COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -During Ohio State coach Jim Tressel’s weekly radio show, the host casually framed a question by saying that certainly the Buckeyes had turned their full attention toward Saturday’s game against Minnesota.
Maybe not.
A week after an astonishing 26-18 loss at two-touchdown underdog Purdue, there is doubt that the Buckeyes have forgotten about a setback that unhinged their fans and has led to a week of criticism, finger-pointing and second-guessing.
“I’m not sure that that’s the case,” Tressel said of his players’ ability to move on. “You hope it’s not too quickly, because you’d better not forget what you need to get better at. And you hope it’s not too long, because you better know what Minnesota brings. So, is there a danger? Yes.”
team that came in having won just one of its six starts.
“They’re human,” Tressel said. “The only way that you evaluate that is how well do you do on the subsequent Saturday.”
The main goal for Ohio State remains a fifth consecutive Big Ten title. But the players recognize that they can’t afford any more slips.
“I don’t think knowing that there’s no margin for error will change how we prepare for anything,” wide receiver Dane Sanzenbacher said.
Even Minnesota (4-3, 2-2) is wondering which team it will face. The top-10 team that took advantage of every Wisconsin mistake in handing the Badgers their first loss two weeks ago? Or the confused bunch of individuals who yelled at each other and their coaches when Purdue wasn’t knocking them back?
“I don’t know that there’s going to be added motivation because they lost,” Golden Gophers coach Tim Brewster said. “I’ve said from the beginning, on any given Saturday, anybody can beat anybody in the Big Ten. I think that’s how this thing is shaking down.”
It’s been an amazing transformation for Ohio State’s fans – and maybe even the players. Just a week ago, the prospects of Minnesota giving the Buckeyes a game would have been slight. Now some Buckeyes fans have sounded like Chicken Little: Ohio State may not win another game! We can’t move the ball! The defense is in tatters!
Suddenly, nothing is guaranteed.
beat Purdue 35-20, so there’s a whole bunch of obvious (reasons to take them seriously),” Tressel said.
The focal point for 105,000-plus at Ohio Stadium will be quarterback Terrelle Pryor. Even though the offense has had severe problems most of the year, Pryor had predicted that the unit might “explode” against Purdue. Well, it was more of an implosion, with five costly turnovers and only one substantial drive.
Many Ohio State fans called for a change at the position, with Pryor moving to wide receiver where he could use that power-forward’s 6-foot-6, 235-pound frame, with unproven and virtually unknown Joe Bauserman taking over the controls of the offense.
Then Pryor’s high school coach criticized Ohio State, saying the nation’s No. 1 quarterback recruit in 2008 had been guaranteed a pro-style offense.
Next Cleveland Cavaliers superstar LeBron James revealed that he had been counseling Pryor on handling his fame while balancing the rest of his life, school and athletics.
At about the same time as James was speaking up, Pryor made an unannounced visit to reporters. He appeared to be looser, more comfortable than even a week before. He said he felt he fit into the Ohio State offense and questioned why his high school coach would say such a thing.
“For the rest of the season, we’re going to be pretty darn good,” Pryor said. “I wouldn’t trade where I am right now.”
similar issues, coming off a lopsided 20-0 loss to then-No. 14 Penn State at snowy Beaver Stadium on Saturday. The not-so-Golden Gophers managed just 37 rushing yards and 101 through the air while totaling seven first downs.
Taking a page from the Buckeyes, they also are trying to fight off the ugly memories of their most recent game.
“Penn State’s behind us,” quarterback Adam Weber said. “All the other losses are behind us, and this is a brand-new game.”
Tressel doesn’t anticipate his team being stuck in the past, either.
Of past teams that were suffering from a hangover after a loss, he said, “You wonder (if) you could get it out of them, that the world didn’t end.”
As for his current team, he added, “I didn’t sense that. I saw them focused in.”
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