And here comes a two- or three-game stretch where the Buckeyes will need the passing game to survive.
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The Ohio State Buckeyes (10-0) are coming from a 28-3 win over IL last week.
Backup Tyler O’Connor directed the Spartans on two touchdown drives Saturday, but could they win without Cook?
“It’s for the Big Ten Championship, the victor of that game controls their destiny”, Patton said. Running back Ezekiel Elliott is consistent, and added 181 rushing yards against IL.
Let’s light the fires and kick the tires, because this, right here, is one of the games we’ve all been waiting for. We’ve been coaching against MI State now for (four) years, and this is the best group (of receivers). They can run the ball.
“I’m not sure we’ve put both those things together, run and pass, this year in any one game like we did last year”.
“We do tend to travel no matter where the game is … we just travel to what we think is the best game”, Herbstreit said. Regardless of the game plan, the Spartans will need to make plays all day against the most talented collection of offensive skill players it has seen and an offensive line Tressel said tries “to make interior defensive linemen quit”. “They’ve haven’t been challenged yet this season and we’ve seen them play down to competition. It will be a test for guys that have stepped into roles who haven’t played in games as big as this”.
“We’re used to it around here”, center Jack Allen said. “I’m going to be ready to go, so there is no issue with that”, Cook said. “It’s time that we ride him”. “The passion is universal and we embrace it. That’s what makes this sport so special”. Led by safety Vonn Bell and standout cornerbacks Eli Apple and Gareon Conley, Ohio State boasts one of the best secondaries in the country, allowing just 171.6 yards through the air per game.
Reversing roles from last year’s November 8 matchup, the Spartans are now the overwhelming underdog and the Buckeyes are the clear favorite.
An Ohio State loss – which would be the team’s first in 14 months – gives the Spartans the tiebreaker advantage in the Big Ten East division and, should Mark Dantonio’s squad win the subsequent week against Penn State, Meyer’s team would be left out of the Big Ten title game altogether.
Barrett, however, is second on the team in rushing with 50.4 yards per game and boasts a team-best 6.9 yards per carry. MI State forced five turnovers, had a pair of fourth-down stops, and returned an interception for a touchdown in the win over Maryland. “They do a great job staying behind their blockers, staying tight to the gaps they are supposed to hit”.
And since the tilt could have the biggest playoff implications of any Week 12 battle, it’s no surprise ESPN’s College GameDay is heading to the home of the Horseshoe to thrill the Buckeyes student body and get the rest of the nation amped up for what promises to be a few compelling action.
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“Our D-line and our front seven are real good at getting to the quarterback, so they help us get picks”, sophomore cornerback Gareon Conley told Tim Shoemaker.
