Cavaliers announce Promotional Schedule for 2015-16
September 25, 2015An Autumn Tradition: Browns vs. Raiders
September 25, 2015There is a saying around Columbus, Ohio. It is passed on from father to son, mother to daughter, and neighbor to neighbor. Buckeyes young and old hold it near and dear to their hearts. It goes, “We don’t give a damn for the whole state of Michigan.” Those 11 words serenade Ohio State’s campus every autumn as (usually) delighted fans exit Ohio Stadium. The key element of that ditty is “the whole state.” So when the Western Michigan Broncos enter the stadium this weekend, they know which song Buckeye Nation will sing.
Saturday marks the first-ever matchup between Western Michigan (1-2) and No. 1 Ohio State (3-0). Western Michigan opened the season with losses to Michigan State and Georgia Southern before defeating Murray State at home last week. Historically, the Broncos have been an afterthought in the Mid-American Conference. The team has won the conference only twice –1966 and 1988. While WMU has appeared in six bowl games, they have yet to win a postseason contest. Last season, Air Force defeated Western Michigan 38-24 in the Potato Bowl (Ed’s Note: the Potato Bowl is a real thing), dropping the Broncos to an embarrassing 0-6 all-time. WMU hopes to emerge as a MAC power thanks in part to their head coach.
In 2013, then-32-year-old P.J. Fleck received a tall order in Kalamazoo. In his first year as head coach, WMU finished 1-11 (1-7 in MAC play). Their lone win came against an equally ineffectual Massachusetts team. Last season, Fleck engineered a remarkable improvement as Western Michigan jumped to 8-4 (6-2) and he won the MAC Head Coach of the Year award. While this season has started out slowly, opponents now know that the Broncos should not be taken lightly.
[Watch: Ohio State releases intense trailer for Western Michigan]
Offensively, the Broncos’ number one weapon is redshirt junior wide receiver Daniel Braverman. He leads all Division I FBS players averaging 13.3 receptions per game. The 5-foot-10 wideout has accumulated 398 yards and three touchdowns in the season’s first three games. Ohio State sophomore cornerback Eli Apple appreciates the threat Braverman poses. “They like to throw a lot of bubble and screens to him, not a lot of vertical routes,” said Apple. “He’s very quick and is going to prove to be a challenge for us.”
Braverman has excelled partly thanks to redshirt junior quarterback Zach Terrell. On the year, Terrell is 82-of-116, averaging 315.7 yards per game. He has thrown eight touchdowns versus five interceptions. Fun fact: the backup quarterback, Tom Flacco, has signal calling in his genes. Tom’s big brother Joe plays quarterback professionally for the Baltimore Ravens.
Before the confetti settled in Dallas last January, Buckeye fans were already salivating over how prodigious Ohio State’s offense would be in 2015. After three weeks, the team’s biggest strength seems instead to be its relentless defense. The Silver Bullets have allowed 24, zero, and 13 points in 2015 for a 12.3 point per game average. The D impressed against Northern Illinois on a day when the Buckeye offense seemingly could not retain the ball. Ohio State intercepted NIU’s Drew Hare twice, including Darron Lee’s potentially game saving 41-yard pick-six in the third quarter. Overall, OSU limited the Huskies to 190 yards and 10 first downs on the day. Until the offense stabilizes, the defense will need to continue to pin its ears back and give the opponents hell.
Earlier this week, Urban Meyer announced Cardale Jones will start against Western Michigan. He described the entire offense as “in a funk” and feels all the blame should not fall on the Cardale Jones/J.T. Barrett tandem. “When you’re not getting protected,” said Meyer, “When you’re not balanced or control the line of scrimmage, when you’re not perimeter blocking very good, the quarterback struggles.” Both QBs struggled against NIU, combining for only one touchdown versus three interceptions. Right now, the focus should rest less on who is under center and more on getting the offense in a consistent rhythm. For some perspective, Ohio State’s 20-point showing was its lowest output since the 35-21 loss to Virginia Tech on September 6, 2014.
Ohio State’s hot-and-cold offense could spell trouble when matched up with a Big Ten club. Luckily, this weekend brings in another MAC school instead. While Western Michigan is by no means a pushover, Ohio State has the talent to handle their guests in short order. The defense has proven it can make big plays and stymie opponents. Now the offense has another chance to make plays and prove that turnovers are the exception and not the rule. Expect Ohio State to win its fourth game of the campaign as non-conference play concludes.
1 Comment
The state of Michigan is a beautiful state, and it pains me when Ohioans get so hung up on college football that they ignore the natural treasures of the mitten. Don’t give a damn about the whole state, sure, but you do yourself a terrible disservice if you don’t limit that to college athletics.