Indiana Recap

Don't sleep on the Hoosiers, because one of these days, they are gonna catch you...

And with less than 2 minutes to go, with a lead of 18 points, the Buckeyes fell asleep, the Hoosiers scored 15 points in a span of 35 seconds, and the Buckeyes desperately needed to recover an onside kick (the second of two) to hold on to win 52-49 in Bloomington. Below are my observations.

1. Devin Smith needs glue. It is becoming Smith's pattern to make the most ridiculous catches and then completely miss the easiest ones. Smith dropped two such easy passes in the game -- on the first, he committed the cardinal sin of turning his head to look for the endzone before securing the ball, and on the second he just...dropped...it. It went right through his hands, at which point even Braxton Miller turned around to view the replay to determine why his beautiful pass wasn't caught for a TD. Smith did score two long touchdowns though, one of which was mostly a result of his running skills after the catch, as he evaded a couple of defenders to extend the play. If the Buckeyes could figure out how to get this guy a little more consistent in his receiving abilities, his long threat could never be ignored.
2. Commentators were AWFUL. I really don't like the BTN commentators. I know that they probably groan from week to week when they discover that they have to cover games that aren't supposed to be close, and they have to figure out a way to bring some excitement to the game. But it comes across as them rooting for the underdog, and last night it seemed like they were very excited for every opportunity that Indiana had to score on the Buckeyes. It also seemed a lot like Indiana "did something wrong" more often than OSU got credit for doing something really well. Combine that with the fact that they still can't seem to figure out how to properly execute commercials, and you miss at least one play a game, and they are often confused about what down it is, and it gets old fast.
3. Officiating was atrocious. For the second week in a row, I was really confused and disappointed in the officiating. It wasn't that I would say the officials were biased. I am always reluctant to say that (at least, to seriously say that). But there were too many reviews and a lot of reversals. So by the end of the game, when there was confusion about whether Indiana recovered an onside kick that appeared to have gone out of bounds, all of the officials' credibility was SHOT. There were inconsistent calls all the way around, which makes it really frustrating to see something get called when it wasn't called on the same team earlier in the game. And as for the overturned reviews -- I think the replay official may need to look up the meaning of indisputable (not disputable or deniable; uncontestable. indisputable evidence; unquestionably real, valid, or the like), because at least one of the overturned plays did not show enough evidence to be overturned. Before you call me biased, I did agree with a lot of the calls that went against Ohio State early -- it just seemed like the whole thing deteriorated as the game went on.
4. Carlos Hyde. Remember when we were worried about Jordan Hall's absence? Carlos Hyde has quickly transformed into such a presence on the field that I would be disappointed if Hall returned and Hyde wasn't still the primary back. He had a strong running effort for 156 yards against the Hoosiers. He runs his best when he just plows over defenders, rather than trying to dance around them. And when he and Braxton are in the backfield together, it really is a double-run threat, because either one of them can spring past defenders for extra yards. Though Braxton gets a lot of the offensive attention on the team, Hyde has become a very reliable runningback.
5. Braxton Miller. Yet again, we see why Braxton Miller is such an asset to this Buckeye team. He rushed for 149 yards and 1 TD, passed for 211 yards and 2 TDs and 1 INT, and even jumped on a Rod Smith fumble to save a possession late in the game. But what impressed me most was watching how calmly he took the Buckeyes down the field after falling behind early. A lot of fans seemed to start panicking when the Buckeyes were down 14-10 after the blocked punt lead to a TD for the Hoosiers. And even when the Buckeyes let Indiana score again on the first possession of the second half, Braxton went out and took the offense down the field for a score, breaking out for a 67-yard touchdown run of his own. It seemed that no matter how many times Indiana scored, Braxton took his team on the field to answer, and the look in his eyes said everything -- he wasn't going to lose. He impressed me many times by making 10+ yards on wha seemed to be sure sacks, and that is one of the reasons his team must have so much confidence in him. My only concern is that early in the game, after the initial touchdown drive, the Hoosiers knew that OSU was going to run Miller, and they were able to stop him and even sack him many times. If Indiana's defense can do that, there will come a game (possible against Purdue or Penn State) where Miller's legs won't be able to save him.  He gets better and matures as a leader and passer every game. If Devin Smith hadn't dropped 2 sure touchdown passes, we might be discussing Miller's arm more than his legs today. So if the Buckeye offense can continue to gel and get better, it will only help Miller in his rushing efforts. Just need to get that glue for Smith...
6. HORRIBLE defense. It's hard to say that, because the defense has saved the offense at times this season, but in the last two games, the defense has surrendered 87 total points. I am beginning to get the feeling that OSU is more like West Virginia, and at some point they will not be able to score more points than their defense give up. But there are always those flashes of brilliance from the "Silver Bullets," points where I begin to think the defense is finally coming together. And there have been banged up players and injuries and young players. But I still had much higher hopes for this defense, with John Simon, Johnathan Hankins, Nate Williams (though banged up), and Bradley Roby than the amount of points surrendered has shown me. Coach Meyer isn't thrilled either, and it looks like Purdue may prove a tougher challenge than anticipated unless the defense can figure out a way to tighten up and shut down the passing game.
7. Zach Boren at linebacker. Right along that theme of banged up players and figuring out how to shut things down, we got to see Zach Boren play at linebacker last night. I love Boren. I will just say that right now, because he is one of those players who will do anything that is asked of him. And giving him some experience on defense will only add to his resume should he be able to play at the next level. Having Mike Vrabel as a skills coach will also help in that regard, because Vrabel has played both sides of the ball in the NFL. Boren made some good tackles last night against the Hoosiers, though there were still gaping holes for the Hoosiers to run through on some plays. The only real downside I see of trying Boren out at linebacker is then we don't see him at fullback, and he might be one of our best blockers.
8. Personal Foul penalties. Has there been one game yet this season where Ohio State didn't get some sort of ridiculous personal foul penalty? And when I say ridiculous, I don't mean that it shouldn't have been called. I mean one of those "WHAT-THE-HECK-ARE-YOU-THINKING-THE-PLAY-WAS-OVER-THAT-WAS-TOTALLY-UNNECESSARY?!?" type of penalties. It just shows a lack of discipline that I don't like to see.
9. Kenny Guiton. I don't like to just complain, complain, complain. So let me talk about how excited I was to see Kenny Guiton pass for a touchdown! Another week brought another brief injury to Braxton Miller (following a late hit out of bounds, occupational hazard for a scrambling QB), and once again Guiton was called upon to come in and finish a scoring drive. What can I say about Guiton? It is refreshing to know the Buckeyes have him available if/when Miller goes out of the game. He is reliable and very capable, even if he lacks some of the flash Miller brings to the offense. And wouldn't you know it, Guiton had a few tricks of his own, completing a shuffle pass to Hyde for a touchdown! It was a great play, and it brings a confidence to the Buckeyes that when Braxton isn't in the game, it doesn't mean the offense is shut down.
10. Corey Brown. I hear a lot of talk about Devin Smith in the media, because he makes long TD receptions (at least half the time) and is such a deep threat. But I don't hear nearly enough about what Corey ("Don't-call-me-Philly") Brown is doing in the Buckeyes offense. Brown often shifts into the backfield to serve as both a blocker and another running option. Braxton obviously has a great rapport with Brown as a receiver, because he throws him the option pass with ease and usually looks for him on those 3rd and long situations. Last night, Brown made SEVERAL clutch receptions on 2nd or 3rd down to extend drives. His sure hands are something any QB would value. He is a playmaker and deserves more credit than he is getting. Not to mention his punt return for a TD last week nor the fact that he covered up the final onside kick to secure the game last night. As far as receivers go, he is maturing quickly and I am excited to watch Miller and Brown grow together ike Smith and Ginn did for years.
11. Corey Linsley. Speaking of players who don't get enough credit, the offensive line has been steadily improving of late. They have their issues at times, but aside from a few too many false starts (which seem to be plaguing the majority of the offensive linemen), I can't complain, because they are leaps and bounds above what they have been in past seasons. In particular, Corey Linsley has really impressed me with his blocking ability. He blocked TWO defenders on the shuffle pass from Guiton to Hyde, making the pass possible and opening up a hole for the TD sprint.

So it was an ugly win, but the Buckeyes advance to 7-0 as they return home for Purdue this week. Another game that could be hyped as a revenge match from last season. The Buckeyes need to be sharp for this game. Purdue has been less than impressive this season, but they tend to be one of those teams that catch the Buckeyes off guard. While I still expect to lose 2 games this season, to lose to Purdue wouldn't do justice to what this Buckeye team has accomplished this season. They have more talent than the Boilermakers for sure, so let's see if they can work on some of those blemishes on defense and put together 60 minutes of football.

Nebraska Recap

WOW.

There is no more adequate word to describe my feelings about the game versus Nebraska last Saturday. The Buckeyes started excruciatingly slow, and had it not been for the quick 7-point interception return by Bradley Roby, it would have been a bleak situation for the Buckeyes in the 1st quarter, with just 17 offensive yards, 6 of which were actually the result of a failed fake punt attempt. This attempt brought a lot of criticism from my section, but I was thrilled with the call. Think about it: You are Urban Meyer, and your offense has mounted just 11 yards of offense through the bulk of the 1st quarter. How do you get things going and change the momentum of the game? You try something bold and unexpected to jump-start things. Granted, it made things rough on the defense, but it also made a statement that Meyer believed his defense could hold Nebraska if the attempt failed.

So after falling 17-7 early in the 2nd quarter, following a field goal by Nebraska after the botched fake punt, a lot of Buckeye fans in the stands were getting a bit discouraged. That's when something happened and the offense seemed to figure out the formula to move the ball on Nebraska's defense. They did it on the ground with Braxton Miller and Carlos Hyde, and they did it through the air, utilizing the tight ends! And just like that, OSU was up 21-17.

And then, the officials made one of the worst calls I have seen in a collegiate game this season. Nebraska's Taylor Martinez dropped back to pass, and he got rid of the ball a split-second before getting hit in the backfield, completing the pass downfield. His receiver then grabbed the facemask of not one, BUT TWO of our defensive backs (granted our second DB grabbed his as well, but that was well after the first facemask). So flags are thrown, and the fans believe that the play will be called back from the first facemask penalty. So you can imagine our shock when we hear that there were multiple fouls on the play, BOTH ON THE DEFENSE!?!? The refs called roughing the passer, which in itself was ridiculous, because our defender hit Martinez in a reasonable amount of time after Martinez released the ball (i.e., there was no real way he could have held up) and a personal foul facemask penalty against the defense. WHAT?!?!? Terrible. And I will go on to say that there were at least 2 reviews that were reversed in the game, so needless to say, I think the officiating was less than stellar.

So there the Buckeyes sat, down 24-21, after a bungled series of events. But OSU didn't quit -- they marched themselves downfield once again, even after getting hit with a personal foul late hit penalty along the way, following a lack of disciplined play by one of the receivers who showed up late to block on a Braxton Miller run. But even after that, the Buckeyes managed to go up 28-24, and finished the half up 35-24, having put up 4 offensive TDs in the second quarter.

The halftime show was ridiculously good. I haven't seen many other marching bands, but I know there can't be many out there near the calibre of TBDBITL. It has been years since I have seen this level of excitement from the fans during halftime -- even the students were excited. Check out the performance if you get a chance. It has more than 6 million hits on YouTube. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sAzzbrFgcUw)

After halftime, Nebraska came out firing the ball downfield, and I was a little worried. I think I may have made a remark about Fickell needing to work on his halftime pep talks. Nebraska scored quickly, putting the score at 35-31. But as soon as OSU's offense got the ball, all fear was erased. They continued to move the ball at their will, and by the end of the 3rd quarter, the score was 49-31.

The Buckeyes even scored on a punt return for a TD by Corey "Philly" Brown, who was standing in for Devin Smith.

The offensive line was really clicking, the defense was playing harder than I have seen them play all season, and when it got to be about 13 minutes left in the 4th quarter, I was feeling pretty good about OSU's chances of finishing out the game with a victory. Even when Nebraska scored in the 4th quarter, they had to exhaust 5 minutes of the clock to do so. The Buckeye offense was moving the ball well enbough to burn at least 3 minutes of clock with each possession, and given that Nebraska needed 3 scores to catch up, it seems that unless the Huskers were able to orchestrate 2 successful onside kicks, the Buckeyes would finish 6-0 and remain the only undefeated team in the Big Ten.
So when the Buckeyes were up 56-38 and Carlos Hyde broke free for a final TD to put the score at 63-38, it seemed like icing on the cake in a stellar offensive performance.

Takeaways:

• Braxton just keeps getting better. After a rough outing last week at MSU where he turned the ball over 3 times and was banged up, Braxton failed to run the ball over this week, broke his own QB rushing record by racking up 186 yards on the ground, threw for more than 100 yards and had one rushing and one passing TD. Though his completion percentage isn' the best, he seems to have a leadership quality the team responds to, and he makes things happen when the team needs a first down. If his growth continues and he can avoid serious injury, it will be exciting to watch him get better with every week.
• Carlos Hyde has been getting better as well, since the last offensive series against MSU when OSU needed to convert first downs on the ground. He is running hard, and despite giving up a fumble on what appeared to be a scoring drive, Hyde has managed the ball well and keeps his legs churning on every down.
• The offensive line is finally clicking.
• John Simon returned to what most fans expected out of him this week, causing nightmares for Taylor Martinez in the backfield for much of the game. Not only did the defense get to the QB, they pressured him into throwing THREE interceptions, which is three times what Martinez had thrown up to this point in the season. 
• Tackling is still sub-par. Missed tackles and poor tackles are prevalent, and really that is inexcusable at this point in the season. It is getting to the point that I want to award medals to great tackles, because they are so rare! 
• Special teams is so-so. Basil is not kicking touchbacks, and I can't figure out if that is by design or from lack of ability. At times it pays off, when our coverage can down the receiving team before they hit the 25 yardline, but there were occasions on both kickoffs and punt returns where the kicker/punter had to make a touchdown-saving tackle. NOT cool.

Next week brings the Hoosiers and another night game, though I think this may be for BTN's and Indiana's benefit moreso than it is for the Buckeyes. Don't sleep on the Hoosiers. They make me nervous every year. They always seem to be just on the cusp of being that sleeper team that can upset you if you overlook them, and the Buckeyes haven't exactly avoided playing down to their opponents this season.

MI State Recap; Nebraska Preview

WOW.

That sums up the feelings I had after watching OSU hang on in a 17-16 victory against MSU at Spartan Field last weekend. That was true football -- you have a couple minutes to burn, you are up by 1 point, and you need to get a couple first downs to keep the clock moving and cling to a close win in a game that has been a battle in the trenches.

And they got the first downs when they needed them. I was truly impressed with the Offensive line and Carlos Hyde on the final series of plays. On 3rd & 4, I was biting my nails that they would at least get within inches on a first down so that maybe Braxton Miller could stretch out for the first down. But the offensive line spread some bodies and Hyde lunged forward, picking up more than 4 yards and guaranteeing a victory for the Buckeyes.

The Bucks did everything they could to give the game to the Spartans. Three turnovers to none, the Buckeyes technically should have lost the game. A missed field goal by MSU before the half made all the difference. Miller looked impressive at times -- even Troy Smith-esque in how he evaded tacklers, shook defenders off his ankles, and pulled an impressive spin move to extend a play and score. But he personally turned over the ball three times (I like to say 2.6666), and he isn't going to beat every team if he does that. And he did it during promising drives, which is truly momentum-crushing. The first was an interception, bound to happen, as Miller was getting a little too comfortable in staring down his target, and the linebacker pounced, making an awesome catch over his shoulder. (Earlier, Braxton had narrowly avoided being picked off while committing the same offense and staring down a receiver.) The second turnover was on a Miller scramble, where the defender seemed to catch him off guard and the tiniest tap on the ball knocked it loose. And the third (that 0.6666) was on a scramble where Miller appeared to hyperextend his knee, dropping the ball just before his knee hit the ground. I can forgive him this. A lot of fans don't, commenting that he should have held onto it until he hit the ground, but when you hurt yourself and your end goal is the NFL, I am sorry but I can truly understand dropping the football immediately.

But Miller made up for 2.6666 turnovers with one, beautiful, perfectly timed play: a scrambling pass to Devin Smith downfield, who had gained just enough space on his defender to catch the ball when Braxton escaped a tackle and tossed it to him on the run. It came just at the right time, and it made a statement that Miller was not giving up.

To add to the offensive playmakers, how about Kenny Guiton? I watched the replay of the game -- when Braxton went down on the first series of the game, Guiton was at his side immediately. It was almost comical -- he went over, checked on Braxton, and within seconds of some sort of conversation with Miller, Guiton threw on his helmet and ran on the field. Here is how I imagine that conversation:

Guiton: "Hey man, you alright?"
Miller: [groans] "I don't know man. I don't know."
Guiton: "Need me to go in?"
Miller: "Yeah man. Maybe."

And Guiton did what every back-up QB should be able to do in that situation (cough, Joe Bauserman, cough) -- you go in and just don't screw up. Urban Meyer must trust the heck out of Guiton too, because even when Miller was up and ready to go back in, he left Kenny G in there, and the Buckeyes scored.

As to the defense -- it was better. I want to complain about the secondary still playing very soft on their receivers, but they knocked enough balls out of receivers' hands and put enough pressure on to make them drop balls that I can't complain too much.
And MSU's strategy was just...weird. We all expected a heavy and steady dose of Le'Veon Bell, but we didn't see much beyond his catching abilities as a screen receiver. MSU chose to spread the field, likely as a result of game film (undoctored) that showed its success against the Buckeyes in previous games this season.
I still want to see more sacks. The Buckeyes are just not getting to the QB quite fast enough. I see the pressure there. Nate Williams is in the backfield almost every play. By the way, I love Williams in that LB slot. He fills it well as a leader.

And kudos to the special teams for a blocked punt.


Now, looking forward:

Nebraska is going to be a rough game. I watched them last week and thought maybe I misjudged them. They did NOT play well against Wisconsin in the first half. The defense barely pressured Wisconsin's young QB, who throws a beautiful spiral when he is given enough time. Wisconsin jumped ahead early in the game. And Burkhead couldn't get much going in the running game, nor did Taylor Martinez in either realm. But apparently after I fell asleep (cheering for a victory in a 17-16 win is exhausting you know), Nebraska mounted a strong comeback.
I am most worried about Martinez scrambling and Abdullah in the running game. He is scrappy. I am really not sure why he doesn't play more. I am also concerned about Nebraska passing all over us. It is obvious to anyone that our secondary needs work.

I am excited to see Pellini coach against Urban Meyer -- given that BOTH were rumored to be on the short list for OSU's coaching vacancy last season.

This will be the third game I will have attended this season, and I can already feel the energy of it. An 8 PM kickoff on national television is ELECTRIC in Columbus. I am gonna need a few adult beverages to make it through this one without hyperventilating. :)