All is Well! Ohio State bullies Michigan 27-9

      Well, all is well in my world for the first time since 2021 as the Ohio State Buckeyes put things in their proper place with a dominating 27-9 win over the Michigan Wolverines in their snowy home in Ann Arbor.

Julian Sayin threw three touchdown passes, including a fifty-yard strike to Carnell Tate, Bo Jackson rushed for 117 yards, and the Ohio State defense never allowed the Wolverines to reach the end zone, holding them to three field goals, all in the first half.

Ohio State caps an undefeated regular season at 12-0 (9-0 Big Ten) and will play the other unbeaten team in the conference and country in the Big Ten Championship game next Saturday, meeting Indiana in Indianapolis.

Olentangy Offerings

1) I must admit, I was a little concerned when Michigan scored three points on their first drive, and then picked off Julian Sayin shortly thereafter to give them the ball in Ohio State territory,

Ohio State's defense would hold Michigan to another field goal, and only another field goal would be allowed for the remainder of the game.

2) The play that worried me most was an early run by Jordan Marshall, the player who mouthed off most through the week with gems such as "we (Michigan) have the best coach in the country", "it's about the culture" (think about that over the last few years), and not wanting to "be around people who are all about themselves".

Marshall entered the game with an injured shoulder; his first run was for thirty-six yards, but he left the game shortly.

Marshall tried to return in the second half, but he was stopped for little gains and soon was through for the day, finishing with sixty-one yards on seven carries.

3) Ohio State benefited and was stung by two calls in the first half.

Ohio State benefited on a close call on a Julian Sayin to Jeremiah Smith touchdown pass that saw Smith possibly losing control as he passed the goal line.

Because the ball went through the back of the end zone as part of the dumbest rule in the sport (a fumble through the end zone is considered a touchback and gives possession to the defense), Ohio State would have seen a 10-6 lead turn into a 6-3 Michigan lead, returning the ball to the Wolverines.

4) The other controversy happened earlier in the first half.

Julian Sayin's QB sneak was initially called a touchdown and reversed by replay (I don't think Sayin scored, but I didn't see evidence on the replay through the pile of bodies), but C.J. Donaldson pretty clearly broke the plane of the goal line (The second dumbest rule in football), and it wasn't even replayed! 

Ohio State settled for a field goal on the drive.

5) Much of the talk during the week was about the availability of Carnell Tate and Jeremiah Smith for the game, and in the case of Tate, if he would ever play for the Buckeyes again, with Tate's eligibility for the 2026 NFL Draft.

I thought both would, both did, and both scored on long passes, 50 yards for Tate and 35 for Smith.

I think the Buckeyes are OK here.

6) The Ohio State defense never seemed threatened after the first drive.

Ohio State stopped Michigan after Julian Sayin's interception and shut down their offense entirely in the second half.

7) Michigan's freshman quarterback, Bryce Underwood, is being paid a lot of money, and he is a true freshman, but it's fair to consider that Michigan has to have thought they deserve more for their dollars than sixty-three passing yards and an interception.

8) While the game was essentially ended by the Sayin to Tate strike in the third quarter, the true kill-shot was the field goal that ate the final five-plus minutes of the third quarter and the first six of the final period.

That drive slowly sapped Michigan's will and any chance of it forging a rally.

9) Ohio State's offensive line has been maligned through the years (not as much this season), but the numbers in this game- Zero sacks allowed, Zero pressures against Julian Sayin, and one hundred eighty-six yards rushing.

It is often about the trenches and physicality in this game, and in the recent losses, Michigan had the edge in that department- not on this day.

10)  The defensive line did its share of bullying.

Kenyatta Jackson, Kayden McDonald, and Caden Curry are more than just pass rushers; they stuff the run as well.

Michigan finished with one hundred yards rushing as a team, but remember, thirty-six of those came on the first run by Jordan Marshall.

After that run, Michigan rushed for sixty-four yards on twenty-three rushes, an average of 2.78 per try.

11) The win (as we have heard so often) was the first over Michigan since 2019, but don't forget (although Michigan has) that in 2020, the Buckeyes reached the National Title game (before losing to Alabama), and a losing Michigan team ducked a certain defeat in that Covid season by meekly saying they didn't have enough players.

Combine that with the "Connor Stallion" losses, and you could say Michigan had a real two-game winning streak.

12) Give Ryan Day credit for class by telling his team not to plant the Ohio State flag at midfield.

Michigan stood at midfield to block any attempt and later said, "They weren't going to do that," but Day told Michigan coach Sherrone Moore at midfield that they wouldn't be planting any flags.

It defused a possible situation after last season's debacle in Columbus.
Perhaps if Michigan were so concerned about retribution, it shouldn't have started this practice.

Hopefully, we can get past this in the future from both schools.

Late Thoughts: Ohio State pounds Penn State

    This is really late due to a fun trip on Sunday, personally, but I wanted to add a few thoughts on Ohio State's 38-14 win over Penn State last Saturday.

1) Julian Sayin threw for over three hundred yards and fired four touchdown passes.

Sayin has firmly placed himself in Heisman consideration, and the biggest hurdle that Sayin may have to face might be voters splitting votes between Sayin and his top two receivers, Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate.

2) Ryan Day gives more and more challenges each week to Julian Sayin, and the final advance might have come against the Nittany Lions, where Sayin began looking downfield for big plays to his standout pass catchers.

Sayin completed fifty-seven-yard passes to both Smith and Tate and showed the ability to throw a beautiful deep ball.

3) Penn State was only down three points at the half after a C.J. Donaldson fumble late in the first half led to a Penn State short-field touchdown drive, but I never felt threatened with an upset.

Ohio State scored on every first-half possession other than the final drive when Donaldson fumbled, and I didn't think Penn State could keep pace in the second.

Ohio State Fickels Wisconsin 34-0

  Julian Sayin threw for nearly four hundred yards and four touchdowns as the Ohio State Buckeyes dominated the Wisconsin Badgers 34-0 in Madison.

Sayin completed thirty-six of forty-two passes during a performance that had some placing him in Heisman consideration.

While that's premature, Sayin did look very good against a Badger team that looks as weak as they have since the years of Don Morton running the veer.

Carnell Tate caught two touchdowns and finished with over one hundred yards receiving, while Jeremiah Smith finished with ninety-seven on nine catches.

I'm cutting this one short for two reasons this week.

The first is that the Browns are starting soon, and the second is that this was so uncompetitive that I didn't watch as closely as usual.

I may update this later or write more later in the week about a game that I usually look forward to (or fear) for personal reasons, but now has become just another game against an overmatched Big Ten opponent.

Buckeyes starch Arch, hook Texas 14-7

    All the talk entering the Texas Longhorns' visit to Columbus was about the latest Manning to step forward into the limelight and his coronation as the frontrunner to win the next Heisman.

When the Texas Longhorns left Columbus, the talk was how the Ohio State defense neutered the Horns in a 14-7 Buckeye victory. 

Julian Sayin threw a forty-yard touchdown pass and C.J. Donaldson rushed for a one-yard score. Still, the stars were the Ohio State defense, which stopped Texas on fourth down four times, including a goal-line stop that left the Texas version of the Philadelphia Eagles' vaunted "Tush Push" stone-cold stunned.

Ohio State improved to 1-0 and will face Grambling next week.

Olentangy Offerings

1) Ohio State's defense under new defensive coordinator Matt Patricia was the standout.

They harassed Arch Manning incessantly, despite finishing with just one sack, and showed a constantly morphing front that understandably confused the inexperienced Manning.

2) Matt Patricia was looked at as damaged goods after an ineffective run as head coach of the Detroit Lions, and with the loss of Jim Knowles to semi-rival Penn State, it was fair to wonder if there would be an adjustment period for the defense.

The season has only begun, but Patricia's defense looked very good against an offense that is as talented or better than any they will face in the regular season.

It's early, but an excellent game to start the season.

3) I've always liked the Manning family.

I was a fan of Archie as a child, and rooted for Peyton and Eli, but it does feel good to slow the Arch Manning train a bit.

Arch Manning is more likely than not to be a fine quarterback, but it would be nice to see some quality play before handing him a Heisman because his uncle was robbed of one.

Oh, too soon for that?

4) One thing that did surprise me?

Arch Manning's throwing mechanics.

Manning throws very oddly, with a motion that reminded me of 1990s Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Juan Guzman. Manning throws with a lot of action from his arm and shoulder, with a violent whipping motion.

I wonder if that will hurt his durability as his career moves forward?

I also question his mechanics from a family that tutors passers.

5) Julian Sayin was the top prep quarterback in 2015 (Arch Manning was the top-rated QB in 2014), but had become the second banana in pre-game hype.

Sayin only threw for 126 yards (13 of 20) but was hurt by first-half drops (two from Jeremah Smith).

Ohio State kept it basic for Sayin and only his scoring throw to Carnell Tate was a downfield toss but by keeping it simple, Sayin's play wasn't going to cost Ohio State the game.

6) Sayin was also hurt by multiple drops early, two by Jeremiah Smith and one on an early game fourth down that was thrown perfectly to tight end Max Klare.

Drops happen and first game wrinkles are expected, so considering the quality of those two players, those struggles aren't likely to continue.

7) Smith finished with six catches for forty-two yards as Texas double-teamed him often but I do think Brian Hartline might have tried too hard to force his star into the offense.

As great as Smith is, he might have been used better on some plays to help others have one on one coverage in shots downfield as in the score to Carnell Tate.

8) The running game was more effective with West Virginia transfer C.J Donaldson ( 19 carries for 67 yards) than with James Peoples (10 for 20 yards).

Donaldson may not have the speed of Quinshon Judkins but his strength inside is a plus.
I like Peoples as a back but he may need this season to be a feature back next year.

9) Caleb Downs is the best defender in the nation but by the end of the year, the player that will be raved about is linebacker Arvel Reese.

Reese was all over the field and even when he didn't make the play, Reese was near the ball and allowed others to make the stop as Texas needed to account for Reese.

10) The fourth down goal line stop on the Arch Manning sneak will be talked about for years and if NFL teams are watching, the seed for stopping the "Tush Push" may have been planted in Columbus.

Watching the play (and I'm not positive on the players who did what) Edrick Houston,  Kayden McDonald, and Caden Curry each had a position with one going low to clog the blocker, another meeting Manning straight up and the third (Curry I think) diving over the top.

I'll be interested to see if teams use this tactice against the Eagles and others this season.

11) Ohio State's schedule eases a bit with games against Grambling and Ohio U before an off week and their first road test against Washington.

I'm not sure about Washington's roster but traveling to Seattle after last year's loss in Oregon does give me a little pause.