There is not alot to say about yesterdays game. It played out pretty much like I thought it would. Michigan came out inspired. They played better than I have seen them all year, at least on defense. I came in worried about having the Rose Bowl locked up and coming off two emotional wins. The edge is off The Game, Buckeye fans. We have dominated the series to such an extent that I think players could have come in flat and not as motivated with less on the line. I wanted out of there with a win. I know some are not happy seeing pretty much the same offense as last week but I think the staff may have learned something from watching us try to block Adrian Clayborn last week. Brandon Graham is a lot better than him and had an impact on the game even though we only threw the ball 17 times. I felt like Pryor was shaky this week. Throwing, not in his decision making. He was solid there once again. He did not seem as comfortable and his mechanics were off again. He had a three week run where he was much more settled and mechanically sound. Between the two, and the fact that we are running the ball very well, I think this was what was going to get us the W. 

I think we saw a good run blocking line again but we are still not there as a pass blocking line, especially at tackle. We are better at right tackle than at left tackle. That is something that very much needs addressed. We need to find a guy. I think we are looking at the best line in memory next year if we find a left tackle.

A very basic conservative gameplan set up both touchdowns. Who was expecting the counter that Saine scored on? Beautifully called and beautifully executed play. Very well blocked. So was the screen for a touchdown. Michigan did not know what hit them.

What can you say about the defense? 5 turnovers and a touchdown. That is all needs be said. Consistent pressure on Forcier all game. Heyward and Gibson both had good games but this game was about Rolle and Homan. Big plays by both throughout the game. Another really good game by John Simon. He has surpassed any expectations I had for him. My only disappointment is that we were so soft in the secondary again. Corners drop so far off receivers and safeties playing so deep that there is a big hole behind the linebackers. Michigan exploited both. I don't know what is going on with that.

I still feel like this was a game that could have gone badly for us. All the elements were there. Last week I felt like we needed to go out and win the game. This week I am just happy with a win.

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Comments (22)

Beautiful Play Call?
written by slimkid, November 22, 2009

A very basic conservative gameplan set up both touchdowns. Who was expecting the counter that Saine scored on? Beautifully called and beautifully executed play. Very well blocked. So was the screen for a touchdown. Michigan did not know what hit them.

The only problem is that the counter was a mistake -- it's being reported that mixed/wrong signals on the sideline caused the wrong play to be run. Who knows what the staff had dialed up, but it wasn't a counter.

It's also been reported that JT was trying to call a timeout just before the screen because he saw a defense he didn't like and didn't have confidence the O could handle it.

I loved these plays at the time, but it's more than irritating to think the staff never intended to run the first one and tried to stop the second.

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written by cfabuckeye, November 22, 2009

slimkid,

my understanding is a little different, but i could be wrong. maybe someone else can confirm one way or the other.

on your first point... i read that the line call was what was mixed up... so i think the counter play WAS called by the staff... but the OL got the wrong blocking call...from the intern.

with regard to your latter point. i read where JT said he tried to call timeout because he didn't think they had enough time to get it off... not that he didn't like the defense.

so i don't find it as irritating, i guess.

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written by Razrback16, November 22, 2009

CFA -- I watched the press conference live yesterday. JT said they called a different play and the intern had just written the wrong play on the wrist bands, so they called a completely different play.

On the Boom Herron screen pass, JT also said in the press conference that they were trying to call timeout because they didn't like the formation we were in...

Yeah...inspires even more confidence in our genius offensive coordinator.

Jim Tressel is a great head coach. He's just a lousy offensive coordinator.

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written by GregLee2000, November 22, 2009

Like Duane said, we got the W. We need to go back to camp w/ the offense. We have a lot of time off before the Rose Bowl. Let get the offense primed and ready to score points on January 1st.

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Tresselball
written by cwbucknut, November 22, 2009

My 2 cents. You guys have to realize JT offense is not designed to score points. It is designed to give the defense the best possible field position which is not always fun to watch. Which is why Tressel loves the punt. This explains why his playcalling is so ultra-conservative (predictable) with the play not to lose mentally on offense. I do not see changing as long as Tressel is the head coach. Although I would love for Tressel to be more aggressive and utilize his playmakers on offense, you can't really argue with the results. The only exception is that Tresselball doesn't appear to work with teams that have equal or more talent outside of the Big Ten.

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intern
written by jcfiesta, November 22, 2009

I submit letting JT have one set of #'rd plays while the intern randomly creates the wristband for Pryor. Like a monkey throwing darts.

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Very Disappointed With JT
written by www.sunsstufft.com, November 22, 2009

Hey guys, Jim Tressel has never been confidence inspiring and that may explain why the BCS didn't move Ohio State up despite the LSU defeat. Yes - despite gaining a victory in our biggest rivalry game of the year - the folks who rank the bowl-contenders were unimpressed this week.
The lack of leadership from the man at the helm - and a style of play that undermines our biggest scoring assets - has left the Buckeyes at #10 for another week.
It is sad, but they may be right.

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written by Zonabuck, November 22, 2009

Duane - you touched on TP being shaky this week, and I wonder if there is something more going on with his cut than we knew. I am tired of making excuses for the passing game, but he never seemed to catch a shotgun snap cleanly yesterday. He would give the indication that he was ready, then bobbled it when snapped as if he wasn't exactly expecting it. He also threw the ball before he had a good handle on it on passes in the flat to Boom and Saine, and also the quick sideline passes to Posey. Those plays only work if you get the ball out quickly and where they can catch it and go, not necessarily in that order. If they are poorly placed or a knuckleball that's hard to handle, the defenders get there before they have a chance to square their shoulders and turn it upfield.

The confusing this is that we have seen this before - both last year and earlier this year. I don't know if he just struggles with the grip, or tries to get the ball out too quickly, but it doesn't appear to be getting any better.

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Marcus Hall
written by pula, November 22, 2009

I haven't seen a lot of talk about Marcus Hall, but man I have been impressed with him. I think we have found our RT for the next 3 years. Perhaps the reason we don't hear anything about him is because he is handling business and typically when we are talking about an OL it is something bad. Better to not be noticed.

At LT, I am hopeful. Maybe JB Shugarts or Mike Adams grab hold of the job in their junior year. If not, I think Longo or Mewhort could handle the position. Hopefully we can land Seantrel Henderson and add his name to the mix next year. In any case, I feel we'll have better options than this year.

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written by O-State, November 22, 2009

We have a LT. His name is Andy Miller. I don't know why Cordle is starting there unless the coaches like his leadership out there and don't want to mess with the other 4 spots.

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Most boring game ever
written by punt on 2nd down, November 23, 2009

Three people fell asleep while watching the game. Tressel and his offense are so boring. Sometimes I dont care about his winning percentage, I just want him gone so I can be entertained again...I try to accept it, but it is soooo hard to watch.

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written by ford.304, November 23, 2009

Most boring game ever? We started the game with a defensive touchdown, and forced four turnovers in the rest of it! Michigan knew we were going to the ram the ball down their throats and they couldn't stop us.

This defense is one of the most exciting we've had in years, and one of the best in football. Embrace the defense. There is more to football than flashy plays on offense.

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written by RipsManifesto, November 23, 2009

Some people just can't get into defensive football. I love defense, but some don't. Like ESPN or half the OSU fans. But, you know, if basketball scores are your thing there's always Houston to root for.

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written by JarheadBuck, November 23, 2009

Rips -
A lot of us love good defense, we go crazy when our D pressures the QB, stuffs the run or gets another turnover...and we go ape sh!t whne the Defense scores.

However there is that period of time when we're not playing defense (roughly half the game). If we're not going to try to get the most out of offense too, then by all means let's just tell folks "our 11 are gonna beat your 22". Then we can just punt on 1st down and skip the pretense. (Oh sure, every few series we can just have the offense take a knee 3 times before punting...just to let the defense get a drink.)

The point is I (and I suspect others) want greatness on both sides of the ball. We haven't seen that in 9 years...or even an attempt for it in 7 of the last 9 years. That's what p1sses me off.

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written by RipsManifesto, November 23, 2009

Jar:

Don't disagree at all. You've seen me on here blowing my top about Tressel's offensive tendencies. His quote of "the offense's primary responsibility is not to put the defense in a bad position" is about the most infuriating quote in the world for me. We're not dealing with a salary cap, there's no reason to think we can't be great on both offense and defense. You and I are in complete agreement here.

That said, when I see a quote of, "Sometimes I dont care about his winning percentage, I just want him gone so I can be entertained again", I'm going to comment. It feels like the statement of "I'm only entertained when the offense is scoring a lot of points", and it reeks of Playstation mentality, so I feel inclined to comment.

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written by Miko, November 23, 2009

If you want entertainment - Go on a cruise or go see a show.
If the winning percentage does not matter -
If rushing for +250 yards does not matter -
or if watching the defense embarrass a young punk does not matter or entertain you you are beyond help.

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written by beenthere77, November 24, 2009

Let's satisfy the fans. Turn Pryor lose and let him build up his stats just like Harris at Miami. Why worry about their record, at least the offense will have great stats.

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written by iu fan, November 24, 2009

Duane, I think this season will ultimately be remembered for missed opportunities. Yes, in a vacuum, winning an outright conference title sounds great. But the pieces were in place for a run at the national title. I've enjoyed watching the best d-line in a decade. The linebackers have been great. And let's be honest, '09 was probably the easiest schedule we've had in years. Yet at home (at night) we lost to the worst USC team in Pete Carroll's tenure, a Trojans team starting a true freshman quarterback that lost 3 games (at least), including two blowouts. We lost to a Purdue team that isn't even bowl-eligible, finishing the season at 5-7. We faced the worst Michigan team in 50 years, finishing 5-7. The only other ranked B10 teams, Iowa and Wisconsin, both lost to Northwestern and avoided playing ranked non-conference opponents.

Again, without context, winning an outright conference title sounds great. It just seems like with even minimal competence on the offensive side of the ball we could've been playing for so much more. After beating some very mediocre B10 teams, it's hard to get too excited about a matchup against a 2 loss Oregon team, a 3 loss Oregon State team or a rematch against a 3 loss USC team.

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written by Duane Long, November 24, 2009

Here is the thing that I believe is being missed. I don't think everyone is getting just how wrung out this team was. The only motivating factor was this was the Michigan game. Beating Michigan has become so old hat that even the importance of the game had lost some of the usual level of motivation. They expected to beat Michigan. Michigan does not match-up well. They would have felt it afterward had they lost but going in I suspect JT knew his team was ready for some rest and looking forward to the Rose bowl. They were not focused and were going to go in lacking the intensity to really take it to them. Just get in there, get a win, send them home for Thanksgiving. Getting up every week is tough. Look at the history of NFL teams that have clinched playoff berths. Most rest their top players. They often lose to teams they shouldn't lose to. Nobody has that usual game day edge with nothing on the line. With this game another win over Michigan was the only thing, and they expected to beat them.

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written by RipsManifesto, November 24, 2009

I don't think anyone reasonably thought that we'd be making a NC run before the start of the season. I agree with the missed opportunities, but let's keep perspective. This team is *young*. We have a veteran DL but are young at every other position on the field aside from the kicker, and even he missed a third of the season. The DL stepped up and really set the tempo for the defense the entire year.

Nobody expected USC to be as bad as they are. No one expected to lose to Purdue, but with a young team upsets happen. But we did beat Wisconsin, PSU, and Iowa, who are all ranked albeit not fantastic.

10-2 is a reasonable record given how young we are this year. Add in the outright championship and Rose Bowl birth and I think we should be elated. Now just hope for a Rose Bowl win against Oregon/Oregon St. and that Heyward/Gibson decide to forgo the NFL in some kind of lapse of sanity.

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written by RipsManifesto, November 24, 2009

Oh and this wasn't the worst Michigan team in 50 years... that was last year.

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Napolean
written by punt on 2nd down, November 25, 2009

The team has been very hard to watch since Tress has been here. I appreciate a great defense, and he has had one year in and year out since he has been here. I can even deal with a conservative gameplan (the Penn State game plan was great, nothing to complain about) its when he gets ultra, ultra conservative that kills me.


He has the superior talent and athletes against about 90 % of the teams we play each year. When a team matches up with us athletically we lose and its because of his coaching philosophy. He has a genetic freak at QB and he uses him like you would use the QB at Yale. It kills me to see Pryors talents go to waste in his offense.

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