Compared to previous years, the 2008 season has unfolded at a pretty dramatic pace. The ulcer in your stomach from Chris Wells’ sudden collapse has long since healed, and unfortunately we found out that there was still room at the Buckeye heartache hotel for one more high-profile loss.
Washing away those early season disappointments has been what seems to be a turning-the-corner attitude led forth by Jim Tressel. While attire changes from the standard sweater vest to the windbreaker or letterman’s jacket have been deemed big deviations for Tressel, it seems the USC loss has genuinely given Tressel a mandate for genuine change.
While Buckeye nation has applauded the shakeup of player personnel and strategy, tomorrow will kickoff a gauntlet of games in October that will tell the tale of the 2008 season. With four victories in the first five games, all against inferior opponents, the Buckeyes now find themselves with a quartet of games that each bring their own flavor of danger, drama, and intrigue.
It’s easy to say that Tressel and company have righted the ship and turned the corner towards a bright future, but the reality is a disappointing October will further deteriorate the perception, prestige, and confidence of the program.
Big Ten Road Opener Significance
Here is a stat for you. Ohio State is 3-3 in their last six Big Ten road openers with those three wins all helping to propel the Buckeyes to national championship game appearances.
Similar to 2003 and 2005, it looks as if the Buckeyes have a moderate talent advantage over the rest of the conference. However, it’s very possible that another night road game with a hostile environment has the potential to spoil or dramatically hinder conference title and national title aspirations.
At some point, talent dictates that the Buckeyes will hit their stride on both sides of the ball. The question is will it take a second or even third loss before this occurs.
Koo’s Keys to Victory
1) Sustaining and Finishing Drives
Erase all the memories you have Lee Evans, Chris Chambers, and other speedsters streaking down the field for the Badgers. This Badger offense has taken a step back from previous years with injuries playing a prominent role in their inability to put up points on the board.
This game will not be about big plays, but rather time of possession, third down execution, and red zone efficiency. With inexperienced quarterbacks on both sides, we’ll see a lot of running on first down and conservative play calling on passing downs.
Most likely each team will score less than a handful of times, so it’s absolutely imperative that each team capitalize on their time consuming drives. A seven-minute drive cashed in for a touchdown has a much more powerful psychological effect than a lengthy drive yielding a field goal in a game of this nature.
2) Digging in for a Dog Fight
Let’s face it. We have no idea how good OSU’s offensive line and defensive front seven is. Since the start of the 2006 season, there have been numerous performances indicating greatness to ineptitude and everything in between. While consistency has evaded the Buckeyes over the past couple of years, they’ll be going up against one of the most consistently physical football programs in the country in Wisconsin.
Despite national perception to the contrary, the Buckeyes have evolved away from a smash mouth gritty group of maulers, choosing to rather focus on improved team speed and more diverse and dynamic offensive and defensive schemes.
With that being said, Saturday’s game will be a war of attrition in the trenches. Unfortunately of late, the Buckeyes have struggled against upper echelon teams in terms of physicality and will be called upon to set the tone for this game and remainder of the season.
In particular, keep an eye on who wins the battle in the trenches on first down runs and third down passes. If the interior lines for the Buckeyes on both sides of the ball perform well, I can see this game turning into a win similar to 2006’s Big Ten Road opener against Iowa. On the flip side, poor interior line play could result in something similar to 2003 and 2005’s Big Ten road opening losses to Wisconsin and Penn State.
3) Turning Potential Into Production
When was the last time you watched the Buckeyes on a Saturday and thought something along the lines of “We’re pretty damn good?”
Penn State served as that game in 2007 with Iowa and Texas in 2006 being other impressive examples of Buckeye football at its finest. However, we’ve seen to hit a lull in terms of performance, expectations, and zeal across the program over the past 10 months.
Terrelle Pryor is one of many reasons why the future is bright for the Buckeye program, but can he reinvigorate Buckeye nation in his first true test as a starter? The program is ripe for an infusion of energy and optimism but it remains to be seen if and when the team settles back into a dominant groove they showed from the latter half of 2005 up until the Illinois game in 2007.
With the best one-two punch recruiting classes in recent history with the 2008 and 2009 classes, it’s only a matter of time before the Buckeyes find themselves back in an extended period of dominance. What remains to be seen is if this team, young and old, can live up to their potential and billing as NFL-caliber players when recent performances have cast a cloud of skepticism over many of their reputations.
Saturday lends a tremendous opportunity for the team to make a resounding statement that despite some high profile losses, this team is still a team that cannot be ignored as a force in college football.
National Scene
Five Winners
Oregon State- In the first jaw dropping upset of the year, the Beavers dominated the number one-ranked Trojans in the first half and were able to withstand a second half comeback.
Alabama- Will the clock strike midnight on Alabama in 2008? The Tide’s first half butt whooping of Georgia may have been one of the most impressive halves of football played this decade.
Northwestern- A win against Iowa is nothing to special, but going 5-0 for the first time in 46 years definitely is.
Ole Miss- How good does Houston Nutt like life right now? Arkansas is in shambles, and the Rebels have their first high profile win under Nutt with a shocking win in Gainesville.
Notre Dame- It pains me to put them on this list, but I think the Irish have withstood their flirtation with disaster. While they are by no means back to being a power, a solid 2-1 against Big Ten foes has severely lowered the heat on Charlie Weiss.
Five Losers
Wake Forest- Off to a solid start, the Deacons came out flat against Navy and were unable to overcome a 17-0 halftime deficit. If the Wake Forest doesn’t get out of their funk soon, they’ll be in danger of dropping out of ACC contention with games against Clemson, Maryland, and Miami in the coming weeks.
Florida- For the second year in a row, it seems the Gators defense may keep them out of a BCS bowl. The Gators are continuing the trend of 2007 of being one of the toughest teams in the country to gauge.
Wisconsin- Those who watched this game witnessed one of the biggest choke jobs in recent memory. The Badgers had three quarters to put this game away but seemed content dropping passes and kicking field goals.
Georgia – Many of us suspected the Bulldogs could fall to Alabama, but nobody expected them to get absolutely shellacked in front of the home faithful like they did.
USC- The Trojans have now earned the distinction of being the country’s most inconsistent elite team with yet another head-scratching conference loss at the hands of the Beavers.
An Updated Look at the Heisman
Rather then going with my standard national viewing guide, I thought that with conference play under way it would be a good time to take a look at this year’s Heisman race. For those craving some insight into this weekend’s slate of games, head on over to Steve’s great week six preview.
Travel Booked for New York:
Javon Ringer- Ringer is likely to go over the 1,000 yard mark this weekend and is on pace for 29 touchdowns. Although keeping up this pace maybe near impossible, 2,000 yards and 20 touchdowns will likely get him to New York.
Chase Daniel- October is Daniel’s month to put his name at the top of the Heisman race with four consecutive high profile games against Nebraska, Oklahoma State, Texas, and Colorado.
Sam Bradford- Bradford has the stats to take home the Heisman (16 TD, 72 percent completion) but will need to perform well in big games against Texas, Kansas, Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, and potentially Missouri in the Big 12 title game.
On Standby:
Knowshon Moreno- His third game under 80 yards this season has him on the outside looking in. However a nice second half and some big Bulldog wins will have him back in thick of it.
Max Hall- The nation’s best-kept secret is racking up Colt Brennan-like numbers in his quest to continue the tradition of BYU quarterback greatness.
Colt McCoy- In reality McCoy is right there with Bradford and Daniels but will have to outperform them in head to head competition in order to leap frog them in the eyes of the voters.
Tim Tebow- He’s faded pretty quickly with only two rushing touchdowns, but as you know he’s beloved by the media and some high profile wins could get him back at the top.
Michael Crabtree- The best receiver in the country is buried in a conference full of contenders. It’s going to take some very prominent and visible performances for him to really get in the mix.
Jeremy Maclin- Maclin is doing tremendous things for the Tigers, but he’s got a very uphill battle to displace teammate Chase Daniel at the lead candidate from his own team.
Still Saving the Date:
Graham Harrell- Harrell’s numbers are outstanding, but it won’t be until the last 1/3 of the season where he can make some noise when the Red Raiders take on Kansas, Texas, Oklahoma State, and Oklahoma in consecutive weeks.
Charles Scott- Not a real sexy contender, but gaining 100 yards in 100 percent of your games is always worth some consideration.
Daryll Clark- Clark and the Nittany Lions have been flying under the radar, but if he can navigate October with solid performances against Purdue, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Ohio State, look for the junior to QB to really ascend the Heisman pundit rankings.
