I want to see a show of hands. How many Buckeye fans wives, or husbands, I know there are some lady Buckeye wackos out there, who believe their spouse might kill them before the season is over?

I know all of you are as fired up as I am. A tumultuous season. Many of us tired of seeing the same old thing continue to cost us. Now we hit the high of highs. We beat a major rival, a legendary program led by a legendary coach, and we do it in their joint. Not only did we beat them, we dominated them. My wife avoids me on football Saturdays. I was as excited as the dogs when she came home Saturday evening. I swear I think she likes me better when things are not going well. I have not calmed down. She is not amused. We win out, something that is highly likely, and go to the Rose Bowl. Who woulda thunk it? What brought us to this state?

Several things but maturity is right at the top of the list. I think the coaching staff has uncinched a notch, maybe two, on the belt. We are not as predictable. It would not have mattered if this young team had not shown maturity. Minnesota and New Mexico State will never be seen as big victories but they could be the most important games of the year. This young team needed to have some success. That happened in those two games. I think this huge win would not have happened if the pups did not get the chance to good for a couple of weeks, and find their confidence.

Look at the offensive line. Never forget that offensive linemen come along so much slower than other positions, so the small number of starts with the bulk of this offensive line is that much more magnified. Posey did not play alot last year. Look at the difference in him the last few games. Zack Boren became the lead fullback we have been looking for. Mike Adams is still the most physically gifted offensive lineman that has come into the program since Orlando Pace but Andy Miller is the better player right now. Notice how the line settled in once Miller was getting the bulk of the reps. He is playing very smart football, and I have noticed a tenacity about him. He hangs tough. Plays to the whistle. One thing that drives me nuts about Adams is when he is beat, he is beat. I want to scream at him that he has one of the most mobile quarterbacks in the game back there. Stay with it. Your not beat until he is on the ground. Miller does that. Keeps after his man. I wonder if things would have been different if he was not out of the Purdue game. He might not have fallen for the head games Purdue was playing that left Adams not knowing which way was up. Notice the amount of man coverage in this game. You would think Penn State would be the last school that the staff would decide to put the corners on an island against. The staff knew they were ready for it.

We will win out. We will play in the Rose Bowl. Those are the things we are in control of. What we are not in control of is the one element that makes this a season to remember, a rematch with USC. We should have beaten them in September. We will beat them in January. That is, if we get the chance. Make offerings to the god of football, the great Gridiron, for the opportunity to exorcise the demons of failures past. I am told the burning of Clarett jerseys is a good way to be granted favors. I propose a mass burning. Bring an extra jersey. We don't want to see a bunch of half naked guys dancing around. Of course, this request does not extend to Lady Buckeyes.

This young team looks like it has found its mojo. Woe be to anyone that steps on the field against them.

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Comments (14)

Rosebowl
written by kevinc21ox, November 09, 2009

All we have to do is beat Iowa and we clinch the Rosebowl. Big10 tie breaker rules say conference record then head to head. In a 3 way tie if one team has beat the two other team that team gets the auto bid because of that even though I would hang my self if we lose to scUM we would still go to the Rosebowl. We do NOT have to win out. Why is no one saying this? Am I wrong?

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written by RipsManifesto, November 09, 2009

You're not wrong. No one is saying it because we don't want to lose to Michigan regardless. I'm not sure anything would make my day more than Michigan losing to Wisconsin and then OSU keeping them from bowl eligibility. Although I'd hate for them to fire RichRod and make a serious run at Kelly or Harbaugh.

I'm extremely pleased with our win, but let's keep our enthusiasm tempered until after Saturday. It seems like every time we start wondering "what if" then the carpet gets pulled out from under us. Hopefully the team just stays focused, keeps improving, and saves the celebrating for after the bowl game--wherever we end up.

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written by dumbme, November 09, 2009

Not to be a buzz kill as you are on high. Next year, do you think Adams soul searches and drinks a big glass of nasty or Miller keeps improving while Adams just does not have the mental makeup?

Glad to see you Halle Berry happy.

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written by Playmea, November 09, 2009

You are not wrong. And everyone is saying it. Duane just wasn't very specific.

We DO, however, need to win out to win an "Outright" B10 championship.

Anyway, if you read carefully, Duane never said "IF we win out, we go to the Rose Bowl". But he did predict that we will win out.

But rest assured that everyone is aware of what you have brought up. And its all ni our grasp.

Duane, I don't think its possible for USC to get the Rose Bowl bid at this point. Unless Oregon, Arizona, Stanford and Oregon State all end up losing. USC has 2 PAC 10 losses. I think tis safe to say that their race is the same as ours. The winner of the Oregon/Arizona game goes to the Rose.

But with that in mind, its not nearly as certain. And far more possible. Personally, I don't like rematches. And I don't think we'd gain as much playing them again. Even if we win. I think we'd be better off playing Oregon. But we need Oregon to really step it up to close out. Otherwise, this Rose won't do us many favors as far as national perception. Which in the BCS world means a great deal.

Personally, I don't care. If we make the Rose Bowl and get a win, I don't care who we play, that will be a big lift for these kids in the offseason. It's been three years since we closed with a win. That could make a big difference going into 2010.

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written by NorthCoaster, November 09, 2009

Any word on Shugarts and the severity of injury? Even if Cordle starts and plays great, we need the depth.

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written by dumbme, November 09, 2009

I think Marcus Hall is in there before Cordle.

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written by Loganbuck, November 09, 2009

I have a Steve Bellisari number 8 floating around somewhere, I was going to give it to the Salvation Army a few years ago, but decided that poor people need better stuff than that. Would burning that bring the USC rematch?

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written by Bukirob, November 09, 2009

I love the game played by the OL. They, for the first time, looked like a solid unit. If the OL can build on this win and continue to progress LOOK OUT. What is even more exciting is how much returns for next season.

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written by Duane Long, November 09, 2009

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written by dumbme, November 09, 2009
Not to be a buzz kill as you are on high. Next year, do you think Adams soul searches and drinks a big glass of nasty or Miller keeps improving while Adams just does not have the mental makeup?

Glad to see you Halle Berry happy.

Nasty is a part of it but what I have seen that bothers me as much, if not more, is the mental errors that come with his lack of reps. Between injuries and suspensions he has missed a great deal of time. Purdue was sneaking up a linebacker inside the defensive end pre-snap then backing him out as the ball snaps. Linemen are taught to take the inside guy. If all they get is a step, that is all they want. Adams still looking for the guy on his inside shoulder while the end was running free on his left. I don't know how many times they got Adams with that. If all he does is become the pass blocker he is capable of being, that would be great. Getting the nasty it takes to be a 3rd and 2 run behind him type of blocker is extra.

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written by Roc1507, November 09, 2009

As a buckeye who works in the Oregon "lion's den", I would like nothing better than to see us beat the ducks. Even without the cache of beating SC, there is the perception that Oregon has the superior team speed to the Big 10 powers. I think Rolle could clamp down on Masolli.

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Hold on
written by pula, November 09, 2009

CAUTION, Buckeye nation, caution. Saturday's win in Happy Valley was a great win, but everyone is beginning to draw conclusions about a team that has only played ONE complete game this season. We know the defense will be solid next week, but will the offense show the consistency we all hoped? Terrelle, the OL, and the WRs showed us a lot on Saturday that we should be optimistic. I think that the offense plays solid on Saturday, but I don't expect they will be as good as they were against Penn State. I just hope we are beginning to cement an identity.

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written by edbuck51, November 09, 2009

Kinda wish Stanzi wouldn't have got hurt.

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written by Hilltopbass, November 09, 2009

Celebrate the big win and anticipate the 2 to come, but don't forget the lessons of the past. They still have to show up and play on this level the next 2 weeks, if they do they will dominate the great pretender IOWA and face the team up north who has lost thier identity and been detached from thier history. We've all seen better Buckeye teams than this choke on a sense of entitlement, this team still has something to prove.

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written by GregLee2000, November 10, 2009

I said it back in the summer, and i stand by my comments. We would struggle early on, and by the end of the year, no one will want to play us. Just like Georgia was a few years back.

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