Football and more football

I'm taking the weekend off to watch the playoffs, but I leave the many fans of the blog a preview on the playoffs and review of the Florida-OSU game, courtesy of my good friend, Stephen Haynes.

FLORIDA vs. OSU

It wasn’t so much David vs. Goliath as it was Samson vs. Goliath. And it wasn’t that Ohio State was overrated, but Florida was underestimated.

The Buckeyes deserved their press clippings and earned the acclaim they had been showered with. When a team enters the season as the consensus #1 in the BCS and does nothing to even jeopardize that standing, and their quarterback, favored to win the Heisman trophy, delivers with amazing numbers and wins it by a historical margin, the team deserves to be hyped.

In contrast, Florida had to work its way up the BCS standings. They started out ranked fourth, their potency was questioned, and they were disregarded many after their sloppy performance against Auburn. When they eventually surfaced at #2, it was said they hadn’t truly earned it, but inherited the spot after Michigan was beaten by the mighty Buckeyes. Their quarterback, who was ballyhooed three years ago but vilified after failing to live up to lofty expectations placed on him after the 2004 campaign, had a very good season (144.99 rating), but no Heisman.

But the teams weren’t that dissimilar. Defenses ranked 5^th (OSU) and 6^th. Ohio State gave up just 12.8 points per game and Florida 13.5. Florida’s defense forced 29 turnovers to Ohio State’s 27.

Florida ranked 19^th in total offense and OSU ranked 26^th with Florida out-gaining them by just 546 yards on the season.

The difference is that the Gators didn’t have as many early-decided blowout wins; didn’t impose its will and crush the weaker opponents as Ohio State had. But overall, they did face a tougher schedule. Florida had games against three teams that finished in the top 20 (Tennessee, LSU, Auburn, Arkansas), Ohio State had two (Iowa & Michigan).

While OSU breezed through their schedule and stomped opponents in the high-flying Big Ten, Florida won ugly. They played a lot of relatively low-scoring (boring), hard-fought “grind it” games.

But in the month leading up to the game, they had to endure the slights of experts and enthusiasts who predicted and expected an Ohio State cakewalk.

“Motivation was not an issue,” said Urban Meyer, who will undoubtedly be sought by several skipper-switching NFL teams hot for the next hot coach next season. “If you are looking for a great pre-game speech, I didn't have to have any. We had one for 30 days.”

Florida was thought to be college football’s version of the Detroit Pistons - a strong defensive team that had some talent on offense, but wasn’t explosive.

Admit it, when Ted Ginn Jr. took the opening kickoff 93 yards untouched for a touchdown, you thought the beating was on. How can they even fantasize about stopping the unstoppable if they can’t even bust a wedge? The opening salvo, like one of those old Mike Tyson fights, was supposed to be the knockout blow seven seconds in.

But what happened after the special teams got off and that special team took the field, led by Chris Leak, was the commencement of a detailed, deliberate and domineering dismantling.

Coming in, they had been criticized for the dink & dunk passes, their almost constant use of spread formations and their deficiency in the running game. Florida’s best between-the-tackles runner was Tim Tebow, the backup quarterback. They played like a rich school’s version of the 2004 Kansas State Wildcats offense (Ell Roberson & Darren Sproles). But the same things they were belittled for were the things that allowed them to tack on points like the ‘04 Oklahoma Sooners.

Leak, who had been denigrated by Gator fans for much of the season, operated mostly from 4- and 5-wide formations and threw almost exclusively underneath, connecting on 25 of his 36 throws for 213 yards. The longest completed pass went for 20 yards to tight end Cornelius Ingram. Leak averaged just 5.9 yards per attempt, but Meyer and his offense understood that 6 yards + 6 yards = first down = winning the time of possession battle 40:48 to 19:12. And Ohio State had no answer for the shotgun offense, the option runs, the screen passes. Nor did they have an answer for Meyer’s quarterback platoon as Tebow was substituted in as the short yardage (quarter)back, accruing 36 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries. He also tossed a touchdown, finding Andre Caldwell wide open in the end zone after faking the QB keeper.

On defense, Jarvis Moss (now NFL-bound) and Derrick Harvey dominated the Buckeyes’ vaunted offensive line and forced Smith to move around. Smith, normally shifty enough and deft at throwing accurately while on the move, looked inept in the face of that pass rush. That ineptitude persisted as he completed just 4 of his 14 attempts and threw an interception while that front four harassed him all night. Florida’s defense had too much speed for OSU and the offensive line couldn’t handle it.

The sturdy ol’ Dodge Ram vs. the fine-tuned Mclaren Mercedes. But the Dodge had a Hemi in it. Scratch that, it had the engine of a suped-up Formula 1 race car.

Sans their 64-yard drive in the 2^nd quarter which was completed with an 18-yard touchdown on a cutback off left tackle by Antonio Pittman, Ohio State’s offense did nothing. They had just three drives on which they totaled 10 or more yards, and five on which they went backwards.

The Buckeys averaged 2.5 yards per pass and 2.0 per run. How ‘bout that SEC defense, huh?

Even the erratic place-kicker, Chris Hetland, who had made only 4 of 13 field goal attempts this season, connected on kicks from 42 and 40 yards in the first half.

The end result was a 44-14 shellacking. And it wasn’t that close. But what we can’t lose sight of is that there wasn’t that much distance between the teams. Ohio State wasn’t in a different league or a big league team getting knocked off by a minor league affiliate. They were in the same league, and ballpark, too. And Florida put some hot sauce on their behinds and let them know whose house it was.

PICKS

Seattle v. Chicago

What’s the difference between the 2006 Bears team and the 2001 version? Both stormed through the regular season going 13-3, but the 2001 defense was better (203 points allowed to 255 this season) and they got better play out of the quarterbacks. Jim Miller and Shane Matthews combined to throw 18 touchdowns and 16 interceptions and completed 59.4 percent for 2,993 yards. Rex Grossman, despite his 23 touchdown passes, completed just 54 percent, and with 20 interceptions, he had almost as high a completion percentage throwing to the other team. The 2005 squad that went 11-5 didn’t fare too well, either, with Grossman at the helm. Teams with great defenses and quality running games don’t necessarily need great (or good) QB play, but they can’t afford to have the signal-caller be a liability. People often point to the Ravens with Trent Dilfer in 2000, but he threw just one interception in the postseason. Bears fans cross their fingers and hope that Rex doesn’t throw more than one INT per quarter. The switch to Brian Griese (career 63% with 84.5 QB rating) should’ve been made after week 13 after Grossman, who threw 17 picks in the last 10 games, had thrown 0 TDs & 6 INTs and completed 39 percent in the previous two contests. Now it’s too late. The Seahawks underachieved this year because of injuries and well, underachieving. But they’ve got a talented defense - although the secondary is depleted - that ranked 6th in the league with 41 sacks. Pressure + Grossman = turnovers. And the Seattle offense does still have Matt Hasselbeck and Shaun Alexander behind a good offensive line flanked by Darrell Jackson (game-time decision) and Deion Branch. Also, that Bears defense, after incurring a bunch of injuries, gave up 26 points per game over the last four weeks. 23-17, Seahawks.

Patriots v. Chargers

I’ll keep it brief. I thought the Patriots won their division and had a good record by default. They weren’t challenged much and they’re not the same team they were two years ago. Tom Brady doesn’t have as many options in the passing game. The offense, more predicated on the run than ever before, will face a Chargers defense that was 7th against the run. The Patriots defense was the second best in points allowed, but much of the game plan will be geared towards slowing LaDainian Tomlinson. And, Belichick’s genius be damned, Philip Rivers will take advantage of the short safety defenses. Who knows, New England might even overload the box and go with “Zero” coverage (both safeties down) a few times to stop the MVP. But the Pats don’t have much speed at linebacker and Rodney Harrison won’t play, so I expect Antonio Gates to take advantage. I’ve liked Rivers since he was at N.C. State and I don’t think he’ll get flustered or overwhelmed. The Chargers defense will keep the game close, allowing Tomlinson and Michael Turner to keep pounding away and not have all the pressure be placed on the young quarterback. Don’t underestimate the preparation and dedication of a married man who’s willing to get in the shower with his center and take snaps with the water cascading. 24-20, Chargers.