Eleven Warriors Roundtable: Waiting on the B1G Decision

After snatching victory from the jaws of defeat last weekend in a 30-27 double overtime thriller over Michigan, the Buckeyes find themselves in the clubhouse with a No. 2 ranking in the College Football Playoff pecking order. 

While Urban Meyer's squad takes the weekend off – unable to improve its resume but also boasting the most impressive one out there – it feels like Ohio State is 99% safe although any lingering smidge of doubt can be removed if Clemson or Washington or (I guess) Penn State lose in their respective conference title tilts. 

Though Ohio State's regular season slate is complete, the 11W roundtable marches on with Tim, Kevin and Vico. 

What does this three-piece machine think about the win over Michigan, the recently announced B1G awards and the upcoming CFP rankings? Scroll on down for the dealio from this power trio. 

The B1G publicly reprimanded Jim Harbaugh on Monday for acting like a petulant child during and after what he thought was his team getting the shaft from the zebras. Since then we've seen enough evidence to know the 4th and 1 spot was pretty much perfect and he didn't even address the offsides call that prompted him to discard all his valuables along the sideline. If anything, the only beef I saw was with the lack of a PI call when Grant Perry appeared to be touched early by an OSU defender.Put on your Objective hat and offer a hot take on the officiating last Saturday. Good? Bad? The usual? Also, if you don't think the officiating was most responsible for Michigan's loss, what would say was the biggest factor in getting Ohio State to the winner's circle? 

Vico: General rule for college football fans: unless you're talking mafia fixes, or the 2002 NBA Western Conference Finals, referees do not "bias" games. They don't push results one way or the other. The same holds here. They do, however, make games horribly inconsistent and hard to watch. If that bothers you, start asking the Big Ten for full-time officials. Right now, there's little incentive for a college football official to do a part-time job well. You get what you pay for.

Tim: I thought the officiating was OK, but Ohio State certainly seemed like it got the "breaks" if you will. I don't think any of the calls Harbaugh complained about postgame were incorrect, either. There were a couple of missed PI calls on Ohio State, I thought, but that happens in football and it certainly didn't cost anybody a game. 

Michigan didn't lose because of the refs. It lost because it dominated the game for three quarters and then completely fell apart in the fourth quarter and overtime. Five yards in the fourth quarter? That's not going to get it done.

Kevin: The officiating was not great, but it was not great for both sides. There was a pretty horrendous no call on Chris Worley on third down during Michigan's late-second quarter touchdown drive. He pretty much got tackled, and if he isn't held it's absolutely going to be a drive-ending sack and Ohio State would have likely gone into halftime with a 7-3 lead.

My #hottake is every complaint about an official is dumb because your opponent always has a complaint us well. There has never in the history of sportsball been a game lost because of one officiating blunder.

So what lost the game for Michigan? Well, throwing two interceptions inside your own 20 doesn’t help. Neither does fumbling at the opponent’s two yard-line. Neither does not picking up a single fourth down in the fourth quarter. Michigan lost the game for Michigan.

If you were going to add an entry to urban dictionary on the term "Michigan man", what would that look like?

Kevin: Deflecting blame to everyone but yourself, blaming a third party instead of your own incompetence… Basically, whatever you saw from the post-game presser from Jim Harbaugh, that would be it.

Vico: Male whose subjective sense of self-worth and accomplishment far exceed what he is equipped to do with his General Studies major bestowed upon him by a world-class educational institution.

*The Michigan Man seemed kind of pretentious for someone working as a cashier at Gamestop.*

Tim: It's literally Jim Harbaugh. 

Moving away from our friends in Ann Arbor, Curtis Samuel has had a hell of a season despite constant discussion about his lack of touches. Through five years of the Urban Meyer era, who is the most valuable H-back to play in Columbus and why? Who is second?

Tim: Curtis Samuel is no doubt the best H that Urban has had in Columbus. He's everything the position is designed for. As far as No. 2? I'll go with Jalin Marshall during the 2014 season. He didn't run the ball like Samuel did this year, but he was pretty effective all year long out of the slot.

Kevin: Uh. Curtis Samuel. It’s him. He’s first place, and  he’s second place. He’s arguably the best offensive player Urban Meyer has ever coached.

So third place, I’ll go dark horse here and go with Philly Brown. He may not have been a true hybrid-back like Samuel, but he was the last true slot receiver Ohio State has had. He brought a lot to the passing game that really hasn’t been there since his departure. I’m hoping Tyjon Lindsey will bring that back in the near future.

Vico: We don't have a lot of players to discuss here, so it's going to be Curtis Samuel. Samuel doesn't always get the touches. The offense doesn't always click. Samuel has still been the most dependable and sure player Meyer had at the position. His stats this season rival the kind of explosiveness Percy Harvin had in 2008, and that was in a time in which Meyer's version of the spread was kind of simplistic and before defenses knew how to handle it.

No. 2 would be Jalin Marshall, who had an important 2014 season for the national champion Buckeyes.

Ohio State's defense is loaded with guys who have made major contributions this year. Who is the team' defensive MVP through 12 games and why?

Vico: I think the secondary made the defense for the first time since Fred Pagac's defenses in the mid-1990s. Malik Hooker had a kind of break-out season Ohio State fans had not seen before this season and gets my nod for team's defensive MVP. Bonus vote: Greg Schiano. I know he's not a player but shut up. I love that hire every bit today as I loved it when it was first announced. I'm praying he stays another year in Columbus.

Tim: Malik Hooker for me. He makes some mistakes and he's far from perfect — he misses quite a few tackles most noticeably — but the big plays he makes more than make up for that. Hooker came out of nowhere this season and he's been spectacular for the Buckeyes.

Kevin: Malik Hooker. The dude has three pick-sixes through 12 games, and it really should be four if one weren’t called back because of a chop block. On top of that, he’s a beast in run support and is a tackle-for-a-loss machine. He just flies around the field.

Second place, even though you didn’t ask, I would go with Jerome Baker. He’s been everywhere for the Buckeyes as well. It’s hard to believe he almost didn’t start.

In a nod to some of the beat writers who during interview sessions make statements instead of asking questions, talk a little bit about your thoughts on the offensive B1G awards announced earlier this week. Any surprises, Buckeye or otherwise that stick out? 

Kevin: Curtis Samuel should have been the offensive player of the year, especially if Peppers was the defensive player of the year. Voting for versatility for one award and not the other is hypocritical.

Pat Elflein also could have won it, I would not have objected to that and nobody else should have either. Nothing else really surprised me, though.

Vico: I was underwhelmed by almost all of them, which seems an odd thing to say. Austin Carr was a no-brainer, as was Mike Weber as freshman of the year. Every other pick was perfectly justifiable and yet indicative of the lack of offensive star power in the Big Ten this year. Put another way, every pick seems fine but almost none elicited a reaction of "oh yeah, he stood out this year."

I guess my only quibble was I would have gone with Mike Gesicki as tight end of the year.

Tim: I think the offensive awards were pretty fair. I think there was an argument for Curtis Samuel to be Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year, but I don't have an issue with Saquon Barkley winning it.

In a second nod to that same crew, give me your thoughts on the defensive Big Ten awards this year. Did the coaches and media get the POY selection right? Were the Buckeyes represented appropriately? 

Tim: Jabrill Peppers probably shouldn't have won Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year as I think that honor should have gone to Hooker, Wisconsin's T.J. Watt or Michigan's true best defender, Jourdan Lewis. 

As far as Ohio State goes, I was a little surprised Gareon Conley didn't earn any first-team accolades and I was even more stunned the media didn't vote him a first- or second-team defensive back.

Kevin: First off, Jabrill Peppers was not the defensive player of the year. Every other award he won is fine (save maybe linebacker of the year), but he wasn’t defensive player of the year. I’d personally give it to Jourdan Lewis, but Malik Hooker and T.J. Watt were also more deserving.

The Buckeye that surprised me the most was Tyquan Lewis, not because he didn’t deserve it, but because he flies so far under the radar of a star-studded team I didn’t believe media and coaches would reward him like that.

Vico: Jabrill Peppers is a testament to the idea that perception beats reality and a well-oiled hype machine goes further than an individual player himself. I wouldn't have contested Jourdan Lewis as defensive player of the year, and yet it went to Peppers. Peppers isn't the best defensive player on his team. He's also not the best linebacker in the conference. Tegray Scales had 116 tackles (granted, Indiana's defense works overtime) and 20.5 TFLs (led the league). So, yeah. Perception beats reality.

To be fair, Tyquan Lewis as defensive lineman of the year was kind of surprising. I thought that'd go to Taco Charlton, Ifeadi Odenigbo, or T.J. Watt. Watt seemed liked a particularly trendy pick too. Lewis had a fine season, but I'm not sure it was "defensive lineman of the year"-level.

In the latest round of playoffs rankings Ohio State clocked in at No. 2. Is it safe to say they're in the CFP or do they need one of Penn state, Clemson, Washington to lose their conference championship game? Why or why not? Further, will any of those three teams lose in their respective conference championship game?

Vico: I *think* they're in the playoff. I don't know for sure and I've made my peace with it either way. Ohio State is probably best served by a Wisconsin win on Saturday night even if I think Penn State probably prevails. A Penn State rout of Wisconsin may have the playoff committee rethinking Ohio State as Big Ten representative. i'm not sure it's that much of a blowout.

Part of me is kind of hoping, for macabre curiosity, that Penn State routs Wisconsin and sneaks into the playoff as the Big Ten representative over Ohio State. Roll with me before you flame me in the comments. It would just mean Penn State sneaks in as playoff No. 4, gets Alabama in a bowl game, and loses by 70. It would be the second-straight year Alabama desecrated the third-best Big Ten team in the playoff.

Expect Clemson and Washington to win their respective games.

Tim: I think Ohio State is probably in either way, but I still maintain the Buckeyes don't want to be sitting there Sunday if Penn State, Washington and Clemson all win. There will be a legitimate conversation should those three teams win conference titles and if Ohio State gets left out, truth be told, I wouldn't be surprised. 

Still, I don't think that happens.

Kevin: I think it’s safe to say Ohio State is in, but I would be pretty salty about that if I were a Penn State fan. The tin foil hats will come out in full storm if the Buckeyes get the nod over the Nittany Lions, and they have more than a nothing argument.

BAMA GETTING DROPPED! Kidding. I think Washington will lose to Colorado. I think that’s a legitimately good football team. Clemson could also lose though, because I don’t think they’re that great, but their opponent also is not great so who knows.

Playoffs or not, Ohio State figures the play a pretty tough bowl opponent which could expose a positional unit or two similar to how the offensive line had issues against Penn State and Michigan. What positional unit gives you the most heartburn at this point in the season and why?

Kevin: The receivers. Good lord, the receivers. They’ve been a problem all year, and it’s not as simple as “they’re not getting open;” they’ve struggled with route running, hand technique, running off defenders, running through their routes, physically catching the football and basically everything that isn’t blocking. They’re fine at blocking.

Vico: The wide receivers are just so mediocre it hurts. No one player stood out this year and the position as a whole never coalesced into something great. They're not even that good blocking down the field in the run game. This is disconcerting given how many four-stars are in that stable.

Tim: Think it's the offensive line. They've struggled in pass protection all year long against top competition and if the Buckeyes run into Alabama or Clemson's defensive line in a playoff game, that might be a long night.

Finally, despite beating Michigan with a big 4th quarter and overtime following a not-so-great quarters 1-3, J.T. Barrett seems as polarizing as ever. Where do you stand on Barrett as a quarterback and his place in school history? If you had one game to win which former OSU quarterbacks would you take under center before getting to Barrett in your pecking order? 

Tim: J.T. Barrett is one of the best quarterbacks Ohio State has ever had. The dude wins football games and the criticism for someone who has lost T H R E E games as the starter in his career is pretty baffling. Is he perfect? Absolutely not. But he's a great college quarterback.

I'd still take Troy Smith over Barrett, though, and that's no disrespect to Barrett. I'm not really old enough to comment on some of the ones before Smith.

Kevin: J.T. Barrett does everything you need him to do to win the game. Do I think he’s physically and technically the best quarterback ever? No, not even close. But to me, wins count a heck of a lot more than a pretty deep ball. And he wins. If I had to win a game, I’m going with Barrett. That’s what he does –  he wins games, somehow, however he needs to. He wins games.

Vico: Here's the thing about Ohio State quarterbacks over the program's history: they're not that good. Seriously, look at the quarterback record books and you'll see Bobby Hoying and Art Schlichter jockeying for the top position in a lot of stats. Joe Germaine is in the vicinity as well. You'll even see Greg Frey hovering near the top of those statistics. No one has ever confused Ohio State as a quarterback school.

Fans should embrace J.T. Barrett especially as he hopes to take Art Schlichter off the top of a lot of these statistics (and, thus, gives us fans less reason to have to talk about him). He might have the best career any Ohio State quarterback ever had even if he doesn't get a Heisman for it.

With that in mind, I'd probably take Troy Smith first in my Ohio State quarterback draft. Smith did not have the best quarterbacking career, nor was 2006 necessarily the best season an Ohio State quarterback ever had, but he may have been the best quarterback Ohio State had when it was time to put on pads and play.