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October 25, 2014Everything seems to be dropping these days. Undefeated teams fall through the standings, trees shed their leaves, and temperatures dip across Big Ten country. It officially feels like fall, and the Ohio State Buckeyes are deep into the heart of a season of restored hope.
This weekend brings what should be the Buckeyes’ stiffest road test to date as they travel to Penn State. While the Nittany Lions have only competed in the Big Ten since 1991, they feel like an ancient conference rival. Part of that is cultural – no one would call Pennsylvania a Midwestern state, but travel to Happy Valley and you’ll see that this part of the state has much more in common with Ohio, Michigan, or Indiana than it does with New York or New Jersey. A brisk fall day in State College comes complete with leaves on the ground and a rabid fan base that comes from hundreds of miles to converge on massive Beaver Stadium, capacity 106,572, which gets just as loud and hostile as the Horseshoe or the Big House.
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This Saturday projects to be a perfect one for football. Highs in the low 60s will provide a sunny backdrop for a long day of tailgates. The temperature will drop to the low to mid 50s by the 8 p.m. kickoff – cool but comfortable for an October night in Happy Valley.
At field level, J.T. Barrett and the reignited Ohio State offense will face a considerably colder welcome. Not only will they have to contend with a rabid crowd worked into an even bigger frenzy by the fact that this game is designated as Penn State’s annual White Out, but the Nittany Lion defense will be the toughest unit the Buckeyes have faced all season.
The Penn State defense is ranked fourth nationally in total defense, allowing only 283.3 yards per game. Only one PSU opponent (Northwestern) has cracked 300 total yards against the Nittany Lions. They are also the fifth-ranked scoring defense in the nation at 15.2 points allowed per game.
Combine the fall weather, a massive and rowdy stadium, Penn State’s stingy defense, and the timeless uniform looks of both teams, and this Big Ten battle will be about as classic a football game as one could imagine. Penn State even sports an anemic offense that is ranked 111th nationally at 21.2 points per game, and this game moves even closer to peak Big Ten.
The only thing ruining the classic feel of the matchup is Urban Meyer’s speedy spread offense that has been tearing opposing defenses limb from limb ever since the Virginia Tech loss. J.T. Barrett and his cohort are finally getting the plaudits and national recognition they have earned, although Meyer has been quick to pump the brakes on the redshirt freshman’s growing bandwagon after his torrid last four games. After the demolition of Rutgers in which Barrett racked up 368 total yards and five total touchdowns with no turnovers, the Ohio State head man said of his quarterback, “He [Barrett] was the offensive player of the week (in the conference), and he could have played a lot better. There’s nothing quite like a guy who thinks he played great and then the position coach (offensive coordinator Tom Herman) jump right in there, ‘This is what you can do better.’”
While it’s not hard to see Meyer’s purpose with the remarks, it wouldn’t kill him to praise his starter just a little. Don’t hold your breath for any Meyer gushing, but if Barrett can lead the offense to a key road win in a hostile environment this weekend, the Buckeyes coach’s comments may begin to take on a bit of a different tone.
5 Comments
“no one would call Pennsylvania a Midwestern state…”
Actually, I would–and a lot of others do too. It’s up for the debate (inasmuch as nerdy geographical topics are debated). On one hand, PA is very Midwestern (western PA with Pitt and Erie), and on the other hand, it’s as eastern feeling as New Jersey (Philly).
Love this game. I only wish Penn State was as competitive as they were in the past.
‘This weekend brings what should be the Buckeyes’ STIFFEST road test to date as they travel to Penn State.’ Hope that wasn’t a Sandusky joke. Too soon??
I would love to see WFNY cover OSU more. Good stuff.
I see PA and OH as “mid-eastern,” while Michigan is decidedly backwoods.