OSU vs PSU

[Style]

Let's keep the talk of this game here. I'll start it off:
http://ohiostate.scout.com/2/569603.html

 

[The Oi]

Notre Dame smoked PSU. We smoked Notre Dame.

I say we don't play the game and accept that OSU beats PSU de facto...

by like 60.

 

[Style]

Hell no, they beat OSU last year. This is about revenge. There must be pounding for the fans at home. It shall be delicious!

 

[Style]

http://ohiostate.scout.com/2/310625.html

Edit:
Game data - http://ohiostate.scout.com/2/570651.html

 

[Style]

Heacock, Daniels Preview OSU-PSU Game
By Steve Helwagen
Managing Editor
Posted Sep 20, 2006

OSU assistant coaches Jim Heacock and Joe Daniels provide a scouting report for Penn State, OSU's opponent in Saturday's Big Ten opener (3:30 p.m., ABC). Daniels has comments on Troy Smith and the backup quarterbacks. Click this free link for more.

Ohio State defensive coordinator Jim Heacock and quarterbacks coach Joe Daniels met with the media Wednesday evening to discuss the team’s Big Ten opener with Penn State Saturday at Ohio Stadium (3:30 p.m., ABC).

“To me, it’s going into the Big Ten,” Heacock said of the storyline for this game. “It’s the first game in the Big Ten. Our guys will get excited about that.”

Heacock has been able to beam a bit about his defense. Although OSU had just two returning starters, the Buckeyes have allowed each of their first three opponents just one touchdown.

“The biggest thing is this group is exciting and fun to coach,” Heacock said. “They really want to do well. They are open to coaching. They spend a lot of time on the game. It’s important to them. They want to be good and do things right. They have made some improvement. They play hard and they practice hard and that gives them a chance to be a good defense.”

Heacock said because the defense lacks experience the staff spends more time working on the defense, itself, than scheming for opponents.

“Probably this year, more than ever with this group, we have very little time to think about the team we’re facing,” Heacock said. “We have to get our guys lined up. We look at Penn State. We look at what they’re doing. We look at the statistics. We look at the film. We don’t go much beyond that now.

“Our goal has been to improve each game. We are faced with an offense that is loaded with talent. We have to play with a lot of discipline.”

Regarding Penn State, Heacock said the Buckeyes are preparing for a lot of different looks.

“We are trying to prepare for everything,” he said. “They have a lot of good skill athletes. They use different combinations. We expect them to give us a lot of different looks.”

Included in those looks is sophomore wide receiver Derrick Williams, who sometimes lines up at quarterback and also at running back. Heacock was asked if Williams is back to full speed after missing the end of last season with an injury.

“Yes, he really does seem to be back,” Heacock said. “They truly have a great stable of athletes. They have guys who can get on the edge and give you a lot of problems. They have an explosive offense that can get the ball downfield.”

Heacock talked about the development of PSU quarterback Anthony Morelli.

“He’s looked good throwing the football,” Heacock said. “He has a really strong arm. He throws the ball downfield and he can throw the deep out. He’s a very talented quarterback. In the first three games, he’s looked very good.”

Heacock said the staff still plans to play multiple players at each position in the front seven.

“I suspect we will continue to play all of them,” he said. “As we get into league play, the guys who are performing a little bit better will play a little bit more. That balance may change, but we still want to play as many guys as we can.”

One true freshman who has earned playing time is defensive end Robert Rose.

“We think, potentially, he is an outstanding football player,” Heacock said. “He fits in with those four. He gives us another dimension. He can play both sides – the end and the Leo. We have two ends and two Leos and then he can swing back and forth. He’s strong and very talented. He’s going to be a great football player.”

Daniels’ View

Daniels, a Pennsylvania native, talked about the nature of the OSU-PSU rivalry.

“I think it is getting to be (a rivalry),” Daniels said. “Of course, it is with me because I recruit Pennsylvania. It’s big, but it is getting to be much more of a rivalry game than five or six years ago.”

Daniels provided his scouting report of the Penn State defense, which had just four returning starters.

“They’re young, but typical Penn State,” Daniels said. “They are very well coached. They teach technique very well. They’re just a young team and one guy will make a mistake then another guy will make a mistake.”

PSU had to find four new starters in the secondary.

“As I look at it, it’s a young group, especially when you compare to what they’ve had the last two years,” Daniels said. “But I think they will be fine.”

Daniels was asked his take on how Penn State was able to contain the OSU offense in last year’s 17-10 loss at Penn State.

“They just played really good football,” Daniels said. “I know that sounds crazy, but they were just so strong up front and so experienced. They had one young kid, Justin King, who played in the nickel. But other than that they had a lot of experience and a bunch of fifth-year seniors. They knew what they were doing.

“They are probably one of the smarter teams we play. You might get them once on something, but you’re not going to get them again. They’ll study you and know your route progressions.”

To date, Penn State’s strong front seven has been stiff against the run.

“We’re going to play our game and do what brung us,” Daniels said. “We’ll have to wait and see how we run the ball. You have to mix it. We’re not a team that can come out and throw the ball 50 times a game. But we do want to throw it and pick our times when we want to do it.”

Daniels said it is notable that quarterback Troy Smith has gone five straight games without an interception.

“I think it’s a big deal because we emphasize no turnovers so much,” Daniels said. “As an offensive team, that’s probably the first thing we talk about and the last thing we talk about. The thing about Troy – and one of the things that is probably not talked about a lot – he is very careful with the ball.

“He will not throw the ball if there is, in his mind, a chance that somebody will be covered. I’m not saying he doesn’t take a chance or that he doesn’t anticipate. He does all of those things, but it is very calculated. He’s not a kid who will throw a lot of interceptions.”

In that regard, Daniels talked about when Smith gained the trust of the coaching staff.

“It was more of a gradual thing than a defining moment,” Daniels said. “He grew into it. First and foremost was the thought process that we had to go through as to who was going to be the man. Once we did that, it was like we had to hang with him. Slowly, things started to happen.”

Daniels was asked about the lack of running plays by Smith so far this season.

“There were two situations that I know of where he did run, but we got a penalty,” he said. “We’ve had quarterback run plays in the game plan for all three games. We always talk about step up and go or step up and throw. I don’t think we’ve emphasized it any more.

“Right now, he’s doing what we want him to do and he’s taking care of the ball, so we’re happy.”

Daniels provided an update on sophomore quarterback Todd Boeckman, who suffered an ankle injury late in the Cincinnati game.

“I didn’t think (he’s be available), but he’s coming along pretty well,” Daniels said. “He seems to be a little bit further advanced than they thought.”

Daniels confirmed that the depth chart at quarterback would read Smith, Justin Zwick, Boeckman, Rob Schoenhoft and Antonio Henton.

“Right now, that would be the pecking order,” Daniels said. “Those two young kids (Boeckman and Schoenhoft), what we’d like to do, is get them as many reps as possible whenever possible. That’s the plan.”

Daniels was glad to see Zwick get in the UC game and complete a couple of long passes, one to Ray Small and the other to Brian Hartline.

“I was very happy,” he said. “I knew it wouldn’t be a whole lot of snaps. When Tress and I talked about it, we said, ‘Let’s get him in there and he needs some snaps. He needs to do that.’ I thought he did well. I thought he was sharp with everything he did mentally as well as physically. I was happy to see that.

“We had a chance to play Todd and whether we would have a chance to play Robby was going to depend on how many more snaps we had. Then, when Todd turned his ankle, then we had to go with Robby.”

Grieving Son

Daniels has undergone treatment for cancer this summer. Reporters asked on Wednesday how his recovery has gone. He revealed that he is fine, but he recently dealt with the death of his mother, Carmella.

“I feel great,” he said. “I feel very good. It’s been not a real enjoyable week-and-a-half we’ve gone through here, but health-wise I feel great. I just need to keep on keeping on.”

Following the Texas game, Daniels traveled to Pennsylvania to be with his mother before she passed away last week.

“She was a great Italian mom,” Daniels said. “Everything that comes to mind with that statement is true of my mom. She was a great lady. She did everything for us. I never even made my bed. She had a great sense of humor. She had a great even temper. She was a good mom and that’s the best I could say.”

http://ohiostate.scout.com/2/570877.html

 

[Style]

Game summary: http://ohiostate.scout.com/2/571686.html
Photos: http://ohiostate.scout.com/2/571869.html

Obviously not one of the better days for the offense, but when you consider that not only was it raining, but that the field is so shot they are literally tearing it out and putting in a new one tomorrow, that explains alot. Rain isn't called the great equalizer for nothing. Add in that turf, and I was actually a little worried about an upset before the game even began. We got the win, that's the important thing. I'm going to write off the offense's performance to weather and turf.

The defense, however, is just nasty. Not only that, but they are opportunistic. Three turn overs, two of them for touch downs, and they were damn close to getting three other turn overs.

I realize that Penn State was still in the game heading into the 4th quarter, but for some reason I'm not sweating it. I guess I'm just so happy with the defense I'm finding it hard to not be happy with this win, even though it was close for 50 minutes. So what do you guys think?

 

[cavincali]

I got a tad bit scared when Smith threw the pick to start off the thurd quarter, but after they shanked the field goal it was over.

Iowa will get spanked, unless its pooring, there will be buckeye bombs in that game.

 

[RuanuLaw]

Run D= F+

Pass D= A+

 

[Style]

Run D= F+

Pass D= A+

Yeah, ok dude. They just gashed us. I mean, they ran it into the endzone, what? Zero times? Yeah, F+ is not even close to harsh enough.

 

[RuanuLaw]

Yeah, ok dude. They just gashed us. I mean, they ran it into the endzone, what? Zero times? Yeah, F+ is not even close to harsh enough.

That's why I did not give them an F-.

Look at all the games so far. By far, their Run D is the biggest problem.

 

[Style]

That's why I did not give them an F-.

Look at all the games so far. By far, their Run D is the biggest problem.

Yes, the run defense is clearly a problem. That's why Penn State couldn't punch it in in three tries from the two yard line. That's why later at mid field they decided to pass on 4th and 1 b/c on 2nd and 1 and 3rd and 1 OSU stuffed them. I mean, my goodness, through 4 games, 2 against ranked opponants, they're allowing 8 points a game! That is outargeous! Fire the defensive coordinator! So what if they're in the top 10 out of 110 division one schools in the most important defensive statistic, points surrendered. Until they get their average down to zero points a game, the defense deserves a fat F.

Give me a break. You realize that F is a failing grade, right? You realize that failing means not good enough to win? At a minimum, you have to give them a passing grade, ie. a C, but that's pretty harsh considering this defense has totally shut down four teams now. Also keep in mind that they're running the nickel defense over 60% of the time. The nickel defense is designed to stop the pass. They're basically just daring teams to throw on them, yet regardless what they do, run or pass, they're locking them down.

If you want to say the run defense is the weakest point of the team, you might have an argument. Most would say our field goal kicker is the weak link, especially since the defense as a whole is destroying people, and any time we need to stop the run (on the goal line, 3rd and short, etc) the Buckeyes take out the nickel defense totally stuff the play. Still, you could attempt to form an argument. But to give the run defense anything less than a passing grade is just silly.

Here's a shot of Corso picking the Buckeyes:

 

[Cavs1]

The run defense has holes at times - missing tackles, sweeps and pitches, along with screens. But when it counts, they man up and stop the play.

I will admit, I was very nervous going into half down 3-0. Especially after Troy Smith threw that 2nd interception early in the 2nd half. But once we took the lead I knew we weren't going to reliquish it. We played our hearts out the whole game, there was no way they were going to lose after taking the lead.

Other than the Texas loss, that was definitely the best Buckeyes game that I've been to - and it was my first in Block O (student section at south end of stadium, for those of you that don't know what it is). This game was the epitome of a Bigten football game. Now I just can't wait for Michigan to come to town.

P.S. James Laurinitus & Malcolm Jenkins = STUDS.

 

[RuanuLaw]

Style, dude, I was just being funny while trying to make a point. The Run D is not good but I am not going to give them an F for real.

Let this be heard though. The Run D "MIGHT"/"WILL" cost OSU a chance for the title.

 

[Style]

Style, dude, I was just being funny while trying to make a point. The Run D is not good but I am not going to give them an F for real.

Let this be heard though. The Run D "MIGHT"/"WILL" cost OSU a chance for the title.

The run defense might not be great, but it's not bad, i.e. they don't get an A, but they certainly don't get an F. I'm thinking a B is more inline.

To be honest, for a one game only grade against the Lions, the rush defense graded higher than both the rush offense and the pass offense, so the timing of this complaint is strange to me. The defense is the reason we won yesterday, not the offense.

If the most we have to worry about is our run defense is only a B, that's not too bad. Will it be enough to win a title? We'll see. EVERY NATIONAL CHAMPION needs luck at some point along the way to win it. So will the stars align, the balls bounce friendly, and the Buckeyes end up hosting the Sears trophy at the end of the year? I don't know, but I'd say they have as good a chance as anyone, and far better than most.

 

[TrueCavsFan23]

it will not cost us a title,lol.