Exit Pryor, Other Stuff You'll Care About Only Because It's the Offseason

Nowhere to hide come draft time supplemental draft time

So, it's official: Terrelle Pryor is no longer a Buckeye, having played his last game against the Mallett-led Razorbacks in the game of quarterbacks that got away. Has there even been a player that has affected both Michigan and Ohio State in every facet of his career? It starts from his decision to attend OSU over Michigan, leaks over into "what ifs" about the staying power of the Rich Rodriguez era at Michigan if RR had had a guy like Pryor running his offense from Day 1, and lastly and most obviously, the sanctions that are on the horizon as a result of Pryor's lack of respect for much of anything. As much as Pryor not choosing Michigan put RR behind from the start, it has thrown a rocket booster on Hoke's back as he zooms around from sea to shining sea, pointing at things and recruiting kids as if Noah filling up the Ark. Much more on who he'll be replaced by at a later date, but for now I'll just say the quarterback situation is not 2008 Michigan hopeless, but it's not exactly bright. Then again, when has OSU ever placed a high premium on elite QB play? Yeah.

I will say that I'm pretty shocked at how shocked some people are about this. Wasn't this basically inevitable?   Can you imagine him sitting out five games and coming back to play (assuming Miller or somebody else hasn't secured the role) out the season with all that has come out and will continue to come out? It seems pretty ridiculous, and so Pryor made the only decision he could in this case.

Michigan's the 12th best job in America...according to Andy Staples of SI. While it's a fruitless exercise to argue with one writer's opinion about a pretty nebulous thing like "best job," I think we can safely say that Michigan will be on the way into the top 10 and OSU will likely fall a few spots unless they make a slam dunk hire next year.



Staples writes:

Everyone in Ann Arbor seems to be behind Brady Hoke, which is the only reason this job — which probably would have ranked near the top five 10 years ago — is this high on the list. … Hoke knows he is at a special place. Michigan doesn't have the recruiting base of an Ohio State, a Penn State or an SEC power, but it has a dedicated fan base and the resources to draw recruits from other parts of the country.

Nice little backhanded compliment there, but it's true, I guess. An RR program flaw has flipped on its head and become a major program plus under Hoke (re: fan support and/or overall atmosphere of the program). It sure will be nice to talk about Hoke as a coach rather than Hoke as recruiter or Michigan football's Abraham Lincoln.

On a general college football note, Richt's situation at Georgia will also be a point of interest this upcoming season. Another shaky year and he could be on the way out, despite how stupid it would be for them to fire him. The man can coach, it has just been his misfortune to have had to go head to head with Urban Meyer on a regular basis. Also, PSU at #8 seems a tad too high to me. ANYWAY.

Scheduling! Kickoff times for the Western and Eastern games have been announced (3:30 ET and noon, respectively). As a big time proponent of the 3:30 start in Michigan Stadium, I approve. It should serve as a nice warm-up for the Notre Dame night game (!), which will be a marathon of a day for all parties involved. Five games are now set, with the other two being @Northwestern (7 ET) and Purdue (noon). Only 87 more days to go...actually, that isn't that far away. Does anybody else feel like the Gator Bowl was a long, long time ago? Nah, probably just a coping mechanism.

Tressel Halftime Speech:

A brief behind-the-scenes peek at Jim Tressel in halftime speech mode during the Arkansas game. Tressel saying "ass" four times in little over a minute is about the equivalent of the average Ozzie Guillen curse-laden diatribe, relatively. The audio quality leaves a little to be desired but a transcript is included. This type of thing is always interesting, particularly in light of the recent revelations about Jim Tressel. That's not to say that cursing a few times makes him a bad person, it's just so at odds with the image he kept up for over a decade in Columbus.

Big Ten Coaches Sans Tressel: Firstly, an interesting fact that I never really considered: Jim Tressel never won Big Ten Coach of the Year despite grabbing 70% of the last decade's conference titles. Pretty amazing but understandable given the absolute dominance that he enjoyed. Rittenberg lays out the various arguments for why Ferentz, Dantonio, Fitzgerald, and Pelini are now the most irreplaceable Big Ten head coach. I'd make a case for Fitzgerald given that he's a pretty darn good coach, not to mention ridiculously loyal. Although Fitzgerald seems to be more than happy with coaching in Evanston for the long haul, you can never say never. If he were to leave I think Northwestern might have a tough time retaining their status as that lower-middle tier team that nobody wants to play when they're playing their best.

Yes...it's Phil Steele time. In addition to picking Michigan to finish second to last in the Legends division, there's this (HT: EDSBS)...and yes, Bama fans everywhere just took this opportunity to claim their 347th national championship. The collective redneck will of Bama fans is so strong that they inception'd themselves into Steele's normally sturdy mind when he made up that page. ROLL TAHD!

Terrelle Pryor: 2010 Rose Bowl

[ed.: Not sure what happed to the right side of the last drive chart...it was fine when I checked it yesterday. Regardless, that drive was all run-out-the-clock Tresselball, so y'all aren't missing much.]


Alright, so I got bored and decided to just put this up today. I went through every offensive series that the BTN showed yesterday, primarily watching Pryor. Did he show signs of legitimate improvement in this game, and should we, as Michigan fans, be even more worried about 2010's version of The Game even more than we already might be?

Well, "improvement" is somewhat vague and subjective. Pryor will probably never put up Troy Smith-type stats through the air, and he likely won't ever have to. Even Pryor's stats in this year's Granddaddy (23-37, 266 yards, 2 TDs and 1 INT) aren't mindblowing, especially given that this performance is supposedly an indicator of things to come for Pryor. Make no mistake, Pryor had a great game; however, I'm not sure if the performance wasn't more attributable to solid offensive gameplanning and Oregon's defensive deficiencies. I'll now go through and do my best to analyze each play that the BTN showed (some were assuredly skipped over), looking at the types of passes TP was throwing, and the types of situations in which he excelled/struggled.

First Half, Drive 1

OSU 26	1st & 10	Shotgun, 1 back	A dangerous pass at the sticks that’s almost intercepted…not the best start.
26	2nd & 10	‘Gun1B, Trips right	A swing pass to Sanzenbacher goes for 4. Look for a lot of passes like this to him throughout the game.
30	3rd & 6	‘Gun1B	TP drops back and decides to take off, running through the middle of the line for 24. He comes up hobbling somewhat near the end of this play.
46	1st & 10	‘Gun1B (?)	Another short pass, this time to Posey for 4 near the right sideline.
UO 42	2nd & 6	‘Gun1B	TP hits Posey, who is running a slant on the left side. The corner is playing WAY off (sound familiar?), so the throw is relatively easy. Musberger swoons: “Terelle Pryor may be growing up right in front of us on this Rose Bowl afternoon.” We are 2:00 into the game.
UO 29	1st & 10	‘Gun1B	Flanker screen to Sanzenbacher for 7.
UO 22	2nd & 3	‘Gun1B	TP hands it off to Saine, who cuts it back up the middle for a solid 9 yards.
UO 13	1st & 10	‘Gun1B	Sanzenbacher runs a slant from the slot position, and TP quickly aims to hit him but the pass falls of #12’s fingertips. God coverage from UO’s Paysinger.
UO 13	2nd & 10	‘Gun2B (Boren and Saine)	Quick drop; TP throws a good looking ball to Posey in front left corner of the endzone. Posey drops it…this one’s on Posey.
UO 13	3rd & 10	‘Gun1B	TP drops back, finds no one, and hits the checkdown to Saine about 5 yards down the right sideline; Saine walks the tightrope and muscles his way into the endzone for 6.

1H2D

50	1st & 10	‘Gun1B	Boren and Saine on either sie of TP; TP easily sidesteps a rusher with a clean shot at him and launches a parabolic touch pass down the right sideline to Saine, who has slipped out on a wheel route, reminiscent of the same play in the 2008 BCS Title Game against LSU. Play goes for 46.
UO 4	1st & Goal	‘Gun1B	Bad snap; Pryor has trouble bringing it in and does well to get it back to the 6.
UO 6	2nd & Goal	‘Gun1B	Pryor fakes the handoff, dances up the middle for 3.
UO 3	3rd and Goal	‘Gun 1B	OSU runs what appears to be an option play. TP doesn’t seem to ever want to pitch it, which is wise as Oregon has got the pitchman covered. OSU Field Goal (OSU 10, UO 0)

1H3D

OSU 16	1st & 10	‘Gun1B	OSU runs the option play again; seemingly awkward pitch relationship, plus TP’s indecisiveness, leads to a minimal gain.
17	2nd & 9	‘Gun1B	TP drops back, begins to move around and eventually is brought down at the LOS.
17	2nd & 9	‘Gun1B	TP is sacked for a loss of 2. Sanzenbacher seems to come open across the middle right as TP begins to scramble, but TP doesn’t notice him as he is already concentrating on avoiding the swarm of UO defenders. Ducks are bringing heat.

1H4D

OSU 20	1st & 10	‘Gun2B	Pryor dumps to Herron in the middle for a modest gain.
24	2nd & 6	I-formation	Some old-school Tresselball. Herron for 4.
28	3rd & 2	‘Gun2B	Herron picks up the first as Herbie discusses UO putting 8 and 9 in the box to “test” TP. Boren leads the way for Herron, who picks up the first.
32	1st & 10	‘Gun1B	Quick pass to Sanzenbacher across the middle; decent pass, should’ve been caught but careens off of his fingertips.
32	2nd & 10	Under center, 1B	Run; Herron for 5.
36	3rd and 5	‘Gun2B	Pryor scans the field and takes off after abut a second; tackled for a gain of 1, but a personal foul penalty gives OSU the first.
UO 48	1st & 10	‘Gun1B	False start
OSU 47	1st & 15	‘Gun 1B	Pryor takes a couple steps to his right and hits Posey near the sideline.
UO 48	2nd & 11	‘Gun1B	Pryor drops back and lofts a pass with a little too much arc to Herron on a screen; loss of 1.
UO 49	3rd & 12	‘Gun2B	TP drops back, moves to his right and hits Herron who eventually slips open. Herbie notes that Pryor wants to hit Posey on the left side, but sees that he’s covered and thinks better of it.
UO 34	1st & 10	‘Gun1B	Hits Posey on the left with a quick slant (DB playing way off again)
UO 25	2nd & inches	I-form	Run up the middle; Saine picks it up.
UO 25	1st & 10	Under center, 1B	Illegal shift
UO 30	1st & 15	‘Gun 2B	Fakes sweep to Saine, avoids defender and hits Posey.
UO 20	2nd & 7	‘Gun2B	Waits and takes off for no gain. UO’s bringing pressure and TP has been forced to run often.
UO 20	3rd & 7	‘Gun1B	3-step drop and takes off, chased by several defenders. Does his standard “make everyone look like they’re running in mud” deal but comes up just short.
UO 14	4th & 1	Maryland-I	Handoff to Saine for the first. BIG TEN FOOTBALL AHH WENWONWO NQWN!!11!!1
UO 10	1st & Goal	‘Gun1B	TP drops and looks to Posey in the corner of the endzone but overshoots him.
UO 10	2nd & Goal	Empty trey	Flanker screen to Sanzenbacher. Sniffed out nicely; UO swarms and stops it for a loss of 3.
UO 13	3rd & Goal	‘Gun2B	TP sticks in the pocket for a good while and slings a dart to Posey in the middle of the endzone; he’s well-covered and the pass falls incomplete. Field goal; OSU 13, UO 10.

1H5D

UO 46 (after Homan interception: 25 seconds left in 1st half)	1st & 10	‘Gun2B	Deep drop, has all day to throw. Eventually tosses it away at the turf near Saine’s feet 5 yards downfield.
UO 46	2nd & 10	‘Gun1B	TP throws a dart near the left hash to Sanzenbacher for 18.
UO 28	1st & 10	Under center	Spike
UO 28	2nd & 10	‘Gun 2B	Feels pressure, scrambles and throws it out of bounds. :02 left; OSU opts for 3. OSU 16, UO 10.

2nd Half, 1st Drive

OSU 20	1st & 10	‘Gun1B	Hands off to Saine for 5.
24	2nd & 5	‘Gun1B	Yet another flanker screen to Sanzenbacher; picks up the first. Another “safe” throw for Pryor…
33	1st & 10	I-form	Run up the middle.
35	2nd & 8	I-form	PA rollout (to his left); TP goes deep to Posey. Throws a legitimately great ball. Only really the second deep try all game. Big gain here.
UO 29	1st & 10	‘Gun1B	PA; rolls rights to hit Sanzenbacher.
UO 24	2nd 5	I-form	Saine picks up most of it here.
UO 20	3rd & 1	I-form	Saine pounds through for the first.
UO 18	1st & 10	‘Gun1B	Zone read is stuffed by UO…at least we’re not the only ones having problems running the zone read!
UO 21	2nd & 13	‘Gun 1B	UO brings the house but TP calmly hits Sanzenbacher, who catches it then drops it after the DB takes out his legs.
UO 21	3rd & 13	‘Gun1B	Token fake, shoots for Sanzenbacher and man coverage. Sanz. runs the post, TP throws way behind him. Miscommunication? Field goal; OSU 19, UO 17.

2H2D

OSU 13	1st & 10	I-form	Saine for 5.
18	2nd & 5	I-form	Saine again for 2; Tressel reverting to old playcalling habits? (3Q ends).
20	3rd & 3	‘Gun1B	UO again brings several blitzers. TP’s pass to Sanz. falls incomplete; good coverage by the UO defensive back. OSU Punt.

2H3D

OSU 19	1st & 10	Single back, Boren offset left	Herron for 2.
21	2nd & 8	‘Gun1B	Pryor does his thing and scampers for the 1st after a DL gets his hands on him. As usual, he is too big and too fast to be taken down by arm tackles.
32	1st & 10	‘Gun1B	Herron for 1.
33	2nd & 9	‘Gun1B	PA, rolls right to hit Sanz. for 4.
37	3rd & 5	‘Gun1B	Hits Sanz. on quick slant. Good throw, but Herbie notes that Casey Matthews (yes, related to that Matthews) doesn’t get back in time after trying to show blitz pre-snap, leaving the lane open. Good throw, even if somewhat pitch-and-catch.
48	1st & 10	I-form	PA rollout right…nothing open so TP scrambles left and is caught by the shoestring for a loss.
46	2nd & 12	‘Gun1B	Another option-esque play…TP cuts it back and slips.
45	3rd & 13	‘Gun1B	Musberger mentions how quiet Ballard has been quiet all game. Of course, TP scrambles and throws up a jump ball that the 6’6’’ Ballard goes up and gets in traffic. “AND THERE’S OUR MAN BALLARD!” Indeed.
UO 31	1st & 10	Missed pre-snap as OSU picks up the pace	TP tosses incompletion, intended short for Sanz.
UO 31	2nd & 10	Under center, single back	Herron dances for 3.
UO 28	3rd & 7	‘Gun1B	Offsides on UO tackle. Facepalm. Either way, TP picked up the first with his feet.
UO 20	1st & 10	I-form	TRESSELBALL.
UO 17	2nd & 7	‘Gun2B	TP throws a beautiful pass to Posey near the front left pylon and Posey's backside shoulder. Touchdown Posey, OSU 26, UO 17.

2H4D

OSU 27	1st & 10	I-form	Tresselball for -2.
25	2nd & 12	‘Gun1B	Option; TP finally pitches it. Saine goes for a good gain.
35	3rd & 2	‘Gun1B	Option again; TP keeps it for the first.
40	1st & 10	I-form	Tressel. UO timeout.
42	2nd & 8	I form	Naked bootleg for 7.
49	3rd & 1	I-form	More Tressel. First down.
UO 49	1st & 10	I-form	Tressel.
UO 48	2nd & 9	I-form	PA bootleg to other side; TP runs for another first.
UO 36	1st & 10	I-form	Herbie talks about TP’s performance being a good indicator of things to come for OSU and how Tressel will be able to “trust” him more. Herron for 3.
UO 33	2nd & 7	Victory formation	QB Kneel. Game Over. OSU 26, UO 17.

Does all this mean anything at all?

Well, yes and no. Yes, this was arguably the best game of Pryor's career. The aforementioned numbers he put up are *insert any Texas Tech qb ever*-esque by OSU standards. The gameplan was classic Ohio State (i.e., ball control, whether via the run or the pass).

However, despite all of this, OSU only put up 26 points, 3 less than their season average. Oregon was not exactly a juggernaut on defense last year. Then again, OSU won, and that's all that matters. The deliberate, plodding style of offense that OSU employs limits opportunities to score, for either team, really. But about Pryor...

I will say that Pryor had a great game, and this post is in no way trying to discredit him or OSU's 2010 team. However, while reviewing this game, there are several obvious issues:

1) Decision time-Very few times throughout the game did TP hold on to the ball for more than a second or two; it was either quick pass or run. This tells me that Tressel perhaps simplified things, so that TP only had to look for 2, maybe even 1 receiver, before hitting the checkdown/running like heck. There's nothing wrong with this, because it worked, but I wonder if this is feasible against some of the better defensive teams in the country, especially if OSU hopes to make it back to the BCS Championship Game this year.

2) Short passes-I haven't gone back and counted, but a good majority of the passes were short ones, ten yards or less, and there were several flanker screens to Sanzenbacher. Of the 37 passes thrown, I counted only 10 that went 10+ yards (give or take a yard) in the air, and only 3 that went for 20+ (the Posey bomb, the Ballard jump ball, and the Saine wheel route). Then again, the fact that all 3 were completed is good news (for OSU, mind you).

3) Receivers-Pryor only hit Posey, Sanzenbacher, and the tailbacks (as well as the one to Ballard). It worked in this game, but if OSU faces a team with a good corner they may be in trouble (re: 2007 OSU-UF game). Take away the deep threat (i.e., Posey) and suddenly OSU could struggle, especially keeping in mind thethe lack of a superback like Beanie or an extremely accurate quarterback in Pryor. Then again, I guess that could be said about any team.

Conclusion: As frustrating as a conclusion it is to make after doing all that, I think that this game means very little in the grand scheme of things. Pryor looked great, running as well as passing. However, there's a difference between poise and Clausen-type poise...that is, hitting 4-6 yard passes is nice, but eventually teams are going to lock that up. The gameplan was crafted perfectly, and the OSU defense played as they usually do. Pyor was asked to make a quick read and run if it wasn't open, which is fine when you're up against an average defense. Against a top 10 defense, TP likely won't be able to just take off and run when his first and second options are covered. The Saine and Posey passes (the deep pass as well as the 4th Q touchdown) were all very nice passes, and TP showed consistent accuracy in the short passes as well, just as is to be expected of a D-I quarterback.

Either way, TP will be a handful for our Wolverines, regardless of how much the defense improves this season. 188 days till The Game.