Ohio State shutout their second straight opponent and added a special dose of revenge with their 30-0 blanking of visiting Illinois.Ohio State travels this week to Indiana for a night game in Bloomington against the Hoosiers.
Buckeye Branches
1) Terrelle Pryor threw just two passes in the first half and finished with just 13 tosses on the day.
I like the ground game as much as anyone,but two first half passes?
That is extreme by even my standards.
2) The constant downpour of rain in the game contributed to the conservative play calling,I am sure,but the Buckeye defense allowing next to nothing in the way of Illinois offense helped that as well.
Having a defense that slams the door shut on every opportunity allows you flexibility in play calling that can range from gambling to conservative calls that wait until the oppositions defense breaks...
3) The ground game showed a bit more life as Boom Herron rushed for two TD's and averaged 5 and a half yards a carry and Brandon Saine exceeded that with an 81 yard outing and over six yards a carry.
Jim Tressel spread the carries a bit more equally in this game than in the first three and that is a good idea.
The fresher the runners can be,the more likely they are to perform well,especially Herron,who seems to dip in effectiveness as his carries increase.
4) One thing to ponder on the offense is why Ohio State hasn't used mammoth tight end Jake Ballard more in the offense?
Ballard seems tailor made to be the goal line/short yardage receiver on play action plays.
This also enables OSU to loose up defenses against the run,where the Buckeyes lack the rugged bully back to succeed consistently.
5) Kurt Coleman was suspended from the Indiana game for helmet to helmet contact on a play with under a minute to play.
Coleman was not ejected from the game,yet was suspended for the next one anyway.
Tough break for both Coleman and Ohio State,but maybe he should have been out of a 30-0 game at that point anyway...
6) Why was Coleman suspended?
Well,The Big Ten suspended a Michigan player for an incident against Notre Dame that the player wasn't thrown out for and may have felt that not suspending Coleman could set a bad precedent....
7) Brian Rolle continues to surprise me with a season that was beyond my hopes.
Rolle intercepted Juice Williams on the only serious threat that Illinoi
s made in the first half and continues to be all over the field as an impact player.If Rolle returns next season,he has to rank as a serious candidate for the Butkus award.
8) Ross Homan left the game early with a head injury,but Andrew Sweat was impressive in his spot.The Pennsylvania native showed both speed and solid tackling in his stint against Illinois.
9) The other defender that was dominant was Thaddeus Gibson,who seemed to be constantly attached to Juice Williams.
Gibson deserved a game ball for sure.
10) Three interceptions and allowing next to nothing on ground caused Ron Zook's team to leave town with their heads held low-Just a bit of payback for their less than sportsmanlike behavior in their last visit to the Horseshoe.
11) Thanks to the Buckeyes playing a night game on the Big Ten network this Saturday,no guarantees on a fast recap as I will miss the second half until I have time to review the tape.....
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