Buckeye Blogger Network
I Got This
Teams that give up a 100+ yard kickoff return for a touchdown, a safety, give up a huge momentum shifting opening play of the game touchdown and commit four turnovers don’t often win said game. Along with a much better defensive showing, Kenny Guiton’s faith under fire lead what for almost fifty eight minutes was an abysmal performance to a miraculous overtime win in Ohio Stadium to keep the Buckeyes perfect at 8-0. No matter what happens in the remainder of his time at The Ohio State University, Kenny Guiton will always be remembered as the hero of the 29-22 thriller over Purdue in 2012. And it’s well deserved!
The “Smooth Jazz” of Kenny G.
I think it goes without saying that everyone’s heart skipped a beat or two when Braxton Miller went down in the third quarter Saturday just when it seemed the Buckeyes were poised to break out of the offensive funk that had been holding them back all afternoon. Fortunately “coach” (as Urban Meyer’s staff often refers to him) Kenny Guiton was prepared to step up to the plate and shine in his opportunity. He didn’t exactly look pretty, especially the ground shot that Chris Fields had to dig off the turf or the lazy blooper for the two-point conversion to Jeff Heuerman to tie it in the waning seconds of regulation, but after ten years of Tressel-ball we should be pretty accustomed to ugly wins. Guiton’s steady appearance, knowledge of the offense and the faith the staff and his teammates have in him were the steady hand needed to wage an epic comeback and get a win over Purdue, who may have been playing their best defensive game of the season.
The famous question: What happens when preparation meets opportunity? Kenny Guiton showed you on Saturday.
How bad was it?
One of the questions I kept asking myself after the game was just how bad were things this past weekend against what seemed to be a lowly Purdue team on the back end of its season having reached its proverbial peek? Some aspects of it were down right disgusting. Other parts of it left me feeling pretty good about where they’re headed. Read More
The game with Purdue yesterday was frustrating enough for Buckeye fans even before one of the scariest moment’s I have witnessed happened to a Buckeye player. With :21 seconds left in the third and after a 37 yard run by Miller, he was thrown to the ground by Josh Johnson and laid motionless for a period of time.
Serious worry on the part of staff and Coach Meyer, Thank you Josh Winslow for a GREAT pic
I wasn’t able to attend the game yesterday and perform my Usher duties due to officiating late Friday night, but I can tell you that you could hear a pin drop in the Horseshoe. After they got him off the field they proceeded to take him to the lockerroom on a cart and eventually to the hospital for tests.
Twitter was on fire with tweets from myself asking someone to put a bullseye on #28 to my friend Roy Hall reminding all of us there is more to this than the game.
Roy did a great job with helping fans see the big picture here and went a long way in other tweets to show their faith that Kenny Guiton could get this done. As most fans stayed on twitter and combed through internet stories worrying about Braxton’s status, others took the time to honor Kenny and let him know we were behind him.
As the evening rolled on and information started to come out, people did their best to stay positive about the situation and finally an OSU spokesperson released info that Braxton was “symptom free” and would be released from the hospital soon:
Ohio State quarterback Braxton Miller left the game against Purdue late in the third quarter. He was taken to the Wexner Medical Center, on the campus of The Ohio State University, because of concerns of a possible concussion. He was examined – head, shoulders and neck – and he has been cleared. He is symptom free of all ailments and he is doing fine. He is in the process of being released from the hospital.
There were tweets that he was signing autographs at the hospital and that people could relax now, He even confirmed it late last night.
It’s great that he is okay, and whether or not the Buckeyes lose him for a week as they did wiuth Williams remains to be seen. One thing’s for sure, Kenny Guiton will have some time to enjoy his new found fame. Here’s my favorite that I tweeted yesterday.
On to PSU, Go Bucks!
Video of the post game festivities and Coach Meyer’s comments following the come from behind win over the Purdue Boilermakers, courtesy of Fox Sports Ohio: (transcription provided by the Ohio State Athletic Department).
It was bound to happen eventually, but the Buckeyes evaded it.
The Purdue Boilermakers came in with exactly the right gameplan to attack the Buckeyes. They attacked the edge all day against the OSU defense and found easy yardage when they did so. They also used good line and linebacker play to help shutdown the OSU running game, something that they hadn’t been able to do to anyone else all season.
But the Buckeyes had their secret weapon, “Smooth Jazz” Kenny G, who helped secure the 29-22 win in overtime. Caleb TerBush had a solid day with 17/25 passing for 224 yards 2 touchdowns and an interception. Braxton Miller responded with his worst showing of the season, completing 9 of 20 passes for 113 yards and a pick, and running 12 times for only 47 yards. The Buckeyes ultimately gave up the ball four times to the Boilermakers, which is certainly not a recipe for an easy victory.
Kenny Guiton came in and did a fantastic job replacing Braxton Miller. I’m proud of the effort he put in despite facing a difficult situation. His vision in hitting Devin Smith, who thankfully caught it, gave the Buckeyes a little bit of hope late in the game down eight with only seconds left on the clock. He then managed to get a key touchdown catch from Chris Fields for a touchdown, and another from Jeff Heuerman for the 2-point conversion to force overtime.
Lurking, Waiting to be stepped on
Midweek review of all things Buckeye and from across college sports, including thoughts on the newest in controversial rule changes.
Buckeye 411
Welcome Home
The debut of the Urban Meyer offense everyone was hoping to see took a little longer than most would have liked.
After trailing the Miami University 3-0 after one quarter, Ohio State cruised to a 56-10 victory today at Ohio Stadium.
The offense struggled in the first quarter, out gained 172 yards to 48 by the Redhawks, but thanks to the tough running of Carlos Hyde and a highlight catch by wide receiver Devin Smith, the Buckeyes found their rhythm in the second quarter.
Several things caught my eye from the game today, both good and bad. I will start with the good, though:
Just... wow.
In a 46 point win, it may seem difficult to pick out bad things, but even Meyer described the first quarter as “ugly.” So, here are three things I would like to see OSU address:
Overall, though, Meyer’s debut was a good one. After a shaky start, Buckeye fans were able to see the Urban Meyer offense they were hoping for. Next week will be a bigger test, though, as Central Florida is a much better team than Miami.
We’ve got you covered all week here at The Buckeye Battle Cry.
Quick reflections on the Ohio State Spring Game…
Moving Forward
Before Buckeye Nation turned it’s eyes to shootyhoops on Saturday, the 2012 football team took to the field for it’s first full-pad practice of the spring. Here’s some of the things we’ve learned after three days under Coach Meyer:
