Friday, September 10, 2010

The U vs. Ohio State Preview

Miami (Fla) at Ohio State
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Ohio Stadium - 3:30 p.m.
Ohio State - 7.5

The last time these two teams met on the field, The U was in domination mode and Ohio State was the upstart team without much of a chance at the Buckeyes were 14 point underdog in the 2003 Fiesta Bowl...

Move ahead seven years later the roles are reversed...Jim Tressel has turned the Buckeyes into a perennial powerhouse while The U had to rebuilt...the 2003 Fiesta Bowl began the downturn for Hurricane football which eventually cost head coach Larry Coker his job...

Some forget that Tressel was almost the head coach at The U in the mid-1990s but instead turned down the job to remain at Youngstown State University...The U eventually settled on Butch Davis who started a brief Hurricane Dynasty II before bolting for the Cleveland Browns...

Almost seven years after the 2003 game, most of the major stars of that game ended up with a bleak future:
Sean Taylor - drafted in the first round by the Redskins...was shot to death in his Miami home by an intruder..
Craig Krenzel - the genetics major never made it in the medical field...he currently is a spokesperson for John Deere power equipment and serves as an Ohio State broadcaster...
Maurice Clarett - that would be the last game he would ever play for Ohio State...Clarett later served 3 plus years in prison and is now playing for the UFL...
Ken Dorsey - bounced around the NFL as a journeyman quarterback...in 2010 he signed with the Toronto Argonauts to serve as a back-up to former Miami Dolphins QB Cleo Lemon...
Willis McGahee - sufferred horrific leg injury in the title game...he was still drafted in the first round by the Buffalo Bills and sat out his rookie year...he is currently still playing in the NFL but never had the impact that he did in college...
Kellen Winslow - was a top 10 draft pick by the Cleveland Browns, but a freak leg injury in his rookie season sidelined him for the year...he then tore up his knee in a motorcycle accident...he never lived up to his potential...
Mike Nugent - was the Buckeyes field goal kicker with nerves of steel...was a second round pick of the N.Y. Jets...never was a clutch kicker in the NFL...now with the Bengals...


  • 2003 Fiesta Bowl game story



  • What the "experts" are sayin!!!

  • College Football News


  • Pointwise - Ohio State 31 The U 16
    The Gold Sheet - Ohio State 27 The U 24

    Hurricanes Summary

  • Miami Game Notes



  • Susan Miller Degnan of the Miami Herald writes how the 2003 loss still hurts former players... "As the No. 13 Miami Hurricanes (1-0) and No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes (1-0) prepare to meet in Columbus on Saturday for the first time since the controversial national championship game in the Jan. 3, 2003 Fiesta Bowl, the Hurricanes from that team -- and their families -- eagerly await." ...
  • Susan Miller Degnan



  • Manny Navarro of the Miami Herald writes how running back Graig Cooper worked hard to recovery from a knee injury... "The 6-foot, 205-pound senior, who tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee in the Champs Sports Bowl eight months ago, made his debut as promised Thursday night against Florida A&M." ...
  • Manny Navarro



  • Navarro writes how The U wants to put a pass rush on OSU led by Olivier Vernon... "But it never hurts for a pass rusher to have a little style, too. Vernon just chooses to hide his under his helmet with a haircut that could best be described as a mohawk surrounded by zig-zagging patterns." ... Miller Degnan writes how The U's Jacory Harris has his focus on Ohio State... "Harris, in his cool, mellow way, insisted Wednesday that the only matchup Saturday in Ohio worth watching will be the one between No. 2 Ohio State (1-0) and No. 12 Miami (1-0) -- not the quarterbacks wearing No. 2 (Pryor) and No. 12 (Harris)." ...
  • Susan Miller Degnan



  • Buckeyes Summary

  • Ohio State Game Notes



  • Ken Gordon of the Columbus Dispatch writes how this week's game is a "home" game for some Buckeyes... "Brian Rolle hadn't been with the Buckeyes for long when he looked at Ohio State's upcoming schedules. His heart jumped. In his senior season, the linebacker from Immokalee, Fla., saw, he would get to face his hometown team." ...
  • Ken Gordon



  • Jack Park of the Columbus Dispatch writes how former coach John Cooper had an impact on the 2003 title game... "Ohio State's 31-24 victory over Miami in double-overtime in the Fiesta Bowl to capture the 2002 national title is a solid choice for the Buckeyes' greatest victory. John Cooper, who was in his second year of retirement in 2002, had three distinct connections with the game:" ...
  • Jack Park



  • Doug Lesmerises writes about the paths of Maurice Clarett and Sean Taylor... "The play lasted six, maybe seven seconds. Fifteen strides took Miami safety Sean Taylor from the end zone, where he had intercepted a Craig Krenzel pass, to the 29-yard line, where he suddenly found Ohio State running back Maurice Clarett ripping the football from his right arm." ...
  • Doug Lesmerises



  • Gordon writes how the Ohio State defense wants to put Jacory Harris on his back... "Larimore said they hope to deliver Tatum's message in person to the Hurricanes, and in particular to quarterback Jacory Harris." ...
  • Ken Gordon
  • Thursday, September 09, 2010

    NFC Preview

    NFC East
    Eagles - Kevin Kolb will surprise many and the Iggles defense has improved...
    Cowboys* - years ago, Jerry Jones would have whacked Wade by now, but J2 is showing patience...this may be the last year of that patience though...
    Giants* - the defense was gosh awful last year...they need a fast start or this team may go south fast...whatever happened to Brandon Jacobs too?...
    Redskins - Washington will show some spunk over the course of the year...

    NFC South
    Saints - the Champs will not be as dominant...their defense did give up a lot of points in their 2 home playoff wins...
    Falcons - the Dirty Birds went in a funk when Ryan got hurt last season...look for Michael Turner to have a rebound year in the backfield...
    Panthers - Matt Moore will hold off Jimmy Clausen as the starting QB...the key to this team is the health of DeAngelo Williams...a healthy DeAngelo to go with Jonathan Stewart make this a playoff team...
    Buccaneers - Raheem Morris gets canned after the season...will make a push for Bill Cowher...

    NFC North
    Packers - Aaron Rodgers will win the league MVP...the defense needs to tighten up a bit more...they are vulnerable at corner...will Charles Woodson start to show his age?...
    Vikings - Sorry Brett, but you will start to show your age this year...
    Bears - Chicago will make a push to pass the Vikings...
    Lions - this will be the Kings of the Jungle's last year in the cellar...

    NFC West
    49ers - this is everyone's sexy pick in the NFC...the door is wide open for the gold to be rushing in...
    Seahawks - the seabirds pass the Cardinals just because of who is Arizona's QB...
    Cardinals - Derek Anderson???...nuff said...
    Rams - Wonder is Spags wishes he stayed as defensive coordinator of the Giants...

    NFC Championship
    Packers over Cowboys

    SUPER BOWL
    Packers over Patriots

    Tuesday, September 07, 2010

    AFC Preview

    AFC East
    1. Patriots - Bill Belichick still has some magic in that old silk hat...Brady and Moss will connect for 17 TDs...
    2. Dolphins* - I like the pick up of Karlos Dansby for the defense...Henne is ready to show this is his team...
    3. Jets - the Jets are everyone's S-E-X-Y pick...Jets will have a winning mark but will stub their toe against some lesser opponents which will cost them in the end...
    4. Bills - Buffalo needs to get a true quarterback if they are going to compete in this division...

    AFC North
    1. Steelers - the defense will get them through an ugly season...the big concern is the lack of depth behind Mendenhall...just when people think the Steelers are over-the-hill, they always rise to the occassion
    2. Ravens - much like the Steelers, just when people think their better days are behind them, Ray Lewis and company seem to get better...
    3. Bengals - I love rookie tight end Jermaine Gresham...he will get all the fruits from the double teams on TO and Chad...
    4. Browns - Cleveland will make strides this year, but they are still a ways away...

    AFC South
    1. Colts - until someone in this division can stand up and punch this team in the mouth, I have to go with Peyton Manning...note to Jim Caldwell, if you make it to 13-0 this year, be a man and go for the perfect season...
    2. Titans* - this is a mentally tough team because of their head coach...
    3. Texans - Houston is on the brink of making the playoffs...Arian Foster is the name people will know by the end of the year...
    4. Jaguars - Jack Del Rio will be the first coach canned...

    AFC West
    1. Chargers - I love the drafting of Ryan Matthews...now they have fresh young legs to go with Philip Rivers arm...
    2. Raiders - don't laugh!!!...the Raiders will make noise this year - and in a positive way...Rolando McClain (photo) will be AFC Defensive Rookie of the Year...
    3. Broncos - this is not a bad team, but this is not a good team...
    4. Chiefs - Charlie Weiss and Romeo Crennel will not make a difference...

    * Denotes wild card team

    Thoughts on the AFC
    First Down - last season the Dolphins took a step back after making the playoffs in 2008...however, Chad Henne is solidly in charge at quarterback...also, head coach Tony Sparano dropped some major weight...

    Second Down - how much gas is left in the tank for Ray Lewis?...whether you love him or hate him, the guy is a freak of nature...somehow he keeps on performing at a high level...

    Third Down - Matt Cassell is the new Scott Mitchell...back in the mid-1990s, Mitchell replaced Dan Marino after Marino suffered an Achilles injury...Mitchell performed very well then received a big contract from the Detroit Lions where he then tanked it...

    Fourth Down - AFC Championship Game - Patriots over Chargers...this is New England's last hurrah...

    Monday, September 06, 2010

    It's decision time for Tate Forcier

    The Michigan Wolverines played a good game on Saturday in their 30-10 win over Connecticut...the star of the game was quarterback Denard Robinson who dazzled the crowd of 113,091 with his speed and good decision-making...

    One of the biggest moments in the game came when Robinson got injured and was being attended to by the medical staff...all eyes moved to the Michigan sideline to see true freshman Devin Gardner warming up instead of last season's starter Tate Forcier...

    As a true freshman, Forcier started all 12 games last season...he began like a buzzsaw but his production and development regressed as the season wore on with his last game, against Ohio State, being his worst game of the year...it was reported that during the off-season, Robinson and Gardner outworked Forcier which led to some teammates calling out their former leader...as time went by, Robinson was looked upon as the new leader of the team...

    Forcier, who sat dejected on the sideline during Michigan's big win on Saturday must make a decision - should he stay in Ann Arbor and fight to get his job back or transfer now...

    The one disadvantage to being a quarterback is that only 1 person can play that position on the field...therefore, Forcier must do what is best for himself...as a Michigan fan I still like Forcier...he played hard last season even though he made many freshman mistakes...

    People have to remember that he is a 20-year-old kid who is still learning how to deal with tough situations...last season's early success could have went to his head and been a factor in his dismal finish...maybe he thought he was entitled to be the starter again this year?...I'm not sure what is going through his mind...

    Whatever decision Forcier makes, the Michigan fans should support him unless he decides to pull a Justin Boren and transfer to hated rival Ohio State or even Michigan State...as long as he doesn't transfer to one of those two schools, I thank Forcier for selecting Michigan as his first school of choice and wish him nothing but the best in his future...