Displaced Cleveland Fan

Unbelievable.

Or, not surprising. Either one will fit.

Ohio State was not supposed to win this game. They barely beat Navy last week. USC was coming off a lopsided win. Ohio State, an “overrated” #8 was an underdog at home to #3 USC. The Buckeyes were supposed to lose.

But something happened. For 53 minutes, the Buckeyes outplayed the Trojans. With 7:29 left in the game, Ohio State was up 15-10 with USC starting at their own 14 yard line. After a sack and a false start, it looked like the Buckeyes’ defense, which was tough all night, would get the ball back for the offense again.

But then something else happened. (more…)

Week 2 of the college football season and the Buckeyes are facing a must-win game. A loss effectively eliminates Ohio State from any prospect of going to the national championship game. A loss also means the claims that the Buckeyes can’t win a big game and that the Big Ten is a weak conference will continue.

Ohio State lost to USC in Los Angelas last year, 35-3. Now they host the Trojans in Columbus. The Buckeyes have to win this game.

So how will this game play out? There are four possibilities:
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The competition is over. Brady Quinn is the starting QB for the Cleveland Browns. He will start Sunday’s game against the Vikings.

This decision was supposed to be kept a secret. But Terrell Owens, of all people, “leaked” this information on Twitter.

OK, I don’t really think he let this slip. I think he was just looking to make news. His tweet congratulated Brady Quinn for winning the job. That doesn’t necessarily mean T.O. heard about Coach Mangini’s decision. Judging by the preseason, Quinn was likely going to be the starter. Owens made an “educated” guess (how ironic) and made it look like he was spilling the beans.

The T.O. tweet alone does not make this official, obviously. But Cleveland Plain Dealer’s Mary Kay Cabot confirms that Quinn is the starter.
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The big story to have come out of Ohio State’s season opener against Navy has nothing to do with the game. The talk has been about Buckeye QB Terrelle Pryor’s tribute to Michael Vick. (Under one eye, he had the name “Vick” written on the eye black.)

Since being released from prison for his role in a dogfighting operation, Vick has signed with the Philadelphia Eagles and is waiting for his suspension to be over so he can play football in the NFL once again. The league has been criticized for reinstating him. The Eagles have been criticized for signing him. Now Pryor is under criticism for this show of support.

Many are quick to jump on Pryor for this. Now, I believe he should have run this idea by his coach before doing something that would generate this much controversy. And I believe he could have framed his response better when questioned about it (”Everyone kills people.”). But remember, he’s still just a sophomore in college, so it’s not surprising that he might do something unwise. It’s just that this caught national attention. I don’t believe the coaches will allow him to do something like this again.

But this post is not so much about Pryor’s lapse in judgment, but about the continued animosity people have toward Michael Vick. It has bothered me for a while and this episode with Pryor gives me an excuse to write about it.
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The Ohio State Buckeyes opened the 2009 season at home, barely holding on to beat unranked Navy.

Were it not for Brian Rolle (pictured) intercepting Ricky Dobbs’ 2-point conversion pass and returning it into the end zone for 2 points, the game would have been tied and Navy would have had the chance to steal the game.
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Apparently, the list of things I wanted to see in the Browns’ final preseason game was vastly different than that of head coach Eric Mangini.

I wanted to see a clear starting QB emerge. Brett Ratliff got the start. Neither Brady Quinn nor Derek Anderson played.

I wanted to see a focused Braylon Edwards playing like a legitimate #1 WR. He too did not play.

I wanted to see a solid running game. The team’s leading rusher was Chris Jennings.

I wanted to see Shaun Rogers on the field. He wasn’t even in uniform.
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The Browns play their final preseason game tonight against Chicago. This will be the last game before the regular season kicks off against Minnesota on the 13th. So what would I like to see in this game?

One QB emerge as the clear starter. This QB battle has gone on way too long. Either Brady Quinn or Derek Anderson has to step up and prove they have the ability to lead this team. Right now, I believe Quinn is potentially the better QB. But he needs to remove all doubt and show everyone what he can do.
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