Mirror images of each other...Ohio State v Indiana for the Big 10 Title!

Steve Helwagen of 24/7 Sports breaks down Saturday night's matchup. It may come down to 3rd down conversions

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
I'm sure Douglasen for Mike Elliot, Welcome to Columbus This

(00:02):
Morning News on six ten wtv N. That's in my heart,
so it might as well be on the air, you know.
It's it's it's hard. It is hard not to Uh.
They say, oh, you're just you're a homer. Well yeah,
I grew up here. Well duh, and it's hard for

(00:22):
me not to be. And this it's it's invigorating, it's tingling,
it is you know, I feel right now going into
this weekend almost the same way I did at the
end of August, first part of September, as the season began.
You wake up on that first first Saturday morning and
you have yourself a big protein filled breakfast and uh

(00:44):
and you flip on the pregame coverage on six ten
and you just it's I don't know that tradition, it's
been my whole life. Well, yeah, that that's been my
Saturdays in the fall. I was born into it.

Speaker 2 (00:56):
When your father plays for Ohio State, you don't really
have there is no choice. You just are and I
love it. Wouldn't have it any other way.

Speaker 1 (01:04):
We finished the regular season. We beat that team up North,
which is the all important game, and this honestly feels
like I'm starting over again, except it's colder. But it
feels like I'm beginning the season all over again and
in a completely new opponent coming to the field Saturday night,
the Indiana Hoosiers. First of all, don't laugh. We don't

(01:26):
know what a Hoosier is, but apparently it can be
dangerous sometimes. Steve Elwagon will twenty four seven Sports joining
us all the Legacy Retirement group dot com floon lines
right now, Steve, I was telling Campy earlier, I'm not scared,
but I'm cautious about Indiana, just because I know so
very little about him. I'm guessing you no more.

Speaker 3 (01:43):
Well, I've studied it, I've watched several other games this week,
and good morning fellas. It is a great week in
coming up with all the conference championship teams, and obviously
one versus two is just totally unprecedented, first time ever
for Big ten championship game, and it's been nineteen years

(02:05):
since Big ten's had one versus two games. It was
the Ohio State Michigan game back in two thousand and six.
So this is going to be something Tomorrow night in
Indiana has been very dominant this season, with their quarterback
Fernando Mendoza transferring in from cal and right now. He

(02:25):
was picked as the first team All Big Ten quarterback
ahead of Ohio States Julian, saying, who is the national
leader in passing efficiency and completion percentage? So go figure
on that. But you know it could come down these
two guys. The one who leads his team to the win,
if he plays well, could come away with the Eisman

(02:46):
Trophy next Saturday.

Speaker 1 (02:48):
The idea that you know, as you said, one into
both Big ten teams, that's that is amazing. Is there
anybody else in there for the Big ten? Do we
have any other Big Ten reps in like the top ten?

Speaker 3 (03:00):
Yeah, Oregon. Oregon's going to be a playoff team. And
in fact, if things fall the right way for them
this weekend, let's say Georgia were to lose or some
other things might happen, they could also get a top
four by for the playoff. I don't think the loser
of this game, Ohio State in Indiana is going to

(03:22):
fall out of the top four. I think they're still
going to be in there for a first round by.
And they're playing Obviously, the situation is still the same
as it's always been for the Big Ten. The winner
of this game goes to the Rose Bulls, So that
clears up a little bit of confusion there. And I
think the loser most likely would be the quote unquote

(03:44):
the host team or the higher seed the Orange Bowl probably,
But the Ohio State's not thinking about that, chuck, And
you know that's that's not perish the thought. They are
on an all time role here. Sixteenth straight wins and
the last eleven of them by eighteen points or more.
So they have been the most dominant team in college

(04:06):
football this season.

Speaker 1 (04:07):
Rose boll used to be what you wanted too, so
I'm real that's would be a great way.

Speaker 3 (04:12):
Well, it went very well for them last year. Let's
put it that way. When they're ahead of Oregon thirty
four to nothing, it must be a comfortable place for
ISOs State to play. Let's put it that way.

Speaker 2 (04:21):
And Steve Ohio State in Indiana, they're very similar the
way I look at some of the numbers. I mean,
you know, Indiana's scoring just over forty five points a game,
Ohio State just over thirty seven. On defense, Indiana is
allowing just over just under eleven points, whereas Ohio State
just our eight points a game. What do you see
in it as a difference that could make or break

(04:43):
it for Ohio State. The way I see it is
Ohio State's offensive approach could slow the game down for
Indiana's offense.

Speaker 3 (04:53):
Yeah, it'll be interesting to see how Ryan Day approaches
this game and if they are going to continue to
go with the slow tempo that's kind of served them
pretty well this year. This game obviously indoors at Lucas
Oil Stadium, so the conditions are no longer a factor
like they were last week with the snow and the
cold at Michigan. And it's a fast track, and my

(05:14):
memory goes back to watching guys like Devin Smith, Terry McLaurin,
Chris the Lava get deep, you know, Paris Campbell. I
think I had an eighty two yard touchdown catch in
this game for Ohio State. You know, a few years
ago in the Big Ten Championship game on the fast
track there at Lucas Oil Stadium. And we know that

(05:37):
Ohio State loves to go over the top to Jeremiah
Smith and Carnell Tate, two of the best wide receivers
in the country, and you're right, these teams are almost
mirror images. Ohio State's got Bo Jackson, who was he
was awarded second team All Big Ten, which is a
great honor for him as a true freshman. Think that
shows the respect that coaches around the Big Ten for him.

(06:01):
And he's really come on, he's had three straight one
hundred yard games. Now Indiana has Roman Hemby, who was
a player at Maryland transferred in to Indiana and has
done great job. And Indiana has a great array of
receivers Elijah Sarrat, EJ. Williams. Those guys are very good.

(06:22):
Omar Cooper is the guy who caught the pass in
the back of the end zone when they escaped to
in State obviously with that huge win. So yeah, they
are almost bear images. They have great tight ends, great
offensive lines, I mean, and then of course from the
defense both sides, very stifling. The one thing I think
sets the team's apart Igh State, as I noted a

(06:44):
minute ago, hasn't hasn't had a close scrape. I mean,
they beat Texas fourteen to seven, but they were up
fourteen to nothing and had the game, you know, pretty
much in hand when Texas scored their lone touchdown. You
look at Indiana, they had to scrape bio win at
Iowa and then that miraculous comeback that Mendoza led at

(07:06):
Penn State. They won twenty seven to twenty four. Over there,
that's the team. Ohio State be thirty eight to fourteen.
So you know, comparisons are what they are. They don't
mean a whole lot. We're going to see one heck
of a football game tomorrow night.

Speaker 1 (07:19):
This Steve Helwagen joining us from twenty four to seven
Sports right now on the Legacy Retirement Group dot com
phone lines camping. Now we're talking earlier. My contingent is
here with my little knowledge about Indiana. Our defense is it?
I really believe. And you were talking about bo Jackson.
I think this again, just gut. I think Ryan Day's
been playing things close to the best. We got Peeples,

(07:39):
we got West, we got bo Jackson was supposed to
be third or twenty eighth on the chart. I mean,
and I think they've got the natural talent. He knows
he's got this running corp that nobody has seen yet.
And this is where we start turning them loose.

Speaker 3 (07:53):
Yeah, you know, last week against Michigan. Everything clicked for
the running game to get one hundred and eighty yards
rushing and out game Michigan by eighty yards on the ground.
And that old axiom that the one that runs the
ball better in that game is the team that wins.
That that was certainly true last week. One factor I
think that's going to come into this. Both these teams

(08:16):
are in the top five nationally on third down offense
and defense. Think about that, all four of those ratings,
you know, both of them for Ohio State and both
of them for Indiana. The team that wins third down
and if they go for it on fourth down. Last week,
Ohio State was twelve of twenty between third and fourth
down against Michigan and poort Michigan was one of ten.

(08:39):
Oh my goodness, what a nightmare it was for their offense.
They could not sustain drives against that Ohio State defense.
So that's what it's going to be in And one
more thing I'll throw in there. You know, people are like, oh,
this game doesn't mean anything, the playoffs coming up and whatever. Well,
you know, Ohigo State, you know, ticked off the Michigan box.
They haven't won the big tenses twenty twelve. Let's look

(09:01):
at Indiana hasn't beaten Ohio State since nineteen eighty eight,
and I was there. I was a student at Ohio
State when that was going on, and it was so
bad you had to sneak beer into the game to
survive that nineteen eighty eight season. I mean, they weren't
selling you the twenty four ounce of beers down on
the concourse back in nineteen eighty eight. You had to
bring your own. And then obviously they haven't won the

(09:24):
Big Ten since nineteen sixty seven. It was a three
way tie with Purdue, Minnesota, and Indiana. I believe Indiana
went to the Rose Bowl that year, So you know,
it's been a long time between drinks of water. I'll
I state thirty nine Big Ten championships to two two
all time for Indiana. You don't think those people want
to win this game.

Speaker 2 (09:45):
So you're saying there's some motivation there, Steve No, I agree.

Speaker 3 (09:48):
Say yeah there, I would say I don't. I don't.
I've never agreed with a game.

Speaker 2 (09:52):
That doesn't mean anything. I mean, you if you stay
motivated and you have a goal ahead of you, that's
when you play your best football. Steve if I wanted
to quick question, I'm seeing something with Indiana's defense and
I think Ohio State can exploit And I want to
know if you agree or disagree. Indiana has a very
aggressive style of defense, especially with the linebackers. They tend

(10:13):
to come up towards the line and a kind of
an attacking downhill style.

Speaker 1 (10:17):
I really think Ohio State.

Speaker 2 (10:18):
Can exploit that with seam routes, you know, tight ends
someone in the slot that opens up the middle of that.

Speaker 3 (10:24):
Field definitely, and I think the draw game with the
running backs could be there as well. I watched let's
see three of their games. I watched Purdue, I watched Illinois,
who they beat sixty three to ten, and I watched
the Penn Steak game that went down to the wire.
And I noticed that, particularly Penn State, with their great
running backs, they were a little bit susceptible to the run.

(10:46):
So I think that that would be there and this
could be a game again. The tight end, Max Clair
has really come on for Ohio State this year. He
ended up being a first team All Big Ten tight end.
It was kind of a quiet year for him, but
quietly he's got forty catches on the year, so he
really came on here down the stretch, particularly when Kate

(11:07):
and Smith weren't available, so he could be a weapon
in this game. I agree one hundred percent. And again
I think we're in for something. I think I State's
walking into a hornet's nest o. High State was only
given eight thousand tickets, and I presume Indiana is the same.
But I think most of the rest of the people
attending the game are probably from the state of Indiana.

(11:29):
So just as a proviso, I think it's going to
be sixty forty, maybe seventy thirty for Indiana walking in there.

Speaker 1 (11:38):
Steve Hellwagan's twenty four to seven Sports, I appreciate your
time this morning and all the information you bring to
the table. Thank you very much. In case you're keeping track,
I'm calling it thirty one twenty buck guys for tomorrow.
Right there, I

Speaker 3 (11:50):
Said thirty one twenty one, so you and I great
mind