National Championship: Game Balls

January 14, 2015 by Leave a Comment

Well I know it has been a few days since the game ended but I wanted time to digest the game and watch it several times before I made this post. I wish I could give Game balls to everyone but I will try to not do that lol. This truly felt like a total team win even though a few guys stood out it was a matter of everyone doing their job. So lets get started.

OFFENSE

Ezekiel Elliott- It would be impossible to do this post and not mention Zeke. 36 carries for 246 yards and 4 TDs. He beat Oregon all by himself and instantly made himself a Heisman candidate and top NFL draft pick when he leaves.

The blockers- Sure it would be easy to say the Oline here they were dominant but this offense is based on EVERYONE blocking from the OL, TEs, WRs, RBs, and even QB. They all did an amazing job and deserve credit.

DEFENSE

Tyvis Powell- Here is a guy that is a fan favorite because he truly is an OSU fan just like all of us. He makes big plays in big games and did that in the NCG as well. Led the team in tackles with 9.

Eli Apple- What he did on that TE td play to make it a non-td is one of the greatest play in the history of Ohio State. He had the awareness to push him out of bounds and save OSU several points. He also had 7 tackles, 1 INT, and 1 Pass Break up.

Run Defense- Much like blocking this is an entire unit process. Everyone is required to help stop the run and hit guys and fill gaps. OSU held Oregon to more than 100 yards less than their game average. This is why Oregon could not get their offense going and why OSU won easily.

INTANGIBLES

The Fans- What can you say I dont care what ESPN tried to say with their 70% OSU fans at Jerry’s World. If it was less than 90% OSU fans I would be shocked. It was a home game and you could feel the energy. The team felt it for sure.

The Parents- It is time to recognize how important it is to have an involved Parents Group for OSU. They do so much for the team and are very much involved in making OSU successful. Plus they are a powerful group getting the NCAA to change rules to allow parents to watch their kids win titles.

Luke Fickell- I have been a loud voice in support of Fickell for years now in a sea of angry Fire Fickell voices. It is time for those people to apologize. Coach Fickell did what he has the last 3 years call the Front 7 defense and help OSU win a lot of game. Chris Ash was brought in to fix the DBs and he did a masterful job. It is time for OSU fans to realize Fickell wasnt the problem Everett Withers was. Silver Bullets are back big time.

Filed Under: B1G Football, College Football, Ohio State Football

Ohio State Postseason Awards

January 14, 2015 by 1 Comment

National Champions!! What started off as what could have been a disaster of a season after Braxton Miller went down days before the Navy game and a 2 touchdown loss to Virginia Tech at home on September 6 has now ended with the Buckeyes being the Undisputed Number One team in the land. Wow. So now that this season is in the books (football is over- this sucks) it is time to take a look at which players and coaches were the best for at Ohio State this season.

Newcomer of the Year- Defense: Darron Lee

Darron Lee came out of nowhere this season and transformed into one of the leaders on that Silver Bullets defense. He was highly praised by his teammates during camp and lived up to that hype starting off with a fumble return for a touchdown in the opening game against Navy. He had the tall task of replacing Ryan Shazier (who is good enough to be a starter on the Steelers in his rookie season) and yet that defense didn’t skip a beat. An MVP performance in the Sugar Bowl shows the incredible potential the young man has in Columbus.

Newcomer of the Year- Offense: Ezekiel Elliott

ZEEEEEEEEEEEKE!! I cannot say enough for how well Ezekiel Elliott played this season. He rushed for the second most yards in a season in Ohio State history, trailing only the 1995 Heisman winner Eddie George. Number 15 ran for over 200 yards in his last 3 games while also going for 4 touchdowns in the title game against Oregon. He also turned Saban’s vaunted defense into rubble. I almost gave this to J.T. Barrett but he may or may not be getting a different award.

Play of the Year

Cardale takes the snap, flips it to Jalin Marshall who tosses it to Evan Spencer. Spencer sets up and throws it into the endzone to Michael Thomas for 6! This closed the gap to one in the Sugar Bowl against Alabama and changed the momentum of the game completely headed into the second half. My runner up would be Joey Bosa throwing Penn State’s running back into Christian Hackenberg to seal an overtime win in Happy Valley.

Buckeye in the NFL Rookie of the Year: Corey Linsley, Packers

A lot of the rookie Buckeyes in the NFL had a great year (seven started) but none meant more to their team than Corey Linsley did for the Packers. Being a center in the National Football League is tough enough but doing it as a rookie on a playoff team is unprecedented. Their first game of the season was against the defending champion Seahawks and he held his own (despite being taunted most of the game). Linsley has anchored that Packer line and has created a great relationship with Aaron Rodgers. He is now on his way to the NFC Championship game for a rematch with Seattle.

Coach of the Year: Ed Warinner, Offensive Line

This award could have gone to anyone (Tom Herman and Chris Ash were just as deserving) but Ed Warinner’s development of a young O-line takes the cake. All we heard at the start of the season was how the Buckeyes had to replace 4 out of 5 starters on the offensive line. Then after the Virginia Tech debacle we heard it even more that they were a work in progress. By season’s end (especially in the National Championship) the offense rode them to a dominating rushing attack by Zeke Elliott. What started as a weakness, ended in a strength and all the credit in the world goes to Ed Warinner.

Team MVP: Joe Thomas Barrett IV

After Braxton Miller went down, most of the country wrote off Ohio State as national and even Big Ten contenders. In stepped J.T. Barrett, a redshirt freshman from Rider High School in Wichita Falls, Texas. He became a Heisman Trophy contender after racking up 45 total touchdowns while breaking Ohio State and Big Ten records on the way (records held by Miller, Heisman Trophy Winner Troy Smith and Super Bowl Champion Drew Brees fell this season to Barrett). If it wasn’t for an ankle injury during the Michigan game, Barrett would have found himself in New York City for the Heisman presentation. But as the confetti fell to the turf of AT&T Stadium after the Buckeyes brought home Number Eight, make no mistake about it, it wouldn’t have been possible without the man wearing number 16 for the Scarlet and Gray. Scary thing is, he’s just getting started.

Filed Under: B1G Football, College Football, NFL, Ohio State Football

Four Star Athlete/Dual Threat 2017 Quarterback Bruce Judson Commits to Ohio State

January 13, 2015 by 1 Comment

Bruce Judson

While the Buckeyes were winning on the field Monday night against Oregon, they were also winning pretty big off the field. They received commitments from several top recruits and just added more talent to a team that is already overflowing with talent in almost every position. One of the recruits that committed to The Ohio State University was four star athlete/dual threat quarterback Bruce Judson. The 2017 recruit is from Cocoa, Florida and stands at 5’10”, weighs 170 pounds and runs a 40 yard time of 4.4. Although it’s quite early in his high school career, Judson is the fourth highest-rated player in the 2017 class in the state of Florida and 17th nationally in the 2017 class.

In the 2014 season he threw for 2,051 yards, 33 touchdowns and five interceptions. In the previous season, in 2013, he threw for 1,202 yards, 15 touchdowns and three interceptions while also rushing for 1,047 yards and 15 touchdowns. Judson announced his commitment to the Buckeyes on Twitter last night around midnight. I’m sure the Buckeyes winning a national title had a little influence on his decision.

Judson is the third commitment of Ohio State’s 2017 recruiting class. Here are his freshman highlights from 2013:

Below are his highlights for his sophomore year in 2014:

To see more of his highlights, click here.

Filed Under: College Football Recruiting, High School Football, Ohio State Football Tagged With:

Ohio State Players React on Twitter About Their Huge National Championship Victory

January 13, 2015 by Leave a Comment

What a huge victory for Ohio State football! I’m still buzzing over it and I don’t think I’m going to be able to wipe this huge smile off of my face for several days. I’m just a fan, so the amount of excitement the players and coaches must be feeling right now is unimaginable. Several of the players and coaches took to Twitter to express their joy of vanquishing the Oregon Ducks to reclaim Ohio State’s spot as the best in college football.

We’ll start off with King Cardale Jones, who in my opinion had the best reaction:

Ezekiel Elliott, who had one of the best performances I’ve ever seen in a national championship game with his 36 rushes for 246 yards and four touchdowns.

He also had one of the best post game pictures.

Darron Lee, who has been one of the best defensive players for the Buckeyes all year.

The great Joey Bosa, who was at a loss of words.

Offensive lineman and one of the “big slobs,” Patrick Elflein.

The always entertaining Michael Bennett with a classy and humble reaction.

Eli Apple, who made a huge late game play knocking an Oregon tight end out of bounds to prevent a touchdown.

Tyvis Powell, who has had a great year and was one of the big catalysts that helped turn the secondary around from last year.

Backup quarterback Stephen Collier with a message to everyone who doubted Ohio State.

The other great Ohio State quarterback JT Barrett has a new nickname.

Taylor Decker, another big slop on the offensive line, with a poetic reaction.

Vonn Bell, who had a great game last night with his reaction on Instagram.

http://instagram.com/p/xyQaxqmpPw/

Everybody’s favorite Australian punter, Cameron Johnston thanking his family for helping reach this goal.

Tommy Schutt, with his teammates celebrating the win in the locker room.

http://instagram.com/p/xyJCP4KuBA/

Co-defensive coordinator Chris Ash celebrating with his family.

The never calm and always excited Kerry Coombs also celebrating with his family.

Larry Johnson Sr., who got a lot of flack when he left Penn State. The Buckeyes gave him something the Nittany Lions never did.

Mark Pantoni. Boom!

Ed Warriner, who deserves a ton of praise for turning the offensive line into one of the best in the country. The Big Slobs were absolutely phenomenal in the playoffs.

And last, but not least the fearless leader of Buckeye Nation, Urban Meyer, who hoisted his third national championship last night. Without a doubt one of the greatest college football coaches of all-time.

Filed Under: Ohio State Football Tagged With:

Buckeyes getting new Offensive Coordinator

January 13, 2015 by Leave a Comment

Fresh off the beating of the Oregon Ducks last night Ohio State officially lost one of their co-offensive coordinators. The well publicized news that Tom Herman accepted the head coaching job at Houston and after the win last night he was seen wearing a Houston hat while celebrating. Many were wondering who would fill the void left by his departure. While this isn’t officially announced by the school but expected very soon according to different sources. Tim Beck former offensive coordinator from Nebraska will be the man. ESPN’s Joe Schad reported that his source informed him this was the case days ago.

WOWT Channel 6 out of Omaha Nebraska had reported this Sunday night:

A person familiar with the deal tells The Associated Press that former Nebraska offensive coordinator Tim Beck will be hired by Ohio State to replace Tom Herman, who is becoming the head coach at Houston.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal was not to be announced until after Ohio State played Oregon on Monday night in the College Football Playoff national championship game.

Tim Beck will be the Co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. He was will Nebraska since 2008 and had worked with current co-offensive coordinator Ed Warinner at Kansas in 2007

Beck also has strong recruiting ties to the state of Texas which will become even bigger now going against Herman and Charlie Strong the head coach at Texas.

Filed Under: Ohio State Football

Buckeyes Dominate the Ducks, Win Inaugural College Football Playoff Championship 42-20

January 13, 2015 by Leave a Comment

ezmode

Ohio State has just completed the most improbable three-game stretch in recent history. Cardale Jones and Ezekiel Elliot came into their own in the B1G Championship game, got comfortable running all over the vaunted Alabama Defense and just shut down the even more vaunted Oregon Offense.

Outside of the first drive, Oregon’s fast up-tempo offense was more or less stymied time and time again. Even with four turnovers, Oregon was never able to grab the momentum, was never able to get in rhythm and was just out-physicalled by Ohio State’s defense.

Ohio State was able to move the ball on Oregon’s defense at will but with fumbles and interceptions, they weren’t able to pull away.

After giving the ball up in the red zone in the third quarter, Oregon had a chance to take the lead with a score and possibly take control of the game. Ohio State’s defense stepped up to the task and held them to a field goal and got the ball back, clinging to a sliver of a lead, 21-20. Fans were begging to just feed the Zeke.

Which is just what they did. Elliot got 7 touches (6 carries and one reception) and they straight-man balled the Oregon defense right down the field to take the lead, 28-20 and never let go of that lead for the rest of the game.

No lead is safe, of course, against Oregon but they weren’t able to move the ball. Cardale Jones then drove Ohio State another 70 yards for a back-breaking two touchdown lead, 35-20.

Oregon would come up short again, turning the ball over on downs at their own 14 yard line. Six plays later, Elliot punched it in for game sealing score, 42-20, and that was all she wrote.

Oregon is a good football team. A great one, maybe. In the end, though, they simply did not have the physicality and depth Ohio State was able to throw at them. They struggled to get any flow and rhythm, which is of utmost importance for their success. Ohio State just outplayed them.

So hats of to one of the greatest seasons of Ohio State football. Through adversity, tragedy and early disappointment, they stuck together, allowed themselves to be coached and got better every week and finished the season as strong as ever.

Congratulations to Urban Meyer, the 2014 Ohio State Football Team and Buckeye Fans everywhere!

GO BUCKS!!!!!

Filed Under: Ohio State Football

Which CFB Team Is The Most Valuable?

January 12, 2015 by Leave a Comment

According the a new Wall Street Journal Report is is The Ohio State University. Here is a snippet of what they had to say….

Even before the national-title game kicked off Monday night, Ohio State was already the champion of college football in one aspect: at the bank.

The Ohio State program is now worth more than $1.1 billion, the largest figure in the nation, according to an annual study. The Buckeyes have dethroned Texas, which had held the top spot for three straight years in the annual valuation by Ryan Brewer, an assistant professor of finance at Indiana University-Purdue University Columbus.

You can read the entire rankings here….

Filed Under: Ohio State Football

Buckeyes Land A Big Time Recruit

January 12, 2015 by Leave a Comment

I know what you are thinking today is kind of a big day for Ohio State as they prepare to play for the National Championship tonight. How could today get any better? Well The Buckeyes just landed one of the top players in the country for the 2017 class.

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Shaun Wade is a 6’3″ 175 lbs 4 star Cornerback from Jacksonville, Florida. Shaun checks in as the 14th best recruit in the country and the #3 player in Florida and #2 CB in the nation. Shaun is a pure athlete who thrives not only on the field but on the court as well. He is young just finished his Freshman year of HS but already has a major name and will continue to grow. This is a huge pick up for the Buckeyes and hopefully just the icing on the cake for today.

Filed Under: Ohio State Football

Head Coach match-up: Urban Meyer & Mark Helfrich

January 12, 2015 by Leave a Comment

As we inch closer and closer to the inaugural College Football Playoff National Championship in Arlington, Texas on Monday, January 12th, all the talk is about the players and their match-ups on the field. Rightfully so, the players are the ones that will decide the outcome on Monday night at AT&T Stadium. With that being said, Urban Meyer and Mark Helfrich are the architects of both of these great football teams. Both have reached this point in different ways, but they’ve both done it with one thing in common – it’s been on their terms.

Both Meyer and Helfrich are coaching at their home state’s premier institutions. Meyer was born in Toledo, Ohio and Helfrich was born in Coos Bay, Oregon. They both played college football in their home state as well. Meyer played at Cincinnati and Helfrich at Southern Oregon. Both guys understand what it means to their home states when their programs are at the pinnacle of college football. Ohio State is one of the true blue bloods of college football with a rich tradition and 7 national championships to its credit. Oregon is a newcomer to the elite scene of college football. They’ve been building to this moment for the past few decades and appeared in their only national championship a few years ago when they were defeated by Heisman Trophy winner Cam Newton and the Auburn Tigers.

While Oregon is the favorite to win the game according to Vegas (-6 as of Saturday morning), the coaching match-up advantage has to go to Urban Meyer and the Buckeyes. That’s not to diminish Helfrich’s ability, but Meyer has won 2 National Championships (Florida – 2006, 2008), and has a career record of 141 – 26 (.844) including a 37 – 3 (.925) mark at Ohio State and an 8 – 2 (.800) record in bowl games including Ohio State’s 42-35 victory over Alabama in this year’s Sugar Bowl. Helfrich is less experienced, as he’s only in his second season as a head coach at any level. He’s proving he belongs at this level though with a record of 24 – 3 with a 2 – 0 bowl record including his dominating victory over defending champion Florida State Seminoles in the Rose Bowl.

Both guys are also known as offensive head coaches. Both run spread attacks and love getting their athletes out in space in one-on-one opportunities. Don’t be fooled though, both understand the importance of running the ball and what it means for their offenses long term success. Royce Freeman leads Oregon in rushing with 1,343 yards and 18 TD’s while Ezekiel Elliott leads Ohio State in rushing with 1,632 yards and 14 TD’s. Both offenses average over 500 yards per game and 7 yards per play. So it’ll be interesting to see if either defense can slow down the opposing offense at all. Whether it be with turnovers or excellent execution.

Another interesting side note is the familiarity between Urban Meyer and the Oregon program. During Meyer’s year off working for ESPN, he went out to Eugene 2 or 3 times to study the program and hang out with then Head Coach Chip Kelly. Over his tenure at Ohio State, Meyer has mentioned Oregon and how they go about their business. It’s not just about scheme and X’s and O’s, but he mentions how Oregon’s whole program is “aligned” from players to coaches to administration staff and even the student body. Without a doubt, both programs and head coaches’ respect one another. Both are class acts and represent their programs and home states with dignity and class. The first ever College Football Playoff National Championship should be one to remember. Helfrich hopes to bring home Oregon’s first ever national championship in this new era of college football while Meyer hopes to bring home his third and Ohio State’s 8th. Guess we’ll have to wait until Monday night – which by the way can’t get here soon enough.

College Football Playoff National Championship – Ohio State vs. Oregon

Monday, January 12th, 8:30pm EST

AT&T Stadium, Arlington, TX

Filed Under: B1G Football, College Football, Ohio State Football

Bucks and Ducks the Position Comparison

January 11, 2015 by Leave a Comment

I guess we can make this position comparison breakdown really simple. Listening to the national media Oregon rocks and Ohio State is just lucky they got there. I have stopped listening to all their garbage especially when I hear many say Oregon has a better defense than Ohio State. When you sit down and break down all the statistics and the opponents each play you come out with one common denominator, Oregon and Ohio State match up very evenly and even the Buckeyes have an edge in many areas. As Tony has shown in his By the Numbers post you can see where the Buckeyes hold an edge. Without further ado lets break this down as best as we can shall we.

Quarterbacks

Ohio State has Cardale Jones who has played in 9 games this season but only 2 of them as the starter. The Big Ten Championship and the Sugar Bowl where he helped propel his team to wins in both and the biggest games of the season to date. Going 30 of 52 (58 percent) on his passing attempts and throwing for 500 yards and 4 TD’s with only 1 INT isn’t to shabby for a back-up on such a huge stage. Yes I said back-up because I refuse to call Jones a third string quarterback since he came into fall camp second on depth chart. When Braxton Miller went down J.T. Barrett jumped him to be the starter leaving him as the second string (see what I did there).

Oregon has some guy named Marcus Mariota. He has collected some massive hardware for his play this season and deservedly so. Winner of the Davey O’Brien, Maxwell, and Walter Camp Awards along with some minor trophy called the Heisman. No need to break down this guys stats right.

Advantage: Oregon

Rushing

I could break this down to just running backs but lets face it both the Bucks and Ducks have rushing quarterbacks so they have to figure into the equation right.

Ohio State is lead by the workhorse of Ezekiel Elliott who only has rushed for 1632 yards this season and became the very first back to gash Nick Saban’s Tide for over 200 yards in the Sugar Bowl. Cardale Jones averages 5 yards a carry which seriously is it fair all he has to do is fall forward to gain that because the kid is so tall and strong? The Buckeyes have a stable of other backs like Curtis Samuel who is averaging 6.6 yards a carry, Jalin Marshall (6.2 ypg), and a fresh leg kid named Dontre Wilson (5.6 ypg)

Oregon also has a sable of running backs and they primarily use a two headed monster of Royce Freeman (5.5 ypg) and Thomas Tyler (5.1 ypg). Both have rushed for 1343 and 511 yards respectfully. That award winning quarterback guy I mentioned earlier he only averages a measly 5.8 ypg. The Ducks will be without one of their running backs due to suspension Ayele Ford which isn’t a huge lose since he only has 3 carries for the year.

Advantage: Ohio State (Zeke’s shoes are on fire)

Offensive Line

I’m not going to break this down with all the names of the lineman or stats of sacks given up, penalties and all that.

Ohio State has had a remarkable turnaround from the beginning of the season with only one returning starter on that line. Credit co-offensive coordinator Ed Warinner and the players for buying in and working extremely and become a very good unit.

Oregon has probably one of the best if not the best offensive lines in the country. Having had to deal with injuries all season and it might have actually cost them a game with key lineman out against their first match up against Arizona.

Advantage: Oregon (Buckeyes pulling very close though)

Receivers

This has to be the best receiver corp in recent memory for the Buckeyes. Lead by Devon “Big Play” Smith (27.7 ypg) and Michael Thomas (14.9 ypg). Then you have the “H” back players in Marshall (13.5 ypg) and Wilson (14.3 ypg) and lets not discount the tight ends that in my opinion aren’t used enough Nick Vannett (12.4 ypg) and Jeff Heuerman (12.2 ypg). You can’t count out Corey Smith (9.9 ypg) who is actually a stud on special teams and Evan “I can do everything” Spencer (9.9 ypg). The other intangible that the Buckeyes have with their wide receiver corp is their ability to block on the outside and hold their blocks without holding.

Oregon has some great weapons for wide receivers unfortunately they will be without 3 of their top 6 pass catches. Darren Carrington, Devon Allen, and Pharaoh Brown will all miss the championship game. They still have Bryon Marshall (12.6 ypg), Dwayne Stanford (14.8 yp), and Keanon Lowe (14.4 ypg). Now the Ducks will find out who the next man up is for their receiver corp and since Mariota likes to spread the ball around the field it will have to be the next men up.

Advantage: Ohio State (only because of recent developments)

Total Offense

Oregon has scored 47.2 points per game against defenses averaging around a 80 rank nationally.

Ohio State has scored 45 points per game against defenses averaging around a 52 rank nationally.

Advantage: Ohio State

Defense

Ohio State rushing defense is better than Oregon. They have faced 3 top 10 offensive rushing teams this season.

Oregon passing defense is better than Ohio State. They have faced 2 top 10 offensive passing teams this season.

Even though currently the Buckeyes are ranked 16th nationally against the pass the best passing team they faced was Cincinnati, Michigan State, Alabama, and Illinois. All the other teams the Buckeyes faced offensively passing wise were ranked 61 (Kent State) and worse.

Oregon faced some serious competition from offensively passing teams. Washington, Wyoming, Stanford and Utah are all below 66 rank. Their 103 national ranking was against really good teams all season.

Oregon has given up 22.5 points per game to offenses averaging around a 42 rank nationally.

Ohio State has given up 21.43 points per game to offenses averaging around a 70 rank nationally.

See you can spin stats anyway you would like but bottom line Ohio State is ranked 17th nationally defensively and Oregon is ranked 83

Advantage: Push (you can sway the argument either way plus Oregon lost CB Ifo Ekpre-Olomu)

Random Stuff

OSU has the 2nd best offense Oregon will face
OSU has the 3rd best defense Oregon will face
OSU has the best rushing attack Ducks will face

Oregon will be the best offense Buckeyes will face
Oregon has the best passing attack Buckeyes will face
Oregon has the 4th best rushing attack Buckeyes will face

OSU is 289-1-1 when scoring 35+ points (lost in Orange bowl last season)
20-0 when having a 200+ yard rusher
22-0 when Devin Smith catches a TD

Don’t forget to read Ronnie’s preview on the game.

Filed Under: B1G Football, College Football, Ohio State Football Tagged With:
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