Bret demonstrates the Reynolds choke technique
With a win against Illinois nearly two weeks ago augmented by Wisconsin's last second loss at Sparty this past weekend, the Buckeyes miraculously find themselves back in the race for the Leaders division title, at least on paper. Ohio State would need to win out and have someone, in addition to themselves, upend Penn State.
While winning out might seem like a ridiculously tall order to some (raises hand), there's no doubt Wisconsin's loss gave many Buckeyes reason to believe. Various players said as much on twitter following Wisky's loss so with the Badgers coming to town Saturday night, it's put up or shut up time for this Ohio State squad.
An upset win would be the perfect ending to what will already be a special day for 11W as Eat Too, Brutus finally goes down.
Now, grab a chair as we get started with this week's roundtable. There's plenty of room since high numbers of the crew are in route to Columbus for Drink, Too tonight at Bar Louie.
I don’t know that I buy into the long regurgitated notion that you don’t want to play a team fresh off a disappointing loss. Do you think Wisky’s Hail Mary loss to Sparty will have any impact on the game Saturday? Why or why not?
Ramzy: I think the threat of it negatively-impacting the game is higher. Wisconsin played well for most of the game but fell apart at the end between Bielema's clock mismanagement on the final drive and the Badger secondary's defense of the Hail Mary. If Ohio State allows Wisconsin to control the rhythm and keep momentum early on it won't matter at all, since these Buckeyes have zero chance of being a come-from-behind team.
Alex: I'm really not sure what to make of the loss. One thing I know is that Wisconsin will definitely want to come back strong in their second consecutive road game at night to make sure they don't lose two in a row and stay in line for the B1G title game. I also know OSU will have revenge on their mind, despite what Luke Fickell says, and sees a big chance to sneak up and take the Leaders division title with a win. This should be a great game.
The Badgers rank 8th nationally in rushing at 252 yards per game thanks to their typically hogtastic offensive line and the impressive RB duo of Montee Ball (768 yds, 6.1 ypc) and James White (458 yds, 5.7 ypc). What do the Buckeyes need to do to slow down the attack and just how many yards do you see the Badgers amassing on the ground?
Jeremy: Simple answer: Andrew Sweat, Etienne Sabino and Storm Klein need to play like Ohio State LB'ers traditionally play. Look for the Buckeyes to move into more 4-3 this weekend as well. When the dust settles, I see Wisconsin getting between 160-180 on the ground.
Ramzy: Georgia Tech is the only FBS team in the country that is better than Wisconsin at third down conversions (if you're curious, Ohio State is 95th, largely because walrusball is barely one-dimensional). In order to have any chance at slowing the Badgers down the Buckeyes need to force third and longs, go nickel, and make sure that Etienne Sabino or Andrew Sweat can adequately cover Jake Byrne or whoever is in at TE.
Alex: I think it's not neccessarily what the defense can do, but rather what the offense can do. The less the Wisco offense is on the field, the less they have a chance to control the clock and run all over OSU. The Buckeyes need to play Wisco's game and continue to move the ball and control the clock on offense, so that the defense gets plenty of rest and the Badgers stay off the field on offense.
Russell Wilson had a Jekyl and Hyde game against Sparty with 2 TD, 2 INT and his lowest completion percentage of the year at 67%. When he struggled, it was often influenced by Sparty’s ability to bring pressure (3 sacks). That said, how should Heacock and Luke plan to keep Wilson in check? Bring pressure live with the risk/reward, try to keep him in the pocket to prevent long runs, or something else?
Ramzy: Wilson is closer to Scheelhaase than Martinez, so spying him with an LB shouldn't be the kiss of death again. Ohio State as a standard practice disguises nearly all of its coverages, so Wilson knows this from having seen tape. Get a few early sacks and beat him up. Make him hesitant to leave the pocket.
Jeremy: How I would contain Wilson? Shazier on the field in a spy role, like the role he played towards the end of the game vs Illinois, trust the corners in man-to-man and bring pressure from the defensive line and linebackers. We can't play conservative. No reason to.
Corey: I don't think Ohio State will change too much defensively. Heacock loves the zone blitz and the Bullets have been getting good pressure up front with Simon and Hankins lately, so if they can get to Wilson early, that will help. Our LB's need to take correct angles if Wilson leaves the pocket, but I don't think they need to put a spy on him.
Continuing with the passing game, Wisconsin sports a nice WR tandem in Toon and Abbrederis. How comfortable are you manning up against these two or would you play zone to limit plays over the top?
Alex: Definitely two solid receivers for UW, but I trust Roby, Howard, and Clarke to do a good job on them. At least one of the safeties, if not both, will have to help out in defending the run, meaning lots of 1-on-1 action for the corners against these two if I was the coach. I think a good pass rush enables you to play more man, but I think Heacock will tend to play zone in this one.
Jeremy: I feel very comfortable putting Roby on Toon (with a safety over the top) and letting Howard or Clarke take their chances with Abbrederis. "Cornerback U" needs to live up to its name and let the athletes trust their athleticism.
Corey: I think the corners have continued to improve and I trust them going man. At least one safety will need to help with the run, so Roby, Howard and Clarke have to step up and cover without help throughout this game. Honestly, I fear the LB's covering the TE's in this one, more than the corners.
Offensively, it’s no secret the OSU staff has shown zero confidence in throwing the ball. Knowing Wisconsin is very aware of this fact, what kind of run/pass balance do you expect Bollman to show this week? What ratio would you personally like to see?
Ramzy: I'd like to see the Buckeyes pound the ball with Herron, run the option and set up the short, conservative passing game. I have zero confidence in Jim Bollman to make this happen, who will undoubtedly telegraph Ohio State's running plays and follow them up with equally obvious play-action passing plays that include no routes shorter than 25 yards.
Alex: I think you'll see about 15 passes attempted by Ohio State to about 45 rushes (including Miller scrambles and designed runs), so a 3:1 ratio. Obviously you would love to see that number be about 2:1 (40:20) or 1.5:1 (36:24), but let's not kid ourselves here.
Corey: I've been hearing all week that Fickell is pressing for shorter passes, which is the what we've been shouting for since week 3. With that being said, Bollman will try and run the ball until the Badgers stop us and if they do stop us, he'll try to run it some more. I'm hoping there is more of a 65/35 run/pass ratio, with most of those passes short, timing routes. I also hope Bollman developed Hall coming out of the backfield a bit more and allowing Boom/Hyde to carry the bulk of the load against a tough Whisky D.
Of course, that last question is a chicken/egg argument if the Buckeyes can’t run the ball effectively. Can they? What type of success do you forsee on the ground Saturday night?
Jeremy: When Boom runs for over 55 yards, the Buckeyes are 19-1. I see that being 19-2 after Saturday. I think Ohio State will run the ball effectively, but you can't beat good teams by being one dimensional. I see an active running game that is successful, but gets phased out by the need to pass (and the subsequent sacks) in the second half.
Ramzy: The Buckeyes should be able to get 4-5 yards per carry on Wisconsin. The problem will be Bollman's playcalling, which has no sequence, no meaning and routinely wastes any gains that Ohio State gets. You don't get to be the 110th-ranked offense in the country with a lineup that's absolutely loaded with four and five-star recruits by being a competent playcaller.
We discussed previously which of these two owns the most Affliction garb but who you taking in the Steel Cage? Luke or Bielema? Why?
Ramzy: Bielema would squeal, sweat ranch dressing and try to call ill-advised timeouts, but it would not matter: Fickell would have him pinned in under half a minute.
Jeremy: I think I take Bielema, because drunk guys fight much dirtier than sober dudes.
What do you think of this week’s Pro Combat uniforms?
Alex: When I first saw them I thought they were ugly. Now seeing them in person, I actually like them a little. They aren't as good as the white ones we were at Michigan in 2009, but they are better than the Rutgers-like uniforms we wore at home vs UM last year. I would have liked to have seen a black uniform for this game though.
Ramzy: I especially hate how Nike pretends like it's honoring something with this neverending moneygrab campaign, but at the same time I have a weakness for numbers on helmets. These uniforms are the Butterface of uniforms.
Bowl projections are starting to pop up everywhere with the Buckeyes ranging from the Outback to the Ticket City. Based on what you’ve seen from OSU and the rest of the conference thus far, where is Ohio State’s most likely bowl destination?
Jeremy: I think Ohio State will finish the season 8-4, and will end up in the Gator Bowl.
Alex: This is a tough one because if they beat Wisconsin, I can see them going 9-3 with a trip to the B1G title game, which would place them either in the Rose Bowl against Stanford/Oregon with a win or in the Capital One Bowl against South Carolina/UGA with a loss. If they lose, I'm taking 8-4 and a trip to the Gator Bowl to take on Florida or Arkansas.
Ramzy: Ohio State's roster was a solid national championship contender prior to Tatgate, and now we're talking about Ticket City bowls and Jacksonville. I refuse to answer this. It's too early to start self-medicating.
