Big Ten ain't what it used to be!!

[tim123]

After witnessing Toledo over Michigan,Central Michigan over Michigan State and Ohio State not winning against top ten teams, it shows how the Big Ten conference is changing. I think the MAC is taking talent away from them do to the facilities and proximity to the Big Ten school's. The athletes would just as soon stay close to home and have the opportunity to play quicker as opposed to sitting out and waiting there turn. With what we have here and the coaching staff we have I see nothing but great things happening here. Go Zips!!

[lance99]

After witnessing Toledo over Michigan,Central Michigan over Michigan State and Ohio State not winning against top ten teams, it shows how the Big Ten conference is changing. I think the MAC is taking talent away from them do to the facilities and proximity to the Big Ten school's. The athletes would just as soon stay close to home and have the opportunity to play quicker as opposed to sitting out and waiting there turn. With what we have here and the coaching staff we have I see nothing but great things happening here. Go Zips!!

The Big 10 is changing, the issue is that the talent is going south, or west. The Big Ten is dead is because none of the top talent want to go to on of these schools because of what happend Saturday. The MAC is taking talent away, but not enough. Playing time may be important to players, but the conference need to step it up, but I don't think that they will do that.

[skip-zip]

After witnessing Toledo over Michigan,Central Michigan over Michigan State and Ohio State not winning against top ten teams, it shows how the Big Ten conference is changing. I think the MAC is taking talent away from them do to the facilities and proximity to the Big Ten school's. The athletes would just as soon stay close to home and have the opportunity to play quicker as opposed to sitting out and waiting there turn. With what we have here and the coaching staff we have I see nothing but great things happening here. Go Zips!!

I've hoped for this for years....and it's been gradually happening for years.We ABSOLUTELY compete againt Big 11 programs for athletes.......and also for students, media publicity, etc. It's what we always wanted, and it's here. Yes, our conference's defeats of Big 11 teams fuels the fire. So has OSWho's failure to beat a highly ranked team in the last 6 tries. It's a great day to be a Zips Fan

[Buckzip]

The B10 has really gone to crap. There are only 3 teams that are regulars in the top 20.PSU, OSU and UM. UM won't be down for long.I don't think it has a lot to do with talent. If you look at recruiting, those 3 still are usually in the top 15 in recruiting each year. The difference is coaching. The B10 still has that smash mouth philosophy which is outdated.

[tbozeglav]

The B10 has really gone to crap. There are only 3 teams that are regulars in the top 20.PSU, OSU and UM. UM won't be down for long.I don't think it has a lot to do with talent. If you look at recruiting, those 3 still are usually in the top 15 in recruiting each year. The difference is coaching. The B10 still has that smash mouth philosophy which is outdated.

3 yards and a cloud of dust?I was actually reading an article today about Tressel and his offensive game plan. He flat-out said he coaches his games to be a battle of field position with an emphasis on special teams and defense to win games.

[GP1]

I don't think it has a lot to do with talent. If you look at recruiting, those 3 still are usually in the top 15 in recruiting each year. The difference is coaching. The B10 still has that smash mouth philosophy which is outdated.

It does have to do with talent, but not in the areas where people look. The skill players at tOSU are for the most part just as fast and big as the players in the three major conferences. Where they have no athletic talent is on the offensive and defensive lines and LB positions. USC beat OSU because they created a match-up on 3rd & 17 late in the game where a far superior athlete was covered by a slow "suburban" LB from tOSU. Game over. With the addition of Pryor, they will see increasingly less skill players. Any kid with pro aspirations would not attend tOSU with him there. He can't throw the ball and the skill player would not be able to showcase his talents. Tressel is "all in" with Pryor. I'm not certain what he was trying to accomplish with him.tOSU is the best team in an increasingly bad conference. The do have to go to PSU and UofM is getting better. The Big Ten needs UofM to be good in orded for the country to take the league seriously.I've been reading the Columbus Dispatch a little this week. The coachers down there want Tressel fired for not winning big games. The truth is, he was not brought to tOSU to win big games. He was brought there to do two things: First, beat Michigan. He does that. Second, run a clean program. With a few exceptions, he runs a clean program. They did not hire him to win national championships. If they fire him, and they won't, they deserve their next John Cooper.

[Zipgrad01]

I don't think it has a lot to do with talent. If you look at recruiting, those 3 still are usually in the top 15 in recruiting each year. The difference is coaching. The B10 still has that smash mouth philosophy which is outdated.

It does have to do with talent, but not in the areas where people look. The skill players at tOSU are for the most part just as fast and big as the players in the three major conferences. Where they have no athletic talent is on the offensive and defensive lines and LB positions. USC beat OSU because they created a match-up on 3rd & 17 late in the game where a far superior athlete was covered by a slow "suburban" LB from tOSU. Game over. With the addition of Pryor, they will see increasingly less skill players. Any kid with pro aspirations would not attend tOSU with him there. He can't throw the ball and the skill player would not be able to showcase his talents. Tressel is "all in" with Pryor. I'm not certain what he was trying to accomplish with him.tOSU is the best team in an increasingly bad conference. The do have to go to PSU and UofM is getting better. The Big Ten needs UofM to be good in orded for the country to take the league seriously.I've been reading the Columbus Dispatch a little this week. The coachers down there want Tressel fired for not winning big games. The truth is, he was not brought to tOSU to win big games. He was brought there to do two things: First, beat Michigan. He does that. Second, run a clean program. With a few exceptions, he runs a clean program. They did not hire him to win national championships. If they fire him, and they won't, they deserve their next John Cooper.

You do realize that USC started 2 slow "suburban" linebackers on their ridiculously great defense from last year? Does Clay Matthews Jr and Brian Cushing ring a bell? They didnt exactly light up the combine with their 40 numbers. The difference is that Pete Carrol always had them in the proper position to make plays. He doesnt get middle linebackers matched up one on one with the best athlete on the field. When top 25 teams play (especially top 10), it doesnt usually come down to talent, it comes down to which coach makes the adjustments and puts their players in the best position to win. I could go on for days about how Urban Meyer, Pete Carrol and Les Miles made adjustments that Tressel never saw and couldnt deal with. He has his gameplan and that it is...he wont change from it. In the end it will be his demise.Unfortunately, we have seen the outschemed problem at Akron since I have watched in the mid 90's. I think we have upgraded our coaching staff to the point where, hopefully it is a thing of the past. We will see how this year unfolds.

[g-mann17]

I don't think it has a lot to do with talent. If you look at recruiting, those 3 still are usually in the top 15 in recruiting each year. The difference is coaching. The B10 still has that smash mouth philosophy which is outdated.

It does have to do with talent, but not in the areas where people look. The skill players at tOSU are for the most part just as fast and big as the players in the three major conferences. Where they have no athletic talent is on the offensive and defensive lines and LB positions. USC beat OSU because they created a match-up on 3rd & 17 late in the game where a far superior athlete was covered by a slow "suburban" LB from tOSU. Game over. With the addition of Pryor, they will see increasingly less skill players. Any kid with pro aspirations would not attend tOSU with him there. He can't throw the ball and the skill player would not be able to showcase his talents. Tressel is "all in" with Pryor. I'm not certain what he was trying to accomplish with him.tOSU is the best team in an increasingly bad conference. The do have to go to PSU and UofM is getting better. The Big Ten needs UofM to be good in orded for the country to take the league seriously.I've been reading the Columbus Dispatch a little this week. The coachers down there want Tressel fired for not winning big games. The truth is, he was not brought to tOSU to win big games. He was brought there to do two things: First, beat Michigan. He does that. Second, run a clean program. With a few exceptions, he runs a clean program. They did not hire him to win national championships. If they fire him, and they won't, they deserve their next John Cooper.

You do realize that USC started 2 slow "suburban" linebackers on their ridiculously great defense from last year? Does Clay Matthews Jr and Brian Cushing ring a bell? They didnt exactly light up the combine with their 40 numbers. The difference is that Pete Carrol always had them in the proper position to make plays. He doesnt get middle linebackers matched up one on one with the best athlete on the field. When top 25 teams play (especially top 10), it doesnt usually come down to talent, it comes down to which coach makes the adjustments and puts their players in the best position to win. I could go on for days about how Urban Meyer, Pete Carrol and Les Miles made adjustments that Tressel never saw and couldnt deal with. He has his gameplan and that it is...he wont change from it. In the end it will be his demise.Unfortunately, we have seen the outschemed problem at Akron since I have watched in the mid 90's. I think we have upgraded our coaching staff to the point where, hopefully it is a thing of the past. We will see how this year unfolds.

I do have to agree with Zipgrad here. There isn't really a talent discrepency and teams have been trying to get a running back or slot on a linebacker since the 70's (football is a game of mismatches look at Ozzie Newsome and Kellen Winslow Sr.). No the problem with the Big 10 is that the coaches in general are of an older generation. They play 60's ball while everyone else is perfecting 80's (run and shoot) and Urban Meyer ball. It's hard to put up points when your game plan is "get as many yards as possible then punt".Michigan is the only team in the Big 10 (Indiana and Illinois a little bit) that is really trying to go with a modern offense. They are going to be the ruling team in about 5 years unless drastic changes occur.With that said, this is a Zips board, and more importantly a Zips football portion of this. Big 10 is very much off topic.

[xu9697]

This all just the ebb & flow of things. USC was an average program from the late 80's until Carroll arrived, save for maybe a couple of good years. Miami and FSU dominated from the early 80's to the late 90's, and have been nothing special for the last 5+ years. OSU is 2 defensive stops in their last 2 big games from ending all this garbage about the Big 10 being so horrible (though I agree it is down as a conference overall). Penn State would do everyone that cares about the Big 10 a favor by playing at least 1 real non-conference game, and Michigan will come back. The team/program that still beffudles me is ND (not in the Big 10, I know..but Midwest big-time program). They have been pretty darn average now for 14+ years. I believe they will come back too, but it has taken longer than I would expect.

[hoohoohoosiers]

After witnessing Toledo over Michigan,Central Michigan over Michigan State and Ohio State not winning against top ten teams, it shows how the Big Ten conference is changing. I think the MAC is taking talent away from them do to the facilities and proximity to the Big Ten school's. The athletes would just as soon stay close to home and have the opportunity to play quicker as opposed to sitting out and waiting there turn. With what we have here and the coaching staff we have I see nothing but great things happening here. Go Zips!!

Care to post the MAC vs. Big Ten record over the past 5 years? k thx.HOO HOO HOOSIERS!

[johnnyzip84]

After witnessing Toledo over Michigan,Central Michigan over Michigan State and Ohio State not winning against top ten teams, it shows how the Big Ten conference is changing. I think the MAC is taking talent away from them do to the facilities and proximity to the Big Ten school's. The athletes would just as soon stay close to home and have the opportunity to play quicker as opposed to sitting out and waiting there turn. With what we have here and the coaching staff we have I see nothing but great things happening here. Go Zips!!

Care to post the MAC vs. Big Ten record over the past 5 years? k thx.HOO HOO HOOSIERS!

Or Indiana's record vs. the MAC last year? k thx.

[hoohoohoosiers]

After witnessing Toledo over Michigan,Central Michigan over Michigan State and Ohio State not winning against top ten teams, it shows how the Big Ten conference is changing. I think the MAC is taking talent away from them do to the facilities and proximity to the Big Ten school's. The athletes would just as soon stay close to home and have the opportunity to play quicker as opposed to sitting out and waiting there turn. With what we have here and the coaching staff we have I see nothing but great things happening here. Go Zips!!

Care to post the MAC vs. Big Ten record over the past 5 years? k thx.HOO HOO HOOSIERS!

Or Indiana's record vs. the MAC last year? k thx.

0-2. First time we've lost to da MAC ever.Your turn.HOO HOO HOOSIERS!

[Buckzip]

I don't think it has a lot to do with talent. If you look at recruiting, those 3 still are usually in the top 15 in recruiting each year. The difference is coaching. The B10 still has that smash mouth philosophy which is outdated.

It does have to do with talent, but not in the areas where people look. The skill players at tOSU are for the most part just as fast and big as the players in the three major conferences. Where they have no athletic talent is on the offensive and defensive lines and LB positions. USC beat OSU because they created a match-up on 3rd & 17 late in the game where a far superior athlete was covered by a slow "suburban" LB from tOSU. Game over. With the addition of Pryor, they will see increasingly less skill players. Any kid with pro aspirations would not attend tOSU with him there. He can't throw the ball and the skill player would not be able to showcase his talents. Tressel is "all in" with Pryor. I'm not certain what he was trying to accomplish with him.tOSU is the best team in an increasingly bad conference. The do have to go to PSU and UofM is getting better. The Big Ten needs UofM to be good in orded for the country to take the league seriously.I've been reading the Columbus Dispatch a little this week. The coachers down there want Tressel fired for not winning big games. The truth is, he was not brought to tOSU to win big games. He was brought there to do two things: First, beat Michigan. He does that. Second, run a clean program. With a few exceptions, he runs a clean program. They did not hire him to win national championships. If they fire him, and they won't, they deserve their next John Cooper.

I don't want to get into this with you, but you are very wrong. Both OSU DE will be in the NFL. They have recruited the top linebacking class the last 2 years in a row. There problem isn't defense. On offense they recruited 2 5*OT 2 years ago and one of the top o-line classes last year. The problem is Tressel and his archaic high school offense. If he doesn't get him self a real o coordinator soon, he will be gone.USC beat OSU because OSU has no offense. OSU beat USC up and down the field all night. Pete Caroll even admiited to that.USC had no answer to the OSU defense...Sow suburban linebacker. You mean like first round picks, Hawk, Carpenter and Laurainitis...Keep that crap to yourself.Sorry to discuss this guys, I am only responding to someone else.

[GP1]

I don't think it has a lot to do with talent. If you look at recruiting, those 3 still are usually in the top 15 in recruiting each year. The difference is coaching. The B10 still has that smash mouth philosophy which is outdated.

It does have to do with talent, but not in the areas where people look. The skill players at tOSU are for the most part just as fast and big as the players in the three major conferences. Where they have no athletic talent is on the offensive and defensive lines and LB positions. USC beat OSU because they created a match-up on 3rd & 17 late in the game where a far superior athlete was covered by a slow "suburban" LB from tOSU. Game over. With the addition of Pryor, they will see increasingly less skill players. Any kid with pro aspirations would not attend tOSU with him there. He can't throw the ball and the skill player would not be able to showcase his talents. Tressel is "all in" with Pryor. I'm not certain what he was trying to accomplish with him.tOSU is the best team in an increasingly bad conference. The do have to go to PSU and UofM is getting better. The Big Ten needs UofM to be good in orded for the country to take the league seriously.I've been reading the Columbus Dispatch a little this week. The coachers down there want Tressel fired for not winning big games. The truth is, he was not brought to tOSU to win big games. He was brought there to do two things: First, beat Michigan. He does that. Second, run a clean program. With a few exceptions, he runs a clean program. They did not hire him to win national championships. If they fire him, and they won't, they deserve their next John Cooper.

I don't want to get into this with you, but you are very wrong. Both OSU DE will be in the NFL. They have recruited the top linebacking class the last 2 years in a row. There problem isn't defense. On offense they recruited 2 5*OT 2 years ago and one of the top o-line classes last year. The problem is Tressel and his archaic high school offense. If he doesn't get him self a real o coordinator soon, he will be gone.USC beat OSU because OSU has no offense. OSU beat USC up and down the field all night. Pete Caroll even admiited to that.USC had no answer to the OSU defense...Sow suburban linebacker. You mean like first round picks, Hawk, Carpenter and Laurainitis...Keep that crap to yourself.Sorry to discuss this guys, I am only responding to someone else.

I have to respectfully disagree. Perhaps it is your obsession with recruiting and what people on Scouts, etc. say about players, but when the Big Ten (tOSU) players get on the field with guys like USC's, they are not as athletic. That tells me either sites like Scouts are wrong (and they frequently are) or there is an evaluation problem at tOSU.Like I said, tOSU has players that are just as athletic as their superiors. The problem is they don't have enough.Hawk, Carpenter and Laranitis are second tier NFL player to guys like Troy P. in Pittsburgh and the Bengals first round pick. I don't even know whey the Cowboys keep Carpenter around....he is a nothing. Hawk starts because they don't have anyone else. Laranitis, we'll see....I think he is another Carpenter. Just because a player is drafted in the first round doesn't make them a great player. Ever hear the words "draft bust". It defines a lot of tOSU players.

[johnnyzip84]

After witnessing Toledo over Michigan,Central Michigan over Michigan State and Ohio State not winning against top ten teams, it shows how the Big Ten conference is changing. I think the MAC is taking talent away from them do to the facilities and proximity to the Big Ten school's. The athletes would just as soon stay close to home and have the opportunity to play quicker as opposed to sitting out and waiting there turn. With what we have here and the coaching staff we have I see nothing but great things happening here. Go Zips!!

Care to post the MAC vs. Big Ten record over the past 5 years? k thx.HOO HOO HOOSIERS!

Or Indiana's record vs. the MAC last year? k thx.

0-2. First time we've lost to da MAC ever.Your turn.HOO HOO HOOSIERS!

You'll have to pardon my delay. MY research took a little longer than yours. OK, if my counting is correct (I used the link below) the MAC has gone a woeful 6-63 versus the Big 10 over the last five years (not including the start of this year). Of course, only 6 of those games were played at MAC fields (5 more at neutral fields). Now over this same period, IU is 9-31 against the rest of the Big 10. Of course IU's games are split 50/50 home and away. Note that FOUR of those six MAC victories occurred last year. The bottom line is I'm sure glad you can't bring your 10 "big brothers" with you tomorrow Go Zips!!!NCAA Football Records Link

[Buckzip]

I don't think it has a lot to do with talent. If you look at recruiting, those 3 still are usually in the top 15 in recruiting each year. The difference is coaching. The B10 still has that smash mouth philosophy which is outdated.

It does have to do with talent, but not in the areas where people look. The skill players at tOSU are for the most part just as fast and big as the players in the three major conferences. Where they have no athletic talent is on the offensive and defensive lines and LB positions. USC beat OSU because they created a match-up on 3rd & 17 late in the game where a far superior athlete was covered by a slow "suburban" LB from tOSU. Game over. With the addition of Pryor, they will see increasingly less skill players. Any kid with pro aspirations would not attend tOSU with him there. He can't throw the ball and the skill player would not be able to showcase his talents. Tressel is "all in" with Pryor. I'm not certain what he was trying to accomplish with him.tOSU is the best team in an increasingly bad conference. The do have to go to PSU and UofM is getting better. The Big Ten needs UofM to be good in orded for the country to take the league seriously.I've been reading the Columbus Dispatch a little this week. The coachers down there want Tressel fired for not winning big games. The truth is, he was not brought to tOSU to win big games. He was brought there to do two things: First, beat Michigan. He does that. Second, run a clean program. With a few exceptions, he runs a clean program. They did not hire him to win national championships. If they fire him, and they won't, they deserve their next John Cooper.

I don't want to get into this with you, but you are very wrong. Both OSU DE will be in the NFL. They have recruited the top linebacking class the last 2 years in a row. There problem isn't defense. On offense they recruited 2 5*OT 2 years ago and one of the top o-line classes last year. The problem is Tressel and his archaic high school offense. If he doesn't get him self a real o coordinator soon, he will be gone.USC beat OSU because OSU has no offense. OSU beat USC up and down the field all night. Pete Caroll even admiited to that.USC had no answer to the OSU defense...Sow suburban linebacker. You mean like first round picks, Hawk, Carpenter and Laurainitis...Keep that crap to yourself.Sorry to discuss this guys, I am only responding to someone else.

I have to respectfully disagree. Perhaps it is your obsession with recruiting and what people on Scouts, etc. say about players, but when the Big Ten (tOSU) players get on the field with guys like USC's, they are not as athletic. That tells me either sites like Scouts are wrong (and they frequently are) or there is an evaluation problem at tOSU.Like I said, tOSU has players that are just as athletic as their superiors. The problem is they don't have enough.Hawk, Carpenter and Laranitis are second tier NFL player to guys like Troy P. in Pittsburgh and the Bengals first round pick. I don't even know whey the Cowboys keep Carpenter around....he is a nothing. Hawk starts because they don't have anyone else. Laranitis, we'll see....I think he is another Carpenter. Just because a player is drafted in the first round doesn't make them a great player. Ever hear the words "draft bust". It defines a lot of tOSU players.

The point I was making had nothing to do with how well these guys do in the NFL. They were selected as first round picks which obviously means they were great college players..Have you seen Thad Gibson or Nathan Williams play DE? They are faster than most USC and SEC DE.Sabino and Bell are both 4.4 guys playing lb. Athleticism has nothing to do with it. Like I said earlier, OSU ran USC over last week. The OSU offense was non existent. Not because of athletes, but because of coaching.

[Zips Win!]

Easy GP1. You have the Zip faithful ..I mean buckeye faithful in a tizzy. They can recite the OSU two-deep roster by position for the last decade...yet don't know who Jim Dennison is. 'Buckzip' USC beat OSU because OSU has no offense. OSU beat USC up and down the field all night. Hmm..Let's see, OSU's offense went up and down the field...yet they have no offense. 'GP1' I don't even know whey the Cowboys keep Carpenter around....he is a nothing. Because the TUNA blew this one and he's Romo's second best friend on the team..Should have been a third round pick and cut three years ago.

[GP1]

I don't think it has a lot to do with talent. If you look at recruiting, those 3 still are usually in the top 15 in recruiting each year. The difference is coaching. The B10 still has that smash mouth philosophy which is outdated.

It does have to do with talent, but not in the areas where people look. The skill players at tOSU are for the most part just as fast and big as the players in the three major conferences. Where they have no athletic talent is on the offensive and defensive lines and LB positions. USC beat OSU because they created a match-up on 3rd & 17 late in the game where a far superior athlete was covered by a slow "suburban" LB from tOSU. Game over. With the addition of Pryor, they will see increasingly less skill players. Any kid with pro aspirations would not attend tOSU with him there. He can't throw the ball and the skill player would not be able to showcase his talents. Tressel is "all in" with Pryor. I'm not certain what he was trying to accomplish with him.tOSU is the best team in an increasingly bad conference. The do have to go to PSU and UofM is getting better. The Big Ten needs UofM to be good in orded for the country to take the league seriously.I've been reading the Columbus Dispatch a little this week. The coachers down there want Tressel fired for not winning big games. The truth is, he was not brought to tOSU to win big games. He was brought there to do two things: First, beat Michigan. He does that. Second, run a clean program. With a few exceptions, he runs a clean program. They did not hire him to win national championships. If they fire him, and they won't, they deserve their next John Cooper.

I don't want to get into this with you, but you are very wrong. Both OSU DE will be in the NFL. They have recruited the top linebacking class the last 2 years in a row. There problem isn't defense. On offense they recruited 2 5*OT 2 years ago and one of the top o-line classes last year. The problem is Tressel and his archaic high school offense. If he doesn't get him self a real o coordinator soon, he will be gone.USC beat OSU because OSU has no offense. OSU beat USC up and down the field all night. Pete Caroll even admiited to that.USC had no answer to the OSU defense...Sow suburban linebacker. You mean like first round picks, Hawk, Carpenter and Laurainitis...Keep that crap to yourself.Sorry to discuss this guys, I am only responding to someone else.

I have to respectfully disagree. Perhaps it is your obsession with recruiting and what people on Scouts, etc. say about players, but when the Big Ten (tOSU) players get on the field with guys like USC's, they are not as athletic. That tells me either sites like Scouts are wrong (and they frequently are) or there is an evaluation problem at tOSU.Like I said, tOSU has players that are just as athletic as their superiors. The problem is they don't have enough.Hawk, Carpenter and Laranitis are second tier NFL player to guys like Troy P. in Pittsburgh and the Bengals first round pick. I don't even know whey the Cowboys keep Carpenter around....he is a nothing. Hawk starts because they don't have anyone else. Laranitis, we'll see....I think he is another Carpenter. Just because a player is drafted in the first round doesn't make them a great player. Ever hear the words "draft bust". It defines a lot of tOSU players.

The point I was making had nothing to do with how well these guys do in the NFL. They were selected as first round picks which obviously means they were great college players..Have you seen Thad Gibson or Nathan Williams play DE? They are faster than most USC and SEC DE.Sabino and Bell are both 4.4 guys playing lb. Athleticism has nothing to do with it. Like I said earlier, OSU ran USC over last week. The OSU offense was non existent. Not because of athletes, but because of coaching.

Interesting points."obviously means they were great college players..." To whom? It kind of reminds me of when someone says, "I'm sure you will agree that..." There are more stupid owners in the NFL than smart. There are more stupid general managers in the NFL than smart. There are more stupid coaches in the NFL than smart. The problem in the NFL is scouts and GMs can not see what the great GP1 has seen for a few years now. Schools like tOSU are second tier college football teams in a second tier league. I don't think NFL scouts take that into consideration. I think a lot of tOSU players can look like world beaters against MAC schools and the junk tOSU plays in the Big Ten.Was that tOSU running over USC on the last drive when after USC picked up the key first down they ran the ball down their throat for a large part of the field. tOSU had everything it could ask for Saturday and still couldn't get the job done against a team that I think will lose two games this year in their conference (they will lose to Cal and then some piece of junk like the tend to do).If coaching lost the game for tOSU, what could they have done differently? Here are the circumstances they play under. They have a good defense that chokes on last drives of big games when the game is close. They have a QB that throws the ball side-armed. They have a running back that a strong wind could knock over. I would argue that Tressel's coaching kept tOSU in the game with a chance to win late against a national power. Tressel kept the field long for USC, they put the freshman QB in difficult situations, they did move the ball, their special teams played well, etc. With the talent level on tOSU, it was a miracle they were in the game late. Tressel should get a bonus.The other agrument is tOSU needs a new offensive coordinator. Do they? That's as stupid as when people say, "they need to hire a special teams coach to fix why the kicker can't make fieldgoals." What Tressel should be blamed for is bringing in a player with Pryor's skills and expect the entire team to conform to his talents. Pryor is what he is and will not get any better. He is a run first QB with limited throwing skills and even less intellect. tOSU will regret the day that Pryor signed his letter of intent. I know what you are thinking...."Pryor put up good passing yards against USC". He sure did, but not when it mattered. He got worse as the game went on. Close games are won in the fourth quarter. Blow outs are won in quarters 1-3.Another thing Tressel should be blamed for is the tight nature of his team. He needs to drop the 1950s sweater-vest, the tie and the Senator speak. The USC coach doesn't talk like that and his players play relaxed and respond in key situations. tOSU's players choke in big games and I think a lot of that has to do with them being nervous in addition to not having enough athletic talent. I imagine USC's coach telling his players late in the game, "Go out there and have fun." (this is exactly what he told them). I imagine Tressel telling his players late in the game, "Pull up your socks, we don't do that here at tOSU."Like in said though, Tressel was brought to tOSU to beat Michigan and run a clean program. I remember sitting in the basketball arena the day Tressel was hired (I was in Columbus for work and bought a ticket on the street) and Tressel said something like, "We will make you proud on the field. We will make you proud in the classroom. And in in X number of days, we will make you proud against Michigan." Tressel does all of those things. I don't know why tOSU fans are so upset. He is doing exactly what he was hired to do. Enjoy...you guys got what you wanted. Congratulations.