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November 21, 2014I’m a college student. While I don’t attend Ohio State, my weekends are frequently spent driving from Philadelphia to various campuses to watch the Buckeyes. So it was only natural that I received a text this week from a friend who is a student at OSU asking me if I’d be interested in heading to Indianapolis for the Big Ten Championship Game as I did last season.
Was I interested? Certainly, although I know it’s not the best decision for me financially or academically, with the game falling just before my final exams begin. But then I took a step back and thought about the offer. How could I agree to drive 10 hours or more in a few weeks when it’s not yet guaranteed that the Buckeyes will even be there?
I don’t blame my friend for jumping the gun a bit. College students are wont to do so. Urban Meyer and his staff know as much, and that’s why the mantra in Columbus this week is simple – “Beat Indiana.”
With Ohio State up to number six in the most recent College Football Playoff committee’s rankings, it’s fun to lay out scenarios that would allow the Buckeyes to move into one of the top four spots. But Meyer knows that his job right now is to prepare his team rather than lobby the committee.
“Not right now, no, because I don’t want to make ignorant comments,” the OSU coach said when asked if his squad was one of the four best teams in the country. “We wake up every November or we wake up every day to compete for championships in November. It’s at the doorstep now.”
Those championships can begin this weekend. With a win over lowly Indiana (3-7, 0-6 Big Ten), the Buckeyes will claim the inaugural Big Ten East Division championship (their third straight division title) and return to the title game in Indianapolis for the second consecutive year. In spite of their less than impressive record, Indiana can be frisky if they’re on their game. Remember two years ago when the high-powered Indiana offense staged a furious comeback in Columbus that fell just short in a 52-49 defeat? Even more recently, this year’s version of the Hoosiers went into Columbia and defeated then number 18 and defending SEC East champions Missouri by a score of 31-27.
The Buckeye defense will have to show up again. Indiana running back Tevin Coleman is a legitimate stud. He’s already racked up almost 1700 yards on an average of 7.8 yards per carry to go along with 12 touchdowns. As Meyer said, “The tailback is ridiculous. He’s definitely an NFL running back.” After allowing Minnesota’s David Cobb to rack up 145 yards and three touchdowns last week, the Ohio State defense will need to handle their assignments and tackle better to avoid giving the Hoosiers any hope of making this a game.
While it would be preferable to keep Coleman and the Indiana offense in check, it’s likely that the Buckeyes will be able to simply outscore them no matter how many the Hoosiers manage to put on the board. IU’s defense is allowing 33.6 points per game this season, good for 106th nationally. J.T. Barrett’s Heisman campaign could get another boost this weekend.
Still, Meyer won’t look ahead to what lies beyond this Saturday’s matchup. He knows exactly what is at stake against Indiana and has no problem remind the media. “I’d make the comment that we’re one win away from representing the East in the Big Ten Championship Game, because I do know that.”
If the Buckeyes can take care of business this Saturday and earn the right to represent the East in Indianapolis, only then will I be able to give my buddy a solid answer on whether we’ll be joining them at Lucas Oil Stadium.
Image Source: Marvin Fong, The Plain Dealer
2 Comments
Indiana cannot beat Bowling Green and Penn State is the only Big10 game they lost by less than 16 points (including huge losses to Maryland, Rutgers, and Michigan).
As fans, we can look past this game. We are leading the Big10 East, not the SEC East where Indiana can go onto the division leaders home turf and take them out.
Heard this from the Browns leading up to the Jags game, too. Let’s hope this team means it.