Ohio State's Secondary Rated #1 Overall In Big Ten

Roby is ready for a break-out year

The Ohio State secondary was rated as the best overall secondary in the Big Ten according to Tom Dienhart of the B1G Network. Dienhart goes one step further, continuing his praise for Ohio State's secondary unit by calling it "one of the best secondaries in the nation."

Here's how he looks at the secondary:

"1. Ohio State - All four starters are back for what should be one of the best secondaries in the nation. Cornerback Bradley Roby was a freshman sensation in 2011. His next stop: stardom. Travis Howard forms the other half of this strong corner tandem. 

Christian Bryant (strong) and C.J. Barnett (free) are a stout duo at safety. Barnett is one of best safeties in the Big Ten. In fact, he may be the top safety, flashing instincts, tackling ability and coverage skills."

The rest of the top 5 include Michigan State, Nebraska, Michigan and Illinois. He ranks the rest of the B1G, but here are the explanations for the top 5.

"2. Michigan State - Losing star safety Trenton Robinson hurts, but this still shapes up as a strong secondary. Johnny Adams rates as one of the top corners in the Big Ten—and the nation. He’s a legit Thorpe Award candidate and likely first-round draft choice. Darqueze Dennard is the ying to Adams yan, a corner with size and coverage skills who often is tested with Adams on the other side. 

Strong safety Isaiah Lewis came into his own as a premier talent with All-Big Ten ability last season. Kurtis Drummond is penciled in at Robinson’s strong safety slot. Coaches like his potential."

"3. Nebraska - The Cornhuskers are strong at safety even with the loss of Austin Cassidy. Strong safety Daimion Stafford should be one of the stars of the secondary and maybe the best player on the defense. He’s a big hitter who covers a lot of ground. Free safety P.J. Smith is a veteran who knows the defense and rarely is out of position. There is talent at cornerback but little experience. Standout Alfonzo Dennard is gone, which hurts. Mohammed Seisay arrived from a junior college in the spring and looks like a potential star as the No. 1 corner. Andrew Green and Ciante Evans—among others–also figure in at corner. Former running back Braylon Heard could an asset as a nickel or dime back."

Ohio State Basketball Ranks As 2nd Best Coaching Job In The Big Ten

Matta is in an enviable position at OSU

Over at ESPN, it's "Coaches Week" and during this week, the writers go through each conference to rank the best and worst coaching jobs, as voted on by 14 of their writers and television analysts.

For a little more on how it works, here's the explanation:

"A few important notes: This is not an attempt to rank the programs or their histories. A school's tradition was taken into account of course, but more emphasis was given to recent years and how hard or easy it is for a new coach to win there. Current recruits don't remember much beyond, what, 2008?

When voting, our 14 panelists were asked to take into consideration facilities, expectation level, athletic budget, wins and losses, recruiting base, fan support/pressure and all of the other factors that go into determining the "best" jobs in the ever-crazy profession of college basketball coaching.

In short: If you were an agent and every single job was open in a particular conference, where would you direct your client? Where would you tell him to avoid if there are better options?"

The Top 5

1. Indiana

2. Ohio State

3. Michigan State

4. Michigan

5. Wisconsin

Join us after the jump to look at the breakdown of each of these jobs.

Ohio State, Michigan Set To Play November 24th, At Noon

Miller's looking for revenge

The Ohio State-Michigan game this year will start at noon on Nov. 24, both schools announced today.

The game, at Ohio Stadium, will be televised by ABC. The game has traditionally, but not always, been played early in the day.

The teams have met every year in the regular-season finale since 1935. This year it will be the final game of the season for Ohio State because of the NCAA-imposed bowl ban.

When asked last week if that would add to the importance of the game, new Buckeye coach Urban Meyer replied, “Sure does. That’s gonna be a big one, obviously.”

The Wolverines won 40-34 in 2011 for Brady Hoke in his OSU-Michigan coaching debut, snapping the Buckeyes’ seven-game winning stroke over their arch-rivals.

The Michigan game is the fourth for which Ohio State has a game time. The Oct. 6 game against Nebraska in Columbus is set for 8 p.m. Ohio State will play at Indiana also at 8 p.m. on Oct. 13. On Oct. 27, Ohio State’s game at Penn State will start at 6 p.m.

2013 4-Star Defensive End Joey Bosa Commits To Ohio State

Bosa is #12 for the Class of '13

It doesn’t get much better than the defensive end trio Urban Meyer signed for his 2012 recruiting class, which included Noah Spence, Adolphus Washington and Se’Von Pittman that Urban Meyer landed last recruiting season.

Now, though, Meyer may just be outdoing himself as the Buckeyes added a fantastic defensive end earlier this afternoon.

Joey Bosa, the country’s No. 2 strong-side defensive end in the 247Sports rankings, has tweeted that he has committed to Ohio State. This makes Bosa the 12th commitment to Meyer and OSU's Class of 2013.

Bosa made his decision while visiting Ohio State over the weekend and attending the Ohio State spring game on Saturday. However, he waited - for good reason - to make his announcement this morning.

Bosa is more familiar with Ohio State football than most high school football players in the state of Florida. Bosa’s mother is from Chicago and his uncle Eric Kumerow was a high school star there before heading to Ohio State where he became a star defensive end for the Buckeyes.

The 6'5", 260-pound Bosa played in every game during his sophomore season and started two for one of the country’s top prep teams. He missed four games during his junior season with a concussion, but still made 50 tackles including eight sacks. Bosa had 16 tackles for loss as St. Thomas Acquinas finished with a 10-3 record.

Bosa picked Ohio State over an impressive list of scholarship offers that includes Florida, Florida State, Alabama, Auburn, Wisconsin, Michigan, Boston College, Notre Dame and Iowa.

In addition to being the country’s No. 2 strong-side defensive end prospect, Bosa is the country’s No. 24 overall prospect and the No. 7 prospect in the state of Florida.

This defensive line recruiting is just getting out of hand - in the best way possible. This a fantastic pick up for Ohio State and one that they really wanted to add to their class. Now that they have him, they can focus more on the other key recruits. 

Keep it at Inside The Shoe for the latest news, updates and opinions on Ohio State athletics. 

B1G Tournament Basketball Preview: Ohio State vs. Michigan

Ohio State is facing Michigan for the 3rd time

Based on the way Ohio State looked in its first game of the event, the Wolverines will need to play much better against their archrival if they want to earn a spot in the league championship game.

The No. 10 Wolverines look to prevent the seventh-ranked Buckeyes from reaching the Big Ten final for a fourth consecutive season when they meet in the semifinals for the second straight year Saturday in Indianapolis.

Co-Big Ten champions in the regular season along with Michigan State, second-seeded Michigan (24-8) and third-seeded Ohio State split their first two meetings in 2011-12. The Buckeyes (26-6) won 64-49 at home Jan. 29, but the Wolverines got their revenge and snapped a six-game skid in the series with a 56-51 win in Ann Arbor on Feb. 18.

William Buford had 16 points and Jared Sullinger added 14 with 13 rebounds as the two-time defending tournament champion Buckeyes beat Michigan 68-61 in last season's semifinals, improving to 5-0 against the Wolverines in Big Ten tournament play.

Considering the way Ohio State played during an 88-71 win over Purdue on Friday, Michigan has reason to be concerned after it needed a late rally and overtime to beat 10th-seeded Minnesota 73-69 earlier in the evening.

Buckeyes Push Boilermakers Out Of Tournament, Advance To Next Round

Sullinger led the Buckeyes to an 88-71 win

Jared Sullinger still relishes carrying the load. Sullinger had a season-high 30 points and grabbed 12 rebounds to help No. 7 Ohio State beat Purdue 88-71 on Friday night in the Big Ten tournament quarterfinals.

Sullinger defers more often than he did last season, sharing the spotlight with Deshaun Thomas and William Buford. This time, it was his show.

Thomas had 22 points and seven rebounds and Buford scored nine of his 11 points in the second half for the third-seeded Buckeyes (26-6). Ohio State shot 61 percent to post its second-best scoring output of the season and outrebounded Purdue 39-28.

The Buckeyes will play No. 10 Michigan on Saturday. The Wolverines defeated Minnesota 73-69 in overtime in an earlier quarterfinal.

D.J. Byrd scored 20 points and Terone Johnson added 15 for the Boilermakers (21-12). Robbie Hummel, Purdue's top scorer, finished with six points on 2-for-8 shooting.

The Boilermakers made 12 of 26 from 3-point range but were overwhelmed by Ohio State's size and athleticism in the paint.

Purdue missed its first five shots to fall behind 7-0, and the deficit increased to 19-11 before the Boilermakers rallied. Byrd hit 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions to cut Ohio State's lead to 33-30.

Hummel stuffed Sullinger's shot on one end and Anthony Johnson made a 3-pointer on the other end to trim Ohio State's lead to 35-33. Sullinger's 3-pointer with 34 seconds left in the first half gave the Buckeyes a 40-36 lead at the break.

Friday's Buckeye Bits

Good Friday morning, Buckeye Nation! We're putting a nail in this week, another week without football. Not to worry. By my count, we are merely 57 days away from the Spring Game!

Hoopage News. First, the women's team. Last night was Senior night and Samantha Prahalis wrote one of the final chapters of an outstanding career, playing her last at the Schott. And it was a good one to go out on, with a 25-point thumping of the Gophers.

Prahalis ended the night scoring a school record with 42 points on her own. She hit 15 of 27 shots from the field including 7 of 12 3-pointers, and was 5 for 5 at the line. She also had six rebounds, four assists and three steals before leaving to a standing ovation with 2:27 left after breaking Katie Smith's 1994 record by hitting two free throws.

Tuesday's Buckeye Bits

Surprise, Buckeye fans! You've got me again today. We've got a good round of Bits coming your way this morning but I first just wanted you all to take notice of a new house on the market that looks pretty damn nice. If you want to buy me a present for all of my hard work, I would gladly take our coach's former house. Anyways, back on to the task at hand. Let's get on with today's Buckeye Bits!

You Thought That Was The Only House Today? Ramzy over at Eleven Warriors continues to dominate the writing game, this time with a piece on a different view of Ohio State and Michigan. Also, he continues the house-theme today, with Tom Brady's super mansion. Also, if you haven't seen the fight of the century, it's way better than anything Pacquiao and Mayweather could do.

"The reason that Michigan has been isolated instead of, say, Northwestern (most Wildcats, like Buckeyes, are Communications majors) is because with Rich Rodriguez no longer in Ann Arbor, Michigan is back to recruiting the same players as Ohio State once again. There simply is no offseason in college football's greatest rivalry.

The likely reverberation will be Michigan coaches having to explain, again, why so many of its players end up as General Studies majors. It's an extremely answerable question that passes the red-face test without any challenges. That's not really the intent, though. This is a simple, short-attention span rebuttal to Michigan's value proposition."

To echo Ramzy, this rivalry really doesn't have an offseason. Let the hate flow.

Basketball Buckeyes Fall At Michigan

Cold shooting left the Bucks with an L

More than 17 hours after Beilein showed up at the Crisler Center with doughnuts for the fans, Michigan (No. 19 ESPN/USA Today, No. 17 AP) finished off a 56-51 victory over No. 6 Ohio State. (Ed. Note That gives Ohio State a 2-game losing streak against teams from TSUN)

The Wolverines (20-7, 10-4 Big Ten) are 15-0 at home and tied with the Buckeyes for second place in the Big Ten, a half-game behind Michigan State.

The star of the night was a true freshman who was introduced to the fired-up crowd as "The pride of Columbus, Ohio, Trey Burke."

Burke finished with 17 points, including a game-clinching runner with 11 seconds left that helped Michigan stop a six-game losing streak to the Buckeyes.

Basketball Preview: #6 Ohio State vs. #19 Michigan

Can Sullinger and OSU bounce back?

The memory of another frustrating loss to rival Ohio State last month remains vivid in the collective minds of the Michigan basketball team.

With that defeat as motivation, the No. 17 Wolverines try to avoid a seventh consecutive loss to the sixth-ranked Buckeyes on Saturday night in a Big Ten matchup at Crisler Arena.

Michigan (19-7, 9-4) trailed by three at halftime at Ohio State on Jan. 29, but the Buckeyes used a 14-2 run midway through the second half to win 64-49. By the end of the game, Buckeye fans added insult to the result by singing "We Don't Give A Damn For the Whole State of Michigan."

The rematch is here, in a prime-time setting and on a court where the Wolverines have won 15 straight dating to last season. The Buckeyes are going to be tested coming off of their recent loss to Michigan State.

Tuesday's Buckeye Bits

Good morning Buckeye fans. Welcome to your Tuesday Buckeye Bits. Unfortunately we are entering the worst month on the sporting calendar tomorrow. February is the worst.

College basketball is still weeks away from the greatest tournament on earth, the NFL will be coming to a close with this weekend’s super bowl, pitchers and catchers are still a couple weeks away from reporting and it’s COLD.

Don’t fret Buckeye fans! I am here to scour the internet in hopes of finding some interesting tidbits for you to read. Let’s get to it.

Buckeyes continue their hot streak- National signing day is only a few days away and the Buckeyes continue to pull in the blue chippers. The latest commit was corner Armani Reeves out of West Roxbury, MA. Depending on what recruiting site you look at, Reeves is listed anywhere from the 17th to 8th best corner available. It came down to OSU and Michigan in the end and I think we all know he made the right choice. It probably didn’t hurt that his high school teammate Cam Williams signed on last week but we’ll take them any way we can get them.

Monday's Buckeye Bits

Good morning Buckeye faithful, and welcome to your Monday edition of the Buckeye Bits. It's National Signing Day week, and that means the last couple of pushes, nudges, and full on shoves from coaches to recruits to sign with their school. As for the Buckeyes, they sit with 23 commitments, and hope to add to that number with a couple of big players.

I personally love the recruiting game. It's an interesting thing to watch a kid toy with coaches and fan bases with a simple tweet or even rumors that are started about said recruit which aren't true. Now all of that comes to the boiling point Wednesday, but might continue on for a couple of the recruits seriously enjoying the recruiting process.

Anyways, on to the Bits.

23 You Say? Not So Fast My Friend. As I mentioned above, the 2012 class stands at 23 commitments, but as we told you yesterday, wide receiver commit Roger Lewis is no longer a verbal to the Buckeyes, after not meeting the entry grade on his test. This opens up another scholarship, yes, but also puts on some serious pressure for Urban Meyer and his staff to lock down a commitment from another receiver. That can come in the form of Stefon Diggs or Davonte Neal.

2012 4-Star Cornerback Recruit Armani Reeves Commits To Ohio State

Reeves is the 24th commitment in '12

2012 4-star cornerback Armani Reeves has just committed to Ohio State via Twitter, giving Ohio State it's 24th commitment.

Reeves picked Ohio State after decommitting from Penn State along with fellow Buckeye Camren Williams, and then choosing over the Wolverines, who were the only other choice besides OSU.

It has been a very busy week for Reeves. Last Saturday Michigan coach Brady Hoke visited him. On Monday, Urban Meyer, Everett Withers, Mike Vrabel and Luke Fickell met with Reeves. Then on Tuesday Michigan assistant Greg Mattison met with Reeves.

In addition to all of the football visits, Reeves is in the middle of his high school basketball season.

The 5-foot-11 and 180-pound Reeves made 57 tackles and intercepted a pass playing cornerback during his senior season. He is a 4-star prospect in the 247Sports rankings, the country’s No. 82 overall prospect and No. 7 cornerback, and the No. 1 prospect in the state of Massachusetts.

Keep it at Inside The Shoe for the latest updates, news, and opinions on Ohio State Athletics.

Smith, Buckeyes Give Late Push Against Wolverines

(AP Photo/Jay LaPrete)

Lenzelle Smith Jr. once again stepped up big time for #4 Ohio State, as he scored 17 points and had a career-high 12 rebounds as the Buckeyes (19-3, 7-2) flexed its muscle inside to beat the 22nd ranked Michigan squad 64-49 on Sunday, keeping the Buckeyes in a first-place tie in the Big Ten.

Jared Sullinger added 13 points and William Buford and Deshaun Thomas both had 12 for Ohio State (19-3, 7-2), which ran its winning streak over its archrival to six straight and eight of nine.

Tim Hardaway Jr. had 15 points for the Wolverines (16-6, 6-3). Trey Burke, the conference's top freshman point guard, returned to his hometown to play for the first time against Sullinger, his former high school teammate, and finished with 13 points.

The Buckeyes also extended their home-court winning streak to 38, the second-longest in the program's 100 years. Leading by three points at halftime, the Buckeyes pulled away with a 14-2 run midway through the second half. Bookended by 3-pointers by Burke, most of the points came as a result of backdoor cuts or drives. It didn't include a 3.

Buford, who was quiet throughout the first half, got it started with a driving layup. Later in the spurt he stepped in front of Burke's crosscourt pass and streaked the length of the court for a dunk.

Can Urban "Put a Fence" around Ohio?

Urban's goal: lock down Ohio recruits

As we wind closer to National Signing Day, it's time to look at how well Coach Meyer has done. Certainly, one can conclude that he has made a significant impact in raising the profile and quality of recruits for Ohio State. Perhaps most importantly, he has reinforced the long-held importance of keeping as many top-shelf Ohio recruits as possible here.

In the words of Gene Smith during the introductory press conference: "We wanted a football coach who..would create the environment here with the aspiration for every single football player in the state of Ohio is to be a Buckeye..and have no other thought."


Did Coach Meyer accomplish that? Of course, we won't know for certain for a couple of days, but let's look at what we know so far, especially in relation to TSUN. We'll also take a look at how Urban's immediate predecessor did in HIS first recruiting season.

Let's Go Bowling

So.Much.Football.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! College football is set to embark on yet another bowl season which means games on almost every night starting next week. I’m not going to bore you with another BCS rant because we all know how I feel about the matter… it sucks!

This system is the most un-American way to decide a national champion that I can think of. This country, which was built on the sweat and blood of great men, still lets the BCS get away with this travesty after 13 years. A system that is decided by computers and sports writer/AD opinions is no system at all. I can’t even begin to tell you how lame it is. Would getting ready for a 16 or 8 game playoff this week be any fun?

Would a playoff bracket make any money or cause any excitement? Am I laying on the sarcasm enough? The answer is a resounding YES to all of those questions but apparently my bitching and moaning here at ITS for the past 2 seasons has fallen on deaf ears. I guess some dude in NW Ohio screaming into cyberspace hasn’t made that much of a difference. Oh well. Since we have to live with this unfortunate system for now, I wanted to cover the best of this year’s bowl games. Every year there are intriguing matchups that you wouldn’t have otherwise seen during the regular season.

Those oddball games are great entertainment and a spectacular reason to stop talking to your co-workers and family during holiday gatherings! That reason alone is worth its’ weight in gold. So plant your ass in a favorite recliner, grab a cold one and get ready for the last of college football until next fall. Disclaimer #1- This is an Ohio St. blog (if haven’t already noticed). I will not include the Gator Bowl because it is obvious that contest is the best game to watch. There will be tons of pre game coverage on this blog and others so I don’t want to attack this one just yet.

Even though 6-6 wasn’t what we had in mind, the Gator Bowl offers a rare opportunity for retribution and revenge against those swamp rats from Gainesville. You don’t often get opportunities for a rematch when over 100 teams play in your sport so let’s hope the Buckeyes can get that monkey off their back. I really want this win even if it is on a slightly smaller stage than in 2006. Disclaimer #2- I refuse to include the MNC because it is bullshit that Alabama got another shot at LSU. Not only did the Tide not win their conference, they failed to even win their own division. While LSU was busy earning their way in the SEC championship, Bama was at home resting in preparation for the game they already knew they were going to. How on earth is that fair? If I were an Oklahoma St. fan I would be irate with anger.

The SEC bias in this country (ahem.. ESPN) is totally nuts. Alabama had their shot and they lost. Nobody can tell me otherwise. This year’s game is a sham. OK, without further adieu, I give you the best 3 bowl games this holiday season in no particular order.

3 Burning Questions About The Big Ten And College Football

This combo is dangerous.

The Big Ten wrapped up its' inaugural Championship game this past weekend in Indianapolis as the Wisconsin Badgers squeaked by the Michigan St. Spartans in a thriller. The game was a classic back-and-forth contest that featured numerous lead changes, stellar running back play and some big hits that are commonplace here in the Midwest. I thought it was a great showcase game for the Big Ten which allowed our great conference to remain in the discussion one precious week later than years past. I believe that extra exposure was instrumental in getting the conference 2 BCS bids for yet another year even when it appeared the Big Ten was a little down this season. It didn't hurt that the game was a barn burner as well.

As I sat watching the game unfold in the Mandalay Bay sports book in fabulous Las Vegas on Saturday, I pondered some questions to discuss for Inside the Shoe. Is Wisconsin the right team to represent the Big Ten in the Rose Bowl this year? Did Michigan deserve to get a BCS bid? Does Monte Ball deserve to be a finalist for the Heisman? Finally, why did I bet football parlays instead of just sticking to the Blackjack table? I have definitive answers for the first three but am still dumbfounded by putting my hard earned Blackjack money on College Football. Lesson learned I suppose so let's get back to football rather than discuss my foolish betting practices. Early on this season Wisconsin looked as if it could waltz into the National Championship game with ease. They were destroying opponents with the running game and signed..err gained access to a stud quarterback without having to wait a year.

My Thoughts On Urban Meyer, Michigan, And The BCS/SEC

Here we go again

Before we get into the possible title game rematch between LSU and Alabama (Yawn) I wanted to give some quick hitters on the Ohio St/Michigan game from last weekend.

1) Braxton Miller still has a long way to go with that throwing motion. I counted at least four separate throws that could’ve gone for touchdowns or at the very least big gainers that definitely would’ve switched the momentum. The guy has unimaginable talent in those legs but you have to be the complete package when playing big boy football. I think he has the skill in that right arm of his but it’s yet to be coaxed out by the coaching staff. Luckily there is a new sheriff in town who knows how to handle this type of dual threat quarterback.

2) The defense this year is the worst I have seen at Ohio St. in some time. I know that they are young and another year of experience will do wonders next season but I didn’t expect the difficulty stopping the run. In years past it didn’t matter that OSU had a sub-par offense because all they needed to do was score 14-21 to win. Usually the defense would add another 7-14 and that was the ballgame.

OSU was constantly ranked in the top 10 and the offense just had to do enough to post a W on Saturdays. The turmoil surrounding the program didn’t help but there were way too many big 3rd downs given up on Saturday. If they could’ve stopped Denard on half of those runs I think the outcome is way different.

3) The Urban Meyer fiasco completely overshadowed the game after the whistle finally blew on Saturday. The next two days, all anybody could talk about was the new hire. That must have driven those mouth breathers from up north MAD. They finally get over on us after 7 years and the opposing fan base couldn’t have cared less. I shouldn’t say we didn’t care but the vast majority of our attention was focused on the media frenzy happening in Columbus.

All my Michigan friends could do was try and tell me how “bad” this hire was.  Are you kidding me guys? Our new coach is a home run and it drives you nuts that nobody wanted to talk about the game. A game that you almost lost to a 6-5 team I might add. Ah, the rivalry is back folks. It took a loss by the bucks and a coaching whirlwind to get it back but I think the next five years are going to be fun. If you want to read more on the game there are countless talented writers with way better insight on the contest that I can give you. I spent the day sulking inside of a bottle and haven’t watched the replay yet so let’s move on shall we?

What Went Right/Wrong: The Game

Brown showed some improvement

There's something very deceiving about the 6-6 record that Ohio State holds for the 2011 season. A lot of these losses came down to either the final couple of minutes in the game, or were within striking distance the entire day. We lost to Michigan 40-34. Before that margin, Michigan was at first and goal, leading with only a couple of minutes left in the game. Then some magic took place, allowing hope to enter my head.

That magic, came in the form of some very stupid mistakes by Michigan. A holding call, and then a personal foul against the Wolverines pushed them all the way back to around the 20 yardline. In turn, they had to kick a field goal, leading to the final score. Of course, Ohio State had an opportunity to get things going and to win the ballgame with a last minute drive once again.

With that, let's get onto what went wrong and right for the Buckeyes on Saturday.

Recap: Ohio State 34 Michigan 40

The last drive wasn't enough

When people remember the 2011 Ohio State Buckeyes (6-6, 3-5), what will come to mind? That this was the first team to lose to Michigan in 7 years? Maybe they'll remember it as Braxton Miller's coming out party, where he led the Buckeyes to a 6-6 record, which would have been much worse without him. 

Perhaps the line of thinking will go towards the team that came after Jim Tressel and before Urban Meyer. Whichever way people remember it, this season was rough for OSU fans, and they most likely will try and forget it.

When OSU took the field, there was some serious energy on offense, before Braxton Miller connected with a wide open Philly Brown for the first score of the game. Better yet, it was a long pass that completed an outstanding drive, that was perhaps one of the best drives this season. The common phrase this game was "Where was this play-calling all season?". 

It seemed as if Fickell, coaching in what may be his first and last Michigan game was pulling out all the stops and kidnapping Jim Bollman's playbook for the day, to allow Braxton to actually be set free. The 18th-ranked Wolverines and first-year head coach Brady Hoke notched their first win over the arch-rival Buckeyes since 2003, prevailing 40-34 in what was by far the most entertaining Ohio State-Michigan game since the one-versus-two game in 2006. The offense's on both sides exploded, but the same could be said about the defense's.