MotSaG Live Podcast #10 – Polls in College Football & Previewing Ohio State-Penn State

October 21, 2014 by Leave a Comment

Time for episode #10! If you missed last week’s episode of MotSaG Live, you can watch it by clicking here. It airs live every Tuesday at 6 pm ET.

As always I will be hosting the podcast this week and be joined by fellow MotSaG writers. For this show, the following MotSaG writers will join me: Shannon, Andrew, and Chip. On this show we’ll talk about Ohio State’s big win over Rutgers, the Big Ten’s performance from this past weekend, polls in college football and preview the biggest upcoming games around the country along with the slate of Big Ten games this weekend. We’ll also of course preview and predict the outcome of Ohio State’s prime time matchup with Penn State this weekend. Our special guest this week is Kevin McGuire, a writer for nittanylionsden.com and a contributor for NBC Sports College Football Talk.

Now I’m going to list the following ways to view this podcast. Below is the video player to listen to the podcast. You will be able to listen to it here on the site every week. Don’t fret if you can’t listen live. Once the podcast is over with you will be able to view it as many times as you want, just like any YouTube video. If you’re unable to view it here on the site for some reason we also have you covered if this happens. I’ll link to our YouTube channel right above the player every week and you will be guaranteed to be able to view it there. You can also listen through our Google+ page or follow the main @MotSaG account on Twitter. I will also have the link posted on my Twitter page (@SchottJosh).

You can also subscribe to MotSaG Live on iTunes. You can find our page by typing “MotSaG Live” in the iTunes search box or click here. This episode should be on iTunes later tonight.

It’s going to be a fun and informative show as always! Hope you tune in!

To view it on YouTube, click here.

To view the Google+ event page, click here.

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

Instant Analysis: Ohio State stomps Maryland 52-24

October 4, 2014 by 1 Comment

There is nothing better than clearly hearing “O-H-I-O” loud and proud in an opponent’s stadium. It’s good for Maryland to learn early in their inaugural Big Ten season that Buckeye fans are the best traveling fans in the conference. They may have sold out Byrd stadium but there is always a sea of scarlet and gray.

The Buckeyes came out of their first conference game of the season with a very nice victory, beating the Terps 52-24.

OFFENSE

You can tell J.T. Barrett is gaining more confidence when he’s running the ball; he may not be as flashy as Braxton Miller, but he’s fast and efficient so I’m not mad about it. There were a few times he was surprised by Maryland’s defense from the back, but he just needs to stay aware in the pocket.

Urban Meyer is definitely training Ezekiel Elliott to be the next Carlos Hyde, and he’s getting more powerful by the day. The running game was a big part of the play calling and spreading it out between Elliott and Rod Smith opened up a lot of offensive options.

The Buckeye pass game is so well-rounded and Barrett is making much better decisions in the pocket. 1) We finally saw Jalin Marshall score off a short pass into the endzone; 2) Tight ends Heuerman and Vannett both had great catches; 3) Devin Smith had an incredible catch in the endzone after a quick series in the third.

Side note: when Cardale Jones came in during the fourth quarter, he proved that he could also have a future jumping hurdles.

DEFENSE/SPECIAL TEAMS

My favorite part of the first half may have been the comparison of Joey Bosa to Houston Texans J.J. Watt; if Bosa can keep playing with the same energy, he’ll be a beast for years to come.

All week long, Maryland’s Stefon Diggs was a player to watch out for, and the Buckeye special teams absolutely crushed him on his first return attempt of the game. They stayed tight on Diggs and really took away the power he had coming into the game.

The secondary got a few breaks when Maryland’s quarterback’s inefficiency made up for the defensive backs getting beaten down field throughout the game. The Terps had a huge completion off Doran Grant’s helmet in the third quarter which was QUICKLY rebuffed by Eli Apple with an interception in the endzone. There is still work that needs done, but they were able to create a lot of turnovers which was at least one bright spot.

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

MotSaG’s West Coast Bunker: Speed and Swagger…A study in Oregon and OSU Fandom Stupidity

December 10, 2009 by 14 Comments

OSU FootballSo…times are slow…the Champions League has decided it is only for teams that can play defense (FU Liverpool and your inability to NOT give up a goal in the last 8 minutes of play)

This is the time of the year where an incredible void of no football games and the bowl selections have created what most people (including yours truly) cannot stand in the least bit…

“Message Board Heroes”

OSU has them…they talk about the school’s eleventy-billion national championships that happened before they were born or how they were there when “The Horseshoe” was dedicated…or maybe the lore of OSU Heisman Trophies from yesteryear. If someone from another team’s fan base says anything against these irrefutable facts, they “just dont respect OSU’s rich history and tradition as a national college football power.”

Here is a summary of my thoughts on those points in the above paragraph..

“You know what these things will do for the 2009 Edition of your OSU Football squad?” “Absolutely NOTHING!”

Dont you worry Oregon message board guy/gal/beer snob/phish listening pseudo-hippy/etc, I havent forgotten about you. Congratulations! You have won the Pac-1+9 for the first time in ‘like’ forever (or since 2001..shared with USC). That team looked spendid this year. Apparently, Oregon’s offense is putting up points equivalent to the Fielding Yost teams of Michigan back in the day. As a college football fan, I appreciate the fact Oregon has a dynamic offense that seems to be as lethal as there is and has the play-calling craziness that only Les “The Hat” Miles could rival. They were fun to watch this year…for realz. I mean that…srsly. I live out here in Pac-10 Land, which means I hear all about Oregon, U-Dub, and USC. Pac-10 has some entertaining football in general. Lots of offense…a little bit better defense (sans Oregon State and USC) than the WAC or Mountain West…and some of the schools use QB1 to determine play calls in any situation.

So what I have gathered from the small amount of perusing on the Oregon Message Boards and the local media is as follows:

  1. OSU hasnt played against a team as good as Oregon on it’s schedule this year
  2. Speed kills…wait until OSU sees the Oregon offense
  3. OSU doesnt have the offense to keep up in this game
  4. Terrelle Pryor is nowhere near the talent-level of Masoli

I figured that I would address some of these generalized lifted comments from the Oregon Scout Board…

1. OSU hasnt played against a team as good as Oregon on it’s schedule this year

This may be correct. It is probably a fair statement. Sagarin has the SOS for Oregon at #4 and OSU coming in at a cool 59th. I wont even argue that point. Regardless of SOS, OSU brings something to the table that none of the other teams on Oregon’s schedule possess, which will be addressed a little later.

2. Speed kills…wait until OSU sees the Oregon offense

I (along with most of Buckeye Nation) take some offense to this statement. While it is true that speed is the ultimate weapon for a football team, any speed that Oregon has on offense is equally countered on the Ohio State defensive side of the ball. This is where a lot of the confidence in this game is originating within the OSU fandom. This is by far the best defensive line that OSU has possessed since the 2002 National Championship squad. Think about that for a second. Miami was an offensive machine that year..just like Oregon. Oregon may have speed in the backfield with James and Masoli, but if the O-line gets blown up on regularity by the OSU D-Line…Oregon is in trouble. For the record, OSU has plenty of speed on the edges and at LB (Spitler’s participation will be minimal as most of us imagine that the OSU defense will be in the nickel for large chunks of the game).

3. OSU doesnt have the offense to keep up in this game

Sorry, OSU does have the offense to keep themselves in this game. Tressel plays to a gameplan and his game planning has never been to get into a shootout with another team. It is reckless and that isn’t the way that OSU plays football. If he has some trust in Pryor (work-in-progress), he will open up the play book a little. However, Oregon is a turnover machine. With this in mind, I would imagine that the gameplan will look a lot like Oregon State’s, until Oregon stops it. The only difference is that there is a runner taking snaps instead of a pocket passer…whether that is a good thing or not remains to be seen. If Masoli and James continue to put the ball on the ground in the Rose Bowl, OSU will win by about 20. What does that have to do with OSU’s offense? Everything…

4. Terrelle Pryor is nowhere near the talent-level of Masoli

Masoli has been a diamond in the rough this year for the Ducks. He is a fantastic system quarterback that has been a perfect fit for the Oregon offensive scheme. Without him, they lose about 4-5 games this year. Does that mean he is infallible? Absolutely not. Masoli carries the ball around like Tate Forcier, which equates to opportunities for a ball-hawking defense to sample in some tasty “fumbalaya.” With that in mind, it is amazing how a fantastic offensive display can mask the stink of all of the other shortcomings of a team. On the other hand, Pryor has been a work-in-progress this year (to say the least). There have been times where it may have been advisable to bench him for a series or two just for a reality check (See Purdue..ZOMG) and other times where he has played nearly flawless football (ie the last three games of the season). Now for the Oregon fans that read this little ditty have to realize a few things when they go back and watch some OSU highlights of those last three games of the season…

  1. Flawless football for an OSU quarterback is to not turn the ball over, regardless of the other stats.
  2. Most of the OSU fans (while annoyed with this approach) understand that when the OSU quarterback doesnt make mistakes there is a strong likelihood that OSU will win. It might be ugly…but a win is a win. Let me help you…would you take a 1-pt ugly win against Stanford (Jeebus..What happened there?..)? Thought so…

A couple of other notes for the Oregon faithful that dont understand the OSU fans.

  • There are a lot of us. I mean a shit-ton..especially on West Coast. Yeah…we get it…Who wants to live in Ohio? Well, some of us do and some us dont, but it is still home. Come on…we take over a bar every Saturday in Portland (Blitz-Ladd)…
  • One of the things about growing up in Ohio is that most of us have a pretty good understanding of football, because we have grown up with it in our faces every Friday, Saturday and Sunday during the Fall and Winter months. This gives us a lot of perspective for the primary lifeblood sport of the state, and it is competitive in every region of the state. Most of us understand that match-ups and fundamentals mean more than schemes. Sure talent will win over a lot of games in high school, but this isnt high school. Again, this where a lot of the confidence that you dont understand is coming from. I could give a “rats ass” that Oregon’s defense held Oregon State’s Rodgers to like 60 yards of rushing and the offense went run happy against the #1 Rush Defense in the country (at the time). It just doenst matter in this game for a number of reasons like….
    • Rose Bowl isnt at Autzen..sorry Uncle Phil couldnt buy this one…no matter what hideous uniform combination you guys put out there.
    • Oregon State may have a comparable defense, but it doesnt have the depth of Ohio State on the D-line, which was worn out by the middle of the 3rd quarter in the Civil War.
    • Rodgers is one back (a great back nonetheless, but still one back)…Ohio State has two running backs that run hard and are very good and not easy to bring down. I wont go into their stats and whatever. Let’s just put it this way…these guys would be playing at any school in the Pac-10 on a regular basis…even Oregon.
    • Oregon’s O-Line…I believe that Masoli’s Knee Brace weighs more than half of the starters. We’ll see if they can handle the onslaught of pressure coming at them from the Big AND FAST OSU defensive line.
  • Allow me to digress for a moment…Speaking of Ohio High School football (in particular NW Ohio region), I notice that Patrick Henry is still doing it’s thing in the midget division of the state with Coach Bill Inselmann. When is Big Bill going to get off of the gravy train and coach in a real division for another school where making the playoffs isnt a mere formality? I understand the allegiance, but come on….I can remember PH used to be a basketball school, until they found a loophole in the system (ie small school with minimal competition in the area outside of Liberty Center = guaranteed playoff spot every year in region). Maybe you should take a queue from your neighbors down Route 108 and get out of that joke of a conference and go independent or join a tougher conference…maybe play some real schools that are more than 20 miles away from Hamler on a regular basis…I’m just sayin’. Winning the NWOAL is like being the world’s tallest midget.

Back on topic…I really do look forward to a great game with Ducks in January. Hopefully, Oregon fans will realize that the OSU team that shows up in Pasadena will not be the same team that showed up to play USC or Purdue earlier this year…or Florida in 2006, as much as you might want to believe it is. And yes, speed does kill…it kills offenses, as easily as it does defenses.

~YNBA

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

Week #7: Purdue – Preview and Open Thread

October 16, 2009 by 3 Comments

OSU FootballLast week was like an appetizer prior to the main course (PSU, Iowa, UM) of the schedule. Unfortunately with the way Purdue is playing this season, this game will most likely be the “dry side salad,” which you need because of the tailgating food you have been shoveling into your “snackhole” for the previous 6 weeks. You know you need to finish that salad quickly, like OSU needs to finish off Purdue quickly and I need to finish this preview quickly, so you guys dont fall asleep….quickly.

To sum things up…Ohio State is playing the best 1-win team in the country (that is what I have heard recently). If and when OSU beats Purdue, they will be the worst 1-win team in the country, according to everyone afterwards.

So let’s talk about things that matter…expeditiously…

Ohio State on Offense

If I could take a pass on this one right now, I would definitely do so. However, we still have to talk about that abomination that was known as the OSU offense from last week. Yeah, I have heard all of the arguments on getting into a rhythm and stuff for TP, but dammit I just feel like the guy is regressing in “1-step forward 2-steps back” kind of way right now. I am not quarterback coach, but when you throw off-balance (when there is no one around you) or off of your back foot (ditto) the pass will look like a punt. This game against a Purdue defense should be the elixir to solve some of TP’s confidence issues and maybe even a mechanics issue or two. Pryor will need to keep a close eye on the second coming of Wisconsin’s O’Brien Schofield in the form of Purdue freshman Ryan Kerrigan (6’4″ 246). He is the typical undersized defensive end that Purdue possesses who always seem to give the OSU O-line fits.

The running game seems to be in good shape even with the Herron ankle sprain. Saine has been running down hill and is just producing out of the backfield right now. It would be nice to have a little more depth back there with experience, but I dont believe that Purdue poses enough of a challenge up front to make that depth necessary this Saturday.

Bottom Line…OSU’s offense isnt nearly as bad as Purdue’s defense, which is last in the Big 10 in points allowed (30.5/game)

Ohio State on Defense

This is kind of interesting. Purdue has the top-rated passer and the second leading rusher in the conference entering this week of play. Sounds a lot like Wisconsin last week. Boiler Up indeed.

It will be interesting to see if Purdue can handle the defensive pressure that will be served up by OSU’s best D-Line since 2002. It is scary how much pressure they can get with four linemen and even sometimes with three. Look for a lot of quick passes from Purdue to counter-act the pressure and a lot of mis-direction from the ground game. Remains to be seen if Purdue can execute, because Toledo tried to do the same thing with minimal success.

Reasons to worry about life and why college sports have such a drastic effect on it.

If the OSU defense decides that OSU’s offense should win this game. Worry..immensely…

If Purdue is able to “dink and dunk” it’s way down the field, this could cause some problems for the OSU defense, but expect them to tighten up when the goal line comes into play for the defense.

Again, worry if the offensive line struggles. The OSU offense will need to give it’s defense some rest on the sidelines. The amount of “Three-and-Outs” against Wisconsin was re-donk-u-lous.

Reasons to pump your fist like an extra in a Skid Row video

If TP can complete his first couple of passes, the floodgates should open. Hopefully, the Vest will let him actually run and get himself into the game, instead of trying to be the Matt Hasselbeck of the Big10.

If there no semblance of a running game for Purdue, Joey Elliott = DEAD…and there will be much rejoicing.

Some intangibles: Weather looks to be chilly, probably a little damp after the expected morning rain .. Vegas has the line at 14 points. Sounds about right…even for a home-dog when they are giving those kinds of points on a weekly basis.

Prediction time:
Pryor: Does he throw for 200 yards?
Defense: Over/Under on Sacks at 4?
Purdue Offensive Turnovers: Over/Under for 3?
Boiler Up Cheer w/Stupid Horn: Over/Under of 25?

YNBA’s predictions
Pryor: Absolutely throws for 200…maybe 250. The guy has something to prove. Homer call of the week.
Defense: I am going with the Over. Just feels right and that OSU D-Line is top notch this year.
Purdue Offensive Turnovers: Under. Probably a pick and a fumble.
Boiler Up Cheer w/Stupid Horn: UNDER…and God help us all, if the over is hit.
OSU: 34 Purdue: 14

Am I full of crap? Give us some opinions. These blog comments arent going to write themselves!

el Kaiser’s predictions
Pryor: For my (and the rest of Buckeye Nation’s) sanity, Pryor lights up the “decent-ish” Purdue secondary to the tune of 280.
Defense: Is that over/under for Nathan Williams by himself? Either way, I’m taking Over with 5 sacks.
Purdue: As previously shown in table form, Purdue is vunerbale to the turnover, but I’m saying under with 2.
Horn: I’ve heard comments that many Buckeyes at practice wanted to choke the guy blasting the horn this week at practice. I say under because after the first blast some redshirt freshman chokes the operator.
Final Score: OSU 38 Purdue 16

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

Thursdays from MotSaG’s West Coast Bunker…

September 10, 2009 by 9 Comments

OSU FootballThe week of impending doom is upon us. The Boys from Troy will invade the Horseshoe this weekend. From what we at MotSaG can tell, this looks to be an epic beatdown just waiting to happen. I mean really it is the perfect storm for a team to come into Columbus and win with a freshman quarterback in front of 105,000 crazed and mildly intoxicated OSU fans.

It just makes sense…right?

So let’s just recap some of this week’s happenings with the USC game looming and some other interesting tidbits that have occurred over the last 7 or so days…

  • USC freshman quarterback Matt Barkley already talking to OSU fans telling them to “Bring it on…” Trust me Matt. They wont be cheering for you…they’ll be cheering the Song Girls….and OSU.
  • In an “Allow me to retort moment,” Terrelle Pryor says it has already been “broughten” (via Twitter) with a simple yet effective “It’s on…”
  • Terrelle Pryor saluting PETA in his own particular idiom (or Vick eyeblack stickers) and then (in a moment of sheer awesomeness displayed by the OSU SID for allowing this to happen) TP spoke about his reasoning for the eyeblack stickers. Penn State fans immediately pile-on and say that this is why he isnt enrolled at State College (ya know…because he speaks like a 19 year old kid)…or they could go the rational route and say that he didnt want to attend their fine institution in the middle of a corn field…or play quarterback in college and become a running back.
  • Media states obvious…USC has an unbelievable backfield with a few viable options that consist of Chuck Norris, Bill Brasky (and his 253 illegitimate children, which he carries in his left sock…with heavy tape…of course), and a living and independently mobile piece of Tim Tebow’s leg hair.
  • Calling it now…Regardless of the result for USC in C-Bus, USC is going down in Seattle the following week. Bad week for USC to play Washington, who always plays USC tough in Husky Stadium.
  • In other news, Michigan beat a MAC team and its return to glory is in full swing
  • In other other news, Notre Dame beat Nevada and its fans are already making bowl arrangements to Pasadena
  • While it was a little while back, our fair and balanced (in a Fox News kinda way) compadre Brian over at MGoBlog (and no I am not linking and giving that site any traffic from this post, as childish as that sounds) decided to take a swipe at the ‘civility’ of OSU fans and the responsibility of OSU blogs and other outlets to condone ill feelings towards a Gray Decker and his “Fists of Fury” escapade on Tyler Moeller’s face. Ironically, this post on The Sporting Blog drew the ire of our buddy Jeff at the BBC who had some sensitive content incorrectly attributed, “HTML-mistakenly tagged” as originating from his site. Jeff…Did you ever get your apology from Brian? While most of us appreciate Brian’s writing ability, eloquent wit, and occaisional LOLCATZ! humor; character and maturity has never been a strong point for him (Kittenz after Appy State?…and more recently “The Rosenberg Involuntarily Voluntary Practice Jihad”).
  • Well at least UM fans in SE Michigan that didnt go to UM (roughly 95% from a survey I made up for this bullet) are past crayons…skipped LOGO…and moved onto MS-Paint. Some solid work over there boys. Can you guys put together a purple unicorn for me? Maybe one with confetti for flames coming out if its nostrils?
  • A side note…this time of year makes people care about baseball even less….unless you are a Yankee or Red Sox fan because ESPN LOOOOVES you, but God hates you, so it is a wash…
  • In Proper Football (Soccer) news, the US Men’s National Team won its World Cup qualifiers against El Salvador and Trinidad and Tobago in the last week. They are at the top of the CONCACAF group and are pretty much a shoe-in for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

Premier League picks back up this weekend. I am flying into C-Bus and will be at Tommy Keegan’s Saturday morning taking in Liverpool-Burnley and Tottenham-Manchester United. Stop by and say “Hello Govna” before the long day of waiting for the big game at 8PM.

~YNBA~

Filed Under: Blogging, College Football, Miscellany, Ohio State Football Tagged With:

Is this thing on…

July 21, 2009 by 4 Comments

So the burnout of another season took it’s toll on the MotSaG…or more particularly YNBA…

Surprised? Not Really. It is tough to come up with brilliant material on a weekly basis when nothing is going on in the college football landscape. Here is a quick list of 20 general happenings over the last few months:

  1. Tim Tebow did something magical…not quite sure what it was…
  2. The CBJ made the playoffs and were happy to be there for a week.
  3. Jamal Berry likes to carry the ‘sticky icky‘ in his car.
  4. FC Barcelona won the Champions League against Manchester United and an angel got it’s wings.
  5. Tim Tebow did something philanthropic…not quite sure what it was…
  6. Carlos Hyde is a poor test-taker, or he is dumb, or he doesnt care, or he just really wanted to attend Fork Union next year.
  7. Terrelle Pryor looks like he can read a defense and cleaned up his throwing motion (a little), but there are still 4 QB’s on the Penn State roster that are better than him and a few PSU trainers, as well (Source: Any Ohio State Thread on Audibles).
  8. Ole Miss and North Caolina are in the top 10 in the pre-season polls. Thus fulfilling reason #4576 why polls shouldnt be released until the sixth week of the season.
  9. EDSBS’s Digital Viking Series has won over a nation of blog readers
  10. Deadspin…something is missing over there..well..besides Leitch, “Hirshey is the Closer”, and a gentle dose of “This Week’s Apologies”, but hey, they can embed youtube music videos like no other.
  11. Real Madrid spent over 200 million euros on two players…and that is without including the player salaries for the non-soccer crowd.
  12. The Cleveland Indians bi-annual YNBA soul killing exercise is in full effect this year.
  13. We were kind of ‘witnesses’ to BronBron getting faced…in a Ferris Bueller 31-Flavors kind of way…
  14. The Cavs got Shaq Diesel. Well maybe the Bio-Diesel Version. Doesnt this make Cavs fan hate Carlos Boozer a little more each year?
  15. The US Men’s Soccer Team had a great and completely unexpected run in the Confederations Cup (Spain…really?) and Landon Donovan has been rejuvenated. Did you hear that? That was Bob Bradley getting up from sucking his thumb in the corner.
  16. The Browns continue to be the Browns, but it could be worse…they could be the Seahawks (giggle giggle).
  17. Our Honor Defend’s “Better Know a Buckeye” Series has been top notch work for a slow summer.
  18. David Beckham came back from Italy to sounds of boo’s and a simple chorus of no one really giving a flying crap about David Beckham anymore. Beckham Experiment = EPIC FAIL
  19. Rick Nash signs with the CBJ for 25 years. Oh alright…8 years. Sorry Maple Leaf Fans.
  20. South Carolina really wants Ohioans to leave. It’s like a little kid running a lemonade stand asking someone with a ten dollar bill to get lost.
Filed Under: Blogging, Blue Jackets Hockey, Cleveland Browns, Cleveland Cavaliers, Cleveland Indians, College Football, Columbus Crew Soccer, Ohio State Football Tagged With: ,

Wednesday’s weekend reflections and meh…

September 17, 2008 by Leave a Comment

Alright…I have had a few days to take in the massacre and it’s effects

Extreme situations often call for extreme measures. These measures do not include Todd Boeckman on a QB run on 2nd and 22. My god JT, wtf was that? Then again, maybe Todd was rolling out to throw to the TE..*laughing so hard there is significant pain in my side regions*

Every team that plays OSU knows that they are damaged goods right now. I havent seen an OSU team quit like that since Iowa in 2004. No heart…no fire…ridiculous.

Positives from the weekend for OSU…ahem..let’s just move onto another topic.

  • Oh wait…Terrell Pryor gets to play a lot more this weekend…or so we are led to believe.

Positives from the weekend for YNBA and some other jottable notes…

  • Watched Oklahoma demolish Washington. Seriously Buckeye fans, thank goodness the team wasnt spending the past weekend in Norman. Sam Bradford was nothing short of incredible (18-21, 300+ yards, 5 Touchdowns). Oklahoma (Not USC) looked like a well-oiled machine this past weekend, but the hype wasnt there with the game occurring in LA. Granted, this was Washington’s defense, but OU’s performance was efficient and lethal from the beginning of the game until the very end.
  • It was nice to see one of my teams show up this weekend. Liverpool FC decided that it had seen enough of Manchester United’s shenanigans and finally beat them (2-1) for the first time in Premiership play in almost five years. With the exception of a John O’Shea OG, it had almost been the same amount of time since Liverpool had actually scored a goal of any kind against ManU. The Mascherano-Kuyt-Babel connection put the game away in the 77th minute to set the Anfield faithful into a frenzy (Cue Seven Nation army and chant ‘Jav-i-er Ma-scher-a-no‘ over and over again). For the non-soccer types, pace and momentum matter just as much in soccer and football, and Liverpool carried the play to ManU for a good portion of the first half and dominated in the second.
  • The Columbus Crew settled for a 1-1 draw in Canada against Toronto FC. This draw sealed the deal on Columbus maintaining possession of the Trillium Cup. This draw on Saturday was really a win, as there were no Columbus fans accosted by Toronto FC supporters outside of the BMO, which seems to be occurring with greater frequency as this rivalry continues to grow. Crazy Canadians…
  • Champions League Group Stage play began on Tuesday (If you dont understand how the Champions League works…ask…because it is confusing as all get out, then attempt to ponder how crazy College Football would be in this format). Liverpool took out Marseille 2-1, as ‘The Captain’ Steven Gerrard provided some magic in the form of two goals to rally the Reds from 1-0. FC Barcelona also won it’s opening match against Sporting Lisbon 3-1.
  • Seems like the media has finally started to lay off of the Buckeyes after this weekend’s performance. Even Pete Fiutak has provided some perspective (See Part III), which is refreshing in that it comes from a national media type, as even the Herbstreit’s of the world have seemed to bash or distance themselves from the Buckeyes as much as possible.
  • Painfully going back to the USC game…I am not an expert in the ways of football or schemes, but it doenst appear to me that OSU is any less athletic than other elite teams (NFL draft numbers will generally support this claim). Once you infer that OSU may actually have the same type of speed and athleticism on its squad, the question of what differentiates the teams comes into play. All I know is that from other sports that I do participate, the less you have to think the more effective you are on the field. This especially holds true on defense. If the OSU offense is as predictable as everyone believes, then most teams will be able to pin their ears back and go to town, as they will have a pretty good idea of what is coming almost every time. I am going to stop here on this topic, but think about every time the OSU offense is faced with a 3rd or 4th and short…you’ve already called the play. OSU is running a slow developing play to the tailback. It doenst matter which one it is…you just know it is going to be painful to watch and in a lot of cases it just isnt going to cut it

I think that it is safe to say that no one is giving up on the season (players or fans), but if the current trends including lack of creativity and utter lack of execution at any level continue…this will be a long season. Things dont get any easier this Saturday, as Troy comes to town and is still looking for a signature win against one of the D-I big boys. I hope the Bucks are ready for Troy’s best shot. Maybe it is time for the Buckeye faithful to start singing YNWA before every kickoff…to re-affirm thy friendship to the O-HI-O.

~YNBA~

Filed Under: College Football, Columbus Crew Soccer, Ohio State Football Tagged With: , , ,

Keeping things in perspective on a Sunday..

September 7, 2008 by 18 Comments

OSU FootballWow…you would have thought that OSU lost yesterday with the negativity flying around the interwebs yeserday and this morning.

First things first…OSU won. A win is a win. I remember a certain team in 2002 knocking off win after win in an ugly fashion. It happens (See UC in 2002). In-state schools will always give OSU their best shot. It is commonplace…like girls reading the “Twilight” series of books (ZOMG…Edward Cullen is so dreamy!!!). It is going to happen and there is nothing that anyone can do about it.

Are there questions going into USC? OF COURSE….This team could have put a whoopin’ on the Ohio University Bobcats and we would all still have questions about the potential performance going into next Saturday’s tilt.

So lets look at it this way…I’ll give you guys three options and tell me which postgame emotional state you would prefer to have this Sunday.

You’ll be familiar with two of the three, but the third one happened yesterday and I was there to see the entire debacle in-person.

Option #1 – Winnarrr!!!

OSU beats OU 26-14, but it is ugly. We are talking 2008 UM Quarterbacking ugly…but Hey? A win is a win right?

Option #2 – Loooser!!!

A little ride on the “way back when” machine to 2004. OSU visits Evanston and loses to Northwestern for the first time in almost 30 years. I think that you guys can remember how Sunday morning felt after that game. I recall puking in my mouth a few times that day. OSU fans almost relived that one yesterday.

Option #3 – PAC-10 Refferrrr and The Gold Plated Plates of Provo Community College

Having tickets to all of the U-Dub Husky games this season, I was able to attend the UW – BYU game yesterday. For those of you that follow college football religiously, you already know what happened. Jake Locker scored a touchdown with :02 seconds left in the game to presumably tie the game after the extra point. Locker tossed the ball over his shoulder and cheered with his teammates (ie no taunting of other players at all…PERIOD). Needless to say Mr. Locker was happy…excruciatingly happy. Jake was so happy that the referees threw a flag on him for excessive celebration. Read that again…they threw a flag on the home team for scoring a touchdown with 2-seconds on the clock at HOME to send the game into overtime. The extra point turned into a 35-yard adventure that was eventually blocked. To make things worse and some insult to injury, a player for Washington suffered what looked to be a serious neck injury on the field after BYU converted on a 3rd and long. You could hear a pin drop in the stadium on the field as the trainers were sprinting over to aid the player. It was a very somber moment in the stadium, so what do the BYU fans do? The start chanting BYU-BYU-BYU over and over again while this kid is on the field and he cant move any of his extremities. Stay Classy BYU fans. It was a great game ruined by classless fans and inept referees. How do you think BYU fans would have been treated in Columbus after that stunt? Do you think that those referees would have made it of Columbus alive? How would Sunday feel after that helping of zebra injustiice with an appetizer of “gold-plated” BYU classiness.

So you tell me Buckeye fans, which option seems more reasonable to you going into the game against USC?

That is what I thought. All of us Buckeye fans can get a little overzealous of the “beauty pageant” that is college football. A win is a win…whether it is a 7-6 game or a Barry Switzer special where you “hang a half hundred” on your opponent.

Again…enjoy each of the games this season. No matter how ugly they get, they will still be remembered as wins…the score is of no consequence.

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

Who will play the role of Sgt Hulka this weekend for OSU?

September 4, 2008 by 6 Comments


Per “Jimmy T” Call-In Show, Beanie is a “no go” for this weekend.

This shouldnt really surprise anyone.

Lighten up Francis…Contrary to the popular belief of every mainstream media mouthbreather out there, the sky is not falling this week or the following week. Whether Wells plays this week orthe following, OSU will be lucky to stay within 12 touchdowns of the New England Patri…errr…USC Trojans. Just relax and enjoy the ride…and watch TP get some additional playing time this weekend.

Obviously…
Boom, Saine, and the other Wells (Maurice) will serve the running game just fine.

Filed Under: Ohio State Football Tagged With:

Click…Click…”Thug Life”

August 6, 2008 by 7 Comments

The above headline conveys an entirely different context to UGA and Bama fans this offseason, but to the OSU faithful it can really mean only one thing…duh…

Ohio State has started tinkering with the “Pistol” offensive set. This offense has been linked to a few teams in D-1, but is exclusively showcased by the Nevada Wolfpack. I am pretty sure that most OSU fans heard the rumors in the offseason, but it was on display for BTN subscribers to view last night at the OSU televised practice.

Chris Ault's Pistol Offense Wiki
“Pistol” formation

With this formation, it would seem that having Todd or TP in the gun position with Beanie, Saine, or Herron behind them would cause all kinds of havoc for the linebacker corps, as they would have to wait a an extra second to the see the tailback come from behind the QB before committing run or pass. It should also give Todd or TP an extra second or more for the passing game. I am by no means an expert on these topics, but any additional flavor or trickeration to the OSU offense will always be a good thing, as it varies from vanilla to butter pecan throughout the season.

Other Benefits and refuting some misconceptions of the Pistol Offensive Set from the “The Pack Critic Blog”

The advantage that the Pistol provides over a standard shotgun is that it allows a true north/south running game, but it also gives the passing game the advantages of the shotgun. The Pistol isn’t so much an offense as it is a framework for an offense. You can run a huge variety of offenses out of the basic Pistol formations.

While I dont imagine this will replace the standard “I-Formation” in the OSU Playbook anytime soon (try…ever), you can already see where this is going…*giggle giggle*

i can haz Pistol offense?

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