They’re off and running - the Huskies that is.  With tails tucked firmly between their legs they are heading back to somewhere in the upper latitudes of Illinois.  Sadly, they did not provide much opposition for the Buckeyes last Saturday.  It was fun for about one quarter,  then it began to look like a lot of opening games.  Troy and the offense looked ultra-efficient early, then mistakes and substitutes took over.  Garrett Wolfe kind of took over, too.  He gashed the Silver Bullets in a variety of ways for way too many yards.  The good news for our defense is there is nothing like game tape to teach and the staff now has a lot of game tape on a lot of players.  Also,  it must be remembered that the defense did a pretty good job of keeping Wolfe and the Huskies out of the end zone.  The missed assignments, particularly on the screen and swing passes, will be corrected.  The missed tackles worry me more.  Good tacklers make tackles, period. The Buckeyes have been blessed with a large number of extraordinary tacklers in the recent past.  Maybe it was  a case of first game jitters.  Woody always said that a team improved the most between the first and second games.  Let us hope.  On offense, Troy looked great as did Teddy, Gonzo and the rest of the receivers, who completely outclassed the NIU secondary.  Finding large empty areas of grass won’t be quite so easy in Austin.  It may be somewhat less difficult now that UT corner Tarrell Brown has been suspended because he  found some grass of his own.  Pittman and the Wells brothers looked solid if unspectacular.  I am actually happy that Chris Wells fumbled.  A cheap reminder for him to understand the importance of ball security in a game where we could afford the lesson.  The Buckeye O-line kept Troy more erect than an overdose of Viagra.  That was maybe the best thing I saw on Saturday.  All in all it was a dominating, if imperfect, opening game performance against what we think is a respectable opponent. 

            With game one in the books we can all stop pretending  that we weren’t looking ahead.  All the focus is now on the battle in Austin.  The game is being touted as #1 vs #2, but what has either team really done to deserve their lofty rankings?  Not much.   Such is life with early season polls.  Still it is a huge intersectional game between traditional powers with national  championship implications.   The Buckeyes had every opportunity to win the game the year ago, but Vince Young made plays where the Bucks did not.   Young was the difference last year in Columbus, no doubt, but he has left for the NFL.  Unfortunately so has most of our defense from a year ago.  Texas is stacked with NFL caliber talent on both sides of the ball.  Their offensive and defensive lines are among the best in the country.  Both teams will rely on their offenses.  The UT offense has an edge over the young Buckeye defense.  Equally, the UT D will have their hands full with the prolific OSU offense.  Texas will rely on their offensive line to open holes for Jamal Charles,  and Selvin Young, soon to be seen in NFL uniforms.  The Horns also lost Ramonce Taylor who accounted for 15 touchdowns last year.  His was dismissed from the squad last spring after being charged with various gun and drug violations.  I’m sure it’s not a trend.   Red shirt freshman QB Colt McCoy will need his line to protect him long enough for his speedy receivers to run free in the green OSU secondary.  Likewise OSU will need their hogmollies to allow our talented stable of running backs to rip the Horns.  Troy will need his line and his mobility to  find Teddy, and Gonzo and the rest.  Aside from the obvious coach-speak (but true) reasons of turnovers and big mistakes the game will come down to two factors, both of which favor the Buckeyes.  While the Texas offense is superior to the OSU defense, the Buckeye offense is superior to the UT defense; the difference will be at QB.  While no one on the field this year is as gifted as Vince Young , Troy Smith, should have a huge edge over his inexperienced counterpart, McCoy.   He makes plays and finds ways to win.  The second variable favoring the Buckeyes will be on the sideline.  Mack Brown, before last season, was not known for winning big games. His break through came last year when as he stated “we decided to let Vince be Vince”.   I don’t think letting Colt be Colt will get the job done this year.  Tressel seems at his best in big games.  I think the record proves that, despite the loss a year ago in Columbus.  We are not overlooking the factor of Long Horn Defensive coordinator Gene Chizik, who has won about 120 some games in a row at both Auburn and UT.  I think his impact is countered by Jim Heacock who may be the most underrated and unrecognized assistant in the game.  If I recall correctly, Coach Heacock out-dueled the well-known Genius of South Bend in the Fiesta Bowl.   The heat will be an advantage for Texas.  How hot will it be?   It will be hotter than the surface temperature of Rosie O’Donnell’s inner thighs after a 20 mile hike in hot pants.  Let’s be thankful for the late kickoff.   The Horns will not find any answers to the OSU offense and the Silver Bullets  will force McCoy into enough mistakes to take a 35-21 win back to Columbus.

            The Buckeye players won’t get a chance to experience much Texas culture, but for our fans making the trip I can offer a few words of advice.   Chicken fried steak and Frito pies – good.  Big haired women and lamb fries – bad.  Beer –Shiner Bock good, Lone Star bad.  Watch out for Bevo.  The Texans seem to love the big walking hunk of prime rib.  They even mark off and number squares in fields and bet which ones he will decorate.  Watch where you  step.  A blue norther is not a Weasel fan from the Upper Peninsula, but a very windy storm.  Seek shelter.  Under Bevo or behind one of the afore-mentioned big haired women would be good.  The other way around –not good.   The state of Texas has a lot of history, but one slogan seems to be known above all others:  “Remember the Alamo”.  Well the Alamo was a home game and the Texans lost in convincing fashion.  While the Buckeyes don’t quite have the firepower of the Mexican army, they have enough to win more easily than most expect.

            Elsewhere we find ND hosting the Nittany Lions.  This one should be interesting.  Are the Irish as wildly overrated as they looked last week and what is Penn State without Michael Robinson?  I think the Irish prevail as Brady Quinn shows, for at least one week, why he has been awarded the Heisman Trophy.  Otherwise, there is a dearth of big games.  Clemson at BC, Georgia at South Carolina,  and Washington at OU are what pass for big games this week.  I like Clemson, Georgia and the Sooners for no apparent reason. The spotlight is definitely on the Buckeyes and Long Horns in Austin.  Look out Bevo, you’re what’s for dinner!