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Photo: ESPN.com
For the first time in 13 years, Ohio State is going to Pasadena to compete in the Rose Bowl. In a thrilling afternoon game in the 'Shoe, the Buckeyes came away with a sensational overtime victory against the Iowa Hawkeyes. Not only will the win send the Buckeyes to the Rose Bowl, but it also clinches the Big Ten title for the fifth straight season. Make no mistake, Iowa battled hard and had their fair share of chances to earn a victory, but the Buckeyes ultimately came out on top thanks to a 39-yard field goal by kicker Devin Barclay.
The fans erupted in passionate excitement after the game as they stormed the field to congratulate their Buckeyes on Senior Day in Columbus. In the first start of his collegiate career, Iowa quarterback James Vandenberg played his heart out as he very nearly led his injury-battled Hawkeyes to a victory in front of more than 105,000 screaming fans. The 2009 season has not been marked by very many 'nail-biting' games (aside from Southern Cal) for the Buckeyes, which made tonight's victory even sweeter. Here are my thoughts on this afternoon's hard fought victory:
Stuffing the Run
The Ohio State defense held Iowa to a mere 67 yards rushing on the game. It is no secret that the staple of our 2009 defense is our defensive line. They have made big plays all year long and seem to improve each week in defending the run. It should be noted that Iowa was utilizing their fourth string (freshman) halfback due to injuries, but holding any team, especially one with an offensive line as talented as Iowa's, to under 70 yards on the ground is quite an achievement. I know I'm not exactly 'going out on a limb' here, but judging by the way this season has gone so far, we are in store for a couple more big plays from this defense that will have a large impact on our next two games.
Story of the Quarters
The first quarter was dominated by Iowa. Ohio State controlled the second quarter. The third quarter was all Iowa. The fourth quarter was insane! After establishing a 14 point lead and looking destined for nothing but Roses in Pasadena, the Buckeye kickoff team surrendered a 99-yard touchdown return to Iowa wideout Derrell Johnson-Koulianos. This return completely stole the momentum Brandon Saine and the Buckeye defense had established. Following the Iowa touchdown (as well as out-of-bounds and personal foul penalties) Boom Herron led the Buckeyes into field goal territory where Barclay missed wide left. Iowa then continued driving off of the momentum they had established and drove 70 yards down the field to knot up the score at 24 each.
I cannot remember seeing such a shift in momentum in any football game before. It seemed like the game was all but concluded before Iowa quickly turned a 24-10 football game into a tied football game. Luckily, Iowa ended the game with the momentum in their possession because that meant the first overtime would belong to the Buckeyes (assuming overtime would continue to play out as the first 60 minutes had). After driving the Hawkeyes out of field goal territory (thanks to a 10-yard sack by senior defensive tackle Doug Worthington), the Buckeyes forced Iowa to look for the first down on a 4th-and-27. Tressel then entered 'conservation mode' (entered may not be the right word as he was in 'conservation mode' all afternoon) and called three straight runs, content putting the game in the hands of walk-on junior Devin Barclay. And, of course, Devin Barclay did not disappoint!
Future Star
Unfortunately for Buckeye Nation, we play Iowa in each of the next three years. That means we will be able to experience, first-hand, the development of Iowa quarterback James Vandenberg. Vandenberg finished the game with 233 yards through the air on 20 of 33 passing with a pair of touchdowns and three interceptions. Despite tossing a trio of passes into the hands of Buckeye defenders, Vandenberg played one helluva game. He looked extremely poised for a redshirt freshman, as the commentators continually mentioned how his play resembled that of a fifth-year senior. I typically refrain from commenting on the play of individuals from opposing teams, but for the sake of the Big Ten, I hope this game was just the first of many strong showings by Mr. Vandenberg. Right now, there are no real 'superstars' at the quarterback position in the league, which is quite a stark contrast from the slew of talented signal-callers in the Southeastern Conference. In order for the Big Ten to re-establish itself as one of the elite conferences in the nation, we need more players like Vandenberg calling plays for their teams.
Two-Headed Monster
Boom Herron and Brandon Saine combined for an even 200 yards and 3 touchdowns rushing in today's game. Boom carried the ball 32 times for 97 yards and 1 touchdown while Brandon toted the rock 11 times for 103 yards and 2 touchdowns (including a 49-yard touchdown run). Saine also caught 3 passes for 15 yards. After the departure of Beanie Wells, I fully expected our running game to suffer. I have been proven very wrong. Thanks to Boom, Brandon, and Terrelle Pryor, our running game is clearly the strength of our offense. The team seems to move the ball more efficiently with Boom in behind Pryor, but the explosive plays all seem to occur when Saine carries the football.
Poised Pryor: Part Deaux
Last week I commented on the poise Pryor displayed in the victory over Penn State. This week he continued the trend as he made just one 'slight' error in the near 34 minutes of Buckeye possession. Pryor finished the game with 93 yards on 14 of 17 passing and 29 yards rushing on 8 carries. Though he failed to find the endzone this afternoon, I cannot stress enough the fact that he did not make any game-changing mistakes. The only 'mistake' he made was attempting to evade an Iowa defender only to be sacked for a 13 yard loss. In order to finish the season without defeat, we are going to need Pryor to continue his efficient 'team-first-me-second' playing style.
Improved Line
The Buckeye offensive line has seen its share of ups-and-downs in 2009. Fortunately for Buckeye fans, they seem to be experiencing an 'up' right now. The line is creating holes for Brandon and Boom and are doing a much better job of protecting Pryor in the pocket. The experience on the line is all over the board (1 senior, 2 juniors, 1 sophomores, and 1 freshman started the game today) and it was only a matter of time before the 'Big Uglies' gained some chemistry and began playing well together. With the end of the season in sight, the lineman couldn't have picked a better time to step up their play.
BCS Busters
Traveling to the Rose Bowl this year (for the first time since the 1996 season) will mark the 8th BCS appearance by the Buckeyes in the 12 years the system has been in place. This is more than any other team in the nation. Southern California had a chance to tie the Buckeyes with eight BCS bowl appearances, but their loss to Stanford tonight has dismissed that possibility for this season. Our opponent is still yet to be determined as the victor of the Pacific Ten conference is still up in the air. At this point, it seems most likely that the Buckeyes will get a chance at the Oregon Ducks in the Rose Bowl.
Random Roses
In addition to the performance of Pryor, Boom, and Saine as previously mentioned, a number of players performed well today and I have chosen to award them 'roses' for their contributions to clinching the Big Ten title this afternoon:
- Ross Homan finished with a team-high 8 tackles which included 1 tackle-for-loss and 1 interception. Watching the game, he seemed to be in on every play (which is to be expected from a stud linebacker). He leads the team in interceptions and is making his case to be considered for the Top Buckeye Defender of the Year Award.
- Doug Worthington only recorded 4 tackles in the game, but his sack in overtime made up for any lack of productivity during regulation. Keeping Iowa out of field goal range with his sack was probably the play of the game.
- Jake Ballard led all Buckeye receivers with 24 yards receiving (on 3 catches). Sure, those stats don't look impressive, but his catches came in clutch situations. Also, any game in which a Buckeye tight end leads the team in receiving is worth mentioning.
- Austin Spitler played arguably his most complete game defensively on the year against Iowa today. He recorded 7 tackles of which 2 were for a loss. He laid his shoulder into defenders all afternoon (one time even propelling his own helmet off his head).
- Anderson Russell recorded just 2 tackles, but snagged 2 interceptions on the day. His second interception came in overtime to halt Iowa's attempt at scoring points in their offensive possession. I used to comically refer to Russell as 'Mr. Stone Hands,' but he proved my nickname completely wrong today.
- Chimdi Chekwa deserves a rose as a 'cheer me up' for his sub-par performance today. Through the first 10 games of the season Chekwa played very well as the number one cornerback. Today, he was picked apart by a freshman quarterback as his receiver caught a pair of touchdowns (on 6 catches for 78 yards). He also committed a costly pass interference penalty and tipped an errant pass right into the hands of a Hawkeye receiver.
- Devin Barclay kicked the game-winning field goal that sent thousands of Buckeye fans home happy. With the game on the line, he proved many doubters wrong as he booted the football directly through the center of the uprights.
- Lastly, I am giving the coaching staff roses. They seem to have finally figured out the best formula for success with the 2009 Buckeye team: RUNNING THE FOOTBALL! Over the past couple weeks, the coaches have consistently relied on the run to establish the occasional pass. With Pryor's arm still developing, this strategy gives us the best chance to win football games.
Offensive Player of the Game: Brandon Saine
Brandon netted 118 all-purpose yards and he visited the endzone twice today. Without his performance we would likely be looking at an appearance in the Capital One Bowl (at best). Brandon's in-Saine ability to make big plays out of what starts out as nothing out of the ordinary gives our offense an explosive weapon.
Defensive Player of the Game: Ross Homan
I've said it before and I'll say it again. If Ross Homan doesn't stop playing so well, we might be watching him on Sundays rather than Saturdays in 2010. Ross is a talented athlete and he is improving his draft stock week-by-week. At this point I still think an early exit to the NFL is unlikely, but my opinion does not matter in this matter. What matters is how highly NFL scouts think of our talented linebacker.
Team Grade: A-
That may seem much to high for such a close game, but what truly matters is the final score. Our guys showed us today that they can battle against adversity as well as any team in the nation. The offense struggled at times, but came up big when we needed it most. The defense allowed the Hawkeyes to gain 233 yards through the air (and 300 yards on the game), but they buckled down and kept Iowa out of the endzone when it mattered most (overtime, of course). Today's victory was a true team win, and the Buckeyes should be proud of their performance against a tough Iowa defense and an unexpectedly tough Iowa offense.
Next week the Buckeyes travel to Ann Arbor to take on 'That School Up North.' A win next week would mean a second straight losing season for the Wolverines, as they currently sit at 5-6 on the year. A win would also prevent 'TSUN' from earning a bowl bid. This is the week we have all been waiting for!
Anxiously awaiting next Saturday!
GO BUCKS!
ThunderBuck
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The Buckeye defense was stellar all game long, and Chris got it right, Doug Worthington made the play of the game, with a close second to Ross Homan's 4th quarter INT.
The Boom and Zoom tandem along with the O-line did just enough with moving the ball. I would've liked to see a couple of shots by TP deep, because Pryor was efficient, but his passes were mainly to TEs and RBs.
I made it on the field, and got to see some of the integral parts of this team up close and sing Carmen Ohio along with them, including Shugarts, Brewster, Duron Carter, Browning, Thoma, and Nate Williams.
It was a really neat experience, because even though I made it on the field after the Michigan game my freshman year, I was able to mingle with the players this time.
On to Ann Arbor, which is a bowl game atmosphere within itself, then on to Pasadena!
Big Ten Champs!