Yes, dear, there actually is a common opponent between OSU and Kent State – the Akron Zips.

The tables include the following ‘important’ stats: total points (Pts), total yards (Yds), total first downs (Dwns), and turnovers (TOs); for each team and its opponent (Opp).

Table 1: Kent State

Table 2: Ohio State

Notes:
You see, this is what’s awesome about comparing apples to apples. Look at how the OSU and Kent State offenses performed against the Akron defense… their numbers are almost identical. Interesting.

As for the two points the Buckeyes gave up? I feel a jaunty haiku coming on:

Tell us what you think. (About the numbers, not the poetry.)

Each week from now until the end of the season, we’ll be publishing a couple of tables that show relevant statistics between the common opponents of OSU and their next foe.

At first, the tables will be thin. (As of now, OSU and Purdue only have one common opponent, hence why the data in each row is identical). As the season goes on, however, the data will become more comprehensive.

Like last year, we’ve only included the following ‘important’ stats: total points (Pts), total yards (Yds), total first downs (Dwns), and turnovers (TOs); for each team and its opponent (Opp).

Table 1: Purdue

Table 2: Ohio State

Notes:
With only one common opponent between the two teams, it’s hard to draw conclusions. Still, OSU’s defensive numbers are better across the board, keeping the Gophers’ offense to ten fewer first downs and just over half the yardage that Purdue allowed. (Note: two of Minnesota’s four TOs were “on downs.”) The number that stands out the strongest is in points allowed – Purdue’s 31 to OSU’s 7.

Offensively, note that Purdue scored more (45 pts) with a similar amount of offensive production (yardage-wise) as the Bucks had. This suggests that Purdue’s offense was moving the ball easier than the Bucks’ offense was. However, this should be taken with a grain of salt: the two coaches ran very different offensive schemes. Tiller depended on the pass (338 passing, 166 rushing), where Tressel used the run (209 passing, 250 rushing). One of the problems in using only one set of data points, I guess.

That’s enough analysis from me. This is meant to generate discussion, not be a MotSaG lecture/opinion post, so please share your two cents in the comments.

That jarring, crashing, concussive rumble you heard over the weekend was nothing more than the construction work being done by the CFB voters as they wrenched all the teams in the top ten into new positions.

Quietly hidden in the cacophony, however, is a little nugget that has gone largely unnoticed:

We all know the obvious question, here.

So who was it? Bielima? Brewster? Spurrier, perhaps motivated to atone for his boneheadedness last week?

I wonder if it was Ty Willingham. Washington played against OSU and USC just two weeks apart. Maybe his team’s near-upset and 24-point performance against USC convinced him that OSU was playing better ball, and motivated him to pull his vote from Carroll and give it to the Sweatervest. That wouldn’t explain where Cal and LSU fit into his rankings, however.

What do you think?

Welcome to the Open Thread of week 5, where the Buckeyes will meet the Gophers in the Metrodome for the last time.

Minnesota has been its own worst enemy this season. Of the eleven teams in the Big Ten, ten of them have turnover margins ranging from plus 5 to minus 3. The eleventh, Minnesota, has a margin of minus 12. The Gophers also lead the conference in penalties. And defense, you ask? Let’s put it this way: as bad as Northwestern’s D looked against the Buckeyes last week, Minnesota’s is even worse, across the board.

However, no one is quite sure how good Minnesota’s offense could be if it didn’t turn the ball over so often. They run a spread offense, and are a second-half team (the Gopher offense has outscored opponents 111-62 in the second half this season). They play with a nothing-to-lose mentality until the final whistle. Clearly, this is a team that the Buckeyes must score a lot of points on early.

In short, though, this should be a easy tune-up game for the Buckeyes, and give them an opportunity to practice some “away-game-at-night” skills for the real competition coming up in the next month or so.

Enough analysis – the Gophers don’t deserve it. If you still crave analysis, head to BP or 11W.

This week’s questions for the MotSaG crew:

• Final Score?
• # of total TOs earned (or caused by) the Little Animal?
• Do you prefer kittens, or puppies?
• What side of the spoonage with V. Gholston would you prefer? (Acceptable answers are Spoon or Spooned By.)

sportsMonkey
Final score: OSU, 50-13 with close to 600 yards of offense
Lil’ Animal TOs: 2
Kittens/Puppies: Puppies
Spoonage: Hmmm… Tough one. I guess “Spoon.” That way I could leave if it got weird. Otherwise I’m locked in a crushing Gholston snuggle singularity from which light can’t even escape.

Sylvester Yon-Rambo
Final score: OSU, 34-3 Buckeyes with 400 yards offense cause we play Tressel Ball which means great Field Posistion.
Lil’ Animal TOs: 1 Forced Fumble and 2 sacks. So 1 TO
Kittens/Puppies: Puppies for sure……Kittens SUCK
Spoonage: This is an easy one for me I want to be spooned by ARMS. I want him to whisper sweet nothings to me about Buckeye victories and killing people with his Biceps. I want also see on a side note……VG SPOONING Little Animal……while his dad is in the background in full face paint talking about thier spooning posistions………I think I have said to much about my dreams.

el Kaiser
Final score: OSU, 48-0 with at least 500 yards of offense. I doubted the Buckeye firepower last week, but not this time. D pitches a shutout.
Lil’ Animal TOs: I’m going with 2 as well, but one he takes to the house.
Kittens/Puppies: Kittens all the way. I hate those cute little dogs with their floppy ears and the wet noses. They can bite it!
Spoonage: I’m going to abstain from the spooning question. I feel it’s time to inject some testosterone back into MotSaG.

Welcome to the Open Thread of week 4, with your Buckeyes starting Big Ten competition against the Wildcats.

As usual, we won’t re-hash the excellent game previews already posted by Buckeye Planet and Eleven Warriors.

Discussion
Yeah, yeah, “NW lost to Duke last week, so OSU will beat them by 432 points.” Uh, probably not, and here are a few reasons why:

• First, when you hit bottom, you tend to bounce. It’s an old rule-of-thumb that teams that are surprised with unexpected losses to inferior competition often come out swinging the following week.
• Second, it’s the Big Ten opener for both teams. How teams play in preseason is totally different than how they play against conference opponents.
• Third, two words: Tyrell Sutton. NW didn’t have the injured first-stringer available last week, and if they had, they’d be 3-0 just like the Buckeyes. Sutton’s one of the better RBs in the Big Ten, he’s a leader for the team, and he’ll be in the ‘Shoe this weekend.

Of course, none of this means that NW will earn the victory, but any who expect it to be a cakewalk based on NW’s performance against Duke are mistaken. Pat Fitzgerald is doing a fine job in steadily increasing his team’s respectability.

Questions for the MotSaG crew (and as usual, feel free to chime in with a comment):

• Final score?
• How many rushing yards will OSU’s D allow (+/- 100)?
• How many pushups did players on the OSU special teams have to do this week to pay for last week’s breakdowns?
• Will we see Brandon Saine (#3 RB) sent into the game before Mo Wells (#2 RB) this week?

sportsMonkey:
Score: OSU, 34-6.
Rushing yards: Under, ~45. (Sutton will earn perhaps 75, but sacks & TFLs will reduce NW’s total).
Pushups: 500 (100 extra per day). Thou shalt not undermine the central strategy of Tresselball.
Saine moves up on depth chart: Too early in the season for Tressel to violate his own hierarchical tendencies, especially for the first conference game of the season. Saine will have to keep up his level for a few more weeks before he moves ahead of Mo. I still think he scores another TD, though.

el Kaiser:
Score: OSU, 41-3. I underestimated the offense last week. Not this time.
Rushing yards: Under, 70 or so. This D is too stout against the run.
Pushups: I already mentioned the long snapping woes. I think the special teams are still doing pushups as we speak.
Saine moves up on depth chart: Depth chart, Smepth fart. They are meaningless trifles that lesser coaches resort to when they lack a backbone. Tressel will insert the best player for the situation. Saine is a better running back that Wells, period. I love Mo Wells and I appreciate what he’s done, but he is one-dimensional. Saine is the real deal and the one-two punch of Beanie and Brandon is sick.