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.

I Tell Ya' Herbie

    Time for our weekly thoughts on the college football world- I Tell Ya' Herbie.

I Tell Ya' Herbie:

                            Penn State was viewed by many as a potential playoff winner entering the season.

Between most of their lineup returning and a schedule that featured Oregon coming to State College, and a non-conference schedule that was softer than sherbet, the Nittany Lions ' chances seemed solid.

Even their two overtime defeat to Oregon didn't hurt, but their shocking loss to winless UCLA may have forced Penn State into run-the-table mode, even to make the playoffs, and would include a road win at Ohio State.

I Tell Ya' Herbie:

                             Penn State fans would be more than willing to move on without James Franklin, but it's unlikely to happen.

Why?

Well, if Penn State could find a school that wanted Franklin, Penn State would receive a buyout of between two and four million dollars from that school.

However, if Penn State fired Franklin for any reason (outside of breaking rules, etc.), it would reportedly cost them between $50 million and $54 million.

I Tell Ya' Herbie:

                            Another coach under fire is Texas head man Steve Sarkisian.

Sarkisian's loss to Ohio State on the road could be excused, but not their defeat to a struggling Florida Gators team.

Sarkisian is essentially James Franklin South.

I Tell Ya' Herbie:

                             This week is an opportunity for Indiana to take the next step in its sprint to national prominence.

While Curt Cignetti has done one of the best turnarounds of a downtrodden program in years, the Hoosiers still lack a big scalp on their mantle.

Indiana travels to Oregon on Saturday, and should they win that game, Indiana can knock down another hurdle.

I Tell Ya' Herbie:

                             3-2 Iowa will battle 2-3 Wisconsin in Madison in my favorite game ot the season that doesn't involve a team that I support.

That game is always fun with Ryan (Wisconsin) meeting Jeff (Iowa) in a battle of smack talk, rooting, screaming, and predicting doom; that was always a great time.

I'm hoping to spend my Saturday night on a video chat with the two of them, watching the game.

It's not quite the same as the three of us watching together, but it's something to add to the memory book.

                             

                             

  

Ohio State defeats Wisconsin 24-10

    TreVeyon Henderson returned to the Ohio State lineup and rushed for 162 yards with a touchdown as the Ohio State Buckeyes defeated the Wisconsin Badgers 24-10 Saturday night at Camp Randal Stadium in Madison.

Kyle McCord threw two touchdowns to Marvin Harrison Jr but threw two interceptions as well in the victory.

Ohio State improved to 8-0 overall and 5-0 in the Big Ten and will visit New Jersey and former OSU defensive coordinator Greg Schiano and his surprising Scarlet Knights next Saturday.

Olentangy Offerings

1) TreVeyon Henderson's return to the lineup was an outstanding one with one hundred sixty-two yards rushing.

I know Henderson has his flaws because he's not the type of back to grind you out four or five yards with every carry but he's a threat to drop a long touchdown run at any time and Henderson's explosiveness is something the other running backs simply don't have.

2) Henderson's game might have been his best at Ohio State and keeping him healthy at as close to 100 percent should become a priority in the next month.

With games against surprising Rutgers and followed by home games against weak sisters Minnesota and Michigan State, I'm hoping that there will be chances to allow Chip Trayanum, Miyan Williams, and maybe Dallan Hayden to play more in those games to save Henderson for the big one against Michigan.

3) Kyle McCord threw two interceptions and while the second of the two can be understood, the former is mind-boggling.

McCord tried to force a tight pass to Carnell Tate from the Wisconsin nine and was intercepted allowing Wisconsin to escape without a point lost from a red zone drive.

4) McCord's other interception to Ricardo Hallman wasn't quite as bad as he attempted to hit Marvin Harrison over the middle but still it could have cost Ohio State more than the three points that Wisconsin scored on the drive.

5) As for Marvin Harrison Jr. I don't think he'll win the Heisman and he might not even receive an invite to the ceremony but he's the best player in the country and his catch (Pictured above) for a touchdown shows why.

Harrison's toe touches the red turf, then turns to secure the ball and falls backward for the score.

And the coverage by the Badger defensive back was excellent!

It simply is what happens when mortals cover all-universe players.

6) The biggest play of the game came late in the first half as Wisconsin drove to the Ohio State one-yard line and appeared to have a great play call as Brandyn Locke threw to Skylar Bell for what appeared to be a touchdown but after a review, Bell's knee was on the turf when he made the catch.

Wisconsin then ran star back Braelon Allen twice at the Buckeye defense but was turned away both times and lost Allen for the remainder of the game after the second carry.

7) Wisconsin settled for three points rather than seven, the score was 10-3 OSU at the half rather than 10-7, and when Wisconsin scored their only touchdown on their first drive of the second half, the game was only tied rather than a Badger lead that could have resulted into the crowd really getting into the game and perhaps swinging an upset into play.

8) I've noticed that Kyle McCord commits the intentional grounding call quite often.

It seems like McCord does this at least once a game and I'm not sure why.

It's one thing to do the same thing in the first few weeks but at this stage, inexperience isn't an excuse.

9) A big worry for Ohio State was the loss of Lathan Ransom in the fourth quarter with a non-contact leg injury.

Ransom would be carted to the locker room but did return to the sideline later in the game.

A potential long-term loss of Ransom would be a massive loss for the defense.

10) Kyle McCord was noted by Eleven Warriors to have a severe limp walking to the team bus and showed a noticeable issue in the third and fourth quarters after taking a shot from the Badger pass rush.

It doesn't appear to be a significant injury but it does once again show just how foolhardy Ryan Day's "Devin Brown Package" could turn out to be with Brown injured.

Without Brown's availability, a McCord injury that hampers him or removes him from the field leaves only veteran transfer Tristan Gebbia and true freshman Lincoln Kienholz remaining to play 

Ohio State Jumps over Wisconsin 52-21

  The Ohio State Buckeyes were favored against the Wisconsin Badgers on their "wear black" night and were never threatened by the invaders from Madison in a 52-21 win that wasn't that close.

C.J. Stroud threw five touchdowns with one interception to go with his 281 yards, two each to wide receiver Emeka Egubka and tight end Cade Stover.

Egbuka finished with 118 receiving yards while both TreVeyon Henderson and Miyan Williams eclipsed the century level in rushing yards against the Badger defense.

Ohio State (4-0, 1-0 Big Ten) will host Rutgers (3-1, 0-1 Big Ten) next week as the Scarlet Knights attempt to rebound from their first loss of the season against Iowa.

Olentangy Offerings

1) Cade Stover has changed how Ohio State uses tight ends and the converted linebacker could be making himself into a possible NFL draft pick at the position. 

2) Stover caught four passes for fifty-one yards as one of only four Buckeye players to catch passes in the win but what I like is his good hands and ability to break tackles after the catch.

I wondered about this move in the offseason but I was wrong, Stover is proving to be a standout.

3) Ohio State scored touchdowns on their first three possessions and Wisconsin spit the bit out early in this one as the Badgers trailed 21-0 and for the first time moved the ball near midfield before a fourth-and-one situation.

4) I know it's tough either way but when Paul Chryst meekly decided to punt the ball away, you could see even at a very early point in the game that Wisconsin was simply hoping to get out of town without too much humiliation.

5) Ohio State's offense is doing all of this damage without Jaxon Smith-Njigba.

How good will they be when he returns?

6) Ohio State played without both of their starting cornerbacks, Denzel  Burke and Cameron Brown, due to injuries.

Jyaire Brown and JK Johnson played in their absence with Wisconsin finishing with only 104 yards passing.

7) Ohio State played the Wisconsin staple "Jump Around" in the third quarter in a troll move.

I really didn't like ribbing Wisconsin in a blowout but Bucky needs to realize that their tradition (and it is theirs) has become so popular that they may have to get used to more teams using their traditional anthem because it's just plain fun to Jump Around.

8) The black uniforms are always troubling to me as they look so great with the red buckeyes on the black helmet but Ohio State's colors aren't black, so I'm conflicted.

9) I am starting to miss the old days of college football.

Games that once were anticipated are now borderline squash matches and the crushing margins are becoming mundane, not electric.

A cautionary note.

Buckeyes shove aside Badgers-Rally for Big Ten Title!

After an extremely spirited first half from the Wisconsin Badgers, the Ohio State Buckeyes found themselves down at halftime 21-7 in the Big Ten championship game in Indianapolis and despite the likelihood of a playoff berth already clinched, Ohio State needed to turn up the intensity to win the Big Ten.

Consider the dial turned up as Ohio State turned the clipboard around, dominated the line of scrimmage and outscored the Badgers 27-0 in the second half to win the Big Ten title 34-21.
Justin Fields threw for 299 yards and three touchdowns, two of those to K.J. Hill, to earn the player of the game, while J.K. Dobbins staked a claim to the award with 172 yards rushing and a score.

The victory was the third Big Ten Championship in a row for Ohio State, but the sluggish first half would cost the Buckeyes the top playoff seed and gives them a far tougher semi-final against third seed and defending champion Clemson.
Had Ohio State hung onto the top seed overall, their opponent would have been fourth seed Oklahoma in the Peach Bowl.
The Ohio State-Clemson clash will be in the Fiesta Bowl in Phoenix on Saturday, December 28th.

Olentangy Offerings

1)  I'm writing this late after a non-work Saturday that saw the day filled with boxing (recap tomorrow) and football, so after the game, I went to bed and slept for a stunning almost twelve hours!
As I worked on this, Fred Landucci called and asked if I was ever worried about the result.
I wasn't happy through much of the first half, but not worried until close to the half.
Ohio State had scored their only touchdown with under a minute to go and with Wisconsin happy to run the clock out, Ohio State allowed a big run to Jonathan Taylor and a long pass play to quickly fall behind 21-7.
At the half, I was worried until the end of the first drive of the second half.

2) In the first half, it really wasn't a bad Buckeye half as much as it was a really good Wisconsin half.
Other than the Justin Fields fumble inside the Wisconsin five, Ohio State didn't turn the football over and although they were behind, they didn't have a bunch of glaring mistakes.
It was simply a very good half of football by a top ten level opponent.

3) However, that second half...
27-0 and other than a garbage-time drive, Wisconsin was corralled for most of the half.
Jonathan Taylor finished with 142 yards rushing on the game, but (without stats to prove) Taylor might not have hit the twenty-five-yard mark in the second half.

4) The adjustment that Ohio State made was this- Wisconsin didn't run their first-half offense through Jonathan Taylor, they ran it through quarterback Jack Coan with runs (two rushing scores) and passes downfield mainly to Quintez Cephus with that success allowing Taylor to rip off his large rushes with an off-balance Ohio State defense not knowing whom to key on.
Once the Buckeyes took Cephus away, which coincided with Jeffrey Okudah returning to the game, Coan's effectiveness dipped dramatically and so did the Badgers upset chances.

5) K.J. Hill passed David Boston in the win to become the all-time leader in receptions at Ohio State.
Hill has never been the featured receiver in Columbus, but he has been the reliable receiver that can be counted as the Buckeyes own "Wes Welker'.
Hill may not be a big-play threat, but he reminds me a lot of Emmanuel Sanders and Sanders has had an excellent NFL career.

6) A very nice call, down 14-0, for Ryan Day to dial up a fake punt.
Drue Christman's pass to Luke Farrell gave the Buckeyes a first down and allowed the offense more time to get back on track.
That was the drive that Justin Fields fumbled, so the Buckeyes would not score any points from the call, but calling that play woke Ohio State and the fans up a bit.

7) Justin Fields struggled a little in the first half, missed some open receivers and with the brace on a knee for an MCL injury, seemed a less reluctant to run as often.
In the second half, Fields was much sharper and his passes were on the money except for one pass to an open Luke Farrell that would have extended a drive.
It'll be interesting to see Fields mobility against the excellent Clemson defensive line.

8) Speaking of the offensive line, they will have to improve against Clemson in protecting Justin Fields.
Fields was sacked five times against the Badgers, who sacked him ten times in the two games between the teams.
Clemson's defensive line is arguably the best in the nation and if Ohio State cannot improve their protection of Fields over their attempts versus Wisconsin, it could be a long night in Arizona.

9) J.K. Dobbins might have been behind Jonathan Taylor early in yards, but he was ahead at the end and for my money, Dobbins is the best back in the nation.
Taylor may have rushed for more yardage, but Dobbins rarely played a full game and when the stage was biggest, Dobbins didn't disappear.

10) Ohio State defeated every team by double-digits, but on the games, final play after a Hail Mary catch by Wisconsin that would have been replayed forever had it decided a game, Wisconsin had one play from the five with five seconds to go.
The stat was meaningless and the game wasn't on the line, but I still understood Wisconsin throwing the football here.
What I didn't understand was why they didn't sit Jack Coan in the pocket and just get the ball out quickly to avoid a hit.
Instead, Coan rolled out to his right and then took off for the end zone, but at the two-yard line, Josh Proctor plastered Coan and although there the camera left quickly, it looked like Coan was knocked cold.
It seemed like a needless risk to me.

11) The play of the game was the one-handed touchdown catch by tight end Jeremy Ruckert for a touchdown.
Ruckert was a highly touted recruit that was sold on being used more in the Buckeye offense and it rarely seemed to work out that way under Urban Meyer, although tight ends have been used a little more since Ryan Day's arrival.
Ruckert has the type of hands that would be a terrific option to the offense next season.

12) Finally, should the Buckeyes have kept their top seed?
Maybe, but I can understand why they weren't.
The first half issues were the likely reason along with LSU's whomping a higher rated team (Georgia's fourth-ranking to Wisconsin's eighth), but a case could have been made for the second half.
I know the road through Clemson has to be harder than Oklahoma and top seeding is important, but
I hate rooting for a certain bracket because that often backfires.
Clemson could be very good and there has been only one game where they were truly challenged (by a 6-6 North Carolina team) in an awful ACC.
Clemson's best wins were at home against a 7-5 Texas A&M and the win over 9-4 Virginia in the ACC championship game, but other than the 24-10 win over the Aggies that saw the Aggies score their only touchdown on the last offensive play of the game and the one-point win over North Carolina, they, much like Ohio State, have not had to play under pressure.
My point is that Clemson is just unknown because they have not played anyone nearly as talented as them.
That doesn't mean that they couldn't be the best team in the country, it's that the ACC is so terrible that we just don't know.
We'll know after the Fiesta Bowl just how good Clemson could be and just how far the ACC has to go before Clemson has a remote challenger from anyone in their conference.

13) No matter the results against Clemson, this has been a successful season.
Undefeated, eighth straight win over Michigan, and for the first time, three consecutive Big Ten championships with a first-year head coach.
Those are excellent results and unless the Fiesta Bowl ends in a similar steamrolling as the last time that Ohio State played the Tigers (Clemson has won all three meetings with the Buckeyes), I would rate this as a very successful season.

I tell ya' Herbie

I tell ya' Herbie is back with our weekly thoughts on college football, and the coaching silly season is off to a surprisingly early start with news from the home of Sabre' in Tallahassee.

I tell ya' Herbie:     
                          Florida State started the silly season early with their firing of Willie Taggart after just a year and a half.
The Taggart buyout was large (expected to be between 18 and 20 million, which won't be a small sum for Taggart to move to his likely next job at a group of five schools), and Florida State has always been a school with large budgetary issues.
I've heard several names from coaches with national championships (Urban Meyer, Bob Stoops), group of five schools (Memphis' Mike Norvell, Cincinnati's Luke Fickell) heavy hitters from power five schools (Penn State's James Franklin, Washington State's Mike Leach), program builders from power five ( Minnesota's P.J. Fleck, Kentucky's Mark Stoops) and even the off the wall ideas (Deion Sanders?) are being tossed around.
Some of those names will be interesting, and some are pipe dreams in Tallahassee, but one thing is for sure-Florida State needs to get this right.
Two bad hires in a row, and Florida State could find themselves in a hole that takes quite a while to be able to dig out of.

I tell ya' Herbie:
                          Going into this season, one narrative was about Jim Harbaugh and Michigan and how this is the year that they have everything in their favor against Ohio State, with the addendum "If they can't beat them now, when?".
I'll put the Buckeyes and Wolverines aside until the end of the month, but it seems like the same narrative can be applied to LSU and Alabama this Saturday.
LSU has a Heisman candidate in Joe Burrow and even though the game is in Tuscaloosa, the Tigers have plenty going their way in trying to snap an eight-game (the streak includes the 2011 season's BCS title games) losing streak to the Crimson Tide.
When you look at some of the scores of those losses, even in games with larger scores, LSU hung tough in those games and gave Bama, in some cases, their toughest game of the season.
Alabama has a Heisman candidate of their own in Tua Tagovailoa, but he may not play, and if he can play, he won't be at top form.
This may very well be the best shot that the Tigers have for a while, even on the road, so if there is a chance for even a brief change at the top, it needs to be now.

I tell ya' Herbie:
                          USC hired a new athletic director in Cincinnati's Mike Bohn, and with Clay Helton holding onto the Trojans' head coaching job by a quickly fraying rope, one name that suddenly jumped to the front as a candidate is Bohn's head coaching hire at UC, Luke Fickell.
Fickell's squad hasn't lost since being rolled by Ohio State 42-0 in the second week of the season and is in a position to possibly win the Group of Five position in the New Year's bowl games.
Could Fickell land the USC job?  Fickell does seem to have an inside position for the job, and he'll be mentioned for many openings with his success with the Bearcats.
Still, Fickell lacks a West Coast connection, didn't recruit there often with Ohio State, and he might be waiting for a Big Ten job to open (Michigan State would make sense if Mark Dantonio decides to move on) rather than tackling the attractive yet troubled USC program.

I tell ya' Herbie:
                           There's plenty of hype around Minnesota and the P.J. Fleck row the boat routine, but the Golden Gophers 8-0 record is softer than a defrosting Icee machine, and I think Penn State is going to puncture that balloon quickly, and in my eyes-Penn State is so much better than Minnesota that their game isn't the game of the week in the Big Ten.
That goes to the battle for the Heartland Trophy between 13th-ranked Wisconsin and 18th-ranked Iowa in Madison.
Both teams are 6-2 overall and 3-2 in the Big Ten, two games behind Minnesota, and even though you would normally think that being two games out in November is a tough hill to climb, this is a special season in the Big Ten Western Division.
Minnesota's 8-0 start was aided by a weak schedule both in and out of the league as only two of their eight opponents have a winning record (Illinois 5-4 and the Sun Belt's Georgia Southern at 5-3), but their slate is back-loaded with Penn State, Iowa, and Wisconsin waiting as three of their four opponents to close out the season.
The winner of the Heartland Trophy is my pick to travel to Indianapolis for the Big Ten title game.'

I tell ya' Herbie:
                          The Heartland Trophy game is one of the most fun games that I watch each season.
I usually root for both Wisconsin and Iowa, when they aren't playing the Buckeyes, both recruit the same type of players in the same region, usually have strong offensive lines and running games, play a physical brand of football, and both teams almost always have a quarterback that drives their fan base crazy.
The Hawkeyes could be undefeated had they received decent quarterback play with their losses at Michigan by seven and by five to Penn State at Kinnick Stadium.
The Badgers lost at the gun to improving Illinois and lost big at Ohio State, but gave the Buckeyes their toughest game to date, playing them close for two and a half quarters.

However, put all of that aside because what makes this game so enjoyable for me is when I can watch this one with Ryan and Jeff and watch the fireworks fly!
I'm sure if you are even a casual reader, you have to know Ryan is the biggest Badger booster around, but you may not know that my nephew Jeff is a huge devotee of the Hawkeyes.
Take that fandom and combine it with the genetics involved in rooting for your team, and you have a great day of fun in watching both the game and those two going at it for three hours as the Badgers and Hawkeyes pound it out on the gridiron.
I'm not sure if they plan on watching the game together on Saturday, but if so, I want in!

Chased out of town- Buckeyes crush Badgers 38-7

This Saturday was supposed to be the day where someone stepped up to test the Ohio State Buckeyes.
It turned out that the test would come from the weather and a downpour throughout the game kept the game close for two quarters and more, as the Wisconsin Badgers played the Buckeyes close before being blown away by a wave of offense in another lopsided win for Ohio State.
The 38-7 victory might have seen the possibility of a defensive player making his move for at least a chance for making a trip to the Heisman ceremony as Chase Young trampled the Wisconsin offense as he finished with five tackles for loss and four sacks.
J.K Dobbins rushed for two touchdowns, and Justin Fields rushed for one and threw for two others, both to Chris Olave to lead the offense for the Buckeyes.
Ohio State improved to 8-0 (5-0 Big Ten) and will have next week off before hosting 3-5 Maryland in two weeks.

Olentangy Offerings

1) Chase Young is an unstoppable force and despite the bias towards defensive players that only play defense (The only defensive winner, Charles Woodson received votes for playing offense, averaging eight yards a catch and caught one touchdown.), might wind up bullying his way to the front of the line even with those obstacles.
A four sack performance with a forced fumble as well as running over offensive linemen on national television can catapult a player into contention.

2) Chase Young is the best player in this country whether he wins the Heisman award or not.
I'd imagine that he is just about a lock for the Outland and before 2016 the Lombardi awards for the best lineman in the nation.
I'd also think that he'll be the best player available in the 2020 Draft, but like Nick Bosa in the 2019 draft, some team will reach for a quarterback and leave the best player for someone else.
Half the battle of building a winning team at any level is taking advantage of the mistakes that other teams make and there will be someone there that will be happy to have Chase Young fall into their lap.

3) The hype before this game was about the running back matchup between J.K. Dobbins and Wisconsin's Jonathan Taylor and who was the superior back.
Taylor was mentioned as a top Heisman contender entering the game, while Dobbins shared support with Justin Fields ( Fields, Dobbins, and now Chase Young could cost one of them the Heisman by dividing the Buckeye votes) for Ohio State's candidate.
Well, the debate might be over after this game as each player received twenty carries,
Dobbins rushed for 163 yards and two scores, while Taylor ran for 52 yards for an average of 2.4 yards.
Dobbins might have won the Doak Walker award yesterday in Columbus.

4) With those 163 yards, J.K. Dobbins hit two more milestones- Dobbins passed the thousand-yard mark for the season, which placed Dobbins with Archie Griffin as the only Buckeyes with three one thousand yard seasons and the only one to accomplish the feat as a freshman, sophomore and junior.
Dobbins also moved past Tim Spencer into the fourth slot on the all-time rushing list and is under 200 yards behind Eddie George for the third spot.
With the Buckeyes next two games against weak sisters Maryland and Rutgers, the question is this, barring injury, does Dobbins pass George in one game or two?

5) Justin Fields ran for a touchdown but took a shot crossing the goal line that saw him make a trip to the medical tent but returned to the game.
Fields reported some back pain, but about the only thing that I can criticize Ryan Day for this season is that he leaves Fields in way too long.
This game was 38-7 in the fourth quarter and Fields is still in a lopsided game with some discomfort.
Ohio State has no one close to Fields in talent or even style behind him and an injury could turn this season upside down.
I'd hate to see someone (and it only takes one) frustrated from being blown out and take a cheap shot on Fields that knocks him out of the lineup,

6) Ohio State played very cautiously in the rain in the first quarter and kept the ball on the ground.
Safe football isn't always fun to watch football, but the weather played to Wisconsin's strengths and I can see playing close to the vest football.
Wisconsin's best chance to win was run the ball, keep the Buckeyes offense off the field, and try to force turnovers and the rain could have helped the Badgers in those areas.

7) It was that caution that kept this game close, only one touchdown scored in the first half on a Justin Fields to Chris Olave strike and a 10-0 game at the half is certainly no slaughter.
And what might be forgotten in this win was that Wisconsin scored first in the second half on a short drive after a bad punt by Drue Christman to cut the lead to 10-7.
It looked like the test that Ohio State had not passed yet was about to be given.
If that was the test and there will be others, Ohio State passed with flying colors as the Buckeyes marched down the field, scored a touchdown to immediately swing momentum and that score would be the first of four touchdowns in a row in the second half.

8) I watched most of this game on mute or low volume for two reasons.
First of all, two hours in, I was watching the World Boxing Super Series from London on the live stream, but the main one, which I'm sure you can guess, was Gus Johnson on the call.
The reason that I mention this is that when you watch a game without sound, you notice things and what I noticed for much of the first half was the broadcast kept watching a Badger coach on the sideline and it was rarely head coach Paul Chryst, it was former Brown and Wisconsin defensive coordinator Jim Leonard.
Leonard was on the broadcast often in the first half, not so often in the second half when Ohio State was moving up and down the field.

9) The Wisconsin score was set up by what was called a blocked punt, but to me the replay was inconclusive.
I thought the 13-yard punt by Drue Christman was missed by a charging Alex Smith, but Smith's rush and near-miss disrupted the mechanics of Christman enough that he caught very little of the football.
In any event, the Badgers had their best field position of the game at the Ohio State 30 yard line and would take only three plays to score.

10) I thought that the pass from Wisconsin's Jack Coan to A.J. Taylor, for the Badgers only touchdown, was about as good or as lucky as you could get as the pass was delivered exactly where it had to be to avoid Shaun Wade and Jeffrey Okudah (I think it was Okudah from my notes), both in good coverage.
What was fortunate for the Badgers was that the ball didn't go over Taylor, just a little bit longer and the pass would have been considered to be intended for another Badger receiver.
Had that been the case, the play may not have stood as he clearly grabbed a Buckeye defender before the ball arrived,
Still, no complaints on the play because the ball didn't carry far enough to get that call.

11) K.J. Hill didn't have the big game that Chris Olave did, with only one catch for eleven yards, but that catch moved Hill over 2,000 yards receiving for his OSU career.
Hill is the ninth Buckeye to reach that level.

12) I know the Buckeyes trolled the Badgers a bit with their playing of "Jump Around" and although I didn't think it was as bad as Illinois blaring it after their game-winning field goal on the last play of the game, but I still wouldn't have done it.
It was kind of funny, but I can understand why Badger fans would have been annoyed.
I like that the fans at Camp Randall do that, and I think it's a pretty cool tradition,.
Even though the Buckeyes won't play Wisconsin again until 2022 (unless in the Big Ten title game) and won't visit Camp Randall until 2023, that's the type of thing that won't be forgotten- ask Baker Mayfield.

13) Now the word will be that Penn State will be the test and a suddenly resurgent Michigan after blowing away Notre Dame will be crowing a bit as well.
We'll see about that and I don't take either team lightly at all.
Maryland is the next team on the schedule, and I don't think Ohio State has forgotten about last year's game where Maryland took the Buckeyes to overtime and almost won, if not for a stop on a two-point conversion.
Plus that game is a recruiting asset for recruits in the Washington area, where they plucked Chase Young from, so Ryan Day will have the team ready.
Rutgers should be a squash match, but you still have to play the game and that will bring forward Penn State and Michigan.
Win both those games and this truly may be a special squad.

Back later with the weekend in boxing.

I tell ya' Herbie

I tell ya' Herbie returns with various thoughts from the college football landscape with a touch of bemusement this week.

I tell ya' Herbie:
                          Illinois defeating Wisconsin last Saturday on a walk-off field goal was one of those stunners that both teams have a point to discuss.
Starting with Illinois, where the interesting question to ponder is about the future of Lovie Smith.
Smith looked to be on the road to nowhere after the Illini were defeated at home by Eastern Michigan, but could Smith have turned things around after stunning the sixth-ranked and undefeated Badgers?
It depends if Smith can get to six wins and a small bowl bid, I think Smith may have earned himself another year.
Illinois is 3-4 and will need to sweep their three games against lower-level teams, this week against 2-5 Purdue in West Lafayette, next week against 1-6 Rutgers at home and their finale against rival 1-5 Northwestern also at home.
Sweep those and they get their six wins regardless of their two tougher games, both on the road vs Iowa and Michigan State.
If they don't and this week on the road against a similarly talented team in Purdue will be difficult to win after the big victory over Wisconsin, the upset could be simply the highlight of yet another disappointing Illini coaching era.

I tell ya' Herbie:
                          As for the Badgers, I was disappointed in their loss as it would have been a much bigger game to the media against Ohio State had they entered the game undefeated, but I'm not sure it's any less of a big game with the loss.
Put Ohio State aside and look at the Illinois game as a fluke because it was.
Why on Earth did Paul Chryst with arguably the top runner in the nation in Jonathan Taylor, stop using him?
Illinois scores with just under six minutes to go and cuts the Wisconsin lead to two points.
Wisconsin has a first and ten with under four minutes to go and the clock running at their own forty after a first down.
Chryst calls a run play to the fullback (-1 yard) and a screen pass to the same fullback (6 yards) before a pass on third and five was intercepted near midfield and allowed Illinois the chance to win the game.
That decision might have been the difference between winning and losing and if it's close in Columbus on Saturday and it could be that Paul Chryst will have to decide to run with the horse or attempt to win with their weakness with the game in the balance.

I tell ya' Herbie:
                          Tonight as I was checking my Twitter timeline, John McAdam (who has a terrific wrestling podcast ) mentioned a game this weekend that struck my interest because part of what I love about college football is that every week the pairings range from every portion of the spectrum.
Take the battle of New England universities in what might be the worst two teams to play each other this season for an example.
1-6 Connecticut travels to 1-6 Massachusetts in a game that is so bad as I review it that my only question is how did they each win a game?
UMass hasn't given up fewer than 29 points all season and that was in their only win (37-29 over 0-7 Akron)!
If you remove the Akron game, UMass has allowed 44,45,48 (to Rutgers for the Scarlet Knights only win) 52,58 and 69 points to their opponents and their closest loss was a 25 point loss to I-AA Southern Illinois at home!
As for UConn, their one win was a three-point win at home over I-AA Wagner (Don't get too excited yet, Wagner is 1-6 and the week after the three-point loss at UConn, the Seahawks lost by ten at home to Division II East Stroudsburg) and they were competitive in their second game in losing by eight at Illinois, but it's been downhill since with losses of 35, 35, 26 and 42 points before playing Houston close at home last week in a 24-17 loss.
UMass has a marginal excuse with a first-year head coach in Walt Bell, but UConn continues to trudge through Randy Edsall- the sequel, as Edsall, he of the ridiculous contract where he gets bonuses for scoring first in a game (Seriously you need to read this) among others and has a career record of 29 games UNDER .500, continues to get more mileage out of an 8-5 season nine years ago than any coach should, makes his way toward crushing the heart of a third program (UConn twice and Maryland).
What I really don't understand is this- In an era that almost every game has television or is hooked up with an internet/streaming service of some kind, no one is showing this game!
This is exactly the type of game that I would watch unless one of my teams would be playing at the same time!

I tell ya' Herbie:
                          One of the most ridiculous overreactions that I've seen occurred in Statesboro Georgia and the Sun Belt came between visiting Coastal Carolina and the homestanding Georgia Southern Eagles.
We enter the fourth quarter and "Mo Bamba" hits the loudspeakers.
Almost every team in the country has some type of song to fire up the fan base etc moving into the final period, so Georgia Southern isn't unique there and their players began to jump around to the music.
Coastal Carolina began to dance back and although it didn't seem that it was good-hearted and the Chanticleers were trying to show that they weren't intimidated, it wasn't a nasty situation either as neither team was close to the other and nothing physical was threatened.
Yet, here comes the officials to make something out of nothing and threw a flag for unsportsmanlike conduct on every player on the field.
That ridiculous decision caused three players that had been penalized earlier in the game to be ejected due to the rule that if a player is penalized for a personal foul/unsportsmanlike conduct twice in a game they are ejected.
Once again, officials getting involved where they are unneeded,
Georgia Southern went on to win the game 30-27 in three overtimes.


Top Five
1) LSU
2) Ohio State
3) Alabama
4) Oklahoma
5) Clemson
Just Missed: Penn State

Group of Five
1) SMU
2) Cincinnati
3) Appalachian State
4) Boise State
5) Memphis
Just Missed: San Diego State

Heisman Watch
1) Joe Burrow LSU
2) Jonathan Taylor Wisconsin
3) Tua Tagovailoa Alabama
4) Jalen Hurts Oklahoma
5) Justin Fields Ohio State
Just Missed: J.K. Dobbins Ohio State

Buckeyes OutBadger Bucky- Win Big 10 27-21!

The Ohio State Buckeyes defeated the Wisconsin Badgers at what they do best-run the ball and shut down the opposing team's offense as the Buckeyes rushed for 238 yards and held spectacular freshman Jonathan Taylor to just forty as it was Ohio State claiming the Big Ten Championship in Indianapolis 27-21.
J.K.Dobbins rushed for 174 yards on just 17 carries while J.T, Barrett threw for two scores and ran for another in a game that was deceiving by its score but was not decided until the final minutes of the game.
The new conference champions finish 11-2 in the regular season and will await the decision to see if they will enter the playoff or head to a New Year's Day Bowl instead...

Olentangy Offerings

1) The playoff.
Before I begin, the announcement is within an hour of this writing, so it's likely that this might not be posted until after the decision is released.
If that's the case, I'll add an Editor's Note.
I won't complain either way the decision is rendered because I think both sides have a reasonable argument.
OSU has two losses to Alabama's one, Ohio State has two top four, three top twelve wins and another top 25 win (at the time they played those teams) to Alabama's two top twenty-five.
Ohio State won their conference, Alabama failed to make their conference title game.
Ohio State's loss to Iowa is a bad one, Alabama doesn't have many good wins.
That's the decision: Which is more important? The number of good wins or the inexplicable loss?
I can see both sides.

2) Here is the problem: You have two teams with huge national brands and fan bases, so consider that a wash.
I think it's fair to say that if Ohio State's resume' was compared with Alabama's, but instead of Alabama, it was South Carolina- It would be clear who would get in.
Conversely, if the Buckeye record was Iowa's and it was Alabama with their season- It would be clear who would get in.
It's a tough call with two powerhouse schools with huge tradition, large fan bases and a massive amount of eyes that each bring to watch on television.

Editor's Note: Ohio State is fifth and is likely headed to the Fiesta Bowl and USC.

3) To the game. I give J.T. Barrett tons of credit for being a true warrior and playing through a knee injury that was operated on six days before the game.
More courage than I would have for sure, but even though those kudos were well deserved, J.T. Barrett still didn't play that well.
Barrett interceptions set up both of the Wisconsin touchdowns (one a pick six, the other a bad pass that gave Bucky the ball for a very short field) and he missed two wide open receivers that would have been touchdowns as well.
Kudos for fortitude, but you can make an argument that Barrett shouldn't have been on the field for his own health and you can make another argument that the Buckeyes could have been better off with Barrett not being on the field.

4) J.K. Dobbins was the best Buckeye on the offensive side and the only surprising part of the evening for Dobbins was that Wisconsin caught him from behind twice on long runs.
Dobbins may not have the numbers of Wisconsin's Jonathan Taylor on the season, splitting time with Mike Weber helps there, but he certainly is Taylor's equal as a back and should be the star of next season's offense.

5) Jonathan Taylor was a complete non-factor in this one with only 41 yards on 15 carries and his longest run was just seven yards.
Wisconsin has always been a ground-based team and it didn't take a genius to figure out that the way to defeat the Badgers was to make Alex Hornibrook beat them.
Taylor's a very good back, but against really good teams, Wisconsin has to rely on a quarterback that usually is not of top ten caliber.

6) J.T. Barrett was helped by his receivers with the catch and run.

Parris Campbell's score was a five yard pass and fifty yard run and the bomb to Terry McLaurin was well thrown and McLaurin pulled away from the Badger defensive back.
The difference in speed and athleticism was glaring between the OSU receivers and the Badgers defensive backs.

7) The defensive star had to be Jerome Baker, who was all over the field including a run from across the field sack of Alex Hornibrook and finished with 12 solo tackles with two of those for a loss.
Baker has had a little bit of a disappointing year, but wow what a performance last night.

8) Denzel Ward's first-half interception not only kept Wisconsin off the board with a high wire act to stay inbounds, he showed the type of talent that is going to make him a top twenty pick in the draft.
Yet another powerhouse Buckeye defensive back off the factory line.

9) Never seen anything like the delay for the torn up Field Turf after the only offensive Wisconsin touchdown.
Give the turf repairman lots of credit for a stressful fix in front of lord knows how many people watching live and on television.

10) In closing.I've often been critical of J.T. Barrett and even in this post, but in this win, Barrett removed the name of Art Schlichter as the winningest QB at Ohio State.
For removing that stain alone, credit to Barrett.

Back today and tomorrow with Miguel Cotto's upset loss, the Browns only visit to the West Coast and maybe some thoughts on the Buckeyes omission from the Final Four.

Beyond Words-Buckeyes win Big 10 59-0 over Wisconsin!

 It is isn't often that I am speechless on sports,but last night I was as the Ohio State Buckeyes working with a third string quarterback starting his first game against a strong opponent with a Heisman candidate simply rolled over the Wisconsin Badgers 59-0.
So many offensive stars in this one that I'll try to address below,but suffice it to say that it'll be a long time before this game is forgotten by Ohio State fans.
The now 12-1 and Big Ten Champion Buckeyes will wait until tonight to see if this was enough to get them into the final four or will they settle for one of the New Years Day spots in the highest second tier of bowls??

Olentangy Offerings

1) I picked Wisconsin in this game close,but I told everyone that I would pick the Buckeyes with J.T,Barrett close.
I also added though that if I had to pick one coach to get a quarterback up to speed in this situation it would be Urban Meyer.
Start with Meyer and his offensive coaching staff when you pass out bouquets for this win..

2) Cardale Jones threw three touchdowns and 257 yards and it was apparent from the first drive that Jones was prepped and ready for this game.
Jones showed a bigger arm than either Braxton Miller or J.T.Barrett and his style is more Terrelle Pryor than the two others.
Jones has a set of skills that might prove to make (to my surprise) Ohio State even tougher in the coming weeks-no matter who they play....

3) There was a runner that went over 200 yards in this title game,but it was not the heralded Melvin Gordon,it was Ezekiel Elliott that was unstoppable. Elliott ripped off 220 yards on two touchdowns and the Badgers simply could not stop Elliott,who may have scored again had he not thrown a shoe on a long run....

4) Devin Smith finished with 137 yards and two touchdowns,one of them coming down between two defenders.
"Big Play Devin" continues to be the guy that the Buckeyes looks for in the deep passing game and Ohio State might look back with wishes that they had gotten him more involved over the year.

5) This game could have been over 60 points on the point.
In the second quarter,Ezekiel Elliott dropped a pass that he would have strolled into the end zone with and OSU settled for their only Sean Nurnberger field goal of the day.

6) Melvin Gordon came into the game with tons of hype and it was deserved.
Gordon against the Ohio State run defense was my main worry and another reason that I picked Wisconsin.
Instead,Gordon was corralled and kept under control with 76 yards,but he needed 26 carries to do so which is an average of less than three yards a carry...

7) I've been very critical of Luke Fickel as a defensive coordinator through the years and I'm not sure who created this game plan,but the thought was brilliant as they often had eight and nine men in the box to stop Melvin Gordon.
I was (stupidly perhaps) reminded of the 6-2 Stack Monster defense employed by the brilliant defensive coordinator Craig T.Nelson in "All the Right Moves".
Credit where it is due and unless the Buckeyes get scorched in the coming games,Fickel may have saved his job for another year...

8) I've read some tweets/articles that suggested that the Badgers were "Intimidated" by Ohio State.
I have doubts on that.
When these two teams play,it has been a close and hard hitting game for years and that not only casts a shadow on a good Wisconsin program along with the Ohio State victory.

9) Four forced turnovers including a Joey Bosa fumble recovery for a score.
I hate to be melodramatic here,but could this effort have been a tribute to the tragic loss of Kosta Karageorge?
Michael Bennett forced two of the Badgers fumbles and he wore 53 as a tribute to Karageorge.

10) Finally the big question-Are the Buckeyes in?
Answer-I don't know,but they could not have stated their case any strongly.
I have no problems with Alabama or Oregon and Florida State has won all games and despite the recent shots at the Seminoles,they have won all their games,so to me they are in.
That leaves the Buckeyes with TCU and Baylor.
Nothing against those schools,but no one in the Big 12 plays defense at all,
The loss to Virginia Tech looks bad and if OSU doesn't get in,they can blame the Hokies for turning so mediocre after a great night for them (6-6),but that is a different team.
I have a bias,but if it is me,It is Florida State (Undefeated),Alabama (toughest conference sked),Oregon (tough conference,played a good non-conference team in Michigan State) and the Buckeyes ( impressive finish and playing well on both sides of the ball).
What this really does is point out that the real need is for an eight team playoff and if that means the conference championship games go away in order to do so-fine......