Thoughts on OSU mid-season and the QB Battle

I've been swamped with this new role.  I've gone from putting in "a light 40 hrs a week" to now working "an intense 50-55 hrs a week".  I'm sure I'm stealing the words right from your mouth, "Welcome to my life".

My thoughts are... its BEEN clear to me (this past week was just icing on the cake) that JT should / needs-to-be the guy.  I was a "JT guy" during the pre-season & coming into this season, but then I saw Cardale's performance vs. Va Tech, and I thought the Meyer made the correct choice; that is to say... I was all convinced Cardale was the right guy.  But around I'd say the Northern Illinois game, it started becoming clear to me that JT is/was the better fit for this team; especially for Meyer's offensive style.  I think the Western Michigan game was really just masking tape; it masked the fact that maybe Cardale can be "the guy".  But then we saw Cardale struggle again vs. Indiana, and continuing to struggle thereafter.

Here's Cardale's QBR game-by-game this season:

Week 1 vs Va Tech = 87.4

Week 2 vs Hawaii = 42.7

Week 3 vs N.Illinois = 6.3

Week 5 vs W.Michigan = 71.9

Week 6 vs Indiana = 11.5

Week 7 vs Maryland = 76.2

Week 8 vs Penn St = 14.2

I'm sorry, but that's not cutting it my any stretch of the imagination.  Cardale is driving a Ferrari.  It should not be that difficult.  The car should practically drive itself.  As I've said all along, there are simply too many weapons (almost to a fault) on this team to fail.  Ohio State has / should have an MASSIVE advantage at nearly every unit.  This job can't/shouldn't-be THAT hard.  And yet Jones has struggled mightily.  One has to wonder how much Jones cost himself by deciding to come back this year.  There were talks AT BEST last year about him being a 1st round draft pick; at worst, a 5th round draft pick.  I personally think 3rd round was more realistic.  After this season, I'm not so sure I'd say a 3rd round pick is very realistic at this point; 1st/2nd round is surely out of the question.  I still think on POTENTIAL ALONE he's at least a 5th round draft pick, but that's not really saying much.

JT proved he's the better quarterback this week.  Again, I feel the writing to this was on the wall when Meyer decided two weeks ago to bring JT in for the RedZone plays.  IMO, when you do that, you've essentially said JT is the better of the 2; and if that's the case, then why aren't you using JT all-day?  If JT doesn't start next week, I think that has to show/prove that there's some under-the-table handshake agreement between Jones and Meyer.  I have absolutely no idea how Meyer can go back to Jones, given the production woes we've seen from Cardale and how efficient JT was this past week.  Meyer said after the Hawaii (or maybe it was N.Illinois) game I think it was that in order for JT to start, he had to win the job from Cardale; and at that point, neither QB had performed well enough to "win" the job.  Well, guess what... JT performed well enough last week (IMO) to "win" the job.  So if we don't see JT starting next week, I think it's got to be pretty obvious then that there has to be some handshake deal then between Meyer and Jones.

Looking at the schedule moving forward... it's

@ Rutgers (cupcake)

vs Minnesota (shouldn't be terrible challenging)

@ Illinois (cupcake)

If Meyer does decide to roll with Cardale, then my point is... it's going to pretty much be ride or die then with Cardale; because those 3 games are powder puffs, and Jones should be able to at least put up halfway decent #'s.  And if Jones puts up halfway decent #'s, then you're not going to pull him.  So (IMO) if Meyer starts Cardale next week, we're pretty much going into Michigan State then with Cardale at QB.

This why I think now is the time to make a switch if you're going to make a switch... you still have 3 "cake" games to ease JT in and build up JT's confidence pre-Michigan State and get him acclimated to the game/team.  Give the keys to JT... let him beat-up on these 3 cupcakes and get any errors out of his system now, so that come Michigan State it's a well-oiled machine.

The probably is the remainder of the schedule from Michigan State on out:

vs Michigan State

@ Michigan

(IF we're fortunate enough to win both...) Big Ten Championship

Playoff

Championship

That's a murder's row of scheduling, if you ask me (granted the Big Ten Championship will likely be against Iowa, and Iowa isn't that great, but you can't underestimate those corn-fed boys).

Right now... I would never admit this to my Michigan friends, but BOTH Michigan State AND Michigan are BETTER football teams than we are.  Our defense is NOT as good as theirs are (at this point in the season), and our offense is HIGHLY suspect.  Yes... I do really think Michigan would beat us TODAY.

Put JT in... get him some reps... and roll the dice he's good enough to win you a Big Ten Championship.  I know Jason is going to shoot me, but screw the national championship hopes... I'm just playing for a Big Ten title at this point.  I think we'll be lucky right now to just sneak away with that.

Here's all you need to know about this past week vs. Penn State...

Jones: 34 plays, 141 total yards, 0 TDs, 4.1 yards per play

Barrett: 32 plays, 270 yards (240 rushing), 5 TDs, 8.4 yards per play

Scoring by Quarter, 1stQ 0, 2ndQ 21, 3rdQ 0, 4thQ 17.

Guess who played 1stQ and 3rdQ; and guess who played 2ndQ and 4thQ.

Before I move off the Cardale topic, I do want to be fair and go on record that I think the offensive play-calling has been atrocious.  I don't know if it's trying to 'hide' plays from MSU and Michigan or what, but they are NOT using Cardale like they when he was so successful last season.  Where are the deep plays downfield?  I know, I know... it's cuz we don't have anyone who can stretch the field deep - we're missing Devin Smith (Hey... who was the guy that went on record last season saying the guy we will miss most is Devin Smith... THIS GUY!)  But personally, I think that's a bunch of hogwash.  Sure Michael Thomas is more of a "possession" guy than a "speedster", but damnit... use him!  He might not blow by the DBs, but he'll out-jump them / make a play and win you the ball I bet.  I also trust Jalin Marshall and Braxton Miller to have the speed to fill the "Smith" role.  And I'm not saying you have to go deep ever play, heck even every quarter; but there's no reason why we can't at least 1-2 deep-balls per game.  If you're not... then why do you have Cardale in there?  Everyone knows Cardale's best card is his deepball/arm-strength.  So why aren't you using it?  If you're going to run all this read-option stuff, then why aren't you using JT when everyone knows that's a strength of JT's.  Makes no sense to me.  So my point is... the play-calling has not been very fair to Cardale.

I keep trying to tell my friends (especially Ulysses) that I really do believe Meyer & co. are saving Zeke.  Everyone (including myself at times) keeps crying/calling for Zeke... give the ball to Zeke... etc.  No, Meyer is not going to do this because Meyer knows he doesn't need to run Zeke 25-30 times to beat Hawaii, N.Illinois, W.Michigan, Indiana, Maryland.  But he IS going to need to give the ball 30-35 times to beat the likes of MSU, Michigan, win the Big Ten Championship, and if he's going to make a run into the playoffs.  So... I do truly believe that Meyer is conserving Zeke.

I think it's obvious too looking at the Box Score - Zeke's carries by week

Week 1 vs Va Tech 11 carries

Week 2 vs Hawaii 27 carries

Week 3 vs N.Illinois 23 carries

Week 4 vs W.Michigan 16 carries

Week 5 vs Indiana 23 carries

Week 6 vs Maryland 21 carries

Week 7 vs Penn St 27 carries

I'm not with you on the mad hatter trick punt nor am I with you on rushing 3 or 4.  1) we have Johnston and he's been back to lights out again after a shakey start at the beginning of the year.  2) I'm a big fan of blitzing and bringing different looks (blitzes from different areas).  Yeah Bosa, Washington, and Lewis can all get to the QB... but our 4th guy (Schutt) is worthless.  Plus, I haven't been too happy with our safeties (namely Vonn Bell) so I don't really trust our secondary to make a play.  I think we need to keep bringing pressure.  We're such a different/better team, IMO, when we do.

I agree tackling - especially, or maybe even namely, in the secondary - has been horrific.  Unfortunately, this is something you have to know/settle with when you're getting Meyer.  Meyer has traditionally never had good tackling defenses - especially in the secondary.  I honestly believe this is attributed to the style of players he recruits.  Meyer's not recruiting the fundamental kids; Meyer's recruiting the pure, raw athletic kids.  Meyer wants the DB who's 6'0" and runs a 4.4 and will fly to the ball and hit you.  Meyer doesn't recruit the 5'10, 5'11" guy that's all heart and makes the sure-thing play.  Look at Vonn Bell... the guy is IMPACT or BUST; absolutely no in-between.  He's either going to make a pick for you or going to jar you hard enough to pop the ball out.  He's not going to breakup the pass or tackle you by the shoe-laces.  Very frustrating at times, but you just gotta know that's what you're getting when you get Meyer.

2015 - Week 1 Recap - Ohio State vs. Virginia Tech

Well... the wait is finally over.  The question that has been plaguing the entire country - yes, the entire country, given the fact that tOSU is the reigning, defending National Champions and the unanimous #1 team in the country - who will be Ohio State's starting quarterback?  I thought Chris Fowler let it slip... I don't know if anyone else caught it, but as the Captains (including J.T. Barrett) were walking out for the coin toss, Fowler made some comment about, "Yes, Barrett is a captain even tho he won't start".  I thought this was a very odd comment to make, given that up until that point I still don't think a final comment had been made on the topic by/from Meyer.  I did find it interesting, however, that during the warm-ups, Ezekiel Elliott was receiving hand-offs from Jones, whereas it was a backup RB receiving the hand-offs from Barrett.  Also, the announces made the comment that Jones had been receiving the bulk of the 1st team reps all week, but yet wasn't it on Scarlet & Gray Days where we heard Barrett had been receiving the majority of the 1st team reps.

Regardless... I truly believe it as a win-win decision for Meyer.  I think this team would be just fine under the direction of both Jones and Barrett.

And now for my actual thoughts on the game...

The Hokie crowd was ELECTRIC.  Sitting at home watching the telecast on the TV, you could literally feel the electricity of the crowd oozing thru the TV.  That crowd was hyped, and they did an excellent job of trying to set the home-field advantage for their team.  Much respect.

I'm happy to finally have a kicker that can boot it deep into the endzone on kickoffs.  Idk if there was much wind last night, but I thought Willoughby's opening kick, and several subsequent kicks, were pretty strong.  This has been something that irritated me greatly last season, as I don't know if it was a conscious decision by Meyer to have the kicker NOT kick it deep into the endzone, or if our kicker simply didn't have the leg strength to do so.  IMO, given the depth of talent on this Buckeye team, I would much prefer our chances at forcing the opposing team to drive the ball down the field 75 yards than give the opposing team the opportunity to house a kickoff.  I think the risk/reward is simply too high on the risk side to not justify kicking the ball deep into the endzone.

I'm a big believe in the 1st play of the game sets the tone/pace for much (not all, but much) of the rest of the game [even the coin flip, I believe, is a big part of setting the tone/pace of the game/season; I was ecstatic when Barrett won the coin toss (#TailsNeverFails); 52% of teams to win the coin toss, win the game - I know it's only 2% points higher than 50/50, but heck... I want as many odds in my favor as I can have/take/get].  The 1st play of the game (Michael Brewer's pass attempt to Isaiah Ford) literally could have gone almost either way.  As Al Pacino famously stated in Any Given Sunday, it's a game of inches.  About 6 inches more tot he field, and Ford comes down with a big 1st down catch, perhaps setting the pace/tone for the game.  But instead, while Ford was able to get his toe down, he was NOT able to get his heel inbounds.  As explained via Pro Football Referee's College Football Officiating 101 - Catch/No Catch, "If the Toe touches inbounds, but the Heel touches out of bounds, RULE INCOMPLETE."  Thus, the CORRECT call was made.  Tone set, Ohio State.

Ohio State was able to clamp down then with 2nd and long, and eventually forced the Hokies to punt.

OSU's 1st drive of the game (again, big proponent of setting the tone/pace for the game...) OSU trots out Cardale Jones, and Jones opens with a nice 6 yard run up the middle, and then hits a BEAUTIFUL strike to Michael Thomas (Thomas had a PHENOMENAL game) for 20 yards.  The very next play should have been a touchdown, but unfortunately Ohio State suffered their first real impact from the suspensions/injuries of Jalin Marshall, Dontre Wilson, Corey Smith, Noah Brown, as Parris Campbell dropped a WIDE OPEN pass from Cardale.  Campbell has to catch that pass (in a bigger game, that could be the reason for an eventual 'L').  A couple plays later, Jocoby Boren was flagged for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty.  I'm still scratching my head over this one.  When they cut to the reply, Boren was getting his feet pulled from underneath him by a Hokie player and falling to the crown.  Did Boren do something before or after this that was not caught on the replay?  IMO, if there should have been ANY foul, it should have either (a) been on the Hokie player or (b) been offsetting fouls.  I really thought this was going to kill OSU's drive, but a couple of plays later, Jones scrambles and finds Curtis Samuel for a 24 yard TD pass.  IMO, this was the first play of the night where I can honestly say, had Meyer picked Barrett over Cardale, Barrett would NOT have been able to make this throw.  This was a scramble throw and ALL upper body/arm.

Va Tech's 2nd drive was interesting.  It started off a little promising with J.C. Coleman running for 5, 4, and 3 yard (1st down run) gains.  But then Hubbard's sack (and really it was Josh Perry / Darron Lee - I forget which one's - pressure that allowed Hubbard to get the sack) set the Hokies back 5 yards and was able to force the Hokies into a 2nd and long that they wouldn't be able to surmount.  #Punt.

Ohio State's 2nd drive = Ezekiel Elliott.  What more needs to be said about this kid?  80 yards and to the house.  Love me some Eazy E.  Nice run up the middle, but then demonstrates the speed to outrun the rest of the coverage.  #LoveIt.

Va Tech's 3rd drive.  I was kinda honestly surprised when they lined up to kick a 50 yard FG attempt.  I didn't think Va Tech would have a kicker with that kind of leg.  While he ultimately missed it wide right, he did have plenty of leg.  Ohio State is now up 14-0 and has the ball.  I'm thinking #Gameover... Right?

Ohio State's 3rd drive.  Man that 'Bear defense' is really loading the box and making it tough to run.  I want to keep handing the ball off to Zeke, but there's just so many guys in the box.  The 1st pass and catch to Braxton Miller of the season... what a thing of beauty.  Yeah Cardale could have thrown a slightly more accurate pass, but that layout/dive by Miller... and the hands... wow.  That should quiet all the haters about 'does he have the hands to play the position / can he catch?' talk.   Well, I think this catch answered that question, as that was a wide receive catch. (The 2nd question was 'can he avoid getting hit', and I think we saw the answer to that question later on...)  Flash-forward a couple plays... the offensive holding (Billy Price) was a killer.  Without that call (and before anyone gets too defensive - yes, it was the right call), OSU is in the endzone and up 21-0.  For sure game over.  But instead, OSU is backed up, and forced to settle for a FG.  Willoughby misses a 43 yd attempt.  Gahhh.  Gotta have those.  Maybe not against Va Tech, but against someone like Alabama, that could be a killer.

Va Tech's 4th drive.  Not much to talk about here other than Sam Rogers 51 yd pass from Brewer.  What a scrapper that Sam Rogers was.  Gotta give the Hokie staff a lot of credit here... this was a fantastically drawn up play.  I forget who the OSU DB was that Rogers made the move on at the end of the play to ultimately get into the endzone, but man that was a nice shake.  I hope the 'boys' get on that DB and dog him about that.  Can't be having that stuff.  Again, I forget who the DB was, but I'll use this time to comment that... I thought Vonn Bell had a horrific game.  Idk what it was, but he just looked like he did not have his head in the game.  There were a couple of previous plays where I thought Bell was out of position and gave poor attempts.

Ohio State's 4th drive.  Someone has to explain to me how Ezekiel Elliott gets flagged for a holding call, when he gets absolutely cream-tackled by the Va Tech LB on the read option.  How can you hold when you're too busy getting tackled by the defense?!??!  The drive ends when Cardale throws a pass and it was deflected and intercepted by Va Tech's Desmond Frye.  I'm not going to pin this one on Jones.  Maybe you can argue he has to throw a better/smarter pass, but the pass deflection looked to be a pretty lucky pass-breakup, and the interception catch was a helluva dive by Frye.  So recapping OSU's drives so far, 2 TDs, 1 missed FG, and 1 fluke interception.  Seems to me like Ohio State is pretty much having their way on offense.

Va Tech's 5th drive.  After 1 st down, the Hokies have to settle for a 46 yd FG attempt (thanks to a short field).  Props to their kicker, he nails a 46 yd.  Score is still OSU 14 Va Tech 10.

Ohio State's 5th drive.  Not sure if it was this drive, or perhaps a combination of this one and some of the earlier ones, but at this point in the game, there had been a few plays now where Cardale has ran/scrambled for a couple of yards, and I've thought to myself, 'Man... I wish we had Barrett in there... cuz with Barrett's speed over Cardale, that would have been a much bigger gain'.  But to be fair, there were also a couple other plays where Jones' height/size came into advantage, where had Barrett been in there, he probably would have been tackled where Cardale was not.  So at this point in the game, I'm saying it's about Jones 2, Barrett 1 on my grading scale.  The drive ends with a punt.  Wasn't impressed with Johnston here.  Punt was only for 37 yards.  We need better than that, IMO.

Va Tech's 6th drive.  Once again, Va Tech is only able to muster up 1st Down, and then forced to punt.  Unfortunately, here's where the 2nd evidence of not having Marshall/Wilson/Smith/Brown comes into factor - Eze muffs the point, and Va Tech recovers.  That's now twice Marshall/Wilson/Smith's selfish suspension is costing us.  I'm starting to think... if we lose this came because of whatever boneheaded decision these guys made, I'm going to be PISSED.

Va Tech's 7th drive.  With a short field, and a nice 36 yard gain to Ford (I think this was another Vonn Bell mishap - feel free to correct if wrong), Va Tech is finally able to punch another one in.  The "blessing in disguise" here, however, might have been the opportunity to see our goalline defense performed.  We stuffed them not once, but twice from the 0 yard line, and it took a sneaky fake-block-but-then-rollout-to-catch-a-pass-play for the Hokies to score 6.  I was  VERY pleased to see our defensive front 7 were up to the task of stifling the Hokies goalline, even without Bosa.

Ohio State's 6th drive ends with the half.

HALFTIME - If I'm Meyer, I gotta be pissed.  My team has played/performed well, but a couple of key costly turnovers is what's currently preventing me from winning.  Va Tech 17, Ohio State 14.  How is this the score.  Sure doesn't feel like it...

Ohio State's 7th drive.  Ohio State opens right up where they left off... Jones hits Miller for a 54 yd pass.  So happy for Braxton Miller on this play.  This had to feel so good for Miller.  Reaffirmation that he made the right/ok decision, by deciding to switch positions and sacrifice for this team, in order for the team to benefit.  The 1st TD of this season was going to be BIG for Miller mentally I think, and I'm so happy it came in this 1st game, because I think this will serve as the driving motivation for Miller that he CAN do this (i.e., play WR).

Va Tech's 8th drive. Adolphus Washington absolutely destroys Brewer.  Va Tech is forced to punt.  We eventually learn that Washington broke Brewer's collarbone, and that Bewer will likely miss 4-8 weeks.  Feel bad for the kid, but... it is a big boy sport, and when you play the Buckeyes and Washington, you best wear your big boy pants and watch out for devastating hits like this one from Diesel.  It was a perfectly legal hit.

Ohio State's 8th drive.  I didn't like the play-calling here.  We were pinned inside our 10, so naturally the play-calling was going to be limited to begin with, but when you have one botched snap/read-option (what was up with the snaps all night... there were at least 3 'high' snaps, and a couple other questionable ones).  Again, we're forced to punt, and this time, it only goes for 34 yards.  #CmonAussie

Va Tech's 9th drive.  So the 1st play of the drive is Motley throwing an incomplete pass.  While it's only a 4 pt lead at the moment, you're feeling pretty good cuz you have the lead and now you have a backup non-passing QB leading the Hokies.  Drive is a quick 3-and-out.

Ohio State's 9th drive ends in another punt.  This one was a little better (45 yads), but still a little concerning now that this is essentially 3 punts now in the Buckeyes last 4 drives (not including the 1 play end of half drive).

Va Tech's 10th drive.  Ends with a fumble.  Forget who the LB was that ripped the ball out (either Lee, McMillan, or Perry), but I had noticed earlier that we had been ripping at the ball all night, so I was not surprised to see one finally pop.  The recovery was made by Eli Apple, so like seeing his name there.

I'll use this point to drop a couple side thoughts about some of the defensive Buckeye players...

• I thought McMillan had a fantastic night.  Raekingball is only a true Sophomore, but I have all the confidence in the world in saying that this kid is/will-be the next great LB in a long lineage of Buckeye greats.  He has noise for the ball.  He brings the wood every hit.  He plays physical.  He hits hard.  He demonstrates an understanding for the game.  I think this kid is really something special, and I'm excited to see what he can be/do next year (cuz I think he might be under-shadowed this year by the play of Darron Lee and Josh Perry - but I still expect for him to have a very solid year).
• Eli Apple.  IMO, there's no question Eli Apple is our best CB.  I thought Gareon Conley had an ok/decent night (considering it was his debut night), but he has a ways to go still.  But I thought Apple had a quietly superb night.
• Washington.  Washington did himself well by having a huge night vs. the Hokies.  With talk about him being a borderline 1st Rd guy, it was nice to see him support those talks by laying a huge hit on the QB and being a disruptive force all night.
• Josh Perry.  I don't know what it is about this guy, but he continues to lead the team in tackles.  He's not the flashy guy.  He's not the name you're going to hear, see, or remember, but every.single.time. this guy's name either tops or is near the top of the leading tackler list.
• Darron Lee had a quiet night (and not in a good way).  I'm not concerned/worried (he'll be fine), but I was hoping/expecting to see a bigger night from him.
• Tyquan Lewis was kind of a ghost, IMO.  This is a bit disappointing, as seeing how I was hoping to see how Lewis and Holmes would hold up in the absence of Bosa.  I think the one saving grace, however, might have been the fact that Va Tech simply didn't have the ball that much to be able to evaluate these guys long enough.  The return of Bosa will be a HUGE shot to the arm.
• I thought Tyvis Powell had a solid night.  The interception was huge (see next drive).  As great as Powell was tho, I thought Vonn Bell was very uncharacteristically awful.

Back to the drives...

Ohio State's 10th drive.  O.M.G.  Braxton hits the "O" button on 'em.

#XBrax360 #XbraxOne is back.  In 2 plays in 1 night, Miller answered 'can he catch' and 'can he avoid getting hit' (as evident by this beautiful spin play).  As much talent as Ohio State has... and considering Braxton "lost" the starting QB job... it's unbelievable to think that Braxton just might still possibly be this team's best option/weapon.  The speed... the moves... the talent.  All demonstrated on this play.  This season could be very special...

At this point, the game is OSU 28, VT 17.  Ohio State has a 2 score lead, and VT's starting QB is out of the game.  Starting to feel pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty confident now (in best Larry David impersonation voice).

Va Tech's 11th drive.  Motley heaves one up and it's intercepted by Tyvis Powell.  I really love Powell.  It goes back to this kid's recruitment.  He was one of the guys that stuck with the program and committed during the turmoil we went thru with the whole Tat 5.  The kid just gets it.  He puts Ohio State above everything else.  He hustles.  He's just such an awesome guy.  Love this kid.  Can't say enough great things about him.

Ohio State's 11th drive.  We see a Johnnie Dixon sighting.  Again, this is a play that Cardale Jones and only Cardale Jones makes.  If JT Barrett was in there, there's no 29 yard connection to Dixon.  Only Jones had the upperbody-arm strength to pull up and heeve one downfield like that to Dixon.  Score: Cardale 3, JT 2 (I say 2, because I think by now in the game, there had been another scramble or 2 where it would have benefits to have JT in there over Cardale).  But at this point, I'm starting to really feel/believe that Cardale IS the better choice over Barrett.  he's just able to make more passing plays that Barrett (and to be fair, practically anyone else in the country) just can't simply make.  On 3rd and 3, Fuller is flagged for PI against Thomas.  On 3rd and 10, Va Tech Edmunds is flagged for a 2nd PI against Thomas.  Michael Thomas is just having his way with the Va Tech secondary, which is a pretty nice secondary - Fuller might be one of the best CB's in the country, but not tonight... not guarding Michael Thomas.

Va Tech's 12th drive.  3 and out.  ends in a punt.  Score is OSU 35, VT 17.  Time is dwindling.  At this point, the game is pretty much in the bag.

Ohio State's 12th drive.  JT Barrett is in now.  Happy to see Barrett get some time, and not total garbage time either at that.  JT hits Michael Thomas on a 26 yard pass, where Thomas OWNED Fuller and served official notice to the country that Thomas is here as arguably one of the top receivers in the country.  Thomas gave Fuller fits all night, and for good reason.  To be fair, however, I think CBS Radio's Kevin Kiley made a very good point... To be fair, Fuller was asked to do A LOT last night.  Not only did he have to guard Thomas (arguably one of the best receivers in the country), but he had to protect against guys like Eze, XBraxOne, Jones, Samuel, etc.  There's just soooooo much talent on this team this year, it's kinda pick your poison.  And unfortunately, Fuller is just one man and can't do it all.  But that move that Thomas put on Fuller was an NFL type receiver move.  That was crazy.  I literally rewound it 5x to watch the pure beauty of that move.

#CornerbackLivesMatter #Zone6

The game is now OSU 42, VT 17.  Game is over for all intents and purposes.

Va Tech's 13th drive results in more-or-less the par for the night - a punt.

OSU's 13th drive ends with a Bri'onte Dunn fumble.  #Goodbye.  I'm officially done with Dunn, and I think Meyer might be too.  THIS IS YOUR CHANCE... you FINALLY break into the game.  Granted it's mop op duty/minutes, but you mean to tell me your 1st carry is going to be a cough-up fumble on a SOFT hit.  No, I'm done with you.  There's simply too much talent and too many other guys/weapons to spend time on, then spend time on this guy.  This is a mental thing.  HANG.ON.TO THE FOOTBALL.  I was happy to see Meyer not give the ball to Dunn again, but instead roll with Ball.  I don't have a preference one way or the other with Dunn/Ball, but it grinds my gears (and I bet ya it grinded Meyer's too) when you FINALLY get your chance, and your first attempt ends up in a "fumble".

Va Tech basically gets luck and scores a late TD.  Score is now OSU 42, VT 24.  I'm thinking 'Oh god... I wonder if that was the one to beat the line' and thinking of all those poor souls in Vegas who might have lost $$$ on Bri'onte's fumble.  Buckeyes win by 18 and the line was like 13 or so I believe, so didn't end up affecting the line that much.

Thoughts on the offensive side:

• It only took 1 game, but I'm convinced Urban made the right choice.  While I think both guys would have success leading this team, I think last night's game proved there's just more things Cardale can do that JT can't, and not enough things that JT can do that Cardale can't.
• XBraxOne is the real deal at WR.  He might not be an NFL receiver, but he's a talent and he's a college threat.  The possibilities are titillating this season with Miller in the mix.  Braxton became the 1st Ohio State player with a 50+-yard TD run & 50+-yard TD catch in a single game since Ted Ginn Jr vs. Notre Dame in the 2006 Fiesta Bowl.  It's nice to see XBraxOne has already been blessed with the Big Ten's 'Offensive Player of the Week' award.  Also... Braxton's 2 scores give him the school-record of 86 career TDs.
• Samuel had a quietly nice night.  He filled in very nicely for Marshall and Wilson.  But I think there's no question, Marshall is the best guy for the H-back position when Miller is out.
• We really missed Marshall at punt return.  Zeke did a nice fill-in job, but I hate the idea of having our starting RB back there, and I just feel more comfortable/confident with having Marshall back there.
• Disappointed in Paris Campbell (and Terry McLaurin to an extent - mostly cuz he didn't play, or at least not that I saw).  Paris can't be dropping those wide open looks.  Unacceptable.  The loss of Brown and Smith really hurt tonight and was felt.  Given a better team (Alabama), I'm not sure we come out unscathed with that type of performance at our #2 WR spot.
• Michael Thomas.  Wow.  What a talent.  What.A.Talent.  This kid is special, and will be a fine NFL wide receiver some day.  Thomas abused Fuller all night, and Fuller is no slough.

OHIO STATE'S EXPLOSIVE PLAYS VERSUS VIRGINIA TECH

HALF	POSS	PLAY DESCRIPTION	DRIVE OUTCOME
1ST	1	JONES 20 YD PASS TO M. THOMAS	TD (OSU 7, VA TECH 0)
1ST	1	JONES 16 YD RUN	TD (OSU 7, VA TECH 0)
1ST	1	JONES 24 YD TOUCHDOWN PASS TO C. SAMUEL	TD (OSU 7, VA TECH 0)
1ST	2	ELLIOTT 80 YD TOUCHDOWN RUN	TD (OSU 14, VA TECH 0)
1ST	3	JONES 24 YD PASS TO B. MILLER	MISSED FG
1ST	4	JONES 14 YD RUN	INTERCEPTION
1ST	5	JONES 19 YD RUN	PUNT
2ND	1	JONES 20 YD RUN	TD (OSU 21, VA TECH 17)
2ND	1	JONES 54 YD PASS TO B. MILLER	TD (OSU 21, VA TECH 17)
2ND	4	MILLER 53 YD TOUCHDOWN RUN	TD (OSU 28, VA TECH 17)
2ND	5	JONES 29 YD PASS TO J. DIXON	TD (OSU 35, VA TECH 17)
2ND	6	BARRETT 40 YD RUN	TD (OSU 42, VA TECH 24)
2ND	6	BARRETT 26 YD TOUCHDOWN PASS TO M. THOMAS	TD (OSU 42, VA TECH 24)

Thoughts on OSU vs. Michigan State | Week 11 (2014)

I wanted to watch the game a 2nd time before I wrote this week's edition (especially for the hype again), but unfortunately I haven't had the opportunity to do so, so much of this is going to be going off of memory/recall.  Usually I like to put these together Sunday night / Monday morning and get them out Monday night / Tuesday morning, but unfortunately I'm just now (i.e., Tuesday morning) piecing this one together.  So let's get started...

Normally I like to start with the Offense (especially the skilled players), but this week I think we have to start with the Coaching staff.  For the longest time, we've been hearing about how everyone (Meyer, Herman, Buckeye players, Fans, etc.) had this one (i.e., Michigan State) circled on the calendar.  Going into this game, I was asked by an avid Michigan fan, "So does OSU win this weekend?"  My answer...?  I said I thought "Both teams will play hard... Both teams have 2 great coaches... Both [coaches] will have their respective teams ready for battle."  I was blasted for saying "general fluff", but after watching the game, I'm not sure I could have said anything truer.

Both teams did play hard.  Playing hard won't show up in the numbers, but if you watched the game, you heard the cracking of the shoulder pads and you saw guys like Ezekiel Elliott (225 lbs) making some of the biggest hits/blocks and running people over, and Buckeyes flying to the football.

Both teams were well prepared (a byproduct of great coaches/coaching).

• Ohio State (J.T. Barrett) racked up 300 passing yards & 3 TDs (386 total yards; tying Troy Smith's 2004 performance vs. Michigan for the 4th highest single-game total in OSU history)... Rushed for 268 yards (Ezekiel Elliott ran for 154), and had (obviously) 300 receiving yards (Devin Smith 129 on 6 receptions and Michael Thomas 91 yards on 3 receptions).

• Barrett was responsible for 5 TDs on Saturday (on his way to becoming Athlon Sports National Player of the Week), and he has now been responsible for 34 touchdowns on the season and only needs 3 more to break Braxton Miller's school record of 36 [which was set just last season under Urban Meyer].

• The Buckeyes improved to 32-3 (.914) under Meyer and have the 2nd highest winning percentage among FBS teams since the start of the 2012 season.

• Urban Meyer is now 36-3 in the month of November (since the start of the 2003 season) and is now 27-12 in his career against Top 25 teams, and 12-5 against the Top 10 (6-2 against Top 25 teams at Ohio State).

• Barrett has been responsible for at least 4 TD's in 5 of 9 games this season.

• Michigan State (Connor Cook) threw for 358 passing yards & 2 TDs... Rushed for 178 yards (Jeremy Langford ran for 137), and had (obviously) 358 receiving yards (Kings, Mumphrey, & Price all had 70-some receiving yards, and Ohio State's Doran Grant managed to hold MSU's stud receiver Tony Lippett to a mere 64 receiving yards).

• If you don't think those numbers indicate/show/represent teams that were "prepared" by excellent coaches, then watch this montage and you'll see what horrible 'preparation' is.

• When a team (Ohio State) scores (and not just scores, but scores TOUCHDOWNS) on 7 of it's 10 drives (and let's not forget, OSU's K Sean Nuernberger missed a 47 yd FG on OSU's opening drive) against a team (Michigan State) that gave up 20 points and 279 yards a game (and moved the ball offensively to the tune of 46 points, 515 total yards a game).

• OSU put up nearly 300 more total yards than MSU had allowed per game coming in (OSU's 568 vs MSU's 279.4 average yards given up).

• Michigan State's defense came into the game ranked as the 5th best defense in the country.

I'm sorry, but you can't put up 49 points (7 touchdowns) against a team that averages giving up 20 points a game without being prepared.  The simple fact is... the general college football fan (and even many Buckeye fans) had been blasting Meyer & Herman for 'Where's your big Win?  Where's your signature Win since coaching the Buckeyes?  Since taking over the Buckeyes, you have nothing to show / hang your hat on.'  Well... I think it's safe to say now... Meyer & Herman coached a magnificent game and had this team ready & prepared for the battle.  Props to Meyer & Herman for calling an aggressive game (but let's not forget it was Barrett making only his 9th career start and delivering teardrop passes).

Not many souls were predicting a Win for the Buckeyes going into East Lansing. According to Vegas, Mark Dantonio, Lee Corso, and many of the "national experts"... The Buckeyes were supposed to lose.  But quite the contrary, actually, took place.  Instead, OSU dominated a very good Michigan State team (Let's not forget... MSU was the #8 College Football Playoff team going into the weekend).  Think about it... if it wasn't for...

• A missed 47 yd FG (by literally 1 ft...) [That's 3 pts...]

• And let's not forget... the biggest reason OSU's opening drive stalled was a False Start penalty on Pat Elflein that put OSU into a 1st & 15...

• A 'fumbled' (I can't even call it a fumble because it was really just bad luck as Jeff Greene had no clue where the football even was... Jalin Marshall needs to Fair Catch that punt...) which gave the ball right back to Michigan State @ OSU's 33 yard line [Leading to -7 pts for Sparty and who knows - perhaps taking 7 pts off the board for OSU - how many possible points off the board for OSU.  When OSU moved the ball pretty much at will all night, what's to stop you from thinking they wouldn't have scored another 3-7 points?!]

• A questionable 'illegal use of hands' penalty on Taylor Decker that put OSU in a 2nd & 30. [Again, when OSU was literally moving the ball & scoring at will pretty much the entire rest of the game, who knows how many points that questionable call kept off the board].  OSU was at MSU's 27, so you figure they either go in for 7 or likely come out with 3.  [There's another 3-7 pts...]

• A fumbled kick return by Dontre Wilson that turned the ball over to Michigan State. [Fortunately this only lead to a missed FG for Sparty; so really it didn't even end up mattering in the end.]

• The last drive of the game for OSU was simply just OSU trying to run out the clock.  That drive consisted of 10 plays (not counting the actual punt on 4th Down), and of those 10 plays, OSU ran the ball 8x.  You gotta figure if OSU wasn't playing conservative here & trying to run out the clock, they probably could have scored another 3-7 pots (as they had scored on just about every other drive of the night).

So... as we know... the game finished Ohio State 49, Michigan State 37; but really... this game could have very easily ended up / been more like Ohio State 55/59/62/66, Michigan State 30.  Somewhere in that range.

I think this pretty much sums it up...

I think Ohio State came off as very impressive.  Even Uncle Colin seemed to think so too.  He said it best... Ohio State has clearly grown, and maybe even more so than any other team in college football.  Ohio State's loss to Virginia Tech is terrible & inexcusable, but let's not forget that that was J.T. Barrett's 1st big game & he was a freshman.  Barrett has matured & grown immensely in the 8 weeks since that game.  Barrett now looks like a legitimate Heisman contender (No, he probably won't win and sure there's better players out there, but Barrett is certainly in the upper echelon of college quarterbacks right now).

Even Colin Cowherd has come around... Colin has Ohio State in the Final Four now after OSU's dominant win over Sparty.  And while I don't have OSU in the Final Four [yet], I do think they have a legitimate argument to be considered!  The Buckeyes have been on a roll since the Virginia Tech game, and they've been steamrolling everyone. 66, 50, 52, 56, 31, 55, and now 49 pts the Buckeyes have put up since Virginia Tech.  That's 49+ pts in 6 of their last 7 games!  The Buckeyes have the 16th most Total Yards, the 7th best 3rd Down %, the 14th most Rushing Yards, and J.T. Barrett is the 5th ranked TOTAL QBR in the country.  If that's not steamrolling & growth, then I don't know what is.

That Virginia Tech game was Barrett's 1st game as a starter in a stadium of more than 60,000 people.  (OSU vs Navy attendance was 57,579.)  The attendance for the Va Tech game was 107,517!  That's nearly double the crowd of the Navy game!  You'd crap your pants to if you had to play infront of that environment.  But since the Va Tech game, Barrett has looked nothing short of stellar.  And even the haters can't deny Barrett's on-the-field performance, as Barrett was recently named a semifinalist for the Davey O'Brien Award (an award given each season to the most outstanding QB in the country).

I was happy to see our Offensive Line step up.  Previously, against the two best defenses Ohio State had seen prior to Saturday night - Virginia Tech and Penn State - the offensive line had struggled.  Barrett was sacked 7x vs. the Hokies and 3x + constant harrassment vs. the Nittany Lions.  But on Saturday vs. MSU, the offensive line faired much better and gave Barrett enough time to rack up 586 yards of total offense.

I loved seeing the adversity of this team.  Even tho things were rolling for the Buckeyes, the team still managed to fall behind three times in the 1st Half, and yet they still overcame mistakes and took a 28-21 halftime lead.  That's fighting hard.

The play of the game was easily at the beginning of the 2nd Quarter, when the Buckeyes were down 7 to 14, and facing a 3rd & 23 on their own 36.  Barrett managed to drop back and connect with Devin Smith on a PERFECT over-the-shoulder pass to Smith.

The thing that was most impressive, however, was how the Buckeyes OWNED 3rd Down.  The Buckeyes went 10/14 on the most critical down in football, but Barrett himself was even slightly better as he either ran for, or was the trigger man, on 9 successful conversions in 12 tries (Elliott accounted for 1/2).  This takes me perfectly to my next point... MSU had ZERO answer for our 5-wide spread formation where we motioned in our TE (I think it was mostly Jeff Heuerman) and ran an empty back-field QB draw/read with J.T. Barrett.  This happened at least 5x on 3rd Down, and I think another couple times throughout the game.  I wish I could find a video/gif of this play (because it was so on point), but unfortunately I haven't stumbled upon any material regarding this yet.  Ughh... it was a thing of beauty.  As for Barrett's two "failures" on 3rd Down... one of them was when he faced a 3rd & 15 and only found Smith for a 9 yard gain (before Nuernberger missed his 47-yard FG attempt), and the other was on 3rd & 29 when Barrett was sacked.

Devin Smith.  I said previously that I thought this guy would be a better NFL talent than his college numbers show.  While he's not racking up the targets, catches/receptions, and yards... he is doing one thing... ALL HE DOES IS CATCH TOUCHDOWNS.  I'm telling you... if Chip Kelly and the Philadelphia Eagles can someone find a way to get a hold of Devin Smith in the NFL Draft... WATCH OUT.

The Buckeye defense wasn't exactly stellar (giving up 536 total yards of offense), but they did for the most part shut down MSU's big guns.  Yeah Jeremy Langford rushed for 137 yards (7.6 ypc), but to be honest, he didn't do anything memorable.  Those yards were mostly a byproduct of Langford getting the work-horse share of the carries.  And Yeah Cook threw for 358 yards (which is impressive), but watching the game it truly felt like Grant was shutting down Lippett and the majority of those passing/receiving yards were coming on our 2nd corner.  And I've said all along... if there's one weak-spot on this defense, it's the 2nd corner position.  Apple was questionable with a hammy and didn't start the game, but Conley was so terrible at the beginning that the coaches turned to Apple and asked him to give it a go / step up.  While Apple didn't have the greatest night, I did think he battled admirably (netting 4 stops, a tackle-for-loss, and 2 pass breakups). ... Bosa was mostly a non-factor (which was a little disappointing, but maybe MSU's Jack Conklin might be the real deal)

Bonus Material

• The College GameDay Signs were pretty good.
• Ohio State has not lost in East Lansing (i.e., @ MSU) since 1999, and has a 15-5 edge all-time vs. the Spartans in East Lansing.
• ESecPN already attempting to undermine Ohio State's win...
• O-H-I-O rolls around Spartan Stadium
• Darron Lee putting ESPN troll lord Skip Bayless in check...

• Lou Holtz gets it...
• OSU points vs MSU on Saturday night... 49.  Michigan points vs MSU during Brady Hoke era... 43.  #Ouch
• We all should listen to Ezekiel Elliott perhaps a little more...
• Quotebook: 'This is one for the ages...'
• Statagram: Ohio State 49, Michigan State 37
• Let's watch it again:  Buckeye swag and Carmen Ohio following Ohio State's win over Michigan State

Thoughts on OSU vs. Illinois | Week 10 (2014)

Going to try to keep this one short & sweet.  There really isn't a lot to write home about... It pretty much went as expected - total domination by the Buckeyes.  Couple interesting points:

• I was really surprised Curtis Samuel received the starting nod at tailback.  I looked around feverishly to try to find out why, and so far I haven't had much luck coming up with any plausible explanations as to why.  The speculation floating around the Twitterverse & Message Boards was that obviously Ezekiel Elliott must have done something the coaches didn't like, and this was his 'punishment'.
• OSU's 1st drive lasted 3 plays; there was only 1 run - Curtis Samuel on a 23 yd rush for a TD.
• OSU's 2nd drive saw 9 plays; 3 of them were runs - Curtis Samuel 2 runs for 6 yds, J.T. Barrett 1 run for 14 yds
• The closest thing I could find was Meyer said RB coach Stan Drayton went to Meyer in the middle of the week and said he wanted to start Curtis Samuel because "he's doing everything right, and practices at an extremely high level."
• Ezekiel Elliott didn't see his 1st action until the start of OSU's 3rd drive (which started with just over 5 minutes remaining in the 1st Q).
• This is very alarming to me.  Had Elliott started and saw the few attempts he had (9 car, 1 rec) I would have said 'Oh, this was just OSU resting Elliott & trying to make sure he doesn't get dinged up before arguably their most important game of the season - Michigan State.'  But because Elliott didn't start, this leads me to believe there was some 'punishment' going on and that is NOT a good thing.  If OSU is going to stand any chance of knocking off the Spartans, they're going to need their full compliment of weapons, and that BEGINS with Elliott.

• I thought Barrett took another step backwards on Saturday.  Time & time again we saw him missing wide open receivers (the most glaring one was when he had Heuerman wide open for a touchdown but overthrew him).  It was so bad/obvious that even the announcers chimed in and noted how Barrett's passes were not on point and how he looked uncomfortable.  Now, the obvious speculation is that his knee was bothering him, due to the MCL sprain he suffered last on his left knee week, but I would expect that to effect his running / mobility in the pocket; not his touch on passes.  And it looked like Barrett was able to scramble fairly well on Saturday, but he was not able to hit wide open targets.  This is VERY alarming, because Barrett can't hit his targets this upcoming Saturday, then the Buckeyes will be in for a looong night.

• I thought Cardale Jones looked very solid, and I almost even wish he started (not to stir up a QB controversy, but rather to protect/rest-up Barrett and make sure he's good for East Lansing).  Jones ran the ball for 47 yds (6.7 avg) and passed for 82 yds (9.1 avg, QBR 94.6).  I'm not sure Jones is a guy that's capable of defeating the likes of Nebraska, Wisconsin, Maryland or Minnesota this season... but Illinois is absolutely AWFUL and Jones could have beaten then with one arm tied behind his back.  I was very pleased to see the staff pull Barrett at the beginning of the 2nd Half and let Jones handle the rest.
• Which brings me to my next point... Jones isn't a "freak athlete", but he is somewhat of a 'freak' athlete.  I would love to see the staff move Jones to TE; especially with all the noise about how depleted we supposedly are at TE are and all the recent struggles at recruiting a solid TE.  In no way are they even remotely close, but Jones reminds me a bit of Michigan's Devin Funchess.  Yes, Funchcess is more of a pure receiver than Jones is, but Jones has the size (like Funchess) and the speed to be a nice TE I believe.  I'd like to see Funchess make the switch next season (not this season, because we need a viable QB backup should something happen to Barrett).
• Also... how bout that hit stick Jones put on his fellow Glenville Tarblooder V'Angelo Bentley... #Wrecked

• The guy who is really starting to come along & impress is #17 Jalin Marshall.  Marshall is slowly starting to warrant more & more touches.  I love the kid's versatility - you can line him up in the slot, at H-back, or even a direct-snap.  I didn't think I would end up saying this... but Marshall might be a better H-back than Dontre Wilson.  Let that sink in for a moment...
• Don't be surprised if we see Marshall airing it out a time or 2 vs. Sparty; and if not Sparty, then I'll guarantee it against either Indiana or Michigan.

• Devin Smith had a nice night... connecting on 2 bombs (both ending in touchdowns -- tying him for 3rd-most in Ohio State history with Santonio Holmes) for a total of 3 rec for 72 yds.

• I didn't get to catch who it was, but on OSU's 1st scoring play, there was a massive crack-back block by an OSU wide receiver.  I rewound it several times, but unfortunately I was never able to quite make out who it was.  I even tried searching the Message Boards and Twitter, but no one else seemed to be talking about it.  I really wanted to give props to this unsung hero, but unfortunately it apepars he'll have to remain nameless unless someone else can chime in & help me. [Edit: per Jason White, it was Noah Brown on the crack-back block]
• Looks like ElevenWarriors did a nice write-up on this play...

• I thought the Buckeye defense looked great.  They held the Fighting Illini offense to a measly 243 total yards (Illinois had been averaging 390.5 yards/game), netted 11 tackles for loss & 3 sacks, and forced 4 turnovers that ultimately let to 17 points.

• Ohio State has now scored 50-plus points 5x this season... Most among FBS teams.

• True freshmen making impacts... Jalyn Holmes netted 4 tackles, Raekwon McMillan netted 4 tackles, and Erick Smith netted 3 tackles.

• Was I the only one who noticed/caught James Crawford Jr taking a leak on the sideline?!

• It's becoming glaringly obvious [to me at least] as as each week passes, that Buckeye fans were widely mistaken.  This was NEVER going to be "our year"; "our year" HAS ALWAYS BEEN meant to be next season.  You look at this team across the board, and all you see is youth.  I know it's going to sound absolutely crazy, but the best thing that could have ever happened to this team, happened... and that was Braxton Miller going down.  If Braxton didn't go down, we'd likely be breaking in a new QB next season, and there would be a TON of question marks.  But now... having a year of experience under Barrett's belt, the Buckeyes know what they have at QB (with or without Miller).  Barrett will have the year of experience... there won't be a "Virginia Tech" game next season (largely because we won't have an inexperienced QB making his 1st big collegiate start).  Next year should have always been 'the year'.
• On Offense...
• OL = This year you have a Jr, Fr, Jr, So, Sr. (i.e., the OL will likely return 4 starters next season, as opposed to breaking in 4 new starts this season)  Next year you'll have Sr, So, Sr, Jr, ??.
• WR = we lose our 'not-that-productive' guys like Evan Spencer and Devin Smith, and gain another year of experience for our playmakers like Michael Thomas (will be a Jr), Jalin Marshall (will be a So), & Dontre Wilson (will be a Jr).
• RB = after breaking in a brand new starter after arguably our greatest RB since Eddie George (i.e., Mr. El Guapo himself), next season we'll have a JR Eze Elliott and SO Curtis Samuel / JR Dontre Wilson.
• MOST IMPORTANTLY... QB = instead of breaking in a brand new QB next season, we'll either have a SO J.T. Barrett (now with a full year of experience under his belt) or the return of our Heisman Hopefully XBrax360 (aka Braxton Miller).
• On Defense...
• We'll still have our monster Joey Bosa (as he'll only be a Jr & therefore unable to enter the Draft), and hopefully Adolphus Washington (and maybe even Noah Spence back, tho I HIGHLY doubt it).
• Our LB core (i.e., Jr Darron Lee, So Raekwon mcMillan, Sr Joshua Perry) will easily be the strongest it's been since 2008 (i.e., Laurinaitis, Freeman, Terry, Homan/Rolle/Hines), maybe even the best since 2005 (i.e., Hawk, Carpenter, Schlegel).
• Next season, our secondary should be the only question mark, and technically it should only be 2 of the 4 positions (as we know guys like Jr Tyvis Powell, Jr Vonn Bell will lock down the safety positions; so really the only question is who will man the corner positions, and it's starting to shape up like Eli Apple and Conley/Reeves).
• Special Teams...
• K = SO Sean Nuernberger
• P = JR Cameron Johnston
• Oh the future is bright...

Thoughts on OSU vs. Penn State | Week 9 (2014)

Ohio State vs. Penn State

1st Quarter

Buckeyes come out wearing their alternative "all-white uniforms".  No doubt this is in response to PSU's infamous "White Out" where the entire fans (except for the few Buckeye fans present) were wearing all-white.

What a play Vonn Bell made on the opening drive.  While I disagreed with the ruling-on-the-field (and the subsequent video-review), I still thought Bell made a nice effort breaking on the ball (which is what you want to see from your secondary).  (Sidenote: It just kills me how the guys in the booth still get calls wrong. I understand how officials on the field aren't going to catch everything and they are going to make mistakes once & awhile, but there should be zero excuses for getting calls wrong in the booth when they can slow the play down, review it, and look at different angles/views).

So far the PSU crowd has been amazing.  THIS is what a college gameday crowd is supposed to look/sound like.  I do think the PSU crowds are more "intimidating" than Buckeye home game crowds.

Wow... Elliott runs so hard.  Again, really impressed with his style/game.  I feel for PSU (especially knowing the end of the game score) and knowing that OSU gained 7 pts off of an interception that should not have been.

Why Jalin Marshall fields that punt at the 4 yard line, I'll never know.  Heck, I wasn't a punt-returner and even I knew since grade school 'You put your heels on the edge of the 10 yard line, and don't back up'.  If it goes over your head, then you let it go.  Gotta let that one bounce into the endzone.

Wow... Nick Vannett with a VERY nice seal block to stop the defender and allow J.T. Barrett to pickup the 3rd down conversion.

2nd Quarter:

Elliott with another strong/hard run.

Unbelievable.  The false starts are killing this drive.  Again... the PSU crowd is ruckus and causing some big problems with the snap count.

Barrett... you can't take a sack there on 3rd and 16 from the 23.  Know where you're at on the field.  You have an easy 3 pts.  DON'T TAKE A SACK!  Luckily, Sean Nuerenberger drilled a 49 yard field goal to add the 3 on, irregardless.  Speaking of the FG, it looks like the officiating crew and the PSU coaching staff missed another one.

Didn't it used to be a penalty if the kick returner signaled a fair catch and then tried to advance the football?!  Whatever happened to that rule?  I'm pretty sure it was a rule at one point.  I can't stand when returners signal fair catch and then try to catch the ball and advance it up field.  That fair catch is in place knucklehead so you don't get BLASTED on 9 out of 10 punt returns.  To Jalin Marshall's credit, he didn't signal fair catch tho, I suppose; rather, it was more of a 'get away from the football' signal to his own teammates.

Another delay of game penalty.  Yes the crowd noise is a big factor, but the coaching staff has to get the play in sooner.  They're taking way too long and not giving the players enough time to audible the call(s).

Barrett takes a lick on the option (to Elliott), but man am I impressed with Barrett's decision making.  Once again he's making all the right decisions (i.e., pitching and keeping it).

Holy schnikes! Armani Reeves just DESTROYED Penn State's WR Geno Lewis.  Oh lawrdy.

Ohio State now with a 17-0 lead heading into halftime.  ZERO excuses for OSU to lose this game.  ZERO.

3rd Quarter

Wow... Barrett's INT on the opening drive (Pick 6) of the 2nd Half was pretty bad.  The PSU defense lulled Barrett into making a freshman mistake.  You gotta see those interior DT's dropping back into coverage.  The sad part is, there really wasn't that much pressure off the sides.  Barrett could have stayed in the pocket & simply hung in there.  The Pick 6 is a longstanding tradition in the Ohio State-Penn State series, and unfortunately the Buckeyes were on the wrong side of this one.

Darron Lee with a nice blitz/sack.  I really think we need to use him more in blitzes; he seems to be very effective when he does.

If Michael Thomas is going to be that big, bad WR that we keep saying OSU is so desperately missing, then he's going to have to make a play there on that long pass-play and find some way to come down with the completion there.

3rd & 1 here and J.T. Barrett is out of the game.  The announcers are speculating he hit his arm on someone's helmet the previous play.  Cardale Jones comes into the game (which I kinda actually like since it's 3rd & short and he's so big), and he doesn't pickup the 1st down.  You're 6'5 250 lbs.  You gotta make a play there, Cardale.  Fall forward, big man.  Did you come to play school?

Frustrating.  Devin Smith has his man beat, and Barrett underthrows the pass, so Smith has to stop and turn back.  After watching the replays, the ball appears to go thru the defenders hands and then right thru Smith's hands!  Devin... you gotta make the catch!  I understand it's a hard catch because the defender is in the way, but buddy... step up and make a play!  We throw down-field to you once a a game, and I was just thinking to myself Where's our deep ball play to Smith?! and here it is... and you let the pass go right thru your hands.  That's not going to help with your case of getting back onto the field.

SMH.  Neuernberger has a chance to put the Buckeyes up 20-7, but instead he misses to the right and now the Buckeyes have just wasted a nice drive.  The defense has played lights out, really, to this point.  Penn State's only points of the game have come from a Pick 6.  The defense has been stout and doing their job (tho, to be fair, Penn State's offensive line is a joke, and I would have hoped/expected going into this game that our defense would handle them easily).

You gotta love defensive back coach Kerry Coombs emotion.  The dude is ALWAYS the first one jumping up & down on the sideline anytime the Buckeyes make a play; doesn't matter if it's his personnel group or someone else's.  Offense or Defense.  Coombs is guaranteed to be the 1st one jumping up & down.

Wow... my boy Tyvis Powell with a GREAT INT to stop a driving PSU offense.  That play was MUCH needed, as the Nittany Lions were driving and looking to score.  Now the Buckeyes need to switch the field position game again.  Let's move the ball, Boys!

4th Quarter

Buckeyes are up 17-7.  Again... no excuse for a loss here.  Have to finish the game strong.  Game announcer Todd Blackledge acknowledging the dominance by Ohio State's defenses.  Amen.  They truly have played awesome tonight.

Oh Barrett... just threw his 2nd INT of the game.  Smh.  I see how he doesn't see PSU's middle LB there.  Not so much Barrett's fault, rather, just goes to show that you HAVE. TO. BE. AWARE. of your SURROUNDINGS.  Hopefully this INT won't come back to haunt the Buckeyes.

Eli Apple has to turnaround and locate the football there.  JT's INT has now put the Buckeyes in a 17-14 pt game (2 turnovers, 14 points off turnovers for PSU).  Smh...  What a catch by PSU's Blacknall.

Holly Rowe (side line announcer) just reported Barrett mentioned some pain in his left knee to the coaching staff.  Ut-oh.

Devin Smith with a nice down of a punt at the 1 yard line.

Very first play, OSU comes out in an all-out blitz, and PSU was ready for it as they ran the perfect play (a quick screen) to pickup a 1st down and get out of their own shadows.

Terrible Pass Intereference call here on PSU's drive. Armani Reeves makes a nice play on the ball, and the officials throw a flag and call it on Vonn Bell.  Bell wasn't even anywhere near the play/action.  The only Buckeye that looked near the play was Reeves, and it looked like a clean pass-breakup to me.  I think the officials gifted one to PSU there on 3rd down to give them an automatic 1st down.

Penn State is forced to punt.  The Buckeyes have the ball now at mid-field with just over 5 minutes left to go in the game.  Have to move the chains here and run this clock out.

Hate the decision to run the read-option (even tho it has been successful almost all game/season).  If Barrett's knee truly is dinged up, then just turn around and hand the ball off to Elliott.  Stop messing around with the read-option.  Now you just put yourself in 2nd & 11.  Smh...

Here we go... PSU's ball at the 9 yard line... less than 3 minutes to go.  The Silver Bullet defense needs to come up big here one more time...

Impressive stat... Avg Drive Start = Buckeyes own 37; PSU own 22.  That's a pretty nice difference.

Buckeye defense continuing the 'bend, but don't break' defensive mentality.  Giving up the short underneath passes, but not letting anything over the top.  I'm fine with this, but why aren't we covering/protecting the sidelines?!?!  Seems like PSU is getting whatever they want on the sides.

OH MAN!!!  COME ON ELI!  Apple has to come up with an INT there on Hackenberg's duck pass there.

Vonn Bell has to make the tackle there on 2nd & 10.  He makes the tackle on that flare pass, it's then PSU 3rd & 10/11.  But by missing the tackle, it's now 1st & 10 for PSU at the 45.  (Also would have kept the clock running.)  Smh.

Like clockwork... Joey Bosa comes up with a sack with less than 50 seconds left in the game, forcing PSU to burn their 2nd TO, and putting the Nittany Lions in 2nd & 17.  HUGE!  The Buckeyes have to come up with the stop here now.

Unreal.  The Officials flag Curtis Grant with a 15 yard personal foul penalty.  Are you freaking kidding me?!?!  Also... why is Grant in there and not McMillan?!?!  McMillan is the better pass defender.  You know PSU is going to air it out here.

Wow.  Unreal.  Franklin blows a costly timeout here.  I have no idea what happened, but somehow PSU had to use their 3rd and final timeout.  That is VERY costly.

OMG!  REEVES!  CATCH THE BALL!  You have a gifted INT and the game is OVER!  CATCH.THE.BALL!  

LOL.  PSU spikes the ball when the previous play was ruled out of bounds. [PSU does not deserve to win this game; to many bonehead decisions/calls/plays.]

Wow.  Vonn Bell with perhaps the play of the game.  No one talked about it, but Bell came form his safety position and underneath to jump and break up the pass attempt PSU threw in the endzone there right before they settled for their FG on 4th down.  Without Bell making that play, I think the PSU receiver might have had some separation to make the catch.  HUGE play by Bell that went quietly unnoticed.

17-17.  End of regulation.

Overtime

Buckeyes win the coin toss.  Elect to defend 1st.  I'm feeling pretty confident with the decision.  What a cluster f--- tho that coin toss was, lol.  So much confusion.

Holding on PSU.  OSU has Penn State in 1st & 20.  No excuse here now to give up a TD.  Hold them to a FG!  (Note: I do agree... that looked like an acting job by Washington more than it was an actual 'Hold', but I'll take it nonetheless.  Steve Miller can't get beat there on the outside and give up that many yards).  YOU CAN'T GIVE UP a 19 yard pass on the very next play!!!!

Wow did Lee and Apple bite hard on the WR screen fake.  Great call/execution by the PSU coaches there.

OSU's turn now with the ball.  1st play = read-option w/ Elliott up the middle for 3 yards.  2nd play = read-option, and Barrett makes a PHENOMENAL read (so good he faked out the camera guy) and rushes around the end to the 5 yard line.  #LoveIt.  3rd play = read-option, Barrett again shows great decision and keeps it to run up the middle for the TD.  (Wow... the Personal Foul on Penn State there at the end of the play is HUGE.  Enforced on the 2nd OT; puts OSU to start out at the 12.5 yard line, instead of the 25 yard line)

OSU starts off again with the read-option (why not... PSU hasn't been able to stop it all night).  Play #2 = Pass play with Barrett having all-day to throw, and AGAIN Barrett exercises good judgment by tucking the ball and running for more yards.  3rd & 2 now and Barrett on a QB draw for a TD.  Wow.  Let's Go!

Penn State ball now... 1st play = sweep to the left for nothing. 2nd play = pass to the left for 4 yards. 3rd down = deep pass to the endzone, incomplete.  4th down... here we go... likely the play of the game... 4th & 6... time to STEP UP...

And what do you know.  Who comes up with the biggest play of the Buckeye season so far? (One more time from a different view.)  Joey. freaking. Bosa.  Ironically, "That wasn't what [Bosa] was supposed to do - [he] was supposed to hit the guard and wrap out, but [the guard] blocked down so the hole opened".  It literally can't be said enough... Bosa is an NFL-ready guy out there playing against amateurs.  Bosa just steam-rolled PSU's RB right into Hackenberg.  The game literally couldn't have ended in a more perfect way.  Urban Meyer said it best, "For how good of a player Joey Bosa is, you expect him to make a play to go win the game, and that's what he did."

Interesting Notes:

• Urban Meyer is now 7-0 in his career in overtime games, 3-0 at Ohio State.
• Total (Net) Yards Passing / Rushing
• Passing:
• Ohio State: 74 yds
• Penn State: 224 yds
• Rushing:
• Ohio State: 219 yds
• Penn State: 16 yds
• J.T. Barrett only threw for 74 passing yards (this is very alarming to me; granted the PSU defense was staunch all night, but this is unacceptable)
• Tackle Leaders:
• Josh Perry: 18 tackles (2 tackles for loss)
• Tyvis Powell: 7 tackles (1 INT)
• Joey Bosa: 6 tackles (2.5 sacks)
• Darron Lee: 5 tackles (1.5 sacks)
• Curtis Grant: 4 tackles
• The Buckeyes were penalized 8 times for 70 yards.  Gotta cut that down in half.  No way you're going to beat championship caliber teams by giving up 70 yards of free-yardage.
• Wide receiver Michael Thomas ( 1 rec 3 yds) and H-back Dontre Wilson (6 touches, 34 all-purpose yards) were largely non-factors.
• For the 1st time since the Va Tech loss, Ohio State's offensive line played against a team with talent on the defensive side of the ball.  Penn State pressured Barrett all night.  The O-Line gave up 3 sacks, but there was constant pressure all night.
• OSU Punter Cameron Johnston averaged 45.0 yards per punt and pinned Penn State inside their own 15 yard line on 4 different occasions (including 3 inside the 10).
• The Buckeyes had an AWFUL 4th Quarter (giving up 119 yards and only mustering 26 yards themselves).  While the Offense wasn't that great in the 2nd and 3rd Quarters, the Defense was (giving up only 12 yds in the 2nd Quarter and 11 yds in the 3rd Quarter)
• It's sad to know the Buckeyes blew a 17 pts lead, but it's worthy to note the Buckeyes faced their toughest environment so far (traveling to Happy Valley at night) and handled a hostile environment & weathered the storm the Nittany Lions presented.
• The Nittany Lions presented a much-needed reality check for the Buckeyes before the impending bout with the mighty Michigan State Spartans.
• Something to think about... without question, OSU's biggest challenges this season have been Va Teck (the lone loss) and now Penn State.  Interesting of note is, Va Tech played William & Mary before us (essentially a bye) and Penn State was coming off a bye.  Looking forward, MSU is on bye this week, and then face us in their first game back.  Hmmm....

Bonus Material:

Penn State taking it a little too far..

Evidently, PSU fans thought it would be a good idea to awake the sleeping giant... literally.  Several Buckeye players tweeted "Air horns outside our rooms at 4am" and "They disturbed my slumber last night".

Also... what are you doing there #26 sophomore LB for Penn State, Brandon Bell.  Is that an eye gouge you're going for there on our QB, J.T. Barrett?

Muck Fichigan...

Michigan is AWFUL.  We cannot lose to those bums.  I watched the Michigan State vs. Michigan game, and here's Devin Gardner's stat line... He attempted 24 passes (I did not count shovel-passes or screens, because let's face it, those aren't passes; rather they're extended hand-offs).  Of the 24 legitimate passes he attempted (i.e., passes greater than 3 or more yards past the line of scrimmage), 10 of them were to his boy Devin Funchess and 14 of them were to someone other than Funchess.  So that right there tells you Funchess is accounting for almost half of Gardner's down-field targets (i.e., guard/stop Devin Funchess, and you're likely to stop/beat Michigan).  Of the 10 targets to Funchess, only 4 of them were completed passes (granted, one of the incompletions was a defensive P.I. call); and of the 14 targets to someone not named Funchess, only 4 of those passes were completed.  That means your boy Gardner's passing percentage was a measly 33.3%.  #Atrocious.

Michigan has exactly 3 NFL players on their team. WR Devin Funchess, DE Frank Clark, and LB Jake Ryan (maybe, OT true-freshman Mason Cole, but the jury is still out on him as it's too early to say one way or the other).  Other than that, Michigan is a bunch of scrubs playing together trying to play something called "football".  Funchess (Jr), Flark (Sr), and Ryan (Sr) will not be back on the team next year.  Michigan is in some serious trouble next season, as who will be their playmakers when they already don't have any on this horrendous team.

Also, I think it was Chris Spielman who said it (maybe it was the other announcer), but the fact that the Michigan coaching staff keeps sticking with Devin Gardner says that they honestly believe Gardner gives them the best chance to win.  If that is the case, man... how awful must Shane Morris be?  Gardner has literally stunk up this entire season, and the fact that a coaching staff that is literally on their last leg hasn't looked to 'switch it up' tells you all you need to know about Morris... That kid is simply not ready.  Michigan is a complete, utter mess right now (And this guy is loving EVERY second of it.).