Better late than never recap of Saturday’s game against the Indiana Hoosiers.
Let’s look at how some of our predictions came out:
First, the numbers. The Buckeyes were dominant in pretty much every facet of the game. The Final Score: 33-14 looks much closer than it ever was. The Buckeyes left at least 13 points on the table, maybe more. Bizzaro Aaron Petrey missed a couple more chip shots, which is weird. Doesn’t Ryan Pretorius have another year or two of eligibility? Anyway, the game was never in doubt and the Buckeyes looked to be firing on most, if not all, cylinders this game. [Commenter Mike called this one the closest (sorry there’s no prize this week, Mike, but check back next week!)]
Next we asked: Does Ohio State pitch its third shut-out? It may have been a forgone conclusion that Indiana was going to point some points on the board. They may not be the strongest team in the Big Ten, but they weren’t going to let the Buckeyes blow them off the field. The Buckeyes Defense was monster again. That front four has become an impenetrable wall with the softest hands in the conference. It’s terrible to see Dexter Larimore go down, but Tressel can just plug the next COG into the machine and watch it continue to grind opposing running backs to a pulp.
We’ll get to more numbers on the defense, but for now we’ll just say that we’ll take a game where we only allow two touchdowns. Especially if one is scored with six seconds left in the game (see also: GAR-BAJ time). [Commenter DaveM got the two TD prediction correct for this one.]
Does Ohio State have a 100 yard rusher this week? I guess this was a gimme. With Boom Herron on the bench, it was clear that Saine’s workload was going to increase. I think it was clear that up to this point, Saine has been on the brink of busting out. We’ve seen flashes, and now those flashes are becoming one giant bright spot.
Saine’s line looked nice: 17 carries, 113 yards, 6.6, 0, 30 long. I’d like to see that 0 TD change but otherwise there isn’t much to complain about here, especially because he basically disappeared during the second quarter. Saine’s vision is improving and his cut backs and bouncing it outside are playing to his speed. Throw in his soft hands and he’s turning into a well rounded option.
Most people thought Saine would obtain the 100 yard game, but some thought Terrelle would hit it as well. He did account for 101 yards of positive rushing, but a couple sacks hurt his total overall. Nevertheless, he still made some jaw-dropping plays where he turned short gains into gashing first-down earners. Jason pointed this out rather nicely.
Finally, back to the defense. Would the give up over or under 350 yards? Most people thought we’d hold them under 350, but I honestly didn’t think it would be over an hundred yards under the 350 mark.
But the numbers don’t lie. You hold Indiana to 0.7 yards a carry rushing? That’s STOUT. After slashing through the LOLverines defense for almost 200 yards the week before, I thought they’d have a little success against The Defense, but: DANG. Even the 210 yards passing is acceptable, all things considered.
Another crazy defense stat? “OSU has 8 INTs by 8 different defenders….and none by a cornerback! — 2 by DL, 3 by LBs, 3 by safeties” (h/t Ken Gordon) That’s spreading the defensive nastiness around. Let’s get into the party, Cornerbacks!
A couple more items. I am unashamedly in love with passing to the FB. He’s a glorified guard for 95% of the plays his in on, so throw the dog a bone. I loved the pass to Zach Boren in the Red Zone. Now, that being said, if Zach wants to continue to see the ball, he needs to block on a more consitent basis. He’ll get his passes when he blows up some Linebackers.
Let’s also talk about the Duron Carter hit: I love me some wide receivers that are willing to stick their nose in there and throw a block. I want this to continue. Jason from 11W directed me to this video, which shows that we may see this for years to come from Duron.
Bring on Bucky Badger!
Am I the only one who thought it was bushleague that thier coach took a timeout with 6 secs left to try and score a TD?
Maybe it is just me but that is as bad as running up the score with 6 seconds left.
I kinda love the IU coach.
He seems totally insane.
He was just trying to get his boys some confidence against a quality defense.
Plus, with about 5 minutes left, OSU was doing nothing BUT throwing the ball until Pryor was picked off in the endzone.
I don’t have a problem with any of it. It’s a 60 minute contest and you play until the whistle blows.
IU never gave up.
@SYR – I wasn’t a fan about the last TO for a touchdown. Totally just as bad as running up the score.
@Kade – You do play until the whistle blows, but what is a score with 6 seconds left, other than a stat-padding, sissy move? Take your beating like men.