Hogue Report: Post-Ohio State

The hype for this game reached a level just shy of the BCS Championship (I would argue it was more than last year’s Rose Bowl for sure).  And yes, it was only September 13.  I, for one, was trying all week to not succumb to the pressure around L.A. and the country of discounting Ohio State based on their lackluster performance against Ohio U.  Even for the Trojans, I saw the Virginia film but felt it was too early to judge these Trojans, because Virginia simply wasn’t that good.  Did we really know how good the offensive line would be against a talented group like OSU?  Or how our QB and receivers would do against a talented secondary?  And the Trojans D – Virginia didn’t even try to run the ball against the Trojans – could we really know how guys like Averell Spicer and Everson Griffen and others would fare against an OSU attack that averaged over 5-yards per carry against LSU last year in the BCS Championship Game?  

Two words:  QUESTIONS ANSWERED

Ohio State is a good football team.  They may not be a top 4 or 5 team, but they are definitely top-10, and dismissing them as just another overrated Big-Ten team would be a disservice to the Trojans, who dominated OSU more than LSU last year and more than Florida the year before.  And Ohio State’s defense is its best in the last three years, and its offense is much the same as last year and now has Terrell Pryor.  But USC physically and athletically dominated the game – and it could have been very, very ugly if Pete hadn’t pulled back on the throttle.

The Trojan defense is as solid as any year under Pete Carroll, who seems to have a great grasp on his personnel packages and gets playmakers in the game at the rights times.  Back in the mix is the forced turnovers.  Back in the mix is the ability for the defense to score on its own.  And back is that killer instinct that smells fear and just keeps turning up the heat.  

And did anyone notice the second-half adjustments by Pete?  Through most of the third quarter, the Buckeyes had negative yardage.  He came after Boeckman with more ferocity and slanted the line repeatedly to the Buckeyes run tendencies.  His approach to Pryor was different, as the ends contained him with pressure coming up the middle and he simply looked confused and often went backwards.

For the offense, I was even more impressed, as there were more question marks going in.  My first props (it’s in my blood), go to the offensive line.  For them to run the ball as well as they did (particularly using their athleticism at the corners of the defense) and give Mark Sanchez so much time to throw – in the face of a number of blitzes, was outstanding.  And this group will get better each week.

Second kudos go to Steve Sarkisian, who I felt did a tremendous job both in preparation, and execution.  There is a reason the blitzes were picked up, and even more, turned into scoring plays.  That was preparation.  Then you add the actual calls in the game:  the balanced attack, the unpredictability, and the confidence he showed in his whole group… outstanding job, Sark.

And my last pat on the back goes to Mark Sanchez.  Big game, big stage, big defense to go against, and all he showed was poise, confidence, leadership, passion, precision… (should I go on?)  Mark may well be the best quarterback in the country right now, and he will improve each week.  He would be the first to tell you that he wasn’t perfect, but who would you rather have running this offense?..  this team?  Tim Tebow?  He’s an amazing athlete, but he’s not a fit for this offense, and he isn’t a guy who can distribute to weapons like USC has.  Remember – Florida lost to Michigan last year in their bowl game.  Sam Bradford?  Not a chance – I think he’d break.  Chase Daniel?  He doesn’t have the arm Sanchez does.  Matthew Stafford?  Not accurate enough to run this offense.  Max Hall?  Great system guy and accurate, but doesn’t bring the passion and leadership Mark does, which this team of stars needs.  Jimmy Clausen?  (I have to throw in some humor every now and then).  Mark Sanchez is the right guy at the right time for this program.  How do you reach new heights after 2004, 2005?  You do everything else USC has done, and you have Mark Sanchez as your quarterback.

So now that I’ve heaped praise on the Trojans more than I normally ever do at this point in the season, let me offer this one word of warning (which I’ve said the last two seasons as well):  Beware, Trojans, it’s a long season.  We’re at week 2.  Ten more regular season games to go.  USC always does well in big games.  And USC always has times where teams that were supposed to be walk-overs show up and make a game of it.  So at some point, home or away, there will come a time where an opponent catches some breaks, and USC makes some errors, and all of a sudden it’s a game in the 4th quarter and the opponent has confidence and it’s anyone’s game.  IT WILL HAPPEN!  When it does, it’s up to this team to show their character and come away with victory.  But to be honest, I wouldn’t want it any other way!

Onto Oregon State.