Duke and Ohio State entered Wednesday night with unblemished records. The Blue Devils traveled to Tallahassee to face the11-5 Seminoles, while the Bucks played at Crisler Arena against 11-5 Michigan. Only one unbeaten would remain…
Florida State took down Duke in Tallahassee for the second time in five years to snap the Devils’ 25 game winning streak. The top ranked Blue Devils were defeated 66-61 at Donald Tucker Center on Wednesday for the first time this season. It was the national champ’s first setback since March 2010. FSU’s senior guard, Derwin Kitchen collected 22 points, including 17 in the second half, to carry the Seminoles to their 12th win. Chris Singleton added 18 points in the victory while Kyle Singler led Duke with 20. Duke is sure to be replaced at the top despite a strong comeback in the second half last night. The Devils struggled in the first half, missing ten 3-point attempts as the Seminoles took a 28-24 halftime lead. FSU surged to an eleven point advantage early in the second half but the Devils made it a tight game in the final minutes. Duke erased FSU’s 40-29 cushion and went on to tie the game at 42-42 with a 13-2. Singleton sunk two free throws with 33 seconds left to give the ‘Noles a five point edge. Nolan Smith’s trey cut Duke’s deficit to two with less than thirty ticks remaining but a pair of free throws and a bucket sealed the deal for the home team. Smith finished with 19 points for the number one Devils.
The Wolverines hosted rival OSU Wednesday on the day their football team announced the hiring of SDSU’s Brady Hoke. Michigan rallied from a 53-41 deficit but the Buckeyes held on to win the contest 68-64 to remain undefeated this season. Ohio State used a 12-0 second half run to put some distance between the one point halftime score. William Buford led the Bucks with 19 points and nine rebounds. David Lighty scored 12 points for the number two Buckeyes, who could be sitting pretty on the top of the college basketball world when the rankings come out this weekend. Lighty hit five free throws in the final five minutes of the game as OSU won for the 17th time this season. Darius Morgan had 18 points to carry the Wolverines, who shot over 50% from the field in a strong effort. Evan Smotrycz tied the game at 41with a shot from the arc shortly after halftime. Ohio State followed with a 12-0 run and used a barrage of defense and free throws to cling to their lead. Michigan held the Bucks without a field goal in the game’s final eight minutes. Ohio State hit 17-of-25 from the charity stripe. The Wolverines did a tremendous job containing fab freshman, Jared Sullinger. The 6’9” Sullinger has scored in double figures all but twice this season. Michigan limited him to just 12 and forced him to turn the ball over six times. Ohio State is off to the best start since 1990. That team began the season 17-0 too. The next game for the Bucks comes Saturday at Penn State. OSU looks to add to their ten game road winning streak.
Parting Points: Song for Thursday- “Hesitate” by Stone Sour
I don’t care what the Jets say off the field this week. If they don’t harass Tom Brady on Sunday, their weekly gabs really don’t matter.
Showing posts with label OSU. Show all posts
Showing posts with label OSU. Show all posts
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Rave Rookie Review
A classic college clash consumed a wounded Wisconsin team as the Buckeyes bashed their Big Ten opponent. The nation’s top rookie recruit raced to the endzone with a little over one minute in the fourth quarter to score the game winning touchdown. Terrelle Pryor kept his poise and showed progress in the 20-17 win at Camp Randall, Wisconsin. It was one of the most exciting fourth quarter drives in recent memory for me. The Badgers had one last opportunity to ruin the rookie’s moment but an Allan Evridge pass was intercepted by OSU’s Malcom Jenkins. I said it before and I still hold that Jenkins is going to star in the NFL one day. It was Evridge’s second turnover of the night.
The Buckeyes are now back in the national title picture and reign supreme in the conference. Penn State is rated sixth in the country and pulverized the Purdue Boilermakers yesterday. In two weeks time, the Nittany Lions face the Buckeyes for what could be the Big Ten title. Terrelle Pryor’s freshman finish was phenomenal and Chris “Beanie” Wells looked in top form for the second straight week. Head coach, Jim Tressel, unquestionably was correct in his replacement of senior quarterback, Todd Boekman. Pryor proved last night a 19 year old can lead a team to triumph on the road, under the lights against a heavy defensive unit. Has Pryor even declared his major yet? This Wisconsin team is not the same one of years’ past, and I think they were traumatized with their deflating loss at Michigan a week ago. Still, winning in Wisconsin is not an easy task. The Buckeyes were ranked 14th coming into the game. The 18th ranked Badgers were riding a 16 game home winning streak. It was snapped by the stringent OSU defense.
Dan Herron, backup tailback, converted a third down the first half and overall the Buckeyes were 50% on third down conversions. Pryor’s conversion of a third down with less than two minutes to go was game defining and kept the Buckeyes drive going. A come-from-behind win might just be the type that drives the team the rest of the season.
After Wisconsin scored the go ahead points late in the second quarter, I had a feeling perhaps the Buckeyes wouldn’t bounce back. The Philip Welch field goal gave the Badgers a three point lead heading into the locker room. I was proud to see the team do exactly what they had to do in the third quarter. Ryan Pretorius’ 21 yard field goal evened the score again. The Wisconsin defense contained Pryor and Wells prior to the second half but Beanie rushed for 168 of OSU’s total 188 yards on the ground.
There are still some wary weaknesses I see in this Buckeye team, notably on offense. I’d like to see Tressel allow Pryor to spread the ball more on the turf. Even though he is a gifted scrambling quarterback, the Buckeyes are not utilizing the talent of their wideouts. Terrelle was sacked four times and threw the ball away before getting hit hard on several attempts. There is still much he needs to learn but you can see why Pryor was the number one high school player last year. His speed and versatility make him a hard takedown. Still, if he can control his passes and put himself in position to throw threadlike touchdowns to top receivers. The Pryor-Wells combination is fine, but why not mix in more deep passes too.
The penalty yardage needs to go down for the Buckeyes as well. OSU had 30 penalty yards to Wisconsin’s 19. The Badgers converted more first downs and passed for more total yardage also. Pryor’s longest pass was a 27 yard one to WR Brian Hartline. Dane Sanzenbacher (I love saying that) had two receptions for 40 yards and I think can make a bigger impact. Sanzenbacher caught a 17 yard pass from Pryor on Ohio State’s first drive. Then, Terrelle started throwing short passes to his teammates after a Langford interception. Pryor shouldn’t be afraid to start throwing downfield. The short Herron catches and Posey receptions were nice, but Brian Robiskie and Ray Small being open in the third quarter were delightful to see. The completion to Small with 3:33 left on the final drive was a key and critical play for the Buckeyes.
Just to give some kudos to the Badgers: That running back John Clay was impressive. I think he could be used along with P.J. Hill as a duel threat on the ground.
Parting points: Congrats to Joe Torre and the L.A. Dodgers on their sweep of the Cubs.
From National Lampoon’s European Vacation:
The Griswolds are traveling in Germany…
Clark Griswold: “There it is kids, my motherland.”
Rusty Griswold: “Dad, Grandma’s from Chicago.”
Clark Griswold: “Shut up, Russ.”
The Buckeyes are now back in the national title picture and reign supreme in the conference. Penn State is rated sixth in the country and pulverized the Purdue Boilermakers yesterday. In two weeks time, the Nittany Lions face the Buckeyes for what could be the Big Ten title. Terrelle Pryor’s freshman finish was phenomenal and Chris “Beanie” Wells looked in top form for the second straight week. Head coach, Jim Tressel, unquestionably was correct in his replacement of senior quarterback, Todd Boekman. Pryor proved last night a 19 year old can lead a team to triumph on the road, under the lights against a heavy defensive unit. Has Pryor even declared his major yet? This Wisconsin team is not the same one of years’ past, and I think they were traumatized with their deflating loss at Michigan a week ago. Still, winning in Wisconsin is not an easy task. The Buckeyes were ranked 14th coming into the game. The 18th ranked Badgers were riding a 16 game home winning streak. It was snapped by the stringent OSU defense.
Dan Herron, backup tailback, converted a third down the first half and overall the Buckeyes were 50% on third down conversions. Pryor’s conversion of a third down with less than two minutes to go was game defining and kept the Buckeyes drive going. A come-from-behind win might just be the type that drives the team the rest of the season.
After Wisconsin scored the go ahead points late in the second quarter, I had a feeling perhaps the Buckeyes wouldn’t bounce back. The Philip Welch field goal gave the Badgers a three point lead heading into the locker room. I was proud to see the team do exactly what they had to do in the third quarter. Ryan Pretorius’ 21 yard field goal evened the score again. The Wisconsin defense contained Pryor and Wells prior to the second half but Beanie rushed for 168 of OSU’s total 188 yards on the ground.
There are still some wary weaknesses I see in this Buckeye team, notably on offense. I’d like to see Tressel allow Pryor to spread the ball more on the turf. Even though he is a gifted scrambling quarterback, the Buckeyes are not utilizing the talent of their wideouts. Terrelle was sacked four times and threw the ball away before getting hit hard on several attempts. There is still much he needs to learn but you can see why Pryor was the number one high school player last year. His speed and versatility make him a hard takedown. Still, if he can control his passes and put himself in position to throw threadlike touchdowns to top receivers. The Pryor-Wells combination is fine, but why not mix in more deep passes too.
The penalty yardage needs to go down for the Buckeyes as well. OSU had 30 penalty yards to Wisconsin’s 19. The Badgers converted more first downs and passed for more total yardage also. Pryor’s longest pass was a 27 yard one to WR Brian Hartline. Dane Sanzenbacher (I love saying that) had two receptions for 40 yards and I think can make a bigger impact. Sanzenbacher caught a 17 yard pass from Pryor on Ohio State’s first drive. Then, Terrelle started throwing short passes to his teammates after a Langford interception. Pryor shouldn’t be afraid to start throwing downfield. The short Herron catches and Posey receptions were nice, but Brian Robiskie and Ray Small being open in the third quarter were delightful to see. The completion to Small with 3:33 left on the final drive was a key and critical play for the Buckeyes.
Just to give some kudos to the Badgers: That running back John Clay was impressive. I think he could be used along with P.J. Hill as a duel threat on the ground.
Parting points: Congrats to Joe Torre and the L.A. Dodgers on their sweep of the Cubs.
From National Lampoon’s European Vacation:
The Griswolds are traveling in Germany…
Clark Griswold: “There it is kids, my motherland.”
Rusty Griswold: “Dad, Grandma’s from Chicago.”
Clark Griswold: “Shut up, Russ.”
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Take Two
There will be a Big East football game played tonight between the Bulls of South Florida and Pittsburgh’s Panthers. USF quarterback, Matt Grothe, leads the conference with eight touchdown passes for one of college football’s most versatile offenses. The Bulls like to spread the ball and rely heavily on the pass. A grueling defense is one of the team’s finest features as well. Although the Bulls haven’t faced very competitive teams, their defense has limited opponents to few scoring opportunities.
The Pittsburgh Panthers have won three straight games, topped by last week’s smashing of Syracuse. (Well, they only won by ten points after a late great comeback.) Running back, LeSean McCoy was one of the nation’s best rushers in 2007. He’s yet to take off this season and will be tested against a tough South Florida team. However, the Bulls may be without a few of their key defensive stars due to injury. Leading tackle, George Selvie, was hurt in last week’s win over NC State. Dave Wannstedt’s Panther defense will need to control Grothe and company tonight. If the Pittsburgh defense can regulate the rush and keep the Bull offense off the field, this could be a close game. If USF dominates time of possession, the Panthers could be in for a long night. South Florida is the favorite, ranked number 10 in the country and expected to take the early Big East lead. As it stands today, Pittsburgh is number one in the Big East. Don’t underestimate this Panther team or count them out just yet.
Setting: Saturday, October 4, 2008
Camp Randall in Madison, Wisconsin at night
The setting says so much. One would think Badgers are nocturnal because the ones who play in Wisconsin thrive during night games. The team has won 21 of 22 night games in school history. They are expecting the 22nd win when Ohio State visits this Saturday evening. Both OSU and Wisconsin are ranked teams so I am looking forward to the game. Big Ten football is enticing enough, but when two defensively-minded teams converge, colossal entertainment ensues.
Last season Ohio State as the victor but that was without top Badger, P.J. Hill. The junior running back is a one man show. I think he will make an excellent NFL back if he can stay healthy. The Badgers are known for their strong defense and no one is better than defensive end, O’Brien Schofield. The OSU wide receiving core needs to find open routes. We all know Terrelle Pryor can run and now that Beanie Wells is back, I can’t wait to see them against a hard hitting Big Ten team. The Buckeyes are starting a freshmen at center in Michael Brewster. Brewster’s play during Saturday night could indicate what kind of ability he has. The pressure of playing on the road, at night during a nationally-televised game will be hard for this entire OSU team. But, Tressell will have them well-prepared.
The Badgers are coming off an ugly loss in Michigan. They only scored once during the second half. Quarterback, Allan Evridge, had trouble finding open men and playing in the Big House. I was surprised they looked so vulnerable against the Wolverines. The team also nearly lost to Fresno State, pulling out a three point win. Head coach, Bret Bielema, would probably like to forget that Michigan loss and start the winning against the Buckeyes. The Ohio State defensive line needs to pressure the run-oriented Badgers. Cameron Heyward can make an instant impact at tackle to slow the hungry Badger boys.
All in all, the game should be fun and intense. Personally, I prefer pulling for OSU but am holding out on a prediction.
Parting points: The Devils shut out the Islanders last night. I am convinced the Cubs are cursed after all. And, I actually think I would rather see Alan Houston than Stephon Marbury playing for the Knicks this year.
The Pittsburgh Panthers have won three straight games, topped by last week’s smashing of Syracuse. (Well, they only won by ten points after a late great comeback.) Running back, LeSean McCoy was one of the nation’s best rushers in 2007. He’s yet to take off this season and will be tested against a tough South Florida team. However, the Bulls may be without a few of their key defensive stars due to injury. Leading tackle, George Selvie, was hurt in last week’s win over NC State. Dave Wannstedt’s Panther defense will need to control Grothe and company tonight. If the Pittsburgh defense can regulate the rush and keep the Bull offense off the field, this could be a close game. If USF dominates time of possession, the Panthers could be in for a long night. South Florida is the favorite, ranked number 10 in the country and expected to take the early Big East lead. As it stands today, Pittsburgh is number one in the Big East. Don’t underestimate this Panther team or count them out just yet.
Setting: Saturday, October 4, 2008
Camp Randall in Madison, Wisconsin at night
The setting says so much. One would think Badgers are nocturnal because the ones who play in Wisconsin thrive during night games. The team has won 21 of 22 night games in school history. They are expecting the 22nd win when Ohio State visits this Saturday evening. Both OSU and Wisconsin are ranked teams so I am looking forward to the game. Big Ten football is enticing enough, but when two defensively-minded teams converge, colossal entertainment ensues.
Last season Ohio State as the victor but that was without top Badger, P.J. Hill. The junior running back is a one man show. I think he will make an excellent NFL back if he can stay healthy. The Badgers are known for their strong defense and no one is better than defensive end, O’Brien Schofield. The OSU wide receiving core needs to find open routes. We all know Terrelle Pryor can run and now that Beanie Wells is back, I can’t wait to see them against a hard hitting Big Ten team. The Buckeyes are starting a freshmen at center in Michael Brewster. Brewster’s play during Saturday night could indicate what kind of ability he has. The pressure of playing on the road, at night during a nationally-televised game will be hard for this entire OSU team. But, Tressell will have them well-prepared.
The Badgers are coming off an ugly loss in Michigan. They only scored once during the second half. Quarterback, Allan Evridge, had trouble finding open men and playing in the Big House. I was surprised they looked so vulnerable against the Wolverines. The team also nearly lost to Fresno State, pulling out a three point win. Head coach, Bret Bielema, would probably like to forget that Michigan loss and start the winning against the Buckeyes. The Ohio State defensive line needs to pressure the run-oriented Badgers. Cameron Heyward can make an instant impact at tackle to slow the hungry Badger boys.
All in all, the game should be fun and intense. Personally, I prefer pulling for OSU but am holding out on a prediction.
Parting points: The Devils shut out the Islanders last night. I am convinced the Cubs are cursed after all. And, I actually think I would rather see Alan Houston than Stephon Marbury playing for the Knicks this year.
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