the world how wonderful they were before a game. Statements such as "This time it's gonna be different", "This is just another business trip" and the like were non-existent in 2002.
Don't tell me, guys: show me! Just your keep your mouths shut and play every play.

Yeah, you can win it all, but the minute I hear you shoot your mouths off, I'll know your screwed.

:gobucks3::osu2::gobucks4:
 
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