We Will Always Have Tempe

Last Call

2009-12-31T17:08:45Z

Last Call

Alright, people, wrap it up! You don't have to go home, but you can't stay here. The Buckeye Battle Cry is officially up and running.

Oregon Preview: Offense, final prediction and a very fond farewell

2009-12-30T15:00:26Z

Alright, let's get this out of the way first: Oregon is not going to get "exposed" by a top-10 defense, it has faced athletic, competent defenses before, and it has done well against them. Boise State was not a "fluke" per se, but it's impossible to deny that the Oregon offense has progressed since then. It's not the most balanced of attacks, but it doesn't have to be when it averages 236 yards on the ground. I feel safe in saying that just slowing down Oregon's offense will be the biggest challenge Ohio State's defense has confronted this year.

Is it up to the task? Well, the match-ups are roughly even across the board, but there are a few to worry about. Let's take a look at them.

The focal point of the Oregon attack is Jeremiah Masoli. Stopping him - not an easy task - will go a long way in stopping the offense as a whole. There are a lot of responsibilities the defense has in stopping a quarterback like Masoli (meaning one who runs the spread-option attack efficiently and intelligently) - containing him when he runs, forcing him to make the smart, accurate throw when he passes, all while making sure Oregon's dangerous tailbacks aren't the ones who actually have the ball. Putting a spy on Jeremiah Masoli for the entire game would be unwise: it removes one player from pass coverage, and while he's not the most pinpoint accurate passer, he's good enough to diagnose coverages and make the right throw. He's roughly as dangerous as spread-option quarterbacks come when they're not Pat White.

Containment of Masoli is also far more difficult than it is with most option signal-callers. Masoli is stout and strong, not nimble and lithe like Pat White, or more appropriately, Tate Forcier. He's big enough to run guys over, so arm-tackles will not be an option for the Ohio State defense. Fortunately, Brian Rolle and Ross Homan might be two of the best wrap-up tacklers Jim Tressel has had, and - provided they're in position (and they usually are) - will be a huge asset to Ohio State's defensive gameplan.

LaMichael James will be the best tailback Ohio State has seen all year. Evan Royster and John Clay are both very good, but neither is as quick, elusive or productive as James. They just aren't similar backs, so it's tough to project how well Ohio State's defense will fare when James has the ball in his hands. Typically, the Buckeyes shut down a back regardless of his skill set, but I'm not sure Ohio State has actually seen a back like James since healthy, starting Joe McKnight in 2008. McKnight was also the last back to get over 100 yards by himself against the Buckeyes, so it appears the Buckeye D has its work cut out for itself.

Legarette Blount will likely get some time behind James, but his role in the offense has been diminished following his suspension for the post-Boise meltdown. I wouldn't be shocked if Oregon tries to get him some more touches in his final game as a Duck; he showed against Oregon State that he still has "it" in him.

A fourth name to keep an eye on in Oregon's ground attack is Kenjon Barner. Barner's just a freshman, with only a little over 300 yards on the season, but he's a vital aspect of some of Oregon's trickier plays. Frequently, he's the third option when Oregon runs its variation of the triple option, and is a quick, versatile player that Ohio State will have to respect as that third threat. I would look for Oregon to try to get this guy matched up with Anderson Russell when Ohio State's in nickel and dime packages.

I take some solace in Ohio State's resumé of dominating rushing attacks post-Navy (and, in the end they still ended up holding the Middies to 86 yards below their season average), but it has to be limited: Navy had success against Ohio State, and Oregon is - easily - the best rushing offense Ohio State has seen since. While I disagree with the notion that Ohio State has simply "never seen" an offense like Oregon's - Illinois, Michigan, and Northwestern all share similar philosophical underpinnings to Chip Kelly's spread - I would agree with the statement that Ohio State has yet to play a rushing attack as talented and able to execute as Oregon's.

The Duck rushing attack is generally so successful that the passing attack gets left on the drawing board in the locker room. Unlike Ohio State, who only breaks out the passing attack when it feels like it (regardless of score), Oregon doesn't pass much because it doesn't have to; Ohio State usually just can't pass. In all seriousness, Oregon's passing game is not particularly complex. Nevertheless, the fact that most of it evolves off of the read-option makes it rather difficult to defend. Jeremiah Masoli is usually apt in recognizing when he has an open man. If Ohio State has Masoli and his backfield mate contained, Masoli has two key weapons he can try to get the ball to: Ed Dickson, a rangy TE with WR speed, and Jeff Maehl: a possession receiver who is very good at fighting for the ball and going across the middle. Neither is a burner, but both are solid enough options against a secondary that, while mostly solid, has given up a few good passing games to average-to-bad passing attacks this year in Purdue and Iowa.

Maehl on Chimdi Chekwa should be a close battle to the end. Don't let Chekwa's rough Iowa game color your perceptions of him too much; in every other game this year, he was solid, and sometimes excellent. But I think Maehl will win his share of battles here, and he has enough to speed to burn a corner who missteps, so a little deep help from Kurt Coleman will be warranted on occasion.

Dickson is the match-up that worries me here, at least in man-to-man: he's too tall for Brian Rolle, just a bit too fast for Ross Homan, and putting Coleman on him removes Kurt from deeper coverage, where he excels, and puts him on a guy that has at least five inches on him. I think Ohio State's going to respond with a lot of zone on obvious passing downs, so that Homan doesn't have to run with him and so that both he and Rolle are at least in the area of Dickson if he makes the catch. Then, it's just an issue of wrapping him up. Still, I think Dickson will get his yards.

Ohio State, on the whole, has been a very disciplined defense this year. Defensive lapses against Purdue and Navy were the exception, not the rule. Fundamentally, this might be the best defense Jim Tressel has coached, and athletically, it is rivaled only by 2005 in the post-2002 era. That being said, I always worry about Ohio State's defensive philosophy in bowl games, especially after three consecutive collapses in the BCS. Ohio State has the talent on hand to slow Oregon down, but it also had that talent on hand against Florida, LSU and Texas, and couldn't get the job done. It's not an issue of Ohio State utilizing a "soft zone" (though the occasional cushion given by the corners can be a little frustrating when it's so obvious) too much, but an issue of developing a fairly generic defensive gameplan and sticking to it regardless of how the opposing offense does against it. This year, I have yet to see Ohio State fail to adjust to new wrinkles in an opposing offensive gameplan, and that is a very encouraging development. If the defensive gameplan is a dynamic, flexible one - even roughly as flexible as Oregon's offensive plan - Ohio State will definitely have a shot to win this game going into the final quarter.

The Buckeyes are going to have to maintain a balance of discipline and aggression in attacking the Oregon offense; focusing too much on either will likely get them burned in one way or another. This game will be a good indicator of how far the defensive staff has come since the games against Florida and LSU. After all, they got the team in position to be an Anderson Russell tackle away from beating Texas, a team many felt "should" have been in the title game, just last year. While I'm not sure I agree with the sentiment surrounding that Texas team, the fact remains that this staff cobbled together a fairly good defensive gameplan that gave Texas what it wanted between the twenties but clamped down excellently in the red zone, forcing turnovers and field goals until that final fateful minute. Oregon's attack is roughly as potent on the ground as Texas' was through the air, and is thus an entirely different beast. If Ohio State manages to hold Oregon to 24 points - a big if - the onus will be on the offense to win the game in the end.

Five predictions to make me look stupid come Saturday:

- Oregon tops 200 yards on the ground - barely, on roughly 40 carries - while Ohio State does not.

- Terrelle Pryor's impact on the game is again marginalized; he won't run much and he won't pass much, opting for "effective" decisions rather than productive ones

- Brandon Saine will solidify himself as next year's starter with a solid outing.

- Ohio State will have a lead at some point, will sit on it for far too long, and will simply watch as Oregon regains the lead in the second half against a tired defense.

- Final Score: Oregon 31, Ohio State 23

Well, ladies and gents, it's been fun. I hope I'm wrong about Friday's game, but it's Jim Tressel in a big game. What do you think will happen? All joking aside, cataloging my frustrations as well as my positive feelings and thoughts on Ohio State athletics has been a very rewarding experience here, and it's one that certainly is not ending any time soon; I'll still be dropping knowledge throughout the Buckeye blogosphere when I get the time. For now, I suggest moseying on over to The Buckeye Battle Cry and getting acquainted with the new Buckeye digs on SBN. The Rose Bowl live thread will be over there. Have a great New Year's, and Go Bucks.

Oregon Preview: Defense

2009-12-29T17:00:35Z

The debate surrounding Oregon's defense began immediately following the Ducks' 37-33 win over Oregon State, and has yet to cease. Addicted To Quack, using statistical rankings adjusted to reflect strength of schedule, has put forth the reasoned Oregon argument quite well:

Now, I'm not gonna sit here and say that Oregon's defense is better than OSU's. It's not. But, it's a lot closer than any Buckeye fan is willing to admit. Looking at these statistics, Oregon has the 15th ranked defense in the country, and beyond that has the 10th ranked rushing defense in the country (mostly because they have faced a lot of really good rushing teams). These results really shouldn't be a surprise. Oregon is giving up only 4.6 yards per play on the season, good for 11th nationally. And they are giving up only 3.41 yards per rush, good for 24th nationally (again, let's remember that S&P+ takes into account opponent strengths).

And The Rivalry, Esq. has responded with a comparable amount of stat-wonkery:

Adjusted to reflect the quality of opponents, and number of snaps, Ohio State's defense is allowing 26.9% less points per game than Oregon's defense. Coming into the Rose Bowl Oregon is scoring 8.4 more points a game than Ohio State on average (29.3 points versus 37.7 points). Adjusting these figures to reflect Ohio State's defensive advantage (e.g. the 26.9 percent scoring differential), the Buckeyes have a 2 point advantage on paper heading into the game.

I suggest reading both articles so that you can fully understand both sides' respective points. You're probably expecting me to take a side here.

Being a chickenshit, I won't. Here's my line of thought: Oregon's defense could very well be terrible - is Ohio State's offense good enough to take advantage of it? Oregon's defense could very well be lights-out, and it may have been a top-ten outfit in the offensively-challenged Big Ten as well - but can Ohio State's offense simply replicate the Penn State game plan (against a top ten rushing defense) and hope to win?

I will say this in agreement with ATQ: I think Oregon's defense is far, far better than most Ohio State fans are giving it credit for, and that anyone that thinks Ohio State is going to bulldoze the undersized Oregon front did not watch either team very much, and certainly did not watch Ohio State's game against Purdue, or Oregon's game against USC. The Buckeyes are perfectly capable of moving the ball on the Ducks, but it's not going to be a walk in the park. I'm not going to take the cheap, easy way out, and sit back and diss the Oregon defense. Their stats aren't the greatest, but they are no slouches. Hell, it's not like they're going up against an unstoppable offense anyway.

We'll know how well Ohio State will do against Oregon's defense in the early stages of this game. Oregon's front seven is undersized on average, relative to most Big Ten defenses - DT Brandon Bair is just 270 pounds, while hybrid DE-OLB Kenny Rowe is just a hair under 230 pounds, and linebacker Eddie Pleasant checks in at around 210. But Oregon isn't just trotting out a bunch of skinny dudes and praying that they don't get run over; these guys are quick and athletic enough to give most offenses - especially attacks as ground-oriented as Ohio State's - quite a bit of trouble.

Brandon Bair is a Doug Worthington type - a DT in a DE's body, and offers many of the same things Worthington does: good pursuit on screens, a big bear paw in the middle of the defense on quick slants, and an excellent pass rush on 3rd and 7+ situations. He isn't really big or strong enough to demand double teams in short-yardage situations, but matching him up with say, Bryant Browning, might be a very fortuitous move for the Ducks. Browning is an excellent roadgrader, but his feet are lacking, and a stunting, mobile Bair could very well give him fits in a way that Jared Odrick could not. Oregon's other DT - Blake Ferras - is in fact, big and broad, like Odrick, and could present just as many problems for the Ohio State interior.

Kenny Rowe is going to be a terror in passing situations. He has 8.5 sacks on the year - almost as many as Cameron Heyward and Thaddeus Gibson combined (9.5) - and as an undersized, quick outside rusher, he's the exact type of end that has given Ohio State's offensive line trouble in the past. Knowing Jim Tressel, Rowe will be limited the only way Jim Tressel knows how: by dropping Terrelle back 20 times at the most while whispering "good luck with that" to Jim Cordle. Cordle has shown improvement over the past few games, working against some very good DEs like Jack Crawford and Brandon Graham, so hopefully it'll translate fairly well to the bowl game. Pleasant is Oregon's 2nd best sack artist, and could be blitzed directly into Ohio State's pocket in the hope of containing Pryor on rollouts.

What Oregon lacks in size up front, it more than makes up for in speed. Even if Ohio State's offensive line manages to blow the Oregon DL off the line of scrimmage (certainly not a given), Brandon Saine and Daniel Herron will probably not have a whole lot in the way of open space to work with in the second level, and will thus be forced to break quite a few tackles. Oregon's linebackers - Pleasant, Casey Matthews, Spencer Paysinger (both with more-than-adequate linebacker size) and occasionally Kenny Rowe - fly to the ball, and while they may not always make the perfect form tackle, they're in the area and clogging up running lanes. Either way, Ohio State's backs are not renowned for their tackle-breaking ability. I'd expect to see a lot of 3-6 yard gains, along with the requisite amount of stuffs, but very few runs of longer than 10 yards.

(If you're still doubting Oregon's ability to match up against a team with a potent ground attack who really struggles to move the ball through the air, they have done it before. Cal, with Jahvid Best in tow, got completely locked up in Oregon's 2nd-most dominant performance of the year. The Duck defense did a terrific job of stacking the box and bringing the ball-carrier down for minimal gain. They will not be easily bowled over.)

Ohio State is not going to win this game by "out-athleting" Oregon on offense; it'll have to do it through superior blocking, the likes of which we saw against Iowa, Penn State and Michigan. If the staff can get a similar amount of effort out of this line as it did in Happy Valley, things will go a lot more smoothly for Terrelle Pryor and Ohio State's incidental passing game.

The defensive backfield is not the strength of this unit, but there are some very solid players: Talmadge Jackson III leads the team in interceptions with four, while T.J. Ward and Javes Lewis patrol the deep portions of the field. As a unit, the Oregon secondary has held 7 of their 12 opponents under 200 yards passing, thought it's highly unlikely that Ohio State will make a serious effort in getting to that number unless the game gets out of hand early. The match-ups here are iffy; DeVier Posey can make many corners look bad, but frequently when he does, Pryor overshoots him anyway. Even so, I wouldn't start banking on Posey burning Jackson - a more than adequate cover corner - any time soon. I like the prospect of Dane Sanzenbacher against Oregon's other corner - either Anthony Gildon or Cliff Harris, both underclassmen who have been consistent, but not spectacular - but yet again, it's an issue of Pryor actually hitting the open man.

However, If Ohio State is dropping back enough to get Rowe, Bair and Pleasant heavily involved in the backfield, chances are that the Buckeyes never had a chance in the first place, as the ground game will have to have already been limited. The Ohio State passing game is a completely secondary aspect of the offense, more of a "change-up" for Jim Tressel than a separate entity.

Thus, everyone and their mother knows what Ohio State's offensive gameplan against Oregon is going to be: pound the rock, drain the clock, and keep the Duck offense off the field (and the Buckeye defense well-rested). Other teams have tried it, and Ohio State will be hoping that its defense can contain (meaning "slow down", not "shut down") the Oregon offense long enough to keep this strategy viable.There will be either misdirection or read-option at least once every other drive, and there will be a deep ball here or there to test the Duck secondary. If Pryor can connect on at least one of these, and if the line is blocking like it did against the Lions, the Hawkeyes, and the Wolverines, the Buckeyes will probably be in fairly good shape heading into the game's final minutes.

Bucknotes is filled with yuletide indifference

2009-12-28T15:00:19Z

Florida coach Urban Meyer steps down for health reasons - ESPN (caution: autoplay video)
The WTF story of the week, with Urban Meyer stepping down from the Gators' coaching position due to health reasons. Now, there are some crazy Buckeye fans out there who think Meyer is a lock for our next head coach, the fact that he has (or had) nothing to leave Gainesville for notwithstanding. While assuming a "non-football position" within the Florida AD at the age of 45 makes Meyer ripe for every coaching rumor from here until he either actually takes one or officially retires from the world of sport, I tend to think no one would retire from UF right now, even post-Tebow, if they aren't suffering from something very, very serious; something that precludes them from ever returning to coaching again. So while Meyer would (and may still be) the sexy pick for Jim Tressel's successor down the road, I personally wouldn't want to thrust the Ohio State job on anyone who isn't fully equipped to deal with the insane amount of pressure that comes with it. I have no doubts that Meyer would deliver on expectations, but if that comes at the expense of his health, I'd want no part of it.

(EDIT: Or.... not? I maintain that, regardless of how this all works out, the man has no reason to leave Gainesville for Columbus, and I hope our AD is smart enough to politely request once, take no for an answer, and immediately move on to its options 1B and 2 when the time comes after the next five or so years)

Every holiday a journey | BuckeyeXtra
Fluff piece about Jon Thoma's far-flung holiday treks to see his international family. As if his Christmas wasn't stressful enough, he also has to worry about bowl prep.

Time to perform: Days of Pryor growing into QB job are running short | BuckeyeXtra
No point in getting outraged with Pryor when the alternatives are Joe Bauserman and a true freshman afterthought. I will concede this: if Pryor's Rose Bowl performance registers a thorough "yikes", as opposed to a "meh" or "holy crap, tangible improvement!", the quarterback competition should be wide open in the spring.

Suspensions put reserves in Rose Bowl game: Ohio State Football Insider | Ohio State Buckeyes - cleveland.com - - cleveland.com
Thomas and Washington will have to catch the one or two balls Carter and/or Small would have caught if they were eligible. I'm being slightly sarcastic, but let's be honest: we'll miss Small's work more on special teams than we will anywhere else.

Ohio State football team seeks balance of work and play | Ohio State Buckeyes - cleveland.com - - cleveland.com
All play didn't work against Florida, all work didn't fly against LSU, and whatever worked against Texas caused Anderson Russell to lose his GD mind.

Ohio State on Forbes’ most-valuable teams list
Behind Penn State, even, but well ahead of Michigan, who dropped from #4 on the list to #11. For the record, this is determined by how much money is left over to pay for non-revenue sports after football. Ohio State has 30+ non-revenue sports to pay for, while Penn State, uh, doesn't. But hey, that's good for them - they don't have to put off stadium renovations and facility upgrades so the Women's Rifling team can attend their postseason tournament.

Germaine rallies Buckeyes | mansfieldnewsjournal.com | Mansfield News Journal
Revisiting Ohio State's last trip to Pasadena.

Urban Meyer’s Sudden Retirement Could Affect Ohio State’s Recruiting | WaitingForNextYear
May get us in contention for Matt Elam - brother of Browns safety Abe Elam - but I wouldn't count on it.

Ohio State and Oregon could be rusty after layoff -- latimes.com
So the layoff excuse can be utilized as such by... both teams? That's depressing.

Playoffs losing support, Gee says | BuckeyeXtra
I like Gordon Gee, and I've seen him strolling around campus on numerous occasions, but his opposition to college football playoffs sets this program farther back than Jim Tressel's brand of offensive football. Him being in favor of conference expansion signals a willingness to strengthen the appeal of the Big Ten, but he apparently thinks those who want to do the same for the sport at large can basically suck it.

Titus, an Ohio State Basketball Scrub, Stars as a Blogger - NYTimes.com

Mark Titus, founder of Club Trillion, gets profiled in the New York Times.

Happy Holidays from WWAHT

2009-12-24T18:01:47Z

Merry Christmas to you Christians / disinterested non-believers, Happy Hanukkah to you Jews, and a Krazy (?) Kwanzaa to those of you who celebrate it. Whatever you celebrate in the vague period of time between Thanksgiving and New Year's, I hope it goes/went well for you and yours, even if you root for Michigan and kill puppies for a living. I'll be back Monday with more basketball talk and some Oregon previewin' here and there. Until then, have a nice holiday season.

Cleveland State Game Notes

2009-12-23T03:59:31Z

First half:

(I missed the first five or so minutes)

- Gray uniforms. *yawn*

- David Lighty started strong from beyond the perimeter, which surprised me. I still envision him as a drive-first, perimeter-second guy

- The team is taking smart shots on the whole, which is an encouraging development, but the shots just aren't falling. CSU is leaving some guys open, and they're just clanking off the rim.

- Kyle Madsen might become a member of Club Multi-Trill; he's been on the field for minutes and has yet to make an impact on the stat sheet.

- We're on a patented, Butler-tested (and approved!) 5-minute scoring drought once again.

- Hey, Madsen had an assist!

- It looks like CSU switched from man to (3-2?) zone defense and that had the Buckeyes completely flustered for an extended period of time.

- Good finishing effort after a slow start from Buford. Five points to close the half and it's 31-23. Not sure if I'm happy about the offensive performance, which was balanced but annoyingly cold at times. Defensively, we're alright with almost whatever we deploy, but CSU is getting a few plays inside on drives that could portend bad things for the future.

Second half notes and closing thoughts after the break...

Second Half

- Good start by the Buckeyes in building on the lead to start the half.

- Evan Turner is ahead of schedule. To have him back by the game at Purdue would be huge for this team, however, I'm a little worried that the team might regress back to "wait for ET to do something" very quickly. Let's hope the balanced nature of the offense of late sticks.

- David Lighty just brought the house down with a dunk, and I think he descended from Valhalla to deliver it. Good answer after giving up two straight treys to the same guy on the other end of the court.

- CSU on a bit of a run here. A board or eight would be nice.

- Alright, I'll be honest: I like PJ Hill. His energetic play immediately up tempo of a game. Yes, he tries too hard sometimes and that results in turnovers, but I think he brings more to the table than he takes off. If that makes any sense whatsoever.

- It appears we'll have a different leading scorer in every game, but I think Lighty can be counted on for 15+ ppg in Turner's absence. That's four straight games now with at least that many.

- CSU's "bigs" being injured is really a problem? Have you noticed our best "big" is Dallas Lauderdale?

- GAH MONTGOMERY GO AWAY

- Lauderdale with a rebound and a score... against a dude who had fallen over.

- We had to give up our customary awkward white guy back-up three, didn't we?

- MONTGOMERY IS NOT GOING AWAY

- With the lead down to just 8 points with a couple minutes left, Lighty drives, scores, and is fouled. He makes the free throw for his 30th point of the night. On the ensuing possession, CSU turns the ball over and Hill takes it in to give the Buckeyes a 13-point lead with a minute-and-a-half left. This one's over.

Closing Thoughts

Even with the whole Montgomery thing, this was a solid night defensively. I can stand a guy scoring 25 points by his lonesome, 15 on treys, if no one else scores more than seven. Offensively the moment CSU's big men got into foul trouble, Dallas Lauderdale flourished, grabbing seven boards, notching two blocks and scoring 12 points. Not the greatest of stat lines, but when you consider it's Dallas Lauderdale, you should be vaguely satisfied. I was really impressed by Lighty's production tonight; 30 points is awesome, but so is seven assists and five rebounds on a team that really needs to spread the ball around more consistently. Three players got into double figures tonight, which is good, not great. But hey, at least we out-rebounded somebody!

Even with tonight's success, I'm not sure this team has improved enough defensively to pull off a W up in Madison in 9days. Cleveland State has one guy who can knock down the open three seemingly every time it's available, and the Badgers always seem to have at least seventy. For now, I'm just hoping David Lighty improves on his performance today, Buford and that the Buckeyes can keep it close enough to have a realistic shot at winning in the end.

Adventures in Creepiness: A Brief Recruiting Update

2009-12-22T15:00:22Z

For those of you who don't spend your days obsessing over the inner thought processes of 17 and 18-year-old kids, I figured I'd do a quick holiday rakrootin' update. In truth, I don't follow recruiting much, though that never stopped me from typing up wordy updates in the past. I figured that, given the relative doldrums between relevant basketball and the Rose Bowl, now would be a good time to get a bead on exactly how this recruiting class is shaping up.

There hasn't been much in the way of news since the season started; after August, the Buckeyes received commitments from Verlon Reed, a QB/S tweener who may act as an emergency quarterback if injuries become an issue, and WR Corey Brown (not that Corey Brown).

As of right now, the class has just 15 commits , and is rated the 21st best in the country by Scout and a middling 27th by Rivals. No, it's not PANIC MODE! time, even though the yokels at Scout are predictably wailing. This is a small class, and both recruiting services tend to reward larger recruiting classes with higher rankings; the top 8 classes on Rivals all have 20 or more commitments while the top 18 on Scout have 19 or more. Since the staff can only sign roughly 20 players given scholarship limits, we can consider ourselves roughly on schedule. If you're still worried about the rankings, sort by average star/player on either site, and the Buckeyes wind up in the top 10 or 12. Insert "quality over quantity" cliché here.

The Buckeyes' recruiting numbers are also hurt by the fact that they're waiting on commits from a couple key guys who'd be some of the higher-ranked prospects in this class: Christian Bryant, Sharrif Floyd, Latwan Anderson, Seantrel Henderson, and Jordan Hicks could all easily end up Buckeyes, but the staff faces heavy competition with Henderson and Hicks from the likes of USC, Texas and Florida, so there is still plenty or work to do. There are still "eh, it could happen" guys like Chaz Green, Jonathon Hankins and Matt James. James was enamored with Brian Kelly and is a Cincy kid. He held off on a commitment, presumably because he didn't want to actually play for a team whose stadium seats fewer people than a Canyonero. Now that Kelly is actually at a place with respectable facilities, James is looking less and less like a Buckeye. Green had been considered a silent Gator commit for an awfully long time but never pulled the trigger; thus, people think other teams are still in the hunt for his services. Those "other teams" appear to be Tennessee and USC, however. Hankins is interesting; he's a three-star prospect to both sites with offers from the likes of Ohio State, Michigan, and Oklahoma. I hate to break out the "sleeper" talk again, but when there's that kind of disparity between offers and rating, something's up. Hankins would be a nice get for this class; while DT is a loaded position on this team, it's also an aging one.

So what are realistic expectations for the rest of this class? Anderson and Bryant are assumed to be silent commits in most recruiting circles, and if we can pick off any two of Floyd, Hankins, Henderson and Hicks, this will be a very solid "down year" class. I'd also expect a last-minute offer to another "diamond-in-the-rough" Kenny Guiton, Jermil Martin-type to fill the void left by a non-commit from one of those four if that position needs an infusion of depth. That, along with Carlos Hyde coming over from prep school, would give Ohio State 20 commits, right around the class size JT wants for this year.

Bucknotes has delusions of grandeur

2009-12-21T15:00:23Z

How about Big 14? -- chicagotribune.com
Seriously? What three schools could we possibly add that would make the conference "better" in either revenue sport?

Big Ten juniors facing NFL decisions - Big Ten Blog - ESPN
Chekwa leaving early would be another Ashton Youboty/Brian Hartline decision that gets blasted for four months until he gets taken in like the 3rd round. Personally, I think he should come back and develop into a 2nd-round, perhaps even a late first-round talent, but then again, I'm probably just being a homer.

The Big Ten's division dilemma - Big Ten Blog - ESPN
I'm not sure those division names will stick, but the big problem with this alignment is that Ohio State/Michigan will basically determine the outcome of one division four out of every five years. Keeping Penn State in the Eastern division nullifies this, as the Nits are perfectly capable of beating Ohio State and Michigan most years, and frees up Iowa, Wisconsin and That Phantom 12th Member Who Still Might Be Notre Dame to duke it out for the Western crown. You just can't expect MSU, Indiana, Purdue and Illinois to hold their own against the supposed "Big Two" very often, if at all; you just have to give the division a little more punch than that.

Jim Cordle has done it all for Buckeye offensive line
I hope all this position shuffling has little-to-no effect on his draft status and someone sees fit to take him in a later round. Aside from his first few games at tackle, he's been a pretty consistent (and consistently underrated) part of this line. Like Browning, I think he flourished at the new position once he adjusted to it.

Cleveland State's comeback falls just short of upset as West Virginia survives, 80-78 | Cleveland State Vikings: cleveland.com - - cleveland.com
A look at our next opponent, who nearly pulled one out against a top-ten Mountaineer squad. A lackadaisical effort from Ohio State tomorrow night in the Schott could very easily result in a loss, so let's hope the boys focus their full attention on the Vikings.

Ohio State guard Evan Turner thinks he can heal by early January | Ohio State Buckeyes - cleveland.com - - cleveland.com
Wants to be back in the line-up for games against Purdue and Minnesota on the road. I think Ohio State stands an alright chance of beating the Gophers even without Turner, but things are probably hopeless in West Lafayette even with Turner in the line-up. I just hope they're not rushing him back.

Is Ohio State's defense really worthy of its high standings vs. the pass? Buckeyes Insider | Ohio State Buckeyes - cleveland.com - - cleveland.com
To sum up the article: yeah, sorta, minus a few lapses against Iowa and Purdue. Even if it's not, it's not like Oregon will come out dead set on throwing for 300 yards. This game is going to be won or lost in the trenches.

OSU notebook: Defense working on quickness to slow no-huddle | BuckeyeXtra
Note: this is not an "athleticism / speed" thing so much as preparation for Oregon's fast-paced offense, which is comparable to Michigan's offense, only with experience and talent. So shoo, Oregon fans who think this is our hometown paper owning up to our "lack of speed". It's a simple truth that Oregon runs a faster-paced offense than Wisconsin and Penn State, and any team - from any conference - will have to adjust to it if it wants to win.

Ohio State football: Expect a run for the roses | BuckeyeXtra
Basically stating the obvious here; Ohio State will have to run - and run well - on Oregon to have a chance at winning this game. The fact that our backfield is so deep and our line made so many strides over the latter third of the season should give us the advantage here, but it being Ohio State in a BCS bowl game, I'm not counting on anything.