Ohio State.-Illinois: Injuries and Tresselball Mark Visit to Champaign

Drew Thurman (10:03 pm)

"Nothing really felt good today, to be honest, even at the end," Michael Brewster said. "Everybody feels like crap right now. But like I said, we grinded it out at the end."

This quote (via The Dispatch) pretty much sums up the Buckeyes 24-13 victory yesterday at Illinois. The optimist in me wants to claim "a win is a win," but yesterday sure felt like a loss. Well, maybe a step backwards. Just read the quotes from players like Brewster, they know that the only real positive from yesterday afternoon was the victory.

Not only was Tresselball back in full force, but Pryor came away from the game gimpy and Tyler Moeller may very well be done for the season. Definitely a tough day for the scarlet and gray. We are living in a dream world if we think the Buckeyes aren't ever going to have a bad game or take a few tough blows though.

So settle down Buckeye Nation, all the negativity is a little annoying! With that out of my system, let's break yesterday down a little bit.


The Positive First...

- The Buckeyes found their starting running back in Boom Herron. Now I still want to see Jordan Hall and Jaamal Berry get involved when things matter, but it's hard to argue with Boom's 23 carries for 95 yards (4.1 avg) and one touchdown. Especially considering that he did most of that damage in the second half when the Illini were loading up the box. Illinois' strength is their front seven on defense, and Boom held his own without a lot of help from the offensive line.

By the way, he also outperformed Mikel Leshoure in case you wondering. What about Brandon Saine? Well, yesterday was the second week in a row with minimal carries for him, as he had eight carries for 14 yards. I would like to see the staff transition him to being the No. 3 wide receiver, since no one has stepped up there. He has great hands and top end speed, and is way too valuable of a weapon to get such little playing time.

- The staff also has found a future star in Christian Bryant. Losing Moeller absolutely sucks, as he has been the best player on the defense in 2010, but Bryant stepped up in a huge way yesterday. He had five solo tackles, and just looked hungry to hit people. It's really hard to believe he is true freshman.

If Moeller does return by some miracle, I really hope Bryant steps in for Orhian Johnson, who just looks soft to me. There is a reason C.J. Barnett was originally named the starter.

-  The defense definitely responded in a big way yesterday. After a weak showing against Eastern Michigan and early success for the Illini in the first quarter, they clamped down. The reason Tressel was able to be conservative was because the Illini were struggling to just get first downs.

A lot of kudos has to go to the defensive line, who easily had their best showing of the season yesterday afternoon. Nathan Williams was second on the team in tackles with nine, and also recorded 1.5 sacks. What really impressed me about his performance was his ability to help stop the run.

So many defensive ends are all about the sack, go guns blazing towards the quarterback, and then leave their teammates out to dry. Williams showcases great ability to come back towards the ball and bring down running backs. Also, Cam Heyward came to play as always. Make no mistake about it, without him this defensive line (and defense) would struggle a lot. 

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The Negative...

- The injuries just seem to be piling up for this team, especially in the defensive secondary. Championship runs are almost as much about luck as they are about skill, and right now the Buckeyes don't seem to have a lot on their side. With Tyler Moeller now sidelined, this team lost arguably its best pass rusher and tackler.

Add that to guys like C.J. Barnett and Donnie Evege, and the depth chart looks thinner and thinner. Thus far it hasn't caused the Buckeyes a ton of problems, but against teams like Wisconsin, Iowa, and Michigan it may just rear its ugly head.

- Our worst nightmare came to life as Pryor headed to the locker room in a tight game, and Tressel decided to send out Bauserman in relief. Now I understand the logic in handing things over to the veteran to manage the game. The problem is that Bauserman showed slow decision making and even threw a killer interception.

I think Guiton has to be the guy from this point going on. He has playmaking ability that Bauserman will never have, especially with his feet. I'm not trying to criticize the decision, but I do want to see Guiton be the guy from this point on.

- DeVier Posey had a really rough afternoon. He dropped a couple of crucial balls down the stretch, and seemed to be sleepwalking. I'm not going to over analyze his performance, as I think it was just a forgettable game, but I think we all saw why Sanzenbacher is Pryor's favorite target. He brings it every game and catches everything thrown his way.

- Ben Buchanan may be the worse punter in the country...really! The Buckeyes were last in the country in net punting entering the game, and that definitely didn't improve yesterday.

In fact, that is the reason Illinois had all the momentum in the first half. They continued to win the field position war as Santella pinned the Buckeyes back and Buchanan kicked 40 yard punts out of the end zone. I really hope the staff can find someone to bring in this next year, because the punting game is just plain unacceptable.

Well, there you have it. I'm glad the trip to Champaign is over, as I hate everything about the place. It's dark, cold, windy, and the Buckeyes always play piss poor there (even when they win). My dad will be posting a more in-depth look at the game, as he was actually in attendance yesterday, so check us out later.