Tuesday Skull Session

By D.J. Byrnes on September 16, 2014 at 6:00 am
*voice of JoePa's corpse* COME TO THE DUBGATTTE
[Dubgate V]
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Words, in July, I didn't think I would ever have to type: I'm thankful for Ohio State's extra week to prepare for Cincinnati. Boy, that ol' Indianan named 'Gunner' sure looked impressive last week against Toledo. 

And alas, here we are, wallowing in the decadence of the Big Ten. Ohio State lost at home to a Virginia Tech team that lost at home to Eastern Carolina. How good is Ohio State right now? It's impossible to tell.

At times Ohio State looks like they could sleep anybody in the country. Other times, they're painfully mediocre. But there's never been a doubt the potential is there.

Despite replacing four offensive line starters, two offensive pistons, and losing their two most-talented defenders... Ohio State isn't a team that feels far away, and that's a testament to how far Urban Meyer has brought the program since 2011.

Regardless, Cincinnati, the most uppity of the deluded usurpers within our borders, at Ohio State has been elevated to #banger status. The Buckeyes may not be among the nation's elite at the moment, but I'll be damned if the likes of Cincinnati are defeating almost a century-old hex on that night. 

May Warren G. Harding (and Mike Thomas and Dubgate V) Save Us All.

QUESTIONS LOOM FOR BUCKEYES. The 2014 Buckeyes can still be great. Urban Meyer has always said he's wanted an angry team, and maybe it took the goof against Virginia Tech to bring about that anger. (After all, Urban Meyer's best team lost to Ole Miss at home.) 

Yet questions will remain, likely until Ohio State travels to Happy Valley.

From Ben Axelrod of Bleacher Report on Ohio State's looming questions:

"On purpose, and early in the first half I wanted to throw a lot. I wanted to force [Barrett] to make plays—and the receivers," Meyer said. "You can tell we're trying to get guys in open space to see what they can do because you've got Jalin Marshall, who's a very talented guy, Dontre Wilson—I could go down the list. But we're still trying to get our hands on exactly who's going to touch that ball."

Here's Axelrod giving a peak into  the evolution of the offense:

Gone were designed quarterback runs for J.T. Barrett, replaced with a more even attack that saw the freshman signal-caller attempt 30 passes and throw for 312 yards and six touchdowns in little more than a half of action. When the Golden Flashes came out in the 46 Bear defense that Virginia Tech stifled Ohio State with, the Buckeyes were unfazed, dinking and dunking their way to a five-play, 58-yard touchdown drive to start the game.

Swing passes to the running backs and a revitalization of the H-back position both appeared to take Kent State out of its copycat approach after the second series of the game—a nine-play, 65-yard Ohio State touchdown drive that ended with a touchdown catch by running back Rod Smith.

Urban Meyer has always been about getting his athletes in space, but last year his best athletes were in his backfield. They didn't have to test the perimeter as much, and Urban and Herman drifted from their pre-stated goal of making the defense defend every yard on the field.

So yeah, I expect more of the short passing game. (Somebody tell Mike Thomas it's to pack a hearty lunch 'cause it's going to be a long day at the office.)

And maybe I'm being That Guy, but I thought it was interesting how Meyer named Jalin Marshall before Dontre Wilson. :::looking eyes emoji:::

SECONDARY TIGHTENING UP? Ohio State runs three deep at safety, and Erick Smith should soon be baptized into the rotation. (Always good when a Glenville product slides off the assembly line.) Doran Grant and Eli Apple don't slouch. 

Competition aside, I've liked what I've seen from Chris Ash's reclamation project. My eyes have not deceived me.

From Bruce Feldman of FoxSports.com:

This is a good sign for new Ohio State Co-DC Chris Ash. Last season, OSU ranked 110th in pass defense and gave up 41 pass plays of 20 yards or longer. Through three games, the Buckeyes are the only team in college football that has yet to surrender a 20-yard pass play -- and that includes teams that have played fewer games.

I know the fans will always yearn for SHUTDOWN DEFENSE, but Ohio State doesn't need a shutdown defense to win a title. They just need a defense that doesn't get gored like a drunken matador on a regular basis. 

I GUESS THIS IS WHY THEY PLAY THE GAME, because the secondary won't have too many excuses as Gunnier Kiel — who is somehow only a redshirt sophomore yet looks like a middle-aged, weed-smoking Joe Bauserman — rolls into town in two weeks.

But like I said, Ohio State won't need their defense to pitch a shutout.

THE TRIALS OF GREG ODEN. The last time I saw Greg Oden was in 2012 at Little Bar during Kenny G's symphony against Purdue. As you might imagine, it wasn't long before the #BuckeyeNation hive descended upon him. And there he stood as Kenny Guiton resurrected Ohio State, chatting with people for whom he probably didn't care about and and taking pictures with the enthusiasm of a lion's corpse posing with its poachers.

That's how I envision Greg in this answer to Mark Titus in May 2014:

I asked him straight-up: “If this is the final chapter of the Greg Oden story — if you’re destined to be a benchwarmer for the rest of your career — are you OK with that? Will you be satisfied with your legacy?”

“I’m over all of that,” Greg told me. “I know I’m one of the biggest busts in NBA history and I know that it’ll only get worse as Kevin Durant continues doing big things … It’s frustrating that my body can’t do what my mind wants it to do sometimes. But worrying or complaining about it isn’t going to fix anything … I wish the circumstances would let me play more, but I certainly don’t regret coming back, and I don’t regret signing with the Heat.”

Heartbreaking, right? Welp.

From ESPN's Michael Wallace on Oden's August arrest (emphasis mine):

Upon returning to his mother's suburban Indianapolis home from a nightclub with two women who were in town to visit him, according to police, Oden grew violent during an argument with a woman he dated on and off for three years. Oden's mother, Zoe, told police she was awakened by a dispute that might have involved accusations of the ex-girlfriend's infidelity. Arrest records indicate Oden overpowered his mother and a second person, described as the victim's best friend, to attack his ex-girlfriend near a family room sofa.

Oden struck the victim at least three times in the face, causing a laceration across her forehead, a swollen eye and a nasal fracture, according to court documents. A friend of the ex-girlfriend told police Oden stopped punching her only after he saw blood splattering onto the sofa.

"Stop! Stop! Get off her!" witnesses shouted at Oden, according to police records.

So that's where we're at with Greg Oden. 

Thus far, it sounds like Greg is going the redemption route:

"Remorseful does not begin to describe how he feels," Conley Sr. told ESPN.com Monday. "People will write and say what they please, and I know Greg is a story, but all of that does not matter to him or me at this point. He is working to better himself for him -- not for the NBA, the press or anyone else. For that reason, I wish not to go into what Greg has and will do."

Make no mistake, remorseful or not, Greg Oden deserves some jail time for this incident. He's rich, though, and Hamilton Indiana County prosecutors are feeling a bit lenient these days, so who knows if Oden will ever pay his true debts to society.

Greg Oden will be okay in life — after all, this isn't an article about the trials of his victim — but I've renounced him. "Guilty until proven innocent," and whatever, but I've never been confused with a judge.

And despite the endless parade of wife-beating horribles churned out by sports teams, it's still crazy to me this is such a hard lesson for people living in 2014.

I'M NOW PRO-RUTGERS. I've bashed Rutgers-in-the-Big-Ten even before they were invited; that's how dedicated I've been in my hating of Rutgers.

But because I'm a boring man riding a one-way freight train into Hell (aka middle-ages), I sat around and watched the Penn State/Rutgers game on a Saturday night. Their quarterback, naturally named Gary Nova, has ridiculous swagger. He's now one of "my guys."

Then I stumbled upon this grizzled soldier of fortune, whom I'd buy a beer:

But this — no, not these morons — from their fans slayed me for whatever reason. Middle-Class Hating James Franklin is a meme I can get behind:

I thought Rutgers was bad, but it turns out: Rutgers is actually good. Touche, Scarlet Knights. You're already better cooler than Purdue.

THOSE WMDs. Ominous... The guy with the camera captures how I look reading some Skull Session comments... Greatest sporting event I've attended: Reigning world champ Giants housed by the Browns on MNF... PFTCommenter: America's leading intellectual... From 1961: The Hows and Whys of Prison Escapes... Adieu, VikingsMessageBoard.com... Lol, Iowa State.

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