Bucks crawl by Illini

The Ohio State Buckeyes survived a bit of a scare at Illinois on Saturday. Ohio State snuck out of Champaign with a 17-10 win on Saturday, but for Buckeye fans abroad it didn't really feel like a win. But so it goes when you're on the road in the Big Ten, just take your win and go back home and be happy.

A poor 2nd Half
This game was really a tale of two halves. In the first half Ohio State jumped out to a 17-0 lead, as the offense produced 13 first downs on 195 yards. The second half was another story, as OSU trudged to only 4 first downs and gained only 29 yards. Not exactly what you're looking for as you approach your final two games of the season.

On the drive to Champaign, my mind started to wander and I found myself thinking of different aspects of this Buckeye football team. I had realized on Friday night that this was easily the best offensive line we've had since the '02 National Championship season, which was anchored by NFLers Alex Stepanovich, Shane O'livea, and Rob Sims....and this made me feel really good as we were approaching the last few furlongs of the 2006 football season. Then, in the second half, I had to witness what was probably the worst OSU offensive line performance that I've ever seen.
Give some credit to the Illini defense. They made great halftime adjustments (something that Tressel usually befuddles opposing coaches by doing) and committed to stopping the run by putting 8, even 9 in the box. The poor offensive line performance helped the Illini D look awesome, as Troy Smith, Antonio Pittman, and the rest of the Buckeye O couldn't produce anything.

Smith, Tressel, Doug Datish, TJ Downing, etc. have too much invested in this season to get down on themselves over 30 minutes of football. This terrible half of football is probably the best thing for the 10-0 Buckeyes, who will visit Northwestern this weekend before playing host to Michigan on November 18th in what could be an epic battle. This will give the Buckeyes a chance to refocus and really is the perfect timing for a minor offensive meltdown. With a good and disciplined week of practice, the Bucks have the opportunity to get another win on the road and build confidence again as they move towards the last game of the season.

Worry not Buckeye fans, because a game like this only means what you take from it and how you learn from it. And I think most of us know that with Coach Tressel at the helm, The Ohio State University football team will come out with renewed motivation and an unseen dedication towards finishing off the last two games of the 2006 season.