As you may know already, several top 25 teams fell to lesser opponents and the speculation begins over all the new national championship scenarios. Obviously, Ohio State won't be in the discussion as it remained stagnant in the polls after a sloppy win over Minnesota. Speaking of the win over Minnesota, I have your quarter-by-quarter analysis right here:
First Quarter: Nice, nice opening drive for the Buckeyes. Beanie looks like he hasn't missed a step, and you have to wonder what this offense will be like as Pryor continues to find himself and Beanie regains his strength. Minnesota looks lost on defense, but still potent on offense. A Wells fumble leads to a Minnesota field goal--nice stop by the defense. Wells is still working the rust off as evidenced by the fumble.
Second Quarter: Pryor continues to look amazing and every bit worthy of the hype surrounding him during recruiting season. He doesn't pass often, but he can beat people with his feet, and Ohio State has made such a transformation with him at the helm. When Pryor does make passes, he makes them worthwhile--touchdown pass to Hartline to close out the half. Ohio State leads 20-3.
Third Quarter: Sloppy defense this quarter for the Buckeyes. They only give up a field goal with about 10:40 to go. The scoring is scarce this quarter as neither team seems to be able to move too much. This is a now becoming a pattern for Ohio State in the third quarter. Pryor gains his second rushing touchdown with a little less than eight minutes to go in the quarter.
Fourth Quarter: My first thought is "Not Boeckman". Still, he actually leads a coherent drive and caps it off with a nice touchdown pass to Robiskie. I gave Robiskie flack for not performing well last week, but that catch was amazing and he has redeemed himself this week. He needed this performance today. The announcers debate whether Boeckman is the best backup quarterback in the NCAA--I personally think they're embellishing. Still, it's apparent how good Boeckman is when there is no pressure. The only disappointment in this game is the laziness of the defense allowing two later unnecessary touchdowns from the Gophers. Final score: 34-21. The Buckeyes now head to the tough confines of Camp Randall Stadium to take on the Wisconsin Badgers in a battle with Rose Bowl implications. Judging by the Badgers' unreasonable and quite shocking loss to Michigan, Ohio State might be able to find a way to hand them a second straight loss by studying film and preparing accordingly.
Right now, Penn State looks like the biggest threat to Ohio State's Big Ten throne. It also doesn't help that Michigan won--that's never good--because if they can come back after fumbling five times in the first half, they can be dangerous anywhere.
Photo Credit: Gary Housteau/Bucknuts
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