Rival Rewind is Now a One Game Season
When Brady Hoke was named head coach in January, he immediately set the tone by referring to Ohio State as simply Ohio and made it very clear that beating Ohio was one of the supreme goals each season. And so we at Maize and Go Blue are taking it upon ourselves to dedicate a little time each week to our rival as well. In this weekly segment, we’ll give a brief recap of the previous week’s game and what it means for Michigan. For a full rundown of our rivals’ games, see Week 1, Week 2, Week 3, Week 4, Week 5, Week 6.
Now that Michigan has already played Notre Dame and Michigan State, we don’t care about those teams. The weekly Rival Rewind segment is going to transition into a sole focus on the lone rival remaining: Ohio State. It will provide a more in-depth look at each Ohio game and preview its upcoming game. Coming out of the bye week, this week’s recap/preview will be a little light, but will intensify the rest of the season leading up to the big late-November matchup.
 Ohio State: Beat #16 Illinois 17-7Record: 4-3 (1-2) Just like Michigan, Ohio State enjoyed a bye week this past weekend, allowing for the chance to work on certain things and get healthy for the remainder of the season. Unlike Michigan, the Buckeyes went into the bye week fresh off a big win. Ohio State upset previously unbeaten and 16th-ranked Illinois 17-7 in Champagne. The Bucks’ defense has been solid all season, holding Michigan State to just 10 points and ranking 12th in the nation in points against. But this game, the offense finally came alive just enough to get the win, thanks in large part to the return of suspended running back Dan “Boom” Herron. Ohio State threw the ball just four times the entire game (completing one) but rushed for 211 yards behind Herron’s 114 and ground out the win. The Buckeye defense held Illinois to 165 yards and 24 points below its season average while forcing three turnovers. Two of those turnovers led to Buckeye touchdowns. A fumble gave Ohio State the ball on the Illini 37-yard line, while an interception was returned to the Illini 12. Both turned into Ohio State’s two touchdowns. So is Ohio State really showing improvement, or is Illinois just worse than it appeared through the first six weeks of the season? It’s probably a little of both, but this was much more of a defensive win for Ohio State than a major offensive improvement. Herron certainly helps, as does left tackle Mike Adams, who was also suspended for the first five games. The two at least give freshman quarterback Braxton Miller experienced and talented weapons that he lacked at the beginning of the season. However, this is still far from a potent offense. Ohio State will live and die with its defense this season. This week, Ohio State hosts #15 Wisconsin in what will be a great measuring stick for both teams. Wisconsin suffered an agonizing defeat on a last-second hail marry at Michigan State last week and will be hungry to bounce back. Ohio State gets a chance to build on its momentum and capture a season-defining victory. As good as the Buckeye defense is, it will have a hard time slowing down Russell Wilson and Wisconsin like MSU did last week. Offensively, OSU will struggle to move the ball against a stout Badger defense that still allowed just 109 rushing yards in last week’s loss. Michigan fans: pay close attention to Dan Herron to see if he’s able to have another big game against another good defense. Also watch closely at how Miller handles one of the nation’s top defenses when he’ll likely be forced to put the ball in the air more than just four times. Next: Saturday v. #15 Wisconsin (6-1, 2-1) – 8pm on ESPN Prediction: Wisconsin 24 – Ohio 10
 Boom Herron's return shot some life into OSU's offense (photo by Jonathan Daniel, Getty Images)
|
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
