Good morning Buckeye faithful and welcome to your Tuesday Skull Session.
The first thing that comes to mind when thinking of the scandal erupting in Penn State is simply: wow. To think think about how long these sickening acts have been taking place by Jerry Sandusky is atrocious.
While the victims and their family members are certainly in my thoughts, the fan base of Penn State is as well. While OSU's scandal last year has no resemblance whatsoever to PSU's, I still know how their program must feel now, as they have become the subject of scrutiny.
The Nittany Lions have had a fantastic season thus far and are currently on top of the Leaders division. While I hope to eventually see the Buckeyes replace them there, I hope this publicity isn't the reason they fall.
PSU will have to learn to shelter out the controversy and stay focused on football. OSU and Penn State's game on Nov. 19 should be one of the key factors in who wins this division. Hopefully OSU wins this game because they are the truly better team, and not because they are no longer home to the biggest scandal in the NCAA anymore.
WORRY WARTS. This Saturday, OSU faces off against the Purdue Boilermakers, who are coming off a 62-17 stomping by Wisconsin. OSU is considered a heavy favorite in this game, but do the Buckeyes have any reason to be nervous?
Jim Naveau of The Lima News writes that perhaps the Buckeyes' game this Saturday could be much like last weeks less than impressive victory over Indiana. Just as Indiana was coming off an embarrassing 59-38 loss to Northwestern, Purdue might be looking to come out with something to prove this week.
While Naveau makes some interesting points, I believe it is OSU, not Purdue, who will come out hungrier this week. OSU needs to redeem themselves after struggling against a weak Indiana squad.
The Buckeyes just need to stick to the basics: Run the ball, don't turn it over and play conservative on defense. If the defense can just manage to avoid making easy mistakes, things will go smoothly this week. There should be no reason to over think this matchup.
ABOUT THAT DEFENSE. This defensive unit is not what it was just a season ago. Jon Spencer of MansfieldNewsJournal.com discussed the defense's lack of production this year.
Spencer highlights that OSU's defense has only 14 interceptions compared to 30 last year, OSU has given up 14 touchdowns against nine all of last season, and Kofi Hughes became the fourth wide receiver to post an 100-yard game.
This defense was supposed to be the strength of this team coming into the season. While the offense struggled early on, the defense has been an even bigger disappointment by my estimation. All eyes should be on the silver bullets in the Purdue game, and we'll see how they respond to a poor performance last game and overall this season.
As cool as the other side of the pillow.
SHAKE AND BAKE. The Plain Dealer's Doug Lesmerises wrote an article on Monday about Braxton Miller's running style.
In the article, Lesmerises compares Miller's running style to former OSU quarterback Terrelle Pryor's running technique. Pryor "would run away from defenders or repel them with a stiff-arm," whereas Miller, who lacks Pryor's speed and natural athleticism, tends to try and juke potential tacklers.
This running style has placed Miller at 14th in the Big Ten in rushing this year, one spot behind Carlos Hyde. Additionally, Miller's 81-yard touchdown run against Indiana ranks as the 13-longest run in NCAA history.
HE SAID WHAT? Washington Huskies head coach Steve Sarkisian claims Matt Barkley will be a better NFL quarterback than Andrew Luck.
I'm not an NFL scout, but if there's a sure thing in next year's NFL draft Luck is it. Luck not only won his head-to-head matchup with Barkley, he also has very similar numbers to the USC quarterback with 72 less passing attempts this season.
I understand that Sarkisian probably has a lot of biased towards Barkley because of the fact he recruited him as an assistant at USC, but Luck, in my opinion, is going to be a better NFL quarterback. Both are dominant quarterbacks at the college level and both will most likely be drafted, but I believe Luck could be the next Matt Ryan or Sam Bradford.
LOS LINKS. No one's smiling in Happy Valley... Houston Nutt will resign after the season... Some perspective on Missouri's move to the SEC... Terrell Suggs shares his alma mater with Monday Night Football... OSU's game notes for Purdue.
