Was that Sons of Anarchy showing some flickers of life before its exit from TV? I'm not so sure, but even with its flaws, last night's episode was one of the best in awhile.
MIKE THOMAS EARNS A STARTING GIG. So it was written; so it was prophesied. Mike Thomas officially supplanted Devin Smith last night. Obviously, I have no qualm with it; I think Thomas is Ohio State's best all-around receiver.
And that's no disrespect to Devin Smith, but Thomas brings more to the table. Thomas isn't as easily stuffed at the line of scrimmage and is an effective blocker when he wants to be.
OSU NO. 8 IN TAILGATING. Scout.com's Jane Ehrhardt ranked the Top 20 tailgating scenes in America. Like most polls these days, it's dominated by the SEC (Auburn No. 1, LSU No. 2), Oregon (No. 3), and FSU (No. 4).
Wisconsin is the B1G's highest ranked team, coming it at No. 7. Right behind it, Ohio State checks-in at a respectable No. 8:
When 90,000 fans show up for a practice game, you’ve got the right fan base for high-caliber tailgating. When you’ve had two undefeated seasons in a row, you know a frenzy has been building. And coach Urben Meyer says his team is hungry for titles this year. They were denied two last year with a loss at both the Orange Bowl and the Big Ten Championship. But the supportive clamor from Buckeye tailgates never waivers. The mile-long RV lot alone pulsates from 20 bands playing loud and live with rickshaws taxiing revelers to the next hot spot. Or stroll past Buckeye Grove under the hundred-plus buckeye trees planted in honor of each OSU All-American to the former Hineygate, now dubbed the Crank It Up Party, at the Varsity Club. The name says it all. Tailgate foods run to traditional seven-layer dip, wings, burgers and the staple of homemade “buckeyes”— a wad of peanut butter covered in chocolate and looking like its name. Whether you’re wearing scarlet and grey or not, OSU tailgaters respect fans who travel. Even after Ohio Stadium’s packed to its 102,329 capacity, the tens of thousands not able to get tickets simply continue tailgating—the “game outside the game.”
Tailgating, distilled to its essence, isn't much. It's standing around in a parking lot illegally drinking liquor with some friends. But... it's awesome.
I haven't traveled to too many college football games, but if there are really seven schools better than Ohio State at tailgating.... then America is damned good at tailgating.
LIVING BY THE SWORD. Last season, fans pined for a more aggressive, in-your-face defense that featured a lot of man coverage. Chris Ash promised to deliver that when he replaced Everett Withers.
Against Cincinnati, however, we saw some of the downfalls of man coverage; the Buckeyes were victimized by three long touchdown scores.
The Dispatch's Tim May and Bill Rabinowitz, two ancients on the beat with venerable opinions, discussed this yesterday:
RABINOWITZ: [...] We will delve into this soon enough, but as bad as the Buckeyes looked on defense on a few plays, I believe the ingredients are there for a solid defense. It's a matter of meshing the parts and balancing an aggressive scheme with some common sense, like not leaving a redshirt freshman cornerback like Eli Apple in man coverage with no help on a bomb in the final minute of a half.
MAY: Until I hear otherwise, that was a coaching blunder. It was reminiscent of some I've seen in the past, like Texas choosing to cover Ted Ginn Jr. man to man in the last minute of the half in Austin in 2006 and Troy Smith exploiting it for a back-breaking touchdown. But as co-coordinator Chris Ash, the designer of the OSU's new defense, pointed out, on the first big pass to Moore at the start of the game, safety Vonn Bell was there but just didn't make the play. On the second, Apple, in man coverage, simply blundered in letting Moore get behind him instead of making sure he did anything but. On the third, Doran Grant took ownership of his gaffe -- taking his eyes off Moore for a split second to look into the backfield to find the quarterback only to have Moore suddenly shoot past. But none of those sat well with Urban Meyer because, well, that's just the way head coaches feel about huge plays that go against them. And he saw plenty of those last season, which was why he wanted the overhaul.
RABINOWITZ: It'll be interesting to hear what Meyer says in his news conference about the pass defense and what he intends to do about it. He sounded noncommittal about sticking with the aggressive scheme they've adopted, saying the coaches have to decide whether the players are capable of executing it. My guess is that it was his in-the-moment frustration speaking late Saturday night. I doubt that OSU would abandon something they've worked on all year. Could we see tweaking of the scheme at least? A personnel change or two? It's something the Buckeyes need to fix right away. Maryland, with players like Stefon Diggs, is more than capable of making the Buckeyes look bad if they don't.
I hope Ohio State sticks with the aggressive scheme, even if it has to be dialed back some. (After all, it's not like Eli Apple was recruited for the current scheme.)
Here, however, is a stat I found interesting, emailed to me by 11Wer gravey:
After 4 games, OSU is #1 in the conference in pass defense (yrds) and last in sacks. Not what I would have guessed. Of course it's not pass efficiency defense and it's only four games, but dang . I had in my mind this vision of a killer sacking-machine D-line and a broken down secondary....
It'll be interesting to see how this works out by season's end.
Agreed, gravey.
That is interesting, and I feel the sacks part has to due with Noah Spence's absence. Replacing Spence has a been a struggle for which the coaches weren't ready.
Will Adolphus Washington move back outside? He's done well on the inside, but Ohio State might need his improved-motor opposite of the man they call the Big Bear.
MARYLAND HAS A STABLE OF WIDEOUT TALENT TOO. Ohio State fans might remember Maryland's electric — and somehow already a junior — wide receiver, Stefon Diggs. The Maryland burner chose the in-state Terrapins over Ohio State, and he hasn't disappointed.
But Maryland actually has three playmakers at receiver, so Ohio State's secondary will again be tested on Saturday (noon, ABC):
- Stefon Diggs: 29 receptions, 398 yards, two TDs (long of 77).
- Deon Long: 21 receptions, 250 yards, 41-yard TD.
- Marcus Leak: 12 receptions, 211 yards, three TDs.
As for their quarterback situation, Ohio State could face any combination of sophomore dual-threat QB C.J. Brown or junior pro-style QB Caleb Rowe:
Maryland coach Randy Edsall on whether or not quarterback C.J. Brown is expected to play: "We'll find out on Saturday."
— Tim Shoemaker (@TimShoemaker) September 30, 2014
Looks like Randy Edsall is going to play this one close to the vest. CLASSIC RUSE, RANDY, CLASSIC RUSE.
MICHIGAN COULDA HAD SUMLIN. This gem was lost yesterday in the torrent of shit pouring out of the gaping dog's anus that is Ann Arbor:
On today's edition of Fox Sports' "The Audible" podcast with Fox Sports writers Bruce Feldman and Stewart Mandel, Feldman shared a piece of information that was never reported publicly revolving around Michigan's last coaching search that netted them current head man Brady Hoke.
"At this point I think I should point something out when we're talking about Brady Hoke and coming from San Diego State," Feldman said. "I don't know how many people know this, but when Dave Brandon was interviewing to replace Rich Rodriguez, one of the guys he interviewed was (current Texas A&M coach) Kevin Sumlin. He (Brandon) turned down Sumlin and ended up taking Brady Hoke, the Michigan guy."
It had to be because Brady Hoke is a Michigan Man, and Sumlin is just some former Purdue linebacker, right? Right? This might be more indefensible than a 12:52 AM press release about the playing of a concussed student-athlete.
I can't wait to see what other secrets are holed away in Schembechler Hall, because I have a feeling we're going to see some dirty laundry aired before Dave Brandon is mercifully given the ax. (Reminder: UM athletics administration salaries are up 72% in four years.)
I'd also pay all $40 in my bank account for tapes to those two interviews. Given Brandon's current bender of mismanagement, I bet it's even more comical than even I can imagine.
Long live Dave Brandon.
Speaking of Brady Hoke, here's new catlab to get your morning off to the proper start:
THOSE WMDs. Someone at the Wisconsin Humane Society is really good at naming cats... 76 of 79 former NFL players tested positive for brain damage... What it's like to be run over by a train...Why Academics Stink at Writing... The never-before-told story of the longest held American captive of war.
