Quote:
Originally Posted by adrean8j
I am loathe to say our defense "let us down". We were calling the correct defensive schemes and UW never had any real big plays aside from the initial kick-off return. The problem was the same problem people had with Ron Dayne or Jerome Bettis or even Brandon Jacobs....trying to bring down a 255-265lb running back is not easy with a decent/good O-line...even if you have a good D-line...mathematically without bringing the safety's up for every play the offense will have that advantage. I take nothing from Udub...they just got us this year...c'est l'avie  . We still have a winning record against them  |
historically when Ohio State has beaten Ron Dayne, Brian Calhoun, PJ Hill, Clay, etc was b/c we were able to get an early lead and force Wisc to throw more often than run or at least the game was back and forth enough where Wisc. did not have enough time to drive down the field with a steady dose of the running game.
Wisc is the most dangerous with a lead, b/c once the running backs get 4 yards a carry, your team's possession times will be diminished significantly.
Every Ohio State -Wisc has been similar since at least 1993 where each team lines up their running backs and take turn punching each other in the face. It's brutal, but it's Big Ten football at it's best, that's why teams like Miami, Stanford, UCLA couldn't beat Wisc, they don't have the size to beat them in this manner. I would love to see a Wisc v. Oregon match up, Oregon would only have 6 possessions on offense for the whole game!
The problem is, this style of offense makes it difficult to come back from behind. Unless the right players are in place like Lee Evans and Chris Chambers who can keep the safeties honest.