What to Expect

The OSU offense continues to develop, but last week it almost looked like the offense took a step backwards, as they did not score a touchdown, passes were dropped, the o-line was beat up, Pryor was sacked three times, the passing game was under 100 yards, Beanie was under 100 yards (although he had the flu all week), and the team was 4-14 on third down conversions. Look for Beanie to get 125-150 yards on the ground, and Pryor will improve his passing game. The O-Line is still a point of concern, especially with the season ending injuries of the two promising freshmen Adams and Shugarts. If you don't think a true freshman can make an impact on the O-line look who is at center, yeah Brewster since the Troy game, even after Cordle recovered from his injury. Cordle is back on the line, but Brewster has not given up the spot at center. Herron will miss another game, but Sanzenbacher is back. I am still upset about the hit Herron took that gave him the concusion, dirty football at Wisconsin, no surprise. I think OSU will keep Ringer in check, although he will still get close to 100 yards.. He averages two touchdowns a game in seven games, which is good by any standards, but if you take out the five touchdowns in the Eastern Michigan game he has 1.1 touchdowns/game in six games, which is less impressive, especially considering how many touches he gets. In the Iowa game, one of the few games against a "quality defense" he only had 91 yards and no touchdowns. OSU has struggled to defend the middle of the field, but I see them holding Ringer in check, in fact I think Beanie will have a better game. If the game is close MSU has a dependable kicker. Despite the growing pains of Pryor, he is winning, and it will take a crisis situation for a two QB system, unless Tressel can work out the problems that were evident in the USC game two QB strategy. Boeckman will get minutes, but not within the same series. OSU wins this one and moves one step closer to a showdown against Penn State.