J-Stoney: Nope. J-Hall: Hope? Jake Stoneburner is probably out for this weekend's game against Indiana, which removes one of Ohio State's ideal safety valves for Terrelle Pryor. Stoney has 9 catches for 110 yards and a touchdown this season, which seems a little low, doesn't it? Perhaps it's a symptom from the shock that we're actually using the tight end (though not nearly as much as some - including I - would like). In other practice notes, Jordan Hall got significant reps with the first team this week, while Brandon Saine seemed relegated to less time in the back field. Whether this means we'll see Hall extensively against Indiana early on, and less of Saine, remains to be seen.
Tyler Moeller = TM = Tough M'f'er. Tyler Moeller does not feel pain. It is a temporary inconvenience to him. Dude was playing with a partially torn pectoral before he tore it fully this past Saturday, and even playing limited, he frequently looked like Ohio State's best defender. Everyone's first priority should be for him to get healthy, and entirely secondary to that should be getting him back on the field next fall after he applies for a medical hardship waiver. Given the losses to graduation this defense will suffer, he'll be needed.
Go away, Ahman Green. Maurice Clarett hasn't played much football for the Omaha Nighthawks, but the former freshman sensation remains positive:
"I'm taking things day by day; don't get too far ahead of myself and don't look behind myself," he said. "I have some personal goals I keep private and to myself, but as long as I'm putting in all the work I need to in order to contribute to this team, then I'm satisfied."
Clarett has seen so little time because he's sitting behind starter Ahman Green, who is 87 years old but apparently still possesses enough quicks to be successful in the fledgling league.
Trash talk never dies. I found this funny from ESPN's Pac-10 Blogger mailbag:
Jason from Columbus writes: Defense wins championships. Oregon's defense stinks. Do the Buckeyes have to kill them again to prove this?
Ted Miller: First of all, I'm curious: Do Ohio State fans really view the Buckeyes 26-17 Rose Bowl victory as a "kill"? Or is this just a fringe interpretation or a bit of trash talk? In terms of being an actual assessment, it's ridiculous.
Anyway. Oregon may not have a great defense but it has a good defense. It's hard to explain this to people because, well, it requires explaining.
Most folks look at the 339 yards per game the Ducks have surrendered and say, "Neh!"
After that, it's MOTS about the Oregon defense: the raw numbers "look ugly", but "deeper analysis" tells us "they're better than they look". This is almost the exact same argumentative strategy we saw leading up the Rose Bowl: Oregon's defense faces more plays, and therefore, they're guaranteed to be bad. Or something to that effect. Still, in the end, reality probably lies somewhere between what detractors say and what Pac-10 homers say, as usual. I will say this Oregon offense looks legit, and I'm not sure a single Pac-10 defense - excepting perhaps Arizona - will be able to stop them. If Ohio State somehow falls short of the title game, an Oregon/Alabama title tilt would be killer.
Quick hits. Orhian Johnson takes on one of the few teams that considered him at quarterback this week, The Big Ten looks like an offensive league early on this season (and given the asstacular quality of defenses at Indiana, Minnesota, Michigan, and the meh ones at Michigan State, Illinois and others, I'm inclined to agree), best wishes to Iowa DC Norm Parker, who has had his foot amputated as a result of diabetes, MGoBrian hilariously reviews the Michigan D's numerous collapses against Indiana, providing some insight into how Indiana's offense works. Meanwhile, Penn State's offense? Still terrible.
