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Offense -
It's never really a bad day when your offense scores 40 points and puts up 530 total yards. Ohio State came out moving the ball pretty well but simply did not cash in on two TD opportunities early in the game. It wasn't until late in the 2nd quarter when we finally got the TD monkey off our back. Santonio Holmes took a 12 yard out and turned it into a 41 yard TD. But, the half was one of mistakes and ineffective teamwork. The two early drives that settled on FGs, were stymied in some part by penalties. False starts were called on both TJ Downing and Doug Datish. We also were called for an illegal substitution infraction when we were inside the 15 yardline. These were signs that the team wasn't completely focused.
There are many bringing up Troy Smith's 3-9 start, but one must inventory the incompletions. 2 of them were throwaways, 1 was a drop by Stan White, Jr. and another was a deep ball to stretch the defense (low percentage). That's 4 of his 6 incompletions. His only two poor throws were his first to Gonzalez that was behind and late and this fade to Santonio which had no chance since it wasn't lofted so Holmes could run underneath it. Otherwise, it was a combination of poor OL play, poor WR routes and, generally, just an erratic first half.
Fortunately, the second half was completely different. Troy Smith was settled down and throwing more accurately. Our offense was back to more 1 or 2 back sets with QB under center. Why we started in shotgun is hard to tell. (What was also hard to understand was why Pittman was removed from the game on the 2nd or 3rd series.) Pittman got on track in the 2nd half early with his beautiful TD run. He didn't reach 100 yards or his 1000 yard season but, barring injury, he should get both against Northwestern.
Overall, I mark this group with 3 Buckeye Leaves. The second half was strong but not enough to erase the poor opening stanza. The running game worked up over 200 yards which was actually below what Illinois normally gives up. More than anything, this game will serve to wake up any players who thought the offense was a well oiled machine. It ain't.
Defense -
As I mentioned on the front page, this as the 5th game holding the opponent under 200 total yards. That is just an amazing stat. It would feel even better saying it had this group of players not just given up 578 at Minnesota. Nevertheless a very solid performance. Donte Whitner again played like a possessed man. He has simply been outstanding all year and yesterday showed that you had better not throw a screen pass in his direction. To use a metaphor, he will "Blow it Up" or "Three Mile Island It". It won't work. What some have also forgotten is Donte Whitner also caused a fumble early in the game. It was called back because of an Illinois hold, but Donte saved a possible TD, made the tackle and popped the ball loose. Heady player.
The other usual mainstays were playing well again. Hawk, Kudla, Schlegel all had solid games. Bobby Carpenter did have a half sack that he was erroneously not credited for. I do think he is still somewhat hindered by his right knee injury. He didn't wear the brace this week but he clearly wasn't moving as well as he normally does. Marcus Green and Quinn Pitcock had perhaps their best game in tandem as well. Quinn seems be back to full strength after missing considerable time v. IU and not 100% v. Minny.
One of the more unusual things about this game was the lack of action our CBs received. Ashton Youboty made the first tackle of the game and wasn't heard from again (for the most part...and that's a good thing). I don't think Malcolm Jenkins was ever around the ball...again that's good.
I awarded 3.5 Buckeye leaves for this game. They were impressive but the run D was a little loose early on. The Illini's hurry-up offense also caused us some trouble which was a little disappointing.
Special Teams -
Josh Huston again didn't have a KO returned. That may be some sort of record. Does anyone know? He was equally good again on FGs, making both of his attempts. He has quietly built a nice senior resume, 16-19 on FG tries, a vast majority of KO's that aren't returned and he leads Ohio State in scoring by a wide margin. Our kicking and coverage units are 2nd to none.
This unit gets docked, however, because of yet another turnover while fielding a punt. Ted Ginn was electric running back 1 punt for 20 yards and a KO for 65 yards but he also fumbled a punt that would have most likely lead to points just before the half. Illinois was kicking from the back of their own endzone and the resulting kick was short and would have given OSU great field position (that is, if Teddy Ballgame wouldn't have returned it for a score). But, instead of returning it for a score or simply just fielding it cleanly, Ginn mishandled the catch and the fumble was recovered by Illinois. This was significant because we only held a 13-0 lead and Illinois could have driven to make it 13-7 since we just handed them excellent field position in their own right.
::Other Thoughts & Observations::
* It was positive to see back in this game some players who were out injured. Seen back on the field were Tyler Everett and Kirk Barton. Both players saw action early.
* Once again, the offensive unit was blessed with playcalls arriving to the huddle early.
* The ShotGinn formation made a return in this game on 2 separate series. I believe this is the first we've seen it since Michigan State, if not Penn State.
* Antonio Pittman is getting the pub he deserves for his running. What many aren't talking about is his receiving skills. He has turned into a valuable threat on those middle screens and his open field moves are under-appreciated.
* In our last 3 games, Ohio State has put up 126 points and surrendered only 43. That's an average of 42-14 per game. The opposition isn't the stiffest but, as I mentioned last week, we weren't doing this against comparable teams early in the year.