Pregame Postage: Week 7, Purdue
Ahhh, here we are again! Waiting for kickoff for our Buckeyes. I haven’t really been on edge about a game this season except for USC and Illinois, and that trend won’t be broken when the team takes on Purdue at noon.
I’ve been singing the praises of this Buckeye defense since the beginning of this season and while Purdue is only a few minutes/mistakes from having a much better record than 1-5, they don’t scare me. I respect them, but they only slightly better than in-state rival IU, regardless of what the stats numbers say. I couldn’t care less how great a pass efficient and high-scoring an offense a team has if they shoot themselves in the foot as often as the Boilermakers tend to. Toledo was Top 5 in the country in offense when we destroyed them. This defense takes teams with very high offensive production and reduces them to a shell of their former selves. I see Purdue no differently.
I’ll talk about this game by first taking a look in the rear-view mirror. Wisconsin is a good team. A really good Big Ten team. Even though we beat them soundly, I think they should still be ranked. If our offense can lay the proverbial egg that they did last week against a quality team, and still pull out a big win, I’m not convinced that Purdue will challenge that much. No, I’m not thinking about a shut-out. I think this team’s shut-outs for the season may be over save the New Mexico State Game. Who knows what will happen in two weeks.
For whatever reason Ohio State always has 1 game (usually home) per season where they just stink up the field. This year I hope it was Wisconsin, and last year it was Purdue. Therefore, I am hoping that things run smoothly in West Lafayette. Not to mention that this team simply does not lose Big Ten road games. They will tie the all-time record (held by Michigan) with a win. I can understand why they perform so well away from the ‘Shoe. For starters, the fans that travel to away games don’t boo the team. I can’t roll my eyes far enough up in my head, when I hear “fans” boo our team on gameday. Seriously? So you didn’t like the play call. Get over yourselves. Don’t EVER. Ever. Ever, ever, ever, ever, ever boo your team, ok? (Bonus points if you know what amazing movie I was just referencing) The team just plays more loose and I love it!
I don’t think it’s necessarily a Purdue thing, despite the history and numbers many will bring to the table. You could cite numbers and past match-ups for most Big Ten games. I don’t think there’s anything behind how Purdue plays us. This is Ohio State. Every team plays the Buckeyes tough. I mean, just look at the game 2 years ago. Not only was Purdue ranked at the time, it was also a night game. We basically used the game to get Todd Boeckman some nice target practice and won comfortably while he threw 3 INTs. Yes, 3. And we still won that game 23-7.
I expect a similar type of game this time around, minus all those INTs. Even if the Bucks win big, the media/fans will rip TP to shreds if he throws 3 INTs. It may not be fair, but that’s how it is ’round Buckeye Nation.
My Prediction: Bucks win. I’m not scared. I’m confident in this team. I think TP has a stat-line more like the Toledo/IU game than the Wisky one. You gotta figure in the time of possession into that game and the fact that the Badgers busted out a new and unseen defense just for the game. By the time the staff adjusted, it was the last couple of minutes of the half. And by the next time they got the ball back, they’d been sitting for 45 minutes. But they moved the ball, went up by 3 scores, and then Tress shut it down.
Keeping an eye on… I will be keeping my eye on the running back situation. With Boom hurt again, and Jaamal Berry unable to get 100% healthy, we’re a little short on tailbacks. Terrelle’s Jeannette homeboy, Jordan Hall, has been fighting the flu, but should be good to go. After him, Jermil Martin may even get a few carries; the first of his career IIRC. I’d like to see fullback, and local boy, Zach Boren get a handful of carries from the fullback position. He played a little RB last year for Pickerington Central, so he knows what to do.
Wishful thinking: Last week, I said I hoped that the defense would finally get a score, and boy did they deliver! This week, provided J. Hall is healthy, I hope he sees the endzone. It’d be sweet if both he and TP scored, wouldn’t it? Actually, what I really want is a solid offensive performance. Enough that I don’t have to hear “fans” and media bitch for a week about how much they suck.
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