On to the next one, Welcome home Urban

So I know this is about a week late, but it was a busy first week back at work after taking off 30+ days for the wedding and honeymoon.  Where do I begin? Last Monday didn’t go precisely as planned. 

It’s tough to watch games like that.  I felt like the Bucks played well when special teams weren’t involved.  In fact, I felt like they played incredibly well.  The problem we have had for several years when it comes to these bowl games has been our special team’s inability to contain the big play.  The only reason Oregon stayed in the Rose Bowl was every kick was returned to mid-field.  A blocked punt by Arkansas last year almost led them to an improbable comeback (oh wait, apparently that game never actually happened).  Even going to back to the title game in ’03, a 40+ yard punt return late in the 4^th, set Miami up for the game tying field goal.

The solace I take in these special teams debacles is….THE ARE DONE.  Urban Meyer is one of the best special teams guys in the history of college football.  He understands how important it is to the momentum of a game.  Don’t get me wrong, JT took special teams quite seriously, but more the ball control side of things (kicking/punting).  You have to earn your way on to special teams under Urban Meyer.  It’s not something that  unheardled walk-ons from Chillicothe play.  Meyer’s special teams’ starters come from the offensive and defensive one-deep depth charts.  I know that in the very near future we will have some of the best special teams nationally.  Sprinkled with elite athletes who have earned their way onto that punt block team.

Not much needs to be said about the defense, they played well.  It was a great farewell game plan for Coach Heacock.  They limited UF for the most part, although UF was one of the worst teams nationally in offensive production.

Our O-line had a tough game.  Braxton didn’t have much time in the pocket, he also took a little too long to make his reads.  But as we said when we started calling for him to supplant Bauserman as the starter…there were going to be growing pains.  The writers and band wagon fans can crush Braxton all they want, but a true freshman just completed a very tough first season despite all the numerous obstacles he was faced with.

It’s tough to see Boom and Posey go, they were great Buckeyes, but their actions were inexcusable and it’s time we washed our hands of this recruiting class.  They both had fumbles on key possessions , and I felt those fumbles epitomized their college careers.  Great talents, had a lot of success with them, but a couple mistakes by immature decision making really set the program back.  If not for all the “tattoo drama”… There is no doubt in my mind that JT would be bringing out the #2 ranked Buckeyes to face off against LSU tonight, with a Hesiman Winning, record breaking QB.

Regardless of what has happened, I was a proud Buckeye this year.  They were hard to watch at times, but they never gave up and still played up to and sometimes after the whistle.  Although the coaching may have hand-cuffed them at times, these players understood what it meant to be Buckeyes.

Now, Urban Meyer gets two off-seasons to develop an absolute juggernaut.  He can spend all next season fine tuning Braxton in to what he wants him to be.

As I was leaving the bar following the loss on Monday, a couple UF fans that I was jawing with during the game came up to me and my buddy Eddie (not George) and said.  “You have no idea how good you guys are about to be.” He was referring to the Urban hire.  We looked at him and as any cocky, arrogant Buckeye would, we smiled and said “Yes we do!”