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I’ve written enough about Urban Meyer during the 2018 college football season that we bypass formalities and come to an informal understanding in our one-sided relationship. I’ll call him Urb and he can seek the wisdom of my high school Spanish teacher and call me any combination of the words George Carlin deemed no-no’s on television. Jocularity, guy stuff.
Such a relationship comes with an ability to cast shade on Meyer the coach. I’ve already dished on Meyer the person, leader of men, and pillar of virtues. Meyer the Coach has his team trending in the wrong direction.
He’s winless in his last three games.
Winless against the spread.
Who cares about shady figures you say! To hell with the unsavory sorts who through the act of picking a team to win or lose plus or minus numbers are proven to be a drain on society. How unseemly, how distasteful.
Entering the season, Urb posted a nice winning percentage ATS. Pushing 20 games above the even record mark in his all-time record against the Number. For a majority of his career, Meyer’s teams engendered the sort of optimism now exclusively reserved for Alabama.
So where has the optimism gone? Ohio State outlasted Penn State in a gimmick game on the road. Road teams aren’t supposed to win gimmick games, but they didn’t cover either. No problem, a forgivable offense. A venial sin committed against the gambling brethren. Half a Hail Mary and 50 cents in the communion basket and all is forgiven.
Redemption was supposed to follow at home.
Against Indiana. Against Minnesota. Current combined record of the two teams: 7-6.
Ohio State failed to cover in both contests. The Buckeyes are 3-4 ATS and 1-3 since Urb returned from his unpaid vacation to think about what he didn’t do. Is it that big of a deal?
I don’t know. I don’t.
The Buckeye’s inability to cover might not mean much in relation to their chances to make the college football playoff. Since 2010, the last eight national champions are a combined 69-45 ATS. Good numbers, not otherworldly, especially if we look at the last three national champions who were a combined 22-22 versus the Number. The inability to cover is just the surface level issue.
Apologies to Urb, but the slightest bit of uncertainty has crept into my Ohio State enthusiasm. Quarterback Dwayne Haskins amassed huge chunks of yardage in the wins against Indiana and Minnesota, totaling over 850 yards. Impressive stats, but the running game dipped. An average of 3.2 and 2.9 yards per carry in each of the last two games isn’t going to be enough to salt away games. So why am I so shook? (I would use “woke” but the bottom of my pant legs aren’t cuffed and I buy from the Dad’s Hat section of Lids. Explain how I could get away with “woke.”)
No one expected a convincing win against Penn State. Penn State affixed their hopes and dreams of the entire season to the home game against Ohio State. Indiana and Minnesota might’ve as well, but the talent discrepancy between Ohio State and those two programs did not allow for feasible hope. A lull was to be expected, but why does it feel so flat?
Wins against TCU and Penn State early in the season stand out in comparison to the other competition, but the style of play from the last two weeks won’t work against Purdue in West Lafayette. I haven’t wavered on my belief that Ohio State remains the best team in the B1G, but in the context of being a college football playoff team, Ohio State failed to put together eight quarters befitting one of the final four.
The paltry running numbers can’t sit well with Urb. Expect more balance this week. Ohio State can afford to look ahead by working on the running game for the benefit of not just Saturday, but conference games down the road.
It’s the only way Urb avoids spewing all those Carlin words. Same goes for us who take the Buckeyes giving the points.
Nick is a writer for saturdaytradition.com. Your overuse of GIFs forced him away from Twitter. He removed himself from consideration in the Vanderbilt heading coaching search.