A ton of news and opinion on OSU-Iowa and also the Buckeyes' wrapping up the Rose Bowl.
Here we go with the Nov. 16 edition of the Daily Battle Cry:
Monday Morning Quarterback
We are rolling our weekly Quarterback column into the Daily Battle Cry. This is a quick read on the news, notes and opinion on Ohio State’s weekly game as well as the Big Ten and the college football nation at large.
We start with a look at Ohio State’s 27-24 win over Iowa
* Before we answer the Ten Pressing Questions, let’s discuss the national perception of the Ohio State program.
Ohio State downed Iowa 27-24 in overtime to clinch a fifth straight Big Ten title, a fifth straight BCS bowl bid and the school’s first Rose Bowl berth since 1996. And yet, when you check out all of the national sites all you see is acrimony over the way the coach Jim Tressel’s Buckeyes pulled out – or was it backed into -- the win.
Of Tressel, ESPN’s Pat Forde wrote: “You are a relentless, perennial, inevitable winner. You might be the most conservative coach in America, but you don't care. You obsessively play not to lose, instead of playing to win, but you don't apologize.” (Click here for his full column, titled “Buckeyes, The Vest do it their way.”)
That was actually a very civil tone compared to what CBSSports.com’s Gregg Doyel had to say. Click here for his column, titled “Everybody a loser in Ohio State’s disgusting ‘victory’.”
“This was revolting,” Doyel wrote. “Ohio State won the game, the Big Ten title and a spot in the Rose Bowl -- but what did the Buckeyes lose? And can they ever get it back?”
And Doyel’s rant only got worse from there.
SI.com’s Stewart Mandel was only slightly more diplomatic. His column, linked here, was titled “Buckeyes notch another BCS bowl despite constraints of Tresselball.”
“You missed your window, Big Ten teams,” Mandel wrote. “You wanted to end Ohio State's five-year reign of conference dominance? This was your chance. With a small senior class, a work-in-progress offense and a quarterback struggling to live up to gargantuan expectations, the Buckeyes appeared to have their most vulnerable team in years. A midseason meltdown at Purdue left the door open for other challengers.
“But you couldn't do it, Penn State. Nor could you, Wisconsin. Michigan -- what do we even say about that?”
Pete Fiutek of College Football News put it in perspective, perhaps, right here.
“Remember this, Ohio State fans,” Fiutek wrote. “Remember how cool it is that you get to go to the BCS yet again, while other big names like Oklahoma and USC are crashing and burning in their rebuilding seasons. Remember that all that matters is whether the team wins or loses, and remember how cool it is to be in the spotlight yet again as the Big Ten champion.”
Speaking after the game, OSU players said they have learned to tune out the complaints and focus on the work and the results.
“We hear the outside critics, but this is all about the team here,” said linebacker Ross Homan, who had eight tackles in the win. “We keep it in the locker room. It’s about us as the players and the coaches. That’s how we approach it.”
Quarterback Terrelle Pryor seemed to be playing with shackles on at times on Saturday. But that’s OK, he said, because Ohio State survived and reached the best result they could with the national championship game out of play.
“Playing in this conference, people overlook us and say we’re slow,” Pryor said. “But in this conference, it’s a lot of hitting. It’s a tough conference. It’s just unbelievable how many Big Ten championships they’ve won. That’s one thing our seniors brought up. They have never not won a Big Ten championship. That motivated us.”
Tressel defended his play calling at the end of regulation, saying a turnover deep in OSU’s end would have been catastrophic.
“The one thing we couldn't do is turn it over and give them a chance to beat us in regulation,” Tressel said. “If we could pop something, so be it. If not, we're going to have to go beat them in overtime.”
By clinching the Rose Bowl, Ohio State will go into January knowing that it will be the first college football program to appear in eight BCS bowls in the 12 years of this format. Oklahoma and USC each came into the season with seven BCS appearances as well, but they will be relegated to lesser bowls this holiday season.
Tressel accepted the Rose Bowl bid – his first as the OSU coach – after the game. When his postgame remarks were complete, the coach had a few last words for his critics: “I'll see you at Pasadena.”
I will echo the coach’s sentiments with words from one of my favorite songs – a little ditty I just can’t stop singing today:
“All the leaves are brown and the sky is gray. I’ve been for a walk on a winter’s day. I’d be safe and warm, if I was in LA. California Dreamin’ on such a winter’s day.”
* Now, we will continue our analysis with a look at the Ten Pressing Questions we posted on Saturday morning.
1. Can the Ohio State offense move the ball and move the chains against Iowa’s vaunted defense? –Coming into the game, Iowa had only allowed three of its 10 opponents to reach the 20-point plateau. The Hawkeyes were 14th nationally in total defense (291.7 yards per game) and 13th in scoring defense (15.9 points per game).
In the final analysis, Ohio State had 24 points in regulation play. The Buckeyes had 20 first downs and 322 yards total offense against the Hawkeyes.
“There are not many people that had 20 first downs (against Iowa) and I don't know of anyone that rushed for 229,” Tressel said.
2. Can Terrelle Pryor build on his play against Penn State? – Pryor was coming off a solid performance in the win over Penn State. He, honestly, was not put in a position to win this game for Ohio State. He was 14 of 17 passing for 93 yards. He also carried the ball eight times for 29 yards. For the second game in a row, he did not turn it over. He was sacked twice, however.
You could say the passing totals were a function of shorter routes by his receivers and/or the play of the stellar Iowa defense. He took what they gave him.
Pryor’s biggest play of the game, in my mind, came on third-and-10 at the Iowa 30-yard line. The game was tied 10-10 at the time. He kept the ball on a straight draw play and scrambled for 19 yards down to the 11. Boom Herron scored one play later to give OSU a 17-10 lead.
“No one is worried about stats,” Pryor said. “As long as we get that W, that’s all that matters. I am happy for three reasons – the W, the seniors and Coach Tressel. It was one of my goals. I wanted us to be motivated to get the staff and the coaches there.”
Pryor defended the play calling in overtime. Iowa had the ball first and failed to score. All OSU needed was a field goal. Three running plays by Herron netted 3 yards. Devin Barclay split the uprights on a 39-yard game winner.
“All we had to do was get a couple of yards and let our kicker kick it in,” Pryor said. “Iowa made a couple of mistakes in overtime and went backwards. We knew we couldn’t do that.
“That was huge. They couldn’t kick a field goal. We just had to hang on to the ball. They made some huge plays. They fight all the time.”
3. Which OSU running back will emerge and can the Buckeyes establish the run? – Hey, maybe there is something to this running game-by-committee approach. Brandon Saine had 103 yards on 11 carries with two touchdowns, including a 49-yard run. Herron had 32 carries for 97 yards and one score.
OSU netted 229 yards rushing – a season-high for an Iowa opponent. OSU eclipsed the 200-yard mark for the fourth straight game.
“I am just going to look back at the last two games and see 200 yards rushing and say we’ve taken two steps,” said OSU offensive tackle Jimmy Cordle. “We have two more steps to go to complete it. If we can have 400 yards rushing the next two games, we will have played up to our potential.”
Herron’s touchdown came out of the Wildcat look with him taking a direct snap out of the spread.
“I definitely like it,” Herron said. “It’s different. It makes defenses have to think a little bit.”
Herron seems to have bounced back from his midseason stretch where he missed three out of four games with an ankle injury.
“I had my ankle injury and that set me back a little,” he said. “But I knew we had these three big games at the end with Penn State, Iowa and Michigan. I just wanted to finish as hard as I could.”
Saine showed game-breaking ability on his 49-yard touchdown run that put the Buckeyes up 24-10.
“They were breaking tackles and they were keeping their pads low and they were doing a great job,” Tressel said. “Those are two tough kids and the seniors mean a lot to those two. Those two guys are guys that have been here three years, they've been with the seniors for a long time. And they were not going to let those seniors down.”
4. Will DeVier Posey be able to make plays against the Iowa defense? – Posey was quiet. He had two catches for 17 yards. The top receivers were tight end Jake Ballard (three catches for 24 yards) and Saine (three for 15).
5. How will OSU’s offensive line hold up against Iowa’s end tandem of Adrian Clayborn and Broderick Binns? – Iowa’s defensive line came in with a strong reputation and Clayborn, working mostly against Cordle at left tackle, enjoyed some success. He had 12 tackles, three tackles-for-loss and a sack.
Freshman Marcus Hall started the game at right tackle, but J.B. Shugarts – banged up last week against Penn State -- replaced him on the third series and held up pretty well the rest of the way.
“We wanted to have some continuity,” Cordle said. “J.B. said he was good enough to go. He played the whole game and battled through an injury.”
6. Will the OSU defensive front seven be able to exert pressure on Iowa’s first-time starter James Vandenberg? – Few people gave Iowa a chance because starting quarterback Ricky Stanzi was lost for the season with an ankle injury a week earlier against Northwestern. Redshirt freshman James Vandenberg made his first career start against Ohio State and did not look like a rookie.
He completed 20 of 33 passes for 233 yards and two touchdowns with three interceptions as the Hawkeyes almost pulled off the huge upset.
“He’s the most accurate quarterback we’ve faced this year,” said safety Anderson Russell, who had a pair of interceptions. “I know I was surprised with how well he played. He’s got a bright future in front of him.”
Defensive tackle Doug Worthington said the Hawkeyes’ veteran offensive line did a good job protecting Vandenberg.
“They did a lot of things well,” Worthington said. “They were physical. They slid. They held sometimes. They had a great game overall. Much credit to Iowa. They played their A game today. They did the best job any offense has done against us. We have so much more to do to get better.”
Worthington finally broke through and made the game’s biggest defensive play with his sack of Vandenberg in overtime. That third-down play knocked Iowa out of field goal range at the OSU 41-yard line.
“I just wanted to take him down clean,” Worthington said. “I wasn’t sure I got his helmet or his face mask. When I didn’t see any flags, I just pointed to the sky. I pointed to my grandmother. It was great.”
Just prior to the sack, linebacker Austin Spitler knocked Adam Robinson for a 6-yard loss.
“That whole sequence was huge to knock them out of field goal range,” Homan said. “It was an unbelievable play by two seniors. Austin Spitler had the first one and then Doug Worthington on the sack. We give them all of the credit.”
Homan was asked what the defense discussed before the overtime: “Stop them. Knock them out of field goal range and give our offense the ball.”
Safety Kurt Coleman was also impressed with Vandenberg’s heady play.
“They had a good game plan,” Coleman said. “They had the boot and play action. That opened up a lot of throwing lanes for him. He threw three interceptions, but I thought he did a good job of leading Iowa’s team as a first-time starter.
“We came on a lot of blitzes. He was able to scramble out and make some completions. He was very poised for it being his first start.”
7. Which team will win the all-important turnover battle? – In a tight game like this, the turnover battle sometimes swings it one way or the other. That was the case Saturday as OSU won this battle 3-0. Russell had two interceptions and Homan had one.
Russell, a senior playing his final game at the Horseshoe, was overjoyed to get his hands on a couple of passes.
“It kind of hasn’t really sunk in to me yet,” Russell said. “I was just going out making plays trying to help our defense. We all did an especially good job tonight, They have a really good offensive line. They were giving the quarterback time to throw the ball tonight, so their offensive line was keeping their offense moving for them. It was by far our toughest challenge all season.”
Russell’s second pick in the end zone ended Iowa’s possession in overtime. He caught the long pass from Vandenberg in the back of the end zone and did not seem to know if he should run it out. A 100-yard touchdown return would have ended the game right there. But with Iowa players closing in, Russell’s teammates grabbed him and had him take a knee.
“I was talking to my coach afterward, Coach (Jim) Heacock, and he was like, ‘Man, you about gave me a heart attack’ because I was kind of standing there with the ball and I was really thinking about taking it out of the end zone. But I decided to take a knee.
“I was fortunate enough to be in the right place at the right time and we did a good job of getting pressure.”
8. What impact will the special teams have on this game? – Ohio State’s whole way of life is built around strong special teams play. Let’s just say there will be plenty to review this week in practice.
The kickoff coverage unit gave up a 99-yard kickoff return to Iowa’s Derrell Johnson-Koulianos. OSU punter Jon Thoma never could seem to get on track. He averaged just under 36 yards on five punts, but he had clunkers of 26 and 31 yards in there.
Barclay made a 30-yard field goal, missed a 47-yarder that would have put OSU up 27-17 with 7:11 left and redeemed himself with the 39-yard game winner in overtime.
“I was a little disappointed after the kickoff return,” Tressel said. “Quite honestly, you can't let someone come into your stadium and win the special teams. Until the field goal that won the game, I'd say they won the special teams. But that field goal tipped the scale a little.”
After Iowa failed to score in overtime, OSU simply did what it could to set up Barclay’s winning kick.
“We weren't going to line up kicking on first down because we thought we could move forward and then we didn't move real far forward,” Tressel said. “But we got it centered back up for him and he nailed it through.”
Barclay, now 4 of 7 on the season since replacing the injured Aaron Pettrey, shared his thoughts.
"I was nervous, but I had Aaron there in my ear,” Barclay said. “He was saying you can do this. Honestly, he is a great friend and a team player. He was there telling me to swing easy and that I was very capable of this."
9. Can the Buckeyes control their emotions on Senior Day? – With so much on the line, it would have been easy for the seniors to hyperventilate a bit as they headed out for the final game at the Horseshoe.
"My message to the team before the game was to 'never doubt the outcome of the gam,' ” Cordle said. “I never doubted once, and we came back and adjusted. It was everything we could have ever wanted on senior day.
"We won. We're going to the Rose Bowl. I can't stop saying it. Today was the result of hard work and dedication."
The win improves the seniors’ record to 42-8. They can tie the OSU four-year mark for wins with a victory Saturday at Michigan. They can set a new standard with wins over Michigan and in the Rose Bowl.
"It will be a lasting legacy,” said defensive end Lawrence Wilson. “We could end up as the winningest team and no other team has done that. We're just excited and want to keep going."
10. Is Ohio State going to the Rose Bowl? – The answer to this one is an emphatic yes. OSU has not been to the Rose Bowl since the 1996 season. The scene on the field after the game was something as thousands poured on to the FieldTurf to celebrate with the team.
And that celebration all began with Barclay’s kick. He made the game winner and then took off running toward the open end of the stadium, where he was mobbed by his teammates.
“It was absolutely the best feeling of my life,” Barclay said. “I knew when I hit it it was a good kick. I didn’t wait to see if it was going in. I knew it was staying straight and it had the distance. Nothing comes close to this. I just kind of took off after that point.”
Coleman shared his view on the kick and the celebration.
“I heard the crowd yell because they had a better angle,” he said. “They saw it go through. I was just elated. This team is so resilient. We fight so hard. Iowa is a great opponent. When they came back and made it 24-24 and sent it to overtime, we knew it was going to be a battle. It is such a great feeling to be on top of the world.”
Homan added, “I saw that ball go through and emotions just filled me. It was all worth it.”
Pryor said it was fun, but also a bit harrowing down on the field.
“I was trying to get out,” he said. “Those kids were in there all drunk and hitting you hard. It’s a good feeling. I’m happy for the seniors and Coach Tressel. You look at Coach Tressel and the staff and how hard they work. And Coach Tressel has never been there (as a head coach). I’m so happy to get him there.”
Pryor picked up a rose in the postgame press conference: “It smells like a W.”
Ballard talked about the opportunity this team has as OSU will make its 14th Rose Bowl appearance.
"Here at Ohio State, we're privileged to go,” he said. “We have a tradition of always being a good team and making it to a BCS bowl game. The Rose Bowl is the Granddaddy of ‘Em All and our goal wasn't just to get there.
“Right now we have to take care of Michigan and when we get to the Rose Bowl we have to win."
* The Buckeyes want to reach the 10-win plateau and wrap up an outright Big Ten title with a win on Saturday against Michigan.
“We rebounded very well after our two losses,” Coleman said. “We can be the outright Big Ten champs. We have to go up to Michigan and finish it off.”
The last time OSU clinched the Rose Bowl before playing Michigan was in 1996. The Buckeyes dropped that game at home 13-9 to spoil an unbeaten season.
“I’m going to come back with this one: We’re not those teams,” Coleman said. “We’re not any of those teams from the past. We have a character about ourselves. We just want to build on tradition. We are not going to let down for this next game.”
“That game is so intense. You can throw out the records because those things don’t matter. It’s definitely a rivalry game.”
Russell and the seniors want to end it on a high note.
“That’s really all that needs to be said for that game, really,” he said. “That’s enough to motivate us. Obviously, we’ve got our bowl decided and everything. We still want to go up there and get after those guys, so we’re not going to need any extra motivation at all.”
It has been an tough year at Michigan, which has lost six straight Big Ten games for the first time since 1958-59. UM must win to avoid missing postseason play and enduring a losing regular season for the second year in a row.
“That it’s own little season,” said wide receiver Dane Sanzenbacher. “You can never take those guys lightly. You can throw out the records when we play them. I don’t think we’ll have any trouble focusing on them.”
* Later today, former Buckeyes Mike Doss and Raymont Harris are scheduled to model OSU’s special Nike-designed throwback uniforms that will be worn for the game at Michigan.
“I actually helped pick it out – me, Chim (Chimdi Chekwa) and Doug Worthington – so I am excited about putting it on,” said defensive end Thad Gibson. “It’s going to be a great feeling. We will go up there and look different and hopefully get the job done.
“When I first saw it, I was shocked. I am sure they’re going to be like, ‘Wow, what do those guys have on?’ We just have to play like we look. I know how good we’re going to look. Now we have to play good.”
Defensive end Cameron Heyward added, “The players definitely like them. I think it will be cool to wear them.”
* In regards to the Rose Bowl, Ohio State has released the following ticket information:
Ohio State will receive approximately 25,000 tickets. Information will be emailed to season ticket holders late this week. Online orders should begin next Monday. Tickets and parking passes will be available for sale. All bowl ticket orders must be placed online. All bowl tickets will be overnight mailed on Dec. 17-18. If there are any remaining tickets, there could be a public sale at some point.
Acting Rose Bowl president Jeff Throop was on hand Saturday to give Tressel roses in honor of his team’s win. He was asked what he expects to see from OSU and its fans.
“It will look like a home game, I think,” Throop said. “They will, as a school, receive 27,000 tickets and
there will be, I'm sure, be a lot more than that at the Rose Bowl. They've always traveled well and I have no doubt they'll be out in force.”
Click here for information on how you can join the Buckeyes in Pasadena by taking advantage of the official Bucknuts Bowl Trip.
Now for a look around the Big Ten:
* At Madison, No. 21 Wisconsin demolished Michigan 45-24. QB Scott Tolzien tied a career high with four touchdown passes and scored on a sneak to lead Wisconsin to the victory.
Nick Toon caught two of Tolzien's touchdown throws for the Badgers (8-2, 5-2 Big Ten). It was the third consecutive win for the Badgers.
Michigan QB Tate Forcier was a solid 20 of 26 for 188 yards with two touchdowns and an interception, but it wasn't enough to spare the Wolverines from their sixth consecutive conference loss.
* No. 19 Penn St. shrugged off the after effects of its loss to Ohio State and downed visiting Indiana 31-20.
Linebacker Navorro Bowman had a 73-yard interception return for a touchdown and Evan Royster scored twice to help Penn State overcame four first-half turnovers. Senior quarterback Daryll Clark threw for one score and ran for another in his last game at Beaver Stadium, but also threw two interceptions.
Penn State (9-2, 5-2 Big Ten) tried to help Indiana (4-7, 1-6) by fumbling away two punt returns in the first half. Ben Chappell's 26-yard touchdown pass gave Indiana a 10-0 lead in the first quarter. Bowman's return put the Nittany Lions ahead 17-10 in the third quarter. IU was eliminated from postseason consideration with a loss, while Penn State could perhaps still snag a BCS at-large berth with a win at Michigan State to finish 10-2.
* Minnesota will be bowling, but the Gophers qualified for postseason play by the slimmest of margins with a 16-13 home win over I-AA South Dakota State.
Eric Ellestad's 25-yard field goal with 2:22 remaining gave Minnesota the lead, and the struggling Gophers hung on for an ugly win.
Minnesota (6-5) settled for a pair of short kicks by Ellestad in the first quarter after driving to the 3- and 8-yard line, respectively. Adam Weber went 10 for 21 for 94 yards and an interception that was returned for a touchdown by Derek Domino.
* Northwestern QB Mike Kafka completed 23 of 37 passes for 305 yards and one touchdown as the Wildcats downed Illinois 21-16 to improve to 7-4. NU led 21-3, but needed Sherrick McManis’ interception with 32 seconds left to seal the win.
* Michigan State rallied from an 11-point fourth-quarter deficit to take a 40-37 win at Purdue. The victory makes MSU (6-5) bowl-eligible and ends any hopes that Purdue (4-7) will go bowling for first-year coach Danny Hope.
Brett Swenson’s 21-yard field goal with 1:51 left was the margin of victory for the Spartans, who got 208 yards and three touchdowns from QB Kirk Cousins. Purdue QB Joey Elliott was 39 of 55 for 373 yards and two scores.
And a glance at headlines nationally:
* There were no upsets at the top of the charts in the BCS rankings or the AP poll.
Tim Tebow tied the Southeastern Conference touchdown record and No. 1 Florida gained its first perfect league season in 13 years with a 24-14 victory over South Carolina on Saturday. The Gators (10-0, 8-0) remained on track for a third national title in four years.
But the Gators will have to get past Alabama in the SEC title game Dec. 5 in Atlanta. The third-ranked Crimson Tide downed host Mississippi State 31-3. Mark Ingram rushed for 149 yards and two touchdowns, Greg McElroy threw two long scoring passes and Alabama improved to 10-0 for the second straight year.
Mark Barron made his fifth and six interceptions of the season, most in the Southeastern Conference, and helped the Crimson Tide (7-0 SEC) smother the Bulldogs (4-6).
* No. 2 Texas continued its march toward the Big 12 title game with a 47-14 triumph over host Baylor. Colt McCoy tied the NCAA record for career victories by a starting quarterback, throwing two touchdown passes for Texas.
McCoy is 42-7 in his career, tying the wins record set by former Georgia quarterback David Greene. Texas led 40-0 by halftime with McCoy throwing touchdown passes of 3 and 7 yards to Jordan Shipley. Texas (10-0, 6-0 Big 12) reached 10 wins for the ninth straight season, second only to Florida State's run of 14 consecutive 10-win seasons from 1987-2000.
* No. 4 TCU moved to 10-0 with a 55-28 win over No. 16 Utah. The Horned Frogs (6-0 Mountain West) stretched their winning streak to 12 games since a last-minute loss last November at Utah (8-2, 5-1) in front of a record crowd of 50,307.
Matthew Tucker had the first and last touchdowns (runs of 41 and 9 yards) for TCU, with five teammates getting into the end zone in between. The 55 points were the most allowed by Utah since 1996.
* No. 6 Boise St. downed instate rival Idaho 63-25. Kellen Moore threw four touchdown passes to Austin Pettis and tied a career high with five overall, leading Boise State to the victory.
* No. 8 Pittsburgh held off a late charge to defeat visiting Notre Dame 27-22. Pitt had opened up an 18-point lead and held on for the win that only increases the heat under the seat of ND coach Charlie Weis, whose team dropped to 6-4.
Notre Dame trailed 27-9 with 12:44 remaining after Dion Lewis' 50-yard touchdown run, then came back behind two touchdowns by Golden Tate. But Pitt's pass rush caused Jimmy Clausen to fumble away Notre Dame's last chance with just over two minutes remaining.
The Irish lost their eighth consecutive game to a top-10 team - the longest streak in school history. Weis is 1-10 against ranked teams since 2006, and has the same record (35-25) as former coach Bob Davie and the same winning percentage (.583) as former coach Tyrone Willingham, both of whom were fired.
Pitt is 9-1 for the first time since 1982 and finishes with two huge Big East showdowns against rival West Virginia and No. 5 Cincinnati.
The Bearcats held on for a 24-21 win over visiting WVU on Thursday night with QB Tony Pike coming off the bench and hitting a pair of touchdown passes after missing four games due to injury. UC coach Brian Kelly said Pike will be back in the lineup in place of Zach Collaros when UC hosts Illinois on Nov. 27.
The UC-WVU game drew a record crowd of 35,105 at Nippert Stadium.
* No. 25 Stanford drilled No. 11 USC 55-21 as Toby Gerhart rushed for 178 yards and three touchdowns. Stanford coach Jim Harbaugh, whose team pulled off an upset over USC in 2007 at the Coliseum, stoked the fires of this rivalry by going for a two-point conversion with a 48-21 lead and just 6:47 left.
Harbaugh's explanation for trying to pile on a couple more points: "I just honestly thought there was an opportunity coming off the ball, the way our backs were running and the way we were playing."
Said USC’s Pete Carroll, who had a few words for Harbaugh after and has been accused of running it up himself in the past: "I don't know what they were thinking with that, but in that situation, they get to do whatever they want."
The loss was the Trojans' worst since a 51-0 defeat at home against Notre Dame in 1966 and essentially ended USC's seven-year run as Pac-10 champions.
USC lost for the first time in 29 November games under Carroll, who is 1-2 Harbaugh. In the span of eight days, Stanford defeated No. 7 Oregon and No. 11 USC by a combined 106-63.
* Tailback C.J. Spiller became the first player in Clemson history to record a touchdown passing, rushing and receiving in the same game as the 24th-ranked Tigers defeated North Carolina State 43-23. Spiller, who broke Derrick Hamilton's single-season school record for all-purpose yards on his 16-yard touchdown run in the third quarter, rushed for 97 yards on 18 carries. He finished with three receptions for 48 yards, including a 34-yard touchdown catch early in the fourth. Clemson can clinch the ACC Atlantic title with a win over Virginia.
No. 7 Georgia Tech whipped Duke 49-10 to clinch a spot in the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game.
Also in the ACC, former Miami coach Butch Davis is 3-0 against the Hurricanes since he took over at North Carolina. The Tar Heels stunned the 12th-ranked Hurricanes 33-24.
* My new top 15: Six AP top 25 teams lost games this weekend. That group included No. 11 USC (lost to No. 25 Stanford), No. 12 Miami (Fla.) (lost to North Carolina), No. 13 Houston (lost to Central Florida), No. 15 Iowa (lost to No. 10 Ohio State), No. 16 Utah (lost to No. 4 TCU) and No. 18 Arizona (lost to California).
With that in mind, here is my reshuffled top 15 for the new week: Florida, Texas, Alabama, Cincinnati, TCU, Boise State, Georgia Tech, LSU, Ohio State, Pittsburgh, Oregon, Iowa, Penn State, Oklahoma State, Stanford.
USC, Houston and Miami (Fla.) all dropped out of my top 15. I added Penn State (they have been in and out like a yo-yo all season), Oklahoma State and Stanford. I actually moved Iowa up three spots after that loss.
* Bowl Projections: The new BCS top six is Florida, Alabama, Texas, TCU, Cincinnati and Boise State. TCU is still on target to be get an at-large berth as the highest ranking team from a non-automatic qualifying conference.
USC’s loss opens some things up. The Pac-10 will only get one team and that team will go to the Rose Bowl. Likewise, the Cincinnati-Pittsburgh winner figures to be the only rep from the Big East.
I think that USC loss means that TCU and Boise State should both be rewarded with BCS bids. And I think either Iowa or Penn State now has a shot as well if those teams can get to 10-2 with wins this week. If Iowa beats Minnesota and Penn State beats Michigan State, Big Ten commish Jim Delany will have a tough decision to make: Which of those two schools does he put the hard sell on to get into a BCS bowl?
BCS National Title Game – Florida vs. Texas (This should be the Florida-Alabama winner against Texas. Should Texas stumble, the door would be open for TCU or Cincinnati to squeeze into the national title game.)
Rose – Oregon vs. Ohio State (As things stand, Oregon and Oregon State each control their own destiny. Ohio State is the first team to qualify for a BCS bowl this season. And the Buckeyes are the first school nationally to reach eight BCS bowls in the format’s 12 years. OSU is 7-0 all-time against Oregon, including a 10-7 win in the 1958 Rose Bowl)
Fiesta – Iowa vs. Boise State (USC would have been an obvious at-large choice here. I think the Fiesta acts early in the process to grab Iowa, taking the Hawkeyes over Penn State. Boise State is a natural regionally here as well.)
Orange – Georgia Tech vs. Cincinnati (Cincinnati cleared a big hurdle against West Virginia, but the Bearcats must defeat Pittsburgh to punch their ticket here. Georgia Tech must defeat either Clemson or Boston College in the ACC title game to advance here.)
Sugar – Alabama vs. TCU (The Sugar would take the loser of the Florida-Alabama game and with the final selection in the BCS process would be mandated to take TCU.)
Capital One – Penn State vs. LSU (If we believe Iowa gets a BCS nod, then Penn State drops in here. LSU is the No. 3 team in the SEC and an obvious choice here.)
Outback – Wisconsin vs. South Carolina (Wisconsin just keeps on winning and is deserving of this spot. It could be South Carolina or Ole Miss from the SEC.)
Big Ten Bowl Tie-Ins – Real slim pickings here. Alamo, Northwestern; Champs Sports, Michigan State; Insight, Minnesota. The Big Ten will not have a team to fill the Motor City Bowl.
* Games To Watch (all games Saturday unless noted): Colorado-Oklahoma State (Thursday, 7:30 p.m., ESPN), Boise State-Utah State (Friday, 9:30 p.m., ESPN2), Ohio State-Michigan (noon, ABC), LSU-Mississippi (3:30 p.m., CBS), Virginia-Clemson (3:30 p.m., ABC), Penn State-Michigan State (3:30 p.m., ABC), Wisconsin-Northwestern (3:30 p.m., Big Ten Network), Kansas State-Nebraska (7:45 p.m., ESPN), Oregon-Arizona (8 p.m., ABC), Kansas-Texas (8 p.m., ABC).
We will wrap up each week with a look at how OSU's opponents fared and check out who they face next week.
Date (Time, TV), Opponent (Record), This Week's Result, Next Week's Game
Sept. 5, Navy (8-3), beat Delaware 35-18, Nov. 14; idle, Nov. 21.
Sept. 12, USC (7-3), lost to Stanford 55-21, Nov. 14; idle, Nov. 21.
Sept. 19, Toledo (4-5), lost to Central Michigan 56-28, Nov. 11; vs. Eastern Michigan, Nov. 20.
Sept. 26, Illinois (3-6), lost to Northwestern 21-16, Nov. 14; idle, Nov. 21.
Oct. 3, at Indiana (4-7), lost to Penn State 31-20, Nov. 14; vs. Purdue, Nov. 21.
Oct. 10, Wisconsin (8-2), beat Michigan 31-20, Nov. 14; at Northwestern, Nov. 21.
Oct. 17, at Purdue (4-7), lost to Michigan State 40-37, Nov. 14; at Indiana, Nov. 21.
Oct. 24, Minnesota (6-5),beat South Dakota State 16-13, Nov. 14; at Iowa, Nov. 21.
Oct. 31, New Mexico State (3-7), lost to Hawaii 24-6, Nov. 14; vs. Nevada, Nov. 21.
Nov. 7, at Penn State (9-2), beat Indiana 31-20, Nov. 14; at Michigan State, Nov. 21.
Nov. 14, Iowa (9-2), lost to Ohio State 27-24 (OT), Nov. 14; vs. Minnesota, Nov. 21.
Nov. 21 (noon, ABC), Michigan (5-6), lost to Wisconsin 45-24, Nov. 14; vs. Ohio State, Nov. 21.
Big Ten Standings
Team (Overall, Big Ten)
Ohio State (9-2, 6-1)
Iowa (9-2, 5-2)
Penn State (9-2, 5-2)
Wisconsin (8-2, 5-2)
Northwestern (7-4, 4-3)
Michigan State (6-5, 4-3)
Minnesota (6-5, 3-4)
Purdue (4-7, 3-4)
Illinois (3-7, 2-6)
Michigan (5-6, 1-6)
Indiana (4-7, 1-6)
Nov. 14 Games
Northwestern 21, Illinois 16
Penn State 31, Indiana 20
Michigan State 40, Purdue 37
Minnesota 16, South Dakota State 13
Wisconsin 45, Michigan 24
Ohio State 27, Iowa 24 (OT)
Nov. 21 Games
Ohio State at Michigan, noon (ABC national)
Minnesota at Iowa, noon (ESPN or ESPN2)
Wisconsin at Northwestern, 3:30 p.m. (Big Ten Network)
Purdue at Indiana, 3:30 p.m. (Big Ten Network)
Penn State at Michigan State, 3:30 p.m. (ABC regional; ESPN outer market)
Nov. 28 Game
Illinois at Cincinnati
Dec. 5 Games
Fresno State at Illinois, 12:30 p.m. (Big Ten Network)
Wisconsin at Hawaii
More Coverage On OSU-Iowa
Click here for our story on the Buckeyes went From Purdue To Pasadena.
Click here for our game story on the overtime win.
Click here for the archive of the Bucknuts Postgame Live audio webcast.
Click here for Tressel's postgame press conference.
Click here for Terrelle Pryor’s postgame interview session.
Click here for Jeff Rapp's blog from the game.
Click here for video with the captains after the game, including a funny outburst by Cordle.
Click here for video of the overtime and on-field postgame celebration.
Click here for Dave Biddle’s What We Learned column.
Click here for Jeff Rapp’s notebook: Not To Worry.
Click here for Mr. Bucknuts’ Bucket of Bullets.
Click here for photos from the game.
Picks Recap
On Thursday each week, I will post my picks for the weekend. In the picks I posted last Thursday, I was 22-4 straight-up and 14-10-1 against-the-spread. That makes me 181-65 straight-up for the year and 116-114-4 against-the-spread on the season.
Check back for Thursday’s DBC column for the next edition of the Viewers Guide and Picks.
Publication Updates, Chats, Media Appearances
* Because Ohio State schedules its interviews on Michigan week on Monday, the regular weekly edition of the Bucknuts Radio Hour will be produced and released on Tuesday.
Plus, Dave Biddle and I will host a special Big Ten championship live edition of the Bucknuts Radio Hour Friday from 10 a.m. to noon as we will preview the Ohio State-Michigan game. Be sure to join us for that special show.
* There is a small quantity of my book on the 2003 Fiesta Bowl book, "The Greatest Game Ever Played," available for purchase.
To get a copy of the book, send a check or money order for $21 ($18 for the book, $3 for shipping) to:
Steve Helwagen
P.O. Box 34
Pataskala, OH 43062
Allow 2 weeks for shipping.
* We also have some left over Bucknuts golf shirts from our recent golf outing. We have a few shirts left in the extra large and double extra large sizes. They are $33 each ($30 for the shirt, $3 for shipping). Send orders to the same address above. We will donate proceeds from these sales to Children’s Hospital and Kids ‘N Kamp. Send check or money order to Bucknuts Ventures, PO Box 34, Pataskala, OH 43062.
You Can Get ESPN Insider Now!
Bucknuts is now once again linked with ESPN's Insider package. We are excited again to have the ability to bundle ESPN’s Insider product with a Bucknuts.com premium subscription. We want all of our subscribers to take advantage of this special perk.
Bucknuts subscribers also will get ESPN Insider’s coverage of all sports—especially collegiate and professional football—plus ESPN’s national recruiting database, videos, world class columnists like Mel Kiper, Len Pasquarelli, Chad Ford and more.
Click here to take advantage of our great new special offer!
