The Monday before the opener against Youngstown State, I put out five predictions regarding how I thought the 2008 season would play out. At the halfway mark, I thought it would be fun to go back and see how those calls are holding up.
Guessing fail
1. Pryor will see the field in the first half against Youngstown State and his workload will increase from there.
Though you didn't exactly have to be Tressnac to see that Pryor would get snaps his rookie year, he did get in during the first half of the YSU game and considering he's taken over the starting job from Boeckman, it's safe to say that his workload has in fact, increased. At 3-0 as a starter, he's the future of Ohio State football and a large reason why fans were so quick to put the drubbing in LA in the rearview.
2. DeVier Posey will post at least 400 yards receiving on the year.
Posey started nicely with 4 receptions for 47 yards including a 25-yard touchdown in the opener, but he would go on to go catch-less in his next three games. He's back on the board with a catch in each of the last two games, against Minnesota and Wisconsin and though he's receiving more and more snaps as the season progresses, it will be tough to get to 400 on the year when he's sitting at just 63 at the halfway point. Given the fact that the offense is trending more option than five-wides, I don't see this happening.
3. Beanie Wells will not win the Heisman Trophy.
I think I'll nail this one, but not exactly for the reasons I originally stated. I thought the combination of blowouts and the number of playmakers on the offense would limit his touches, but it was the toe injury suffered in the opener that essentially killed his campaign. Since his return, he's played like the best player in the country, but those missed games, including the marquee matchup with USC will kill any hope he has to win it this season (all bets are off if he puts up 800 yards against the Wolverines, which I think is a possibility).
4. The defense will be truly sick.
You're forgiven if you decide you never want to read this blog again based on this prediction alone. Worst. Prediction. Ever.
5. The Buckeyes will beat USC and go on to play in a third-straight MNC game.
Another failure at prognostication -- the USC game, as if you need me to tell you, wasn't even close. What's really nuts is that I thought the offensive line would be a big factor in a victory at the Coliseum. Silly me. Regarding a third-straight MNC run, if the last two seasons had never happened, there's perhaps a slim chance pending some upsets the last half of the season. This year, there's no chance.
So, it looks like it's shaping up as 2-2 with an outside shot on that Posey call. What about you -- what are your predictions for the stretch?
