Mike West

I should delete my recent post since you beat me to the punch.

After reviewing Indiana's tape against OBD, Iowa and Penn State, I'm guessing the f'eyes (my new nickname for them until their fan base stops being ridiculous about Ryan Day, who is a Michigan loss from them going full retard again) handle Indiana quite easily. In my eyes, at least for now, Ohio State will get tested by the likes of A&M, Bama and Georgia, Norte Same(another new nickname for me since the Golden Domes get a lot of unearned street cred), Old Miss. If Dante Morre catches fire, I would include OBD as well. As is, Ohio State has shown few weaknesses against teams that can do some, but not complete damage. Indiana will get theirs, but I'm guessing they don't top 23 on the suckeyes if they can't protect Mendoza.

Here's a crazy star for you. Of the six explosive passes Iowa completed on Saturday, FIVE OF THEM WERE BECAUSE THE GUY THAT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE COVERING THE WR WAS LOOKING AT THE QB. The significance of that very important stat is Iowa would have scored less than 10 points in Saturday. One simple change in coverage rules will yield a very, very dominant defense. Of course, since it is a national epidemic in both college and pro football, we know what that means...

We will learn a whole lot about Ohio State in the playoffs.

Well, it was a DE not a LB. DEs don't really wait for a runner to make a move. I believe it was crazier to leave 4 in the box on that play. Much more difficult to stop a running play.

In my opinion, Stein actually adjusted against Indiana. Dante missed two very execution laden TDs in the third quarter. Stein actually set the WTa up well, then shut it down the rest of the game. If Moore can duplicate that last drive in Iowa the rest of the season, we're talking about a totally different team. Maybe Stein should go the way of Buffalo's Superbowl teams-two minute offense all game. Moore seems to shine in those moments.

The only toughness left to display is in the clutch on third down. Our defense had a shot at keeping Iowa under ten points, and thirty points was begging the offense to score it. Anyone claiming OBD aren't' physical enough to handle elite teams is biased. The difference between OBD and the title contenders is their ability to convert third downs on offense when the chips are down, and stop teams on third down in the same situations on defense. The offense needs to start killing it when passing. Moore has got to be more consistent. It really boils down to him stepping up and taking over the game. He's shown he can win the close ones. We need to see him put teams out of contention. He is just off the mark too often. If he cleans that up, the defense will do it's part.

I only saw bits and pieces of the the game. From what I saw, our offense is leaving full meals on their plate. What a waste of a dominant running game! QB Moore plays way better when the game is on the line. Night and Day difference. I realize OBD are down #s 1 and 2, but guys are open. I love Will Stein, and I want to see more simple routes (like the out route on the last drive) for Moore when he is struggling. Those screens are a waste of time in my opinion ( just run a RB screen instead). Stein can't exploit that dominant running game. I can't wait to see the entire game. I want to know how many TDs were missed. So far, against elite defenses, OBD are not scoring 20 points. If they can solve the passing conundrums, we're looking at an intriguing team.

You're on fire Solar. WRs raising their hands is a great one. They're open too much for Moore to miss. So part of this will be Moore's ability to determine which side of the field to key on based on alignment. When a QB only has two seconds, he needs to read the correct side of the field. Throwing WRs open would help (for those unfamiliar with that term, it means throwing the ball to a specific area BEFORE the WR makes his cut. It also includes making the LBs and Secondary pay for always looking at the damn QB-by looking away from that designated area). I hope Stein uses RPO tactics to figure out how Iowa will attack the running game. Pass first and determine the blocking schemes to counter their strategy. I happen to believe Stein is reacting quicker to what defenses are throwing at him. I also believe Lanning was certain we could have lit up Wisconsin throwing the ball, but decided to show teams we will stuff it down their throats at will. I think Lanning is playing the long game-that he will start introducing this weekend. OBD will have to shred pass defenses in order to win the title. And I mean shred. Stein showed me lots in the Indiana game. He cracked their code, but QB Moore went into a shell. You were spot on Solar about Moore bearing the burden. I think he reads zone defenses fine, but he is gun shy. Moore will need to come out of his shell. He has decided to return next year (a very wise move since he is still learning on the job and the extra 12-16 games will make him NFL ready). My thoughts on him are he needs to pull the trigger like Val Kilmer did in Tombstone. He has to make quicker decisions, with unbridled confidence. That hopefully has started in practice the past two weeks. This team will ride the fortunes of Dante Moore. By the way, I also believe the offensive line starts blocking with fury when the freshman are in the game. They truly start plowing once they're in regularly. To me, that means Whittington should be used for passing situations far more often. I don't even care if opponents figure it out. They still will have to stop them, and I don't believe anybody can. Including Ohio State. Those are my thoughts on the matter. Slowly unfolding an offense that will rip you to sheds because they can is what I hope happens. I even hope the coaches simply tell the players it's on them, and that they have complete faith in their ability to pull it off. It's all about confidence, and let the process develop that confidence. Put the best players in position to kill it, and let em play. Do you think Stein will start pulling out the kinds of plays he did against Montana State?

Believe it or not, this is the first week Indiana would be favored against OBD according to Massey. Massey considers Ohio State, Indiana and OBD the 1,2, and 3 most powerful teams. Strangely, Ohio State has the 4th most powerful offense according to Massey, with Indiana 2nd and OBD 3rd. How about that for power rankings? Massey considers Iowa our biggest remaining challenge with the 10th best defense, and the 45th best offense (USC is 29th and 9th, UW is 23rd and 21st). A stout defense in conditions similar to the Wisconsin game will be a challenge for certain. Though Stein likes to establish the running game early and often, will he against Iowa? Iowa has a good blitz package, so QB Moore will need to shine under duress. What will Stein pull out of his sleeve this weekend? How will Moore handle pressure from Iowa's stout DL and LBs? I am not so concerned about the OL run blocking. I wonder what Stein will do to protect Moore. One thing I feel good about is how much I am starting to trust both Stein and Lupoi. I think this is on the players. This is a young team. Surprisingly, they have handled conference road games better than conference home games. I look forward to the next four weekends.

This is exactly why I favor Play In Games. It will clear the air for all P4 teams. At present, I would prefer 4 significant blowouts. That would shut everyone up. There wouldn't be an argument that OBD aren't qualified. I also hope OBD avoid the CCG this year. No need for the possibility of what might as well be a year off. I would prefer two weeks off than close to an entire month. The season needs to be compressed. One tradition I am all for is ending the season on New Year's Day. One bye week for the top seeds and everyone else plays the week the seedings are announced. Enough of this layoff nonsense. I believe this all comes down to how well Dante Moore plays. I've reviewed the tapes. Stein has been killing it (after further review- the call I made about Stein being too conservative has been reversed). Moore missed two TD passes in the 3rd Quarter alone. OBD should have defeated Indiana, and it had two score margin of victory possibilities. But that is what is wrong with shoulda, coulda, woulda. I am even getting to the point where I believe Lupoi is in the same boat (but he has talent gap challenges Stein does not have). It is time the players bring considerably more effort-physically and mentally. I currently believe DL and staff have done everything to get the team over the hump. It is now on the players. I won't be ticked off if they don't play to the best of their abilities, because I still am proud at what they have done to date. Let's hope they put it all together the next two and a half months. That's all we can do. It is out of our hands.

That's an interesting take. Seems to me Nick Saban chewed out players routinely. How many titles does Saban have? And yes, plenty of those rage fests were about dumb things players did. I'm sure this is a generational divide. This old dude never saw stupid acts of display from players because we knew damn well we'd get chewed out AND benched. Discipline matters. That's the gist of my argument. and if you're going to be hard on players, you better love them massively, because that is the only way yelling at them will work.

We'll have to respectfully disagree. I believe there are times when a coach should erupt. Maybe not that particular issue, but players need to understand limits. And boundaries. Which behaviors are unacceptable, which have grey areas. Kalen DebBoer learned that exact lesson. He hard to be hard nosed enough in order for the players to respond when necessary. Furthermore, players must learn respect. For the game, for other players. For something outside themselves. I betcha DL gets on their behinds. We just never see it. Maybe that is what is preferred. Private lessons. As to Mario, that interaction has nothing to do with the way he loses in my opinion. He simply makes poor decisions, and in many instances, has little grasp of the pulse of the game in the moment. Those are two entirely different issues as far as I am concerned. I highly doubt Miami players even know of this dressing down. For why would they play for a man that is "out of control"? I root for Mario because he contributed to Oregon's ascent. I believe he had to go in order to salvage any opportunity at a job like Miami's because the book was out on him-at least for us. He ruined the greatest offense Oregon ever had - The Gulf Coast-and wanted to entirely junk explosive plays as a matter of course in Oregon football in order to prove how good of a coach he was. Cristobal routed Utah when we thought they would boat race us. He won two PAC12 titles beside himself. He won a Rose Bowl as well, going counter his tendencies. He contributed to our current status. And yes, he chewed out a self absorbed player that could have cost the team a loss. That is why I like Cristobal. I'm still glad he is at Miami. But he will stay in Duck lore forever in my mind because I doubt Dan Lanning comes here if not for what Cristobal laid as a foundation.

Oh I was quite pleased. I cannot stand players that showboat like that. It is completely unacceptable. I found it refreshing because too many players are selfish. That cost the team a first down in that situation. It should have been addressed. Point blank. It should never come to blows like it did in Arizona, which was another absolutely unacceptable act from a player (for those of you that don't recall, Arizona was blowing out a team, they ran back a fumble for what should have been a TD, but the player dropped the ball at the one and it became a touchback. Arizona lost the game). Players are too full of themselves. They must be humbled, or if not replaced. It's why I like the steelers and the Patriots. They let their players know they are very expendable. And they're both regular playoff teams. Those are teams I can get behind.

Look at what Ohio State did to Penn State. They threw the ball deep. Bama, Georgia, Miami earlier in the season, A&M, Tennessee- all throw deep early and often. If you want to win a Natty, you're going to have to throw the ball deep. How did we beat Ohio State? Throwing the ball deep. How did we lose to Washington? Throwing efficient pass schemes nearly the entire game. OBD threw one TD pass against Indiana. What kind of pass was it? A bomb. It has been my opinion all year, you have to score 40 a game. Explosive run plays for TDs don't happen often against playoff teams. Explosive plays are necessary to win. That leaves explosive passing. Figure it out, don't make excuses. Throw the damn ball deep.