XICHIGAN WEEK
Ohio State blows out Indiana, 38-15. Now, it's time to do the same to That Team Up North.
I have no idea why I bother with Sons of Anarchy any more other than, "I'VE COME SO FAR." I guess I now know what it's like to be trapped in a dead marriage.
BILLY PRICE GROWING INTO THE GUARD ROLE. Billy Price is the strongest Buckeye on the field, but because football is more than strength, he's had his struggles this year filling in as a starting offensive guard.
The big fella is continuing his grind, though. From Bill Rabinowitz of The Columbus Dispatch:
His teammates believe it’s merely a matter of time before Price becomes a dominating player.
“A great talent,” left guard Pat Elflein said. “He just doesn’t have a lot of experience. He’s going to be a great player.”
As Rabinowitz states, Price played defensive tackle in high school. Upon arriving at Ohio State, he switched to offensive line and redshirted. He played center in the spring, then switched to right guard, before opening as the starting left guard. But Price is still optimistic about his development:
“It’s a roller coaster,” Price said. “College football is not a (straight) plane (upward) thing. To go from defense to offense and then be blessed to be starting right now, it’s a constant up and down. Each day you have to continue to improve and start stacking things up.”
It will be interesting to see how Price develops, as he's obviously got the physical tools. Ohio State is definitely going to need him to continue improving, however, if the Buckeyes plan on salvaging the season.
J.T. Barrett won't be able to hide poor offensive line play with his legs, after all.
UC TO BRING CONTINGENT OF 4,000. Cincinnati plays Miami (OH) this week, but the Bearcats' AD announced yesterday all 4,000 of Cincinnati's allotted tickets have been sold out.
Surprised there are that many 'Cats fans willing to make the trip, but I guess it's worth it for the slim chance you watch Ohio State lose to an Ohio team for the first time since the 1920s.
And shoutout to all the UC students whose closets contain more Ohio State than UC gear that will be cheering for the Bearcats on next Saturday. You can just stay on that side.
BEHIND THE FAINTING GOAT FAKE PUNT. You've likely seen the Arkansas State player play dead during a fake punt attempt (and promptly get leveled upon his sudden resurrection after the play goes awry). It's one of the more comical plays of the young 2014 season.
But here's Arkansas State's coach explaining the gambit to Fox Sports:
“We were just having a little bit of fun to be honest with you,” Anderson told For The Win. “When you scare a goat, it faints. It was a joke.”
Anderson said the player, Booker Mays, practiced playing dead on the play all week and "did his part to a T." In the formation, Mays was an ineligible receiver and therefore couldn't run a route and catch a pass, so there wasn't much he could do on the play except for act like a decoy and try to confuse the defense.
“It really wasn’t going to be a critical part of the play, successful or not,” Anderson told FTW. “It was just a distraction and mainly to have a good time with the kids. They’ve been through five head coaches in five years. Any chance we can laugh with them and have a good time with them I think will help us grow as a team."
Turning the nation laughing at your team into a team-building exercise... well played, coach.
JAMEIS WINSTON STILL AN IDIOT. Jameis Winston needs an education, which is ironic, because he's definitely not getting one at Florida State.
From Samer Kalaf of Deadspin (redaction mine):
Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston stood on a table and yelled "f--- her right in the p----" on campus today, according to a bunch of students who saw him. For the unaware, "F--- her right in the p----" was a fake video that turned into a meme, with a few people shouting it on live news broadcasts. It is now dead, because Jameis Winston climbed onto a table and yelled it. College jokes!
I get that I too was a moron at Jameis' age (and that I'm still a moron), but seriously, Jameis Winston is pretty much a walking indictment against America's education system.
At this point, I could read a story about Jameis Winston saving a herd of kittens from a burning building and I would eye him with suspicion. Hopefully Todd Gurley keeps bulldozing the SEC, because Jameis Winston matching Archie Griffin's record would be an abomination.
LOL AT PENN STATE. It's baffling to see anybody younger than me (27) worship Joe Paterno because Paterno was nothing but a decrepit and mediocre football coach for the entirety of their adult life.
Alas, these people are planning a "Joe Out":
But on Saturday, as Penn State meets the University of Massachusetts for the second home game of the season, alumni and fans like Stannell and others want to see Paterno everywhere they turn.
"We want to make an impact, as Joe would say," Stannell said.
How fans do it is up to them, she said. A cardboard figure of the longtime coach, a Joe mask, a JVP hat. For many on social media, there are plans for things with the number 409, the total wins for Paterno's coaching career before 111 victories were taken away by the NCAA as part of Penn State's post-Sandusky penalties.
Why? Why do sports make people so stupid?
THOSE WMDs. George Orwell's Guide to Writing Well... Inside the world of longsword fighting... Browns fans are true philosopher-kings... Chapter 1 of Elmore Leonard's Unknown Man No. 89... Great #take from Towson's R.C. Monk... 12 vintage anatomical illustrations of animals... Top 10 OSU plays of the 2000s... Pace, Springs vying for Pro Football Hall of Fame.
