#3 Ohio State (1-0) vs. #1 Texas (0-1) Post Game

[FearlessF]

Fearless is in a perpetual state of drunkenness.  It's why he's such an ornery contrarian pot stirrer.

I'm agreeing with you again, damn it!

[utee94]

I'm agreeing with you again, damn it!

It's okay, we're making up for it by completely disagreeing on the USC/UCLA thing.

[FearlessF]

yup, and yer wrong on that  

but, I can't prove it

[medinabuckeye1]

Hurt shoulder or not, I've thought about it and I feel that @utee94 is definitely overreacting for a number of reasons:

First:
This isn't 1995 (pre-BCS), nor 2005 (BCS), nor 2015 (4-team CFP). This is 2025 with a 12-team CFP so one loss is "meh" not "OMG our Championship dreams are toast".

Second:
Texas outgained Ohio State by about 1.5:1. Their defense held the #3 team in the country and defending NC to barely over 200 yards and just 14 points. 

Third:
Texas made a LOT of correctible mistakes that severely impacted the score including:

• Ohio State's first TD was courtesy of two big defensive penalties that kept the drive going.
• Ohio State's second TD came off the INT.
• Texas had a Safety taken off the board by a Defensive penalty. 

Fourth :

Texas ran a LOT better than Ohio State overall. Ohio State was oddly better when they had to be (ie, and-goal situations, fourth downs) but Texas' backs averaged 4.0 and 5.0 while Ohio State's averaged 2.0 and 3.5.

Fundamentally, Ohio State won because they made a few more 'gotta-have-them' plays. The Buckeyes got inside the 25 once and got a TD. Texas got inside the 10 twice and came away with zero points. 

Texas should feel like they could have won this and in the old days* that feeling SUCKED because your NC dreams died in a flaming pile of woulda coulda shouldas but in 2025 they are still very much a factor in the NC chase.

*Old days like 2005 when Ohio State got to the edge of FG range when a FG would have made it a two-score game and pretty much iced it but came up empty and lost.

[utee94]

Hurt shoulder or not, I've thought about it and I feel that @utee94 is definitely overreacting for a number of reasons:

First:
This isn't 1995 (pre-BCS), nor 2005 (BCS), nor 2015 (4-team CFP). This is 2025 with a 12-team CFP so one loss is "meh" not "OMG our Championship dreams are toast".

Second:
Texas outgained Ohio State by about 1.5:1. Their defense held the #3 team in the country and defending NC to barely over 200 yards and just 14 points.

Third:
Texas made a LOT of correctible mistakes that severely impacted the score including:

• Ohio State's first TD was courtesy of two big defensive penalties that kept the drive going.
• Ohio State's second TD came off the INT.
• Texas had a Safety taken off the board by a Defensive penalty.

Fourth :

Texas ran a LOT better than Ohio State overall. Ohio State was oddly better when they had to be (ie, and-goal situations, fourth downs) but Texas' backs averaged 4.0 and 5.0 while Ohio State's averaged 2.0 and 3.5.

Fundamentally, Ohio State won because they made a few more 'gotta-have-them' plays. The Buckeyes got inside the 25 once and got a TD. Texas got inside the 10 twice and came away with zero points.

Texas should feel like they could have won this and in the old days* that feeling SUCKED because your NC dreams died in a flaming pile of woulda coulda shouldas but in 2025 they are still very much a factor in the NC chase.

*Old days like 2005 when Ohio State got to the edge of FG range when a FG would have made it a two-score game and pretty much iced it but came up empty and lost.

Arch sucked, the Texas coaches sucked, and there's not a lot to be hopeful about.  Texas is now 0-4 against the two elites teams they've played in the last 11 months.  

That's not just a bad thing, it's a trend.

I'm not concerned that Texas is going to crater and go 6-6 or something.  But I am concerned that Texas has proven incapable of winning at the level that is required to win championships and be an elite team.

[MrNubbz]

Then Sark might have to run the table or 99.9% of it and look good doing it to save his skin

[utee94]

Then Sark might have to run the table or 99.9% of it and look good doing it to save his skin

Maybe so.  Tough to give a shit right now.

[OrangeAfroMan]

All the knee-jerk reactions to this game are acting, at least from online/media.
The outcome is irrelevant.
This loss won't keep Texas out of the playoff, 2 others will.
You always want to win, but in this format, they might as well have played the game out on a simulation (like Whoa Nellie College Football game, available online!).

This is probably the best defense Manning faces all year.
Texas can still lose again and comfortably make the playoff, 100%.

[FearlessF]

[nwms]

Maybe so.  Tough to give a shit right now.

clearly overrated atm but what manning isn't. the others all got it done before the end of their college careers. that may be the best defense he'll face all yr & he had to do it in his first career start.

[utee94]

clearly overrated atm but what manning isn't. the others all got it done before the end of their college careers. that may be the best defense he'll face all yr & he had to do it in his first career start.

Just FYI, it wasn't his first career start, he started two last year while Ewers was injured and he had significant playing time in a couple of others.

But it was certainly his first career start against an elite team.

Just clarifying since I've seen this stated a bunch and it's not technically correct.

[medinabuckeye1]

I'm not concerned that Texas is going to crater and go 6-6 or something.  But I am concerned that Texas has proven incapable of winning at the level that is required to win championships and be an elite team.

I can relate to that feeling (not lately but I've certainly been there) but I think this puts too much emphasis on Texas as opposed to the elites that they are 0-4 against in the last 11 months.  Georgia and Ohio State are REALLY good teams, no team consistently beats teams THAT good.  

Back on the game generally, both defenses did a great job of eliminating (almost completely) the chunk plays.  The two longest plays of the game were Sayin's 40 yard TD pass to Tate for tOSU and Manning's 32 yard TD pass to Livingstone for Texas.  

Texas' longest runs weren't much more than a first down and Ohio State's weren't even that long.  The rushing averages are bad for Texas and pathetic for Ohio State and it is all because of the lack of big plays.  It is typical that most of the runs in a game against a quality defense are going to be for 2, 3, 4 yards but usually the averages are propped up by a few where the RB gets loose and goes half the field but that didn't happen at all.  Texas's three longest runs were 15 by Manning, 14 by Baxter, and 13 by Wisner.  For the Buckeyes:  Donaldson's long was 8 and Peoples' was 6.  Add 40 to any one of their carries and the averages look fine but without those chunk plays, not so much:

• 5.0 for Wisner
• 4.0 for Baxter
• 3.8 for Manning
• 3.5 for Donaldson
• 2.0 for Peoples

[utee94]

I can relate to that feeling (not lately but I've certainly been there) but I think this puts too much emphasis on Texas as opposed to the elites that they are 0-4 against in the last 11 months.  Georgia and Ohio State are REALLY good teams, no team consistently beats teams THAT good. 

But you're just restating what I already said.  You're essentially saying Texas isn't elite enough to expect to beat those elite teams.

I agree.

And nobody is expecting to consistently beat those two teams.  But Texas is 0 for 4.  That's the opposite.

[nwms]

Just FYI, it wasn't his first career start, he started two last year while Ewers was injured and he had significant playing time in a couple of others.

But it was certainly his first career start against an elite team.

Just clarifying since I've seen this stated a bunch and it's not technically correct.

ya now that you correct me i remember it so ty. i think the overall point is the same though relative to his inexperience.
he may not be an all timer but sark appears to be a good coach capable of winning big imo.