So, I Have This Buckeyes Theory…

Now, bear with me a for a moment after what I’m about to say. Terrelle Pryor has been pretty good passing the ball the last two games. I mean good to the tune of 24/48 (50 percent), 374 yds, three TDs, and only one INT. While the completion percentage doesn’t look quite like Colt McCoy’s, the TD:INT ratio is where I like to see it.

Want to hear something more surprising than those numbers? In the past two games, Pryor has only been sacked once . Now, granted, one of these games was against New Mexico State, but that doesn’t mean that the starting 11 doesn’t have to go out there on Saturdays and do their jobs right.

Does anyone else see a correlation between the two stats? Well, compare those numbers for the past two games with the Oct. 17 loss at Purdue. Pryor was 17/31 (55 percent), 221 yds, one TD, and two INTs. In addition, Pryor lost two fumbles. And as for the offensive line that game? They gave up five sacks. Yeah, I’m starting to see a pattern here.

It may be elementary that passers who get better protection are going to pass better, but Pryor has been taking heat all year for his throwing, and the fact of the matter is he’s been under pressure all year behind an offensive line that has been more porous than swiss cheese.

Now this doesn’t absolve Pryor from all the blame, but surely it at least covers some of it. I would love to have some numbers on the amount of times Pryor has had from the snap of the ball until he throws, or is forced to scramble/roll out because of pressure. But as a college kid who lives off of $60 every two weeks for groceries, I’m not really in the market for a DVR.

However, what I will be doing this weekend as I’m downing Budweiser’s watching the game from the comfort of my living room is taking the time, and effort, to calculate that exact stat for examination.

Make a mental note of it yourself, if Pryor is given ample time in which to make a decision about where he should throw, or whether he should tuck it and run without being chased from the backfield by a defensive lineman, or a blitzing linebacker, he should have games comparable to his last two, and the team will have a greater chance of coming out of Happy Valley with a Happy W.