Carson Palmer Gets His Wish & Is Traded
SO Hungry Right Now
The Oakland Raiders and Cincinnati Bengals have completed a deal that sends quarterback Carson Palmer to Oakland. The Raiders included the teams 2012 first-round pick and a future pick in the package, according to reports, that could be a 2013 first-round pick, depending on certain conditions.
Fox Sports Jay Glazer cited coach Hue Jackson’s close relationship with Bengals owner Mike Brown as the reason for the deal. Brown had vowed not to honor Palmer’s offseason demand to be moved to another team. Jackson is in his first season as Oakland’s coach but was a Bengals assistant from 2004-06.
Oakland (4-2) is in dire need of a quarterback after Jason Campbell broke a collarbone in Sunday’s victory over the Cleveland Browns. Kyle Boller and rookie Terrelle Pryor are the other quarterbacks on the Raiders roster. Campbell had surgery Monday and will be out at least six weeks.
Acquiring Palmer, 31, isn’t a sure fix for the Raiders. He has yet to play this season and Bengals coach Marvin Lewis refers to him being retired. Plus, critics note that questions were being raised about his arm strength in recent seasons.
Palmer has not been idle. He has been working out in California with former New York Jets quarterback Ken O’Brien, and former Bengals wideout T.J. Houshmandzadeh.
Palmer is signed through 2014, signed in December 2005, which carries a prorated $6.9 million cap hit for the Raiders, who don’t have that much room and might need to dispose of a contract. Palmer is due $11.5 million in 2012, $13 million in 2013 and $14 million in 2014. There is also a $1 million roster bonus the next three seasons.
Oakland Raiders Looking At David Garrad & Carson Palmer
R.I.P. Al
The Oakland Raiders have contacted free agent quarterback David Garrard as a possible replacement for injured quarterback Jason Campbell. The Raiders are also reportedly exploring the possibility of trading for Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer before Tuesday’s trade deadline.
Garrard was let go by the Jacksonville Jaguars in September, just before the start of the regular season. Like Garrard, Palmer has not played this season, after refusing to report to the Bengals when his trade demand was not met.
Campbell left Sunday’s 24-17 victory over the Cleveland Browns with a broken collarbone. He is expected to miss the rest of the season.
The Raiders are 4-2 and do not want their playoff hopes to disappear with Campbell’s injury. Kyle Boller finished Sunday’s win over the Browns after Campbell was injured, and rookie Terrelle Pryor is also on their roster.
ESPN Sues Ohio State
.
ESPN has sued the Ohio State University, alleging the school violated state public records law by denying requests for items related to an NCAA investigation that has led to the loss of football coach Jim Tressel and star quarterback Terrelle Pryor. The lawsuit filed Monday in the Ohio Supreme Court asks justices to order the university to release the records and pay attorney fees and court costs. Among records sought are correspondences referring to Ted Sarniak, reportedly a mentor of Pryor in his hometown Jeannette, Pa.
Among its arguments, ESPN says the university cited an inapplicable federal student-records privacy law in denying records.
Jim Tressel Honored During Fourth Of July Parades In Ohio
In Ohio they don’t care what time of year it is, it’s always a perfect time to honor former Ohio State head football coach Jim Tressel and at the same time mock former quarterback Terrelle Pryor. Here’s video of an Ohio parade in Westerville with a section called a “Tribute to Tressel” and was lead by a blue Dodge called the “Tressel Vessel.”
However in Arlington, Ohio, the Fourth of July parade decided to make fun of Pryor by having one car with the sign that read “Pryor’s Tattoo and Gold Exchange.”
CFL Team Acquires Negotiating Rights To Terrelle Pryor
All Eyes On Me
The Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League have acquired the negotiating rights to former Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor and have spoken to his lawyer about bringing him to the league. Pryor’s attorney, Larry James, said Wednesday that the CFL is a genuine possibility for him.
“Yeah, it’s like I told (the Roughriders). My house is not for sale, but at the right price, it’s on the market,” James said.
Roughriders general manager Brendan Taman said that the team owned Pryor’s CFL negotiation rights and was intrigued by the 6-foot-6, 233-pound quarterback.
“He’s a heck of an athlete,” Taman said. “We get a lot of U.S. college football up here. We’re well aware of him. With the (bigger) field up here in Canada, with the athlete that he is, he would be an interesting component to come up here and run around and do some things as a quarterback.”
Taman said he was more concerned about Pryor’s passing ability than his past.
“It (the CFL) is a pass-oriented league, so that’s one thing he’d have to master,” he said. “But as a runner he would flourish up here, I know.”
Saskatchewan acquired the rights to Pryor from the two-time defending Grey Cup champion Montreal Alouettes and have 10 days to make at least a minimum offer once it contacts Pryor or his agent. When Montreal traded the rights to Pryor it allloowed the Alouettes to place former North Carolina State quarterback Russell Wilson on the negotiation List.
He also could take a year off to heal from ankle surgery last January and prepare for next year’s NFL draft. Many experts think that might be the way to go.
Former Ohio State Player Back Maurice Clarett Says Athletes Are To Blame
Free Ja Rule
Former Ohio State University running back Maurice Clarett blames athletes rather than coaches and fans for the culture that created problems in the Buckeyes football program.
“There’s no secret regime, there’s no secret congregation of people who sit around at Ohio State who gives young guys money,” Clarett said Wednesday on The Dan Patrick Show. “Anything that any player goes and gets is all based on him and who he meets in the community. The coaches and the university have no control over what the young guy’s doing.”
The NCAA is investigating Ohio State players who allegedly received improper benefits and special deals on cars. Five players have been suspended for the first five games this fall for trading signed jerseys, championship rings and other items for cash and discounted tattoos from a Columbus tattoo-parlor owner.
Buckeyes coach Jim Tressel was forced to resign last week for knowing about the players’ involvement but not reporting it as required by his contract and NCAA rules. Star quarterback Terrelle Pryor, one of those suspended and a subject of the NCAA probe, announced Tuesday that he would not return for his senior season.
Clarett, ruled ineligible after carrying Ohio State to its first national championship in 34 years said the university cannot control everything that players do.
“There wasn’t any coach or any booster or any member in or around Ohio State who helps you get a car,” Clarett said, recalling his own time on campus. “It doesn’t go on. It’s just guys doing what they want to. People will forever do what they want to. It’s nothing more than young guys making mistakes.”
Clarett rushed for 1,237 yards in his only season was suspended the following summer for taking improper benefits, including cars. An investigation ensued and that’s when Clarett accused Ohio State of academic fraud during the improper-benefits case in 2003. But on Wednesday he said he had lied and manipulated the professor to get good grades. He never played in another college game.
“People didn’t reach out to me. I reached out to people,” he said. “Just when you’re traveling around the community, I reached out to people: ‘Hey, I’m struggling with this. Hey, I need help with this.’”
Asked later where his national championship ring is, Clarett said, “That’s at my mother’s house. There’s not one piece of memorabilia that I don’t have.”
Terrelle Pryor Leaves Ohio State University
All Eyes On Me
Ohio State University quarterback Terrelle Pryor will end his Buckeyes football career amid allegations of improper benefits and not return for his senior season according to his lawyer Larry James.
“In the best interest of my team, I have decided to forgo my senior year of football at the Ohio State University,” James read a statement on behalf of Pryor.
James said Pryor had mulled over his options for several days before deciding Tuesday evening. He added that Pryor is unsure if he will enter the NFL’s supplemental draft, although all signs point to that being his next step. If he had returned Pryor would have been suspended for the first five games of the 2011 season for trading personal memorabilia for money and free tattoos.
More damaging evidence continued to roll in hours after Pryor’s lawyer made the announcement as it was discovered Pryor had made anywhere from $20,000 to $40,000 for autographing memorabilia.
A former friends who claims he witnessed the transactions spoke to the network, saying Pryor signed at least 35 items and was paid $500 to $1,000 each time he signed something for Columbus businessman and freelance photographer, Dennis Talbott. NCAA violations were discovered when Talbott’s name was seen on checks that Pryor was depositing into his personal bank account.
Bobby Petrino Still Puzzled Ohio State Players Were Eligible For Sugar Bowl
Let Me Hear Your Pig Call Bobby
The Sugar Bowl was played five months ago but that doesn’t mean University of Arkansas head football coach Bobby Petrino has gotten over the fact that five suspended Ohio State players were allowed to face the Razorbacks. The Buckeyes beat Petrino’s team 31-26 with starting quarterback Terrelle Pryor, Dan Herron, DeVier Posey, Mike Adams and Solomon Thomas in their lineup after seeing their penalties pushed to the start of the 2011 season.
“There’s no question that I don’t understand how they were eligible to play in the game,” Petrino said Tuesday. “I just don’t, and I never will. They (the NCAA) kind of changed the rules for that bowl game.”
As a competitor Petrino said he was fine with Arkansas facing the best Ohio State players in the game even though it certainly was detrimental to his team.
Ohio State’s Jim Tressel Accused Of Lying To Hide NCAA Violations
So Warm & Friendly
The NCAA is accusing Ohio State head football coach Jim Tressel of lying to hide violations by players who traded memorabilia for cash and tattoos. In a notice of allegations sent to the school, the NCAA said that the alleged violations relating to the coach are considered “potential major violations.” The NCAA says Tressel “falsely attested” that he reported all knowledge of NCAA violations to the school.
Ohio State must go before the NCAA’s committee on infractions August 12. Tressel has admitted he knew in April 2010 that some of his players were involved with a local tattoo-parlor owner and were trading memorabilia for cash and tattoos. The players were suspended in December of 2010 for the first five games this fall, as was Tressel for not reporting the violations to his Ohio State superiors.
Former Buckeye quarterback and current NCAA ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit said “it would be very difficult moving forward with Jim Tressel.” Herbstreit called the saga “a real black eye on the entire university,” one that, had it happened to Tressel’s predecessor John Cooper,
“Not only would they have fired him, they would have actually lined him up, had a firing squad, and fired him. I mean, he would have been ambushed, destroyed.”
He then said his first piece of advice to Tressel would be to “quit recruiting players like Maurice Clarett and Terrelle Pryor.”
Ohio State Jim Tressel Asks His Suspension Be Bumped Up To 5 Games
That's What Leaders Of Young Men Are Suppose To Do
For once The Ohio State Buckeyes might actually be doing something right when head coach Jim Tressel has asked that his two game suspension be bumped up to five games, the same that was handed out to his five players right before the Sugar Bowl. On the same night that the NCAA announced that it upheld the five game suspension for the players for selling memorabilia and receiving improper benefits, Tressel requested to the university he do the same amount of time.
Ohio State had suspended him for the first two games and fined him $250,000 after he failed to inform the university of potential major violations and signed NCAA paperwork saying that he knew nothing about those violations.
“I spoke with Athletics Director Gene Smith, and our student-athletes involved, and told them that my mistakes need to share the same game sanctions,” Tressel said in a statement. “Like my players, I am very sorry for the mistakes I made. I request of the university that my sanctions now include five games so that the players and I can handle this adversity together.”
The first two games are projected as easy victories against University of Akron Zips and University of Toledo Rockets, but the Buckeyes then face University of Miami Hurricanes, and University of Colorado Buffaloes and Michigan State University Spartans at home. The five players suspended are quarterback Terrelle Pryor, tailback Dan Herron, receiver DeVier Posey, left tackle Mike Adams and defensive lineman Solomon Thomas are suspended.
Ohio State Terrelle Pryor Snatches Fan Sign
The event may be old since the Sugar Bowl occurred last Monday but this video just recently went viral and in it shows the Ohio State team heading into halftime to through their tunnel under a cloud of Arkansas fans. That’s where quarterback Terrelle Pryor snatched a Razorbacks fans sign away from them.
Just funny how 75 percent of the team already passed under the sign with no problem and the one player to reach up and grab the sign is the one player to have all the negative hype surrounding him entering the Sugar Bowl
Primetime College Football: Allstate Sugar Bowl
TALENT
This game goes down on the ESPN network and it features The Ohio State University Buckeyes taking on University of Arkansas Razorbacks in the 77th annual Allstate Sugar Bowl at Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Arkansas, 10-2, 6-2 SEC, Razorbacks were viewed as an SEC contender earlier in the season but on the biggest stages in SEC play came up short, falling at home to Alabama and then again at Auburn. Head coach Bobby Petrino has a balanced offensive attack as his team uses the pass to set up the run as they average 489.2 yards of total offense, with 338.4 coming via the pass.
Arkansas is led by standout quarterback Ryan Mallett who threw for 3,592 yards and 30 touchdowns. One of Mallett’s favorite targets is tight end D.J. Williams led the way among pass catchers with 49 receptions for 589 yard and 4 touchdowns. Mallet spread the ball around a lot this year as 6 different receivers had at least 4 touchdowns on the season.
The ground game is led by tailback Knile Davis and his 1,183 yards and 13 touchdowns for a huge 6.6 yards per carry.
Ohio State, 11-1, 7-1 Big Ten, The Buckeyes shared the Big Ten title with Michigan State and Wisconsin, and earned their 6th straight BCS Bowl bid and 9th overall, the most among all Division I schools. The lone loss on the season came in Madison against the Badgers but the team rebounded to win 5 straight to the first school in Big Ten history to win at least 10 games in six consecutive seasons.
Head coach Jim Tressel and the Buckeyes, had an NCAA investigation on their hands that left five players status for this game in question, including quarterback Terrelle Pryor. However the five in question will be suspended for the first five games next season and were recently cleared to play in this game, providing they gave a commitment to return to Columbus next year.
Pryor’s suspension will cover the first five games of next season, so he will be under center tonight orchestrating an offensive that amassed almost 450 yards total per game, with tremendous balance. One of the few teams in the country with over 200 yards both rushing (219.7 ypg) and passing (229.2 ypg).
Pryor completed 65.8 percent of his throws for 2,551 yards and 25 touchdowns with 11 interceptions. When Pryor looked downfield he could either look left for Dane Sanzenbacker and his 52 catches for 889 yards and 10 touchdowns or to his right for DeVier Posey,who will also sit the first five games in 2011, and his 50 catches for 778 yards and 6 touchdowns.
Tailback Dan Herron, who will also sit the first five games in 2011, rushed for 1,068 yards and 15 touchdowns on 5.6 ypc. Pryor got involved as well ranking second with 639 yards and 4 touchdowns.
This marks the first-ever meeting between these two schools.
PICK: The Ohio State University Buckeyes
Primetime College Football: Buckeyes vs Badgers
TALENT
This game goes down on the ESPN network and it features the Ohio State University Buckeyes taking on the University of Wisconsin Badgers at Camp Randall Stadium.
Head coach Jim Tressel brings his Buckeyes into Madison as the number one team in the country with an overall record of 6-0 and 2-0 in Big Ten play. Tressel has his Buckeyes riding a 12 game win streak after easily beating Indiana 38-10 last weekend to earn his 100th victory at Ohio State.
Junior quarterback Terrelle Pryor, 1349 yards 15 touchdowns 3 INTs, is a main contender for the Heisman Trophy and the Buckeyes will only go as far as he leads them. He is also second on the team in rushing with 354 yards and has scored 3 touchdowns while averaging 6.2 yards per carry. Although the season rest on Pryor’s shoulders he does have help from junior running back Dan Herron, 355 yards 7 touchdowns. When Pryor goes to the air he has a pair of solid receivers in senior Dane Sanzenbacher, 411 yards 7 touchdowns, junior DeVier Posey, 364 yards 3 touchdowns.
The Buckeyes defense is once again stacked with All-American talent, highlighted by senior linebacker Ross Homan, 37 tackles, 1 sack, 1 INT, 1 fumble recovery, junior defensive linemen Nathan Williams, 24 tackles, 5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, and senior defensive lineman Dexter Larimore, 16 tackles, 4 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, are a huge reason why Ohio State are holding teams to 13 points per game.
Head coach Bret Bielema has his Badgers playing it’s first game against a number one team in Madison since 1997. It is just the ninth time ever that the Badgers have played host to the top team in the nation and they have only three wins in the previous eight encounters to show for it. Bielema has his team with a 5-1 overall record and 1-1 in the Big Ten.
Wisconsin’s success is hinged on it’s running game where they rank 11 in the nation and average 240.8 yards per game against its opponents. The Badgers are carried by a potent one-two punch from junior running back John Clay, 692 yards 9 touchdowns, and freshman James White, 485 yards 8 touchdowns. The two running backs are averaging 6.0 and 7.7 ypc.
Wisconsin is a running team but they have a very good quarterback in senior Scott Tolzien, 1,207 yards 7 touchdowns 2 INTs, who is completing 69.7 percent of his throws. When the senior quarterback looks to throw the ball he looks for fellow senior Lanc Kendricks, 391 yards 3 touchdowns.
The Badgers defensive has a tendency to give up the big play but still have some great players on that side of the ball. Junior defensive tackle J.J. Watt, 30 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, and junior defensive tackle Louis Nzegwu, 23 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, do the most damage and should be paid attention to.
Ohio State holds a 53-17-5 advantage in the all-time series, including a 25-10-2 record in Madison.
PICK: The Ohio State University Buckeyes
Primetime College Football: Herd vs Buckeyes
TALENT
It’s that time of year again and I’m back for another year of Primetime College Football posts. For those that weren’t regular visitors of this site during this time last year, you might not be familiar with the whole objective of these posts. First, breakdowns only come of Primetime games during the season. Bowl season is a different story and every bowl game will get it’s own moment. Second, I don’t root for any particular college team just a fan of all 120 Division 1A and no I won’t call it Football Bowl Subdivision. Third, these are just observations I collect throughout the year and notes I’ve compiled through the years on players. I did somewhat OK last year going 66-27 and slightly above .500 during the bowl season.
Oh and if you have any pictures of TALENT decked out in school gear,doesn’t matter which school, feel free to send them my way. So let’s kickoff the 2010 NCAA Division 1-A Football Season.
The Big Ten Network kicks off the first game of this years Primetime College Football and it’s between Ohio State Buckeyes and Marshall University Thundering Herd. A lot of experts have the Buckeyes in contention to play for a BCS National Championship Game this year but it all starts here.
Marshall starts the year off with new coach Doc Holliday, who inherits a Thundering Herd squad that finished 7-6 a year ago, including 4-4 versus Conference USA competition. Marshall’s last victory was a 21-17 win over Ohio in the Little Caesar’s Pizza Bowl. Holliday a longtime assistant and regarded as one of colleges best recruiters returns 13 starters. Senior quarterback Brian Anderson is one of them after throwing for 2,646 yards and 14 touchdowns 13 INTS last year. Anderson main target is Antavious Wilson, who lead the team in catches with 60 catches for 724 yards and 3 touchdowns as a freshman.
On the defensive side of the ball for Marshall they will have to lean heavily on defensive end Vinny Curry, 59 tackles and 3.5 sacks as a sophomore, and senior linebacker Mario Harvey, 117 tackles and 7 sacks. The Thundering Herd will have to go about this season without one of their best play-makers in the secondary after DeQuan Bembry, 3 INTS, was kicked off the team after being charged with assault on a police officer.
Jim Tressel is currently 9-0 in season openers at Ohio State and will watch as junior quarterback and Heisman Trophy candidate Terrelle Pryor looks to guide the Buckeys to their 6th consecutive Big Ten title. Ending the season Pryor had one of his best games when he threw for 266 yards and 2 touchdowns while rushing for 72 yards in a Rose Bowl victory over Oregon.
Two of Pryor’s favorite targets in DeVier Posey, 60 catches for 828 yards and 8 touchdowns, and Dane Sanzenbacher 36 catches for 570 yards and 6 touchdowns are back. The offense firepower doesn’t stop with Pryor and his favorite wide receivers as running back tandem of Brandon Saine, 739 yards, 5.1 ypc, 4 touchdowns, and Daniel Herron, 600 yds,7 touchdowns also are back. The offensive line also returns four starters.
The headlines might read all about Pryor and the offesne but it’s the Buckeyes defense that should dominate the 2010 college football. The defensive unit that was among the nation’s best last year, ranking 5th in total defense and scoring defense brings back most of its starters. Defensive lineman Cameron Heyward is the real star on the defensive side of the ball as he led the team with 6.5 sacks and 10 tackles for loss last year. Top tacklers Ross Homan and Brian Rolle also have returned for their senior seasons.
The only previous meeting between Ohio State and Marshall occurred in 2004 with a narrow 24-21 win by the Buckeyes. The Buckeyes haven’t dropped a home opener since a 19-0 loss to Penn State in 1978.
PICK: The Ohio State University Buckeyes
NCAA Set To Ban Eye-Black Messages
GONE
The NCAA’s Football Rules Committee proposed a couple of new rules yesterday aimed at player expression banning all words, logos, numbers or other symbols on the players’ eye black which would take effect for the 2010 season.
Tim Tebow is the most prominent example of a player using his eye black as a personal billboard, having used it the past two seasons to print a bible verse and promote his faith. After the 2009 BCS Championship Game, 92 million people Googled “John 3:16,” the verse Tebow wore during the game.
But not all eye black messages have the best intentions. The NFL and now NCAA are wary of curse words or other taunting messages on the eye black which could cause fights on the football field. Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor got in some hot water last season when he honored quarterback Michael Vick on his eye black with his name.
The timing of the new rule is a bit curious coincidentally right after Tebow graduated.
Primetime College Football: Citi Rose Bowl
GO DUCKS
“The Granddaddy of Them All” adds its 96th edition this New Year’s Day, as Ohio State Buckeyes from the Big Ten face the Pac-10 Oregon Ducks in the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. The Rose Bowl is the oldest bowl game, beginning in 1902 and played continuously since 1916. This year’s combatants both come in with stellar 10-2 records.
Jim Tressel’s Buckeyes captured the Big Ten title for the fifth straight season, distancing themselves down the stretch with five straight victories to close out the regular season. OSU’s bowl resume consists of an 18-22 postseason record. The team will be participating in its fifth straight BCS bowl game and is making its first trip to the Rose Bowl since 1997. The Buckeyes are 6-7 all-time in 13 previous Rose Bowl appearances.
The Buckeyes have relied heavily on the run this season and the results are a gaudy 198.9 yards per game, on 4.7 yards per carry. Quarterback Terrelle Pryor leads the team in rushing with 707 yards and 7 scores. Tailbacks Brandon Saine has 694 yards, 4 touchdowns and Dan Herron has 558 yards, 7 touchdowns. The passing attack has taken a backseat in Columbus this season as Pryor has completed 55.8 percent of his passes this season for only 1,828 yards with 16 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. Sophomore DeVier Posey is the top target with 52 receptions for 727 yards and 7 touchdowns.
The Buckeyes ranked fifth among the nation in total defense at 262.5 ypg. The Buckeyes were lead by linebackers Ross Homan 96 tackles and 2 sacks and Brian Rolle 91 tackles. Kurt Coleman amassed 64 tackles and 5 interceptions in the secondary. The ends where maned by Cameron Heyward 5.5 sacks and Thaddeus Gibson 4 sacks.
Chip Kelly has pushed all the right buttons in his first season at the helm at Oregon. The Ducks opened the year with a deflating loss at Boise State, but regrouped to win seven straight after that to regain their swagger. A shootout loss at Stanford put the Pac-10 title in jeopardy, but Oregon responded with three straight wins and clinched the conference title with a 37-33 win over rival Oregon State in the regular-season finale. Oregon is making its first appearance in the Rose Bowl since 1995 and will be making its fifth trip to the event all-time, with a 1-3 record thus far.
The Ducks uses one of the nation’s most prolific ground games to wear the opposition down and it has worked to near perfection. Oregon ranks sixth nationally rushing the football, averaging 236.1 yards per game on an impressive 5.5 yards per carry.
The team lost starting tailback LaGarrette Blount for most of the season after Blount was suspended after one hittin quittin a Boise State player. It was OK for the Ducks as red shirt freshman and ALL-SGE-NCAA Football member LaMichael James took over the slack and rushed for 1,476 yards and 14 touchdowns, on 6.9 yards per carry after the third game of the season. The other devastating weapon on offense for Oregon is dual-threat quarterback Jeremiah Masoli. The junior signal-caller rushed for 659 yards and 12 touchdowns while throwing 2,066 yards and another 15 scores. Wideout Jeff Maehl had 686 yards and 6 touchdowns, but tight end Ed Dixon did a lot of damage with his yards after catch and blocking while finishing with 42 receptions for 551 yards and 6 touchdowns.
Oregon is giving up just 329.4 yards of total offense per game, while limiting opponets to 23 ppg with 32 sacks and 24 takeaways on the year. Freshman safety John Boyett has made an immediate impression on this team with 78 tackles and 2 interceptions. Safety Javes Lewis has 77 tackles, 2 interceptions while corner Talmadge Jackson has 4 interceptions. Linebacker Casey Matthews has 72 tackles, 2.5 sacks, Spencer Paysinger 72 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss and Eddie Pleasant 50 tackles, 7.0 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks while defensive end Kenny Rowe has 8.5 sacks with 11 tackles for loss.
The series between these two teams has been dominated by Ohio State, which has won all seven prior matchups. However, these two schools have met just twice in the last 41 years (1983 and 1987). The first-ever meeting took place in the 1958 Rose Bowl.
PICK: University of Oregon Ducks
Ohio State Is Embarrassing
Pathetic
There is no and never will be any of hiding of the fact that out of 120 D-1 football, 211 D-1 baseball, 347 D-1 basketball universities, (the) Ohio State Buckeyes is the only school that I cannot stand and that is with a passion. So I took great joy yesterday in watching the Buckeyes lose at Ross-Ade Stadium to the Purdue Boilermakers 26-18. The No. 9 ranking out the window also brings a smile.
Usually the country is forced to wait till after New Years Day to watch the Buckeyes get humiliated on national television but that funeral came earlier this year. (the) Ohio State Terrelle Pryor was supposed to be the second coming of Vince Young in scarlet and gray. Yeah right. Pryor on Saturday was average through the air (17-of-31 for 221 yards) but horrendous on the ground, rushing 21 times for 34 yards, fumbling twice and throwing 2 interceptions, committing more turnovers by himself than Purdue, which is awesome.
The Buckeyes where trying to put their season back on track after getting done up by a freshman quarterback in its own crib on September 12th to USC. But any hopes of that happening now are dashed as they sit tied with Michigan State in the Big Ten. If this isn’t Jim Tressel single worst defeat then it hangs right up there with the disastrous 2004 season.
To all the people of Columbus, Ohio that No.18 ranking is a fraud, just like your Buckeyes team is a fraud. The only thing that can top this loss for me, is if Rich Rodriguez protects the Big House on November 21.
Fingers are crossed.
Primetime College Football: Trojans vs Buckeyes
TALENT
The Ohio State University Buckeyes took a beating last years huge showdown in Southern California 35-3. Many Buckeye players have circled this match up on the schedule for a chance at redemption to help improve their national reputation, which was significantly bruised.
The University of Southern California Trojans travel to Ohio Stadium, which will surely will be a rocking, revenge-minded crowd of more than 106,000. Head coach Pete Carroll’s Trojans have beaten the Buckeyes six times in a row, including three times in Rose Bowls. However the Trojans will be maned by true freshman quarterback Matt Barkley, who in his short college career has yet to play in a hostile environment like the one he will face tonight.
The Trojans, have a talented offensive line, a dizzying array of running backs,and receivers who can leap buildings in a single bound. Barkley months removed from his senior prom, acknowledged he was a little shell-shocked at the outset of last week’s opener against San Jose State. But he got comfortable in a hurry and had a big day in a 56-3 rout.
Head coach Jim “‘The Vest” Tressel hopes the noise, rabid fans, a national television audience and a Buckeyes team still pissed off from last year’s pounding should combine to help Ohio State. It’s not so much last year’s loss that haunts the Buckeyes, it’s the margin. Every newspaper columnist, TV analyst, blogger, Web site in the land has taken shots at the Ohio State program for failures in big games over the past three years.
The Trojans have plenty of big-play guys around, including tailback Joe McKnight, wide receiver Damian Williams, fullback Stanley Havili, and star safety Taylor Mays. The USC defense lost most of its big names from a year ago but the same could be said of Ohio State. A lot will depend on McKnight and company to gain as much yards possible to take some of the pressure of freshman Barkley.
Ohio State’s hopes hinge on quarterback Terrelle Pryor. Pryor the leader of Ohio State’s offense, is 6-foot-6, and big enough to take down would be tacklers. His greatest weapon is his blazing speed for someone who weighs 235 pounds. The Buckeyes are hoping his ability to escape the pocket can keep the USC defense honest and limit blitzes. Pryor has yet to have a big passing game, so if the Buckeyes should fall behind early it’s likely the Trojans will come after him when he looks to throw.
High-profile losses in national title games after the 2006 (Florida) and 2007 (LSU) seasons, and defeats to USC, Penn State and Texas a year ago have led many to rank Ohio State’s program a notch or two below the elite teams in the nation.
PICK: University of Southern California Trojans
