Official 2012 Football thread

[bicranium]

Whatever bro, we beat the SEC today. Northwestern represent!!!11111

[bicranium]

lol... Rich Rod going HARD in the paint. Beat Okie St. 59-38.

[SpaceGhost]

lol... Rich Rod going HARD in the paint. Beat Okie St. 59-38.

 

We are rhyming when we post now?

[Dr. Pomade]

LOL @ Wisconsin and Iowa.

 

And can we please get the fuck rid of preseason rankings?

[DaddyBuiltRacing]

The preseason rankings will remain as they are used to build hype for early games sadly. With that said OSU is #12 in the new AP poll

 

This week there is some good matchups:

Cal vs #12 OSU

#1 Alabama vs Arkansas (looked like a much better matchup last week haha)

#18 Florida vs #23 Tennesee

#2 USC vs #21 Stanford

#20 Notre Dame vs #10 Michigan St (My upset pick)

[2 Sweet]

Florida @ Tennessee should be a really good game

[bicranium]

We are rhyming when we post now?

 

It's like I'm a poet and I don't even know it. :lolguy:

 

And can we please get the fuck rid of preseason rankings?

 

Never gonna happen. The polls alone are a multi-million dollar business now. You've got media outlets ranking teams for the next season the second the whistle blows on the national title game. Then an update of those when players are done declaring for the draft. Then another when the recruiting classes are signed. Then another when spring practices are over. Then maybe one more at the very beginning of summer. Then the polls that actually matter come out while teams are still going through their fall camps.

[LJ]

B1G is something like 5-27 against the Pac12 on the West Coast in the regular season. Nebraska, Wisky and Illinois were more of a "yup" situation. Not to mention, Illinois has no starting QB

[LJ]

Here is the actual stat

With the 3-0 run against the Big Ten on Saturday, the B1G is now 5-28-1 at Pac-12 schools since 1993 when Penn State joined the conference.

[Dr. Pomade]

I'm picking Stanford over USC as my upset special.

 

And wooooow Pac12 owns the B1G since the 1990s - that stat is just gross.

[bicranium]

I wonder what the stat is for Pac 12 @ B1G in that same time frame. That's a much tougher adjustment than the B1G going west. Cal basically has to play at 9am this weekend in Columbus.

[DaddyBuiltRacing]

So basically since the 90s the B1G has sucked everywhere outside of the conference lol. The SEC and Pac12 own us according to the stats

[LJ]

Illinois not having Scheelhouse really fucked them over in a game I thought they could win. Their starting QB had 66 total yards :dumb:

[bicranium]

Anyone else notice Urban kinda going after Fickell/Vrabel at the end of the game on Saturday? Urban's being very vocal about not liking the lack of pressure they're getting on the QB and seemed to want Fickell/Vrabel to send more guys. Fickell kinda just ignored Urban on the sideline but Vrabel went back and forth with him.

 

I remember thinking at one point early in the 2nd half that Urban could easily go over to them and say something about this defense being the same shit he tore apart in the national title game against OSU.

 

Apparently Urban was the one who had to make the defensive staff put OJ out there more on Saturday (and he played a great game) and now he's going to be doing more with the defense again this week. Having to do a lot more than he expected on that side of the ball with 2 guys who served as interim head coaches as the leaders of the defensive staff.

[LJ]

Anyone else notice Urban kinda going after Fickell/Vrabel at the end of the game on Saturday? Urban's being very vocal about not liking the lack of pressure they're getting on the QB and seemed to want Fickell/Vrabel to send more guys. Fickell kinda just ignored Urban on the sideline but Vrabel went back and forth with him.

 

I remember thinking at one point early in the 2nd half that Urban could easily go over to them and say something about this defense being the same shit he tore apart in the national title game against OSU.

 

Apparently Urban was the one who had to make the defensive staff put OJ out there more on Saturday (and he played a great game) and now he's going to be doing more with the defense again this week. Having to do a lot more than he expected on that side of the ball with 2 guys who served as interim head coaches as the leaders of the defensive staff.

 

I get the feeling that Fickell is being too conservative because he thinks it provides job security. I feel like Vrabel is a firey guy and just defends his BFF. I hope that's all it is and Urbs can just mentor him into having more confidence in himself/.

[Dr. Pomade]

I wonder what the stat is for Pac 12 @ B1G in that same time frame. That's a much tougher adjustment than the B1G going west. Cal basically has to play at 9am this weekend in Columbus.

 

I don't know the stats, but I can recall from recent memory that USC has no problem traveling east and straight waxing teams, including Nebraska, Virginia, and Arkansas.

 

Also, yeah, I noticed Urban jawing at Vrabel and Fickell too. I think they kind of deserved it. Our defense, which was supposed to be our strong point this year, has not been impressive in the least.

 

Two games in, and I'm a total fan of Urban. I love how aggressive he is. I love how he actually answers questions - unlike Tressell, who I can't recall ever giving a straightforward answer in the decade or so that he was here. I'm fine with us going for it on 4th-and-1 and not getting it occasionally as opposed to fucking punt, punt, punt, punt.

[bicranium]

Meyer just had his presser and it sounded like maybe he went off a bit prematurely. Sounds like he's discussed a lot with Fickell and Withers since Saturday and understands there are some guys missing (Bennett especially then Williams being there one day and not the next) and then some guys just not making the right plays. Depth errors (like on the 3rd and 21 UCF converted after Meyer accepted the chop block penalty) and others as results of simple laziness by the players not paying attention to the whole play/coverage call.

 

He did say there could possibly be some strategy changes on defense this weekend though so he's still influencing some change there it sounds like.

 

And I definitely hope everything works out where Fickell simply adapts/adjusts to what Meyer wants. I thought Heacock's defenses for the most part were fantastic and the stats make that hard to argue against.

 

Also a fan of Urban going for it like he has. There's a big-time Tressel guy on the Scout forums who is heavily criticizing what Urban has done regarding going for the TD against Miami and not getting it, missing the 4th down conversion near mid-field against UCF, etc. but these aren't just strategy things at this point in the season against this level of competition. It's a mental thing too. He's trying to see just what his guys are capable of and I'd rather have us miss these inconsequential "do or die" plays now and learn from them than have it happen later in the season because we never tried it.

[LJ]

Also a fan of Urban going for it like he has. There's a big-time Tressel guy on the Scout forums who is heavily criticizing what Urban has done regarding going for the TD against Miami and not getting it, missing the 4th down conversion near mid-field against UCF, etc. but these aren't just strategy things at this point in the season against this level of competition. It's a mental thing too. He's trying to see just what his guys are capable of and I'd rather have us miss these inconsequential "do or die" plays now and learn from them than have it happen later in the season because we never tried it.

 

Yeah, the only aggressive thing that I didn't like was taking the penalty on that 3rd down. One of those that the risk slightly outweighs the reward in that situation.

[Dr. Pomade]

Yeah, the only aggressive thing that I didn't like was taking the penalty on that 3rd down. One of those that the risk slightly outweighs the reward in that situation.

 

I second guessed that too. However, I think the odds are in your favor there: you're not supposed to make a 3rd-for-21 and the penalty clearly took them out of FG range. So, I can see where you take the penalty. Of course, hindsight is 20/20.

[LJ]

I second guessed that too. However, I think the odds are in your favor there: you're not supposed to make a 3rd-for-21 and the penalty clearly took them out of FG range. So, I can see where you take the penalty. Of course, hindsight is 20/20.

 

I think my problem was that the team just drove the ball straight down the field on you, you get your defense off the field, hence taking the 4th down rather than the penalty.

[Dr. Pomade]

I think my problem was that the team just drove the ball straight down the field on you, you get your defense off the field, hence taking the 4th down rather than the penalty.

 

Totally see where you're coming from. I have no argument against it.

[DaddyBuiltRacing]

I am re-watching the game right now and some things stand out to me:

 

1. OSU's defense gets absolutely 0 pressure on the qb

2. The linebackers have really under whelmed me thus far

3. Braxtons mechanics need worked with big time (he's basically using nothing but his arm, no leg/hips in his throws)

4. I miss the I formation (really just miss watching Boren blow people up)

5. The clapping before the ball is snapped annoys me

6. A runningback better step up or Braxton will be done by mid season (taking a lot of shots)

7. The secondary might be the best unit of this team

8. Devin Smith and Philly Brown appear to have stepped up as the 1 & 2 receivers on the team

 

I'm gonna keep watching the game and will update list lol

[SHIEF]

I am re-watching the game right now and some things stand out to me:

 

1. OSU's defense gets absolutely 0 pressure on the qb

2. The linebackers have really under whelmed me thus far

3. Braxtons mechanics need worked with big time (he's basically using nothing but his arm, no leg/hips in his throws)

4. I miss the I formation (really just miss watching Boren blow people up)

5. The clapping before the ball is snapped annoys me

6. A runningback better step up or Braxton will be done by mid season (taking a lot of shots)

7. The secondary might be the best unit of this team

8. Devin Smith and Philly Brown appear to have stepped up as the 1 & 2 receivers on the team

 

I'm gonna keep watching the game and will update list lol

 

Urban said the clapping is so the center doesn't have to take his eyes off the defense or for line adjustments/audibles. Instead of using the foot/hand motion looking back at the qb.

[DaddyBuiltRacing]

Just annoys me, idk pet peeve I guess

[YellowBalt]

Just annoys me, idk pet peeve I guess

 

It is a good way to catch the defense offsides or see the blitz coming. Guiton did it against Miami. Seems to me that he does more checks at the line than Miller does.