I'm tempted to say perhaps the college football gods were angered after the pass interference call against Miami in the end zone. Ever since then, except for a win in Texas (the year AFTER Vince Young left) in Troy's senior year, every big game on the national scale has been painful.
Personally I haven't decided what I detest more...being humiliated in big games where the whole country if laughing at you and your conference, or losing excrutiatingly in the last minute, when you think you had the game won (twice against Texas and now once against USC). Perhaps a poll is necessary.
Then again, looking at what's happened to the Miami program since then, its' certainly not like the college football gods have been smiling on them at all. At least the Buckeyes are still ON the national stage.
But back to OSU...here are my thoughts.
1. After watching true freshmen Forcier of Michigan and Barkley of USC come of age right before our eyes on Saturday...in their second college football games EVER...I'm still wondering when it's going to happen for Terrell Pryor. Or IF it is going to happen. Hey, I know Forcier and Barkley have played two whole games while Pryor has played only 14, so we still need to give him some time.
2. At least on Saturday Pryor mixed in some nice throws with his panic throws. He just seems to lack the big play ability of the really good quarterbacks. And for all his speed, he never seems to explode...Vince Young he's not.
3. Just a brutal job by Tressel giving away three points at the end of the first half. Up 10-7, it would have meant so much to go in with a lead at halftime. 1:20 left, USC has no timeouts, and Tressel has Pryor throw two high risk passes into double coverages, which wind up with incompletions, giving USC a chance to tie the game at halftime...and they did. I'm not saying they shouldn't have thrown the ball, but do it in a controlled way which still eats time off the clock if it doesn't turn into a big play for OSU.
Think those three points weren't important? That end of half drive also gave Barkley the confidence do to it at the end of the game too. Other than those two drives, the kid didn't do much.
4. How many times can he run Herron into the line on first down? My goodness, throw in something else on first down once in a while...ANYTHING...and that Herron play might actually work on occasion.
5. I didn't agree with the announcers who kept saying OSU was controlling the line of scrimmage all game. They did at times, but at times they didn't...and not when it counted.
6. Pleasantly surprised with the defense, although time will tell how good the USC offense really is.
7. Next year OSU plays Miami at home, part of a four game homestand that also includes Marshall, Ohio and Eastern Michigan. And in the Big Ten they play Penn State and Michigan at home as well. Pretty embarassing. Of course Pryor is only going to be a junior next year, so we'll have to give the kid a break and let him grow and develop some more.
8. What's with the i-dotting guy hitting the camera?
9. The game is in Ohio, USC only has 5,000 fans and half their band, and I felt like I heard the USC fight song all night...
10. Do the Song Girls ever actually DO anything? I never even see them dancing.
11. Did Cris Carter's kid play? I don't remember seeing him.
12. Who is the backup QB this year? Can he throw the ball?
13. Wow, that place would have been rocking if they would have won...
14. Spare me the moral victories speeches. Just spare me. This is Ohio State, the standard here is to WIN...not to play well and lose and say 'well at least we didn't get humiliated this time'.
15. Still think we'll beat Michigan?
Sandra