TXHoosierDaddy

Honestly as you mentioned it can't be any worse. It seemed players were only interested to take in the unbelievable atmosphere instead of actually playing for TC. Archie and staff are building great relationships and there is renewed excitement around recruiting and the program. Every reason to expect this to be different.

Isn't Forrester visiting tomorrow? I'm going to be very anxious to see if he pulls the trigger on the spot! I can totally see that happening if he has a great visit.

Must win game guys if we want to go bowling this year. I expect it to be close like most of the P5 non-con games we have played over the past few years (Mizzou, Wake Forest).

24-21 IU

This is the type of game WE have to win. Maryland is better than I thought they would be and Purdue looks like it could be a battle. Rutgers and Illinois should be wins. If we want to go bowling I really think we have to get this one from a confidence standpoint and based on the difficult schedule ahead. I expect the defense to step up in this one. This is definitely a bigger game for our offense. Will we have a running attack? UVA gave up about 150 rushing yards to a very weak opponent. Will Lagow take care of the ball and execute the gameplan? I'm excited for this one.

^^This^^

Bama is not a good comparison. They have the most depth out of any team in college football. We don't. And even though he wasn't a starter, that doesn't mean he wouldn't have been one. He had 1k yards last year and is a playmaker that makes us better. If you don't have someone else out of your 85 guys that can do something as simple as cover a kickoff that's a problem.

At least he will get a redshirt. Still brutal based on losing him on a play he shouldn't have been in on. CTA won't do that again.

Any update on Westbrook? I assume this isn't a good sign since he got the MRI on Friday but maybe just waiting until Monday to announce before/after practice.

I don't think the defense has regressed but I'm not sure there is much depth to speak of. Interesting, Virginia won their opener 28-10 against William and Mary. However, W&M rushed for 168 total yards. Next week will give us a good idea if we can run the ball at all.

Lagow is who he is guys. He's a slightly above average quarterback based on the fact that he has great arm strength and pretty good accuracy. Everything else leaves a lot to be desired. He will continue to make bad plays if defenses can put lots of pressure on him. I don't see us winning more than 6 games either if the running game is anything like Thursday. It must improve.

The criticism stems from the fact that it's the same type of mistakes he made a year ago. Ohio State is the best team we will see all year. No doubt. However, Lagow still forced throws without needing to. He still isn't able to look down receivers and go to the second or third option, which really good QB's do. He still doesn't seem to have a good feel for the pocket when pressure is around him. What we saw was his accuracy was on point big time. Better than it was from a consistency standpoint than any full game last year. If he could combine those great throws with some QB instincts and a better feel for the pocket he would be on another level. The bottom line is without a running game it's going to be very hard to beat any really good teams. Hopefully, that can improve with a few easier games coming up.

Kind of hard to make that determination after seeing the other QB option for one series. I get that Lagow didn't get any help from the running game. At the same time, he continues to force throws and just make bad decisions in key situations. Case in point, that INT in the redzone he stared down the receiver and forced the ball in for an INT. Would have been up 14-3 and instead it goes to 7-6. He could have easily had another TO or two on the night.

I agree the running plays for Lagow are basically like giving up a down. He's lucky to get a yard or two and most times gets stopped around the line of scrimmage. Lagow has nice precision and great arm strength but still lacks a lot of fundamentals that make a really good QB. I would be all for putting Ramsey in more and more as the season progresses b/c what we saw last night is who Lagow is and there is not much improvement that can be made at this point.

That's not really the point. We lost a big time playmaker to a play that he should never have been in on. Can never have enough playmakers and no telling if he would have eventually won the starting gig over Hale as the season progressed. He certainly showed lots of promise last year.

Returning punts or kickoffs is certainly one thing if you are the best at it on the team but just covering a kickoff? C'mon. You don't think someone else can step up and do that on the 85 man roster? I've never heard of a top receiver covering a kickoff. I'm sure other teams do it but it's not common at all.

That first pick was crucial on Lagow. He waited way too long to throw it and then telegraphed the pass giving the defense time to make a play. If we score there it puts us up 14-3. Instead Ohio State comes down and kicks a FG. Overall though he impressed me a lot just has to cut down on costly TO's and learn to throw the ball out of bounds when he is heavily pressured because that is when he forces things and makes bad decisions. Doesn't make things any better that Westbrook was on ST last year although it is interesting to point that out. That's even more absurd considering he was by far our most productive offensive player after Simmie went down. We should have more than enough guys that can play on ST without risking injury to one of our playmakers on offense. I won't speculate but the injury didn't look good. Hoping it's a meniscus or something of that extent.

Cobbs has the look of a 1st round draft pick. Big, athletic, physical and great hands. And without Westbrook I don't know what the depth looks like now at WR. 75% of the completed passes went to Cobbs, Hale, Timien and Thomas. An outstanding starting lineup but not sure what's behind them. Allen better learn from this that you don't put one of your best players on special teams! You should have enough options there with guys who aren't contributing elsewhere.

They just wore us down on defense. It didn't help that we couldn't sustain drives on offense due to being so one dimensional. The run game is still a big question mark but there was nowhere to run. The Ohio State D-line dominated on that front. I was impressed with Lagow and the receivers. Thomas, Timien, Cobbs made difficult plays and Lagow was precise with his passes even when he was pressured. The one downside still is Lagow's mobility. When the pocket collapses he doesn't have the ability to keep the play alive and either takes a sack or make a bad decision. I was really impressed with Ramsey too. Obviously his passing needs to improve but he brings a new playbook on offense with his ability to run. I wouldn't mind seeing him get a series each game especially. Defensively we were really good in the first half. I liked the game plan of making Barrett throw. We had a good push on the d-line but Ohio State pushed the tempo and wore us out in the second half with the run game. A little disappointed with the depth on defense but this obviously will be one of the tougher tests. The biggest head scratcher to me was Westbrook being on special teams. There goes an offensive weapon and a hit to the depth at wide receiver (still have Cobbs who is a stud, Timien, Hale, Thomas). The injury looked like an ACL but we will see today or tomorrow I'm sure.

Yeah don't get why you would put one of your top returning receivers on special teams. That's pretty dumb. Makes me think we are thin there when we shouldn't be.

Anyone know the latest on Westbrook? Got injured first play. Was really surprised to see him on special teams and was looking forward to seeing him opposite Cobbs.

Apparently this was in relation to KU getting 5 star power forward Silvio De Sousa. Seriously Fran? It's seismic news for a 5 star recruit to commit to a blue blood program? What a joke.

I have a great feeling our defense will perform admirably! It would be amazing if Lagow and the offense get it going and hang some major points on OSU. As many have mentioned before, it all comes down to giving Lagow time in the pocket to find receivers!!! Let's GO.

IU - 24 OSU - 38 Think it is a very close first half and then Urban makes the adjustments with just better talent.

Disagree. If we didn't get Watford but ended up with Hurt instead most would still be ecstatic. I think we expect to get at least one of these two. Both would be great but if that's a total overreaction to say it's not a great class if you end up with one paired with a Hurt, TJD/Igeihon