| 19 October 2010
I have taken this loss hard. I thought, I still think Ohio State and Alabama are the best teams in college football. Alabama lost to a team they should not have lost to and we lost to a team we should not have lost to. One thing that has really helped me put the loss behind me is how over the top fans have gotten about this. It has me very distracted.
Nobody would ever call me a cheerleader for the staff. I have been as critical as you will find out there in the Buckeye bloggesphere. I call it like I see it. I am trying to make the point that nobody is going to call me an apologist for the program.
I am at a loss to explain how anyone can decide that Jim Tressel should be fired over this loss. We got beat, Buckeye fans. It happens. We had a match-up that is not a good one for
us. Wisconsin has been a thorn in our side going back to the Earle Bruce years. It is a solid program. They do not have the athletes we have but they do what they do very very well. It is the anti-athlete offense. Big, physical and tough. We will always have trouble with Wisconsin.
My question for those that want to fire Jim Tressel is why? Based on what, the fact that we lost a game? There were coaching mistakes. In blowouts there are coaching mistakes. The biggest problem we had is being outmanned up front. Huge tough linemen got into our chests and there was nothing we were going to do about it. We are undersized for this kind of game. We tried not to be. Tried very hard. Everyone remember a player by the name of Sharif Floyd? He would have made a difference in this game. There are others who would have made a difference. The staff did everything short of cheat to make sure we got some elite bigs into the lineup.It didn't happen. When John Simon was looking so good and everyone was talking about the recruiting services for missing the boat on him, this is why he was not more highly rated. He is at a disadvantage against huge good well coached linemen. Same with Dex Larimore.
Riptide had an excellent post on Bucknuts about the fact that we are not built to come from behind. JT is 15-20 when down at the half. Considering he has lost a grand total of 23 games here, that is a very telling stat. Rip rightly pointed out that it is Jim Tressels conservative nature that is the culprit. Rip is not calling for Jim Tressels head. For those of you who are, this game is where you came to understand that Jim Tressel was conservative? This was a revelation to you? I think Jim Tressel can be too conservative. This is not news to anyone who has followed me over the years. I believe he waits on teams to lose the game. I would like to see him go out and win the game. I just don't see that as why we lost this game. 21-0 in the first quarter is where we lost this game. We needed three touchdowns just to draw even.
I still think the kick off return was the difference. If we make them drive for that touchdown it gives the staff more time to see what is going on and make adjustments. It means more plays to make something happen to stop it. It means maybe they stop themselves with a fumble or with penalties. This falls directly on Jim Tressels shoulders. Not having a special teams coach, I mean. Decisions on safety recruiting falls on his shoulders too. The decision to redshirt a super athlete like Sabino is another thing that can be thrown directly back on the staff. Safeties, corners and linebackers should make up the bulk of kick coverage units. We are hurting for talent in the defensive backfield. We have the most athletic linebacker on the roster sitting the year out. Those decisions come back on JT.
That is enough to ask for a change? Not even close.
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