The cheerleaders and team rush the field to start the 2010 season
Richard, Cath, Brittany and I went to the Ohio State-Marshall game tonight. We sat in Section 28A, Row 32 of a packed Horseshoe on a hot and muggy evening and watched as the Buckeyes rolled, 45-7. It was a convincing win, and it was one of those games where there were many more positives than negatives — but still some kinks to work on.
Terrelle Pryor threw the ball a lot and threw the ball well. Although there were a few plays where he seemed locked in on one receiver, for the most part he appeared to see the field and went through his check-offs when primary receivers were covered. His protection was excellent, he spread the ball around to lots of different receivers — including making liberal use of the tight end and his running backs — and threw some balls with great touch. The long touchdown pass to Dane Sanzenbacher was one of Pryor’s fine throws, but there were many others where he floated the ball over the hands of defenders.
TBDBITL welcomes Marshall to the 'Shoe
The running game does not seem to be as ready for prime time as the passing game. Brandon Saine broke some nice long runs, as did some of the other backs, but the Buckeyes weren’t very consistent. At the same time, the run play-calling seemed pretty vanilla and was largely between the tackles. Ohio State may have been saving some of the flourishes for the Miami game, which is up next.
On defense, the Buckeyes looked good, but not dominating. The front seven controlled the line of scrimmage early on, and when Marshall fell well behind they pretty much resorted to a spread passing offense to try to get back in the game. When that happened the defensive line got some pressure, but frankly not quite as much as I expected. Brian Rolle’s interception return for a touchdown was an excellent athletic play, and the Buckeyes made some big hits to force fumbles and drops. I got the sense that the Ohio State coaches also were holding back a bit on defense. Other than the Tyler Moeller sprint blitz, the Buckeyes didn’t appear to use any of their blitz packages.
Ohio State’s special teams, which typically are a strength, were the weakest link for the team in this game. Marshall had one long kickoff return, there was a blocked field goal and a partially blocked extra point, and the Thundering Herd returned a blocked field goal for their only score. Ohio State’s punting was average, and most of the kickoffs did not reach the end zone. The special teams coaches will have things to work on between now and next Saturday when the Hurricanes come to town.
Richard, Cath, and Brit tailgating
For all of that, it was fun to tailgate again (thanks, KW!), fun to see old friends, fun to don the Buckeye regalia once more, and fun to sit in the Horseshoe, eat a hot dog, and watch the Buckeyes play. The Best Damn Band In The Land performed up to their customary level, and the alumni band made its appearance and assisted in the now traditional performance of a quadruple Script Ohio.
The college football season is here, and it is off to a good start!
Friend and faithful blog reader Mike N. went to the Windy Cities last night and sent along this classic picture of The Best Damn Band In The Land performing a double Script Ohio at last night’s game. It’s always great to see TBDBITL do Script Ohio in Ohio Stadium; it’s even more of a treat to see the Band perform their signature piece on the road.
Webner House 