The end is nigh.

At least that’s what a lot of people would sure like you to believe. Yes, we saw the game. Yes, it was A LOT closer than it should have been. Yes, Navy is a good team that went to a Bowl Game last year and will go to one this year. But some of the concern Buckeye fans are feeling may not necessarily be so.

First and foremost — that thing that might be called fate or destiny or things don’t always go your way:

Had this been called, the Buckeyes are in the red zone and most likely score. The score is no longer suddenly close. It’s 36-14 with about six minutes to go. The Buckeyes cruise, cover the spread and take care of business. Instead, we turn Ricky Dobbs into David and almost catch a slingshot to the forehead. Luckily, we have our Goliath, one Brian Rolle. Order is temporarily restored until chaos breaks out in Buckeye Nation. Doubts are sown, fingers are pointed and “Oh NO, we suck again!”.

I’m not saying things are rosy. I’ve been a glass-mostly full kinda-guy for a long time. But things are not perfect. But let’s do a little Navy game recap and then leave it in the rear-view mirror.

A few Silver Bullet points:

• Line play: was it that bad? I am in the camp that thinks the line still has issues. I need to go back and watch the game again, but outside of Boren, I wasn’t impressed. Browning looks tentative, Brewster missed assignments and the full backs (who are, for the most part, a sixth lineman) looked confused. In the camp of “it isn’t that bad” is Jeff Amey at The-Ozone. Solid points, but I’m not sold.
• Linebackers: Brian Rolle and Ross Homan played good, if not completely consistent. Rolle is a spark-plug that is going to be fun to watch and Homan played solid. On the other hand, the Austin Spitler did not impress with his performance against Navy. When you look slow against Navy, that’s a very bad thing. The thought of him keeping up with USC’s backs is already giving me nightmares. How about working in a little Eighty-yen?
• Defensive Backs: If Homan gives me nightmares, the DBs are apocalyptic visions of DOOM. Kurt Coleman started out slow, was taking bad angles and was out of place, but ended the game with some nice plays. Anderson, rightfully so, has taken the brunt of the blame for the 85 yard Dobbs pass and lacking in the run support department. This game may cost him playing time, as word out of practice is that Jermale Hines is working with the first team. Chekwa and Amos let Navy WRs beat them, which is nigh unacceptable.
• The Rest of the Offense: It warmed my cold, dead heart to no end to see Saine healthy and running hard. Others have said he seemed to avoid contact, but I didn’t see it. Herron looked a little tentative, but still has a motor. Pryor gets a B+ for his effort. Most of his passes looked okay, but they are still floating occasionally and his footwork still has room for improvement.

I could go on, but others have covered this ground. Preparations are already in full-effect for USC, but things need to improve drastically before Saturday. No “chilling out” this week.

We’re trying something new this season for our gameday live blogs. We normally do a somewhat live, but not really live, blog during the games, with the comments open for all who want to join in. This week, we’re trying out the live blogging widget, Cover it Live, with some of our fellow live bloggers. This is a trail run, to see how it goes for the remainder for the season. We’re still leaving the comments open for all to use. Let us know what you prefer. You’ll find the CiL widget below.

Update: Standby, currently struggling with technical difficulties.

Update 2: If we can’t get the widget working, we’ll revert to the open thread format.

Update 3: TA-DA:

FINALLY! It felt like this day would never get here, where we were sat less than twenty-four hours until kick-off.

Because I wore myself out writing last night, I’m making this one short. For starters, let’s look around the Buckeye web for previews: The O-Zone, Buckeye Commentary, Buckeye Planet, and our good pals at Eleven Warriors.

A few bullet points:

• Starting against Navy seems like a double edged sword. On one hand, the defense should learn discipline and assignments. On the other hand, we’ll never see an offense like this again
• Everyone is talking about it: the chop-block technique vital to the triple option attack. The makes it imperative that the offense get on the board early and often. Let the back-ups take the punishment. Someone is going to get hurt. This seems inevitable. The possibility makes me nervous.
• Playing the run so much this week may pay off dividends for next week’s game against USC, since they may have to rely heavily on the run to take the burden off freshman Matt Barkley (if he is still the starter in week two).
• Plenty of players should see the field this week. I’m looking forward to seeing the future of the Buckeyes in the third and fourth quarters.

Predictions

As we’ve done in the past, we plan on awarding prizes. Unfortunately they aren’t quite ready, so this week will be a warm up for the rest of the season. This week we’ve got three questions:

• Final Score
• Can the Buckeyes hold the triple-option attack to under 178 yards? How many yards do they give up?
• Name one newcomer (non-starter from last year) to have the biggest impact on the game.

el Kaiser’s predictions
Final score: OSU 38 Navy 10
Rush defense: Yes, 159 yards
Newcomer: Brain Rolle

Sylvester Yon-Rambo’s predictions
Final score: OSU 52 Navy 3
Rush defense: Yes, 87 yards
Newcomer: Justin Boren

sportsMonkey’s predictions
Final score: OSU 27, Navy 13
Rush defense: Yes, 175 yards
Newcomer: Berry

With the offensive preview out of the way, let’s take a quick (read: short) look at the defensive unit that we’ll see during the 2009 season. In the manner of the previous post, we’ll look at what we know and what we don’t. Dreams and fears. Lots to talk about. Let’s get to it.

What we know

We can safely say that Ohio State will always field a formidable defense. Occasionally, we’ll get a defense that is dominating. This year, I think as this front seven develops as a unit, we’ll be leaning toward the latter.

We know we’ll be fronting some manimals on the defensive line. Maximus and Hammerhead at the ends, Worthington and Larimore in the middle and a bevy of guys to rotate in: Rose, Wilson, Denlinger. Scary. Will the illustrious College Football Gods please give us one healthy year of Lawrence Wilson? You didn’t smile on Beanie last year. How about a mulligan?

We’ll discuss the linebackers in the next section, but I do know this: I can’t wait to see Brian Rolle play. I honestly fear for opposing teams, as I think he may actually kill someone.

The defensive backfield is also a source of unknowns, but we should have a measure of security knowing Anderson Russel and Kurt Coleman will be patroling the middle of the field quite well. I don’t think there’s a lot to be worried there.

What we don’t know

The cornerback position. Chimdi Chekwa is the only CB will extended play experience. Andre Amos and Devon Torrence are battling for the other CB position. Amos has been tagged as the starter for the Navy game, but Torrence will push for playing time. Redshirt freshman Travis Howard could see some play time. I also hope (and expect) we get heavy doses of Jermale Hines. Not only does the defense suffer when he isn’t in there, it’s we fans who suffer.

Then there’s the linebackers. The future there has been cloudy since earlier this month when Tyler Moeller was lost for the season. We were all planning on seeing Tyler everywhere on defense. Now, we’ve got three relatively new faces with a whole lot of potential and not a whole lot of playing time. Spitler and Homan have seen a lot of the field, but playing behind Little Animal and Marcus Freeman will have an effect on your playing time.

So who will be the break out linebacker? My money is behind Brian Rolle, but I’m waiting for Etienne Sabino to show us something and Dorian Bell has a lot of people buzzed, if he sees the field. But what I’ve seen and heard of Rolle, the guy has a one-track mind and a one-speed gearbox: full speed.

What we fear

I personally fear I’m overestimating the team on the defensive side of the ball. A lot of people are saying this front four is one of the best in the country. I’m inclined to believe the same. But I have this nagging doubt that it won’t turn out that way. Injury or overconfidence or youthful mistakes. I hope we can avoid this while these kids grow up.

I mentioned it in the offensive preview, and I’ll say it again here: My psyche can’t take another really bad game with everyone watching. I try my best to avoid what others say about my beloved Buckeyes, but I can only ignore so much. One big game, say, against USC would go a long way in rebuilding that eroding OSU aura.

What we hope

This one is easy:

Mongol General Tressel: Wrong! Thaddeus, what is best in life?
Thaddeus: To crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and to hear the lamentation of the women!
Mongol General Tressel: That is good.

To the pain!

With a scant couple of days before the season, I think we have a pretty good idea of who will be on the field and what we can expect to see out of the 2009 offense. We know who the movers and shakers are. But there’s more to it than that. Big holes are still gaping since last season. Let’s take a look at what we know, what we don’t know and that great unknown.

What we know

Let’s get the obvious out of the way first. We know we have one of the most electrifying talents at quarterback this year. Terrelle Pryor will be one of the few steady positions going in this year. Pryor has, for all intents and purposes, a year of experience under his belt. He’s going to be fun to watch. We know that he will do that little shimmy-shake and make defenders look positively silly. But he’s got more going for him now than those purty little legs. He’s got the whole offense in his capable man-hands.

The offense is setting up to look a lot like the 2005 Buckeyes. Starting with a quarterback who is clearly in control of his team (even though that didn’t happen until the third or fourth week for Troy Smith). Also, said QB is athletic with the ability to give defenses nightmares. A smallish RB that had speed and just enough punch. A competent offensive line. Things are very similar between then and now. The only glaring difference would be the WRs. A tandem like Ted Ginn Jr. and Anthony Gonzalez only happens once and while. But give this group time, they most certainly could blossom. That is exciting to think about.

Reminiscing over. Moving on.

So we’re solid at QB. I think we can safely say we’re pretty solid at running back, too. Losing Beanie hurts like turf-toe, but I think Boom and Zoom are poised for big things. Boom Herron runs bigger than his stature would lead you to believe, and Saine has the speed and size to put a hurt on defenses. A steady dose of these two, with Berry and maybe even a little Jordan Hall will keep the pressure on defenses all season long.

Wide receivers has to be the most intriguing and exciting bunch. That may be more for the next section, but we do know that we’re still waiting for the bundle of potential, Ray Small, to wow us. Until then, we know Posey and Sazenbacher should give Terrelle some sure hands to throw to. What’s more exciting is what we don’t know about the new guys.

Let’s make this the understatement of the year: The line needs improvement. This we most certainly know. What looked like a promising class five years ago really turned out mostly rotten. The outgoing graduating linemen oversaw two of biggest embarrassments an Ohio State offensive line has ever experienced. We have questions and doubts here.

This offense, given good line play, should provide enough firepower to keep the Buckeyes in every game they play. According to Ken Gordon, the base offense this year will be 3 WRs, TE, one RB. Sometimes in shotgun, but not always. This is the future. Look for vanilla against Navy, with flavors being added every game.

What we don’t know

The unknowns. The question marks. Will the line improve? Where will that improvement come from? Is Tebow the Second Coming? Did Lou Holtz really say Notre Dame is a national championship team?

First, the line. The starting five for the Navy game has new faces and new positions. Browning, who struggled against quicker DEs now moves down to guard. Justin Boren, he of the nasty meanstreak, and Andrew Miller (who?) protect Pryor’s backside. This is not your four-years-older brother’s OSU line. How much improvement can we expect? Is any improvement a huge improvement?

What about those wide receivers? Right now, the most exciting unknown is Duron Carter. Word out of practice is that he has been moving up the depth chart, looking like the total receiver package, ahead of schedule.
Taurian Washington is another player we’re waiting to explode on the scene. We’ve seen the flashes. Now bring the full meal deal. And there is Lamaar Thomas, my sleeper pick for a break-out season. I know he finds himself down at the bottom of the depth chart, but I get excited anytime he touches the ball. I hope he gets his hands on the ball a whole lot.

Will Tressel open the playbook? Over the past four years, the Buckeye’s total offensive production was ranked nationally 32nd (2005), 26th (2006), 62nd (2007) and 76th (2008). For a team ranked in the top 10, a middle of the road offensive team is very unbecoming. I know the stats are hamstrung by Tressel’s inability to run the score up against anyone, but 400 yards a game should not be an unreasonable goal (200 pass, 200 run) which would rank a team in the top 35 (last year’s stats). In fact, I know this is one of The Vest’s stated goals for every game. Let’s see it happen. We have the means, let’s open that playbook.

A few glimpses of word coming out of practice make me think the playbook could, in fact, be opening. One mention in particular was the mention of throwing to the running backs more often. One of my favorite Buckeyes of all time was FB Matt Keller. Seeing him catch passes out of the backfield was a favorite play of mine. A fullback with a full head of steam and meatshields out in front? Could we see that happening again? Yes PLEASE.

What we fear

What everyone else fears: Injury. I honestly wrote, deleted, control-zeed and control-zeed again the following sentence: What will happen if Pryor goes down? Full-on depression? Rioting and pillaging? The arrival of 2012 a few years early? I don’t even want to consider the possibilities. But life has to go on. Let’s not dwell on that one.

Another thing I think every Buckeye fan fears is another debacle in front of a national audience. We’ve had enough, thanks. I think we’re set up okay for our marque games this year. But we are now conditioned to fear the worse. We don’t need another offensive bed-crapping like last year’s USC game. My mental status couldn’t take another hit like that.

What we hope

This may turn out to be more of “what we hope” for the whole team and for the season. There was talk today on the radio about “what defines a great/good season?” I believe we have the makings of a great season. Of course, I am a glass-half-full kind of guy. If you look at the two-deep for the offense, there are a lot of underclassmen on there. Terrelle Pryor and Boom Herron are sophomores. This is a young team. Long-term, this team is going to be good for the next few years. But what about this year? I think it’s fair to expect a lot from this team. Things are setting up nicely for them, as well. Another weak Big Ten schedule. A USC team that, as we’ll discuss later, has tons of excuses why they’ll lose to the Buckeyes next week. An eleven or twelve win season isn’t out of their reach this year. So yes, I hope this team pulls it off and plays well beyond everyone’s expectations.

I hope this offense blows the doors off some teams. I don’t want Urban Meyer levels of blow-outs, but I’d like to see some points scored this year.

We all hope Terrelle shows up in the Heisman talks. We want to see him become the dominant player in the country and we all want him to take the mantle of leadership and lead the Buckeyes to the promise land!

So that’s what we think. What about you? What do you fear? What are your hopes for this team? What did we leave off or miss? We’d love to hear more.

As a follow up to sportsMonkey’s post on the Tyler Moeller situation, Bucknuts has the following statement from his parents.

What a crazy start to this football season. Let’s hope it’s smooth sailing from now on. We here at MotSaG join the chorus of well-wishers, hoping the best for Tyler and for his continued health and wellness.