Cincinnati vs. OSU Preview Part 4

Cincinnati vs. OSU, September 16, 12:05, ESPN Regional

 

What to Expect

Analysts are saying OSU could have a Texas hangover and letdown going into this matchup. Well in all honesty, what other storyline can they come up with as OSU prepares for a 1-1 Big East team, after a game in which OSU defeated the #2 team, defending National Champs. Cincinnati comes into this game after dominating the EKU Colonels of the mighty OVC conference. Then the Bearcats shot themselves in the foot several times to lose to Pittsburgh. So on paper this does not appear to be much of a game, although check back earlier in the preview to read about the 2004 game or check the blog and read the Buckeye History post, which covers the 2002 game between these two schools. OSU has to be careful when they play Ohio colleges, because those kids more than likely wanted to play for OSU, but instead they are at Miami, BGSU, Akron or Cincinnati. They see a visit to Ohio Stadium as a way to show Jim Tressel what he missed by not recruiting them. In fact many players for Cincinnati played at high schools in Columbus, one of those is starter cornerback/track star John Bowie, who played at Northland High.

However, all that being said I think this will be a relatively easy game for OSU, assuming OSU doesn't have a bunch of turnovers. I think the O-Line for Cincy is inexperienced and vulnerable. Look for OSU to expose that weakness. I think the Bearcats have some decent defensive backs, so OSU will want to establish a running game to help bring in the defenders. Cincy did give up 267 yards against Pitt through the air, but there were two passes for 80 and 55 yards, which make up half that total. OSU has struggled to defend the run, but I don't see Cincy having much luck rushing, they had 30 attempts for 35 yards against Pitt. Depending on how Cincy does its matchups, we could see the star sprinter John Bowie on Ted Ginn, which could be interesting. Look for OSU to score early by passing, which should allow all three running backs to gain some significant yards. Sorry Coach Mark Dantonio, this homecoming will give you another loss, putting you at 0-2 against your old boss Jim Tressel.