Perfect timing.
That's what I've pretty much convinced myself tomorrow will represent for the Buckeyes.
A week after penalties, missed tackles, a turnover and a dose of Cal quicks forced Ohio State to gut out a 35-28 win, I'm all in on UAB being exactly what the doctor ordered ahead of a midday showdown in East Lansing seven days later.
Beating up on a bad team normally doesn't mean much but a last bit of non-conference confidence building could do wonders for this young team.
After a week revisiting the elements of a tackle, I look for the the defense to be cleaner at the point of attack.
Watching the offense struggle mightily for long stretches, I see the staff getting a better handle on Braxton's sweet spot of 17-ish carries.
Finally, I want to see how Jordan Hall's body reacts to last week's 17 carries and how Herman/Urbz expand his role to include more action outside the tackles via quick hitters wide either on handoffs or quick strikes from Miller.
No doubt a 30+ victory looms against a meager foe but if it comes at the hands of a four-quarter attack that addresses last week's opportunities, it will be a nice table-setter for Urban vs. Dantonio in the conference opener for both squads.
MORE TALENTED THAN HYMN. A fan of demonstrative statements, Urban Meyer stoked the flames a bit last night during his call-in show. Asked to compare Braxton to Tebow, Urbz lobbed this bomb:
“Very similar guys. They’re both competitive human beings. They’re both very talented people. Braxton has more talent. Tim is probably more of a grinder.”
Meyer's words predictably spread like Jenna Jameson. And by predictably I mean because it's a true statement that should grab the nation's attention. While just 35th nationally in passing efficiency, Miller's throwing ability is on a slow but steady incline, he's 10th in the country in rushing and he's been directly responsible for 12 of 16 Buckeye touchdowns.
Just sixteen games into his career, Miller has amassed 20 TDs passing with another dozen rushing for 32 total scores. Conversely, Tebow of Nazareth generated 22 TDs in his first 16 games, 11 each through the air and on the ground. Pretty favorable results for Miller and that comes with 13 games as a true frosh starter with a suspect offensive line and coaching bordering on criminal.
KICKING THE HABIT. After years of playing it safe, albeit with fairly sparkling results, the new-look Ohio State Buckeyes are not only more diverse in their offensive approach but it's actually paying off in spades when it comes to finding the end zone.
Lesmerises took a look at how the 2012 Buckeyes are racking up touchdowns instead of field goals compared to seasons past. The numbers say the Buckeyes, after trying between 16-22 field goals per year from 2007-11, are more in line with the lethal 2006 offense led by Troy, Antonio and Teddy that tried just 13 field goals while finding the end zone a ridiculous 56 times.
Though the touchdown dancing has put Drew Basil's field goal leg on ice (1/1 vs. UCF), Doug notes Drew Basil is still contributing in other ways. Covering his kickoffs, the Buckeyes are 3rd in the B1G, allowing only 19 yards per return.
Braxton's stats over 16 games surpass Tebow'sMONO Y MONO. In case you missed it, UM blue chip QB recruit Shane Morris could very well miss the rest of his senior season due to a case of mononucleosis.
Morris had been less than stellar in the first three games of his senior campaign, sporting a 48% completion rate and a mediocre three TDs against three picks.
The lefty made it through the first half this past Saturday, a 28-0 loss to Birmingham Brother Rice, but couldn't take the field in the 2nd half as fatigue took over according to his coach, Paul Verska:
"He had a sore throat and took some medicine and took it easy at practice but didn’t feel any better. Friday morning, he had a blood test and found out right before the game he had mono. He said he wanted to play, and the doctor said it was OK, because it wasn’t in his spleen. And Mom and Dad said it was OK. He tried, but he ran out of gas in the second quarter.’
Don't worry. No insensitive comments coming from me. Just thought you'd want to know Morris might be kissing his senior season goodbye.
WORST OF THE BCS. Athlon Sports took a look at the 15 worst teams of the BCS era and somewhat surprisingly, the B1G was void of representation.
Not surprisingly, four Duke squads made the cut with three of those teams going winless while the 2005 version eked out one win in 11 tries. Combined, the four editions of Duke football racked up a 1-44 record. I can't even imagine the horror.
Though Duke held down the 2nd, 4th, 7th and 9th spots, the 2008 Washington State Cougars took the top spot, going 2-11 while being outscored by an average of 48-14.
Their two wins came against FCS Portland State and a Washington Huskies team that went 0-12 without Jake Locker.
Sometimes, it's good to sit back and reflect on just how good Buckeye fans have it.
LINK-PALM. Vince Young kept it real... The NFL's 25 Most Unwritten Rules... ENUFF already!... 10 Things You Probably Never Knew About Atari... Get to know CFB's sideline reporters... Taking pictures of bubbles, Cinemax edition (NSFW?).
