Bulletpoints: USC
Thoughts on Ohio State's 30-18 loss at USC.
- The only positive I have when it comes to my experience watching this game is that I was there and had a good time because I was hammered enough that at least half of it's a blur:
- I think what's most upsetting about this loss is that the root cause(s) of it are all the same issues that have either been permanent fixtures, or at very least common occurrences during the Ryan Day era. They didn't convert red zone trips into touchdowns. There was no urgency to play with tempo in the second half as they trailed by multiple scores. The offensive line got their asses kicked, while the tight ends were a negative in the run game and a minimal factor in the pass game. Special teams made several critical mistakes. Linebacker play was atrocious, and explosive plays doomed the defense. This was a pure Ryan Day loss in its most unfiltered form.
- I keep seeing people say Ohio State was "underprepared" or "not ready" for USC after the bye. That probably has some merit, but the better way to describe it for me is "arrogant." Everything about how Day and his staff approached this game was pure arrogance. They really thought they could win with that gameplan on each side of the ball? I thought the point of having two former NFL head coaches as your coordinators was giving yourself an advantage against every staff you go up against? Arthur Smith and Matt Patricia both got shoved into a locker by Lincoln Riley and Gary Patterson. Why can't Day and Smith cook up an efficient quick-passing game to help their first-time starting QB? Whose idea was it to line up like this from the half-yard line in a "gotta-have-it" situation:
