In The Bleachers Podcast: Talking Buckeyes with Luke from Eleven Warriors
Stopping by today we've got Luke aka Worstfan from the Ohio State Buckeyes site Eleven Warriors. That's right folks we're hitting the midwest and that means we get into the Big Ten's leader first by talking about all things Buckeye. Luke and I kick it off by rehashing the offseason, getting his thoughts on expansion and its impact on the conference. We also discuss the Big Ten deciding on Lucas Oil Field as the inaugural site of their title game.
The talk turns heavy Buckeyes as we hit on the maturation of Terrelle Pryor and how the Ohio State junior appears to have become fully "Tressel-ized" heading into his third season. Luke offers up the idea that Tressel ball might become a bit more loose this season as we saw how successful the Buckeyes could be in the Rose Bowl when they just play football. Pryor has plenty of weapons and this season could be one of the Buckeyes' most explosive on offense.
We hit defense and while the The Ohio State is replacing some key players we hit on one of the biggest disconnects between preview mags and reality; new starters doesn't always mean total inexperience. The men stepping in to replace the departures have made plays in spots and played a lot of snaps so there shouldn't be much drop off as the new faces enter the starting line up.
Talk moves to the schedule and more specifically the Buckeyes' major competition for the Big Ten; Iowa, Wisconsin and Penn State. Question marks surround Penn Stateas Joe Pa's health is called into question and the loss of key players has truly weakened the Nittany Lions. Luke admits to being equally concerned about the contests at Camp Randall AND Kinnick Stadium as possible roadblocks to a league championship. Michigan also joins the party as Luke pulls few punches regarding his thoughts on the Wolverines' season prospects.
We wrap up with the obligatory "SEC question" by asking about how large the gap between the SEC and Big Ten truly is currently. The answer isn't that surprising as Ohio State and Iowa are two teams that currently should be able to compete with anyone in the nation. Partially perception, partially a product of the media and still largely based in the SEC's strong run of late the gap is legitimate. However, with wins agood showings in non-conference match ups and the addition of Nebraska the Big Ten is in the position to close ground on the SEC in the coming years.
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