(11-23-2015 01:30 PM)UofToledoFans Wrote: This seasons team is nothing without Herman though... that much is true. Same talent on the team as last year...actually healthier same talent and way less production. Meyer is an awesome HC with an incredible resume, but his OSU offense from last year was credit to Herman. Without him, their offense is goodish, not greatish. OSU does have a good D, and Meyer is a good coach....but they are missing Herman. The events post game prove that play calling was a boo boo against MSU.
And how much of that statement was ridiculous? Whiny losers? Check. Sore losers? Check. Meyer owns success at Ohio State to Herman? Maybe not all of his success, but his offensive success and play calling ability.... Check.
Last year tOSU lost to a VA Tech team that was no where near as good as Michigan State is this year so why the big whoop now? Well, there are two significant differences between last year's loss and this year's loss and I am not counting Herman as one of them. How badly a loss hurts a team often depends on when that loss was incurred. Last year the loss to VA Tech was early in the season which allowed them time to recover in the polls and it was OCC so it did not affect their standing within the conference----this year they lost in conference and too late in the season to recover in the polls.
However, the big difference is that after the early loss last year, expectations for a national championship fell to near zero, yet they were able to fight their way back into the picture and got what was at the time a somewhat controversial 4th place bowl ranking that allowed them to barely slip in the back door to the championship playoff series which they proceeded to win with a 3rd string QB who stepped up to save the day-------great story of overcoming obstacles, etc etc---media is disgustingly falling all over themselves fawning over tOSU and Coach Meyer and the team----the fans are obscenely happy and it is a feel good story all around.
Fast forward to this year and the media and entire football world anoints tOSU as national champs again before they take the first snap in the first game. The team and its fans are supremely confident to the point of arrogance as expectations soar past the moon. Players are elevated to the status of Hollywood Icons and Rock Stars, and start believing all the news stories and all those clippings as they slowly wind their way thru what is by enlarge a mediocre conference schedule as they confidently edge closer and closer to encountering the better conference teams at the very end of the season. So when the wheels came off the wagon Saturday, it was a very, very big catastrophic crash with a lot of abruptly crushed egos and dreams and that is what contributed to much of the finger pointing, name calling and blame that ensued. Kein Wunder! It is very difficult for any team to go undefeated over an entire season, regardless of their schedule so why indeed, the big surprise??
The big difference its that last year expectations were crushed early and hence the rest of the season was a pleasant surprise whereas this year expectations were sky high from the very outset and continued to grow week after week with every win until they came crashing down in a mighty roar following a terrible performance by tOSU near the end of the season.
Remember, you can't truly crush expectations with any brutality or real dramatic flair until they have first been raised to unreasonable heights----and that is exactly what happened to tOSU this year.
