Monday, September 12, 2011
Associated Press
columbus
No. 17 Ohio State has already moved on from Saturday’s close call against Toledo.
Next up is a date with a program that has gone through a lot of the same trials and tribulations as the Buckeyes — Miami.
Interim coach Luke Fickell stressed that his team wouldn’t take a lot of time to reflect on the 27-22 victory — a last-ditch drive by the Rockets died at the Buckeyes 17 with 48 seconds left — before shifting the focus to Saturday’s major road test against the Hurricanes.
“We have about a 17-hour incubation period, or whatever you want to call it, that we can reflect on what [the Toledo game] was all about and how things went,” Fickell said after the squeaker against the Rockets.
Lucky for the Buckeyes, they’ll have a lot more than 17 hours to address the things that didn’t go well.
The bottom line, of course, is that the Buckeyes (2-0) survived against a good team. But there were troubling aspects of the game that could shadow the team for the rest of the season.
Toledo played on even terms on both lines, passed for 100 more yards and matched the Buckeyes in intensity. Equality with a Mid-American Conference team is a new concept for the Buckeyes, who improved to 18-0 all-time against the MAC — usually by huge margins.
Yes, the Rockets played well. And the Buckeyes not only were without seven suspended players but lost two other starters (defensive lineman Nathan Williams and receiver Corey “Philly” Brown) to injuries. Ohio State’s coaches and players don’t know if either will be back for the game against the Hurricanes.
Besides being short-handed, there were other problem areas. The Buckeyes netted just 112 yards on the ground, quarterback Joe Bauserman was major mistake-free but largely ineffective (16 of 30 passing for 189 yards and a touchdown) and the defense frequently found itself chasing Toledo’s standout wide-out Eric Page along with tailback Adonis Thomas.
“We’ve got to learn from our mistakes,” said receiver Chris Fields, who flipped the game around by bringing back a 69-yard punt return just before the half. “It took us a while to warm up a bit. The defense stepped up in the second half. The offense, we need to look at the film to see what we can do better.”
The Hurricanes might not be able to learn much from watching video of the Buckeyes. Ohio State dominated throughout in a 42-0 win over overmatched Akron in the opener, then looked lost and out of synch for much of the Toledo game. Which Buckeyes team will show up on Saturday?