National Champions
I was asked to give my thoughts on the OSU game:
Well I don't like doing analysis of games I saw on TV (to say nothing of trying to remember a month past), but I'll take my shot. To begin with I did not expect us to win - maybe I am too much of a cynic or too critical of a team that I saw up close and personal all year (flaws stand out that way), but I did not try to get tickets because I did not think we would win and thought it would be better to save up for the Super Bowl (which worked out for me by the way). However after USC just roadkilled Michigan I felt much more that we had a legit chance (and I said at the time that the Arkansas game was our best game of the year). When they sprung that return to start the game (with the help of a MASSIVE hold) I was not worried - at the time I told the guy I was watching with if we were good enough to win, we were good enough to come back from seven down this early in the game (which I repeated to some Colts fans about a month later when I WAS AT THE SUPER BOWL!!!!!!!!!).
I'll attribute our win mainly to Captain Sweatervest being an idiot. I don't buy the OSU believed its own hype or got rusty with 50 days off (we were off for a while too) and did not play hard. That said whatever they were doing for those 50 days it sure didn't seem to involve studying game film of us. We didn't do anything that was that widely different than what we had been doing all year but OSU sure looked surprised. Because TV angles are tight I never saw what type of coverage the were running all game but it looked to be some deep shell zone. We kept hitting plays underneath and they miraculously never made an in-game adjustment - Leak was good but hardly on fire. I was floored by this, early on I figured we needed to rack up the points quick before they altered their coverage, but they never did. No blitzes (or very few, which is stupid because that was the only time they go pressure), no attempts at man-to-man, no short zones rotated underneath, nothing! I really don't get it. I suppose you could say they were afraid of our mythical SEC speed, but you have to take risks when the game is starting to get away from you. I am not sure I buy that speed argument anyway - I remember OSU being able to handle Miami quite well in 2003. Although there was on play when Derrick Harvey was closing in on Troy Smith and he went to run away but only went half speed because he was focused on looking upfield. Harvey caught him easily and it was clear from the way he played Smith was used to just being able to run away from people. We certainly played a harder schedule to get to the game than they did (maybe I did not recognize that enough before the game and that is why I expected a loss).
On offense I don't know what was wrong with Smith, but aside from that they were stupidly coached again. They got their second TD on a drive where they used their bigger OL to push our smaller DL and they did not have much trouble doing it. Then they promptly gave up on the run (they were only down seven - and only 13 until the fumble right before the half). Basically Tressel was a moron.
Well I don't like doing analysis of games I saw on TV (to say nothing of trying to remember a month past), but I'll take my shot. To begin with I did not expect us to win - maybe I am too much of a cynic or too critical of a team that I saw up close and personal all year (flaws stand out that way), but I did not try to get tickets because I did not think we would win and thought it would be better to save up for the Super Bowl (which worked out for me by the way). However after USC just roadkilled Michigan I felt much more that we had a legit chance (and I said at the time that the Arkansas game was our best game of the year). When they sprung that return to start the game (with the help of a MASSIVE hold) I was not worried - at the time I told the guy I was watching with if we were good enough to win, we were good enough to come back from seven down this early in the game (which I repeated to some Colts fans about a month later when I WAS AT THE SUPER BOWL!!!!!!!!!).
I'll attribute our win mainly to Captain Sweatervest being an idiot. I don't buy the OSU believed its own hype or got rusty with 50 days off (we were off for a while too) and did not play hard. That said whatever they were doing for those 50 days it sure didn't seem to involve studying game film of us. We didn't do anything that was that widely different than what we had been doing all year but OSU sure looked surprised. Because TV angles are tight I never saw what type of coverage the were running all game but it looked to be some deep shell zone. We kept hitting plays underneath and they miraculously never made an in-game adjustment - Leak was good but hardly on fire. I was floored by this, early on I figured we needed to rack up the points quick before they altered their coverage, but they never did. No blitzes (or very few, which is stupid because that was the only time they go pressure), no attempts at man-to-man, no short zones rotated underneath, nothing! I really don't get it. I suppose you could say they were afraid of our mythical SEC speed, but you have to take risks when the game is starting to get away from you. I am not sure I buy that speed argument anyway - I remember OSU being able to handle Miami quite well in 2003. Although there was on play when Derrick Harvey was closing in on Troy Smith and he went to run away but only went half speed because he was focused on looking upfield. Harvey caught him easily and it was clear from the way he played Smith was used to just being able to run away from people. We certainly played a harder schedule to get to the game than they did (maybe I did not recognize that enough before the game and that is why I expected a loss).
On offense I don't know what was wrong with Smith, but aside from that they were stupidly coached again. They got their second TD on a drive where they used their bigger OL to push our smaller DL and they did not have much trouble doing it. Then they promptly gave up on the run (they were only down seven - and only 13 until the fumble right before the half). Basically Tressel was a moron.
posted by El Breto @ 8:01 PM
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