Baver's Buckeye Bag 10/15/14 OSU vs Rutgers

Baver’s Buckeye Bag 10/15/14

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Some random thoughts/comments on the Buckeyes:

--I did my share of bitching about the Buckeye defense during the Maryland game, but looking at the end result, it was a big improvement over the effort against Cincinnati.  Progress is being made.

-The Virginia Tech & Maryland games saw JT Barrett sacked 11 times (in total).  Barrett was only sacked twice in the other three OSU games (combined).  Rutgers is 3rd nationally in team sacks per game (4.0/gm), so I would think that protecting Barrett is a point of emphasis that the Buckeye coaches are hammering home this week.

--It seems like every Buckeye fan and his brother and sister has wanted to completely shelve Curtis Grant for Raekwon McMillan, but there is something to be said for experience.  McMillan has played a lot over the past two games, but hasn’t lit the world on fire.  It seems to me that the better results out of the Mike position have come when Grant has been in there.  But, McMillan will eventually get there.

--Outside of Michigan State and November weather, it’s hard to see much else on the horizon that can slow down a Buckeye offense that has made huge strides since early September.  The O-line coming together and Barrett’s ability to go through his progressions make it very difficult for a Big Ten defense to slow down this Ohio State offense right now.

--If Joey Bosa can stay healthy, he may very well leave Ohio State as the best DE ever to play here….even if/when he skips his senior year.  It’s sick to think what he would be doing if Noah Spence was on the other end of the D-line.  Offenses have had to spend additional resources keeping Bosa out of the backfield, and Bosa is still blowing up everything.

--This seemed improbable a month ago, but “winning out” likely puts the Buckeyes in the 4-team playoff.  There is no dominant team this year, and the top teams in the SEC, Pac 12 and Big 12 are going to continue to beat one another up.  And if you’ve watched Michigan State much this year, you have probably seen that this is not the Sparty team that Mark Dantonio had a year ago.  If the Buckeyes continue to progress like they have been and stay relatively healthy, I think the worst case scenario is that the November 8th OSU-MSU game in East Lansing will be a toss-up.

The matchup Saturday against Rutgers:

Rutgers is playing pretty good football right now.  They are 5-1, with their only loss being a 3-point loss to Penn State.  QB Gary Nova threw five picks in that loss, but has since put things together, completing 64% of his passes for 845 yards, with a 7-1 TD-INT ratio over his last three games.  Rutgers beat Navy in Annapolis, a place where Navy doesn’t lose often.  Their victory over Washington State on the road to open the season was a nice win for Kyle Flood, who is now in his 3rd year since taking over for Greg Schiano.  And I mentioned above that Rutgers has had good success getting to opposing QB’s this season.

On the down sign, Rutgers lost tailback Paul James (torn ACL) in the Navy game, and that was a big loss.  New starter Desmond Peoples is a big downgrade at TB.  Also, Rutgers has not played a team with Ohio State-type talent in recent memory.  They were in tight games against Penn State and Michigan, but the Buckeye offense has too many weapons for the Rutgers defense to slow down.  As for the Buckeye D, we know it can be flaky at times; so, the Rutgers offense may have some success Saturday.  The one thing, however, that this Buckeye defense has been able to do is make big plays, and I expect them to make more big plays Saturday. 

Ohio State needs to avoid looking ahead.  If the Bucks do look past Rutgers, this is a good enough Scarlet Knight team to possibly hang around Saturday.  If the Buckeyes are focused, they should win this one by 3 TD’s-plus and head to Happy Valley with a 5-1 record.  Prediction: Ohio State 45 Rutgers 20.

Baver's College Football Picks and Colin's Questions.

Before we get started you have been hot picking games all year, are there any games/lines this week that really jump out at you?

I liked Georgia laying three to Missou before the Todd Gurley suspension, but scratch that.  I like TCU getting 8 ½ at Baylor.  Baylor’s offense could not get in gear against Texas last week and face a tougher defense this week against TCU.  I think this game will be tight.  Too many points for Florida State, laying 23 ½ on the road at Syracuse; I like the ‘Cuse.  Bad spot for FSU with Notre Dame on deck.  I still think the Noles are the best team in the land if they play to their potential, but they still haven’t put it all together yet.  And I like Alabama (-9) to bounce back and beat Arkansas soundly.  Not a good matchup at all for Arkansas and their power running game – that’s not the way you beat the Tide.

What is your record against the spread so far this year?

I am 9-6 when responding to your weekly “who do you like” question.  I started 2-4, but have hit 7 of the last 9.  On the Buckeye games, I predicted a 17-point win over Cincy (in the middle of game-week, when the Bucks were around a 15-point favorite), but the line closed at 17.  So, if you view that as me predicting a “push” against Cincy, I am 4-0-1 on the Buckeye games.  I correctly had the Bucks covering against Navy, Kent State and Maryland, and had Va Tech covering against the Bucks. 

Ok, the Buckeyes are off again, which blows. Michigan is playing and they blow too, how bad is Penn State to be dogs to the Wolverines this weekend?

Penn State is a shadow of what they used to be; other than Christian Hackenburg, their talent is down. With the sanctions being lightened and with the James Franklin hire, Penn State should start to pick up the pace in the next few years.  Michigan shouldn’t be as bad as they are, but they are reeling, and Brady Hoke hasn’t a clue on how to fix things.  I would probably have Penn State as a slight favorite over Michigan in this game.  I think this one will be tight, like both of these team’s games against Rutgers….which is a sad statement.

After all the upsets last weekend, does a team from the Big Ten have a shot to make the new four team playoff? If you had to predict the final four today, who would it be?

Nationally, I don’t expect to see any team go undefeated in the regular season, and there will be some very good teams that end up with two losses.  If that is the case, Ohio State and Sparty are definitely still alive.  The winner of their November 8th matchup will also need to win the rest of their games, including the Big Ten championship, and look impressive doing so.  I tend to think the Pac 12 and Big Twelve teams beat each other up, making it hard for a school from each conference to make the playoff.  And I think the SEC gets two teams in the playoff regardless.  I will go with Florida State, Georgia, Auburn and Michigan State as the four playoff teams, but with all the parity this year, it wouldn’t surprise me to see none of those teams make it.

Which running back should be more upset: Amir Abdullah being held to just 49 yards against MSU or Melvin Gordon running for over 250 and the Badgers still lose? 

I think I am ticked off more if I am Melvin Gordon, who Wisconsin should have run more.  Not sure why the Badger coaches decided to throw the ball 29 times, with an anemic passing offense and an elite running game; it makes no sense.  I am not all that surprised that the Sparty defense held Abdullah in check; they aimed to make him a non-factor in the game, and that’s exactly what happened.

Let's wrap up with at least one Buckeye question. Which player on offense and defense do you now think is primed for a breakout year that you didn't four games ago?

On offense, it’s a no-brainer for me – JT Barrett.  I have never seen a first-year starting QB at OSU “get it” so quickly.  He lacks arm strength, but you can get away with that at this level…just ask former Heisman winner Danny Wuerfell.  But other than that, Barrett brings everything else to the table.  He’s already about to the point where he is surpassing Braxton Miller as a decision maker…this comparing Barrett the freshman to Miller the junior.  Barrett is doing a beautiful job running the option and for a kid that has played only five games, he is doing an unbelievable job getting through his progressions and finding the “right” receiver.  With Barrett raising his level of play the way he has, the final four is (I think) surprisingly in play for Ohio State. 

On defense, I have nobody – nothing really that wasn’t expected.  I guess if I have to pick someone, I will say Darron Lee, but you are seeing expected growing pains with him.  On the other hand, I think you can see what kind of talent he has, and I think he will be a star before leaving Ohio State.  Lee is a great athlete that is still learning the position…when he does learn it…look out.

Tribe Time - Three Action Items for the Front Office by Jim Brazytis

Now that the Indians season is over it’s time we reflect on – hold on, I’m taking a deep breath, trying not to get too choked up. 

Oh forget it! I’m not going to look back on six months of average baseball featuring a team that couldn’t hit or catch a ball…..I’m looking forward to the future, to 2015, when the green grass and red clay of a shining Progressive Field plays host to the 114th year of professional baseball in Cleveland.

Excuse me as I step off my soapbox. Unfortunately, to envision the future we must explore the past. Based on what we - Indians fans - witnessed this summer, what do the Indians need to do to once again reach the postseason and hopefully win the World Series? Here are three bold actions the front office must take in order to position the Tribe for a postseason run in 2015:

Shed Some Fat

The salaries of Michael Bourn and Nick Swisher comprise nearly 40% of the Indians payroll! That means 40% of the payroll not living up to the contracts they signed in 2013. Bourn and Swisher have two years left on these “anchors” and now is the time to cut them loose. Unfortunately you couldn’t move Swisher with a bulldozer, diminishing power numbers and the knees of 80-year old have “do not touch” written on Brohio’s back. 

So, that leaves Bourn as the “most likely underachiever” to be jettisoned to a new team. According to www.IntheMitt.com, some possible homes for Bourn are Tampa Bay, Atlanta, Detroit and Toronto. By moving Bourn, the Indians will free up some cash to sign a much needed free agent bat, plus get a player in return, perhaps a pitcher like Toronto’s A.J. Happ (also rumored to be on the block according to www.IntheMitt.com), that can help strengthen the starting rotation, especially when the Indians take this next action. 

Use the High Heater in the Trade Market

The Indians don’t have many assets to offer up in the trade market due to a lackluster farm system and an average Major League roster, but we all know what teams crave – pitching, especially young, power pitching. Thus, I present the trade of Danny Salazar. Salazar has been up & down in his two years with the big club, and even though his fastball hits 100 mph, it’s straight as an arrow. So where do you trade him and for what? How about sending him to Arizona straight up for Mike Trumbo or packaging him with Bourn and Lonnie Chisenhall to the Marlins for Giancarlo Stanton? Come on, let me dream a little. Salazar is a valuable commodity and should be used while he’s still considered a prospect.
Spend Some Money. Wisely.

The Indians are in desperate need of offense! The Wahoos need hitters that get on base, move runners and, most importantly, get them across the plate. I understand the Dolans have been burned by the less than dynamic duo of Swisher and Bourn, but I believe they still must trust their baseball people and shop on the free agent market. Strong bats like Michael Morse, Michael Cuddyer and Chase Headley can help, as well as the continued development of their own players like Tyler Holt and Zach Walters. 

I’m not saying these are the actual moves that will be made, but it should be the general direction. The Indians need to clear salary to obtain pieces that will help them win games, not just take up spots on the roster (calling Bourn, Swisher and Kipnis). Secondly, the team should deal from a position of strength and trade Salazar for another bat, or even a dependable fielder, which they can certainly use. And once they’ve cleared some salary, spend wisely on the free agent market for more offense.

I’m looking forward: forward to a winter of Hot Stove action and a summer of Indians baseball where the players live up to their contracts, the offense isn’t offensive and the Tribe’s back to October baseball. Indian Fever…..be a believer!!!

Jim Brazytis is a 43-year old amateur athlete still waiting for the scouts to find him at his "old man" baseball league games. A life-long Clevelander, he has suffered through decades of losing sports teams and heartache while waiting for some Cleveland professional sports team team, besides the Cleveland Crunch, to win a championship.

Baver's Buckeye Bag - 10/1/14

Baver’s Buckeye Bag, 10/1/14

Some quick thoughts on the Cincy game and where the Bucks stand heading into Big Ten play:

--The 3 long TD’s by Cincy WR Chris Moore are hard to swallow, but to some extent, that’s the downside of playing tight coverage with young DB’s.  On the other hand, giving up an 83-yard TD with 26 seconds to go in the 2nd quarter, where the Bucks had no safety help and should have been in prevent mode, is inexcusable.  Still, I wouldn’t dwell on this.  At this point, I still have faith DC Chris Ash will eventually right the ship.

--The Buckeye O-line played their best game of the year this past Saturday, and there appears to be some light at the end of the tunnel.  OSU tailback Ezekiel Elliott also answered some questions with a huge game.  Look for Zeke to be “the man” at TB for the Bucks, health permitting, for the foreseeable future.  Too many OSU fans seem to be enamored with Rod Smith, but I saw way more out of Elliott Saturday than I’ve ever seen out of Smith.

--I think most fans’ expectations were too high headed into this season.  Imagine that?  This Buckeye team is about where I thought they would be after four games, and maybe a tad better.  (This…despite their 3-1 record, while being a double-digit favorite in all four games.)  There were just too many talented players that had to be replaced with inexperienced players, especially after Braxton went down.  I think too many fans were shocked by OSU’s performance against Va Tech, and they shouldn’t have been.

--JT Barrett is coming along nicely and is going to eventually be a stud.  Yes, the competition since Va Tech has been pretty poor, but Barrett can throw the football.  We already knew he had good mobility and great leadership skills, but boy does Barrett throw a pretty ball as well. 

--Is everything hunky-dory?  No.  This O-line is still going to have major problems against the better D-lines they face.  On the other side of the ball, this defense would give up a ton of points if they had to face a top tier offense like Oregon’s or Baylor’s.  And the D-backfield would be no match against elite WR’s like the group Alabama has. 

--A quick look at the futures that sporstbook.ag has for OSU games:  OSU is: a 7-pt favorite over PSU, a 3-pt dog to Sparty, and an 18.5-pt favorite over Michigan.  Guessing some OSU fans are writing off Penn State after they laid an egg against Northwestern, but I wouldn’t.  And I wouldn’t automatically chalk up a win versus UM, as Michigan will likely play their best game of the year against Ohio State, with or without Brady Hoke.

Now let’s look at the Big Ten opener at Maryland Saturday:

Some books have this game off the board with Maryland QB CJ Brown being questionable.  The books that have lines currently have OSU laying 7 ½.  If Brown can’t go, the Terps will go with Caleb Rowe.  Rowe can’t run the option like Brown, but has a much better arm.  Maryland head coach Randy Edsall has said they will not decide on a QB until the day of the game.  If Brown is able to go but is less than 100%, it may benefit Maryland to play both QB’s.  That strategy would seem to make some sense against a young Buckeye defense that has been overwhelmed at times this year.

Regardless of who starts at QB, the biggest test for the Buckeye defense will be containing WR Stephon Diggs, who has 29 catches for 398 yards and 2 TD’s for Maryland on the year.  Diggs, who appeared close to committing to Ohio State in 2012, is also an electric KO return man, and will eventually be playing on Sundays in the NFL.  Look for Diggs to exploit some of the Buckeyes problems in their secondary and/or special teams on Saturday.

On the other side of the ball, Maryland simply cannot stop the run; so, look for a heavy dose of Ezekiel Elliott again this week, with JT Barrett getting in the mix with designed runs.  Maryland did a great job defending Indiana’s passing attack, as they got pressure on the quarterback for much of the game last week.

With this being the first true road atmosphere for the Bucks this season, I expect the Buckeye youngsters to get out of rhythm at times in College Park Saturday.  In the end, however, I think Bucks make enough big plays, like they did against Navy, to bring home the win.  The call: Ohio State 38 Maryland 27.

Baver Answers Colin's College Football Questions 9/25/14

How can Michigan be favored over anybody right now? How bad is Minnesota?

Yeah, Michigan is God awful and the fact that they are a double-digit favorite over Minny tells you how bad the Gophers are.  Minnesota is averaging less than 100 yards per game through the air, which puts them dead last among teams that make up the five power conferences.  But would I be willing to take Michigan and lay double digits?  Not on your life.  Two bad football teams here, and not sure how Michigan will respond to the damages from the iceberg their ship just hit.  If I were a betting man, I would stay away from this one.  

With Brady Hoke's ever expanding girth, perhaps Michigan AD Dave Brandon should have given away free tickets with every Diet Coke purchase instead of regular. Would this have made it easier for the season ticket and PSL owners to swallow?

What an embarrassment.  Where is the pride?  You seriously gave away pairs of Michigan football tickets for $3 Coke purchases?  I thought it was a joke when I first heard the news, until I figured out that you can’t make this sh*t up.  What kind of athletic director wouldn’t realize that this was PR suicide?  This was the final straw for Dave Brandon. 

What does Brady have to do now to save his job? Any non-Harbaugh candidate you think would be a good fit?

Short of Michigan beating Ohio State AND Michigan State AND winning AT LEAST 9 of their 12 regular season games, Hoke is out, and Brandon is out regardless.  If by some miracle, Brandon somehow survives, the top head coach candidate pool is going to shrink, as some of the top available coaches are not going to want to serve under him.  Non-Harbaugh coaching candidates, if/when Hoke is axed?  Gotta put Les Miles near the top of the list.  You could see Michigan go after Kevin Sumlin, but that may be a longer shot.  Other names being thrown out there aren’t going to knock anyone’s socks off, i.e. Buffalo Bills RB coach (and former Michigan running back) Tyrone Wheatley, Miami of Ohio head coach Chuck Martin, and LSU current offensive coordinator (and former Indiana head coach) Cam Cameron.

Gunner Keil was considered a top QB recruit from his class, are any other notable QBs from his year doing well?

Well, there is Jameis Winston, who continues to make quite the name for himself on and off the field.  Winston has made Maurice Clarett look like a sound decision maker.  Then there is Trevor Knight, who has a good shot of leading the Sooners to the CFB playoff.  Other big names include Missou QB Maty Mauk, Nebraska QB Tommy Armstrong, and former Oklahoma State starter (and current Illinois QB) Wes Lunt.  The undersized Mauk should become quite the QB before he leaves Missouri.

Another semi-quiet week nationally. What games and lines will you be watching?

UCLA at Arizona State, Missouri at South Carolina, and Oregon State at USC are three nice matchups.  Unfortunately, the UCLA-ASU game is probably the only one of the three that I will catch much of.  In terms of lines, I like USF getting 34 against Wisconsin – that’s the best bet on the board that I see.  USF is solid against the run and that spread looks like it’s 6 points too high.  I also like Oklahoma State (a 14 pt favorite) to roll Texas Tech Thursday night.  Tech just fired their DC and are in trouble against Mike Gundy’s overachieving OSU lite team.  Finally, I like Northwestern getting double digits (10 pts) on the road against State Penn.  I think the Wildcats keep that one close

Brent Baver knows more about college football than you. Click here for previous story OSU vs Cincy Preview.

What the Shuck, Tito? - Tribe Talk by Jim Brazytis

What the Shuck, Tito?

Bottom of the ninth down by two, your playoff life is on the line, in a must win game against your division rival, the team directly in front of you in the division and Wild Card race, and you pinch hit J.B. Shuck? J.B. Shuck?!!! To say the least, I was less than impressed by Indians’ Manager Terry Francona’s lineup and moves Monday night in the second game of the doubleheader against the Kansas City Royals, which the Indians lost 2-0 (first game was the conclusion of the suspended game from August 31).

To realistically have a chance at making the playoffs the Indians needed to win every game this final week of the season. Well, fellow baseball fans, when you send a lineup to the plate featuring heavy hitters like Chris Jimenez and Tyler Holt, that’s not too likely to happen – and it didn’t. I’m not asking for the 1927 Yankees here - hell, I’ll take the 1986 Indians! I know Jason Kipnis has been struggling, but come on, he needs to be in the lineup - and how about the “Great Giambino?” Tito, say it ain’t so, there’s no way you can have more faith in Jimenez making an impact then Jason Giambi, a guy who has nearly 500 career home runs and saved your season last year by hitting one of the most memorable home runs in Progressive Field history. 

I realize Indians’ General Manager Chris Antonetti has done Francona no favors during the year when it comes to bolstering the lineup. Plus, I also know it’s hard to put a strong lineup on the field when you have underachievers like Kipnis taking up valuable roster spots (I didn’t forget Swisher – he’s on the disabled list), but you still have to make better game decisions. 

So let’s turn our attention back to the ninth inning, due up for the Indians were Chisenhall, Jimenez and Holt. I’ll agree Chisenhall gives us a chance but instead of taking a few pitches he swings at the first thing he sees and grounds out.  Not Francona’s fault but still horrible baseball. (Similar to Carlos Santana’s ill-timed swing with the bases loaded and no outs in the first.) 

Now here’s where Tito really strikes out! Not that it wasn’t bad enough he had Jimenez in the lineup to start, he compounded this decision by sending Shuck to the plate in his place. What about Perez, Aguilar, someone who has a chance to drive the ball, get on base, do something? As an Indians fan I was ashamed at how overmatched Shuck was by the Royals’ closer, Greg Holland. With every lame swing he took, I saw my dreams of October baseball plummeting like Swisher’s power numbers over the past two years. David Murphy pinch hitting for Holt next didn’t look much better but at least he has given us some big hits during the year.

So yes Tito, what the Shuck? There had to be someone else, some magic you could have created with the lineup other than subjecting us to a pinch hitter who swung like a rusty gate. Please give me hope! And to the front office, beyond hope, give Francona some offensive players so we don’t waste playoff chances like this in the years to come. Let’s be honest, with this team’s history we’ll only have this strong pitching until it’s time for them to get paid.