Quote:
Originally Posted by dr325i
I'd say they were so damn fast for them that OSU didn't understand what the hell happened -- underdog (from SEC) was toying with them...
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No one 'toys' with anyone in a championship game. Everyone plays to win. In that game we saw something very rare happen. Tressel got out coached. The loss of Ginn was significant as that guy couldn't even fart without drawing the attention of the secondary, which freed up receivers like Gonzales all season long. At one point during the season gonzo had made 33 of 35 receptions for a first down... Stats like that don't' exist on a team without a receiver like Ginn.
When they called for the attempt at converting a 4th and 1 in their own territory in the first freaking half, you could tell they were panicking a little bit.
The Ohio state #1 Vs. Michigan #2 game last year, (while being one of the most surreal and impressive college football experiences I've ever had, maybe ever will have) exposed the Buckeyes Defense to the nation. So now that the everyone knew how to rack up large points offensively against the bucks, you just needed to marginalize the Bucks' defense and it's a done deal.
That game was won and lost on Florida's defensive line. Florida's defensive front put a lot of pressure on Troy Smith... and they rattled a quarterback who supposedly couldn't be gotten to. He was trying to force plays that he shouldn't have, because Florida was in the damn backfield the entire game. The bucks were playing desperation football about a full quarter before they needed to.
Don't get me wrong I love Tressell. He beats his rival and wins most of his bowl games... He currently has a higher winning percentage than Woody Hayes... if he brings home a few more championships he will be just as revered by the OSU faithful. But he has made 2 calls that I just didn't agree with. The aforementioned going for it on 4th and 1 in our own territory (from the coach who plays to punt, and stated the punt is the most important play in football) in the championship game, and when he Put Krenzel back in when they lost to Michigan 4 years ago after Krenzel had been hit so hard he wasn't sure if he even had legs or even where he was... while he was recovering from that McMullen lead the team to a score on the previous drive... When the Bucks got the ball back after stalling Michigan, Krenzel was put back in and led them to a 3 and out series. Granted he deserved the chance, but you could see who was in shape to lead the team on a comeback drive and who wasn't.
All of that aside. It's nice to be a Buckeye fan. This was touted as a rebuilding year, and we're making a run for the championship again... Florida, who was supposed to be re-establishing themselves as a team of prominence, isn't even being discussed at this point.
-BMW2006