ESPN Article: Pressure on Day
Nice to see preseason articles about the pressure on OSU to beat Michigan, instead of the annual “can’t beat his rivals” articles about Harbaugh pre-2021. They talk about having more motivation, but how much more motivation do you really need for The Game? I think it makes them play tighter, especially when they get behind.
I rewatched the 22 game yesterday. Glorious still.
In case anyone is looking for highlights
What did the nickel say to the dime? "Nope"
That play is unbelievable on every rewatch.
Braiden McGregor pops several times in those defensive highlights. Is he getting any all-big ten or maybe even all-american buzz heading into the season?
Nope. Only in Michigan circles, so far as I can tell. And that is still mostly hope because we need to see if his bottom half is finally as strong as his upper half. If he gets it all put together, I expect we'll see the early comparisons to Hutch begin to come true...
Thank you for posting this! Still chills down my spine every play!
When JT was listed as the best DE in the B1G, and claimed to be perhaps the best in the nation, in the Maize n Brew piece this morning...I looked up the stats to see how many tackles he had in this game-4!!! Just as interesting was the total number of tackles difference between the two defenses-Michigan with 73 and OSU 48. Michigan only ran 60 plays...OSU ran 77. This was a sea-change game.
I had a similar revelation about Tuimolau on Seth's HTTV post. I was nervous the dude was going to put some good pressure on our OL that day due to his consistency throughout the season/his PSU game. But man did he play bad and have very little impact. Constantly overrunning plays and looking lost at times (see: JJ's running TD).
Now when you say consistency...he had 4 sacks and 17 tackles the ENTIRE year. I'm not saying that's bad, it's about in line with the younger Bosa's freshman year, but I wouldn't call that consistent. He disappeared for long stretches of the season, and really only impacted one game.
I'm by myself in my house screaming out loud as if the game is taking place right now. I cannot watch this enough! Thanks for posting.
This video should be frozen at the top of the message board until this year's edition of The Game in November.
I don't believe they ever stopped the run.
Damn you. Even thought I have watch those highlights more times than I can count I had to watch them again.
Glorious.
Frequently watch highlights of this game to brighten up a day, but this is the first version I've seen with Urban Meyer's "they WILL stop the run" comments so brilliantly inserted. Delightful! Thanks very much.
Other than posting the score, which never gets old, there is now the obligatory, "Which one?"
Which one?
Been a parkinggod subscriber for years, everyone here should be subscribed. :)
Me too, the day before. Can't wipe the smile off my face.
Should be another great game this year, 159 days. I can hardly wait.
I saw Day in an interview the other day. He looked concerned.
When Knowles went meth-bender (thx Brian) and stacked the box, JJ picked them apart. In the 3rd, when they played off the line of scrimmage, we methodically gashed them down the field, on the ground, and in the air, culminating in JJ's run for a tuddy.
One of Coach Harbaugh's statements has me more excited for this season than I can remember. When he said he was going to track and chart touches and targets, shooting for 50/50 run/pass balance. Making sure our WR's get their chances to make plays.
75 days until kickoff against East Carolina!
For anyone who was at the '22 game, what did OSU's Stover do earn the 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct flag on the OSU punt at 11:46 in the 4th after McGregor batted down the 3rd and 3 play?
Fox never showed the replay on the penalty and neither Johnson nor Klatt described what happened. Penalty did not lead to anything directly significant as we missed the 57-yard field goal on the ensuing drive, but it certainly added to the narrative.
If I remember correctly, he blocked a guy way out of bounds.
Yeah, he cheap shot'd someone from behind, about 5 yards OOB.
Arguably the stupidest unsportsmanlike action I have ever seen. Way after the play, out of bounds, and surrounded by players on the sideline.
Stover or the headbutt? "Which one?"
Good to know -- Stover had a tough day and cost them a chance to make this game close. Four receptions for 13 yards. Got tackled for a 3-yard loss on a sideline pass in the 2nd, then dropped the 4th down pass that Harrell-defended (on the same set of downs) on a drive that was heading towards an OSU 13-3 or 17-3 lead. In the 4th, got the 15-yard unsportsmanlike penalty and then dropped the Sainristil break-up in the end zone in the 4th.
Not a fan of piling on a guy when they have a bad day ... unless they deserve it.
I wouldn’t take the 50/50 run pass balance statement too literally. Michigan is going to be up big, early in quite a few of their games and they’ll certainly look to lean on the running game to close those games out, keep the clock moving and get out healthy.
I took it to mean moreso that they’ll look to be less predictable and more balanced on standard downs. Meaning maybe they’ll be closer to 50/50 than they have been, and it might come out that way in some closer games but I don’t expect them to come out and throw the ball 35 times against Bowling Green either.
I'm hoping that's not the case. I'm hoping we continue to get reps in the passing game. In the first half with our ones and in the second half, if we're up big, with our backups. We have to begin preparing for the Natty in week one, getting lots of game reps for our passing attack, putting a lot of plays on film so we can run progressions of those plays in The Game and the CFP's.
Plus, it will help us recruit 5-star WR's. We will need excellent WR's to win the Natty and they won't come to Michigan if we don't throw the ball more.
I just don’t think that’s realistic. We’re simply not going to continue to air it out while we’re up 35 points in the second half of games. Early in games, sure. In close games against teams like PSU and OSU, absolutely. But over the course of the season, 50/50 just isn’t realistic.
I also don’t see why 50/50 is necessary to accomplish what you’re asking. OSU ranked 68th in pass attempts per game and threw it 46.7% of the time. Tennessee ranked 57th in pass attempts and threw it 44.7% of the time. Aiming to be somewhere in that 43%-45% range is plenty, and a much more realistic/attainable goal. Michigan threw the ball 38% of the time last season for reference.
It's the perception that concerns me. The fact that other schools, the Bama's, the Bulldogs, the Nuts are telling 5-star receiving prospects that we're a run first team. Michigan has a history of wasting WR talent. The Super Bowl Champs were 61/39 pass/run. The Bears were 60/40 the other way. The stats you cite are lower than I would have expected. If we can get in the same range as the Nuts, that should suffice.
Yes, we're going to have the opportunity of hosting playoff games in December. Yes, I love that we develop the best OL's in the country. And our ability to run the rock is great, it's the foundation of a great offense. But I'm greedy. I want an exciting, aggressive passing attack that will attract 5-star recruits, and allow us to take what defenses give us, just like the second half of The Game last year. When they load the box, we throw touchdown passes. When they back off to defend the pass, we gash them for 5 or 10 yards a pop on the ground. And then at the end of the game when they load the box again to stop the run, our OL is so good we're able to rip off two 75-yard runs anyway.
I want JJ and his successors to learn from their mistakes, and throw their first pick-6s earlier in the season, not in the CFP. JJ did a heck of a job leading us back to almost winning that playoff game. I can't help but think if he had more passing reps earlier in the season he might have pulled it off.
That's my dream, for what it's worth...
The bigger issue in the passing game is how conservative it is moreso than how often we throw it. While I’d like to throw it more than 38% of the time, we utilize the short pass a lot more than other teams while they’re more explosive. That’s a bigger difference than OSU averaging 5 more attempts per game.
As good as our tight ends are, we also feature them a lot in the passing game and that’s taking away touches from WRs, which adds to that perception as well.
Agreed. Coach Jim said this year he was going to track and chart targets to make sure everyone gets a chance to eat. It sounds like we're going to be more intentional to target our WRs regardless of the score. While I would prefer not to run up the score on an inferior opponent for sportsmanship's sake, it appears that it may be necessary for recruiting's sake.
Edit: The presser popped up in my YT feed so I watched it again. Coach Jim specifically said 9-10 touches each for Blake and Donovan, 6 targets each for CJ and Roman, 6-8 for Colston, more targets for the new receivers (and TEs) coming up, and a third back will get some carries. Plus Orji looked too good in the Spring Game to not see the field in some capacity. Near the end, Jim talked about being accountable and reviewing all of the touches and targets on Sundays. Understanding that these numbers aren't hard and fast, more like minimums to shoot for, and we'll be taking what the defense gives us.
Still music to my ears...
It's Jim Harbaugh's offense. He ain't tossing the ball for 30 yards on the regular up four TDs.
I can see them being more like 55/45 run/pass this season. I'd say they have trust in JJ heading into this season.
Link to the full games to watch for the holiday.
2022:
https://nfl-video.com/michigan-vs-ohio-state-football-week-13-2022-full-game-replay
2021:
https://nfl-video.com/ohio-state-buckeyes-vs-michigan-wolverines-football-week-12-full-game-replay-2021-ncaa-football
But if it wasn't for the fluke big plays, like CJ's 69 yd TD, and his 75 yd TD, and Loveland's 45 yd TD, and Mullings jump pass, and Edward's 65 yd TD, and his 85 yd TD...
If you take away those big plays, OSU was the better team.
Anybody arguing that doesn't know football. OSU went all in on stopping the run by playing a lot of Cover 0, after getting hacked to death by Michigan's run game in 2021.
And for OSU it mostly worked until they started giving up these huge pass plays. The first TD was a simple 10 yard out or curl, CB missed a tackle, and was down the sideline untouched. That's what happens when you play straight man. It doesn't take much to turn a short gain into a long one.
I have a feeling Day is the Big Ten's version of Lincoln Riley. Practices are offense heavy, defense isn't given the resources to be successful, and it shows in games when the offense can't score 50.
osu should have been ready for some trick plays after 2021. The flea flicker, WR end around, sneaking JJ in there for an unexpected pass. Osucks were dumb for not thinking Harbaugh would not mix things up in 2022.
The other thing that whole line of excuses ignores is that Michigan's defense came up huge. When I rewatch the highlights, I'm always reminded about how many times the D stopped them on key drives.
I recognize the sarcasm / tongue-in-cheek. What I find preposterous is that argument regarding big plays (fluke/luck) is only valid if you lost by one score. What is the point if you can take away three big plays (assuming that takes away the score which is a significant assumption) and you still have fewer points and lose the game?
Lol
“If you take away all our opponents’ scoring plays, we win that game.”
Some top-notch mental gymnastics right there. I’m honestly impressed that Ryan Day - and all the OSU fans who parroted him - can keep a straight face when saying that.
And if the bear hadn’t stopped to take a dump, in the woods, he would have caught the rabbit.
I still have the games + post-game for the '21 and '22 games on my DVR. Sometimes I just pull them up to enjoy the moments again
Me too. The highlights are great on YT but sometimes it's nice to savor the whole thing. Like Urbz saying pregame that the Nuts will stop the run and the question will be whether our receivers can get separation.
Like I said on another thread, they stopped the run until they couldn't. And CJ and Colston got separation. Bell too, and then the PI.
The pendulum swings both ways..... it was in their favor for far too long for a number of reasons, now its back where it belongs.
Day = Cooper 2.0.....
Kinda like when Bannister broke the 4 minute mile, it was no longer an undoable. Now our team not only knows they can win the game, but they know they can dominate the game and that's what they expect to do. I doubt we'll rip off 8 or 10 straight, but I do feel pretty confident that we'll be winning more than losing in the 2020/2030 decade.
GO BLUE!
Beating the Buckeyes never gets old, even on reruns.
I couldnt agree more. When a bully finally gets beat two things happen at the same time.
The bully knows he CAN lose.
The person being bullied knows he CAN win.
Go back and watch the 2019 game if you have the stomach for it. That game turned on two plays - both of which went OSU's way and we caved our shoulders and basically gave up.
Dobbins "dribble" fumble that went straight back to him
Shea's fumble from the shotgun on 3rd & goal.
Go back and watch the 2017 game in you have the stomach for it. That game IMO turned on ONE play.
We're up 14-0 and drop a surefire pick 6 that would've extended the lead to 21-0. Instead of shrugging it off we crumbled.
Not the case anymore. Now WE know we can get through adversity and they have doubt. It's glorious.
Spot on. It's about making the toss up plays. Instead of a TD to Stover (which it clearly looked like it would be and would have changed the game) Sainristil makes up ground and knocks ball out.
I’ll disagree on 2017. That game turned slowly as we repeatedly missed plays in the passing game that were there to be made. Then Haskins came in and shredded the D with crossing routes. Calling the Metellus dropped pick a “sure fire pick 6” is a gross exaggeration. It might have been a pick 6, but it was far from a certainty. My only reason for even bothering to debate this is that every mention of Metellus in the NFL on this board results in this same narrative that he dropped a guaranteed pick 6, and it’s BS.
Edit: Exactly at 12 minute mark. I count 6-7 Buckeyes with a reasonable shot at a tackle attempt, and Metellus is starting at a dead stop.
https://youtu.be/xsqwTURH_ok
Agreed, upon watching the video my angle in the stands screamed "pick 6" but the actuality is he probably is tackled short of a TD.
That being said if he hadnt dropped the surefire interception (better?) the Buckeye drive is stopped, the scored remains 14-0 at the worst and momentum is still all Michigan. For the record from that play forward we were outscored 31-6 and I can tell you that in the stands the overwhelming feeling post-drop was "here we go again" and that feeling seemed to be also shared on both sidelines.
Definitely a huge, missed opportunity, and I wasn't in the stands in 2017, so I'll take your word for it. Watching from home, I remember O'Korn missing Wheatly on the double fake screen, missing Chris Evans on 4th down, and the Austin Mack catch on 3rd and 13 after two straight false starts that he managed to hold on to even after getting obliterated by Kinnel.
I was there in 2019 and absolutely felt the "here we go again" feeling in the stadium on the Dobbins basketball dribble play. 2019 was also massively overrun with Buckeye fans, something that seemed to be better in 2021 and I expect to continue to improve this year.
Agree. I also believe that the 2018 game was winnable with a different game plan. Too many dropped passes and no defense for crossing routes. Michigan got run out the shoe but geez it felt like we handed it to OSU with stubborn offensive and defensive play calling. OSU played with a short field for most of the game (one impressive 90ish yard drive but I didn't expect to stop them every time.)
Exactly, and not only that but everyone in the Big House this time knows they can win and win big. I think everyone there will be even more hostile when osu comes back this year. It wont be the same confident 5,000-7,000 osu fans coming to start their OH chants throughout the stadium in the 4th quarter. I suspect they'll be even less of them there this time because even they know they arent a lock to win like they used to be. Its amazing how much red would be spread throughout Michigan stadium the last decade. Hopfully that shit is done now.