Deja Vu For The Wolverines All Over Again And Again And Again—A Look At What's / Who's Coming To Ann Arbor This Fall

By HD Handshoe—BlockONation Founder

The Buckeyes will most certainly be steamrolling their way through Ann Arbor this November, led by preseason Heisman hopeful and favorite, RB Ezekiel Elliott, a slew of talented WRs, and whichever of the Big Three QBs gets the nod, or whichever is healthy by then. It's nice to have extra starters, not just backups!

Stephen Collier, Joe Burrow, and Torrance Gibson, be ready just in case young fellas!

Those of you reading this may be well aware that very often, I refer to the team up north as Ann Arbor Community College, or AACC for short instead, 1) because they call us Ohio and 2) they barely resemble a DI-level football program and they haven't won an outright national title since 1948, but I digress.

You are also aware that I keep track of how many days it's been since our last loss to AACC, which was during our 6 win, 7-loss, 2011 Tressell-less, Fickell-led season.

Enter Urban Meyer. Since 2001, the Buckeyes are 12-2 vs. AACC and Meyers' Buckeyes are 3-0. In spite of AACC hiring Jim Harbaugh, I have a hard time believing Urban and company won't rack up at least 2-3 more wins in The Game before they could actually be legitimately challenged by AACC.

Let's just say they have a lot of ground to make up to become a threat to the recent, lopsided, Buckeye dominance of the series.

It's entirely realistic that a lot of Buckeyes end their college football careers with four pairs of gold pants!

Get the gold pants mold ready again this year Bucks!

Much to your dismay, I'm sure.....see you in November Ann Arbor CC!

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Deja Vu: Not That You Needed Another Reason To Get Jacked Up About Buckeye Football

By HD Handshoe — BlockONation.com Founder

With just over 24 hours to go until the Urban Meyer Era officially begins at Ohio State, we have been graced with yet another High-Def Buckeye pump-up video, that is once again, in a word, BADASS!

Thank you to Kade Jetland for the heads-up!

Remember, to join in on Twitter for LIVE, in-game chatter during Buckeye games all season long by adding #BlockONation to your tweets.

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Not That You Needed Another Reason To Get Jacked Up About Buckeye Football, But Watch This Anyway!

By HD Handshoe — BlockONation.com Founder

This High-Def Buckeye pump-up video is, in a word, BADASS! Thank you to Kade Jetland for posting it!

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A Full-On Review of Ohio Stadium, aka The Mecca of Buckeye Football—Special Contribution From StadiumJourney.com

Thanks to Paul from StadiumJourney.com for allowing BlockONation to share this with our readers and fans on Facebook and Twitter.


On the banks of the Olentangy River in Columbus, Ohio, 200,000 people gather for six Saturdays every fall to come together as one to cheer on their beloved Buckeyes.

Whether the team is playing for a national title or only looking ahead to the big rivalry of the year, fans will brave the unpredictable Ohio weather to get loud for the Scarlet and Gray.

Ohio Stadium, home of the Ohio State Buckeyes football team, was constructed in just over a year and held its first official game on October 7, 1922, against crosstown Ohio Wesleyan University in front of a crowd of 25,000.

Very fittingly, later that season, the first-ever Michigan game held in Ohio Stadium drew an amazing crowd at the time of over 72,000 of the 90,000 available seats.

Since the opening, many renovations have been conducted to update and expand “The Shoe” which now comfortably seats 102,000, the fourth-largest college football stadium in the country.

In addition to Buckeye football, Ohio Stadium has also been home to the Columbus Crew, before they built their own stadium, and various concerts such as Pink Floyd, Elton John, Billy Joel, U2, and the Rolling Stones......

To read the full Ohio Stadium article and review from our friends at StadiumJourney.com, click here.

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Ohio State Spring Football 2011: 5 Questions And 5 Answers On What to Watch For

Ohio State's annual spring game -- one of the last to be played among FBS schools -- takes place this Saturday afternoon at 1:30 PM in Ohio Stadium, and can be seen on the Big Ten Network if you can't make it to the stadium. This annual spring scrimmage is taking on a new format -- offense vs. defense -- instead of a split-squad scrimmage as is the norm.

And for fans and the media that have been hungry from some spring practice updates that we haven't gotten much of, this is a good chance to get an early look at the team we will see during the 2011 season.

But what exactly should Buckeye fans be watching for?

How Much Will The Weather Affect Play?

For the third time in the past four springs, rain is in the forecast, along with a flash flood watch for the Columbus area. The amount of rain can certainly have an effect on how Jim Tressel wants his offense to operate, as they may run the football more than throw it.

And in a situation where the battle for the starting job at QB, at least temporary, is the biggest question mark around the Buckeyes, this is the worst type of weather to have.

Wet weather affects the grip of the ball from everyone to the center to the QB throwing it, and the receivers that need to catch it.

It might not be a downpour, but consistent rainfall would certainly have an impact on the playcalling of the offensive coaches in the game.

Which Running Back(s) Will Get The Most Carries?

The starting job at RB may or may not be a lock for Dan Herron starting October 8 at Nebraska. The first five games, however, will have quite an interesting playing-time battle.

All eyes will be on the two young studs in the elusive Jordan Hall and lightning fast Jaamal Berry.

The two young backs anchored the No. 5 kickoff return average unit in the country, and saw plenty of carries as well last year.

Some conjecture that the starting job will come down to those two due to experience, but redshirt freshman Roderick Smith has drawn rave reviews from the coaches, his teammates, and other media members.

Whoever gets the most carries between Hall, Berry and Smith, and whomever takes the most advantage of those opportunities will certainly have the inside track to starting the season as the No. 1 back.

How Will The Running Backs Fit Into The Passing Game?

New WR coach Stan Drayton, formerly the running backs coach at Florida, was brought in to help make the passing game more explosive.

His biggest contribution to date would be something that Philadelphia Eagles coach Andy Reid would be proud of -- the screen pass.

The OSU offense has rarely used screens, but the lack of depth at the WR position and the strength at the RB position makes this an intriguing addition to the passing game.

If Drayton has high hopes for any player in the screen attack, it's Hall, whom Drayton likens to a poor man's Percy Harvin, quite a high praise for the elusive back.

While Hall lacks the overall pure speed of Harvin, his elusiveness and burst do make him a formidable target out of the backfield. A la Brandon Saine last season, Hall may also line up on occasion in the slot.

Hall's versatility might mean that the OSU offense can have a back in the backfield and another out wide as a receiver. In year's past, the Buckeyes have been called predictable but these additional wrinkles in the offensive game plan will provide some much-needed punch to start off the 2011 season that will begin without Terrelle Pryor and three other offensive starters.

Who Will Emerge As The Seven New Defensive Starters?

The concern most Buckeye fans have pushed slightly aside due to the suspensions from Tattoogate is the fact that the defense must replace seven starters.

While most of the players vying for starting gigs have some experience on the field, some battles are still very much worth your attention.

The thing that should be noted most is who comes out with the first-team defense and who are the first players off the bench. Those players will be among the most likely to be inline for a starting role on the OSU defense this fall.

The new starters will have earned the job because of the tough competition. That competition is why most people say the OSU defense doesn't rebuild -- it reloads.

Be sure to keep a close eye on the LB and CB positions where four of five starting jobs are up for grabs.

Which QB (If Any) Shines In Pryor's Absence?

The biggest storyline of Saturday's spring scrimmage is which of the four QBs vying for the starting job -- Joe Bauserman, Kenny Guiton, Taylor Graham and Braxton Miller -- makes a statement?

By various accounts, the competition has been interesting to watch, as the early favorite to start (Bauserman), has been shaky at best -- throwing multiple interceptions in the spring practices.

In addition, Miller has reportedly turned out to be worth the praise given to a five-star recruit and has grown through every practice as he continues to grasp the offense.

But don't discount Guiton and Graham just yet as both have done pretty well at times for themselves. Guiton was strong in the spring game a year ago and Graham has quietly impressed the staff throughout the 2011 spring session.

While the depth chart at QB is expected to likely be Bauserman, Guiton, Graham, then Miller, any one of the four could be named the starter come the fall. With a strong showing on Saturday, Miller will have the fanbase buzzing more than they are already. Unfortunately for them, they don't get the final decision on who starts, or it would almost undoubtedly be Miller.


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Original article by Tim Beilik - BlockONation Featured Contributor

Ohio State vs. Penn State: Why JoePa Won't Get Win No. 401 Against the Buckeyes

Congratulations to coach Paterno on reaching his 400th career victory last Saturday against Northwestern.

The man who has been the head Nittany Lion since the Johnson administration became the first FBS coach to reach 400 wins. He’s a true model of loyalty and consistency.

That being said, it’s hard to imagine Penn State winning No. 401 for Joe Pa Saturday in Ohio Stadium.

PSU has only beaten Ohio State once in Columbus since they joined the Big Ten in 1993.

That came two years ago when Terrelle’s Pryor’s fumble on a quarterback sneak paved the way for the Blue and White’s game-winning drive.

They arrive in Columbus a different team than they were a month ago.

An embarrassing loss to Illinois dropped the Nittany Lions to 3-3 and 0-2 in the Big Ten. They have since run off three straight wins including climbing back from a 21-0 deficit last week against Northwestern.

PSU scored 35 straight points, led by quarterback Matt McGloin’s four touchdown passes.

OSU coach Jim Tressel, who mentioned he saw the first quarter of the game on television and caught the rest on the radio en route to a high school game, said he didn’t exactly expect PSU to give up last week.

“When it's 21-0 they're not going to fold the tent. That's just not how they're made,” Tressel said. “You’re going to have to play 60 minutes to compete with them.”

McGloin, a former walk-on, has eight touchdowns (seven passing, one rushing) in the last three games against Minnesota, Michigan and Northwestern.

Those three defenses aren’t exactly elite, something the OSU defense, ranked third in the nation in scoring defense, clearly is. The “Silver Bullets” will also have starting linebacker Ross Homan back in the fold as he seems to have recovered from his foot injury.

Oddly enough, OSU is 2-4 after bye weeks under Tressel, so perhaps Penn State has a chance.

However, in six home games this season, the Buckeyes have beaten their opponents by an average score of 47-11, and in case you forgot what the Buckeyes did to a much better Penn State squad last year in Happy Valley, here's a reminder.



So much for beating the Buckeyes and their "arm-punting" QB, eh PSU fans?


Image originally posted before the 2009 game on BlackShoeDiaries.com

Throw in the fact that the game will start at 3:30, which equates to an even livelier Horseshoe crowd.

This game will not be decided where an Ohio State-Penn State game usually is (in the trenches), but rather, through the air.

Terrelle Pryor should be able to torture the Nittany Lion secondary to the tune of three touchdown passes while the Buckeye defense pressures and pounds on McGloin all day long.

The final score will likely be somewhere in the neighborhood of Ohio State 34, Penn State 10.


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This article was written by BlockONation contributor, Grant Freking

Delusions Of Grandeur: Miami Hurricanes Fans Expecting to Rout Our Ohio State Buckeyes?

As laughable as that sentiment seems, at least to most astute college football fans, it is apparently true....

Hotnuke and Sanford Lazarf are the most outspoken UM flag-bearers with that opinion thus far, but I'm sure there are plenty others of their ilk just waiting to jump on the Miami "in a rout" bandwagon.

Don't be surprised when they disappear and jump back off that same bandwagon sometime around 7PM on September 11.

I guess they forgot where all the talk and chest-thumping got them back in 2002....

Well, here's a friendly reminder for them. No need to thank me Canes fans!

But let's consider something a bit more current for some true perspective here.

The 2010 Buckeyes and the 2010 Hurricanes won't be all that much different than each were a year ago.

The then-No. 8 Buckeyes went 11-2 and dominated then-No. 7 Oregon in the Rose Bowl.

The then-No. 14 Canes ended up at 9-4 after losing to then-No.25 Wisconsin. The final score of 20-14 was much closer than the actual game.

Miami could not stop Badger running back John Clay all day as he rushed for over 100 yards and two scores.

Miami, trailing 20-7, scored a garbage-time touchdown with 1:22 left in the game to indicate a much closer game than was actually played.

Ohio State beat that same Badger team 31-13, while holding John Clay to only 59 yards on 20 carries and no touchdowns.

All that being said, the 2009 season doesn't guarantee what will happen in 2010, but on paper, "the U" sure looks to be a heavy underdog on September 11 in The Shoe, so I'm not sure why Miami fans are talking so much smack, but they are.

See for yourself.

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Those are just a couple of examples (for now) from one particular overconfident UM fan.

I do know a few Miami fans that can actually carry on a sensible and logical discussion about the upcoming game and who understand that winning in Columbus will be extremely difficult if not darn near impossible.

Unfortunately and undoubtedly, they are few and far between.

As the start of the season, and the Ohio State-Miami game in particular draws near, there will surely be more posts like those of Hotnuke's and you can be sure I'll post them here for all to see when I find them.

Not to toot my own horn here so-to-speak, but I am the founder and owner of a pretty well-known Ohio State blog, so without name-dropping, but in response to one of your recent comments, yes Sanford, I do have connections to, and have interviewed and spoken with, several Buckeye players.

I also have access to various other media outlets and I will be sure to continue to forward these types of postings to every one of them as well if for no other reason than pure amusement.

We Buckeyes always enjoy a good, and the last, laugh...


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How Has The SEC Gotten Away With Not Playing Meaningful OOC Road Games For So Long?

by HD Handshoe
Founder—Block-O-Nation



Seriously, can anyone answer this question, with at the very least, a semi-cognizant thought?

Since 1991, I think most people would agree the best team from the SEC has been the Florida Gators, and Alabama has arguably been a close second, just edging out LSU and Georgia in my opinion.

Over that span, Florida has won three national championships (1996, 2006, 2008) and Alabama has won two (1992, 2009).

Now, I know that basically every Florida, Alabama, and SEC fan in general will try to defend their pathetic out-of-conference road schedules until the death, but facts are facts, and they cannot be ignored any longer.

If UF, Bama, and the rest of the teams from the SEC do not start playing at least one true OOC road game per year during the regular season versus a decent team from a BCS conference, instead of some hopeless and weak FCS cupcake (examples: Charleston Southern, Memphis, Hawaii), then I say the entire conference should be banned from playing in the BCS title game indefinitely.

(I fully expect to, and cannot wait to hear from the likes of Le Roi, Larry, Carson, Sean, etc. after that last paragraph!)

I'm not just shooting my mouth off without the facts to back up my statements here. To further strengthen my stance, let's compare the OOC road games played by Florida, Alabama, and,—oh I don't know,—how about Ohio State—say from 1991, through 2009.


Florida Gators (1991-2009) OOC Road Games (0-1)

1991 @ Syracuse, a 38-21 loss

Sadly, that's it--that's the entire list of OOC road games for UF.


Alabama Crimson Tide (1991-2009) OOC Road Games (4-3)

1991 @ Memphis, a 10-7 win

1992 @ Tulane, a 37-0 win

1996 @ NC State, a 24-19 win

2000 @ UCLA, a 35-24 loss

2002 @ Hawaii, a 21-16 win

2002 @ Oklahoma, a 37-27 loss

2003 @ Hawaii, a 39-27 loss

2004-present, no OOC road games for the Tide (and no, "neutral site" games do NOT count as true road games).


Ohio State Buckeyes (1991-2009) OOC Road Games (10-3)

1992 @ Syracuse, a 35-12 win

1993 @ Pitt, a 63-28 win

1994 @ Washington, a 25-16 loss

1995 @ Pitt, a 54-14 win

1996 @ Notre Dame, a 29-16 win

1997 @ Missouri, a 31-10 win

1998 @ West Virginia, a 34-17 win

2000 @ Arizona, a 27-17 win

2001 @ UCLA, a 13-6 loss

2004 @ NC State, a 22-14 win (NFL star Phillip Rivers was the NC State QB)

2006 @ Texas, a 24-7 win (Colt McCoy was the UT QB)

2007 @ Washington, a 33-14 win (a healthy Jake Locker was the UW QB)

2008 @ USC, a 35-3 loss


Over the past two decades, you can plainly see, UF has played one OOC road game outside of the state of Florida, Alabama has played seven true road games away from the state of Alabama (excluding neutral site games), and Ohio State has played 13 OOC road games outside of Ohio—and not against the likes of Memphis, Tulane, and Hawaii either.

I know a lot of the responses will include references to UF and LSU beating the Buckeyes in 2006 and 2007, and that's fine. I won't dispute that, but I will say this.

If the teams of the SEC are so great, why not step up and play at least one real OOC game per year lke the Buckeyes do, instead of relying on the totally false "our conference schedule is too tough, so we need a break in our OOC games" excuse / crutch?

Florida beat Ohio State after they has nearly 60 days off, and LSU beat OSU essentially at home in 2007 in New Orleans.

Forgive me if I want to see just how well UF, LSU, or Alabama would fare against the Buckeyes in Columbus—and no, not just because of the weather.

That could be a factor depending on when played, but I'm more interested in seeing how those teams would deal with playing on the road, after living out of a hotel for three days, and then playing in front of 105,000+ Buckeye fans in a hostile environment behind enemy lines instead of always in the SEC backyard...


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Ohio State-Iowa: Week 11 Preview, Free History Lesson Included

by HD Handshoe
Founder—Block-O-Nation


The Big Ten will hold its' annual conference Championship game this weekend as the No. 10 Iowa Hawkeyes (9-1, 5-1) visit Columbus to take on the No. 11 Ohio State Buckeyes (8-2, 5-1).

Unlike the SEC, Big East, Big 12, and ACC, the Big Ten regular season means something. The best team during the season wins the title, period.

Critics of a playoff system for college football say it will decrease the importance of the regular season. Conference championship games held after the season already do that, and they are only held for one reason—money. It's like playing a bowl game, before your bowl game...

I like my football Big Ten style, and conference titles should be won—or lost—on the field during the season.

Now, on to the preview and history lesson.


Iowa—By The Numbers:

Starting QB Out: Check.

Starting RB Out: Check.

Backup RB Out: Check

Iowa's magical season and BCS hopes came crashing down last week as the Northwestern Wildcats handed the Hawkeyes their first loss of the season.

Adding injury to insult, starting quarterback Ricky Stanzi injured his ankle and had to have surgery. He will miss the final two games of the season.

The numbers aren't going to look very pretty, but nevertheless, here they are.

Stanzi will be replaced by freshman James Vandenberg. Prior to last weekend, he had attemped just three passes. For the season, he is 11/30 passing for 120 yards with no touchdowns, one interception, a 36.7 completion percentage, and a QB Rating of 63.6.

As mentioned Jewel Hampton was supposed to take over for NFL-departed Shonn Greene at running back, but has been out the entire season. His replacement, Adam Robinson was having a solid season until he was injured and now will miss the rest of the year as well. That means Brandon Wegher will take over as the starter the rest of the way.

Wegher had shared carries with Robinson so there shouldn't be much of a drop off. On the year, he has 502 rushing yards and six touchdowns, and has caught 13 balls for 112 yards.

The leading receivers for Iowa are Darrell Johnson-Koulianos (31 receptions, 553 yards, two touchdowns), Marvin McNutt (21 receptions, 547 yards, five touchdowns), Trey Stross (25 receptions, 368 yards, one touchdown), and Tony Moeaki (23 receptions, 274 yards, four touchdowns).

Iowa also boasts one of the best defensive units in the Big Ten and the nation. They've built that reputation against some solid teams, such as Arizona and Penn State. The Buckeyes o-line will have their hands full on Saturday.


Ohio State—By The Numbers:

Terrelle Pryor has 1668 passing yards, 604 rushing yards, with seven rushing touchdowns, 15 passing touchdowns, nine interceptions, and a QB Rating of 130.6.

Pryor, Brandon Saine, Boom Herron, Jordan Hall, and Jermil Martin have combined for 1808 yards on the ground and 22 rushing touchdowns. That's nearly 180 yards and 2.2 touchdowns rushing per game.

Ohio State's top receivers are DeVier Posey (45 receptions, 672 yards, seven touchdowns plus one passing touchdown), Dane Sanzenbacher (24 receptions, 482 yards, six touchdowns), Duron Carter (12 receptions, 164 yards, one touchdown), and Ray Small (12 receptions, 153 yards). Small is also a huge contributor as a punt returner.

The Buckeye defense held Penn State to a season low seven points and only 201 total yards in Beaver Stadium last Saturday. Daryll Clark had one of the worst games of his career, while Pryor played mistake free as the Buckeyes rolled to a 24-7 win.

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11/7/2009—Game 11—3:30PM Kickoff
TV: ABC

VS.


Ohio State—Iowa History and Tidbits:

• This will be the 62nd meeting between Ohio State and Iowa.

• Ohio State leads the all-time series, 44-14-3.

• Ohio State is 15-4-1 in the last 20 meetings vs. Iowa (dating back to 1983).

• Ohio State is 8-2 in the last 10 meetings vs. Iowa in Columbus.

• Ohio State's last loss at home to Iowa was in 1991 by a score of 16-9 (that year, OSU was 8-4, Iowa was 10-1-1).

• Ohio State's last home win vs. Iowa was a 31-6 victory in 2005.

• Because of the Big Ten rotating schedule, this is the first meeting since 2006.

• Jim Tressel is 3-1 overall (2-0 at home, 1-1 on the road) vs. Iowa.

• The Ohio State football program began in 1890 and all-time, they have an overall record of 816-308-53.

• This is Iowa Head Coach Kirk Ferentz's 11th season at Iowa (79-53).

• Iowa is 1-5 vs. Ohio State under Ferentz, whose only win was a 33-7 blowout over the Buckeyes in Iowa City in 2004.

• Iowa has won or shared 11 Big Ten titles, their last being a co-championship in 2004.

• The last time Iowa finished ranked ahead of Ohio State in the final AP poll was 2004 (Iowa #8, OSU #20).

• The Iowa football program began play in 1889 and all-time, they have an overall record of 577-509-39.

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Even though both teams are ranked, the season appears to be slipping away from Iowa, while Ohio State seems to be peaking at the right time.

This game could still be a fairly low scoring game, as both teams are solid on defense, but without all those experienced weapons, I just can't convince myself that Iowa can score more than once or twice.

If the Buckeyes, and specifically Terrelle Pryor, can play like they did against the Nittany Lions, they may win in a bigger rout than I am predicting.


Final score prediction:

Ohio State 30, Iowa 6


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AP Photo--Charlie Neibergall

No. 10 Iowa Hawkeyes at No. 11 Ohio State Buckeyes

De Facto Big Ten Title Game

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For Once, I Agree With Pat Forde: Pigs Must Be Flying and Hell Must Have Frozen Over

By Pat Forde—ESPN.com


There are worse places for a freshman quarterback to be than his own 5-yard line facing a second-and-19 with a five-point deficit, time wasting and the entire state of Ohio screaming in his ears.

Like San Quentin. Or the mouth of a shark.

Other than that, the situation in which Matt Barkley found himself at Ohio Stadium was about as bad as it gets.

It was in this most dire football circumstance that Barkley entered the USC huddle and … smiled.

"Matt came to us with a smile on his face and was just like, 'Let's get it done,'" Trojans center Kris O'Dowd said.

Really? He was smiling?

"Grinning," O'Dowd confirmed.

Did you think he was nuts?

"Maybe," O'Dowd said, grinning himself. "But I'm going to roll with it."

Oh, they're all willing to roll with this kid now. The Barkley bandwagon, picking up momentum for a month, is stampeding now.

Freshmen don't start at quarterback at USC. And freshmen don't come into a certifiable madhouse like the Horseshoe and beat the Buckeyes. And freshmen certainly don't beat the Buckeyes by leading long, dramatic, game-winning drives in the final minutes.

Until Barkley did all those things.

"Pretty cool, isn't it?" Trojans coach Pete Carroll said. "That was really good.

"The questions everyone was asking about Matt are totally legitimate. All we can tell you is that the guy is really special."

After producing precious little offensively all night, Barkley conjured the kind of crunch-time magic that separates special quarterbacks (such as John Elway and Joe Montana) from merely talented quarterbacks (such as Ohio State's Terrelle Pryor). Against an excellent defense, he delivered the most devastating drive the state of Ohio has seen since Elway crushed the Cleveland Browns in the 1986 AFC Championship Game. Barkley led USC to an 18-15 defeat of the Buckeyes that sucked the sound from a record crowd of 106,033.

But as tempting as the comparison is to Elway and The Drive, a better analogy might be what Montana did to the NFL team from the other end of this state, the Cincinnati Bengals, in Super Bowl XXIII in 1989.

Montana began the winning drive in that game at his team's 8-yard line. Before the first play, according to folklore, Montana looked into the stands and quipped to his teammates in the huddle, "Isn't that John Candy?"

This time, Barkley bopped into the huddle beaming.

"We all smiled," receiver Damian Williams said.

By the time this drive was finished, the Trojans were howling. Rejoicing. Embracing. Winning a potential national championship elimination game that had appeared lost for much of the night.

The official stats say Barkley led the Trojans for 86 yards in 14 plays, scoring the clinching touchdown and two-point conversion with 1:05 left. The truth is that after a sack and a false start, USC was 19 yards from a first down and 95 yards from a touchdown.

The Shoe shook with noise, as Buckeye Nation anticipated the validating victory that has escaped it since January 2003.

For USC, the situation wasn't hopeless, but you could see it from there. That's when Barkley's arm and tailback Joe McKnight's legs saved the night, one play at a time.

First came a McKnight draw for 11 yards. Then, on third-and-8 from the 16, Barkley found McKnight on an option route against a linebacker and hit him for 21 yards.

Credit assistant offensive coach Jeremy Bates, the Trojans' first-year playcaller, with dialing up just the right stuff at just the right time.

"You've got to believe we're going to find a way," Bates said. "And we did."

The spark of hope from that initial first down of the drive became a bonfire. Barkley then drilled tight end Anthony McCoy on a seam route for 26 yards down to the Ohio State 37. At that point, you could hear the entire stadium pucker and feel the Barkley legend building.

The next eight plays were either passes or quarterback sneaks by Barkley or runs by McKnight, the superstar recruit who has matured from a duck-and-dodge specialist into a more physical runner as a junior. Finally, on first-and-goal at the 2, Stafon Johnson took a handoff and danced outside the right end to score untouched. Then Barkley passed to McKnight for two points and an 18-15 lead.

"It's on his [Barkley's] shoulders, and he did it," linebacker Chris Galippo said. "He was so not like a freshman. [Mark] Sanchez, [Matt] Leinart, [Carson] Palmer -- I don't know whether they could have done that."

Barkley could. Barkley did. Then Barkley grinned and shrugged, less awed by his precocity than the rest of us.

"This is what it's supposed to be, and what I came here for," he said. "It is kind of surreal, but it's what I've always wanted."

For Ohio State, the victory it has craved for years over a big-boy opponent disappeared in the final minutes.

The Buckeyes can blame their coach, Jim Tressel, for his trademark play-not-to-lose conservatism -- they squandered supreme field position time and again. Tressel's most questionable move was bypassing a 53-yard field goal in favor of one of his favorite plays -- the pin-'em-back punt. Kicker Aaron Pettrey can kick 50-yarders -- if he's given a chance.

He wasn't Saturday, as Tressel waved in the punting unit from the USC 36. The Buckeyes downed the ball at the Trojans' 14 -- which only set the stage for the winning drive.

And Buckeyes fans also can shake their heads over Pryor, the splendid physical specimen who often looks ordinary.

In this battle of young quarterbacks, sophomore Pryor had the ball last. More than a minute remained on the clock when the Buckeyes took over at their own 36-yard line, but they made nothing happen. Pryor was pressured by USC All-American safety Taylor Mays into an intentional grounding penalty on first down, scrambled for 14 yards, then threw incomplete twice.

Just like that, the night was lost. And 15 games into Pryor's college career, he's still waiting to have the kind of moment Barkley enjoyed Saturday night.


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USC—Ohio State: Five Six Reasons It Might Be Time to Panic Trojan Fans

Written by HD Handshoe
Founder—BlockONation


No. 1

Mark Sanchez bolting school a year early for the NFL hurts a lot, even though "Slippery Pete" begged and pleaded with him not to leave him hanging (ten).

Never mind the silly surfing joke there. You probably missed it anyway.

No. 2

USC had a stellar defense in 2008—one of the best in the nation in fact—but eight of those 11 starters are now gone. Yes we all know USC reloads with more talented four and five-star blue-chippers, but it's the lack of experience that can kill you.

No. 3

Starting center Kristofer O'Dowd could be out several weeks after dislocating his right kneecap during a scrimmage last week.

I know that Ohio State center Mike Brewster is the anchor of the Buckeyes O-line and if he went down, that would be devastating.

Even though the Bucks have plenty of young, highly-touted linemen waiting in the wings, it would be nearly impossible to overcome a loss this significant. Therefore, I have to believe the loss of O'Dowd is huge for USC.

No. 4

USC fans should be concerned that true freshman Matt Barkley was named the starting QB. Yes he won the Gatorade POY in 2007 and he was the top QB prospect in the nation this past season coming out of Mater Dei.

But, he has never taken a snap at this level and his second career start is going to be in Columbus, Ohio on ABC, in primetime, versus an out-for-blood and revenge Buckeye team, in front of their own 100,000+ crazy-loud, rabid, scarlet and gray clad fans in the biggest must game win of all must win games of all-time—yet despite all that, he's going to just waltz right into the Shoe, be as cool as the other side of the pillow, and lead USC to victory?

Good luck with that Matt.

No. 5

Fifth, if you haven't heard by now, starting WR Ronald Johnson will be out six to eight weeks after breaking his collarbone during the Trojans' mock game Saturday at the Coliseum, depriving Barkley of one of his top targets until at least mid-October.

Johnson was the Trojans' third-leading receiver last season with 33 catches for 570 yards and eight touchdowns. Coach Pete Carroll said the injury was "the hit of the hit of the weekend," and called Johnson's absence "just a crusher."

No. 6

Lastly, USC projected starting corner back, Shareece Wright, has been ruled academically ineligible. Please don't say he wasn't going to srart anyway, or losing him is no big deal. He was the projected starter for a reason USC homers!


Now, if USC fans STILL believe Ohio State has no shot to win this game, you must have some super-secret weapon stored away that none of us have a clue about.

Please, do tell.

USC is still USC and I don't expect them to come in to Ohio Stadium and just wave the white flag. But, realistically, the odds of them winning have decreased over the last couple of weeks.

The sad part is, as many others have already said, this is a no-win-situation for Ohio State because if they do win, everyone will say it was because of these USC injuries and that the Trojans were overrated and rebuilding.

If they lose, it will be because Ohio State is overrated and they choked again like they always do on the big stage.

I want and fully expect the Buckeyes to win this game, but it's a shame that if they do, it will be with this dark cloud hanging over their, dare I say, impending victory.

They may have been able to beat USC at full strength, but now we will never know.

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Ohio Stadium aka "The Shoe" Scoreboard, Signage Upgrades

Posted by HD Handshoe
Founder
BlockONation


The new backlighting of the retired player numbers and national championship seasons look sweet and were on display Monday night at the Buckeyes open practice.

See for yourself!


Wide angle view of The Shoe


National Championship years: East side of the North endzone


Retired player #'s: West side of the North endzone

Full view of the North endzone signage and new scoreboard

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Photos Copyright: TheOzone.net

USC's Taylor Mays Talking About Ohio State, Terrelle Pryor

Mays drops a nice little sound bite near the end.

I hope you have seen this or are watching this now Terrelle!

Ohio State--USC: Apples to Apples, Who Has the Advantage?

by HD Handshoe
Founder
BlockONation.com



Let me say this right up front.

I'm a Buckeye fan but I have done my damnedest to provide my absolute objective view on the game, all bias aside.

I've researched both teams and have previously written a couple of articles about them and this game so I feel pretty confident in what I'm about to post.

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OSU backfield vs. USC backfield

Pryor is in year 2 and has vastly improved his passing skills. Boom and Zoom will be just fine taking over for the departed Beanie Wells. Aaron Corp will make his 2nd career start in front of 105,000 fans and against one of the nation's best season to season defenses...

You can bet that OSU loads the box to stop the USC trio of backs and challenges Corp to beat them....I'm not sure he's ready to step up to that just yet....

Advantage - Ohio State (slightly)


OSU WR's vs. USC WR's

Both teams have fast WR's. Individually, Williams is the biggest name on both teams but as far as depth, OSU has just as much, albeit young.

Advantage - USC (slightyly)


OSU O-line vs. USC O-line

The Bucks O-line will be much better than last years group (especially now that dead-weight overrated Alex Boone is gone), but USC's guys have all played together for a full season so and are probably the best unit in the nation.

Advantage - USC


OSU D-line, LB's and DB's vs. USC's D-line, LB's and DB's

OSU is stronger on the front line, OSU & USC are pretty even at LB and USC gets the nod in the defensive backfield, primarily because of Taylor Mays!

Advantage - Push


OSU Special Teams vs. USC Special Teams

The Buckeyes have a solid kicker in Aaron Pettrey and they get a lot of practice kicking FG's. He has a powerful leg too and can kick from distance.

In the return game, I think both teams will have speed guys and are pretty even so only b/c of the kicker....

Advantage - OSU (slightly)


Tressell vs. Carroll

These are the top 2 winningest coaches in College Football since 2001 but Pete has more big wins and an AP title to go along with his BCS title and Tressel has more to prove, hopefully starting with this game...

Advantage - USC


X-Factor: The Shoe at Night



Just like last year in L.A., the Buckeyes defend their home turf just as well.

In the last 47 home games vs. OOC opponents, the Buckeyes are 46-1

Advantage - OSU

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Overall, it looks pretty even to me. OSU has the talent to compete vs. USC and they have the home field this time.

USC is extremely talented and they always reload and always shows up in bigtime national stage games.

Something has to give, but it's really too close to call IMO...

I hope for and expect a battle and for this one to live up to the "Game of the Century" hype!

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6-03-09 EDIT/UPDATE:

I received an email from what I gauge to be a USC fan, although he does say he is from Ohio.

What he had to say about this years game is, I'm sure, similar to what most of the nation probably believes as well.

The perception is that USC, even with their in-conference failures the last several seasons vs. teams that most fans and analysts believed have no business beating them like Oregon, Oregon State and Standford twice, is still going to come to Columbus and crush the Buckeyes.

Here's the email:
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Read your post on USC-Ohio St. matchup. Nice analysis. I grew up in Ohio, so I may be biased as well, but here goes.

Having attended the last year’s game in L.A. I have to tell you: USC is going to wipe the floor with Ohio St. this next September. The kids at USC live to wreck other people’s days in their house. I’ve seen this in Nebraska, Fayetteville Arkansas, Auburn Alabama, Provo Utah, Champaign, Illinois, South Bend Indiana…the list goes on an on. Check it out 36-6 on the road their last 42. Indeed, USC hasn’t lost a non-conference road game since 2002.

The scouting reports from people I trust advise me that USC’s defense is even faster than last year’s version. Believe it. The Trojan D-line is actually upgraded and its linebackers are all blue chippers who saw extensive playing time last year. Time to reload.

My prediction: USC wins by two touchdowns – minimum.

USC has much more depth at wide receiver than for which you give them credit. The Trojans lost one senior – Patrick Turner – who, from a talent perspective, should have been 4th on the depth chart last year. The truth is he was always a great “practice” player, but underperformed in the game. His dropped balls ended many a Trojan drive the last few years. The word was that he got much of his playing time by virtue of his senior status and hard work in practice. The WR who was 4th on the chart – Vidal Hazelton – transferred out because the kids below him were even better than he was. In short, USC will field 6 receivers that could all start at 119 other programs.

USC’s problem isn’t a lack of depth – it’s managing all the talent and spreading the ball around.

USC quarterback Aaron Corp will likely have all day to do so: all 18 USC offensive linemen return from last year. Moreover, Corp is in his 3rd year of the system (same as Matt Leinert when he won the Heisman) and is fresh off of having beat out the #1 ranked QBs from the high school classes of 2005 and 2008 (Mustain and Barkley). Did you know that there are 5 USC quarterbacks collecting paychecks in the NFL right now? They may not be All-Pros, but it shows you the type of kids that go to USC. The Buckeyes would be making a big mistake if they’re counting on Aaron Corp to be intimidated by a road game.

I was at last year’s game. 35-3 with 3:00 minutes left – in the 3rd quarter. I’ve been watching Ohio St. football for a fair number of years. I recall only one beating that was worse – by Penn St. a good while back. In all honesty, USC took its offensive foot off of Ohio St. ’s throat at the end of the 3rd quarter or else the Trojans would have scored 50 had they been so inclined.

The only difference this year is a new quarterback. Whether it’s Corp. or Mustain or Barkley; Ohio St. didn’t show me anything to suggest that one of them won’t be able to get the job done – not with every running back, every linemen and 6-8 returning WR’s back.

Personally, I’d like to see the Buckeyes make a game of it, but I don’t see it happening friend.

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First of all, I am being objective and unbiased in this article so I'm not sure why he starts with "I may be biased as well but here goes."

Anyway, moving on....Is he right?

Is USC going to wax the field with us?

I'm fairly confident he is way off but I get why he believes what he is saying.

The absurd national perception of Ohio State is they are a punching bag from the weak Big 10 that NEVER wins big games.

Ohio State has lost some big games vs. some great teams but over the past few seasons, they've also won a few too.

Michigan State in 2008, Penn State in 2007 and both Texas and Michigan in 2006 were all National stage games where OSU was predicted to lose by some of the so-called experts—Mark May, Trev Alberts, Pat Forde among others, and Ohio State won them all!

Of course, afterwards, those same "experts" then declared MSU, PSU, Texas & UM were all overrated. How else could they explain away the fact that they were wrong?

It couldn't be because Ohio State was good, but rather the other teams weren't.

Everyone likes to blast us for beating lesser OOC opponents and the "supposed weak" teams of the Big Ten b/c we have then went on to lose to some of the nation's top teams.

The Bucks last 8 losses (since 2005) have all come against top 20 teams.

Seven of those 8 were in the top 10 and 6 of those 7 were in the top 4.

Also of those 8 teams, 3 went on to win the BCS title the year the beat tOSU....

So the perception of OSU is skewed as you can see.

That's fine though.

I'm sure USC thought they could travel to Corvalis last year and thump the Beavers.

I'm sure they expect to travel to Columbus and thump the Buckeyes this year.

If Sanchez couldn't beat Oregon State in front of a whopping 45K last year, how in the world do these people seriously believe that it's a given, that Aaron Corp, in his 2nd career start, can come to OUR HOUSE, Ohio Stadium, aka the Shoe, in front of 105,000+ and beat the Buckeyes?

USC is a great team and of course they could and maay win the game but it's not a lock, it's not a given and it WILL NOT be a blowout if USC does win.

Just because last year in LA, without Beanie and sadly for us, with Boeckman instead of Pryor, it was a beatdown doesn't mean this year will be as well.

Again, USC may win, but they'll have to earn it and it won't be easy like so many seem to think.

Fight on in your dream world, I guess..........

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Buckeyes Set National Attendance Record For a Spring Footbal Game

It was windy and hot and my arms are burnt to a crisp, but it was pretty much a perfect day for the Buckeyes Scarlet and Gray Spring Football game yesterday!

I am proud to say I was part of the RECORD BREAKING 95,722 in attendance. No other school has ever had as many fans in attendance for a Spring game than Ohio State did for this one.


Game highlights (courtesy of the Big Ten Network)




Here are the pics I took. The first set are from my phone and the better closeup shots were with a digital camera—Enjoy!

View from outside the stadium of the South stands


The Block O that was the inspiration for the name of this blog


Just before the LAX game started


The stadium was nearly at capacity about 30 minutes before kickoff


More views of the record breaking crowd






#2 Terrelle Pryor warming up with a few of his O-linemen








The pics below here are the digital camera pics. You can click on any image to enlarge it!

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