If I had told you immediately after the Navy game that OSU would post a pair of shutouts in consecutive weeks, what would you have told me? I’m nuts? I should be committed?
What if I had told you it would be against two teams that run the precise style of offense that has given the Buckeyes so much trouble the last several years. What would you have called me then? Certifiably insane, I suspect.
Ohio State has now refused to allow an opposing team to score a point in 8 consecutive quarters, and only 11 (to be fair) in the last 12 against teams that by all rights should have posted at least some kind of points against us. There’s not a Buckeye blogger out there who wasn’t expecting Toledo to at least score one touchdown early on us. Now we’ve blanked Illinois, so that begs the question…
Exactly how good is this defense?
Certainly, Toledo is…well…Toledo, and Illinois didn’t exactly light up the scoreboard against Missouri, but these types of teams – complete with their mobile quarterbacks, fast wideouts and shifty running backs – are notoriously tough to defend for any team. Ohio State just completely negated any offensive attacks they could muster. So much for the 7-to-9 Heisman run…
So whats next?
Indiana: Who managed to put up a very good fight against M*ch*g*n today. Indiana’s never exactly been much of a threat, but without their stellar quarterback, and completely lacking the “OSU” type talent, they should not provide a stern test.
Wisconsin: Who is looking substantially better than last season, but has escaped in just about every game they’ve played. This includes an 8 point win over a Michigan State team that is now 1-3 with loses to Central Michigan (2 points), Notre Dame (3) and now Wisconsin. Wisconsin has also escaped against such powerhouses as Fresno State and Northern Illinois. I suspect Wisconsin’s schedule is better than the name’s suggest, and Wisconsin is also famous for playing down to their opponents.
Purdue: Another spread style offense under new management. They fell to 1-3 after a close loss to Notre Dame, and including a loss to Northern Illinois (!). This game is probably ripe for the picking.
Minnesota: Again a spread style offense, though one that’s beginning to find it’s way in the world. A good fight put up against Cal makes this team look good. Unfortunately, all of their wins are against teams that we don’t really have a good read on.
I want you to look very closely at these four matchups. Name a team that you expect will be able to score points against us. Maybe Wisconsin? If they don’t, there is a very real chance that the first points we’ll have scored against us will come against Penn State in November. That would imply that through 9 games, OSU had given up a grand total of 45 points, or 5 points per game. That is the lowest average since 1973 when we gave up a paltry 3.667 points per game in the first 9 and secured 4 shut-outs.
Even now we’re only giving up 11.25 points per game. That’s the sort of defense any team would love to have.
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