1. I don’t want to get on a soapbox, but …
It’s happening, just like Urban Meyer hoped it wouldn’t. Just like it did seven years ago — and we all know how that ended.
What eventually will get Ohio State this season is the same thing that eventually got Florida in 2009: the unwritten standard — the sheer suffocation — of it’s not that you win, but how you win.
In other words, if the most talented team in the nation isn’t perfect on a weekly basis, then you’ve got problems. And eventually, it’s too much to overcome.
“We did not play well,” Urban Meyer said late Saturday afternoon. “But we’ll get better.”
That was after Ohio State beat Hawaii 38-0.
“I think it was pretty good the first game,” Meyer said minutes later. “Still not perfect.”
He was talking about scoring 42 points on Virginia Tech and Bud Foster, one of the game’s best defensive coordinators.
Before we go further, understand that this is what loaded defending national champions go through. In the BCS and College Football Playoff era, seven defending champions entered ensuing seasons as prohibitive favorites to win it all — and all but 2012 Alabama failed to do so.
Among those who didn’t — FSU (2000), Miami (2002), USC (2005), Florida (2009), Alabama (2010), and FSU (2014) — Ohio State closely resembles Florida because it’s where Meyer coached, and because the similarities are uncanny.
That Florida team entered the season loaded on both sides of the ball, and had drama at quarterback from Day 1 (see: Tim, are you a virgin?). Everyone, meet Cardale Jones and JT Barrett.
That Florida team had a new offensive coordinator, offensive line coach Steve Adazzio, who took over for a popular young OC (Dan Mullen) who left for his first head-coaching job. Ohio State line coach Ed Warinner is the new OC, replacing Tom Herman who left for his first head-coaching job.
That Florida team began the season with suspensions to key players for violations of team rules. Ohio State stars Joey Bosa, Jalin Marshall, Dontre Wilson and Corey Smith were suspended for the Virginia Tech game for a violation of team rules.
The most striking similarity of all: winning isn’t fun.
Continue Reading: First-and-10: Can Urban Meyer’s Buckeyes enjoy winning or fall into 2009 Gator trap?
