The Buckeye Blog

The Boss may have been at the Schott but the show was at St. Johns as Ohio State dominated Cal during the second half to move into the quarter finals of the NIT tournament. Maybe it was the old hardwood, maybe it was the ghosts of great games past, whatever it was, the Buckeyes were on fire and St. Johns was rocking. While the Schott may be nice, it was good to see a return to a classic arena built before the days of naming rights and corporate owned “club level” seating.

After the game, the ESPN commentators were quick to point out that the Buckeyes were a NCAA Tourney caliber team and it is somewhat frustrating to say the least. Considering the Buckeyes beat Michigan State only a week before tournament selection. Meanwhile, a fifth seeded Michigan State advances to the Sweet Sixteen while an overrated Duke gets to watch from the sidelines.

So what…bring on the NIT. More important, bring on a rematch with Florida. An Ohio State/Florida NIT final would be the biggest game the NIT has seen in years.

Michigan State coach Tom Izzo may have summed it up best when he told the AP that it’s not a bubble the Buckeyes are sitting on, it’s a rock. When asked if he felt Ohio State deserved a tournament bid, he continued, “Hands down.”

Say what you will but something has happened to the Buckeyes during the past week. After a four game loosing streak, one of the longest in coach Thad Matta’s tenure, Ohio State has come to life the last two games playing great basketball against two top 20 teams. What I want to know, can they carry the momentum into the Big Ten tourney.

There is no question that big wins over both Purdue and Michigan State have got to help. If nothing else, the confidence has to be up and they know that the Buckeyes can keep up with the top teams. Actually, it’s probably more important to know that they can keep up with Michigan as they open the Big Ten tournament next Friday (2:00p.m.) against the Spartans.

Earlier in the season, the Buckeyes looked dead. Suddenly, during the last two games, they have come to life. If they can keep it up and score a much needed win against MSU, they belong in the NCAA tournament.

Okay, so in my earlier post mapping the Buckeye’s road to the BCS Championship, I failed to mention LSU. That is because I thought LSU was pretty much set and if anything, would face a tough game against Georgia or maybe Tennessee next weekend.

Did somebody say Arkansas?

With a second loss, that should knock LSU out of the BCS Championship hunt. However, the SEC being the SEC and the lobbying force that the SEC carries with it, LSU could lose the SEC championship and still have a shot at the big game.

But until then, with LSU out and either Kansas or Missouri coming out of the weekend with a loss, the Buckeyes should move to the third spot in the BCS behind the winner of Kansas/Missouri taking over #1 (did I just say that?) and West Virginia moving into #2.

Now of course, if WV blows it against UConn the Buckeyes move into second and that means we’re all booking trips to New Orleans in Jan.

For that much, if UConn can give WV a good run for the money, maybe take it to overtime or if WV just looks really, really bad and still pulls off a win, the Buckeyes could jump WV and move into second place.

If Oklahoma wins the Big 12 next weekend, that would mean Ohio State vs West Virginia in the BCS Championship…wouldn’t it?

I hear the weather in Pasadena isn’t all that nice this time of year anyway.

Just because Ohio State beat the stuffing out of Michigan yet again, the football season isn’t over. The Buckeyes are still in the hunt for the BCS National Championship game. Oregon and Oklahoma are out and Arizona State got pummeled by USC last night.

ASU’s loss to USC takes away any chance that an impressive win over USC would have given them the style points needed to jump over the Buckeyes in the rankings. Odds are pretty good you already know how it goes from here, but just in case you’re new, let’s review your viewing schedule for the next two weeks.

Kansas vs Missouri
As Buckeye fan, I don’t really care who wins here as long as somebody wins. Look for a high scoring game as I don’t think either team has the defense to keep. I’m not the only one who thinks agrees. The over/under is 68 on this game.

The important thing here is that somebody wins taking out the other team. I think I’d like to see a sloppy, close game. A game with lots of turnovers that is won by a field goal isn’t going to impress anyone too much. This game is really a setup for next weekend. As the only undefeated team, a loss this weekend would help. A one loss Kansas leaves lots of room for them to claim they deserve a shot at the big game. Hey, if you want a BCS playoff, this is as close as it gets. Don’t complain.

Oklahoma vs. Oklahoma State
This game should tell us if Oklahoma can play without their starting quarterback. If they win, lets hope they win big and come into next weekend confident. We need them to beat the winner of Kansas/Missouri.

However, if they lose, and Texas beats Texas A&M, that would send Texas to the Big 12 Championship game. (I don’t have a clue what happens if both Texas and Oklahoma lose.)

Again, as a Buckeye, I want to see Oklahoma look strong today. They need to come into next weekend with confidence and ready to take home the Big 12 Championship.

So, let’s review: #2 Kansas vs. #4 Missouri knocks one of them from #2/#4 to whatever. Buckeyes move to #4. If Oklahoma beats winner of Kansas/Missouri, Buckeyes move to #3.

That leaves West Virginia
I never thought I’d see the day when West Virginia would be a thorn in the Buckeyes side. They sit at number #3 and UConn is probably has the best chance of beating them. I doubt Pittsburgh is going to do anything next weekend but the way this season is going, I won’t rule anything out.

UConn is good but let’s be honest, they aren’t that good. However, I do have a sense that West Virginia can self destruct. Cinci game them a fight and if they get over confident, who knows. I won’t put money on it but you know who I’ll be routing for.

Finally, a close game for WV this weekend or next might give the pollsters the extra push they need to bump Ohio State past WV into a national championship game. Let’s be honest, the BCS is about money and bottom line, who’s going to bring in the bottom line? An Ohio State return for redemption? Go Bucks.

However
Screw the BCS Championship. It is a week too late and everyone is back work. Personally, I’d rather see the Buckeyes destroy USC in the Rose Bowl. I’ve been wanting that game since Tressel came on board.

Ok, so as I write this, the BCS poll hasn’t come out yet but we all know the situation. With LSU loosing to Kentucky and Cal losing to Oregon State, the Buckeyes have found their way to the top.

I thought that we’d get to this point, or at least #2, but I didn’t expect it to go like this. I wrote in an earlier post that Cal, USC and Oregon would take each other out. I didn’t think that they would take themselves out–which is exactly what they have done.

As for LSU? As a one loss team, they are still in the hunt for the BCS. Herbstreet and Corso each had them dropping to fourth by the end of the night. That would put Oklahoma at #2 and Boston College at #3(?).

I have mixed feelings about LSU’s loss. I would love to see the Buckeyes take on LSU. I think they are one of the best teams in the nation and at this point, of the top 10 teams, they are most deserving of a BCS championship shot. However, for a national championship game, I want to play them in neutral territory and a game in New Orleans will be anything but neutral territory.

Ohio State now controls its destiny. Penn State looked good against Wisconsin but what does that mean? Wisconsin hasn’t really looked good against anybody. Illinois got beat by Iowa. Yes, this was an all or nothing game for Iowa but it will be a huge upset if they can beat the Buckeyes. Michigan State is still Michigan State.

That leaves Michigan who seems to be back in form. Unfortunately (and I mean that) Mike Hart took what looked like a pretty serious injury to the ankle. If you saw it, he signaled the injury the minute it happened and try though he might, he looked like he was hurting coming off the field. I have said it before and I still believe it, he is the only thing Michigan has going for them and has pretty much single handedly carried the rest of those sorry cusses. If it wasn’t for Hart, they shouldn’t even bother to come out on the field.

If he sits out against Illinois next weekend, I think the Wolverines will be in trouble. I hope he is back to full health when the Buckeyes meet them in Nov. I don’t want any excuses coming out of Ann Arbor when we pound them into the ground…again.

Update:
O.K. So I was a little off on that one. I forgot about Oklahoma’s loss. The new rankings are up with Ohio State #1, South Florida #2, Boston College #3, LSU #4 and Oklahoma #5.

The most beautiful aspect of the rankings–USC at #14. Of course there were ESPN commentators today talking about how USC still has a shot at the BCS Championship.

Late Sat. night, I thought my prediction of an Ohio State/Florida BCS Championship rematch was already coming to fruition. LSU was trailing Florida the entire game and it wasn’t until deep in the fourth quarter that LSU pulled out a victory over Florida knocking them once and for all out of the national championship race (however, the way this season is going, I wouldn’t county anything out for good.)

Meanwhile, over on the left coast, USC had decided that today would be a good day to end the fallacy of USC once and for all. By losing to Stanford, a 40 underdog, they preempted my prediction of Cal/Oregon/USC taking each other out of the BCS race. Meanwhile UCLA lost to Notre Dame leaving me convinced that the Pac 10 really does suck.

I can’t tell you how much I enjoyed watching ESPN’s Mark May fighting back tears as described USC’s while Lou Holtz laughed and threw spit wads at him.

As for the national championship, I don’t see anyone really standing in LSU’s way. Florida was the team to stop them and they fell short. Cal however, has some tough games ahead. I don’t expect them to make it through the season unscathed.

As for the Buckeyes, the last four games of the season should make for some interesting football. No question Penn State will be a tough crowd. Purdue was a tough crowd today and even though the whiteout works much better than Purdue’s “blackout,” if the Buckeye defense plays like it should today, it won’t matter. The crowd will be quickly quieted and the offense will only need a touchdown, maybe two to win.

Wisconsin isn’t panning out to be the threat we assumed they would be. Unless they find something big between now and then, expect another Buckeye win at home.

Next is Illinois. Can you believe that this may be the most interesting game left in the season (save for the rivalry factor of Michigan)? I am still not sure what to make of Illinois. Have they truly been tested? We play them at home and I’m glad their on the schedule. If we didn’t play them and somehow got shut out of the BCS Championship (ie. Cal gets in), they would get the Rose Bowl bid since they haven’t been there in a really, really long time. Since we play them at home, determining a Big Ten champion may be much easier.

And then there’s Michigan. They haven’t lost a Big Ten game yet and this may just be a Big Ten Championship game. They struggled early against Eastern Michigan and only put them away by 10 points. They play Purdue next weekend. Michigan defense is defiantly not Ohio State’s defense and if Painter and the Purdue offense can get their confidence back, Purdue may be in for a big win. The Wolverines then travel to Illinois which may be a true test of Illinois abilities. They also travel to Wisconsin. If they get through those three games, I’ll give them a little more respect when we travel to Ann Arbor.

For now, look for the Buckeye’s to be ranked #2 when the BCS comes out. Oh, and with New Orleans a mere 80 miles from Baton Rouge, if LSU makes it to the BCS Championship, they will have a huge home field advantage.

The Ohio State defense all but shut out Purdue Sat. night at the Buckeyes defeated the Boilermakers 23-7. Going into the game the Purdue had the #1 offense in the Big Ten averaging more than 45 points per game and running up an average of almost 500 yards per game.

Sat. night though things were different. The Buckeyes played this game exactly as they needed to. The first two Ohio State possessions resulted in touchdowns forcing the Boilermakers to play from behind. Something they could not put together considering the speed and ability of the Ohio State Defense.

There is no question that this defense is one of the best we have seen in a long time. They are comparable to the national championship defense of 2002 and if they continue to develop, may be even better by the time Michigan rolls around.

The offense looked good but Boeckman needs some serious work on the long ball. Boeckman threw three interceptions that were caught around the Purdue five. Each of which, if caught would have easily resulted in Ohio State points. I like the way the offense came out early though. Tressel had the Buckeyes going long forcing Purdue to cover. As Purdue adjusted, out came the running game. Some improvement in the long pass and this could be a very effective offensive style.

The Buckeyes have a couple of weekends do build before traveling to Penn State. Next week they take on Kent State and the weekend after Michigan State travels to the shoe. I thought that Michigan State was going turn into something of a threat but after today’s 48-41 loss to Northwestern, I’m not so worried. As for Kent State, the way college football has played out so far this year, maybe this is the game I should be worried about. I’m not though. Tressel brings his team every game and you just watch Tuesday’s press conference. Tressel will be talking as if Kent State were any other Big Ten game.

As for the rankings? With USC losing to Stanford, the Buckeyes move to at least #3. Cal has an off week but when the BCS comes out, don’t be surprised to see Ohio State in the #2 spot.

I don’t know about you but I’ve heard New Orleans can be very nice in January.

Last January, as I walked across the parking lot in Glendale watching Florida fans enjoying the celebration that was supposed to be mine, I made my way to a Gator after-game party, sucked my in my gut, held my chin high and proclaimed to the gathered Florida fans, “In the morning, I will still be an Ohio State fan.” I then congratulated them on their win and said, “We will see you in New Orleans next year.”

Little did I know at the time the potential of this bold prediction. It was obvious that Florida would come back as a threat, they were keeping most of their offensive weapons. But for the Buckeyes, things would be different. With so many of our talented upperclassmen headed to the NFL, Ohio State would be forced to drop back, reload and overcome the devastating loss I had just seen.

Now however, five weeks into the 2007, the thought of an Ohio State/Florida BCS Championship rematch is not such a far fetched idea.

With five of the top ten teams falling on their swords this past Saturday, the Buckeyes suddenly find themselves ranked #4 in both the AP Poll and the USA Today/Coaches Poll and in good position to make a run at the BCS Championship. Even with Florida’s loss to Auburn, it is not outrageous to say that when January rolls around, Florida will be Ohio State’s opponent.

Let’s take a look at how this pans out starting with Ohio State moving to #1.

USC almost became the sixth team to throw themselves from the top ten as they were a mere field goal from losing to Washington, a team the Buckeyes handled without much difficulty. The Pac 10 now has three teams in the top ten and as we saw Sat., they have their weaknesses. Not only do they play Cal and Oregon, both in the top 10, but they play away against Notre Dame.

While I will never miss an opportunity to take a cheap shot at Notre Dame, Oregon may be the team to put the cabash on USC’s championship drive.

Cal sits in #3 but I don’t think they are a team to go the distance. While beating Oregon in Oregon for the first time in 20 years will give them some momentum, I don’t know if they are the giant killer to beat USC.

Oregon beats USC, USC beats Cal, Ohio State moves to #2.

That leaves LSU. LSU takes on Florida next weekend and even though Florida lost to Auburn and didn’t look so good the week before against Ole Miss, and while looking past Auburn is probably the reason they lost Sat., they will give LSU a fight.

Florida beats LSU, it takes a couple of weeks for the USC/Oregon/Cal thing to work itself out and Ohio State moves back to its rightful position as #1 ranked team in the BCS.

As for Florida:
A win against LSU and they will jump right out of their current 9th place back into the BCS hunt. Add a win the next weekend over Kentucky, which isn’t near as unlikely as a win over LSU and suddenly they’re up to fifth place or so.

USC/Cal/Oregon plays out but and that puts them up another spot and when the Buckeyes take out Wisconsin, we’re now looking at a #2/3 position for Florida.

That leaves South Florida (did I just say that?). South Florida is like a tornado floating through the NCAA. You never know for sure when it will hit, how big it will be or how much damage it will do. Regardless, today they sit at #7. They have a couple of big games ahead against Rutgers and Louisville but mark my words, Cincinnati will be the team to take them out.

Back to the Big Ten, Ohio State travels to the Big House, kicks the stuffing out of an ailing Michigan and ends the season with a lock on the BCS Championship. Florida meanwhile, recovers from their loss, wins the SEC and joins the Buckeyes in Florida as the Bucks arrive ready for some serious payback.

And that about sums it up. Don’t laugh. It was about this time last year that I predicted a #1 Ohio Sate vs. #2 Michigan match up and look where that got us.

As for you LSU fans, don’t tell me you don’t already have the tickets. Feel free to give me a call next week. I will probably be looking for some good seats. Oh yeah, I will probably need a place to stay also.

With six of the top ten teams getting beat, Ohio State is once again in the race for the BCS championship. Today’s AP poll moves them to #4 and LSU jumps ahead of USC to take the number one spot.

Yes folks, LSU’s big win over Tulane was enough to move them ahead of USC. Not that I’m complaining or anything. USC struggled against against a Washington team that we beat without much difficulty. A little bit better play on the part of Washington and we would be looking at Ohio State ranked #3 with USC falling by the wayside like the rest.

It’s about time the AP voters recognize that USC has weaknesses and needs to prove themselves before giving them a cakewalk into the BCS championship game.

At this point, I don’t think that Cal looks like a top five team. They struggled against Oregon and even though they had a big early win against Tenn., I don’t think they have it in them to run the season.

If LSU is going to jump over USC, you have to give some credit to Ohio State and possibly even move them up to #3. And why not? Together with LSU, they are top unbeaten team that hasn’t struggled yet this year. The Buckeyes continue to improve and the Buckeye defense looked amazing yesterday. The commentators couldn’t stop talking about the “speed” of the Ohio State D. When we’ve got ESPN commentators talking about Big Ten “speed” we might just be on to something.

Cal and USC will sort themselves out in a few weeks–if both make it that far, and one of them will be dropping back. LSU will have a tough game against Florida next week. A solid win will solidify their position. A loss however…I’ll leave that to another post.

Ohio State’s biggest challenge will probably be against #4 Wisconsin. At this point, Wisconsin hasn’t really proven themselves but if they hold their ranking until we travel to Madison, a solid win will give some much needed credibility to the OSU schedule. Michigan State also has the potential to come into The Shoe looking good, same with Illinois and if Michigan can somehow keep it together, another gold old fashioned Michigan pounding should launch us into a very good position for a BCS championship shot.

I’ll talk more about their opponent in another post but I have a good prediction there also.

Another week has passed, the season is underway and it is time for week four of The Big Ten Blogger’s Round Table. This week’s questions come to us by way of Maze and Brew.

Let’s get it started:

1. Time to break out the crystal ball. I want to know what happens at the END of the season. Give me your offensive and defensive Players of the Year in the Big Ten along with Coach of the Year and why.

I’m going to go with a sympathy vote here and say that Sports Illustrated coverboy Mike Hart of Michigan will end up with something. I don’t know if it is offensive player of the year but there has to be a booby prize in there somewhere. Rarely could I give a shit about anybody on the Michigan team but Harts story has all the makings of a Shakespeare tragedy. They’ve got a quarterback that locked himself in the locker room and wouldn’t come out. When they get the snot kicked out of them next week against Penn State, he will relapse.

Michigan is in for a long, ugly season and Hart will get some sort of credit for staying on as a one man team.

Defensemen of the year?

I’m going to have to go with Ohio State D. They are improving every game and I think in the end they will prove to be on of the best defense’s in the country. I like James “Little Animal” Laurinaitis. He has a head for the game and is a great leader. Check out Laurinaitis’s comments on Northwestern from this week’s press conference and tell me he doesn’t have something good coming together.

Coach of the year?

Mark Dantonio of Michigan State. He is a class act and he is turning their program around. Remember the defense he put together at Ohio State. Now he is running the show. Even if Michigan State doesn’t have a great year, you will see a program on the rise and he will get credit for it.

2. With the upsets, close games, and head scratchers so far, every game we thought was going to be important has changed. Michigan State is 3-0, for Pete’s sake, and they look good doing it. Pick the three games on the Big Ten Schedule that will determine the Big Ten Champion. Bonus Points for not picking three games on your own schedule.

Sorry readers, this question does come from a Michigan blog. We need to clarify…every game Michigan thought was going to be important has changed. Before the season started it was exciting to see that there was going to be a round robin between the top three teams to determine the Big Ten champion. There still will be only this year, Michigan won’t be invited.

Penn State/Michigan will tell us a lot about Penn State. So far, Penn State’s wins against Buffalo and FCS schools doesn’t really mean much. I’m going to use the Chad Henne factor on this one. IfHenne locks himself in the locker room for the second half, we will know that Penn State may be for real.

Ohio State/Penn State will also be a key test. Penn State will try the white out but this time the Buckeyes will be ready. As I said before, I am sure that there is some sort of virtual “white out” practice room at that new training facility on Olentangy Road.

Wisconsin/Penn State and Wisconsin/Ohio State (finishing out the Round Robin is all).

It goes without saying that Ohio State/Michigan will be a big game this year. Although Michigan will tell you they still have a shot at the Big Ten, don’t believe it. This is about all they have left to play for. They have a graduating class that has never beaten Ohio State and it is the only thing that could buy LLLLLLoyd Carr another year. (Not that it will or anything)

3. How many games, this season, have you been to? How many games have you tailgated at? If you have tailgated, name your beverage of choice. If you answered no to the previous questions, hang your head in shame, or at least give a good story about watching the game in enemy territory and giving the bouncer the finger when he asked you to quiet down.

Fall Saturday’s are the loneliest time when you find yourself an ex patriot living in ACC country. Sat. morning’s in Clintonville used to begin with, “Time to make the punch,” and was followed by a bus ride to the stadium, bloody marys, brats and Miller Light (the beer to drink when you’re going to drink a lot). Now, however, I only get back for the big games. Last year it was the season opener, Michigan and BCS, the year before, Texas.

Here in ACC country they really don’t understand tailgating. I am forced to take desperate measures. Saturday’s start with the TBDBITL cd cranked at full volume on the stereo. Once the cooler, grill, lawn chairs, corn hole, and any other tail gating needs are assembled, we move to the driveway where I proceed to open the back of the family minivan, set up the portable T.V. and every now I make my daughter run across the street so that when I shout, “OH,” she can yell back, “IO,” as if she is at another tailgate a few RVs away.

As week four rolls around, the neighbor’s are starting to ignore me but there is no question, they are starting to worry about their property value.

Bitter/Angry Bonus Question!

4. As the Big Ten Season kicks off, the Conference is in somewhat of a difficult position nationally. Needing some momentum after a horrid BCS performance, the Conference needed some momentum early in the season. It hasn’t gotten it. The first three weeks have been abysmal. Is this just a down year for the Big Ten, is there a change Nationally that the Big Ten just hasn’t picked up on, is there some truth to the “Big Ten Style of Play” that everyone harps on, or has college football simply caught up? What so you think and why? I may be beating a dead horse, but no one looks good this year and I’m at a loss as to why.

Again dear reader, I must apologize. This question also comes from a Michigan fan.

If you’re looking at the world through maize and blue glasses, then yes, the world must seem pretty abysmal. As for the rest of us though, the Big Ten is coming along fine. We’ve got three teams ranked in the top 10, more than any other division.

Wisconsin isn’t coming out of the gate like I expected but I think we still have a lot to see from the Badgers.

You know Penn State and Michigan State have got to be happy with the sudden respect they are getting. Michigan State is looking at an easy 4-0 by the end of the weekend. If Purdue can find a defense to go with that quarterback…who knows where that would lead. They are starting to get noticed at least.

I will agree with Maize and Brew though, the Big Ten did need to build momentum to open the season. Unfortunately, with all the preseason hype geared toward Michigan, the Wolverines pretty much killed any chance the Big Ten had of getting early season respect. I’m afraid the stench in Anne Arbor has tainted us all. When you blow a top ranking like that in the first two games, it doesn’t matter what anyone else in the Big Ten did the last three weeks. Illinois could have beaten the Patriots and it wouldn’t have helped.

There’s no question Ohio State didn’t help the Big Ten’s image last Jan. but I think that was a reflection on Ohio State’s performance on that day, not the Big Ten. Every division has had their upsets, it doesn’t reflect on the entire league.